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Re: Home at last...
I had my original redipped but they didn't disassemble it to do all the different parts, though. Your latch setup does look nice.
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Re: Home at last...
Still waiting on the other sheetmetal...
Spent last night charging the a/c system with the R12 I have been saving all these years. My mechanic buddy has all the hoses, gauges and vacuum pump, which made it very easy. Blows nice and cold (50 degrees on a 90 degree day). http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003749.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
Still waiting for more parts to get painted...
Started fine tuning some things: I didn't like the factory fit of the driver's side rear marker light bezel. It seems like they made the bezel about 1/16" of an inch larger than the beveled opening it was designed to fit into. The passenger side fit OK but the driver's side actually sticks out and wouldn't seat properly against the lens assembly. It's not the body work/paint depth, it's actually the bezel that's too long. I bought a couple extra bezels on ebay and found the same bent curvature in them from over-tightening that existed on my original piece. So I ended up using one of the straightest bezels I could find and did a little hammer and anvil work to flatten it out. I then just ground the edges away and sanded till the bezel would inset properly into the beveled mounting area. Here's the before: http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003782.jpg And a close up of the edge that wouldn't inset properly: http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003783.jpg And here is the extra bezel after grinding, sanding and filing. Fits nicely now. And the lens actually indexes properly into the two slots instead of sitting behind the bezel. http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003792.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
Damn Steve your Trans Am is going to have the best fit and finish of any F-Body out there; nice work, looks much better.
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I agree, IF you worked for Fisher Body back then, they'd be lucky to complete 3 cars a day instead of 300. There are 2 ways to restore a car; the way Chevrolet built it and the way we wish they built it. IT's nice to see both examples.........as long as we know the difference. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/flag.gif
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Obviously, I would have gotten fired after the first day.
But at least those three people would have been happy customers. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/grin.gif |
Re: Home at last...
I guess you could consider this Trans Am's body as being blueprinted?
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Re: Home at last...
[ QUOTE ]
Obviously, I would have gotten fired after the first day. But at least those three people would have been happy customers. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/grin.gif [/ QUOTE ] That was the PERFECT reply Steve https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...iggthumpup.gif |
Re: Home at last...
Finally picked up the trunk lid, intermediate panel and tail light panel today. The painter was having problems with solvent pop due to the insane heat and humidity lately and had to get some really slow reducer to get it to come out right. He's working on the front fenders and hood now.
Spent a couple hours tonight installing the intermediate panel and the rear window trim. The trick for installing the window trim without cracking the nearby paint is to put a layer of masking tape along the entire painted edge and then gently push the moldings down til they engage the trim clips, starting at the outside of the car and moving toward the center. Worked like a charm. I then installed the taillight panel and the tail lights. Tomorrow I'll get the rear bumper and license plate bracket set up installed. The license plate bracket is a little tricky since I have the original dealer cast metal license plate frame and want to use it on the rear plate. I have to use longer mounting bolts and install several washers to kick the hinge mechanism out about 3/8" of an inch so the lower edge of the license plate doesn't gouge the paint when it folds down to access the gas cap. Even on a frameless plate, they will still scrape the paint if not spaced out properly. And no, those infamous vintage mudflaps are not permanently installed, just hanging there on rubber clips. (keeps the paint protected for those test drives around the gravel driveway). If you look closely you'll even see my original "Keep On Truckin" floormats sitting under the trunk lid on the car cover next to the 'bird. ;-) http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003803.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003802.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
That car is going to be gorgeous when done; you're in the home stretch now................ https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...lins/beers.gif
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Steve........When you finish this one........What's next in the Pipeline???.........Great Job!! https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...iggthumpup.gif
Ken https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/flag.gif |
Re: Free gift from 1972 UAW workers!
[ QUOTE ]
I peel back the factory mastic sound deadener and I find a right rear side marker lamp bezel face down against the floor pan: [/ QUOTE ] sell it on ebay, it is a nos CORRECT assembly line part https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...lins/smile.gif |
Re: Free gift from 1972 UAW workers!
Got the trunk weatherstrip, tail light panel, and tail lights installed. Then I got the license plate bracket in and adjusted far enough up and out to clear the tail light panel. Bumper installed rather easily as well. Strange that there is really no adjustment slots in the brackets - it's one position fits all cars. Luckily it lined up just fine.
I tried bolting up the trunk lid but I forgot the shims at the paint shop, oh well. http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003818.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003817.jpg And the original selling dealership's pot metal license plate frame. Found it a couple years ago on ebay after someone on the website gave me a heads up. http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003819.jpg |
Re: Free gift from 1972 UAW workers!
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Re: Home at last...
[ QUOTE ]
Steve........When you finish this one........What's next in the Pipeline??? Ken https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/flag.gif [/ QUOTE ] Bankruptcy! |
Re: Home at last...
Very cool Steve!
Just so that you know...as far as the registration stickers go...the left side of the license plate should have the month designation the right side should have the year... https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...lins/beers.gif |
Re: Home at last...
Those were the original stickers on there when I bought the plate. There's no more stickers underneath them. (Looks like the first owner of that plate was a doin' a little too much California Dreamin' when he put his first stickers on). Do you have a photo of the separate month and year stickers to compare?
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Re: Home at last...
I went over and checked the "California Reissuing Black Plates" thread and I see what you mean about the month sticker. The car was sold in Dec 71 so I guess the 72 sticker on the right side would be proper and it needs a Dec month sticker on the left.
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Does anyone outside of California use their Cali plates? Is it legal if you live in another state to use them?
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Not really legal to drive on them if they're not registered to the car. I've seen a few guys driving around here with them on and they carry their legit plates in the car with them in case they're stopped. Looks neat, though, for the car shows.
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Re: Home at last...
[ QUOTE ]
I went over and checked the "California Reissuing Black Plates" thread and I see what you mean about the month sticker. The car was sold in Dec 71 so I guess the 72 sticker on the right side would be proper and it needs a Dec month sticker on the left. [/ QUOTE ] You are correct Steve! https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/grin.gif |
Re: Home at last...
After the guys on the Pontiac Website mentioned that the "PONTIAC" letters on the tail didn't have the requisite white painted center areas, I took the whole back section apart and removed the letters and used One-Shot white lettering enamel to fill the center area of each letter. Took a couple days for the letters to dry. I had to pull the tail panel off for a paint repair, anyway.
The wife and I installed the trunk lid last night after I ran all the way back to the body shop in PA to retrieve the shims. I spent today masking off the bolts and hinge flange and painting it so it looks untouched. http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003822.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003826.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7003828.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
The front fenders are finally painted.
http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...15268b/281.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...15268b/282.jpg Just spent a couple days fixing the a/c compressor. A few days after filling the new GM (not rebuilt) compressor with $$$ worth of R12, I noticed oil seepage at the rear o-ring gap on the rear cylinger head. My mechanic friend had an R12 recovery system until recently, but one of his "assistants" tossed it in the dumpster during a cleaning fest when my mechanic wasn't around, with about 10 pounds of my R12 still in it. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...s/rolleyes.gif I have a few extra compressors so I was able to get another rear head and picked up a new o-ring from an AC supply place. It turns out the factory rolled the rear o-ring when it was originally manufactured resulting in the leak after being put under pressure even though it passed the vacuum evacuation test just fine. I replaced the head along with the o-ring anway, just to be sure. Between the mechanic and I, we had enough leftover cans of R12 to refill the system, which is now holding with no more oil seepage. Goes down to 45 degrees, too (now that Summer is over, of course.) |
Re: Home at last...
Running back to that body shop in Pa. at nite could be a tough task. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...iggthumpup.gif https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...lins/beers.gif
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Re: Home at last...
Got half of my decal kit from Stencils&Stripes delivered. Unfortunately, the hood section is on backorder and probably won't be available until December, according to Ralph, the owner. But then again the hood isn't even painted at the moment...
I followed their directions and used the application gel cut 50/50 with water in a spray bottle. Worked very well. Following Ralph's advice I didn't get too nervous about the remaining water bubbles under the decal after the major squeegying was finished. He said they will evaporate after a few days, even if you don't set the car out in the sun. He was right. After about a week, 99% of the bubbles are gone. I only see two small ones left. We haven't had any sunny days so I haven't been able to set her out til today. And what happens when I pulled her outside? The clouds came out. Typical! https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...s/rolleyes.gif http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7004090.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7004088.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/S7004084.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
[b]WOW!!! LOOKS GREAT!
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Re: Home at last...
TMI ,but I have wood!!!! https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...s/headbang.gif
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Re: Home at last...
Got the rear stripe on the trunklid. A little tricky without the center section of the spoiler, so I had to borrow the spoiler center section from my Grandmother's Firebird to get the measurements just right. The rear edge of the stripe is supposed to extend about a 1/2 inch under the edge of the spoiler.
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Both front fenders painted and buffed out:
http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...15268b/283.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...15268b/284.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...15268b/285.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
Steve by any chance have you kept a record of the Hours that you have invested in your car, Not including the time invested by the Body and Paint Shop; Just what you have spent working on the car and related parts. If I had a penny for every customer who asked why does it take so much time I could take the family out to dinner at a 4 star restaurant? When I tell people they are looking at a minimum of $10-15,000 just for prep and paint you should see the looks I get. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/eek.gif
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Re: Home at last...
I'd like to bill for the hours Steve has spent https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...ns/scholar.gifexplaining, documenting, and photographing the entire procedure for us.
https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...ns/worship.gif https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...iggthumpup.gif "everything you didn't know about a T/A" https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/cool.gif |
Re: Home at last...
[ QUOTE ]
Steve by any chance have you kept a record of the Hours that you have invested in your car, Not including the time invested by the Body and Paint Shop; Just what you have spent working on the car and related parts. If I had a penny for every customer who asked why does it take so much time I could take the family out to dinner at a 4 star restaurant? When I tell people they are looking at a minimum of $10-15,000 just for prep and paint you should see the looks I get. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/eek.gif [/ QUOTE ] I keep track of my time on the car by buying calenders. It's easier than using a calculator. I bought the car on 11/11/2004 and have been working on it ever since - just about every weekend since! I probably have at least another calender to go before it's finished. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...s/rolleyes.gif |
Re: Home at last...
Bought it on Veterans Day https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/flag.gif
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If I had to guess I would say that you have 1500 thus far. You can't rush quality and it shows as if you made sure all the details are just right.
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Steve, when that car is finished you need to have a BIG PARTY and invite everyone....
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Are you kidding? When he is finished we need to have a big party FOR Steve.
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At this rate, it will debut at my daughter's Sweet-16 party. As you may recall from this never-ending, epic Odyssean thread, she helped me assemble the engine when she was 8...she's in high school now.
http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...hengine1-1.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
Picked up the fenders on Saturday. The high schooler took some time out from her busy social calendar to help me hang the drivers side fender. And the wife helped with the passenger side fender. The drivers' side fender took about 5 hours to get close and the passenger side took about 3 hours.
Even though both fenders were prefitted and the body work done with the fenders on the car, the shims that were used did not give the right alignment so I pretty much started from scratch. I found that to get the door gap right I had to alternate between one floor jack under the back of the subframe and another under the front crossmember. I would raise the middle of the car to get the bottom half of the gap right, tighten the bolts, let the car down and then raise the nose to get the upper half of the door gap right and then tighten it. The second generation F-bodies are a pain in the butt as the center of the front of the door by the body line, scissors inward along the outer edge of the fender while the bottom and tops of the doors scrissor outside of the fender edge. It's rather maddening to get it done without shreddding the edges of the paint on either panel. http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/SDC10971.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/SDC10976.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/SDC10980.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/SDC10975.jpg The door gaps. The factory spec is .220 +-.04 and I was able to get them around .19. They still look pretty wide but any closer and the front edges will rub/chip off the paint. http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/SDC10977.jpg http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/r...b/SDC10979.jpg |
Re: Home at last...
good work! Gaps are so important and your attention to detail is what makes this build superior!
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