MAGNA's AOD Buildup

[Mr. Land Yacht]

ah..that makes total sense...thanx Duce.

I'm happy to report that since the Demon Carb went on, the trans has been acting normally...no slipping and it is going into each gear firmly as normal...so it will last me a longer time.
but I'm planning to build up the Trans in '08....if I have money left before next winter, I will get all my rust fixed.
my uncle wants to paint the whole car...and I was pfft. nope.
I realize that for the tiny rust spots around the car that matching new beige paint to the 20yr old paint will be extremely difficult.
but since there is next to no rust in that area, I would rather he focus on the rust in the tutone color.
but anyway, I dont think I will just blindly have him do it....I have seen the work that his buddy can do and it is excellent...but...I still will shop around...in the end, I may just have Maaco do it if they can do a good enough job...but that's not too likely.

[1987cp]

I'm told a Maaco respray can be pretty decent as long as the car's delivered to them ready to spray. Of course, that means that you've got to have all the other bits and pieces (rust repair, dent repair, block-sanding high-build primer, etc.) taken care of in advance.

[Mr. Land Yacht]

aww crap....they wouldn't do any of that?
then what good are they?!

[1987cp]

I'm sure you can have them do rust and dents also, but having the thing totally ready and wheeling it in there for them to wipe down and shoot is what I've heard is the best way to take advantage of their services. I remember seeing a special a while back that for a semi-okay price included shooting the car in a single stage solid color and 10 hours of bodywork - question to find out in a case like that is, of course, can they do what needs to be done on a given vehicle, and do it right, in the allotted timeframe? :p

[murphmobile2]

It also depends on the Maaco... I took the LTD to one Maaco and got the $900 job, turned out not so clean looking, and it's peeling/flaking in a few corners. The Beretta, got it painted at a different Maaco with the $200 job, and it turned out better than the LTD, lol. Also held up much better.

So it just depends on which one you go to, lol.

[Mr. Land Yacht]

I can see that happening...there's only 1 Maaco close by that I know of..in Troy, MI.

I'll call at least a few more shops.
I would do the prep work, but I dont know the first thing about that repair. I would have my uncle's shop do the prep work and then have Maaco paint it but that sounds pointless.

[1987cp]

Hm.... more motivation to buy a MIG welder .... help people weld up holes in their car bodies! :p

[P72Ford]

Colin, listen to what Michael says about Maaco. I would not have them do any body work. When you take the car there, make sure it is primed, etc. They mask and all, but they just spray if thats what you pay for. The paint isn't that bad. My old '88 was painted 5 years ago, and it still looks pretty decent, although it is fading. It was a $450 job.

Remember this: more often than not (to compensate for Murph's experience) yopu get what you pay for with a paint job. Painting a car the right way is a long, expensive process. If you are doing metal repair and such, you can spend a long time. Materials are expensive, expecially the paint itself. You can spend $500 on a gallon of paint, with ease. Then you need hardener and reducer, etc. A gallon of hardener for the paint on my car was $200+ (PPG). It may be more for a BC/CC set up too. Its easy to spend a G on the paint itself. EP (epoxy primer) isn't cheap either. I have had good luck with it though. EP does get dusty when you spray it though (necessitating a sand to smooth it out). You can spend $200+ on a gallon of primer (may not need that much) and a few dollars more on activator. Then you have time dent repair/ dings, trim removal, etc. Sanding is a bitch, IMO, and taping is the worst. Its alot of time and work, so be prepared to pay, and remember; you get what you pay for.

[1987cp]

That's true too. My friend in the resto business can spend $3,000 on the materials for a customer's paint job. One that's gotten a Competition Orange base/clear with painted-on Boss stripes (car's an original '70 Boss 302) was supposed to be running the customer as much as $30,000 all said, and that's just for paint and body.

[Archangel]

To bring this back on topic, Colin, whatcha think about them manual valve-bodies?

[Mr. Land Yacht]

I know whatcha mean P72...my 77 linc was painted by Maaco...,eh...good...but not great by any means.

manual valve bodies...please enlighten me...I am really not too familiar with Transes...you mean that Summit one?

[Archangel]

manual valve body = auto tranny acting like a manual with auto clutch, however unlike the auto valve-body putting the shifter in "D" actually puts the tranny straight in 3rd gear, and not just stop it from upshifting into OD. Can be had in forward or reverse patter, forward being like your stocker, with the reverse you obviously pull towards you to upshift, and not push towards the dash. That Summit valve body you found ain't no manual one.

[Mr. Land Yacht]

oh ok...I didnt plan on a manual valve body...sounds kool enough..but I dont think I would do it.
sounds like it would make it a manual without a clutch pedal

[Archangel]

lo, well ain't that what I just said? But why not want one, you're getting a new VB anyhow, might as well ramp up the cool factor

[DuceAnAHalf]

oh ok...I didnt plan on a manual valve body...sounds kool enough..but I dont think I would do it.
sounds like it would make it a manual without a clutch pedal

pretty much what it does, but it will shift faster than just about any manual (Lencos and pro-stock tranny's aside), and it is extremely difficult to miss a shift.


also the benefit of the reverse pattern is that if you do accidently try to go past third you go nowhere as opposed to going into neutral.
With my reverse manual if im in third and try to shift i cant pull the shifter back any further, with a standard pattern i could put it in neutral