1990 country squire resto/lowrider in UK

[andyfanshawe]

Weekend again, so its bodywork time.
I need to finish the welding on the passenger side, so its rust removal time............

Heres the offending patches


If I hadn't removed the inner arches, this would never have been repaired properly and would soon breach the new paint. We've all seen this before - a rust repair that keeps on coming back. Well this one won't.









And finally complete ready for a bondo skim



Heres my garage extension in the shape of a gazebo!!



Andy.

[87gtVIC]

Very nice Andy.

[gabegt90]

are you gonna make a new spot for the rear side marker or just get rid of all together? coming along great so far

[andyfanshawe]

Hi gabegt90.
Have a look at the sketch a few posts up and you will see I want to locate a new marker light lower down and horizontally. In fact I am just about to scoure ebay for a good looking red LED one that is low profile. Then I will sink it in flush.

Andy.

[LTDMan83]

I applaud the serious amount of work that you have put into this, it's impressive, but I think it would have been much smarter to start with something a little less rotten. Like buying a cheap $500-$1000 rust free wagon from the southern or western US, and having it imported over to you. I'd imagine they are pretty hard to find in good condition across the pond there. Without having to do all that RR, you would have been much further along by now, maybe even finished.

Great Work though, I've been and will be enjoying seeing the progress.

[GoodSamaritan]

I'll be curious to learn what you are using to remove the glue.
I've actually been considering, replacing all 4 doors and the front fenders rather than spend 6 months with a can of acetone and a scraper.

[sly]

looks like he used a hot air gun and a scraper (like for removing vinyl decals)

[andyfanshawe]

I applaud the serious amount of work that you have put into this, it's impressive, but I think it would have been much smarter to start with something a little less rotten. Like buying a cheap $500-$1000 rust free wagon from the southern or western US, and having it imported over to you. I'd imagine they are pretty hard to find in good condition across the pond there. Without having to do all that RR, you would have been much further along by now, maybe even finished.

Great Work though, I've been and will be enjoying seeing the progress.

Hi LTDman83.
The whole point of doing this is to bring back a bad one from the dead. I don't want a good version, I really enjoy doing the work. It increases my skill level considerably. Don't want to make life too easy do I:smirk:

Andy.

[andyfanshawe]

I'll be curious to learn what you are using to remove the glue.
I've actually been considering, replacing all 4 doors and the front fenders rather than spend 6 months with a can of acetone and a scraper.

Now thats a good question.
Everything I have tried hasn't worked. And I've tried nearly everything. Well, to be more exact, they have worked to a degree. Thinners softens the adhesive that can then be scraped off. But I am going to repaint anyway so I spray it with a panel wipe solvent(pre paint degreaser) and then use a DA or flat bed sander with 80 grit paper to get it off. It then kinda curls up in small bits and drops off. I have to keep cleaning the 80 grit paper though with a wire brush every 5 mins or so.
PITA though.
I was told that lighter fluid will work but haven't tried it. I have breathed in enough chemicals to last me a lifetime over the last few days:err:

Andy.

[andyfanshawe]

looks like he used a hot air gun and a scraper (like for removing vinyl decals)

Hi slymer.
the hair dryer only makes the vinyl more pliable and easier to remove. It doesn't however make any difference to the adhesive. It's certainly an interesting smell (awful!) though when that adhesive gets warm.

Andy.

[MrMarquis]

Hi Mr M.
the rear suspension is on coil springs, so they just need replacing by an airbag with suitable plates for top and bottom (more details on that later). front suspension has shox going through the springs so a shockwave needs to be used. See these and other components at www.ridetch.com

Then a digital control system needs to be used. I am using the auto pilot sytstem on my camaro, but there are a few others available now.

More details soon.
Andy.

So the ShockWave replaces the entire coilover setup? And just bags in the rear? Could it really be that simple??

[GoodSamaritan]

I haven't tried this with the adhesive on one of these cars but I've had good luck (if slow) with wd40. (If it's not readily available over there, never fear it's mostly kerosene anyway) Just spray it on and wipe off the excess before it can drip. Wait until it looks like the adhesive has soaked it up, and then give it another squirt. That may be a few seconds or a few hours depending on the glue. Eventually things will take on a gummy/mucus texture. At that point lots of it can be removed with a bit of elbow grease and a lot of paper towels. Repeat the process with whats left behind.

Of course, I'm not sure how wise this would be to try on a panel that you intend to paint, as I'm not sure whether panel wipe solvents would remove 100% of the stuff that might infiltrate tiny pin pricks in the paint.

I've had good luck with it on industrial control panels etc, but then again the industrial paint we were using were oil based so a drop or two of oil didn't matter much anyway.

[sly]

Hi slymer.
the hair dryer only makes the vinyl more pliable and easier to remove. It doesn't however make any difference to the adhesive. It's certainly an interesting smell (awful!) though when that adhesive gets warm.

Andy.

same with vinyl tile... but yes... awful smell and a major PITA!

[wagon mafia]

SAND BLAST IT! just joking

[grandwagon]

just found this tread, and WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!! that one HELL of a job you have done!!!!! I cant wait to see the end results of your work, keep us all updated on your progress!!!!!!! YOU ARE TRULY AN INSPIRATION TO US ALL!!!!!!