BADLASS IS WELL UNDERWAY

yachtsmanbill

Active Member
Guess it was time to devote a thred to the '64 Special GX 465. This is 11-1/2 months old to me right now. So far all the suspension and double brake system has been done,along with a totally fresh 465 CI BBB (+.040) and a super T-10 4 speed. She's a peeler. Drove it about 500 miles last summer in patina, and this year is a trunk floor and a bodywork/paint job. The car was grammas with a V^ and a 3 on the tree. She hit the garage door and quit driving it in 1980. It was parked in a barn up here with a soaking weyt floor mat in the trunk for almost 40 years.

Today I am wrapping up that job. Body seam filler, primer, and a touch of paint (ran out). As it stands, the trunk floor subframes were almost perfect, so I didnt use the new ones that came in the 7 piece set. A member here was interested, by no response for a few weeks, and they are back on the market. If you need a cheap floor tin set, buy that and Ill make someone a good deal on the braces. Reply here if interested. Billz2.jpgz9.jpg

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Got the trunk finished and I'd give it a 98. Good enough for me! On to the rear glass. Its out, intact, and now cleaning the window channel, and going to order som channel replacement pieces to weld in. This area has always been an achilles heel! Bill in TR
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Started to survey the bad lower rear window corners. New channels are about 100.00 but I really dont need but about <6 inches on both ends. Think Im gonna try a field repair with steel. Also pulled the headliner down. There were some mouse holes when I got it. So I cut out about 6x6 inch square sections and got the shop vac in there. WOW! After it was down I got another 5 lbs of nesting crud. No carcasses! Pulled all the trim and marked it, but a lot of the cardboard stuff, sail panels etc, were had for "lunch". Followed by a nice hot shower! Bill

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After speaking with Belden yesterday, we both concurred that I should just fab what I needed myself. Yesterday was a cut out and prep and this morning is gonna be some tin knocking and welding The whole job shouldn't take but a smidge of fiberglass filler (NOT BONDO!) to help fill in some weird spots and rebuild the radius at the trunk filler valance edge.

As always, pics will follow. Today's job is the starboard side and tomorrow Ill do the port side... Bill

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YM Bill,
Great job so far! keep the pics coming! I'm hoping to get my falling down garage rebuilt in the spring and have a place to work on my Wildcat.
Are you using Oxy acetylene? or something else?
 
Just a MIG welder with CDB gas LOL. A gas torch would cast too much heat even with a jewelers tip. The MIG is really easy to stitch weld with, and if you have a blow out, you can wait a few seconds between stitching and fill the hole. Even though the visible part is shiny steel, theres paint and undercoating and some rust on the back side which sucks up into the weld causing contamination issues. Thin spots are another issue, but the MIG seems to be able to fill pinholes as well.

About 4 years ago I had a 24x24 garage built behind the regular 20x30. Theres never enough room! Right now my 72 XGS and H-D are in a storage locker for the winter so Pats new car can sleep inside. Bill

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Bill,
Ich mag dein Schild! I wish I had that space, but alas we live too close to the city. I want to talk my wife into a condo in town and a cottage with enough land to erect a quonset. Would your Mig set up be good for filling a bunch of tiny screw holes left over from some aftermarket side trim?
Gary
 
Das ist eine Warnung für die Bauarbeiter!

Generally speaking, the MIG is ideal for that, however, if you can get to the back side, a small piece of sheet metal to block the hole works much better. I am toying with filling the venti-port mounting holes on the '64; I only have 5 outa the 6 and they are terribly pitted. Being a semi custom resto-mod, I may get some flashy new chrome stick ons. Ebay is full of them. 'Glass filler will take care of those holes without having to pull the front fenders off again to weld them shut. Theres also the issue of warpage. Even sandblasting can generate enough heat to warp a hood or a roof.

TIG welding would be my choice, but my eyes are too far gone to see what Im doing anymore. That would take an artist! Bill

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Good to know. I may end up farming out the bodywork for a change. Too many aches and pains doing other stuff already. Enjoy bringing the '64 back!
Looks like you're having fun!

Gary
 
So Gary is a voyeur.. show time! Starboard side still needs a little tweaking, and one more chunk on the port corner. Hands are all tingly from the grinding and I cant feel the contours, so some blue tape shows what I cant feel. Otherwise going along OK. I only have 4 more months to finish this phase; rear window frame, trunk floor(done!), headliner and rugs, some body work and some paint... nuttin' to it honey! Bill

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Ya, I like to watch :) . Those kinds of repairs, I've done plenty of, living in the rust/salt belt. It's amazing what you can do with only a (large) vice as your metal brake and tin snips. I did them all with Oxy acetylene which was old school even when I was doing it. Ya go with what you're comfortable with and I could fill a hole the size of a quarter with brass. Looks like you could get in from behind with the patch panel? Fabbing repair panels and metal work in general was the part I liked to do the most. Bondo,Sanding and prep, not so much.
 
Yeah man... I learned to gas weld and also had a Sears AC machine... what a joke. I welded for the first 20 years of my power plant career with all kinds of nuclear certs, then they "developed" a new welders job that involved being on call 24/7/365; "Just think about the overtime" I did. I also thought about the extra 1600 hours for that year I already worked and mysteriously failed my next cert. It was a long downward spiral and lost a buck an hour. Har Har. BTW, are you on V8 Buick? Yer car looks familiar! Dash Riprock ??? Bill
 
Ya I'm also on V8Buick. Are you still there? I haven't seen a post for a while from you. Not many 68 Wildcats left in Baby poo brown so I'm easy to spot.
I always liked Dash Riprock from the Beverly Hillbillies;), but I change up my Avatar name when I get bored. it sucks not having access to the car for the winter.
 
Go gettem Dash! Got the fab end finished up today with two light coarts of glass filler and 2 coats of galvanized primer. Turned out pretty well IMHO.I wanna do the headliner before the glass goes back in just to be able to reach in and stretch and glue etc. Who has a good led for a '64 POST basket weave in baby blue? Bill





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Legendary Interiors is probably your go to for that Bill. They give you enough for the sail panels as well. I cheated and bought the visors already done.
 
Thanks Steve... Ill check them out today! The visors actually just need some fantastic to look like new. I was surprised! The old "stays" were kinda rusty and didnt slide through like they were supposed to. Thats just another "clean and paint" deal to aid in re-assembly! Gotta scrub all the windlace stuff too. It would be nice to have this all in before the back window. Thanks again... Bill
 
It makes the job easier and, I think, nicer in the end to have the front and rear window out when doing the headliner. It is easy to stretch one way or another and pull it smoothe.
 

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Nothing worse than a saggy wrinkled headliner! I like the use of the HD paper clips! Did you use contact glue or that "secret headliner" stuff? Bill
 
It was basically contact cement spread on with a little round brush from the can, but it was called headliner glue. My wife borrowed a box or two of those clips from work (that were returned) - recycle and reuse!

Glad to see Pat is recovering in real life as well as in the other thread!
 
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