Hey gang. I just changed my web browser from Internet Explorer to Mozilla Foxfire (due to the recent IE security breech) and when I came here to check my blog, I noticed the pictures and text no longer are in sync. I'll be looking into learning how to use HTML code and hope to get my blogs to appear as I intended them to, so please bear with me.
Hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Christmas and New Years celebration.
ZEBRA 3 OUT
12/30/08
11/21/08
Rear frame detailing
With the body stripped, I turned my attention to the underside of the car. Since I needed to keep the car running and drivable during the bulk of this restoration, I decided to kill two birds with one stone and removed the fuel tank to have it cleaned and sealed while I sandblasted the rear frame section (from the axle rearward) and get it repainted and new seam sealer applied while the tank was being rejuvenated. This won't take a lot of narrative, so I'll just post pics and add comments as necessary....
I sandblasted the rear frame using BLACK BEAUTY medium. Not exactly sure what it was made from (it WAS black) but it sure did cut well and left a nice tooth to the metal! After blasting, I washed down the area using a 3" paint brush and lacquer thinner twice to insure all oils and contaminates were gone, then I prepared a 90/10 mixture of POR-15 and POR thinner and sprayed a medium coat on the rear section of the car. Once dry to the touch, I reapplied the seam sealer to the exposed sheetmetal joints and applied a second coat of POR-15. The following weekend, I applied a coat of EASTWOOD Satin Chassis Black to finish off the area.
I had also gotten the fuel tank back, so I applied several coats of EASTWOOD Tank Tone Metallic Coating to replicate the factory zinc coating. I also wire brushed the tank straps and after applying a coat of POR-15 black, I sprayed on a coat of black Plastic-Dip spray on rubber coating while the POR was still a bit tacky. Once the Plastic-Dip dried I applied several more coats to give the straps a nice satiny black rubberized coating. I also cut me a couple strap pads from some scrap 1/8" thick rubber material we had at work. I cleaned the fuel tank pick-up, installed a new pick-up sock and using a new locking ring and gasket, reinstalled the pick-up into the tank.
After installing a new vent into the top of the tank, I was ready to rehang the fuel tank. Using new carriage bolts and hardware, I reinstalled the tank and reconnected the fuel and return lines using new hose clamps as well. The final part to the tank assembly was to reinstall the tank neck grommet and insert the fill tube into the tank thru rear body bulkhead and trunk floor. I had also wire brushed and Scotch-Brited the filler neck to give it a bright, slightly brushed steel finish and coated it with EASTWOOD's Diamond Clear for bare metal surfaces to protect it from the elements.
Well that's all for this installment and I want to wish everyone a Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving.
ZEBRA 3 OUT
I sandblasted the rear frame using BLACK BEAUTY medium. Not exactly sure what it was made from (it WAS black) but it sure did cut well and left a nice tooth to the metal! After blasting, I washed down the area using a 3" paint brush and lacquer thinner twice to insure all oils and contaminates were gone, then I prepared a 90/10 mixture of POR-15 and POR thinner and sprayed a medium coat on the rear section of the car. Once dry to the touch, I reapplied the seam sealer to the exposed sheetmetal joints and applied a second coat of POR-15. The following weekend, I applied a coat of EASTWOOD Satin Chassis Black to finish off the area.
I had also gotten the fuel tank back, so I applied several coats of EASTWOOD Tank Tone Metallic Coating to replicate the factory zinc coating. I also wire brushed the tank straps and after applying a coat of POR-15 black, I sprayed on a coat of black Plastic-Dip spray on rubber coating while the POR was still a bit tacky. Once the Plastic-Dip dried I applied several more coats to give the straps a nice satiny black rubberized coating. I also cut me a couple strap pads from some scrap 1/8" thick rubber material we had at work. I cleaned the fuel tank pick-up, installed a new pick-up sock and using a new locking ring and gasket, reinstalled the pick-up into the tank.
After installing a new vent into the top of the tank, I was ready to rehang the fuel tank. Using new carriage bolts and hardware, I reinstalled the tank and reconnected the fuel and return lines using new hose clamps as well. The final part to the tank assembly was to reinstall the tank neck grommet and insert the fill tube into the tank thru rear body bulkhead and trunk floor. I had also wire brushed and Scotch-Brited the filler neck to give it a bright, slightly brushed steel finish and coated it with EASTWOOD's Diamond Clear for bare metal surfaces to protect it from the elements.
Well that's all for this installment and I want to wish everyone a Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving.
ZEBRA 3 OUT
11/11/08
Surface protection, final template trial and nose job
With the paint removed from the body, I knew I had better protect it from surface oxidation until such time as I get the first coat of epoxy primer applied. Before I applied anything to the body, I knew I had to wash her down really well to get all the remnants of the stripper removed to prevent any nightmares in the future, so I pulled the ole gal downstairs on to the wash rack and scrubbed her good with hot water and a Scotch-Brite pad inside and out, then hosed her down generously with the hot water to dissolve any POR-15 Stripper that might be hiding in an inaccessible nook or cranny.
Once I was satisfied the chemicals were gone, I dried the body inside and out and then I filled a new spray bottle up with OSPHO Metal Prep. I applied a generous coating to all bare metal surfaces then went over the entire car using a three inch POR-15 paint brush to smooth out the layer of OSPHO as well as insuring every inch of the body was coated. Once everything was coated I pulled the car back upstairs to her bay and left the OSPHO to dry. (WARNING: OSPHO contains phosphoric acid. Avoid contact with eyes and prolonged contact with skin.)
When I returned the following Saturday the body was nicely etched and covered with a grayish-white phosphorus powder. This is normal and just signals that the OSPHO did it's job. I'll leave the powdery covering alone to continue to protect the surface until such time as I get ready to apply my first coat of primer. Then I will go over the body again with a dry Scotch-Brite pad to remove any loose phosphorus powder and wipe down with a tack rag before coating. Here are a couple shots showing how the body looks treated with the OSPHO........
With the body prepped, it was time to pull the front fenders so I could get to the inner fenders, firewall, and front suspension. But before I did that, I wanted to see my new front fender template installed to make sure it was correct before I blew the body apart, so I trimmed it and hastily stuck all the stripe templates and moldings on to get a feel for where I was with the templates. Here is what it looked like. Please bare in mind I didn't take my time to install it 100% accurately. The templates were loose and merely held in place with refrigerator magnets and the side moldings were held on with pads of masking tape...
With the template verified, it was time to pull the fenders. MAN, Ford didn't want the front end falling off the Torino's! After removing about 20 bolts per fender (some of them hidden very discretely) I finally had the nose off the car and ready for the next phase....
Until then........
ZEBRA 3 OUT!
Once I was satisfied the chemicals were gone, I dried the body inside and out and then I filled a new spray bottle up with OSPHO Metal Prep. I applied a generous coating to all bare metal surfaces then went over the entire car using a three inch POR-15 paint brush to smooth out the layer of OSPHO as well as insuring every inch of the body was coated. Once everything was coated I pulled the car back upstairs to her bay and left the OSPHO to dry. (WARNING: OSPHO contains phosphoric acid. Avoid contact with eyes and prolonged contact with skin.)
When I returned the following Saturday the body was nicely etched and covered with a grayish-white phosphorus powder. This is normal and just signals that the OSPHO did it's job. I'll leave the powdery covering alone to continue to protect the surface until such time as I get ready to apply my first coat of primer. Then I will go over the body again with a dry Scotch-Brite pad to remove any loose phosphorus powder and wipe down with a tack rag before coating. Here are a couple shots showing how the body looks treated with the OSPHO........
With the body prepped, it was time to pull the front fenders so I could get to the inner fenders, firewall, and front suspension. But before I did that, I wanted to see my new front fender template installed to make sure it was correct before I blew the body apart, so I trimmed it and hastily stuck all the stripe templates and moldings on to get a feel for where I was with the templates. Here is what it looked like. Please bare in mind I didn't take my time to install it 100% accurately. The templates were loose and merely held in place with refrigerator magnets and the side moldings were held on with pads of masking tape...
With the template verified, it was time to pull the fenders. MAN, Ford didn't want the front end falling off the Torino's! After removing about 20 bolts per fender (some of them hidden very discretely) I finally had the nose off the car and ready for the next phase....
Until then........
ZEBRA 3 OUT!
10/20/08
Stripe template
While I stripped the paint on the driver's side, I thought I'd play around with making my own stripe template. I'm a draftsman by trade so I'm used to laying things out to insure they work before making them. I'm also very anal about details and one thing I wanted to be sure of was that the stripe was exactly the same on both sides of the car, so I decided to create the stripe full size in my computer and then plot it out and trial fit it on the car until I had it exactly like I wanted it. Then it would be just a matter of mirroring the design to make the other side exactly like the first. It took me a few attempts to get the swoop similar to the TV car but I think I got it pretty close.
Here are some shots showing my template progressing toward the final design......
I pulled a revised swoop using 1/4" pin striping tape and stuck the side moldings on with tape to form a base line design for me to enter into the computer...
With the baseline design loaded, I plotted off the first pattern and then kept modifying until I had the swoop like I wanted....
Once I had the swoop like I wanted, I plotted out the final template and started forward....
I was now pretty happy with the way the stripe looked. Was still a bit difficult to imagine the full effect because the old stripe was still visible, but once I got the passenger side stripped, it became pretty clear....
I originally did the point like the factory Limited Editions, but after seeing the stripe against the solid color of the bare metal, I reminded myself I was cloning the TV cars so I went back and tweaked the point to match the season 2-4 cars.......
I have plotted out the new point but haven't trimmed it nor attached it to the car to verify it's 100%. I'll be pulling the fenders off in the very near future so I may go ahead and trim the fender template and stick all the other templates and trim back on the car to have one last look before I knock off the nose. I'll post a picture of the final design when I do.
Until next time........
ZEBRA 3 OUT!
Here are some shots showing my template progressing toward the final design......
I pulled a revised swoop using 1/4" pin striping tape and stuck the side moldings on with tape to form a base line design for me to enter into the computer...
With the baseline design loaded, I plotted off the first pattern and then kept modifying until I had the swoop like I wanted....
Once I had the swoop like I wanted, I plotted out the final template and started forward....
I was now pretty happy with the way the stripe looked. Was still a bit difficult to imagine the full effect because the old stripe was still visible, but once I got the passenger side stripped, it became pretty clear....
I originally did the point like the factory Limited Editions, but after seeing the stripe against the solid color of the bare metal, I reminded myself I was cloning the TV cars so I went back and tweaked the point to match the season 2-4 cars.......
I have plotted out the new point but haven't trimmed it nor attached it to the car to verify it's 100%. I'll be pulling the fenders off in the very near future so I may go ahead and trim the fender template and stick all the other templates and trim back on the car to have one last look before I knock off the nose. I'll post a picture of the final design when I do.
Until next time........
ZEBRA 3 OUT!
10/16/08
Take it all off!
With the driver side done, I turned my attention to the roof and then the passenger side. I misted the POR-STRIP on and let it do it's thing and the paint blistered and released from the sheet metal. Then I used my plastic spreader to scrape away the paint and followed up with a second coat to remove any remnants that might have been missed by the first application.
The hardest part of the whole stripping process was fighting with the fricken spray bottle!! The first bottle I got with my initial gallon of POR-STRIP worked like a champ. A buddy was doing a little project at his home that required stripping some paint, so I gave him the last bit of my first gallon and the sprayer. I had already ordered a second gallon, so I called my local POR-15 rep and had him to bring me another sprayer when he delivered my order. The sprayer worked as it should at first but then it started acting up and not wanting to spray. I first thought the filter on the pick-up was getting clogged so I removed it. Worked for a while then it started acting up again, so I removed the spray assembly and cleaned it out and tried again. As before it worked for a while then petered out.
In frustration, I called the POR-15 rep and told him I was having problems with the sprayer and he said he would bring me another, so I called it a day before I really got mad and broke something. In about 5 hours, all I got done was the roof.
He delivered the new sprayer during the next week and so the following Saturday I started on the sail panel and rear quarter. Just like the previous week, the sprayer started off performing great. Actually got the sail panel stripped and was doing the second coat when the sprayer started acting up. So I cleaned it out and again it started working correctly... for a short time.
I told myself I wasn't going to fight it like I had done the week before, so I immediately called the rep and told him it was happening again. I asked him to call the factory and see if they had run into this problem before with the sprayers and he said he would. He called me back a bit later and said they were aware of the problem and what was happening was the POR-STRIP was basically eating the guts out of the sprayer and they didn't have a solution other than to brush it on!
He said he had another source that had industrial sprayers and he would get me one to try and see if it worked any better. He wanted to find a sprayer that would work with the stripper so he could really push the product at car shows and to restorers so I agreed to try it out for him. Again it would be later on in the week before he could get it to me, so I finished up the sail panel and played around with other things on the car for the remainder of the day.
The following Saturday, I began again with the new type sprayer. Started misting the quarter and adjusting the sprayer until I got the right pattern going. Once the ideal pattern was tuned in, I really went to town applying the stripper. Rather than shooting the entire panel at once, I started from the rear and worked my way to the door opening applying the stripper between the sculpt line to just above the wheel opening. once I had that area pretty well stripped, I proceeded to apply the POR-STRIP to the lower portions of the quarter. I finished the lower rear half of the panel then the lower front half. Once the quarter was finished I stripped the door jamb area.
From the quarter, I went to the door and once the door was done I did the front fender. As I started the front fender, the sprayer began to spray erratically. I fought it long enough to get the first coat on the upper portion of the fender, then while the stripped was doing it's job, I cleaned the sprayer in preparation for the second coat. Once I had scraped the upper portion of the fender I applied the second coat to the top and went ahead and applied the first coat to the center portion of the fender. As I was finishing the center section the sprayer started spitting again, so I limped it along until I had the panel done.
I thought to myself that I was almost done and to just keep nursing it until it won't spray any more before giving up, so I cleaned it out once again. Again I scraped off the previous application and went right into the second coat/first coat on the balance of the fender. I kept pushing it until I had applied the stripper to the balance of the panel then I once again cleaned out the spray assembly.
When it was time, I removed the loosened paint and applied the final application of the POR-STRIP, all the while counting to ten as it spit and spattered the stripper onto the fender until finally I was done.
I wanted so badly to throw the bottle across the shop into the wall, but I knew the type of luck I have! I could just imagine the bottle hitting the wall and splitting open and showering several of the new or classic cars stored nearby with paint stripper and the hot water I would THEN be in!! But I just set the bottle down on the work bench and counted my blessings that I was done applying the stripper... for now anyways! Still need to strip the hood, header panel, headlight buckets, deck lid and the bumper sight shields, but those can wait until another day (and spray bottle!!).
Once I had gone over the fender with the scraper, I wiped down the entire passenger side of the car with a wet towel to remove any remaining stripper. I also discovered the ONLY rust on the entire body of my car. It's low on the passenger fender just ahead of the lower front corner of the door and just behind the rocker molding. Roughly the size of a playing card and my guess is from leaves collecting inside the fender and rusting it away from the back side.
With the stripper removed and the car wiped down, I then put a fresh Scotch-Brite wheel on my angle head grinder and lightly polished the newly exposed sheet metal to finish off any paint or body putty that might have been left behind. Speaking of bondo, the POR-STRIP will also remove it as well. Depending on how thickly it has been applied, the stripped will loosen it from the metal and it will scrape off just like the paint will, but you may have to apply several applications to remove any real heavy build up.
Next step is to take the car downstairs to the wash bay and wash her down with plenty of hot water and a good scrubbing with a Scoth-Brite pad to get all of the POR-STRIP removed from all the nooks and crannies of the body to insure good adheshion of the two-part epoxy primer I will be applying... or I should say having applied. Don't know just yet what my painting skills are. I have purchased a cheepie automotive paint sprayer as well as a touch-up gun, so I might give at least the primer a shot. I figure I couldn't mess up too badly applying the primer... after all it'll be sanded and reprimed many times until the body is straight.
That's all for now.......
ZEBRA 3 OUT!
The hardest part of the whole stripping process was fighting with the fricken spray bottle!! The first bottle I got with my initial gallon of POR-STRIP worked like a champ. A buddy was doing a little project at his home that required stripping some paint, so I gave him the last bit of my first gallon and the sprayer. I had already ordered a second gallon, so I called my local POR-15 rep and had him to bring me another sprayer when he delivered my order. The sprayer worked as it should at first but then it started acting up and not wanting to spray. I first thought the filter on the pick-up was getting clogged so I removed it. Worked for a while then it started acting up again, so I removed the spray assembly and cleaned it out and tried again. As before it worked for a while then petered out.
In frustration, I called the POR-15 rep and told him I was having problems with the sprayer and he said he would bring me another, so I called it a day before I really got mad and broke something. In about 5 hours, all I got done was the roof.
He delivered the new sprayer during the next week and so the following Saturday I started on the sail panel and rear quarter. Just like the previous week, the sprayer started off performing great. Actually got the sail panel stripped and was doing the second coat when the sprayer started acting up. So I cleaned it out and again it started working correctly... for a short time.
I told myself I wasn't going to fight it like I had done the week before, so I immediately called the rep and told him it was happening again. I asked him to call the factory and see if they had run into this problem before with the sprayers and he said he would. He called me back a bit later and said they were aware of the problem and what was happening was the POR-STRIP was basically eating the guts out of the sprayer and they didn't have a solution other than to brush it on!
He said he had another source that had industrial sprayers and he would get me one to try and see if it worked any better. He wanted to find a sprayer that would work with the stripper so he could really push the product at car shows and to restorers so I agreed to try it out for him. Again it would be later on in the week before he could get it to me, so I finished up the sail panel and played around with other things on the car for the remainder of the day.
The following Saturday, I began again with the new type sprayer. Started misting the quarter and adjusting the sprayer until I got the right pattern going. Once the ideal pattern was tuned in, I really went to town applying the stripper. Rather than shooting the entire panel at once, I started from the rear and worked my way to the door opening applying the stripper between the sculpt line to just above the wheel opening. once I had that area pretty well stripped, I proceeded to apply the POR-STRIP to the lower portions of the quarter. I finished the lower rear half of the panel then the lower front half. Once the quarter was finished I stripped the door jamb area.
From the quarter, I went to the door and once the door was done I did the front fender. As I started the front fender, the sprayer began to spray erratically. I fought it long enough to get the first coat on the upper portion of the fender, then while the stripped was doing it's job, I cleaned the sprayer in preparation for the second coat. Once I had scraped the upper portion of the fender I applied the second coat to the top and went ahead and applied the first coat to the center portion of the fender. As I was finishing the center section the sprayer started spitting again, so I limped it along until I had the panel done.
I thought to myself that I was almost done and to just keep nursing it until it won't spray any more before giving up, so I cleaned it out once again. Again I scraped off the previous application and went right into the second coat/first coat on the balance of the fender. I kept pushing it until I had applied the stripper to the balance of the panel then I once again cleaned out the spray assembly.
When it was time, I removed the loosened paint and applied the final application of the POR-STRIP, all the while counting to ten as it spit and spattered the stripper onto the fender until finally I was done.
I wanted so badly to throw the bottle across the shop into the wall, but I knew the type of luck I have! I could just imagine the bottle hitting the wall and splitting open and showering several of the new or classic cars stored nearby with paint stripper and the hot water I would THEN be in!! But I just set the bottle down on the work bench and counted my blessings that I was done applying the stripper... for now anyways! Still need to strip the hood, header panel, headlight buckets, deck lid and the bumper sight shields, but those can wait until another day (and spray bottle!!).
Once I had gone over the fender with the scraper, I wiped down the entire passenger side of the car with a wet towel to remove any remaining stripper. I also discovered the ONLY rust on the entire body of my car. It's low on the passenger fender just ahead of the lower front corner of the door and just behind the rocker molding. Roughly the size of a playing card and my guess is from leaves collecting inside the fender and rusting it away from the back side.
With the stripper removed and the car wiped down, I then put a fresh Scotch-Brite wheel on my angle head grinder and lightly polished the newly exposed sheet metal to finish off any paint or body putty that might have been left behind. Speaking of bondo, the POR-STRIP will also remove it as well. Depending on how thickly it has been applied, the stripped will loosen it from the metal and it will scrape off just like the paint will, but you may have to apply several applications to remove any real heavy build up.
Next step is to take the car downstairs to the wash bay and wash her down with plenty of hot water and a good scrubbing with a Scoth-Brite pad to get all of the POR-STRIP removed from all the nooks and crannies of the body to insure good adheshion of the two-part epoxy primer I will be applying... or I should say having applied. Don't know just yet what my painting skills are. I have purchased a cheepie automotive paint sprayer as well as a touch-up gun, so I might give at least the primer a shot. I figure I couldn't mess up too badly applying the primer... after all it'll be sanded and reprimed many times until the body is straight.
That's all for now.......
ZEBRA 3 OUT!
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