So, money. When I'm savin' it I'm still spendin' it. Those in the know say, "You've gotta spend money to make money." In that case, it's about to come pouring in. I just dropped (skip to the next sentence Mom and Dad) $500 on supplies today alone. That's not counting the grinder and sander I just bought.
Because of the way I'm stripping the paint off (one section at a time), I'm going to need to do an initial and immediate self-etching primer coat. This well keep the rust at bay. Apparently there's a window of about 8 hours before rust starts to form on newly-exposed metal. So, I'll be priming the car twice. The second coat is the high-build primer that fills in minor imperfections and is sandable, creating that smooth surface before painting. So the primer alone set me back close to $300 (with accompanying activators).
I also got a gallon of Evercoat Rage Extreme body filler, as well as some of their metal glaze for final scratch filling before priming. Add on a roll of 400 grit sandpaper, 2 sanding blocks, a glaze spreader, and probably something I'm not remembering right now, and we're at $500. But that's okay. It's saving me money in the long run. Now I just have to decide if I'm going to do the cheaper BASF Limco paint or spring for something better. (No, I'm not going get Glasurit. It's super expensive and you have to know what you're doing, apparently.) The store I'm going to also sells Sherwin Williams. They guy said they've got one that's very high quality, and sells for $308 per gallon, and I'd need just one gallon. That's not including reducer and hardener. All told it'd be $500. Anyone have any experience with it? The salesman said that the only difference I'd see between the expensive stuff and the cheap stuff is how long it lasts. Which is a big deal to me.
OH! I also got a spray gun kit. An ATD 3-gun kit. Yes, it's cheap ($96). But they assure me that it's going to atomize my one-stage paint just fine. No, it won't last as long as the more expensive ones, but I'm not going into the painting business either. (Or am I?) No.
So today I tried out my new grinder and went to town on the inside and rim of the trunk to remove rust scale. Good thing I drive a diesel or I'd probably be in the afterlife right now. As the sparks were flying (with my 1/3 full fuel tank right below me) I thought "This might be one of the dumber things I've ever done. Wait, it's diesel. It won't blow...will it?" It didn't. I didn't smell any fumes, so I figured I was fine. I was still a little nervous though. I can't wait for my POR-15 trunk repair kit to arrive in the mail. I have to get all the rust fixed before I can really move forward with the rest. I suppose I could start stripping panels further forward. I just wanna get my quarter panel cut out and replaced and all the trunk rust fixed, then prime it before I prime the quarter panels. I just wanna know the rust has been put to bed.
Things I'm thinking/concerned about:
-Getting a good enough air compressor for painting. I guess you need a really big one so you don't run out of air. However, I'm thinking that since I'm doing a panel at a time, basically, that I don't need to go too big. Maybe 25-30 gallons with a 5 hp motor? My biggest area to prime or paint at one time will be the roof and rear pillars. Will this be enough?
-I DON'T HAVE A GARAGE. My car is on the street. Painting it there will be less than ideal. The neighbors might be a little concerned. But the biggest problem is wind/breeze and dirt, bugs and pollen. For the primer it doesn't matter so much because I can sand it. But the paint?! If anyone knows of a place I can go in the DC area to paint it, please, please let me know.
That is where I am as of today. Finding an air compressor stands in the way of getting started on stripping down the panels. I'll be isolating an area at a time: strip, fill/sand, glaze/sand, prime, prime again. Wish me luck! Until next time...
Friday, May 30, 2008
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Let the great experiment begin!
I've always liked Courier font. There's something so newsy about it. As a boy, I'd often lay awake at night setting type in my mind. I know this is different from your normal boy, but then again, I was no ordinary...okay, sorry. Let's start again.
This is my blog. My first blog. Ever. And probably last. In fact, this may be the only entry, knowing me. But I'll try to overcome that tendency and write at least two. I don't know what you're expecting from this blog, but I'm going to keep it respectable. It's PG-rated. Possibly PG-13 at times, but only if it is something my character would really do. No gratuitousness. Unless you go with the second meaning of gratuitous: "given or done free of charge." In that case, it's all gratuitous.
Alright, enough self-aware rambling. Go read Salinger for that. Um...okay. Oh yeah! My car. I have a 1975 Mercedes Benz 240D. Really it's a 240D 3.0, for those in the know. NO, it's not a factory 240D 3.0. It was made as a regular 240D with a 4-cylinder 2.4 liter engine in it. But someone at some point installed a 5-cylinder 3.0 liter engine in it, but left everything else the same. My good friend Peter (a.k.a. Pierre) Hedary down in Orlando helped me with a lot of things, one of which was to put in the corresponding rear axle out of a 300D. I can never remember the ratios...I think it was a 3.4something and now it's a 3.3something. Or not. Anyway, since the interior package and a few other things are still a 240D, that makes it more or less a 240D 3.0. With a 4-speed manual. Eat your heart out all you automatic-diesel-driving schmucks. Mine has pep. At least as much as an old Mercedes diesel can have.
Okay, so, I've had this car for a couple of years now, and have taken good care of it. The paint is not original and has always been dull, not to mention poorly done, since I've had it. Also there are various dings and rough spots, as well as the all-too-common quarter panel rust on one side. Then the other non-rusty quarter panel got smashed in along with the rear door one night in a parking lot. Hit and run. That has since been repaired but not painted. So for the last 8 months I've been driving around with a gray primered quarter panel and rear door on the driver's side.
Well, now that school's out (I'm doing a master's in Second Language Acquisition at the University of Maryland) for the summer, I'm going to go into full-blown restoration mode. I thought it would be fun to document it with this blog and some photos in order for a few of my friends and family to follow along. For you non-enthusiasts out there, which I anticipate are most of you, I'll try to make it somewhat interesting. But I can't guarantee anything. For those who happen upon this and are contemplating doing a restoration, or those who have already done one, comments and questions are more than welcome.
I've been polishing this and replacing that with a better/cleaner one since I got the car. The steering wheel is not original, I put in euro headlights, the front seats have been switched out for ones in better shape, the instrument cluster is a conglomeration of the best parts of I think three different ones. The list goes on and on of little things that I have switched out or just made nicer. But now that I've set my sights on doing the body work and repainting, I'm seeing ALL KINDS of things that I need to do. The scope keeps getting wider and wider. Here's a list of what I've done in the last few days:
-Strip paint off, sand and prime a replacement trunk lid that I found (mine is rusty).
-Pull all trim off.
-Pull rear bumper off.
-Pull trunk seal and grind rust around edge
-Pull rear seat and disassemble back part (there is no padding left in it and the frame is rusted)
-Probably more that I can't think of at the moment...
Here's a list of things that I need to do as far as I know right now:
-Fix the rust in the trunk and around the trunk seal and repaint the inside.
-Replace the trunk seal
-Repair or replace the back of the rear seat and reinstall.
-Fix torn ceiling liner by back seat.
-Run new tail light wiring.
-Run new vacuum lines for the locking system.
-Have the rust cut out of the quarter panel and a new piece welded in.
-Grind out all the rust I can see which, incidentally, is almost everywhere in spite of what decent shape the car is in.
-Strip ALL of the paint off the car.
-Straighten dents and dings as much as possible.
-Fill the imperfections with body filler.
-Spray the whole thing in self-etching (acidic, rust-inhibiting) primer.
-Block sand and look for more imperfections.
-Fill and sand those.
-Spray the whole thing with high-build primer to smooth things out.
-Sand the whole thing completely smooth.
-Pull windshield and back window (backlight).
-Paint it.
-Put windows back in with new seals.
-Put all the trim, lights and bumpers back on.
-Buff to a shine.
-Drive and smile.
Here are some pictures of what I've done in the last few days...
Stay tuned!
This is my blog. My first blog. Ever. And probably last. In fact, this may be the only entry, knowing me. But I'll try to overcome that tendency and write at least two. I don't know what you're expecting from this blog, but I'm going to keep it respectable. It's PG-rated. Possibly PG-13 at times, but only if it is something my character would really do. No gratuitousness. Unless you go with the second meaning of gratuitous: "given or done free of charge." In that case, it's all gratuitous.
Alright, enough self-aware rambling. Go read Salinger for that. Um...okay. Oh yeah! My car. I have a 1975 Mercedes Benz 240D. Really it's a 240D 3.0, for those in the know. NO, it's not a factory 240D 3.0. It was made as a regular 240D with a 4-cylinder 2.4 liter engine in it. But someone at some point installed a 5-cylinder 3.0 liter engine in it, but left everything else the same. My good friend Peter (a.k.a. Pierre) Hedary down in Orlando helped me with a lot of things, one of which was to put in the corresponding rear axle out of a 300D. I can never remember the ratios...I think it was a 3.4something and now it's a 3.3something. Or not. Anyway, since the interior package and a few other things are still a 240D, that makes it more or less a 240D 3.0. With a 4-speed manual. Eat your heart out all you automatic-diesel-driving schmucks. Mine has pep. At least as much as an old Mercedes diesel can have.
Okay, so, I've had this car for a couple of years now, and have taken good care of it. The paint is not original and has always been dull, not to mention poorly done, since I've had it. Also there are various dings and rough spots, as well as the all-too-common quarter panel rust on one side. Then the other non-rusty quarter panel got smashed in along with the rear door one night in a parking lot. Hit and run. That has since been repaired but not painted. So for the last 8 months I've been driving around with a gray primered quarter panel and rear door on the driver's side.
Well, now that school's out (I'm doing a master's in Second Language Acquisition at the University of Maryland) for the summer, I'm going to go into full-blown restoration mode. I thought it would be fun to document it with this blog and some photos in order for a few of my friends and family to follow along. For you non-enthusiasts out there, which I anticipate are most of you, I'll try to make it somewhat interesting. But I can't guarantee anything. For those who happen upon this and are contemplating doing a restoration, or those who have already done one, comments and questions are more than welcome.
I've been polishing this and replacing that with a better/cleaner one since I got the car. The steering wheel is not original, I put in euro headlights, the front seats have been switched out for ones in better shape, the instrument cluster is a conglomeration of the best parts of I think three different ones. The list goes on and on of little things that I have switched out or just made nicer. But now that I've set my sights on doing the body work and repainting, I'm seeing ALL KINDS of things that I need to do. The scope keeps getting wider and wider. Here's a list of what I've done in the last few days:
-Strip paint off, sand and prime a replacement trunk lid that I found (mine is rusty).
-Pull all trim off.
-Pull rear bumper off.
-Pull trunk seal and grind rust around edge
-Pull rear seat and disassemble back part (there is no padding left in it and the frame is rusted)
-Probably more that I can't think of at the moment...
Here's a list of things that I need to do as far as I know right now:
-Fix the rust in the trunk and around the trunk seal and repaint the inside.
-Replace the trunk seal
-Repair or replace the back of the rear seat and reinstall.
-Fix torn ceiling liner by back seat.
-Run new tail light wiring.
-Run new vacuum lines for the locking system.
-Have the rust cut out of the quarter panel and a new piece welded in.
-Grind out all the rust I can see which, incidentally, is almost everywhere in spite of what decent shape the car is in.
-Strip ALL of the paint off the car.
-Straighten dents and dings as much as possible.
-Fill the imperfections with body filler.
-Spray the whole thing in self-etching (acidic, rust-inhibiting) primer.
-Block sand and look for more imperfections.
-Fill and sand those.
-Spray the whole thing with high-build primer to smooth things out.
-Sand the whole thing completely smooth.
-Pull windshield and back window (backlight).
-Paint it.
-Put windows back in with new seals.
-Put all the trim, lights and bumpers back on.
-Buff to a shine.
-Drive and smile.
Here are some pictures of what I've done in the last few days...
Stay tuned!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
