Project 65 Vert Journal

[MarkDorner]

Ray uses a different guy for soda blasting. When I asked for a recommendation, he specifically asked me if I wanted it soda blasted or sand blasted. I gathered from the questioning that soda was easier on the panels but doesn't cut as well. Since this car is known to have bondo, I opted for sand.

But....when I talked to Ray just today, he said they were getting ready to send the Boss to Wallace's...

[mgreene]

Originally Posted by MarkDorner

Ray uses a different guy for soda blasting. When I asked for a recommendation, he specifically asked me if I wanted it soda blasted or sand blasted. I gathered from the questioning that soda was easier on the panels but doesn't cut as well. Since this car is known to have bondo, I opted for sand.

But....when I talked to Ray just today, he said they were getting ready to send the Boss to Wallace's...

Ah, two different bosses - his vs mine. Mine is going to Center to be soda blasted. His, which is much rougher, may be the one to be sandblasted. Be aware that sand blasting can warp or "tin can" panels if not done correctly. Plus, the finish is like 80 grit paper when returned, unlike Soda blasting which is more like 320 grit paper when done. You will also have grit coming out for ages from torque boxes, hidden crannies, etc.

[mgreene]

Some FYI for you :

Soda vs Sand

Q: "I'm told that sand blasting will warp the body panels"
A: Sand results from crushed rock. Sand is course and heavy, and often contains impurities. As a result of the heaviness, it takes a lot of air to move sand. Also, due to the size of the granules, you have to use a large nozzle. The result is a brute force method of blasting, whereas other media can be used with less air and a smaller nozzle. Many times, to reduce "overspray", the person who performs the blasting works in close proximity to the metal. This, coupled with the weight and speed at which the sand is travelling, results in heat being generated. The heat is what warps the metal. Moving away from the metal, using sifted sand, using a smaller nozzle - all will result in less heat being created and therefore lessen the possibility of warping.

Note: The gauge of the metal also affects how prone the metal is to warping. I had a '65 Mustang sand blasted - no problems. However, the same person who sand blasted the Mustang refused to blast my '65 VW Bus, because he was worried about warping the metal. The Mustang uses thicker metal than the VW.

Q: "The sand blasting company says they have 20 years experience and know to turn down the pressure and keep the nozzle at the right distance and it will be fine. He has included references.
A: Ask the sand blasting company if they are willing to "test" the blasting on a body panel that, if damaged, results in damage that is either not noticeable or can be easily repaired. As a rule, most high quality services do this. You can also reduce the amount of work needing to be performed by doing some prep prior to the job - such as using paint remover to remove some of the paint and using a scraper to remove the loose debris. The less work the sand blaster does, the less heat it will generate. Also, as with welding, warping occurs when heat is localized in one particular spot. The more experienced professionals move quickly, or move around the car several times.

[kennyg]

I've sandblasted at night and could see blue sparks bouncing off the metal! There use to be a business in Decatur that offered plastic media blasting. Anyone heard of them?

[garagewear]

There is someone in Murphreesboro that does Walnut shell blasting.

[mgreene]

Mark,
Did you have the blasting done or did you find out more info?

I came by your house Sunday to check on your progress but rumor has it your were waving caution flags around Birmingham...

[MarkDorner]

Originally Posted by mgreene

Mark,
Did you have the blasting done or did you find out more info?

I came by your house Sunday to check on your progress but rumor has it your were waving caution flags around Birmingham...

The shell is at Wallace's Sandblasting as we speak. I'll probably get it back Monday. Come by and help me vacuum!

[MarkDorner]

Wednesday evening, I brought the vert home from the blasters, dumped it off in my garage, and went to pick up the rotisserie from a good friend. The rotisserie is two giant engine stands that bolt to the car where the bumpers mount. Once mounted, you can lift the car high enough that you can rotate it on its side to have great access to all areas on the car. After mounting the car, I removed the rear leaf springs by simply unbolting the leafsprings and pulling it out from underneath. I'll likely reuse the springs, but V8 Mustangs have a different rearend than I6, so it's of no use to me. I used a spring compressor to remove the front coil springs, and unbolted the upper and lower arms. Again, I6 stuff that's of no use.



The car was absolutely full of sand. I vacuumed/blew at least 50lbs of sand out of every crevice and hole. I tilted the car back and forth several times and just watched it pour out of the frame rails/rockers, etc. I think I've finally got most of it, but I've been assured it will never be done leaking sand. The best you can hope for is to keep it away when you lay down your paint.

[MarkDorner]

The body on the old convertible isn't pristine, but it's not the worst I've seen by far. I knew about most of the bad spots before it went to the blasters, but that process always reveals a bit more.

The blaster tries to remove bondo if it's not too thick, but he can't just beat on one area too long or it will warp the panel, so he told me ahead of time that there will still be some bondo on the car when it comes back. I now have to remove the bondo with a grinder, wire wheel, etc.

Here's the rightside quarter that had a metal patch, but is rusting out again.


Both doors have typical front lower corner rust.



Leftside quarter has dents and another rusty metal patch.


Rear panel has a dent


One fender is perfect, the other is a mess



My favorite surprise was the panel in front of the trunklid. After it rusted out, someone just tried to fill it with their mig welder. Nice job....



Hood, trunklid are both in relatively good shape.

[Samir]

Wow, that tig welder patch looks like fossils of worms that ate the panel. Great log! I can't wait for the next episode.

[MarkDorner]

After grinding all of the bondo out of the car, I can see there's quite a bit of work to do. Most dents can be pulled out better using a stud welder. Some of the patches will need to be cut out and replaced. I've given up on the passenger side fender, as there's too much bondo and rust. New fenders can be bought for $150 Taiwan repro or $350 OEM repro.

The blaster didn't remove all of the undercarriage grime. The best way to do that is with a propane torch and a putty knife. I spent a few hours scraping gunk off of the inner fenders and underside. We're not making a trailer queen, but that doesn't mean the underside should be ugly.

I'm getting ready to be out of town for the whole month of September, so I really needed to get the bare shell in primer before I leave. PPG makes a great epoxy primer that will seal the metal and give a good base for bondo and filler primers. When I return, I'll have to grind some of the car back to metal so I can work the dents, but most of it will remain coated.

When I grow up I wanna be just like you.

[LMan]

Nice, nice work.


You really ought to cut down some other commitments and do more of this for $$.

[Samir]

Seriously, I second that.

[workmangc]

Great log.....This should make the owner very happy. Makes me want to look for an old stang and have it restored. To bad I don't know squat about paint and body stuff.

If I could find a 69 fastback.....Hmmmmmmmmmm

[DellApple]

hey guys... sorry but how can set a picture in my profile?

[MarkDorner]

Finally back in town after a month of TDY. I left the body in epoxy primer so it wouldn't flashrust while I was gone, but there were several areas that needed attention. The first thing is to cut out all of the rust and the nasty patches the last guy did.

Right lower rear quarter had a patch but was rusting again because the patch didn't get the drain installed.



Same quarter panel had a small rust area just in front of the wheelwell and holes where the last guy drilled and pulled a dent. Gotta weld those holes back up.



No more fossilized worms! Also patched the gas tank lip. That will be completely covered, so I didn't spend as much time dressing it.



All of these patches use premade patchpanels stamped to fit the area. Sometimes you can find the right patch, other times you have to buy the whole panel and cut out what you need (like the fossilized worm patches just in front of the trunk). I try to only cut out what I need. First I cut the new patch, then lay it over the bad area, draw around it, cut the bad panel and carefully fit the patch. If done properly and dressed on both sides, it becomes invisible.

It feels good to get back out in the shop and make a mess again.

[MarkDorner]

The left rear quarter had a bad patch at the back and dents and rust in the front. After some careful thought, I decided to install a complete quarter skin. The skin comes with both front, rear and bottom lips, but is not complete on the top. If you just have rust or small dents, it's easier and cheaper to just install a skin.

First, I cut the skin one inch from the front, top and back edges. If you use all of the edges, you have to be extremely careful lining it up so the character lines match the door and the rear quarter extension. It's better in my opinion to keep the factory edges when possible. Once the skin was cut, I layed it over the old quarter and drew around it with a Sharpie. You have to take your time and be very careful cutting out the quarter. After it was removed, I installed a trunk dropoff patch, just like I did on the other side.



Once the old quarter was removed, the patch fit much closer to the car and I was able to make new cut lines. Fit/grind/fit/grind/fit/grind goes on for at least an hour. Once I was satisfied I had it right, I clamped the quarter in place around the wheelwell and tackedwelded it.



I'm quite pleased with how the quarter went in.



The gaps between the panels must be minimum to make good welds.



Next is to complete the weld around the whole panel and grind them smooth. This repair should be invisible even on the inside of the trunk.

[MarkDorner]

Finished welding around the quarter and grinded the welds smooth.



More patch panels. Front lower corner of the doors is always a trouble spot for the Mustang. Last guy beat the rust inward and packed it with bondo. Not unusual, but not good either. In a few years the rust comes through the bondo and you're back to square one. These patches should last a very long time.





Front radiator support had a very ragged hole that looked like someone cut it with a chainsaw. Don't have any idea what it was for since it was not on the side AC dryer hose would go. Anyway, it needed a patch too.



I have one more patch to do. Then it'll be time to pull small dents!

[MarkDorner]

Spent all Saturday and some of Sunday insulating my paint booth. I'm going to have to work all through the winter, so I'm installing a few propane heaters. More on that later.

One of the most common hacks people did to these cars was to cut the dash in order to install a stereo. The standard hole in the dash only fits the specific radio that came in these cars, and some Mustang specific aftermarket AM/FM/Cassette units. It's a big job to fix a cut dash on a running car, but just another patch panel when it's at this stage.

Cutting a Mustang dash is a good way to make enemies in the community.


I decided to use the whole patch this time, so out comes the old.


In goes the new.


I think that's the last patch.

[MarkDorner]

I've spent this past weekend getting the body ready for filler primer. After all the welds were ground as smooth as I could get them, I applied very thin coats of filler to make the transition invisible. This takes a lot of time, it's tedious, and it's not fun. Using long sanding boards, a pnuematic file and 36-40 grit paper, I got the panels smooth. Now it's ready for filler primer.





Even though it appears to be a lot of filler, I'll assure you it's very thin. A refrigerator magnet still sticks to every part of it. It's the only way to get the panels straight. Some high end painters actually apply a thin coat on the whole car and sculpt it flat.