Willow Springs, Spring Fling, MATS 1600 mile road trip

[Topcat]

Looking great.    Keep the pics coming.

[ntstlgl1970]

Looking good!!!!  It's really easy, to get in really deep, really quick.   Keep us posted! n' Keep the dust flying!!

Thanks! I added some dates into my previous posts so it doesn't look like I did all this in a month or anything. It's been about 3 years from the time I pulled the motor out to get to where I am at now.

Looking great.   Keep the pics coming.

I've never been accused of   

[Topcat]

I've never been accused of   

With that big Camera you had at the show, I know you can take good pics.

[cudazappa]

wow, keep this thread coming!!!

I'm going to attempt bodywork on my Chally this winter and see how it goes.  Of course, I've got a car needing surgery so I might be in different doo doo then you are.  But you are doing a great job!

What special tools have you bought?  Bang for the buck?

[ntstlgl1970]

Doing some more work on the fender over the weekend, the front is a little messed up, so I used the stud gun on some low spots. Worked on a couple of dents and started to rebuild the body line.

wow, keep this thread coming!!!

I'm going to attempt bodywork on my Chally this winter and see how it goes.  Of course, I've got a car needing surgery so I might be in different doo doo then you are.  But you are doing a great job!

What special tools have you bought?  Bang for the buck?

As far as tools go, if you have compressed air, the National Detroit DA900 (seen the nickname "mudhog" used for it in body shop forums)is a godsend, of the air longboard, 6" DA or air grinder, I use the 900 about 95% of the time when using an air sander. I don't even turn it up high because it can take more off (filler) than you want it to very quickly.  It's an 8" sander but is geared low speed so it doesn't over heat bare metal, kicks butt on filler and stripping paint using a 36 grit disc - I stripped my whole car with this thing in one day - haven't used a 6" DA since. Next up would be the stud gun, if you can't get at the back of a dent, this is the ticket. Then the normal assortment of hammers, dollies, sanding blocks and lots of sandpaper - and most of all patience. That's about all for special tools.

[Super Blue 72]

Incredible the talent you have with bodywork!   

[ntstlgl1970]

Incredible the talent you have with bodywork!   

Thanks, I think anyone can do this type of work, it's more manual labor than anything.

So I finished sanding from the top of the body line down to the tape and pulled the tape off. It's looking pretty good. Next up will be going the other way, from the bottom up. I've got to sort out the headlamp area on the driver's fender first.....

[bb71challenger]

I am living proof that not everyone can do it lol. I dont have the knowledge or the patience to do bodywork 

[miketyler]

Is that light green colored filler made by Evercoat?  I have used it after I have roughed in area with Bondo. Its thinner than bondo but way easier to sand and smooth. It comes off quick! 

[Grancoupe]

Is your next step going to be high build primer? I have been doiing some reading about high build primers and it seems epoxy primers are the way to go? I also read that laquer primers dry rather than cure, like epoxy, so laquer primers can return to a liquid state if touched by a solvent. Just curious what your going to pick.

[EvilTwinATX]

expoxy primers are too hard to work with after 24 hours.. I would stick with some of the newer high build stuff - you would probably want to use a sealer prior to painting anyway to make sure you dont have any bleed thru. PPG makes some good stuff (urethane I think) that you can spray over anytime without having to resand or reshoot the epoxy (this it for good intercoat adhesion).

Good luck and good job..

[hooD]

ntstlgl1970--------> I applaude  your tireless dedication to the prepping phase of your project.  Doing it the right way is what will make your final paint job totally awesome.  Shortcuts never payoff.  And you have uncovered plenty of past ones from other people.

I compare a good bodyman to a blind  person.  Your extra senses are in your touch and feel for perfection.  Eyesight does help!

Keep up the excellent work.

[Grancoupe]

The photos are great. Like an instructional video!

[ntstlgl1970]

Is that light green colored filler made by Evercoat?  I have used it after I have roughed in area with Bondo. Its thinner than bondo but way easier to sand and smooth. It comes off quick! 

Yep, i've been using evercoat Z-Grip for everything, I'm using different colored hardeners (red and white in addition to blue) to tell when I've sanded enough.

Is your next step going to be high build primer? I have been doiing some reading about high build primers and it seems epoxy primers are the way to go? I also read that laquer primers dry rather than cure, like epoxy, so laquer primers can return to a liquid state if touched by a solvent. Just curious what your going to pick.

Next I'm going pull the body panels off and use PPG DP40 epoxy sealer on the front and back side of everything I can get at. I know the epoxy is hard to work with after it cures, but with the amount of time it is taking me to do stuff, I would be more concerned wtih leaving primer exposed to who knows what (my neighbors back yard is right next to my garage, I would hate to have them use WD40 or something and have it end up in the primer- that stufff goes everywhere). Once I get everything in epoxy, then I'm going to wetsand with 400, then use high build primer over that, block some more. Then base/clear.
Thanks for the compliments. I've been reading and talking to people about the bodywork stuff for probably about 2 years before I started seriously starting this so it's nice to see things start going back together.

[ntstlgl1970]

Some work on the driver's fender...