1971 Chevelle

[showcar]

This will be my first showcar. The guy had me do a car exactly like this but a different hood. Last time it was just a clean up job but this time it was delivered stripped. Since I work production I know my work is cut out for me on this one. Never really got to relax and mess with the metal and always seemed rushed to just tuck and fill. This job the guy knows my work and wants me to take my time so I'm excited to hone in on my metal abilities.
I watched plenty of videos from the metals masters(don't they make it look easy?) and decided to get some tools I kept seeing. I'll say first hand that I can already see the difference. For now I'm just working the metal as even as possible and when my shrinking disc comes I'll be messing with that in conjuction. So far so good and actually think metal working the hard way w/ basic metal working tools has made it easier with better tools. I've already worked a few things I think primer will cover. Never thought it'd be this easy but I still have a lot of work to do. I thought of using a pen to guide my metal but it seems like going in one direction with a block work good enough.
Got all my dings marked with tape after going over it with my hand and now it's a matter of just working them one by one. I guess some would say I sold my self short on this job money wise but in actuality I'm getting paid to learn and I'm not overwhelmed at all and I know I can meet his expectations. I think being overwhelmed came from mudding metal that wasn't right, which made me a great mudman!

For only $1400 he's getting both quarters metal worked and filled, same for the rear decklid, and to fill small dings which there's a few. After that I prime and block for paint. Might paint it too! This should be ready to paint in a week but I'll take my time and I'm still waiting on my shrinking disc. Can't wait to see my name on a plaque!
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020065.jpg

[showcar]

pics of day two....



http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020066.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020077.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020078.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020088.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020089.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020091.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020100.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020106.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020108.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020112.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020113.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020116-1.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020117.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020106.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020118.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020119.jpg

[showcar]

day 3 pics

lots of progression yesterday. I sanded almost everything I had mudded and waited for my shrinking disc. I ordered on Monday and recieved it yesterday. So I worked the quarters with the shrinking disc and primarily used a stud gun to make my pulls. I gotta say, the shrinking disc is amazing! It's so good the only part that didn't work so great didn't work so great cause the wheel lip needed to be smacked out more with a slide hammer It's the only area that didn't rest right, but that example goes to show when you go back and forth between metal working and shrinking you're gonna get near perfect results. Just couldn't do it cause I didn't have a slide hammer. The right quarter was soo bad it's sunk in up to the door and kicked in even behind the rear side reflector(didn't fully see til filler was on-doh!), which means the entire lower quarter to the door was affected, not to mention his half ass job in welding in a patch panel (warpage/ not welded with right body contours in mind.). So when you consider all that and the fact that one coat of filler with a few patches here and there is what's gonna do the trick it's amazing to me. Couldn't have possibly done a job this good without the shrinking disc.

Anyhow, most of the bodywork is done other than a patch in the lower left quarter and guide sanding the smaller dents with 80 then 180. I also have the rear deck lid to deal with now so I'll probably finish off the filler work everywhere else, sweep up dust, and guidecoat the rear decklid and start to carefully metalwork it everywhere to shrink. I will be very careful with my shrinks on this rear decklid but first I need to figure out if the supports are in any way a cause for the warpage and I think it is, so I won't shrink a thing til I know that for sure.

I'm dying for a break as my arms are tired and I don't use a straightline so everything is by hand.

http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020091.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020134.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020153.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020093.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020136.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020138.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020159.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020163.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020124.jpg

[showcar]

Day 4-5

Cleaned up edges, guided some mud, fixeds a few more dents I found and fixed the decklid. Not only was it warped, there was part of the frame against it that kept it high. I didn't know how to deal with it so I smashed it down carefully from up top with a pic cause I figured if anything I'd stretch it and raise it away from the frame once the frame was smashed down. It worked but it made tensions uneven. Anyhow, I guided the metal once and studded some areas up. Then I shrunk areas with the shrinking disk. Shrinking the quarter panel was easy with the disk and the curves give it a good structural rigity. It conditions those areas good. For hoods it's much different. I tried the conditioning thing on the hood and it didn't work out so great. I switched over to stud gun and it worked ok with ultra light zaps to shrink. After doing that for a bit I switched back to the disk and tried to be more direct and light with the disk and it conditioned the metal very well. I think had I had a better feel for how the disk is for certain tensions in metal I may have made the hood a lot better. I'm thinking if the frame wasn't ever an issue with raising the metal and I had a feel for the disk it could have only required a tiny amount of mudd. In the end I felt I could fix any warped hood but it was my mistakes (overshrinking) early on that I was fixing in the end. Overall I'm surpised at how well it came out. I only guided it once and did everything by feel after that to save time.

In a nutshell the car is ready for prime but I found damage all along the rocker. He has the holes for the rocker moulding so I wanna physically see it so I know I don't have to work those dents.









http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020164.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020168.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020171.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020176.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020177.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020184.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020188.jpg

[showcar]

Day 6

Just cleaned up edges, found two dings, welded in moulding studs, checked stuff and primed the front end. A little upset cause there was a dent on the hood where the supports pushed it up. I couldn't knock it down for the life of me so I had to put a little pitching mound on the hood and just loaded it up with primer. :D It's the left side of the hood. I think some of it can be blocked out. I think the rest of the car is gonna be perfect. I can't wait to see those quarters. Those were the biggest dents I've ever done and I suspect they're gonna turn out really good. If I can get block out that wave on the hood it should be showcar straight. Hope he pays for a buff job.
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020189.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020190.jpg
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp341/sanchtech/P1020191.jpg

edit... Hey! Nobody gave it up to me for doing this whole job with 1 gallon of bondo![pats own shoulder :) ]

[showcar]

welp, got my BIG lesson today. All the small dents turned out absolutely perfect. The big ones had 40 scratches I was battling with the primer, and I hope they sand out. I think what I'll do next time for huge dents is knock it down flat with 40 then throw on a ultraskim coat of filler and start with 80. I'm not switching over to 80 quick enough or I'm applying to much pressure with the 40 grit. I also noted that the round blocks tend to dig a tad more. It's very dangerous playing with 40 grit but I'm not giving up. I think I found a perfect balance for smaller dents in using 40 grit and stepping up at the right time but not the big dents.

This simple problem will go away in a week when I do barter work for a 60 gal compressor and get a straightline.

In any case I got my arse handed to me today. NEVER worth it to be worrying about scratches and hoping you can barry them or sand out. Never again.

[need boost]

Looking good ! To do it right is a lot of work for sure where most just throw on the mud. Hang in there and yeah, he is getting it done CHEAP for 1400 ! Daniel

[showcar]

thanks. It's gonna be good but not that good. I realized if it was my car I would have thrown a one last skim on the rear decklid and quarters after getting one coat down. Instead I patched it here and there and took it too far down with my 40 grit. I ended up priming for a long time to cover up the scratches. The good thing is, I messed with the worst part of the rear decklid (scratches) and think there's plenty of meat on it and got the scratches out with 320. I guess from that I learned to be more patient and maybe value mudwork a little more. Instead, I try to do the whole car with one gallon of bondo and have a near heartattack soon as I see the scratches. That was a lesson I needed very much. I'm not gonna lose the 40 grit but I guess next time I'll have to take the time to skim over to get the scratches out. Even then, it's still a time saver to use the 40. Just REALLY hard to find that balance and when to switch over to 80 while leaving enough for 180. I just don't think it's worth it on a big dent. Sometimes you take what works and I've been told that but now it's ringing in my ears. Funny thing, I get done priming and I'm thinking "ok these scratches might sand out", than I looked down and saw the valences and head light covers....can you say hit it with 180-220 and rattle can? :shhh:

Oh yeah, I also seam sealed the quarters and they look professional. I used two layers of tape. The top one so if I peel it off and the sealer wants to fall on the mud directly on the c pillar it can't, and it would have had I not used two layers. Then I lifted the second layer and voila. I was kind of excited about that cause I never sealed anything and no one ever told me to do it like that. Also stud welded in some moulding studs on both doors and window channel. Lotta work. I was gonna wetsand with 280 then 400 but I think I'm just gonna go over the scratches with 320 then hit the whole car with 400. I'm gonna try my hardest to not chase. I'll just reguide the whole panel if I can.

I think if I had a job this car would turn out perfect but I'm rushing and kind of burning myself out on it so I can get the mortgage paid. Kind of sucks working like that. Would be much better if I can work casually and paced. I don't think it'd be in primer right now had I taken my time.

btw, I was for a long time the guy that just threw the mud on. Believe it or not doing that made me sharp at mud, but you soon realize it's not worth it. It's much better, quicker, and cleaner to just do it right the first time, and then your mud is easy. Had I not worked the quarters and rear decklid like I did I'd be on two gallons of bondo and frustrated with continously putting it on to find more crap wrong.

[showcar]

looks like the sanding scratches are gonna sand out along with that area in the hood I mentioned that was mounded. I was very pissed last night about the possiblity of dropping $60 more on primer and priming again in my garage. Great lesson on the 40 grit.

I should be done with this car today. Not bad for mudding both quarters to the doors, a rear decklid, hood, basically everywhere(25 dents), seam sealed the quarters, welded in moulding studs, primed, and blocked...in a week.

Maybe one day some dude will drop the serious cash and pay for me to take a little more time on these things. As of now, I'm just using the opportunity
to learn. Next pics I post will be after paint. I'm interested in seeing how the bodyline on the decklid turned out. It's an area I need to perfect a little better.

[55chevrolet]

How time is in it so far?

[showcar]

geez, I'd say about 56 but probably a alot less. I tend to take a lot of breaks when I'm doing it at home. The net distracts me a bit. :D

[Iceman]

geez, I'd say about 56 but probably a alot less. I tend to take a lot of breaks when I'm doing it at home. The net distracts me a bit. :DIs that Clausen All-U-Need primer you are using? If so how do you like? I've used it on my 67 vert Camaro and so far pleased with its built in guide coat and sanding.

[showcar]

Is that Clausen All-U-Need primer you are using? If so how do you like? I've used it on my 67 vert Camaro and so far pleased with its built in guide coat and sanding.

I used featherfill cause of all the dings, but I should have used slick sand. Just found out it's heavier.

As far as the project, I see 4 tiny dings after blocking out. I thought about why I missed those by hand feel and i believe it was the way he stripped the car. He used a friction disk of some sort and it either warped the metal very slightly or left it wavy from cutting uneven. Can't figure it out but in areas where primer cut thru you can see that uneveness with the metal exposed. I think that messed with my hand feel. Geez, it seems like NO MATTER WHAT a customer does himself it just makes your job harder. I have NEVER experienced anything good from that. It's very annoying. Guess he's gonna have to live with those 4 dings cause I'm not buying anymore materials to spot it in. I already had to deal with fixing his patchpanels and warpage from welding, decklid alignment(he put on), and now this. Frustrating.

[showcar]

I'm such a jackass. I think those four dings are gonna be barely visible if anything but I think they'll sand out. They were barely visible with the last coat of wet prime. So they should probably sand out when the surrounding area gets sanded. I got a can of sem high build. Stupid of me when a quart of poly is just ten more, and the guy gave me a free quart spout too. He should have thrown it at my head to wake me up... rattle can sucks!

[showcar]

Ok, I need a wake up call. Decided to hang onto the car for one more day. I'll hit it softly with 600 nice and evenly but light, spot prime little lows, and then it will be done. Not a journeyman and should just be happy to have the op. Hard to remind myself of that sometimes. It should turn out good apart from a few tiny highs, but think it might not even be noticible. Gotta make a name for myself and swallowing my pride is a start. Patience young shmucki

[showcar]

all done.Can't wait to see the pics! It's not gonna be straight as I had liked For one, on the decklid and the quarters I had to bury my scratches cause I didn't have enough mud to reskim them and to initiate with 80, which forced me to leave the primer thin in certain areas. Top that with the car being warped all over due to however and the hell he stripped it, 30 dents and dings, warped quarters that weren't in the proper shape when butt welded, warpage, shrinkage...it was a mess!

It's also not gonna be as straight cause when I was wet sanding I was using a towel to wipe the water away cause my garage is to dark to get a good read with a squeegy. I tried to keep grit off the towel but failed. So it's gonna be a little wavy cause of that too(sanding out a few scratches). That was so stupid since I always usually use a soft block to squeegy. I think my mind was racing and felt it needed to be completely dry to make up for the darkness. To find the scratches I was using an old lamp stand on top of garage lights and dual flouros. Get this, the lamp stand is Ikea so of course it was broken and I was toting it around with me during final inspection and I got shocked from the exposed lead...standing in a puddle! :rottentom I'll be sure to get a light. It looks like I got all the scratches but you never really know til you get a true bath and check outside. If so maybe I can upsale a wetsand n buff. :D

I learned soo much from this job and the lessons didn't set me back much. I'll get em next time. I wanted this thing show car straight and could have had I done a few things different. I think for cheapie jobs when I miss a couple dings I might end it with sem high build rattle can and wet sand with 600. It sands easy, it's quick, don't really have to mask, and since it sands easy it doesn't disturb the surrounding areas as much. The overspray sands out easy too. The dings I miss are usuallly ones that rattle can cover so it works out perfect.

[showcar]

So glad I spent a little time on this...Gawd this guy is picky! First off, it's black and I didn't charge him more cause of it, second, I didn't charge him for seam sealing and welding in the moulding studs. So he goes right up to the side mirror mounting holes and feels them...like I'm gonna fix those! He seemed a little upset cause I didn't read his mind and know one of the holes was supposed to be shut. I told him maaco could do it. Had he mentioned it I would have redone that part but not if he didn't tell me.He also just expected me to fix his mangled valences. I primed them and wet sanded them...what ELSE do you want??? a showcar for $1400???

People...

[55chevrolet]

a showcar for $1400???




That is just what he wants! They say they DON"T want a Showcar at the bid, but then expect a Showcar when they pick it up!

I now ask them to sign a Repair Authorization that gives me all the Leverage before I touch the Car. It may very well never hold up in Court but so far it has made them have a better "memory" of what was said and promised at the onset.

[showcar]

my thoughts exactly. Oh don't mind that...Then when he picks it up it' an issue. I ended up fixing his head light pieces and told him to buy a new valance and I'll spray it. Guess he thought by bringing it to me without discussing it meant fixing it. It had over $400 worth of damage on a $60 part...Geez, get a new one or at least ASK if fixing it is included. I just assumed he wanted it primed. I'm sure he's just looking at what he spend and not the value of work. That job would have cost him a lot, and that's just for the bodywork.

[showcar]

the car was wavy. Not enough primer to cover it. That car was crap though at the start I left those areas thin cause they were the straighest and so I would have not run out of primer. The areas I mudded turned out perfect. Go figure. A gallon isn't enough primer. bad day

[55chevrolet]

the car was wavy. Not enough primer to cover it. That car was crap though at the start I left those areas thin cause they were the straighest and so I would have not run out of primer. The areas I mudded turned out perfect. Go figure. A gallon isn't enough primer. bad day


It the owner wants it Straight,I tell them two gal,minimum.

You valance comment made me think of a 70 Chevelle I did. The headlight Bezels were painted off the car and the owner dropped and chipped one during assembly. He called and ask if I would reshoot it as a courtesy and I said "sure, but there is no paint left. You bring some". He brought it over when I was gone and dropped it off. There was no paint left along with it. A week later he was shocked that I had not painted it. He thought I should buy the paint,after all he had already spent a lot of money.

[showcar]

Yeah, it was the top portions of the doors and fenders. Those were the areas that were left thin cause they were straighter and I needed that extra primer. I think I'm gonna do the same for prime jobs and tell them a gallon is scraping. The quarters and rear decklid look nice though.

[cummins724]

That guy sounds like he needs a wake up call. I wouldn't touch that car for $1400. You are doing a fine job, keep up the good work.:proposeto

[showcar]

Thanks. I learned a lot on that job from metalworking, not messing with 40 grit unless you coat again, and prime issues. One gallon of primer for any car let alone black isn't enough. He lives really close to where I work so I might take some pics anyways. They'll be close ups on the decklid and quarters. To ashamed to take a pic where you can see the waves.

I take the blame for that. It was my knowledge he was depending on. He just didn't know the value of the work but I agreed so it was my fault. However, him stripping the car with that friction disk thing messed up my hand feel so there was a ton of tiny dents I couldn't even feel, and if I had known I would have realized it needed more primer and would have gotten it myself and probably would have elected to reprime the whole thing just to make it better.
The good thing is, I think I'll have it down next time and everything will be peachy perfect.

The other car I did for him was $450!!! It was a prime and block but there was mud all over it that was left high and I just couldn't let it be so I finaled it for him. On top of that, I know the paint shop they took it to and they called me in to take care of the pinholes cause I didn't put a drop on it. :rottentom