Back in beige

[jamie]

I contacted the paint guy who did my IWL Berlin scooter a few years back. He's local and does a lot of interesting work for custom car guys, paints some real high-end cars from restoration shops (lightweight E-Types, 60s Astons etc) plus the usual insurance stuff. I like his work.

He came over to check the car and give me a quote. We talked about the flat silver idea and he thought it was really interesting. I'm away on work for a few weeks now. Meanwhile he's going to do some samples of paint finishes for when I get back.

Excited now.

[IanMcLeod]

...once I've bought some decent blast media (I used sand today, because it was in the pot, but I'd probably buy some grit so it wasn't so dusty)...

Jamie don't use sand, it is a serious health risk.

Ian.

[jamie]

Thanks Ian. I used some leftover sand in test-cleaning the door the other day and it made a hell of a dust storm. I read up on silicosis afterwards - could really have done with doing that beforehand.

For anyone else reading this, don't blast sand without a mask. The dust contains silica, which enters deep, deep into your lungs. Your body attacks the silica particles, creating scar-tissue in there. This reduces the capacity of your lungs and you die. Slowly.

Now, it looks like it takes an awful lot of silica before you get silicosis, and I'm sure I've breathed more dust in the past from cutting concrete, bathroom tiles etc. But still, I won't be doing it again.

So the plan is to used crushed glass, which carries no risk of silicosis.

[Darren65]

So the plan is to used crushed glass

.....just watch you don't cut yourself!

[jamie]

Yesterday The Dude, a TIG-wielding friend and I met for a workshop night of pizza, beer, hammers and welding.

I had just got back from 10 days working in South Africa, which was nice. Coming home straight into this workshop, I may as well have been in the Arctic Circle.

Whilst I was away, a package had arrived from Gray in San Ramon, CA. Gray is the friend that let me park car in his garage back when I bought it from Fresno in November 2012. He is a detail-obsessed maniac from the hot rod old-school, born in Florida back when it was beyond weird. He is one of my favourite people ever.

With the engine nearing completion, Dude and I realised we would soon be in need of some plug wires. Anyone can buy plug wires from Pelican or whatever, for thirty quid or so. Not everyone has a friend who can assemble custom wire sets from a stockpile of NOS Fyrebraid sleeving. But I do, and I love having bits of car made by friends, so I asked him if he could build me a set.

Gray's quest into the psychological wilderness of spark plug wire assembly was as exhaustive as ever. A thousand emails later, I chose a length of Fyrebraid that he had rescued from a warehouse in New Orleans that had been flooded during Hurricane Katrina. The braid should have been white, but was dulled from its time under water. I thought this was kind of cool and interesting - spark plug wire braid that had been involved in one of the biggest news events of the early 21st Century.

Dude, on the other hand, told me I was an idiot and that the braid was in fact stained with faeces and dead people.

I brought the newly-arrived wires along to the workshop, where Dude refused outright to touch them without wearing a set of thick vinyl gloves. Here he is trial-fitting them to the engine:



Once the tinware is powder-coated and reassembled, they'll be cut to length and clipped in place.



The main aim of the evening was to fit the exhaust. My friend Hayden of Wevo had kindly given me some beautiful CNC'd exhaust stubs, which The Dude wanted mated to a 4-into-1 aftermarket stainless Beetle manifold.

Heater on.



My friend Jels (http://www.83engineering.co.uk/) did the cutting and TIGing...





... and it was beautiful (here's old vs new).



Getting the new, larger-bore exhaust to fit involved some fettling to the tinware. Having straightened it out beautifully, he then employed the help of Jels's gilfriend to bash it with a mallet.



After many hours of work, none of which were mine, the manifold was tacked in place and looking rather nice. Next job, which won't be mine; routing the J-tubes to the rear cylinders, and get it all properly welded-up.

[Gary71]

Lovely stuff Jamie.

How's the body getting on?

[cubist]

There's a pixelated bald guy in there somewhere! Love the firebraiding, they do actually look like they're made from human flesh... very medical, v.cool! That's a nice bit of stainless shaping too.

[jamie]

How's the body getting on?

No progress. I've got to wait for the weather to improve.

As it stands, the product data sheet for the primer says it's too cold and too humid to apply

[Ralph]

There's a pixelated bald guy in there somewhere! Love the firebraiding, they do actually look like they're made from human flesh.

If the pixelated bald guy is the Dude with the black vinyl gloves/braid I would be concerned that he is not also 'The Machine' from 8mm.

Nice exhaust too.

[jamie]

There's a pixelated bald guy in there somewhere! Love the firebraiding, they do actually look like they're made from human flesh.

If the pixelated bald guy is the Dude with the black vinyl gloves/braid I would be concerned that he is not also 'The Machine' from 8mm.

Nice exhaust too.

Had to check on google images, but yes - that seems about right.

[jamie]

Blasted and epoxy-primed the shell

[Midlifecrisis]

Pictures!

[jamie]

OK!















After a bit of a fight with the spray gun, which initially refused to play, it was primer time...





It's not the nicest spray job I've ever done, but it's a good thorough covering. I don't really know what I'm doing anyway. I have some seam sealer, which I will apply next, then I think another coat of epoxy, then apply the stonechip (six tins each of Dinitrol 445 and 447). After that, I'm going to do the inside and front trunk with home-brewed Lizard Skin sound deadener to the interior - more on that when I've worked-out how to make it...

[jamie]

How's the body getting on?

No progress. I've got to wait for the weather to improve.

As it stands, the product data sheet for the primer says it's too cold and too humid to apply

Solved this with a heater (Argos, £20) and a dehumidifier (existing)

[sladey]

Nice progress Jamie - great to get it covered and protected