BUILD THREAD Project Olds Cool (Recognition!!)

[L.A.X-RATED]

and here me thought wayne was the greatest up that way!!!! spectacular work as usual donovan did you start the fender flare segment yet,or?really interested in this approach you have proposed as last seen? keepup the great work andcontinue tohold that canuck crown high!!!

 

[Rktpwrd]

We need an update!

Sorry Jared, I haven't updated lately as I didn't think I really had anything worth sharing just yet.

I've still been steadily picking away at the "to do" list, but it's been mundane and not overly interesting work that's had to take place. Mostly just a bit of filler work and prep to get things to the point where I can spray some color inside the window channel openings.
I'll give you what I've got so far tho...


Continuing on from the last update, I had added weld to the passenger's side "A" pillar in place of all the lead I had to melt out. It then got ground down and shaped to the contour of the side windshield moulding.
The next step was to repeat the procedure on the driver's side.

Here's the same metal work process completed, but on the driver's side:

With the metal and shaping work now done on both sides, it was time to put the welder and grinders away for a bit and switch to the mixing board and spreaders.
Choosing All Metal for its ease of sanding and strength in the areas I planned to use it, I mixed some up and applied it to the upper corners of each "A" pillar:

After roughly a night and a bit (per side) of block sanding, test fitting, more block sanding and finessing, I had the corners done and the windshield mouldings fitting great.

The passenger's side upper corner after filler work...

...and with the moulding test fit in place.

It should be noted here that the matching of the shape of the opening to the mouldings was done in the metal work stage. The filler is just to smooth out the low spots and finish out the area. None of the filler actually makes up the edges of the corners.

I'm extremely pleased with the end result, it took a considerable amount of time to accomplish, but I think it was more than well worth it.

Just as a reminder of what the fit and finish looked like before, here is the driver's side prior to tear down...

...and now the same side afterwards:

Continued >>>

 

[Rktpwrd]

Now that I had the upper corners finalized and finished, I could move on to addressing finishing the seam I had created between the patch panel and the roof skin.

I masked off the windshield ledge and the outer roof skin leaving only the seam exposed...

...then mixed up some DP50 epoxy primer and worked it into the seam with a cheap disposable brush. This was done to provide some corrosion resistance underneath the seam sealer that was to follow. The brush method worked better here in my opinion, as I could physically work the epoxy into the seam better than I would've been able to with a spray gun.

After applying the epoxy:

Once that had cured overnight I thoroughly hit the epoxy with red ScotchBrite, then blew the area out and wiped it down. After re-masking the area, I grabbed some heavy-bodied seam sealer (shown here)...

...and applied a thin bead just below the area of the seam. Using a filler spreader, I worked the seam sealer in by pulling it upwards into the seam. Then it was time to let it dry, again overnight.

Here's the area after applying the seam sealer. Note how the trim rivets are carefully masked off to prevent excess sealer from building up underneath them:

After the seam sealer had cured overnight, I began lightly sanding it with 120 grit just to smooth out the lumps and bumps left behind by the spreader.
Once all the seam sealer was sanded smooth and feathered off on the edges, it looked like this:

Nothing too fancy here, just a fairly smooth finish on the seam sealer. Even though this area will be all but invisible once the glass and mouldings are in, I didn't want it to be too obvious that a repair was done here.

Continued >>>

 

[Rktpwrd]

One more shot of the seam sealer sanded, this one an overall pic:

Because I plan on applying color to the opening before the windshield goes back in, I also spent some time prepping the other areas of the "A" pillars:

Somewhere along the line, more as a side project and distraction, I got a little more of the old paint stripped off the roof.
This time above the driver's side window, between the AstroRoof opening and the drip rail:

Speaking of the drip rail, the last of the old seam sealer was removed from here too.

And that's about it. Not much to report in the way of progress, mainly just lots of pics here.

Although progress has seemed glacially slow lately, in my defence, these have all been picky and finicky areas to work in and on. It all takes a ton of time to get right.

The good news however, is that the windshield opening is now done and ready for epoxy and paint. There's nothing left to do here but mask when the time comes.

Starting tomorrow night, I will switch over to the back window opening again. I want to address the low spot in the roof skin where I screwed up welding in the one patch, and then there's a few areas that will need a skiff of filler. Once that's done, it'll be onto welding in the missing trim rivets with the UniSpotter, and more prep to the surrounding areas as well.
And so it goes.

Thanks for the inquiry and interest everyone!
Till next time...

Donovan

 

[Rktpwrd]

and here me thought wayne was the greatest up that way!!!! spectacular work as usual donovan did you start the fender flare segment yet,or?really interested in this approach you have proposed as last seen? keepup the great work andcontinue tohold that canuck crown high!!!

Thanks for the high praise José!
One problem tho...

I think you've got the two cars confused. The fender flare mod you referred to is actually slated for The Juggernaut, not this one. Work on The 'Naut has been suspended temporarily until I can get the rust and paint issues corrected on this one.

The fender flare mod has not yet been attempted on The Juggernaut, but it is definitely still in the plans. I'll have to see where I get to between the two cars, but I would definitely like to get to it this year if I can.

Thanks for checking out Olds Cool, it's nice to hear from ya again!

D.

 

[1evilregal]

nice work, as usual, Mr. Riddler! almost has me inspiried to get back out and try to get the last patch on the Chief re-worked.... got the little patches done, but am having troubles with the large one behind the t-tops, so am stepping away for another week to clear my head, and work on the honey-do list...

 

[Clutch]

Looks great but remember any progress is good progress on these cars there still disappearing by the day and so few of us are saving them

 

[Texas82GP]

Thanks for the awesome updates Donovan. The repairs look fantastic. When are you expecting the new windshield to come in?

 

[Injectedcutty]

Thanks for the awesome updates Donovan. The repairs look fantastic. When are you expecting the new windshield to come in?

As Donovan's unofficial PR rep I will fill in the blank Jared lol! The glass shop has the new windshield, but Mr. Ridler is holding them off until he has the window channels painted and done.

Disclaimer: any further questions must be directed to me via PM to avoid Donovan from being distracted in getting Olds Cool back on the road !!!!

Signed.....Scott being a jackass on a Monday lol!!!! Cheers guys!!!!

 

[Longroof79]

Great work as always, Mr. D.
If the General had done work on their cars to this degree they'd probably go bankrupt.
The mouldings have never fit this well from the factory. You can't compare the exemplary care you've been giving it. Keep up the good work as always.

Keep us thirsty for updates my friend.