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Rian - Wise move with clever thinking - far too many car owners whom have a restoration on the go attempt to do everything - and whilst some manage it - many others bite off far more than they can chew - getting the panels back to bare metal yourself will not save you any money either by the time you have purchased all the abrasives & taken into account the hidden costs like electricity etc you will still be at a similar cost has to what the media blasting is costing and despite all your efforts the home based paint removal will not be has good has the professional one - hence recognising what is currently achievable given your health and what can be outsourced for a moderate outlay is the clever thinking bit Just be careful that none of this sets your heart racing when you get your panels back free of paint & rust
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grizz I am sorry to hear that you haven't been 100%. Glad that you're taking it easy in the best possible way and are looking after yourself by doing the things that you love. Stay happy and healthy. I, along with many others on this wonderful forum, love your updates and attention to detail, plus your ability to re-purpose what some people regard as a bit of tat. Keep well - your presence here is much appreciated! Regards, Dave Thank you very much for taking the time to write Dave, like many of you on here know, you are all family. It often happens insidiously, this process of friendship. I am thankful for what we all have here, and don't doubt that Hotwire knows he has one of the best forums on the web. Regarding the repurposing and reuse of stuff, I have often sat and wondered why I do it. I can afford to go buy stuff, but it gives me a bigger kick I guess, making, shaping stuff. Also allows me to pass it or savings generated by it on..... life is good. same here, buddy. good to see the Chevy's gettin some love!...media blasting is so rewarding. having the parts primed is a great idea too...I'm sure it will save a lot of time. JP Morning JP, Yes, the Chevy is long overdue, but as with many things, it all comes in good time. I did the basic maths and realised that cleaning up panels before cutting and welding up all the rust, or trying to level out dents, is best done from a cleaned up base, so priming allows me to inspect and respond to any problems directly At £30.00 per panel/piece it’s got to be cheaper than doing it myself, also less painful. Rian - Wise move with clever thinking - far too many car owners whom have a restoration on the go attempt to do everything - and whilst some manage it - many others bite off far more than they can chew - getting the panels back to bare metal yourself will not save you any money either by the time you have purchased all the abrasives & taken into account the hidden costs like electricity etc you will still be at a similar cost has to what the media blasting is costing and despite all your efforts the home based paint removal will not be has good has the professional one - hence recognising what is currently achievable given your health and what can be outsourced for a moderate outlay is the clever thinking bit Just be careful that none of this sets your heart racing when you get your panels back free of paint & rust Chris, as mentioned, my time and body is worth more than the price charged. I also think that often the cleaning process eats into ones mental resolve and drive, resulting in “nothing to show for days worth of work” and then either losing interest, or full warp power forward. This is one of the reasons I had to keep off this truck resto for so long, I knew I would not do it justice and end up hating it. With this little cardiac event I just experienced, of course my physical drive has been reduced a bit, and some of the meds screw with energy, motivation and for instance the Statins will often expose hidden aches and pains. Also the truck has always had its own bank account for parts, materials, labour like blasting etc and the last few years, I have continued to add bits of cash, saved by recycling, fixing or using used and second hand items that deliver on a specific purpose, into its savings account. When you pay £50.00 for an engine stand, expertly modified to add a “catch tray” below, or £80.00 for a like new, 2.5 ton engine hoist rather than the full price, it stretches that pound a long way. I think when the panels return they will rather than getting my heart racing, show me just how much needs to be done. It will be a few weeks before they get back according to the shop as they are on a big job right now,
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So after bloods, observations, history, advice, information and the rest, I was let go, until 08.00 on Wednesday till 16.00 Headed down to New Romney, 55 miles from home in Prozac to deliver the truck panels for blasting and etch primer. WE Weld services do a lot of work. Martin took his cab and doors to them for blasting and priming. He is a bit of a pita for quality control, and was happy. Finding someone who can handle a C10 cab is a bit less than easy. When I got there the guy who does all their blasting was off site for an hour, so I went to the on-site eatery, ordered a bacon and fried egg tiger bread stick and a large coffee, total £5.20 And I can say, NO Regrets. Lunch. In the car park was this 9 year old truck. For those who love bigger stuff. Fine print on the step. In the mean time I have had the Angiogram and come home. I don’t always know how to handle generosity But tonight Dennis sent me these pics and message from Kelly. She always asks about me and updates Dennis on my behalf about hers. . So today over lunch with Kent who is one of the two partners, he told her that I was on my way to cardiac catheter lab tomorrow for an Angiogram and she scribbled a little note for a photo that Dennis could send over to me. Sweet woman. Then Dennis mentioned she would push up my blood pressure and possibly kill me with the message. So she said “Wait, lets make him die with a smile on his face at least” So she sent another pic And that is in the Roadtrip thread update. Worth a peek.
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Quick update from Dennis who is of course building a NASCAR Race Truck chassi’d and motor plus Trans, C10 truck. Supervised by his dad. Needs a bit of this..... Some of this. Lifting and moving. Welding and altering the frame is the biggest job currently. Getting the motor mounts sorted. Hendricks Racing motor. This seems to be progressing fast now.
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When progress is not progress. All the welding and frame prep done for this NASCAR based C10 Dennis sent the frame out for blasting on Sunday, last night he sent another picture . Called the blasters on the way home last night to ask about my parts for the C10
Nope, still waiting
Lady on phone said they should be done by Friday 13th.
Let’s hope it is a good day.
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Last Edit: Dec 6, 2019 7:49:16 GMT by grizz
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Dec 13, 2019 20:56:22 GMT
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Vacation today. Lazy start. Cat Did some online training modules before we left. Then headed down to New Romney in the Galaxy after getting a call from We Weld Engineering yesterday to collect the Chevy C10 parts that I dropped off on 4 November for blasting and priming. When we got there, I loaded the parts. Much more space than in Prozac of course. Once all loaded, I paid for the work that had been done. I was quoted at £30.00 per piece. The job seems to have been done with a gentle, sensitive hand. Once the job was paid for, Sally and I headed homeward via McDonalds, and I got us each a kids meal and coffee. Check out the street name for heading home. So then headed homeward via Morrison’s to get some food. Then home to unpack the treasures.
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Dec 14, 2019 11:35:58 GMT
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. SOOOOOOOOOO..........?. The question remains..... What remained of the 53 year old “ex-CALIFORNIA TRUCK” ? Answer: “A Lot Less than Expected” My expectation was carnage, for it to be really bad after the sand blasting and primer, to prepare the parts for me to start cutting, welding, repairing and preparing it all for filler and paint ultimately. But my expectations were EXCEEDED BY A MILE. I will just post up a load of photos here of most of the damage and rust that needs to be sorted. Unfortunately, the primer and late afternoon winter light, does not show the full extent of the damage. NEW TO ME, INNER FENDERS. One buckled, at least they have no rust, so hopefully hammer, dolly, heat will improve the look. Drivers side fender. Patch panels may not be big enough. Passenger side. Some small dents up front to address..... The rest of it though....... I think I may be needing either a replacement used fender, or a half a used fender, or a pattern part, complete fender. This will be interesting. Very interesting Sally seen here just finishing off saying a sentence starting with “Take your camera” and ending in “....gger off” Hates photos. But worth mentioning that she carried every part from the Galaxy down to the garage for me and stacked them like a man would, sensibly. Front radiator support panel. Spotless, not a speck of rust on it. It makes sense, if the truck had some front end damage before being exported in 2004 from California, after a colour change, motor and trans change, that it may have received a new front panel. Carrying on with the unloading and cataloging of the chaos. Front panel damage, only this bit, needs a small panel made up and welded in, unless I found a piece off one. Good overall, no further damage. Doors, passenger side, replacement California door, bought a few years ago. Drivers door upper damage where convoy mirrors must have been fitted before. Drivers side lower leading corner. Needs extensive metalwork. Including filling the hole where the speaker hole was cut in before. Mirror mount, needs much welding, Rivnuts, and dent repairs. Lower drivers side rust. So all unloaded and stashed in the garage. My Christmas break pretty much mapped out then. So there you go.......... Interesting.
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Last Edit: Dec 14, 2019 12:07:05 GMT by grizz
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totti
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,153
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Dec 14, 2019 12:56:52 GMT
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Hi,m8! As i expected....typical US repair style.Lots of filler and many dents... The challenge is open now! "Die Spiele sind eröffnet"! Hope your mojo is not totally down after you collect the panels...! Greet
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65 'Ford Taunus 17m 66' Ford Taunus 17m Turnier 73' Ford Taunus 63' Ford Taunus Transit 1250 72'Ford Escort 2000cc 71'Ford Escort 1700 4 door 89'Ford Escort Express 87'Ford Fiesta Diesel 64'Ford Cortina 1500 deluxe 57'Volvo PV 444 Califonia 54'Peugeot 203 Commerciale 2004 Harley Davidson Fat Boy 78'Zündapp ZR 20 88'MZ ETZ 250
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Dec 14, 2019 13:27:27 GMT
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Hi,m8! As i expected....typical US repair style.Lots of filler and many dents... The challenge is open now! "Die Spiele sind eröffnet"! Hope your mojo is not totally down after you collect the panels...! Greet Hey mate !! I don’t like to challenge fate...... But here challenges are the ones I like. That will not mess too much with my MoJo at all. Looking forward to the Games being open. And yes, the repairs suck, but I knew that, just not how badly..... 😉
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Bit of history here...... Been asked by a few people why I started the resto on the truck when it looked so shiny before. Of course the results of the Blasting and etch priming kinda answers it. It was in much worse condition than the photos implied. Harley in June 2013 when the Chevy landed, as always inspecting and ensuring my safety. With restarting the truck resto now, I will miss her if she ends up not making it after Tuesday. Currently I am feeding her 1/2 a chopped chicken breast twice a day which she is managing easier than the dry food or even her favourite Dreamies This behaviour is also completely alien to her, only the last 10 days or so has she jumped onto SPAM FROM and been trying to drink from any cups in the sink, I now leave a cup of water for her..... she never used to do it, so another sign that all is not right. So truck as it stands now. Was chatting to my cousin in Cape Town yesterday about the cost of the blasting, at £240.00 for 8 pieces. He felt it was a bargain, compared to the cost of my time and materials, as did I. If you look at the other sides of panels and the Complexity of cleaning them up for repairs and paint, it would have taken a lot longer than 3 hrs per panel to clean and prime at £10.00 per hour. Sally and I went down to the garage to grab some more detail pics yesterday. Speaker hole needs to be closed up too as part of the repair work. I think this will be interesting.... Yup, scares me. Garage temperature this time of year stays between 0’C and 6’C if it warms up. Yesterday was 3’C which obviously interferes a bit with working in there. Hence the small caravan on the drive that can be heated really fast and is insulated to stay warm enough for welding and also for priming panels once welded and finished up. Should be gooderer.... 😉
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Great to see progress on the truck. It must be a great mental boost too?
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Dec 17, 2019 13:01:12 GMT
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Should be easy for a man of your caliber.
Hope the Harley thing is just a passing phase. Give her the best from us and our nine(?) dogs!
Lost a pup last weekend. Morning she was fine, dead by evening. God I hate this animal stuff, but where would we be without? Poorer, I think.
All the best for Christmas and the new year to you and Sally from myself, Madam and the Little Bottle Opener.
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Dec 17, 2019 17:02:28 GMT
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I can attest to the fact that you saved a ton of laborious time on those parts and the cost was very reasonable. (converting US dollars, or otherwise)
Blasting is a very messy process! I think you really need to be set up for it to do it justice...that means lots of space and a HUGE compressor!
Love that the parts are looking good overall. That inner fender structure is a little daunting, but I would think there are replacements available?...I'm sure you checked over at the chevy truck site, ect.
If the replacements are to be trusted, it would certainly help you shape the metal around them....
I'm looking forward to your progress, Grizz!
thoughts going out to Harley...
JP
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I know its spelled Norman Luxury Yacht, but its pronounced Throat Wobbler Mangrove!
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Dec 17, 2019 19:45:43 GMT
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I can only echo what's been said above. Your skills should be able to get that lot back into tip-top shape in no time. And I am sending all the best to Harley and you too
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Dec 17, 2019 21:11:53 GMT
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Great to see progress on the truck. It must be a great mental boost too? Feels good to be both motivated, and by next week, to have some time to get onto it. Should be easy for a man of your caliber. Hope the Harley thing is just a passing phase. Give her the best from us and our nine(?) dogs! Lost a pup last weekend. Morning she was fine, dead by evening. God I hate this animal stuff, but where would we be without? Poorer, I think. All the best for Christmas and the new year to you and Sally from myself, Madam and the Little Bottle Opener. Thank you George You guys seem to have more faith in my abilities than even I do. Could work..... I can attest to the fact that you saved a ton of laborious time on those parts and the cost was very reasonable. (converting US dollars, or otherwise) Blasting is a very messy process! I think you really need to be set up for it to do it justice...that means lots of space and a HUGE compressor! Love that the parts are looking good overall. That inner fender structure is a little daunting, but I would think there are replacements available?...I'm sure you checked over at the chevy truck site, ect. If the replacements are to be trusted, it would certainly help you shape the metal around them.... I'm looking forward to your progress, Grizz! thoughts going out to Harley... JP Absolutely JP, if I look at the time I have previously spent blasting stuff, plus the mess, frustration etc..... Money well spent Thanks for Harley thoughts. I can only echo what's been said above. Your skills should be able to get that lot back into tip-top shape in no time. And I am sending all the best to Harley and you too My skills are very limited, but I am always prepared to give stuff a go. Thanks for the positive vibes toward us.
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Dec 17, 2019 22:31:25 GMT
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Well, it ended quietly, with compassion and dignity. I know not everyone cares about animals, and that’s fine too. But the last ten years Harley has been a companion and friend to me, always a shadow and near me in the garage or wherever I was working. More dog than cat. An aggressive oral cancer, which filled half her mouth in two weeks so that in the end she could not eat or drink. Commando Surgery on a 15 year old was not an option. I hope these pics make you smile as they certainly did me. Inspecting Prozacs contents. A seeker sunbug for sure. Forum story proof reader.Quality Control. Melted cat on the hottest day of summer.
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Last Edit: Dec 17, 2019 22:35:00 GMT by grizz
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Dec 17, 2019 23:30:41 GMT
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Thanks so much for sharing. I am allergic to cats (and most fluffy hairy animals) but love them and I will make an effort to cuddle a cat when I can. There is something special about cats. Thank you for including Harley in your stories. They are always fun to read. All the very best mate!! As for the welding that is in front of you
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Dec 17, 2019 23:31:54 GMT
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Oh curse word Rian, so sorry to read the news about Harley. Seen so many shots of her on here and Garage Journal over the years, always checking things out and keeping you on the straight and narrow.
Just raised a glass in her memory. Stay strong mate. Steve
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sorry for your loss Grizz
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eurogranada
Europe
To tinker or not to tinker, that is the question...
Posts: 2,556
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Sorry for your loss Rian...
It's always hard to loose a loved companion and that companion being a pet doesn't take anything away from that. I still get sad when I think of the demise of the first two animal friends that I ever made. They came with my partner but they loved me from day one and vice versa.
You have your heart very much in the right place and your tribute pictures are very fitting. Harley will not be forgotten!
Take care!
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