1961 Impala 2 door hard top mild custom
#161
I read on another thread someone laid dry ice on his floor pans and after a few taps with a hammer on the floor pan the undercoating would fall off in chunks? Might be worth a try?
#162
That crap was an inch thick on the car I've been doing. Tried just about everything with minimal success. Seems it came off the least worst with a cut off wheel used like a grinder. You can kind of smear it away/burn/fling it off enough to weld. Not that much fun but gotta be done right. Iam thinking your ready to start making those panels from scratch? As good as you are doing should be a cake walk! And you hate free time anyway right? Keep up the good work !
#163
I've never tried the dry ice thing. I tried heat, solvents, sand blasting and just about anything else and the only success I've personally had was brute force and patience. Lots of chiseling, lots of sanding, wearing a mask when grinding, etc. It seems no one technique gets it all off and I'll use several on the same panel within mere inches of each other. Thankfully it's all gone on this car so I'll have to try that trick on the next project.
Thanks for an additional method to try.
That crap was an inch thick on the car I've been doing. Tried just about everything with minimal success. Seems it came off the least worst with a cut off wheel used like a grinder. You can kind of smear it away/burn/fling it off enough to weld. Not that much fun but gotta be done right. Iam thinking your ready to start making those panels from scratch? As good as you are doing should be a cake walk! And you hate free time anyway right? Keep up the good work !
That sucks. What has worked best for me is a small 1" putty knife sharpened like a scraper and the edges rounded a bit so it won't gouge. Thin and flexible, but cuts under portions of the undercoat and pops it loose. As I said above, the weird for me bit is this works like a champ in some areas and others I have to be much more aggressive. I can't really find a pattern to it. I have even taken a box knife and scored a checkerboard pattern in bits to knock off smaller thicker chunks. Just time consuming grunt work.
Yeah, I need to make a few panels and modify others. I also have more pictures to post of work I completed last week. I've been working my tail off so I'm not posting as fast as it's happening. I need to update you guys but I'm still sorting, cropping and resizing pictures which is difficult to do when the weather is nice and there is daylight.
#164
Staging Lane
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It was nice to finally meet you at the 40hwy gathering yesterday. Looking forward to being able to stay longer next time. My son was in really bad shape after his recent tonsillectomy so we couldn't stay long.
I talked to the guy with the nice impala just up from yours. I noticed the extra space he had at the rear fender area and asked what rear end he had in it. He said, I dunno...stock I guess. I looked under it to find a big Currie sticker staring back at me. I lost interest at that point. It's strange to me how someone could not even know what rear end was in their car. I can see buying a car you really like if you can't build it yourself (that's not my issue) but I can't see not even knowing the ins and outs of your own car whether you built it or bought it.
I talked to the guy with the nice impala just up from yours. I noticed the extra space he had at the rear fender area and asked what rear end he had in it. He said, I dunno...stock I guess. I looked under it to find a big Currie sticker staring back at me. I lost interest at that point. It's strange to me how someone could not even know what rear end was in their car. I can see buying a car you really like if you can't build it yourself (that's not my issue) but I can't see not even knowing the ins and outs of your own car whether you built it or bought it.
#165
It was good to meet you as well too. I understand, the family comes first, the cars will patiently wait for us.
I saw that 59 roll in, but I didn't get to see it up close or talk to the owner. I wish I had, it appeared to be very nice.
I understand how you feel with people who don't know their cars. Some friends of mine bought a car from a guy I know and I told them to make sure to get a list of parts he used in the build. I also told them to keep a copy of this list with the car. That way if there is a question or if something happens and the previous owner isn't available they know exactly what they have. This is even more important for them as they are new to the car owning thing.
I actually have a spreadsheet on my laptop of my car for the same reason even though I built it. The theory is at some point I will need a belt, hose or plugs and won't have to guess at what I used.
When I was at the Blue Springs cruise there was a guy with a Dodge that asked ME if I knew what HIS engine was. I thought he was messing with me and my friends had put him up to it but he was dead serious as had no idea what was in the vehicle he drove to the cruise. Wow.
Sometimes I wish I had more money than brains...
I saw that 59 roll in, but I didn't get to see it up close or talk to the owner. I wish I had, it appeared to be very nice.
I understand how you feel with people who don't know their cars. Some friends of mine bought a car from a guy I know and I told them to make sure to get a list of parts he used in the build. I also told them to keep a copy of this list with the car. That way if there is a question or if something happens and the previous owner isn't available they know exactly what they have. This is even more important for them as they are new to the car owning thing.
I actually have a spreadsheet on my laptop of my car for the same reason even though I built it. The theory is at some point I will need a belt, hose or plugs and won't have to guess at what I used.
When I was at the Blue Springs cruise there was a guy with a Dodge that asked ME if I knew what HIS engine was. I thought he was messing with me and my friends had put him up to it but he was dead serious as had no idea what was in the vehicle he drove to the cruise. Wow.
Sometimes I wish I had more money than brains...
#166
Another mockup of the last trunk panel, this time with the 1961 fillers temporarily held in place. It’s settled, this is the look I’m after. Now I get to pull the trunk pan out yet again, trim the excess metal and weld in the 1961 quarter extensions.
Quick fit:
Overall view:
All parts mocked up:
Quick fit:
Overall view:
All parts mocked up:
#167
TECH Apprentice
Looks great. I know its a ton of work, but dang, I would have just slapped it in there...
How does that outer piece attach to the quarter panel? The rusty curved filler piece screwed to the one you are welding to the floor pan I mean...
How does that outer piece attach to the quarter panel? The rusty curved filler piece screwed to the one you are welding to the floor pan I mean...
#168
Staging Lane
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It was good to meet you as well too. I understand, the family comes first, the cars will patiently wait for us.
I saw that 59 roll in, but I didn't get to see it up close or talk to the owner. I wish I had, it appeared to be very nice.
I understand how you feel with people who don't know their cars. Some friends of mine bought a car from a guy I know and I told them to make sure to get a list of parts he used in the build. I also told them to keep a copy of this list with the car. That way if there is a question or if something happens and the previous owner isn't available they know exactly what they have. This is even more important for them as they are new to the car owning thing.
I actually have a spreadsheet on my laptop of my car for the same reason even though I built it. The theory is at some point I will need a belt, hose or plugs and won't have to guess at what I used.
When I was at the Blue Springs cruise there was a guy with a Dodge that asked ME if I knew what HIS engine was. I thought he was messing with me and my friends had put him up to it but he was dead serious as had no idea what was in the vehicle he drove to the cruise. Wow.
Sometimes I wish I had more money than brains...
I saw that 59 roll in, but I didn't get to see it up close or talk to the owner. I wish I had, it appeared to be very nice.
I understand how you feel with people who don't know their cars. Some friends of mine bought a car from a guy I know and I told them to make sure to get a list of parts he used in the build. I also told them to keep a copy of this list with the car. That way if there is a question or if something happens and the previous owner isn't available they know exactly what they have. This is even more important for them as they are new to the car owning thing.
I actually have a spreadsheet on my laptop of my car for the same reason even though I built it. The theory is at some point I will need a belt, hose or plugs and won't have to guess at what I used.
When I was at the Blue Springs cruise there was a guy with a Dodge that asked ME if I knew what HIS engine was. I thought he was messing with me and my friends had put him up to it but he was dead serious as had no idea what was in the vehicle he drove to the cruise. Wow.
Sometimes I wish I had more money than brains...
At least the guy you talked to was interested in what he had. The guy with the 59 didn't seem to care at all what was in his car. He hardly stopped chatting with his buddy to even acknowledge that someone was interested in his ride. I know Prius owners who are more car oriented than he was. It was weird.
I meant to say on Saturday...My old man was a body man and I remember him having a bunch of clecos in a drawer of his tool box. Never once did I see him use one.
#169
Thanks. Apparently I'm slightly OCD and just couldn't let it ride. Haha
For better clarity, I'll take a few pictures of a 1962 quarter in the same area to show the differences. It's pretty substantial.
There is a bit that connects the quarters below the rusty (original to my car) cover that is screwed down. I have a picture of me working on one of them doing some light straightening earlier in the thread but unless you know these cars it won't make sense where they go. I'll try to take a few images of that area tonight so it's more clear.
I rip the box top or tag off and toss it in a box marked "57 Chevy" since I'm too lazy to make a parts spreadsheet. lol
At least the guy you talked to was interested in what he had. The guy with the 59 didn't seem to care at all what was in his car. He hardly stopped chatting with his buddy to even acknowledge that someone was interested in his ride. I know Prius owners who are more car oriented than he was. It was weird.
I meant to say on Saturday...My old man was a body man and I remember him having a bunch of clecos in a drawer of his tool box. Never once did I see him use one.
At least the guy you talked to was interested in what he had. The guy with the 59 didn't seem to care at all what was in his car. He hardly stopped chatting with his buddy to even acknowledge that someone was interested in his ride. I know Prius owners who are more car oriented than he was. It was weird.
I meant to say on Saturday...My old man was a body man and I remember him having a bunch of clecos in a drawer of his tool box. Never once did I see him use one.
Hahaha, nice. As long as it works for you.
I have met people like the guy you mentioned at shows. They are very odd. I really want to ask why they are at a show with a classic or custom car.
#172
I have a lot of progress pictures to sort through but the weather is fantastic and I’m trying to take advantage of the excellent weather and get things accomplished which takes time from posting.
This session’s task wasn’t metalwork.
Over the winter I purchased a new wideband sensor to replace my failing previous sensor / controller. I own several Gen III / IV powered vehicles but don’t want the dash full of gauges look so the wideband won’t be permanently installed in any of them. Besides, I needed a housing to mount the gauge / controller when I move it from vehicle to vehicle for tuning and logging sessions. My old portable setup was a fragile bundle of wires that got really annoying to deal with – especially if I had a passenger. It also used the 0 to 5v output until HP Tuners supported the serial connection in version 2.5 beta.
Now I use a USB to serial converter and avoid the annoying voltage offset malarkey required with the 0 to 5v connection. Going serial and avoiding the voltage offset means what displays on the gauge is exactly what inputs to HP tuners scanner at all times saving the hassle of calculating and calibrating HP Tuners to allow for it. I also integrated the ability to run the wideband from the lighter port making things super portable and still keeping all the accuracy designed at the factory.
I used a Radio Shack enclosure, one XT60 connector, a dash power adapter I already owned, a bit of wire loom and the star of the show, my new AEM X series 30-0300 set to read in lambda.
Enough babble, I’ll let the camera speak.
Admittedly the enclosure is a bit large, but it was the smallest one in stock where I could place a 2” hole in the front without looking silly.
Showing the serial port connection.
Inside wiring connections.
Completed unit. Amazing how a bit of wire loom makes things look professional.
XT-60 quick disconnect connector close-up.
Until next time.
This session’s task wasn’t metalwork.
Over the winter I purchased a new wideband sensor to replace my failing previous sensor / controller. I own several Gen III / IV powered vehicles but don’t want the dash full of gauges look so the wideband won’t be permanently installed in any of them. Besides, I needed a housing to mount the gauge / controller when I move it from vehicle to vehicle for tuning and logging sessions. My old portable setup was a fragile bundle of wires that got really annoying to deal with – especially if I had a passenger. It also used the 0 to 5v output until HP Tuners supported the serial connection in version 2.5 beta.
Now I use a USB to serial converter and avoid the annoying voltage offset malarkey required with the 0 to 5v connection. Going serial and avoiding the voltage offset means what displays on the gauge is exactly what inputs to HP tuners scanner at all times saving the hassle of calculating and calibrating HP Tuners to allow for it. I also integrated the ability to run the wideband from the lighter port making things super portable and still keeping all the accuracy designed at the factory.
I used a Radio Shack enclosure, one XT60 connector, a dash power adapter I already owned, a bit of wire loom and the star of the show, my new AEM X series 30-0300 set to read in lambda.
Enough babble, I’ll let the camera speak.
Admittedly the enclosure is a bit large, but it was the smallest one in stock where I could place a 2” hole in the front without looking silly.
Showing the serial port connection.
Inside wiring connections.
Completed unit. Amazing how a bit of wire loom makes things look professional.
XT-60 quick disconnect connector close-up.
Until next time.
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Bruce Guillaume (12-17-2023)
#179
It’s obviously been a long time since I updated this thread… I’ve done a lot of driving but I’ve also made a few updates to the car with more to come.
One thing I’ve done was replace the factory rear with a 9” I cut down that was built for a 2002 F-Body. I broke the spider gears in the factory axle and wasted no time switching to a rear that was strong enough to take so abuse. Plus I already had it on hand from a prior project.
I made a three part video of the process, check it out here:
Part 1 Making a low budget axle jig –
Part 2 Prepping the axle –
Part 3 Narrowing the axle –
One thing I’ve done was replace the factory rear with a 9” I cut down that was built for a 2002 F-Body. I broke the spider gears in the factory axle and wasted no time switching to a rear that was strong enough to take so abuse. Plus I already had it on hand from a prior project.
I made a three part video of the process, check it out here:
Part 1 Making a low budget axle jig –
Part 2 Prepping the axle –
Part 3 Narrowing the axle –