Not bad actually, Saturday morning breakfast was good ol' country cooking, a little plainer the rest of the weekend. Spent three days there till the snow let up. There was an older fella in there in the same situation, called himself a hobo and told me stories about riding the rails since the Depression. The jailhouse was pretty old, we were in a big communal cell block with writing on the walls that dated back to the 'teens if I remember correctly. Pretty interesting experience and the only time I was in jail that I wasn't in trouble.
hahaha...must be the solar flares you're right. I saw the pics on you profile...going to be a nice Merc with your plans...I really like the Hirohata striping on the dash with your little toothy face blended in nice touch
solar flares....where do you get that stuff Duncan? LOL Glad you got to see the pics shoebox...wish I knew why they don't show up in the thread for you, though.
Car looks great, doc! But... why do I see a flasher in a trench coat in the pinstriping? Maybe it's just me. And that's concerning.
Now, I'm not surprised Grumpy would see that....35 years of friendship, nothing surprises me about him any more. LOL Looks like a neck tie to me boys...but we are talking about Von Dutch, so no tellin I guess. LOL
With great fanfare and ceremony, I re-entered the shop this weekend to make progress on the car. Well, actually, I was the only one there and while there was no parade or high school band playing, I was pleased none the less. LOL Anyhoo, I finished welding the firewall repair, fixed a couple of minor rust outs on the toe board and filled a few other minor firewall and cowl punctures. Where I had to trim back the upper pinch weld to clear the new booster, I fit a 1/4 round rod to help with the transition from firewall to upper cowl (for paint breaks later) as well as maintain a bit more strength (in theory any way) than just flat sheet metal all the way up. I am no Cole Foster, Brian Bass or Cody Walls by any stretch of the imagination when it comes to my welding and metal finishing ability. While I am proud of myself on this project for keeping the warping way below what I have been capable of in the past...it ain't perfect. I put on one quick coat of filler to get it all in the ball park and to seal any remaining pinholes and sanded it down quick like. Trying to keep my eye on the ball and get this all back together in the next few weeks, I decided to not take the time for multiple coats and spend a huge amount of time trying to get into every nook and cranny at this point in time. The day is coming when the whole front cap will come off to replace inner fender wells, etc. to sort out the bent hood/fender issue as fix the rest of the firewall that I am sure when stripped will be much like I had to mess with on this side. I decided to mess with all the "real" sanding and painting then when it is much more accessible. Hang me if you must for not making it real purty right now....but we are still keeping hoods closed on kustoms, aren't we? Next step is to splash a little POR15 on the inside of the firewall and put up some insulation then I think I am ready to start the wiring process and re-assembly. I had intended to POR15 the entire driver's side floor while I had the driver's seat out for access to the firewall and for wiring, but when cleaning up the floor this weekend I discovered a few soft spots in the rear footwell and a few quarter sized holes. Once again, keeping my eye on the ball and to keep this round of repairs from snowballing any further than it already has, I just set the carpet back down and will mess with the floors later. Someone back on the first page had asked I post pictures of the messed up hood fit from when it blew open on the previous owner. I discovered I didn't have any pics that showed it real well, so I snapped a few this weekend. It fits fine in the front but there is a noticeable bow up on the middle of the fender where the hinge attaches and the hood is bent everywhere. At the back edge, it is about an inch higher than the cowl. I'm pretty sure the hood itself is pulled narrower at the back half and the fenders are pulled up. Since I have another solid hood, I think it will just be easier to round the front corners on it to match and just swap it on. Flat Top Bob is setting me up with a decent set of inner fenders as well. Not sure that mine are bent, but all the vent ducting is missing (which I would like to replace) and they are not cut "pretty" around the Nova a-arms. So, my intention is to pull the entire front cap eventually (and probably the engine), sort out the rest of the firewall and all the front sheet metal. I have completely scuffed the driver's fender leaning all over it during this firewall process, so a scuff and shoot is in order one of these days....I'm certain it will come about the same time as the front cap redo.
GO-DAVE-GO!! Kool to see ya working on it again. It is going to be a kool year, two more Mercs will be on the road soon. Is your glove box for sale? Let me know. Happy Trails, Mick
Hey Doc, If I could weld as well as you i'd be really happy with it. Hell, if I could even WELD I'd be happy. Anything I start on has to be really clean otherwise it's no hope for me right now ...
don't know how i missed this until now, but congratulations on your merc dave, and i know you'll do a great job on that car..
Great job putting some "cool" back in that Merc! Also, loved your write up in TRJ! Best wishes on your build!!
Thanks for the kind words guys! I was real excited to get it this far this weekend. I only had Saturday that I could work on it and I thought in my mind if I could just get the big welding done and get over that hurdle, it would be a big mental landmark that would help me THINK I might be on the downhill slide. LOL. I'm sure I'm not, but having that firewall all back together is a nice stake to drive in the ground. I appreciate the pat on the back for my welding Hermit...but the pictures make me look waaaaaay better than I really am. It's not totally warped to goof, but it's not flat, either. I kept telling myself that the 1/16th or so of filler I have in it now in the deepest spots is way better than the 3/8th's to 1/2 inch that was in it when I started stripping. Mick, DEWEY OR BUST!! I have my hotel reservations and am bound and determined to make the SK in an old car this year instead of a mini van! Hey Jim! Good to hear from you! Any progress on the Telstar? I must admit, I haven't kept my eye peeled for it lately, but I am looking forward to it all coming together! Elrod, thanks for the kudos on TRJ. I about died the day I had a message on my machine at work from Spence Murray wanting to talk to me about doing an article on the office. I was (and am still) totally stoked to have it in there. A highlight of the office project to be sure.....and I'm certain the only time I will ever have something nice enough to be featured.
Hey Dave, are you gonna have the car at the sleds in september show this year in Branson? Hope to see it there! Looking good so far, I havent gotten much done on mine, havent had the cash or the time to work on it, but hope to get back to it some time. Jim
Howdy Jim! Sorry to hear you have not been able to make much headway on yours. Life has a way of interfering with plans sometimes, huh? I do plan on having it at Sleds in September this year...although I just noticed in the new Kustoms Illustrated that it is going to be in August this year. Hopefully that will help with the trend for rain at that show most years. LOL
I've seen this car in person. Not at some show with a bunch of other stuff parked there. I mean I've seen this car the way it was meant to be seen....through the windshield cruising down the road, and let me tell you, this is one neat ride. Doc is making a sweet car, sweeter. Great job, and I can't wait for another ride!!
Not a lot of progress made lately. The fam and I headed out of town for spring break. But, made it back a day early and was able to get out in the shop yesterday afternoon and clean/prep the inside of the firewall and slpork a little POR15 on the inside. Not glamourous, put a step forward none-the-less. So now I am ready to start some reassembly and head into the rewiring phase of this project. Under the hood I am going for a 1950's average driver look. So, for the most part, the colors will be semigloss black with a painted engine, misc chrome items and a basic stock-ish look most every place else. With that in mind, I wanted to see the wiring, but did not just want it strung with a million zip ties (or some modern loom) and billet/allen head clamps. I searched about a bit and found this braided nomex split loom and I think it looks the part of braided fabric and more fitting for a 50's style engine compartment. The stuff is called Roundit 2000 and it comes in several diameters. I found it from a few sources, but did not need a whole roll. Cable Organizers sells it by the foot, so I picked up some 3/16, 5/16 and 1/2 sizes.
It is a bit stiffer in feel than the old fabric stuff, but not as stiff as a nylon woven loom. I think a little road grime and a bit of dirt getting into it over time and it will have a pretty decent vintage look to it. Hey Lowmerc! How are you? I saw your merc in the background of a shop picture on a survivor 32 coupe build. You having some work done on yours?
Yup, have to agree, my wife and I went for a ride in this car also, man is it ever a cool car!!! And Doc and his Dad are great people too!!! They were at sleds in september and I met him there with his car while we were admiring his car we got to talking and he took us for a ride in it and I think I still have a smile on my face! Awesome!!! Thanks again! Jim
LOL, I forgot about that ride Jim. Hopefully next time you ride, I'll have the rear suspension sorted out and more clearance so it won't bottom out and drag as bad.
I'm going to have to get some of that split loom for my '40 truck project! Sorry I didn't make it by, last time I was in Conway!
The Jalopy Journal
