A Peek Into The Body Shop....Part III

Ya know those TV shows where a beat up car is "transformed" into a beauty in a week's time.....that only happens in TV land, because the real world is a whole 'nother critter!

Remember those nasty "B" pillars....yah, the ones full of rust holes. Well, take a look !

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Slowly but surely, things are coming together.

It really makes me feel good seeing new metal where there used to be gaping holes !

The rings that hold the headlight buckets in place are part of the fenders, and you can no longer buy just the rings. Here is one of the things I love about this hobby... John told me, "Don't worry, I know a guy who can make new ones from scratch."

Here is a pix with the rings removed.

Sure enough... take a look below.  Using my old rusted rings as a template, this gentleman John knows fabricated new pieces from plain flat metal... same thickness as the original.  AMAZING !!

 Exactly the same in every dimension ! All John needs to do is weld the rings in place and drill the headlight bucket mounting holes.

John tells me the left side of the car just seems to come together without a lot of grief, but the right side is the problem child !

Here are some pixs of the little darling !  

 No, that's not rust you're seeing on the right rear quarter panel, but instead, a special hard primer that allows for a lot of block sanding without fear of going through to bare metal.

 Once John is satisfied with all the fitting, gaps, etc., this will all be taken apart (again) for paint.

I really appreciate that John is taking the time to "get it right", because 20 years from now the  money spent for first class body work will long be forgotten, but the car will still be a testament to his craftsmanship!