Tillie Comes Home !

Friday, May 11, 2012 was a HUGE day for me.  This is the day I've been anticipating since November... my TR6 body and paint work is finished! John had called me several days before and confirmed the car would be ready for me to pick up on Friday, and even the weather cooperated with 74 degrees and clear skies. 

Wife Rhoda went along to keep me from bouncing off the truck cab roof with excitement, and I was very happy once I had backed into my own driveway without incident.

Oh, did I mention I had the car painted black?  Yeah, I know, black wasn't a color option on the TR6, but  I've always had a "thing" for black cars. So, Tillie has gone from the original maple brown she left the factory with to "exotic red" that the previous owner had applied, to black...do I look pleased ?

John told me I'd need to clean up some of the dust / etc. from the final rubbing, so I put the car on jack stands so I could get into the wheel wells.

I mentioned in a earlier post that Lizard Skin was applied to the top and bottom of the tub floor, inside the wheel wells, and inside all four fender panels. I had John paint the Skin with single stage urethane paint to give those surfaces some shine...

  

I guess now it's no surprise why I painted the engine red... 

Three coats of black base, followed by three coats of clear, followed by color sanding, and the final rubbing...all done by John, my body man / painter, craftsman, artist extraordinaire!  Now it's up to me to make this beauty a runner.

Body Shop Update

Back at the body shop, the tub has been up on a jig so John could get underneath it to finish up welding, cleaning up the welds, and getting it ready for paint.

 One important part of the pre-paint process was spraying Lizard Skin ceramic insulation on the floor (top and bottom) from the firewall back to, and including, the trunk area. The exhaust pipes run right under the passenger's floor area, and the Lizard Skin will keep the heat under control, in addition to helping with sound insulation and corrosion control. John also applied the Lizard Skin in the wheel wells and inside the fender panels.

The Lizard Skin dries to a flat black, so I asked John if he could make it shiny. He said sure, and he sprayed single stage black urethane paint over the "Skin". In the photo below, the top of the floor is  completed, and the yellow tape is covering the holes in preparation for spraying  from the bottom.  

  

Of course all the seams are sealed.

Here is the driver's side wheel well with the Lizard Skin applied and with the urethane paint coating.
This combination should look good and be easy to keep clean for a long time!

Finally, here's a sneak peek at a finished door...black paint so shiny and deep you can use it for a mirror.
I can't wait to see the finished car!