Winter projects
- Thread starter Ozz
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Oh, you know it. If the engine bay wasn't getting worked over next, I'd be worrying. Since it's decently apart I'll be able to clean everything nicely before it rolls out.
I'm curious. How do you go about getting rid of all the dust? Do you hit it all with compressed air and then go at it with a rag and some detailer/cleaner?
All the shiny stuff is simple to get clean, either blow it off and touch up w/a microfiber or just use a microfiber and water. For the lower areas that catch all the road grime and such, I use a spray bottle of water (or degreaser if necessary) and agitate it w/a small brush, rag, whatever gets the job done.
Simple enough. I was asking because I neglected to cover my engine while mocking up all my exhaust parts and now it is covered in a thin layer of dust/metal particles. Pisses me off.
I hear ya, mine always gets somewhat dusty in the garage even w/the cover on it. Usually it's just on the top but sometimes it gets underneath. Makes me want to buy one of those car capsule things that recirculates air 
1990Coupe
Founding Member
Damn, you're really reduing alot on her eah?!! Didn't think you could make something that was so beautiful, even MORE beautiful!!
It's about a 50/50 mix of necessity and "I'm crazy"
The paint work was mostly a necessity, though the engine bay repaint mostly wasn't. It wasn't until I had to massage the strut tower to fit the new BB/MC setup that it became a necessity, so if I wasn't crazy to bother doing that conversion (or if I settled on the SN95 booster w/the Ford style MC) I wouldn't have had to do that. Sure the bay wasn't perfect but it was still pretty nice. Just had some wear as years of wrenching had taken its toll. Hopefully this will mostly be the end of that.
I got the lower intake stripped and cleaned. Tomorrow I'll prep it some more and get ready to shoot the chrome powder on it in preparation for the candy red top coat. Can't wait to get that done! The chrome heater core tubes are going to look great sitting on top of it. I'm also going to polish out the visible portions of the fittings & barbs that go on it, as now they're just plain brass.
The wiper motor chrome stuff is here. I had powder coated my backing plate in chrome but what the hell, at this point why not go all out right? The plastic clip that covers the electronics will be painted in candy red to offset the chrome on each side of it. I think that'll look pretty sweet.
The paint work was mostly a necessity, though the engine bay repaint mostly wasn't. It wasn't until I had to massage the strut tower to fit the new BB/MC setup that it became a necessity, so if I wasn't crazy to bother doing that conversion (or if I settled on the SN95 booster w/the Ford style MC) I wouldn't have had to do that. Sure the bay wasn't perfect but it was still pretty nice. Just had some wear as years of wrenching had taken its toll. Hopefully this will mostly be the end of that.
I got the lower intake stripped and cleaned. Tomorrow I'll prep it some more and get ready to shoot the chrome powder on it in preparation for the candy red top coat. Can't wait to get that done! The chrome heater core tubes are going to look great sitting on top of it. I'm also going to polish out the visible portions of the fittings & barbs that go on it, as now they're just plain brass.
The wiper motor chrome stuff is here. I had powder coated my backing plate in chrome but what the hell, at this point why not go all out right? The plastic clip that covers the electronics will be painted in candy red to offset the chrome on each side of it. I think that'll look pretty sweet.
Powder coated the lower intake today - finally! Still a little work to do before I show off the final product w/fittings and such. Tomorrow I'll have final result pictures after I do the polishing on those pieces and put the chrome heater core tubes on.
Until then here's a teaser pic of the chrome base coat. While the intake was already polished, years of being in the open elements (some dust, oxidation, etc.) dulled some of the concave areas between the injectors. While no one would have ever noticed once I shot the candy red clear over it, I still wanted it look great, and the extra thickness I picked up with the chrome basecoat gave me that. Here's a pic of it cooling off before I shot the red:
Until then here's a teaser pic of the chrome base coat. While the intake was already polished, years of being in the open elements (some dust, oxidation, etc.) dulled some of the concave areas between the injectors. While no one would have ever noticed once I shot the candy red clear over it, I still wanted it look great, and the extra thickness I picked up with the chrome basecoat gave me that. Here's a pic of it cooling off before I shot the red:
1990Coupe
Founding Member
Final result. Color is very deep in person, doesn't come out as nicely in the photos. It's a very smooth candy red color, think of a red-tinted chrome which is basically what it is. And finally the new heater tubes and polished fittings are in place. I forgot to put the temp sender in the front on the far side, but it's all polished up as well. Lastly the fuel rail bolts aren't staying red, they'll be polished to match the fuel rails. I just left them in to plug the threads and forgot to put the new ones in for the pictures.
Front bumper has been painted but it hasn't been wet sanded and buffed out yet. Progress pic:
I picked up most of the chrome bolts & washers that I'll need for the intake, brake booster, blower idler pulley bracket, etc. but they didn't have a couple that I needed. So I came home and powder coated whatever couldn't be replaced and that'll be that. I pulled the water pump tonight and will coat up the visible nut portions of each stud/bolt so they don't look fugly when they go back on. Same goes for my water pump pulley bolts & washers. I plan to install the new water pump on Sunday when I can get back over there.
The recessed trunk channel has been painted and the decklid is back on. The underside of the decklid has been painted fully and looks awesome. You can see the reflection is gives off in the pic below:
The insides of the strut towers have already been redone, and the driver's side now has clearance for the master cylinder to fit comfortably. The rest of the sheet metal in here is yet to be worked over.
I picked up most of the chrome bolts & washers that I'll need for the intake, brake booster, blower idler pulley bracket, etc. but they didn't have a couple that I needed. So I came home and powder coated whatever couldn't be replaced and that'll be that. I pulled the water pump tonight and will coat up the visible nut portions of each stud/bolt so they don't look fugly when they go back on. Same goes for my water pump pulley bolts & washers. I plan to install the new water pump on Sunday when I can get back over there.
The recessed trunk channel has been painted and the decklid is back on. The underside of the decklid has been painted fully and looks awesome. You can see the reflection is gives off in the pic below:
The insides of the strut towers have already been redone, and the driver's side now has clearance for the master cylinder to fit comfortably. The rest of the sheet metal in here is yet to be worked over.
The level of obsession has to be because you show it. I can't imagine that you drive that thing after all of the time spent detailing every last thing. It looks great, but I'd go crazy trying to keep it clean.
Yea, it is. With all the time I spend w/the hood up I can't help but notice things that need attention or get new ideas. I don't drive it more than 1-2000 miles per year I'd guess, but I do drive it everywhere it goes. I don't go to many shows that are over 30-40 minutes away around here, and I have no commute, so unless I go to to a show a few hours away or bring it out very often for a joy ride, the miles barely add up.
It stays clean easily though, except the lower parts of the engine bay. That part of it is tough to keep clean at all times, and so I don't worry much about it. Maybe once per year I'll give it a good cleaning but otherwise I just clean what I can reach from above the car while at a show. Because I drive it, that's why I won't fully detail the undercarriage. I have some ideas for future but nothing major. Just some powder coating to keep things simple, easy to clean and detail, and look nice. I might not even bother, but if I do it won't be for a couple years at least. I plan on doing nothing for a while unless something breaks.
It stays clean easily though, except the lower parts of the engine bay. That part of it is tough to keep clean at all times, and so I don't worry much about it. Maybe once per year I'll give it a good cleaning but otherwise I just clean what I can reach from above the car while at a show. Because I drive it, that's why I won't fully detail the undercarriage. I have some ideas for future but nothing major. Just some powder coating to keep things simple, easy to clean and detail, and look nice. I might not even bother, but if I do it won't be for a couple years at least. I plan on doing nothing for a while unless something breaks.
whitey68
Member
Half of my garage has been turned into (framing/drywall/etc.) a workshop with a powder booth, polishing area, fans & dust filtration, etc.
Famous last words! Hah
I know, I know. I was planning on redoing the engine bay and some other things next winter, but I ended up pretty much having to do the engine bay now. So with that I figured I'd just do everything I wanted to and get it over with, leaving me free of any planned projects next winter.
Last year I put the new top on during the summer and did nearly nothing over winter. Just a couple little things in an hour or two's worth of work. Hardly any real concern there. I should be able to stick to that again
New water pump is going on tomorrow along w/the chrome lower radiator hose, and I have a paint sample to match the powder coating:
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