The Car Thread

[Tin Halo]

The designs on the left is supposed to be a Mexican gangster. Like from the early 1900's.

I did not see that until you pointed this out.

[ranger magnum]

Often that is the point of a piece such as this. The idea is to get the person to really look at it, and think.

It is much more obvious what this piece is when done in two colors.

[Captain Goddammit]

The Hokey Ass Message Board... ha, I managed to get kicked off that one!
I pissed off the wrong idiot. My car wasn't correct enough for them. I argued, rather heavily, that my car wearing the "wrong" wheels and tires, was in fact more vintage and original old-school than most of their cars, because even though I have 1969 wheels and 1980s tires on it, they have stuff like electronic ignitions, disc brakes, and all sorts of "incorrect" hardware for an old-school ride.
Mine has none of that, although it's got 1980s aluminum Corvette cylinder heads.
We just didn't get along. Screw those posers.

[Tin Halo]

I wonder what pissing off the right idiot would do...

[Captain Goddammit]

I wouldn't even have the newer aluminum-head motor in it, but another car I had needed a motor and the 327 I had in the Bel Air had all the accessory bolt holes in the front that I needed, so I pulled it out and used it. I had the motor that's in it now sitting on a stand being garage art, so I put it in the car. Now the car is "wrong", by stupid-ass HAMB standards, because the bolts are in the center of the valve covers. But they don't leak now either, like the old ones always did.
Shit it's even got a real points distributor and manual everything. It's got ONE power accessory - the antenna. That's just so it retracts and I can put a cover on the car.

[ranger magnum]

Yea, those guys can be assholes. And who is to say what's right or wrong. And who the fuck defines right and wrong anyway. That's why I like chevytalk.

I build things one way: my way. If it doesn't meet sometimes expectations they can fuck off.

And I've seen your 55. It's very clean.

[Captain Goddammit]

I do "get it", the HAMB is about mid-60s and earlier styled hot rods and mine does look more '70s with those 8" 'Vette wheels, (and Radial T/A 235-60r15s) but I thought it was hypocritical of a lot of them to run all the modern parts they do and bust my balls so much over my cylinder heads. I wonder how many of them updated their '58 brakes to '62 brakes instead of running discs!
One day I will get a set of chrome-reverse wheels (no moons) and about 2" whitewalls, or some early style gray-center Torq-Thrusts with redlines, because I really do like the '60s look. I have a set of polished 15x8 Torq-Thrust IIs but they look too modern. Besides, 94.2% of hot rods these days rock those. So they are stacked in the garage.
The 1969-1982 8" Corvette Rally wheel has long been one of my absolute favorites, and just a switch to redlines (I need new tires anyway) would back up the car's look from '70s to '60s. Hardly anyone knows the earlier ones were a little narrower. Having a couple sets of wheels and tires would allow quick and easy complete personality and era changes.
Oh well, some day, for now other things are swallowing as much money as I can afford to throw.

[Tin Halo]

Oh well, some day, for now other things are swallowing as much money as I can afford to throw.

What's her name...?

[Captain Goddammit]

Charlie, but money isn't what she....


Nevermind.

[Tin Halo]

Exactly.

[Ratty]

Ranger Magnum, I think my car was a 52. Beautiful red and white. So I was drivin' along and reached down on the passenger floorboard to get something and BAM, CRASH, CRUNCH. The owner came out and offered to sell it to me for about 10 times more than it was worth before I hit it. $250. I drove from 13 years old to 18 without a license because I didn't have drivers ed. I was married at 16 and the wise school district didn't let married people attend school. It was fine when I was a pregnant tramp but the minute I tied the knot I was a pariah. No, I didn't pass the driving test on the first try. The instructor told me I just needed some practice. I sold that boat at a loss as soon as I found a taker. At that time I was a 'Ford man' and embarrassed to be seen in a low rider.

[Captain Goddammit]

I had to learn to drive in a '68 VW bus.
The good thing is I guess if you can do that everything else is easy.

[Captain Goddammit]

My favorite crash: 4-way stop intersection. I'm in my old '59 Chevy stepside. It was my turn to go, but the guy across the intersection didn't stop he just blew through making a left in front of me... then the guy behind him did it too! It wasn't really an "accident" that I hit him.
His car: busted up. My old Chevy stepside: broken turn signal lens. I proceeded to pull out a screwdriver, bust out a spare lens I had in the glovebox, and change it right there.
I told him I can call the cops, everyone here saw what you did, or hey, I'm fine, we can just go. We just went.

[ranger magnum]

[ranger magnum]

free image host

Here it is on the car

[Captain Goddammit]

That's so cool. I wish my car had some "Von Dutch" style striping.
It doesn't because of the rally wheels and Radial T/As.
I think it needs steelies or chrome reverses to pull off that look.
Also I've got the old standard '55 Chevy "speedline" two-tone treatment with the white top and trunk, and I don't think striping goes right with that. The top can be contrasting but I think the rest of the car needs to be one color or striping would make it too busy.
What do you think?

[ranger magnum]

Oh you are so right. It really has to be satin finish, or even a natural patina to look right. Pinstripes on nice paint start to overlap into the lowrider realm.

I think your car looks great the way it is, though chrome reverse steelies are awful cool.....

[Captain Goddammit]

Striping sticks to satin a lot better too!!

[ranger magnum]

True, but it's a lot harder to fix if you fuck it up. Enamel wipes right off gloss paint. (or catalyzed paint)

My satin black is straight out of the can with a 15% acetone reduction, so there is no wiping it off with thinner should I make a mistake.

That's why I always design new patterns on thick craft paper, and stripe over the pencil. Then I place it under clear glass, and try striping it on a hard, smooth surface. When the paint is dry, I lay tracing paper over the glass, then use colored Sharpie markers to outline it, and make any design changes or corrections. After that, hit it with a pouncing wheel. Then lay the paper on the car, and pounce it lightly with chalk. I then take a Stabilo pencil, and trace the chalk outline. Blow off the chalk dust, and it's ready to stripe.

And I still make mistakes!

[Captain Goddammit]

I've seen a guy lay out a flame job and fill it in with masking tape, spray the color coat around it, then when dry peel off the tape and remask around the flames and spray the yellow/orange/red in the flames - that way, the paint was all the same depth, the flames were perfectly flush with the color coat. Then clear, of course. Tedious, but very "right".

[Tin Halo]

My satin black is straight out of the can...

brand, please...

[Captain Goddammit]

Hey Ranger, here's what's cooking at our secret hot rod shop, hidden somewhere in the farmland of western Wa. I don't own it, it's a buddy's, I just work here for free... lol... I've got a rented space out here but I only store boats here, car stuff happens in my friend's place. It all used to be a dairy farm but now it's shop and storage space that almost no one knows about. The paint booth is actually the old insemination room.
It's a '41 Ford and it's gonna be "gasser" style, nose-high with a straight (not dropped but really straight) axle. It's probably gonna run aluminum slot dish mags, with cheater slicks. The motor will be a fairly hot small block Chevy, and it'll have a 10-bolt rear with 3.36 gears. It's not gonna be a real racer, just a cruiser. I turn a few wrenches and do a lot of stainless trim restoration and polishing, and whatever else, just because it's my natural habitat.

[Tin Halo]

I'll be changing my boxers, now.

[ranger magnum]

Halo, I used Rutoleum. It's $9 for a quart.

You can by proper hot rod satin black, but I've used this for years. SEM makes stuff called auto trim black, but it's really thin and I don't think it's as good. The Rustoleum has a higher solids content.

Captain, that gasser is going to be crazy cool! Check out the Moon Eyes website; they have great period style wheels and accessories.

Funny you do stainless restoration. I do it as well! My 62 has all ground and polished hardware. Every but, bolt and washer started out as regular 316 stainless hardware. I took an 80# flapper wheel, and ground off the raised lettering on each bolt. I then took a medium grit de burring wheel, and smoothed them out. I finished polishing them with a hard cotton buffing wheel and some green polishing compound. They look like chrome! I did about 1500 nuts bolts and washers on the car. There is no fasteners that did not receive this treatment. (save for engine, Trans, and diff internals.)

Im doing the same on the 58, though im stopping short of the polish. The de burring wheel leaves a sweet brushed finish. Im thinking of chucking them up in a lathe, and dimpling the heads, but don't know if I want take it to that level.

On a side note, I found a near complete 58 2dr donor car with almost all the trim intact! Im in Texas going to a big car show to sling tires, but im going to stop off in LA and see it on my way home!

[ranger magnum]

Your not running a 12 bolt?

You could use a Ford 9" out of a 77 Lincoln Versailles. They are bullet proof, and have disc brakes. I did that conversion on my 62.

[Captain Goddammit]

Nah, it's just a cruiser not a racer. Funds are limited and we use what we have!

Having spent many hours at a buffing wheel, I don't know how you found enough hours to do that many fasteners!
The most nerve wracking for me was doing the trim in the '57 Eldorado. You do this so you know - it's all too easy for it to snag on the wheel and get thrown across the room, bent and mangled. And good luck finding replacements!
Bolts and nuts are hard to hold.

[EspressoDude]

Went to local Parkrose Hardware store yesterday to get some plumbing parts to replace the gas valves in a BBQ. (about 650-700000btu) !

saw this in the lot. Maybe a king cab Chevrolet that has been customized by collision and a torch. Looks like Dana 70 axles, but the front is enclosed knuckle joints. Rear has been converted from drum to disk brakes.

Street Legal!

[Tin Halo]

jesusrollerbladingchrist, that truck looks like it was captured by the Borg.

[ranger magnum]

I love shit like that. When you can fabricate just about anything you need, then there is no such thing as a totaled vehicle! Just re purpose it.

Each of my impala builds took one year to do, working 40 hours a week. (including swap meets and driving to parts houses, salvage yards, and time on the Web)

I went through 3 flapper wheels, 1 deburring wheel, 2 polishing wheels, and half a block of rouge. Those were easy, if not time consuming. The trim was a lot harder, as you can well imagine. The only piece I ruined was a wiper arm. I had no idea metal could bend like that....

I launched dozens of nuts bolts and washers all over the garage. Some I never recovered....

[Tin Halo]

Wish I could remember where I put the picture I shot, a few months back, of a mid-80's T-bird with a Studebaker doghouse (and tail, IIRC).