Chassis 85517 Number 17 356 Convertible D

[JTR70]

More lid work:
Once I had the edges of the stitched back together it was remounted and swatching and blocking continued.
Had a contour issue with this right side. The upper edge/corner was a touch too low and the angle of the cowl in relation to the rest of the lid where just not matching and flowing. Both the lid and surrounding area suffered previous accident damage so it was pretty much expected.
Subframe was relief cut to allow the edge of skin to come up and to bring the contour shapes of both cowl and the lid into better alignment.

Begin smoothing out and detailing the trough areas while I had the lid off
Substructure tacked into needed position and lid remounted. Block sanding continued and the contour and fitment were much improved. I was able to thin out the filler quite a bit as it went. Always the outcome I'm looking for.
Thanks for looking!
Justin

[roy mawbey]

Justin I have learn't so much about relief cutting with all your experiences! You know before all your experiments cutting relief's it honestly never entered my head that this could solve so many problems. By the way, my rear bumper has the same configuration shape as yours the normal style overider fitted to mine is slightly reduced in width I reckon as at the bottom there is no way the plastic filler could ever have worked as the aperture of the bumper is wider there than the width. Its only the last 10mm or so the plastic can't be clipped into place . So I think now sometime in the early 60's the owner of my car exchanged the T2 overiders with normal T1 versions. Established this yesterday.

Roy

[JTR70]

Thanks a lot Roy! Yes, there is only just so many options. If the panels won't line up you'll have to either back fill it with putty, shim it off the hinges or cut it free and move it where its needed. Cutting as you can tell is my preference. As for the bumper profile plastic filler could have been used for temporary fix but it would not have been long for this world. Especially down low there bombarded by small rocks, debris and water. It would fail soon enough. I'll end up cutting that too. Justin

[JTR70]

Original version of Meissen blue for this particular car matched and mixed.

Original paint sample just under the ID tag was just large enough for a camera match. Purchased a gallon and one extra quart of it( insurance) in single stage. Its a touch lighter when wet as you can see.
but once it dries (paint stick) it darkens right up to the correct tint. A side comparison with the other 3 samples of Meissen I was supplied. Two of which where a closer match to the color this car originally came in. The large spray out card from Whilhoit is more of a true blue where the others lean more toward the Turquoise side.
As you can see these two versions of Meissen are not even close. I'm not claiming that the Whilhoit sample is wrong as the car he matched this sample from probably very well came in this shade. These cars where shot in batches so I have no doubts that the color shade between runs varied. Even between the coach coach builders; Reutter Vs. Drauz and perhaps even with their particular paint suppliers. A lot of variables for sure. So when guys at a show argue which shade is correct they could both be right. The Whilhoit sample seems more like the color of your coupe Roy.

Found the original paint was still lurking under the red respray. Carefully peeled the sample free that was under the tag for future reference. A direct comparison with the paint stick.
Spray out test on the body plugs. As close of a match as I could ever hope to get.

More later...

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

Right quarter panel profile and wheel arch.
Working the wired edge up to both thin the filler and to create a reflection that will travel clean off the edge of the lip without bevel or tapered like profile shape around the opening.
Also dealing with old accident damage in through here so the overall contour shape at the wheel opening had to be worked all the way up through the crown to get the set shape I needed.
Raised the areas successfully so it was now onto aggressive blocking to both thin and shape the filler.
Added in thin swatches of filler to the forward section to eliminate some slight rollers that were bending the reflection as it traveled across.
Another sealer and work coat round. Getting happier with the shape and contour of the wheel opening. The wired edge is thin and not caked in putty and the reflection is rolling right off the edges . Moving lower to address the valance, pleat detail etc.

Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

Rear lower valance finishing:
Jacked the rear end up to get a better shot at the lower edges to smooth and finish it out. Only light skim coats as I don't want a lot of filler under here.
First sealer and work coat pass.
Pretty good for the first pass. Rolled and edge and pleat detail were very close.
Block sanding resumed. The edged lip on this side was too thin. I tried to fade it in during an earlier repair but I just couldn't leave it once I saw it in paint.
Back filling the edge about this much..

[JTR70]

Filler strip added and weld dressed.
Excess ground and filed away.
Much better and now matches the left side profile shape.

Onto beveling and shape finishing out all of the edges.
Another work coat. Just about set with this underside and edge details. This is ensuring this car passes the "lift test". I've seen many a car that look great on the ground then once up in the air on the lift all these surface are usually not painted or finished out in any great detail. Doesn't have to be perfect but it can't seem as though it was overlooked.

Thanks for stopping by!
Justin

[Scott B]

Great work and attention to detail Justin👏👏👏👏

[JTR70]

Appreciate it Scott! Just trying to tie up all the loose ends that will drive me nuts if I don't smooth them all out after its in final color.

[JTR70]

Begin Right door jamb/well detail work:
Begin final prep on all jamb, a-pillar and door well surfaces.
test fitting the original hinge cover plate.
This area has been releaded so the holes didn't quite align, with the bottom third hole in these upper two were really crowded out. Will have to file the surface to allow the plate to slide into alignment all the while shaping it for a nice tight fit with the edges of the plate. All the issues you don't want to discover after its all painted.
Discovered this loose flap under the mount edge. Hoping it wasn't overlooked rust.
Just some solder that didn't take. Nice to catch a break every so often...

[JTR70]

more right jamb loose ends:
Need to also dress down this weld shoulder done by the previous shop. I still have no idea why these where removed.
By contrast the factory seam weld on the other side cut was cut but never rewelded. Also scraped away a thick coating of solder on the top of this mount like I did on the left side. Trying to avoid the appearance of thick and choking coats of material when looking down into these areas when its all over.
rewelded and dressed and leaded surface filed for cover plate clearance.

Cover plate can now be fully mounted.
Have some fine finishing and adding along this corner yet but had to get the plate mounted and set first.

[JTR70]

Jamb finishing continued:
Blocking out the door frame relief shapes.
A pillar skim coated and blocked to final shape.
Tight uniform fit around the hinge cover.

Fine detail finishing on the lock post shapes.


Then began shaping the edges of the rocker panel and block sanding the general surface. Rotated work between all these different areas as putty was applied to keep it moving. Lots going on all at once.
Thanks for looking!
Justin

[Drew.s]

Hi Justin
Great detail work on this 'D'. Just an observation/question.
Did 1959 A's have that forward hole? I was of the opinion that it was a later car detail that carried a tube (maybe a drain).

Keep up the great work.
Regards
Drew

[JTR70]

Good catch on that one Drew. As you know all the new repop sheet metal is usually set up for a B/C car. That is the hole for the metal drain tube on a later car. It was an oversight on my part as I should have filled it in before I installed it. My buddy ha s seen this post and wants it filled so that's in the works here shortly. Thanks for keeping me straight. Justin

[JTR70]

Finishing out right door jamb work .
One last pass of putty to get the remaining divots and blemishes out after an initial test coat and block sand.
Same deal for the striker post. Just when you think your done you find those last few nicks or divots in the surface after a test coat.
Then it was onto smoothing out the door side of things.
Then the forward areas. Extra care taken with all the surfaces that can be clearly seen when the door is opened.
Another round of sealer and paint. I could obsess more but I think I am all but done except for a final finish sanding pass.

[JTR70]

More test coats in the cars final color
Back of the doors jamb good to go.
Lock post shape and details all set ..

Final A pillar areas all set too. It was nice checking a string of areas off my finished list. The door well area will be shot one more time after I fill in that unauthorized hole but I wanted to begin adding the color now to ensure thorough coverage in and around all of those surface areas down in there.
test coating the rocker and its edges.
Have a few small areas to address but it won't take much.

[JTR70]

Sent this photo to my buddy to give him a glimpse of what his cars final color combination is going to look like.
I really like it and it should really pop when its all done.
Needed to change gears so I decided to get the front bumper in final paint. Mounted on my stand here to shoot the inside first.

Taking extra care to ensure all the nooks and crannies got a good coat of color first.
Inside all set. Will back tape this are off then flip it over and shoot the outside.
Thanks for looking!
Justin

[JTR70]

Front bumper in final finish:
Final block sand to the outer skin to both smooth and scuff any shiny surfaces.
Inner surface back masked and in process of applying the final color coats.
I'll be renting a spray booth to shoot the body but small parts like this I can handle here. I'll be stressed enough ensuring it all goes right the day the body is shot and having not to deal with small peripheral parts like this will make that session slightly less frantic.
So far so good. My buddy wants a final finish with some orange peel, not a glass finish so I don't have the luxury of color sanding out dry spots, runs, excessive lint and the like so the final application has to be pretty good right from the start.
Front bumper complete. Nice to have something in the done column but finished parts are always a magnet for damage after the fact so I've got to stash this away safely while I finish the rest of the car out. Onto the next deal.

Thanks for looking!

Justin

[roy mawbey]

Justin sorted the log in situation it was my fault! The last stages of this work on the D look great, Its going to be a great car!
Roy

[JTR70]

Hey Roy, Glad to see you got it figured out! Well, will see what happens but thank you for all the great messages of support along the way my friend.
Justin