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Drew, now that is some great work by you two. Kevin did very well and those seats are going to look great!!
Roy
Roy
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Thanks Roy
It is invaluable to have someone so experienced working with me.
So next up was sorting out the lower front fender corner and support bracket.
On with the bumper to check the final adjustment.
We also addressed a small bit of rot at the top of the wheel arch.
At this point we thought it wise to trial fit the headlights, up until this point I had just been using a spare chrome headlight ring.
The chrome ring was a snug fit to the buckets but at least it was a fit.
But when it came to fitting the complete headlights they would not fully engage with the bucket rim.
This is where having a spare body with original buckets in the shed next door pays dividends.
After careful measuring I realised the the repro (Dansk) buckets had a rim that was taller by about 3mm so I fabricated a depth gauge and ground down the rims.
It was the spring clips in the rim of the complete headlight that were not allowing the unit to fully seat.
An important lesson learnt, trial fit everything before paint.
Thanks for stopping by.
Regards
Drew
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The nose is shaping up nicely Drew. I delt with the same issues with those new Dansk buckets as well. Great advise, you have to keep a close eye on the thickness build up around the buckets as the bodywork phase progresses. A very unpleasant surprise to find that the seals and headlight won't seat properly after its all painted. Keep up the great work.
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Yes those words could save many people hours of work wondering why!! Dansk need to know really !
RoyComment
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OK guys we are in the final phase of this very long restoration. In fact it’s taken six years to get to this point.
I must say a big thank you to everyone on this forum for all the help over the years.
We are almost finished with the welding of this very rusty tub and Kevin is working his magic with the door and lid gaps.
I have been busy getting the running gear back together in preparation for fitting some ‘Original’ chrome wheels, they are a 62 dated set of
Lemmerz rims so not original to the car but so much nicer than the repro chrome rims that are around.
With the body almost done it was time to think about priming and final colour coat, but my dusty, draughty garage was not the ideal environment
for spraying so I have started to board out the ceiling, should be a lot warmer this winter as well.
I am really looking forward to putting her all back together with fresh refurbished parts.
Spring is the deadline for a complete car and she will then be looking for a new home so if anyone knows of someone wanting a RHD Ruby Red 356A
just let me know.
Thanks for stopping by.
Drew
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Well done Drew, you have done so well!
RoyComment
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Thanks Guys
We are in the final stages of priming and paint, I have had to mix up a tinted primer to achieve the really deep colour of Porsche Ruby Red as spraying over light grey primer produces a red that is too bright.
I am really pleased that we managed to repair the original 'numbers matching' doors.
Next up the colour coat......
Thanks for stopping by
DrewComment
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Looking great Drew, nice job all round just like you did with WUF 10 those years ago.
RoyComment
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Thanks guys
With the temperature rising in the garage I could finally put some colour on the body.
I'm using 1K cellulose which will give me a classic 'lived in' look rather than an overly shinny modern 2K look.
So 6 coats later and with only one very small run it was finished and I could start fitting all the restored bits and pieces.
The paint finish is pretty good but will need a good polish in a couple of weeks time when its completely dry.
I must admit, this is the part I love, fresh paint, fresh parts and hopefully a fresh owner soon.
Thanks for stopping by.
Drew
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Well done Drew, tell me did you have a problem buying all the cellulose? I thought it wouldbe very difficult to get hold of ?
RoyComment
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Thanks Roy
I think the rules on cellulose in America are quite strict but here in the UK (for the moment) it is still readily available.
It's quite forgiving as long as you put on enough coats, you can polish out most blemishes after a few weeks of drying time.
I have found Porsche Ruby Red quite a challenge to get right, it is quite dark but in certain lights and on camera seems quite light.
Please spread the word that this 356 will soon be for sale.
Cheers
DrewComment
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Thanks Drew on that! By the way probably you are aware of Samba 356 classified. But if not to see current cars for sale all over:
Open www.the samba.com
click Forums
click Porsche 356
click classified (top bar)
then on the left side bar click Porsche 356
You will see then all the current cars and their photos that are for sale or wanted. Probably arount 50 at the present time a lot from Holland.
May help you a bit.
Roy
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The car is looking fantastic Drew, It sure came a long way! Very nicely done and looking forward to seeing with its closing panels mounted.Justin RioComment
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Thanks Justin and Roy.
I look at the Samba quite often to get a feel for 356 sales values but they just don't have enough detail to get a real idea about the condition of each car.
BAT is much better with great detailed photos and comments from experts but only a US audience, It’s a shame there isn't a European equivalent.
So I'm not quite sure where to market this RHD example.
Anyway I think I'm a month or two away from putting her up for sale, so here is the latest update.
I have to admit that I got a bit ahead of myself with all the excitement of fresh paint and started fitting lights and bumpers etc. only to realise that the paint will need polishing and all this brightwork will get in the way.
So off with the shinny bits and on with the polishing.
With a good thick layer of cellulose on the car I was able to machine polish it to a really nice shine. I used ‘Farecla’ G3 polishing compound on a ‘Hex-Logic’ pad running at just over 600rpm with plenty of water spray.
Here is the back end polished and fitted with bumpers, lights etc.
Moving forward and polishing as I go, should be in a position to start fitting up the doors and hoods in the next couple of weeks.
Thanks for stopping by.
Drew
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Looking good Drew !
RoyComment
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Thanks Roy
Justin I am getting very fond of this one but I need the space for my final project so she has to go....
So the temperature is hitting 30 here in the UK and the time had come to enlist Kevins wisdom to re fit the doors and lids.
We thought we would do the easiest fist the rear engine lid, how wrong we were, it was all perfect in primer but somehow the position had changed very slightly with the top coat on.
It took two hours to coax it into the correct position but we got there.
Next up the doors... the right had one fitted perfectly first time with no dramas but the left one was a real bitch, in the end we had to reset the hinges very slightly to get to fit and latch properly.
We had left the front hood till last as we knew it was going to be a struggle in fact when we were gapping it in primer the lid locked solid into the latch, thankfully I had left one of the access covers off in the battery box and attached a very solid safety wire to the lock which allowed us access to free things up, but it was touch and go for a while.
So with this previous experience in mind we nervously bolted up the hood, I was tasked with the final push on the front to latch it closed (if it locked solid it would be my fault).
I applied pressure with both hands, the hood clicked shut, the gaps were perfect but would it unlatch?
With a sharp pull of the release cable it opened...what a relief.
The car is one step closed to completion, thanks for stopping by.
DrewComment
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