The only thing I really care about is that this block gets to 10.99 because you know after that I'll go all out on it and everything will be coated.

I agree on the air box, I'm just waiting until I make my new intake pipe for SD to finalize it, then I'll coat it.



There's no scratch, it's a reflection from the baby smooth paint

Had you looking didn't i

My engine bay:



And the engine:

For a Dsm that's been sitting for 'time' she sure cleans up nice

That CAS looks pretty new!
Looking good so far!

Yeah it's been sitting for 8 years. Thanks guys!

Being laid off I now have a bit more time to do stuff I probably normally wouldn't have, or would've rushed through. Like cleaning little things here and there.

Still uploading pictures from like the beginning of time to Flickr for a history/build thread. Here are some more recent teasers though

Celebrating getting that subframe out tonight Tank and filler spout will be the end of that. Rust combat progress feels good! Cant wait to finish the messy business

Go get em Mike, you have COUNTLESS hours ahead of you...but don't get discouraged.

I like to think I m starting to pick up the pace

Its tempting sometimes to find one that is rust free. But I watched "Love the Beast" documentary on Eric Bana's 1974 Ford XB Falcon this past summer, and it pushed me more than ever to not give up on this chassis. We are not looking too rotten! still enough metal to replace though.

I admire your dedication, just remember Bana's 74 is way harder to find in a clean shell then a 2g dsm And the Hulk has movie money to build/restore whatever he could possibly want. Just ask Stephan, he found 2 super clean shells for a steal, Either way keep doing what your doing.

I am with you Mike!! it's much more enjoyable to build it from the ground up like your doing.

Are you only doing wirewheel or going to use some other stuff to full strip it?

Well now, one of those shells wasn't cheap.

That movie was good. Given, he did have the money to restore his car like that.

Are you going to do some seam welding with everything out and the paint striped?

I have been using different size and shape wire wheels on a grinder and a drill. There is a few pics of my oscillating multitool going to work too. Thing works wonders on the tougher undercoating and seam seal with less mess. I might need to use a bit of thinner in the front wheel wells and some other areas where the residue just wont scrape off. So far I have been trying the wheel and power scraper methods. Got some floor pan done too.

The first reason I have done this is to find hidden rust problem areas. Most is turning out to be surface, but I have found some bad spots. Those spots will then be hopefully properly extracted and welded back to goodness.

And second, yes! before I get technical I would like to get a MIG and practice some MIG welding on the bench. When I am confident with my process, I will turn to stitch weld the seams. It would be a shame not to at this point. Not sure how urgently I ll consider a rear roll and harness bar. Also be nice to shave some holes, and make brakets for fuel upgrades, wire tuck, oil cooler, ect.

Time isn't urgent just yet, my garage seems to stay very dry. I d love to see this thing in black primer and start seam sealing again though.

Jesus, you are doing all that with a wire wheel?
Im not a body guy, but wouldn't a sandblaster have been faster, easier, and more thorough?

Spend the money and get your shell acid dipped. It will save you a lot of time !!

It might be faster but it's a hell of a lot messier.
Plus I don't think sand blasting will get seam sealer out, that stuff is in there GOOD!

I am in a one car garage of a rental house, and working with what I have. I am resourceful. I dont have a sandblaster or the money for one, so progress is progress
I enjoy it.

I was thinking about it at one point, but again I m moving quicker just working at it than waiting around for money. I did alot of research on the topic. I am all for the idea of getting in the seams and nooks and crannies with acid, but I heard stories of what happens too if the process doe s not get all the acid out.

Mike for a sandblaster that you would be using in this context it's actually pretty cheap, you can grab a siphon gun that has a canister on it and then just a 50lb bag of sand, which is like 10 or 20$.
Unless you don't have a compressor, than it's a little more expensive.

The compressor he'd need for sandblasting is a very expensive (and large) piece of equipment. You'll probably want something that can push 11-14 SCFM @ 90psi or more to really run it well.

As for acid dipping - it's great, but as Stephan said if they don't get every last drop of acid out, you WILL have issues. Paint will bubble, etc...it is a very finnicky procedure.

Budget 2k for acid dipping. No acid is left as it is put into a neutralizing tank afterwards.

The big issues is not being able to protect the inside of surfaces which you can't reach like the inside of frame rails and such.

I'm on the hunt for new blasting equipment for Brightside and just the cabinet I'm budgeting 5k not including the compressor to run it.

Most places use phosphoric acid which will leave a protective residue on the metal (most other acids will keep eating the metals if you leave them soaked in acid, phosphoric acid will not).

That being said, once you have a bare frame you can spray stuff into the frame rails as need be. I believe POR or one of those other companies has a special frame rail setup for getting into those hard to reach places.

Much easier to get everywhere when the car is stripped and on a rotisserie (Which it would be if you're stripping it like that).

Dipping is sounding pretty damn tempting still. Protecting inner surfaces was my worry. I thought of putting POR15 through my main frame rails and heard it sticks better to rust than clean metal anyways. That being said I have no idea how clean the frame rails are past what is visible at each end.
Basically as we all have said, it is not going to be fun trying to recoat hidden areas.
Bingo. My buddy has an enclosed princess auto unit. Too finicky with moisture, running a big compressor though. I would need a compressor upgrade to put up with the flow the gun needs, something I dont really have room for. I was mentioning that the acid must all come out

I dont Think I would be saving alot of time. If I need it for the nooks and crannies and keep the decision against dipping, I ll borrow my friend's

When I have my cashflow back I have some vitally important decisions to make would like to hold onto this car till the demise of one of us. Trying to do the chassis right this time and it wont be seeing salt or much moisture ever again. Some methods may be quicker than others, but not sure just yet if it warrants spending 2 grand if I dont need to. That might be better spent elsewhere. I ll have a better idea in a month or so.

This weekend I finally deleted the ABS in the VR4 and clean up the bay a little The ABS pump weighed a wopping 18.5lbs!!! And was about the size of a small lawnmower engine Now just waiting on my non cruise control cable to show up.






And here's a Pic of when I first picked up my car.

Looks good! Always loved the VR4

Night and day, I like the direction your going under the hood, clean.. Simple.

Nice! I loved pulling the ABS pump from the 2G and can't wait to have a 1G without ABS. Going to have LOADS more room in the engine bay.

Nice looking VR-4. They are great looking things. Never seen one in person though.

^ You need to come to the Shootout then.

Last year they made a GVR4 reserved parking area where most of them parked in a line. All really well taken care of.

I pulled the ABS out of my current car and I can vouch, there is a lot more than meets the eye. The pump, all the stupid lines, the wiring, the ABS "brain" inside the car, proportioning valve, all that good stuff gets thrown off a cliff.

Thanks! That's the plan. Going to "try" to keep stock'ish clean looking

True story, I only got about half of them in this shot.

I must admit, it looks extremely tempting. If I'm not busy this year, it would definitely be worth the trip!

I booked today off and decided to wash the dsm and try to beat the winter blues....that don't seem to be ending. I hate winter. Anyway here it is wanting to be driven. I'm driving it to work tomorrow. . It's nice to be rockin' a classic.
..and yes that is my DD golf beside it as well.

I love clean 1Ga's

Looks nice and sunny outside. Sun is getting stronger everyday. Snow will be gone in no time.

I hope so I am sick of it.

The wiring for the ABS blew my mind on my 2G. There's a bundle that runs behind the bottom of the radiator support; all ABS wiring. I wonder how much the whole system weighs.