1970 s2 0453R Reassembly

[dakazman]

Thanks BDA,
I’ll try to drive it only at night. Anyway enjoy some more blinding pics.😁
Dakazman

[dakazman]

I was a little bored today so I played with the aft luggage compartment. I may have overworked it a bit since it was blown off the hood of my El Camino and down driveway .I couldn’t run fast enough. I guess I’ll be practicing by blending skills . It is only on the bottom corner and bottom side and will paint when the weather warms up
Dakazman

[surfguitar58]

You are definitely the paint guru of this forum dakazman, but now you're just showing off. Don't most people put carpet in the bottom of their luggage tray?
 

[Certified Lotus]

Your on a roll, keep up the great work!

[dakazman]

Cleaned up my attic and reunited some parts stored for years , windows ,door trim ,windshield wiper assembly and all the rubber seals . Cannot find any of my emblems  except for the forward lotus badge.
    It’s a 4 Month waiting line on my bumpers that I delivered for chroming . I need to add a few escutcheons from the wiper assembly .

Surf guitar 58 😀 I guess I was showing off a bit , the compartment I pictured on page 3 show the sad shape of the tray , and the tray has been a struggle to finish. After the shock of seeing it flying away also.  . Thank you for your comments  . I strive for perfection but find it better to finish and go back to an item. I have seen a lot of really beautiful examples that I might achieve that level .
Here are the blisters I repaired and waiting to paint and blend in.

Dakazman

[surfguitar58]

Amazing job, clearly I'm just jealous! 

[dakazman]

Finally got my iPhone to stop hesitating long enough to post these pics of the blisters.
Now just waiting for the temperature to hit 65+. I haven’t much luck blending the clearcoat in,
With the use of a blender agent but will post pics.
Dakazman

[BDA]

Bummer! Somehow I have confidence you'll turn that into another black mirror!

[EuropaTC]

Hi again, and apologies in advance for going off topic (but I'm still gonna ask    )

After seeing all this work you've convinced me to have a go with modern kit, so I've bought myself a dual action polisher, called a DAS6Pro over here, I don't know if you have the same things over there. It's got variable speeds and I've got a 5" & 3" backing plate with Hexlogic Heavy/Medium/Finish velcro pads - basically I've been trying to copy what you showed a page or so back.

The last polisher I had (several years ago) vibrated so much that I had aching wrists after a few minutes and the polishing mops were  tied on with string  so you can see this is a big learning curve for me.  Hence some questions on technique.....

First question is how fast ?  This polisher has a range from 2500 to 6500 rpm and the dial gives levels 1-6 with 1 being slowest.  That's quite a range so if yours has similar speed control I'd appreciate any guidance you could give on what speed for what operation or pad.  I know there is plenty of paint to go at but I'm wary of overdoing it so I've only used settings 1&2 so far.

Second - from the picture you posted, are you using your polisher for the 1000/2000 grit paper stage ?  I've previously done that by hand with soapy water (and it takes ages) but are there pads you can get that do the same job with a dry polisher like my new toy ?

Third - I bought a package kit which has 3  Menzerna compounds, Heavy Cut 400, Medium cut 2500 and Super Finish Plus.  3 Hexlogic pads, Orange Medium cut, White medium finish, black finish pad.  This kit was aimed at folks trying to bring back a modern car paint before resale, but given that I'm going to try & copy what you do from a matt finish, does this sound ok or should I have some intermediate pad/compounds ? I would normally use G3 first by hand but that's a paste, not a liquid.

TIA, and I promise not to derail the thread again with more questions..... 

Brian

[dakazman]

STOP,
Save that heavy cut 400 coumpound, that is very abrasive and may be used , wet and slow .
Dakazman

[dakazman]

STOP,
Save that heavy cut 400 coumpound, that is very abrasive and may be used , wet and slow .

I googled your polisher , very nice addition to your tool chest.  Stay slow and wet , 3 max till you get comfortable with your cutting agents and pads, and your ability to control it .  It is a learning process for you .

Remember to get the wax off first it will clog up your sanding pads fast .

Your Second question , yes sanding pads wet, to start a 20 year old paint job 1500  never dry. Wipe off till you see all gloss gone after wiping with squeegee pad. It could take five or so passes. Test by hand, then apply that knowledge to your polisher to the rest of an area. Then sand with 2000,3000, 4000 5000 . It shortens up compouding and polishing exponentially.  All done wet . Fill a bucket and keep pads in it as you move around the car. You can mix it up a bit .
Dont push down,  let the disc do the job,or abrasive  compound /polish
Dakazman

[EuropaTC]

Thanks for the tips on paper grits. I've never used such fine papers, I need to get some more learning/searching done !

I'm very wary on pressing hard, one of the MR2's we owned had been "polished" before we got it and there were a couple of areas which looked to me as if they'd been melted, sort of pock marked. That wouldn't polish out, new paint was the only way to fix it and hence I don't want to end up the same way with this.

Having said that, it's remarkably smooth tool to operate even on it's 1st setting. I'm not sure why it needs 6500, it gets a good polish at low speeds, but then again I'm working on areas which I have already polished by hand so there's a good base.

Thanks again, not only for your comments but the inspiration to jump in to something new.  Anything else crops up you think I should know, drop me a line....

Brian

[dakazman]

Hi Brian,
Let us know on a new thread , Flashy cars.. , you can diy..lol. .looking foward to some pics. Some people say all show no go but I will strive for a balance.
Dakazman
ps. My new phone on the way , and now waiting on a 4 month wait for my bumpers to be re chromed. 

[dakazman]

Tore down my seats  today and won a prize for rust removal. The shells will need some work.  $900.00 bill for rechroming bumpers will slow down progress a little.
Trying to get some painting done but the weather is not cooperating.  I will post more pics soon on progress.
Dakazman

[4129R]

$900.00 bill for rechroming bumpers will slow down progress a little.
Dakazman

Mine cost £240 each plus £120 if they needed straightening out.

They came back as good as new, but they had to weld little tabs on the back of the bumpers to attach the electrodes to, and they had not taken those tabs off (about 1/2" square).