Spent the afternoon on some little projects that needed completed. Started with stripping the hvac control panel using walnut shells in the blast cabinet to avoid damaging the chrome. I masked off the big areas then painted. For the shall chrome areas around the control knobs I lightly wiped with a fine grit sand paper to remove the paint.
I restrapped the control wiring as the tape was a little frayed as well.
I originally left the exhaust heat shield off so I could retorque the manifold bolts after a few heat cycles. It has a little over an hour of runtime now so I retorqued all of the bolts. I believe I used every 9/16” tool in my toolbox to access the bolts.
I installed the heat shield and tube which was almost as bad as retorquing the bolts.
Finished the day working on the side window opening molding. The quarter window trim pieces were in decent condition. I first cleaned the with fine steel wool and soapy water then buffed them with a soft wheel on the buffing wheel using Eastwood white rouge compound.
Tested the electrical system yesterday evening late for the components that were currently installed. When I tested the blower motor system I got magic smoke out of the vents. For those who are wondering magic smoke is something all electrical components have that make them work, once it is released the component no longer works. It was a joke one of the older techs used to make when I was a technician.
The blower motor is new and was bench tested prior to installation. The system is pretty simple, power runs directly to the motor the ground is switched through the resistor which creates the varying speeds. Using a 15 amp fused jumper wire I went straight to the blower motor and tested, it worked properly. I inspected under the dash wiring and no visible issues. Then I bypassed the resistor again with a fused jumper wire and the fan operated but at a slower speed than prior. I ohm tested all three wires from the switch to the resistor all less than 3ohms. Testing the wire from the resistor to the motor I discovered the issue 138ohms. On further inspection I found corrosion inside the motor to harness ground connection. A little cleaning with a wire gun barrel cleaning brush and we’re now les than 3ohms. Retesting netted a full speed blower motor.
I removed the resistor to inspect for damage from the excessive resistance and there was no visible damage but on medium speed it would not function so I’ll get a new one this week.
Great you found it now rather than driving down the road. Kerry what product did you use for the sealer sprayed around the outside of the blower motor on the fire wall ?
I used the Lord Fusor 805hd spray sealant throughout the car to replicate the factory sealant. It does a great job.
Day 2 of the headliner installation. Parking the car outside in the 90 degree heat did seem to help smooth out some of the wrinkles in the headliner as well as the carpet. After sitting and stretching for a week I decided to tackle the glueing.
I’m using 3m 1357 adhesive for the installation versus a spray adhesive. It is strong once dry but very workable during the installation.
I started with the windshield opening first applying the adhesive to the headliner as well as the window frames. I used paper alligator clips for the initial clamp and once I was pleased with the positioning and no wrinkles I used old pinch molding scraps to secure while drying.
Day 3. Began the verifying the glue was secure and the front three sections were free of wrinkles. All is good.
Today I stretched and secured the fourth section by the quarter windows. I wanted it secure and dry before the last section around the rear glass.
Yes, once you let the magic smoke out of an electronic component, it never works again. We used to have a “Fire Starter” award in our electronics lab for whoever let out the most smoke.
Where did you get that little copper wire brush for cleaning inside bullet connectors? Been looking for one of those.
Nice job with the award, I think we all have let the smoke out once or twice in our lives.
The brush is part of a pistol cleaning kit and works perfectly for the bullet connections.
“On further inspection I found corrosion inside the motor to harness ground connection. A little cleaning with a wire gun barrel cleaning brush and we’re now les than 3ohms. Retesting netted a full speed blower motor.”
I read this and instantly thought about my AC compressor that would not engage when turned on until 10-15 minutes of driving. So I took my smallest brush from my gun cleaning kit and proceeded to clean the female connector. I reconnected the the wire and started my car and turned the AC on. The compressor instantly turned on! I’ve owned my car for 11 years and it has never done that. What a simple fix that I never would have thought of without reading this forum everyday. What a great community to belong to.
Mike I’m glad the information helped. Yes this is a great community. So much of what I’ve learned about this car and the restoration processes have come from here in the guidance the members have provided.
Moved onto the last section of the headliner tonight. I stretched and glued the top portion of the back window. I’ll let that settle in finished the b pillars sometime over the weekend.
In the area where the headliner meets the rear package tray the car originally had two fiberboard strips similar to door panel material that anchored the headliner to the package tray. The originals were extremely warped probably from water seepage at the back glass overtime. I use the trick that I’ve used on many door panels in the past to straighten them out. I soaked the material fairly well with water then pinched the two strips between two steel bars held together with some shop clamps and let them sit for a couple days to dry. Took them out of the clamps this evening and they are nice and flat and ready for reuse .
When I do this process with door panels I again will soak them down with water then turn them facedown on the shop floor placing a couple of two by fours across the back and a couple of weights from the weight bench to hold pressure on them while they dry.
Your headliner came out great. I hope I can do as good a job when the time comes.
Thank you I appreciate that. Patience and some scraps of windless to hold everything secure we’re probably my two keys to success.
I was feeling good about the progress across the top so I decided to go ahead and tackle the sides tonight as well. Very pleased with how it turned out.
I’ll do a final cleaning on the glass this weekend and maybe tackle the glass installation on Saturday.
Looks great Kerry! Everything that you install will tighten it even more. It’s not going to have any wrinkles by the time you are ready to drive it.
Spent the afternoon cleaning the back glass removing the hard water spots and old sealant from around the edges.
The car originally came out of Florida so all of the glass had a lot of water spotting from over the years. I met a detailer years ago who showed me a process to remove hard water spots from glass using muriatic acid and a Scotch-Brite pad.
After the glass is clear of any grease and sealant I use a Scotch-Brite pad and pour a small amount of your muriatic acid into the pad using the pad to scrub the glass in the really damaged areas and to circulate the acid across the glass.
A couple of safety notes if you’re going to use this process; wear a respirator, soak the ground area below where you’re using the acid with water to avoid damaging the concrete, under no circumstances use steel wool with muriatic acid!
After the acid treatment the glass is dried and a final buffing with the buffer in the light compound before installation.
I had the seal soaking in the sun while I was cleaning the glass to soften it up a little bit and make it easier to install. Once the seal is installed on the glass I used a heavy weedeater string in the seal to pull out later which pulls the seal inside of the body seam.
Be sure to overlap the string so that you have access. Also I like to start and finish the string at the top so that it doesn’t pull the headliner loose as you are pulling it out. The first one I ever installed I started at the bottom and when I got to the bottom corners of the glass it started pulling the headliner loose.
My oldest son jumped in for the installation to give me a hand. Once the glass was initially set in place we rolled the top seam of the seal inside of the body seam from one corner to the other. This then allows you to push up on the glass and set the glass in the channel. Once the glass is in the channel he grabbed both strings on the top only pulling on one side at a time. You have to grab both to avoid pulling the string into the weatherstrip on the opposite side from where you’re pulling.
While one person is pulling the string out on the inside the other needs to be holding the weatherstrip on the outside to prevent it from rolling in and also applying pressure on the glass at the same time.
Success! I couldn’t of done it without the help of my son Alex.
