When ever you take a part/piece to have it worked on, take pictures of it, before/after. If they screw it up, they pay for it. But you have to be able to prove it.
When replacing bolts, screws, fasteners of any type, don’t use hardware store stuff. Spend the extra money and get the good stuff. Go to “fastenal.com” and get the best.
Whatever you think it will cost to finish it, add 50%.
It took me 6 years to tear down and refurbish my 66 Mustang GT. I spent nearly every weekend day on it. During the week, I would plan on exactly what I would do that weekend, keeping my tasks small enough to ensure I would be done in one or two days at most. Make your plans realistically to your skill set and time available, breaking it down to small tasks so you can see your accomplishment at the end of the day (or weekend). The joy of accomplishment and spending several days then planning the next step was an irresistible way to get it all done.
Sounds like my 69 Cougar project, Month of Sundays approach.
It has been 8 months of Saturdays approach for myself. But you need work in the parameters of what your time and budget allow. What is painful is that I wish that I could be working on this project all the time for when I become transfixed on such a project, iron to a magnet provides the most appropriate analogy. Then there are other responsibilities and obligations that too need attending. Regulation and self-discipline are 2 factors to work on here.
Don’t you hate it when you clean up components that are meant to be bare metal, or get replacement pieces, install them into the car and a week later they have a layer or rust on them? Try shooting them with a clear satin finish. This will protect the bare metal and keep that look of bare metal when needed.
Good luck with that - Really mean that in a constructive way
It hasn’t for me in the past a fair number of times and different cars. Yellows or develops rust under the clear since they are installed and things like tightening the bolts or nuts down on the finish provides areas where the moisture can get in and do its work. Then redoing the part is more difficult compared to bare surfaces with a protective coat (oil or wax based). Those you just remove the rust, treat the metal or tone it and apply some protection back on. Nothing is perfect and if given an opportunity rust will find its way back.
Thank you for the contribution. What oil or wax coatings might you recommend?
Boeshield T-9 is the cat’s meow (pun intented) for protecting bare metal.
I second that on the T9 Boeshield!
Boeshield (as mentioned) is likely the most popular for a thin film oil like product. Make sure that the part is completely dry so that no moisture is trapped - for many parts I will warm them some to push out any moisture and hopefully open the pores. To be filled with the coating.
Also remember that your not just coating bare steel metal like we see directly out of a blast cabinet. Metals have to be colored before they are seal so that they look like the original parts. Depending on the size, type of metal and original finish of the part many can be reproduced with a coating of phosphate or gun bluing repair fluid. Fair number of parts have multiple finishes on the same part.
If you want to read more plenty on CMF
Just a couple
Main thread on doing phosphate & oil
https://www.concoursmustang.com/forum/index.php?topic=4624.msg25720#msg25720
General thread on natural finishes
https://www.concoursmustang.com/forum/index.php?topic=5890.msg33184#msg33184
For cleaning off embedded dirt and grime on the insulation electrical wires with PVC insulation try using a simple pencil eraser. It doesn’t involve the use of any solutions or chemicals and the eraser won’t emancipate tracers or other identifying markers.
I bought my first Cougar in 2018. I drove into a trailer and drove off the trailer. That has been the extent of my driving the car. I love in head first knowing very title about cars and still don’t know if I will even like driving it when it is done but desire is there to learn and achieve and grow through the process. I am 4 years into my “refresh” now. It is all I do and try to accomplish something new every day. It is about moving the ball at least a little everyday. Claiming each small victory as they come. I have never made list of schedule. I spend time almost every night looking at what the next part is going to be. I met Don when I bought my car and he said" yeah, that will be a 20k car’. I was thinking wow that will be a good return! Took a little while before I realized that he meant how much I would have to spend! My last look on my account with each is about $14K. And I was thinking man I could have just bought a while car for how much I have spent on just parts! Still needs paint Chrome, tires and what not but I can start to see the end in sight and that makes me want it that much more. Prooving to myself, not anyone else, I can do this without knowing didily. I didn’t find my passion for American Muscle cars till I was 50. So, if I can do it, you can do it. Just know there will be many times you will want to just shit can the whole dam thing but you just cant.
You are in kind of the same scenario as I when it comes to venturing into unexplored territory on which experience is your teacher. A core objective is to make the experience, in and of itself, transcendent taking what was gained in knowledge and experience to apply in the next project. For now, it is to keep this current project with-in the realm of my own competence by not taking more than I can currently handle while still presenting a necessary challenge to insure personal growth. Eventually, it would be nice to have the skill in order to bring concourse level restorations to fruition. It’s start small and go from there.