Penetrants and Patch Panels

Dan is now (December 29, 2009) fabricating the new body framework, replacing pieces that are too rotten to reuse.

For some pieces, Dan strengthens them by drenching them with a low viscosity epoxy (Kwik Poly) that penetrates every crevice of the wood and then hardens.

Dan is also fabricating "patch panels" for some spots on the sheet metal that had rusted through.  He will weld these and grind them smooth before painting.

Lots of Progress

And here are some smaller structural pieces.  It's now November 24, 2009.

More Dismantling

 

Here, the rear body structure has been completely dismantled.  It is November 23, 2009.

And now, Dan starts reproducing the pieces that were damaged or deteriorated.  Here's the rear main sill.

Sheet Metal Removal

11-19-09

And now the sheet metal is off the rear wooden structure!

Progress Pictures:

In mid-November, Dan Shady became available to begin working on the wood restoration.  He and Deron worked together to separate the body from the chassis, and we were on our way!

11-17-09 The body is off the frame!

Look at the condition of the unpainted underside of a door sill... A minimum amount of rust.  Truly amazing for having been on this car for 77 years!

A Rear Frame Member

On June 22nd, I received a phone call from Deron Shady informing me that the rear cross member of the frame was pretty much gone from rust.  This frame member passes directly over the gas tank and is under a body panel that provides little clearance.  Leaves and other debris would get lodged in the narrow confines on either surface of the frame and moisture would get trapped there, causing rust.  In this case, the rust had become very destructive.  Deron wondered if I might be able to find a replacement cross member.

I held out little hope that night as I e-mailed every possible source I could imagine and as I put Internet ads out on several sites - hot rod, antique car, early Mopar, etc.  On Wednesday, June 24th, I received an e-mail from a fellow named Andrew Edler with whom I had done business before (He does eBay business as RUSTMAN.).  He had modified a frame a few years earlier in a way that had eliminated the rear frame member, and fortunately for me, he saved the piece I needed.  A few days later, it was in my hands.  Ain't the Internet amazing?!

Movingthe Car & Removing the Body

The starting point:

June 6, 2009 -- Here's the car as we removed it from my shop.  Monty Love came up and helped me load it onto the trailer and then we moved it down to Dan and Deron Shady's place not far from Huntsville.

Shortly after I turned it over to Deron Shady, he removed the engine and transmission, a non-original 1951 Plymouth six-cylinder setup, and removed some of the other extraneous stuff hanging on the car, such as the original master cylinder.  He began measuring every conceivable body dimension and just acquainting himself with the details of the car.  On September 7th, I took the 1950's upholstery and top down to Dan and Deron's and we took a look at them on the car: