Winter Project - ‘69 GTX Engine Compartment Rehab

[Black_Sheep]

Got my "special" emissions decal and replaced the reproduction factory decal.

I also cleaned up my Ebay switch panel and gave it a coat of flat black. I still need to source a dash dimmer switch assembly. I had a new reproduction switch in my cart on Classic Industries website because they showed in stock, the $24 shipping charge was a dealbreaker though. I think they are using shipping costs to pump up their profit margins.

 

[Islandkent]

Hell Mark
Up here they charge us that for envelopes
Oh yes exactly

 

[Black_Sheep]

Hell Mark
Up here they charge us that for envelopes
Oh yes exactly

I shipped my radiator several hundred miles away for $13, so why was the dimmer switch $24? Greedy bastages...

 

[dadsbee]

My postage for the emission labels was gonna be $76US (105Cdn!). The the "best he could do" was $46US. Give that some thought... LOL

 

[Black_Sheep]

I found a new OER switch on EBay with free shipping and saved $40. It still seems like too much…

 

[Black_Sheep]

Trying my hand at lettering tonight. They are not as steady as they used to be, so I’m going to quit while I’m still ahead…

 

[dadsbee]

Pencil eraser and some shop cloth.. dip in paint, dab on cardboard.. blot on the panel, repeat.

 

[Black_Sheep]

Pencil eraser and some shop cloth.. dip in paint, dab on cardboard.. blot on the panel, repeat.

Wayne I remember when you posted that method in another thread. When I tried that technique on my practice piece, I just couldn't get satisfactory results.

 

[Black_Sheep]

I burnished the flat black paint with a piece of felt and treated the whole switch panel with Chemical Guys VRP vinyl protectant. When the dash dimmer shows up I can wrap up the electrical. If it all tests out okay, the only thing left will be the radiator. Glen Ray said 3-4 months turnaround time, we’re officially at the 3 month mark…

 

[Black_Sheep]

Dash is finally all back together, I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.

Next, I’m going to try some paint correction. Other than a couple small areas the GTX has never been cut and buffed. I’ll try a couple areas with minor blemishes, if it works out I might work on some larger areas.

 

[Black_Sheep]

Gotta keep the compound off of the Organisol or the clean up will be a pain…

 

[Rich H.]

Nice! Interested to see your tools and materials for the coming work.
What paint product is on the body? Is it SS or BC/CC?

 

[Islandkent]

Yep
That stuff flies everywhere.
What system are you using?

 

[Black_Sheep]

I’m using Chemical Guys products. Clean Start to remove old wax. Clay bar with Clay Luber. C4 with the orange pad first. It gets rid of the holograms in unsanded paint and polished out the areas that I sanded with 2000 grit. After the C4 I switched to P4 for gloss and fine swirls. The last step is a coat of Mirror Finish sealer applied with a black finishing pad. After each step the areas were wiped off with a clean microfiber towel.

Like I said earlier, most of the car has never been cut and buffed. The paint is almost 25 years old, so I needed to address normal swirls and minor scratches that accumulated over the past 22 years of regular use. I did sand the top of the drivers door and the top of both front fenders. The center of the hood was buffed without sanding. I think it turned out pretty good!

 

[Black_Sheep]

Once the whole car is polished it will get a coat or two of Collinite 845 which is the best wax I’ve ever found for black paint.

 

[Black_Sheep]

Nice! Interested to see your tools and materials for the coming work.
What paint product is on the body? Is it SS or BC/CC?

BC/CC

 

[Cheapsunglasses]

Dash is finally all back together, I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.

Man that looks awesome! Fantastic work!

 

[Islandkent]

Gorgeous reflextion!

 

[Black_Sheep]

The 4 way flashers were cycling several times per second so I stopped by Napa and got an electro-mechanical replacement on the way home last night.

Much better now.

I also terminated the auxiliary ground on the negative cable and connected it at the headlight ground on the core support. All of the electrical is officially finished.

 

[Black_Sheep]

Getting ready to polish the roof and b pillars. It’s been washed well with clean slate, clay bared and washed with clean slate again. First round will be correction compound.