1966 Valiant Signet Convertible Resto

[redfastback]

dave, if you don't light a fire under this guys *** who's painting your car, i will when i am in the area for spring fling.

you have been killing me with the waiting..............what is going on?????

 

[daves66valiant]

dave, if you don't light a fire under this guys *** who's painting your car, i will when i am in the area for spring fling.

you have been killing me with the waiting..............what is going on?????

It's killing me too. I couldn't make it down yesterday and I'm working all day Saturday. Will see it in the sun tomorrow at noon. I can't wait. Should be good. It's only the jams and hopefully the trunk and engine bay. The weather is perfect here right now in the SF valley. Very warm. In the 90s. I should have pictures for sure tomorrow. I will be pretty damn dissapointed if there isn't some color. The fire is on. :angry4: We talk every few days. He is a one man show and has access to the paint booth at off peak hours. If the results are what I expect then it's worth it. So hard to find people to do these old cars. Luckily, we have a reciprocol agreement for future services rendered for him and his family. :goodman:

Will keep the pressure on. I was hoping to have it ready for the fling but no such luck. It will be at the Fall Fling if all goes well. I will be at the fling on Saturday. Thanks for the support and watching my back.

 

[daves66valiant]

Well I have good and bad news. The good news is I got to work on the body myself to make sure it turns out the way I want it. I scrapped all the seam sealer from the all joints in the car and cleaned the entire floor. I also removed the dash and prepped it. The doors, convertible top and gas tank were also removed. I really wanted the engine bay to be smooth (I'm not a big fan of the factory drips) so that took up quite a bit of time. He also felt better that he removed the doors to get every nook and cranny possible. So the bad news is my painter did not shot any base coat. I'm really happy I was there for some of the final body work stages so there is no mis-communication :sign6: and I get what I want. Plus I got to contribute more to lighting a fire under the *** of my painter. LOL. I've got lots of love for this guy it was a fun day.

Here are a few shots and a teaser of the paint. We tried to spray a small part but it flashed too quickly. Was pretty warm out today.

Sun bathing

Me being obsessive/compulsive about getting the doors off and cleaning the jams up myself. I'm a perfectionist but I hope I can accept some flaws. They are inevitable unfortunately.

My bitter Ferd Face after noticing the Ferd banner above the shop door :sleepy3:

Paint guy Douglas getting primer in the engine bay after smoothing things out a bit

And the final teaser. Some paint left on the the paint cup after trying to paint a small piece that didn't turn out so well. This paint looks awesome. I can't wait to see it on a body panel or the hood even. :headbang:

Hope to have more pictures up soon as they come in. :salute:

 

[Dodgenut64]

Looking real good man. Youll be rollin down the road before ya know it.

 

[FASTBACK340]

So we're all patiently waiting for paint pix.... C`mon Dave! We're almost neck & neck here. Your car is going to be such a sweeeeet cruiser!

 

[memike]

Glad you got those seams cleaned up and had a good day with your great car.
Take all the time you can now, But it look's ready for paint from here. :blob:

She's going to look awesome Dave. :thumbup:

 

[daves66valiant]

Should hopefully pick up some panels on Friday. The Spring Fling is on Saturday down the street from his shop so I may need to pick them up then as I now how he usually gets delayed. The trunk lid, doors, dash and hood are totally ready to go. Ordered more goodies from Don at FBO. Got a really nice triple gauge kit from Stewart Warner. Headed to the stereo shop today to get new door panel speakers, a new under the dash 6x9 speaker for the original radio and an inexpensive radio to hide under the seat that has an iPod jack. Plan on having both system working but the original will be for show. Hell, I might not even hear the tunes so well with headers and the beast rumbling. We'll see.

I'm just as giddy as you John. :toothy7: Doing the pee pee dance every time I visit the shop. I might need a diaper when I see the final finish. I should get a video camera. Everything is pretty much lined up and ready to go as far as the car assembly. Well it's off to more misc work this afternoon. Updates as soon as I get them. :thumbup:

Dave

 

[rlk340]

Tell that slacker to get painting, we're getting tired of waiting. Hell I'll paint it for you if he keeps dragging his feet. I'll be at the fling on both days so stop by & say Hi.

 

[daves66valiant]

Friday came and went and no panels. Just like I thought but today I got email from the painter of the dash painted. Looks like it came out really nice. It has one small run near the radio and this will be cleaned up today and I should be able to pick it up tomorrow before work. The dash has that factory satin/textured finish. I really like this color. Next up are the other panels. :wav: Oh and now he plans to removes the fenders as well. Getting much more work than I bargained for which is cool with me. He must feel guilty for having my car for this long. Sorry to keep you guys waiting. This was just enough to get my mouth watering. :tongue5:

 

[69signetv8]

Looks really sharp dude....coming together nicely!!

 

[redfastback]

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?????? IS IT DONE YET??????????????????

an-tic-ipation......................

 

[daves66valiant]

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?????? IS IT DONE YET??????????????????

an-tic-ipation......................

I hear ya!!! This thing should have been done two-three months ago. I'm glad I've been able to be there for the critical stuff and I can visit anytime. He is anxious to finish the car as well but wants it to turn out really nice.

I just visited my painter this morning. He happened to be here at the hospital I work at for an eye appointment. Everything is coming alonggggggg at a snail's pace. But, things are looking really good. The trunk lid is ready for clear and the doors should be ready for pickup on Tuesday. I've been waiting to get more pictures before posting any new ones. Here are a couple of the trunk lid. The lighting is not great and it's only basecoat right now so it looks a little flat. When the clear goes on it should be awesome. Wish I had more to post. I'm afraid John (FASTBACK340) will have his car all put together by the time I get my car back. :coffee2: Patiently waiting SUCKS but here ya go.


TRUNK DECK

Close up of the color. Wish I had a better pic. Can't wait to see the clear on it.

 

[speedyvision]

i just have to follow this thread to the end! wow, talk about patient!

 

[memike]

You will be dun when you get it dun!! That is the only way to go. :thumbup:
The color is a good brilliant Blue
and like I have said It will look damn good when it is dun, I can wait. :drinkers:
Looking great Dave.

 

[daves66valiant]

I'm getting sooooooooooooooooo tired of waiting to get my car back. Wish there was more I could do to help get this thing busted out and done. Luckily I've been out of town a lot this past month. I will be lucky if I get the car done by the summer. I'm bummed about that. I really wanted to hit some of the shows and summer cruises. Next year will have to do for now since I won't be rushing the assembly.

I got all my gauges for the car. Stewart Warner gauges are nice I fabbed a tach bracket for the dash. The first one set on top of the dash but I prefer the sleeper look with it under the dashpad. This is about all I've done with the car lately. I'm dying to do some serious wrenching.

Top

Bottom

 

[Longgone]

I like the tach down below the dash too, much less conspicuous. You`re fortunate to have that second car to mock up everything for the real one. You are going to LOVE the 5 speed in that car, I can`t wait to hear from you when it`s all together.

 

[daves66valiant]

I like the tach down below the dash too, much less conspicuous. You`re fortunate to have that second car to mock up everything for the real one. You are going to LOVE the 5 speed in that car, I can`t wait to hear from you when it`s all together.

Trust me I'll be getting a video camera for the first burnout.

 

[OldVart]

Dave, things are looking good, even if they're really slow. One question though, how long is your painter leaving those parts in basecoat before applying the clearcoat?

 

[daves66valiant]

WTF. Really getting out of hand. Had a good talking to the painter. He has apologized profusely and said he has no excuses. Basically, I'll be getting a 15K paint job for 1/3rd the cost. I guess I should not be complaining. I'm glad he is detailed and a perfectionist, but damn this is a long time to me at least. My problem is that I'm trying to sell my house and was wanting to have this project done before the house sold. Now, I have to figure things out in the interim. Best part is he offered to let me keep the car at his shop as long as needed and I can even work on it there if needed at no charge. He is also happy to help me with the rest of the resto at his shop if needed at no charge. He must feel either guilty or I actually think he realy likes the car and enjoys working on it with me. I've been to the shop a number of times doing little things to the car and we have a good time. Pretty mellow. Still gotta get 'er done.


Good thing is that he did the doors/trunk and hood but the doors had some slight waviness so he is redoing them completely. Whoever did the previous work on the car did an incredible job so he's got to match that craftmanship otherwise neither of us will be happy. I'm glad this guy is not a jerk. Just needed to rant some more. (BTW, thanks for letting me rant earlier John) :angry4: :coffee2:

 

[daves66valiant]

Well I now have a new plan. I bought a set of frame dollies. Hell, I should make my painter pay for them. No disrespect intended..... but he may need them for future projects at the rate he moves. :clock:

http://www.tireskate.com/fd.php

I probably could have made them myself but the price was right and I don't have time to screw around anymore since I have an open house this weekend and can't be a slob anymore ottytra:. I've gotta use this time in my current :home: while I can. The new house is not really setup well for my restoration project. These will work out great. Now I can get the k-frame, selected suspension parts, and other misc parts all powdercoated at the same time, which will save me time and $$$. Once I get the stuff back from the powdercoater I can install the new suspension kit and finish making my engine cradle. Then, as soon as the car is back home I'll be ready to drop the body straight onto the engine cradle...headers, tranny and all. :cheers:

I feel like I'm getting back on track and moving again. Been stalled for some time now. I'm psyched. :rock:

 

[Longgone]

Man ,Dave, I checked in thinking.............PAINTS DONE!......... but no!!! I`m sure your painters doing a great job but he needs to push your car back to the front and give it his full attention again. Good luck with any prospective buyers for the house.- John

 

[daves66valiant]

Man ,Dave, I checked in thinking.............PAINTS DONE!......... but no!!! I`m sure your painters doing a great job but he needs to push your car back to the front and give it his full attention again. Good luck with any prospective buyers for the house.- John

Thanks John I appreciate everyone's support. Happy to be moving again on this project.

 

[daves66valiant]

No big updates. Went down to the shop on Monday and pulled all of the front suspension. I got it home and started removing the bushings, ball joints, etc. Managed to break the specialty tools to remove the bushings and pivot arm. I only broke the threaded steel rod though, which I guess I'll replace eventually. Finally got all the bushings and sleeves out the hard way today. Old school: Torch and air hammer. :naka:

Scrapped the 40+ years worth of grim off the parts and cleaned them up a little. Not they are ready to go to the powder coater on Friday along with some other parts.

Doesn't look like I'm going to be cruising around this summer. I am determined to make it to the Fall Fling for sure. I should set a deadline and will pull the plug and taking my car elsewhere if he can't finish it.rotest: I'm pretty much done with all the excuses.

Happy 4th of July everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[redfastback]

whats the deadline and when should i show up? just give me the address and time....................:angry3:

i have a customer who just sent a letter to his body guy(after 1.5 years in shop), that he has 2 months to finish or........don't know.

what's the scoop, man.

 

[daves66valiant]

whats the deadline and when should i show up? just give me the address and time....................:angry3:

i have a customer who just sent a letter to his body guy(after 1.5 years in shop), that he has 2 months to finish or........don't know.

what's the scoop, man.

THE SCOOP

.... I absolutely have to have my car by next month.

I gave him a date to finish and he is working towards having it done in two weeks. I know he knows that I want my car back and that I have been very understanding of his circumstances. It looked like there was a bunch of work that needed to be done when I was there last Monday. I'm not a paint and body guy so I don't know how long this stuff will take for a solo guy.

Short List:
Hood and trunk need additional coat and then clear
Doors are blocked and ready for base and clear
Pull fenders
Fenders need final blocking and painting
Final blocking of the body
Base and Clear body
paint engine bay
paint inside trunk
paint floors
paint misc parts
undercoating the car

Realistically....I'm betting something will come up and it will be the end of July. If it goes past July I will have a talk about getting my car sent to another shop to be finished. If I can get the body/shell back to my house, then I can get started on the drivetrain conversion/install. The suspension will be back from the powdercoater by next Monday and I will get my cradle built.

Hoping all goes well and he keeps motivated.