65 Valiant Convertible

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Thanks Tadams!

Made some more progress over the weekend...I sprayed the trunk with splatter paint, but that did not go very well...so i'll have more work to do there. I also took a big step forward and started putting panels back on...we put on the deck lid and both doors..spent a lot of time getting the alignment right and did end up with a couple of small chips, but I think that is probably normal for a first timer...Everything already has a base coat, but some still need to be wet sanded so our goal is to get everything back on, then wet sand the entire car a and spray it all again to make sure we have a uniform coat of paint

The colors look a little off because the trunk and doors haven't been wet sanded yet
 

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Took some big steps last night...
 

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Have been out in Phoenix all week and stopped by DVAP...picked up a few treasures along the way, you'll have to wait and see on the pics..haha
 
I made some great progress over the weekend…put the hood on and found out my fender gaps were way off. I originally put on the doors, then fenders (aligned to doors) then front valence and finally hood…what I learned is that I should have kept everything loose because I had to take the fenders and valence back off once the hood was on to change up the thickness of the shims and readjust the doors as well. At the end of the day I got everything back on and I’m happy with the gaps all around!

Other miscellaneous stuff completed over the weekend was…painted the trunk, working on the heater box…my transmission pan had been leaking all along so pulled that off to straighten it out and replace gasket/filter, started putting the dashboard back together, etc. Lots of little stuff that takes up a lot of time!!
 

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Spent the weekend working on my vert, but still haven't finished paint!

This weekend I fixed a tranny leak (straightened pan, gasket/filter, and o-ring for dipstick), finally finished my breaks (converted to a dual master cylinder), started putting my dash together, played with the door alignment (again), and decided I am going to modify the dash speaker bracket for a modern radio (ordered 2 pioneer 4" speakers yesterday). I also painted the gas tank and redid the fuel line. Also, cleaned and painted some miscellaneous stuff

I think (hope) all of my mechanical work is now out of the way...hoping to get back to paint next weekend!
 
Making some great progress...my vert actually runs again!!!!! I installed the dash and added most of the components...enough to get her running again!

Hoping to get the final paint job done next, then start final reassembly...wish me luck!
 

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Made some great progress last weekend. Paint is done and I have been polishing with Meguiars cutting compound. Next will move to a finishing compound, then a final wax. Have also started the reassembly process
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Finished all of the polishing and waxing! I have someone doing the upholstery for me and she will be done in about 2 weeks then it will be ready to drive. ..still lots of small stuff and chrome work, but she will be road worthy soon!
 
Got her back to my house this weekend, reinstalled the windshield, now working on installing window regulators, and polishing up the chrome
 
+ Windshield and Front Grill.

Have been working on getting trim back on....short a few clips for the door trim pieces, especially the one clip that has a nut and bolt on it that goes up by the handle (missing one)...does anyone have any they are willing to part with?

Also, there are a few people on ebay selling trim clips/nuts...does anyone have any recommendations for the best set to put my vert back together?

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I'm still chipping away at her. Almost all of my trim is polished and back on. Just need a few clips to get the passenger door trim on and that will be it for the trim.

Big items to finish are still need to get my interior installed, components for the front doors and windows, my tires need updating, and last will be to install the top.
 
Talked to my upholstery person today, hoping to get my interior finished next week!
 
Finally have seats! I still need to finish installing the rest of the interior, but I can drive her now


Front Seats.jpg


Seat.jpg
 
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I finally pulled the trigger on wheels and tires. This was definitely one of the more stressful decisions I had to make on this build and I have spent a lot of time looking at pictures of options, but kept going back to the same look and feel.

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Got my chrome back from Paul's chrome the other day. I had them plate my sun visor brackets. They came out really nice and once they are on the top is next, which will be a huge step so I don't have to worry about getting caught out in the rain
 
Added the last interior pieces yesterday, the inner door sill plates. They are a little beat up, but I cleaned them up as much as possible.

After doing some research on top installation....I think it might be beyond my skills. I'm going to start looking around to see what installation costs look like. Wish me luck!
 
You have done such a great job on your car. Keep up the good work
 
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