Suicidal Sapphire Restoration

[natehall]

ok, so today i took the saph off the road for a restoration, declaring her sorn whilst i get it to the specification i want :D

Initially im going to start at the back of the car - replacing where necessary and rebuilding the car into a solid beauty as i work my way forward towards the engine bay, where the 16v conversion will occur  

A couple of pics as she stands now

[Janspeedcapri]

Doesn't look too bad - good luck with it matey

[natehall]

Doesn't look too bad - good luck with it matey

started the cleanup tonight - no pics as i need to buy more batteries for my camera, did the rear n/s quarter and the chassis rail appears to be mint :D

biggest problem is i have the bug now, to get it at least clean, and find all the underside rust - so this weekend will be spent striping the underside of the car - propshaft, rear beam, fuel tank all getting removed this weekend.

all this started because i wanted to fit my lowering kit on sunday

pics will fllow

[Janspeedcapri]

How far are you gonna take it back underneath? and what are you gonna then use to recoat?

[natehall]

How far are you gonna take it back underneath? and what are you gonna then use to recoat?

decided tonight im going to clean the full underneath back to original paint, and check the otherall condition before committing to going backto complete bare metal,then see what rot is under there, and if its spotted all over but not serious - will take it back all the way down the length of the car to bare metal - biggest issue i have though is it is done outside, as i dont have a garage/workshop to do the work in where i can keep the metal exposed whilst it all gets completed cleaned up.

I want to have it white underneath, allowing me to keep on top of any rust in the future, and keep it hosed down often!

Just really wish i had all the proper facilities to do the job I want - but im determined its going to be one extremely clean saph!

[Janspeedcapri]

under the black muck, Mine had beige mastic everywhere...upto 5mm thick in the wheel wells. Only way to get it off is applying heat to the reverse side with a heat gun, so you need the interior stripped out. Those stands you have won't give you enough room - you need taller ones, under the chassis rails so you can take the suspension off to get to everywhere - no kidding mate - its a BIG job - I totaly underestimated it but theres no going back once you get in to it. As for protecting the metal during the process, I just wiped over with an oily rag but I keep mine ion a garage running a dehumidifier to keep the place at around 35% rh...but for you it could be a big problem. I'd suggest getting areas done rather than trying to strip the whole thing before getting anything coated. devide the underside into about 6 squares - strip one, clean up with thinners and prime it with etch or zinga/simmilar before moving on to the next.
I'd say 90% of mine was as new but stripping back to metal was the only way to find the 10% that needed chopping out. Use plenty of ferrozinc where youve repaired or where you found even the slightest trace of tin worm starting - its the only decent rust cure there is afaik. Don't try converting rot with it though - thats a bodge - just use it as a disinfectant on surrounding ares once youve removed all infected/rotten metal/rust. You will need to tackle welding along the way so be prepared for a big learning curve unless you done it before.
I'm doing the engine bay down to the front floor at the moment - not nice at all but I'm nearly there and should be posting some pics that might get you inspired  

[IansSaph]

i'd steam clean it and if it looks sound then leave it, if its in good order there is no point causeing work for no benefit, save your time and use it on other parts of the project. check from the inside if your unsure. if you're seriouly bare metaling it, then strip it of trim and send it for media blasting, then the sealant and tinworm is gone and you can see what your doing.

[natehall]

i'd steam clean it and if it looks sound then leave it, if its in good order there is no point causeing work for no benefit, save your time and use it on other parts of the project. check from the inside if your unsure. if you're seriouly bare metaling it, then strip it of trim and send it for media blasting, then the sealant and tinworm is gone and you can see what your doing.

any rought idea of costs on a full media blast of a bare shell, + body panels?

[IansSaph]

not a clue mate, i'd guess expensive due to the logistics in transporting and handling a proper bare shell. try central blast cleaning for an upper level price then you can work down from there like.