1986 7B Project

[escogt]

Looking good.

X2!! Very nice!!!

[SVOeric]

cant wait to see the finished product! (is it ever finished ?)

[RFranklin]

Thanks guys !! Slow and steady

[RFranklin]

Nice, fresh glass too!

Thanks! I also got new hatch glass.

[RFranklin]

Sorry it's been awhile. Here are a few pictures of the panel alignment. All the jambs have been shot along with the underside of the hatch and hood. The black hatch is the bad one. The blue was in the other room. Hopefully, we'll see some real color soon. The panel alignment and shut lines are super. Getting there little by little.

[inerceptor]

Looking good Richard. It is long process isn't it? I finally got mine to the paint shop today. He kept putting me off because he was full and did not have any room inside his shop. I figure it will be about 4-5 months but with the track record of the things I have either been purchasing or getting rebuilt it will more than likely be longer than that. My short block took almost 8 months. The cylinder head took almost a year so, who knows as long as he gets it right. Your paint guy looks like he is doing yours right. I tried to make it easy on my guy. I had most of the car soda/bead blasted and the rest I hand sanded. I took the bumpers to a professional bumper company and had them reconditioned. They turned out great. I hand sanded the entire engine bay. He even commented about how well the engine bay looked and how much time it must have taken. Anyway, l am looking forward to seeing your finished car. I am sure it will look show room condition if not better.

[RFranklin]

Thanks Chad, It sure is a long run. However, as we all know it will pay off. It takes a long time to bring one back from near death. I wish the pictures could do the incredible panel alignment justice. My poor car has been bumped everywhere. He put so much into making sure all the shut lines and body lines are right. I'm convinced it's better than it rolled off the line in April of 1986. I'm really happy to hear you have gotten yours in the shop. It will be a long journey but worth it. He really wants to get the car in paint soon. It's all in the details. I have to admit sometimes I think I should have done what your doing by totally dismantling everything. I'm sure your car will be perfect. I had someone ask me "How much do have in so far?" my response is "I stopped thinking about it. It's about saving a piece of history." I'm sure I would pass out if I totaled the numbers

[svono50]

<snip> I had someone ask me "How much do have in so far?" my response is "I stopped thinking about it. It's about saving a piece of history." I'm sure I would pass out if I totaled the numbers

I think most of us would have that same response. The initial purchase price soon becomes a small fraction of the total number. The important thing is that you are happy with the results and get to enjoy it!

[RFranklin]

That's exactly how I look at it !

[Ken Potter]

I was lucky when my friend was restoring my 7B. The purchase came with almost all of the parts in NOS or very good used condition needed to make the repairs. I also had several cars / projects as well as engines & trans etc. that I was able to trade in for labor. He was working as the painter at Cobra Restorers so he had access to the paint booth which wasn't real busy with repairs on regular car crash type vehicles.

[RFranklin]

I stopped by the shop today. They were wet sanding the car for paint. I did finally see some paint done on the rear hatch. I was very pleased.

[svono50]

Wow, nice looking finish on the hatch!!

[RFranklin]

Wow, nice looking finish on the hatch!!

Thanks Ted ! We're getting there slowly. I spent the weekend stripping the rear spoiler. I still can't believe the amount of times the original was painted. I was able to also get one from Ken Potter that was in better shape. It only had 1 repaint to strip. That's the one I'm going to use. I also bought a new reproduction upper from NPD. The original will also be repainted and stored. The other good part was I was able to repair all the broken studs on both.

[venomizd93]

Yeah that will be a better than fatory job, Nice!! It'll be nice to see it all together.

[RFranklin]

Front End is Painted

I stopped by the shop today. They are doing the car in sections to ensure the quality is consistent. However, I thought I would share some encouraging color . More to come. Also, please forgive the photo quality I only had my IPhone.