Still At It

Dropped by the garage a couple times last week to take advantage of a slight warm up and do a bit of work. It didn't last long though and now we're due for a good 2 to 5 inches of snow between tomorrow and Saturday from a storm passing by. That's a trifle amount for someone who grew up on Lake Erie. Folks down here on the other hand generally just freak out. And I stay off the roads 'till they've cleared off.

Beginnings - Part 2

A video montage I've put together with photos taken over the past 21 months as I begin work on tearing down and stripping the paint and old body filler off Elizabeth.

Week 70 - part 2

Still working on getting the rest of the right quarter panel stripped of paint and body filler. The damage to the sheet metal is all the same - small random sized dents, like someone shot a bucket of gravel out of a cannon at it. It really has me stumped.

Also got the rear panel knocked out while I was at it.

Week 70 (behind the bondo)

Started tackling the right rear quarter panel, the one with 100 pounds of bondo smeared on it. I was almost afraid of what I'd see as the DA sander peeled away the layers of paint and filler. What I found was almost surreal. The metal is full of ripples and horizontal slash marks. I'm really not sure what caused it as it doesn't look like your typical impact damage to me. And the damage to the sheetmetal starts pretty high up. Dunno. May be time to seek out some expert advice here.

Here's a before and after shot.







And here's shot of the left rear fin after I finally got the rest of the paint sanded off. The complex curves here are beautiful.





Guess that's it for now.

Week 64

Got a bit more work accomplished today - find myself still removing bits, it never seems to end. Spend way too much time trying to get the front brake lines and couplings off intact... that turned out to be a total waste of time. Finally took a mini coping saw to the mess and cut the lines at the fittings (since it's all gotta be replaced with new anyway). Also got the power steering pump and hoses removed, without making too much of a mess. Cough. Cough.

Also spied some interior trim that I missed, around the windshield and dash, so got that all taken off as well.

Slow.Steady.Progress.

63 Wagons

For some stupid reason I never thought to take any good pictures of my 63 wagon when she was in her prime. Here are some I've found online. I still like these cars.

edit 7/12/09 - new photos

Backstory

My first car. A 1963 Belvedere wagon purchased during my senior year in high school, from her original owner for $75 in 1978. By the time I got done with her she was sporting a '64 hemi scoop, black paint, blacked out windows, ET mags and a custom interior. All done by me, on the tight budget of a teenager of course.

She was dubbed the Draggin' Wagon dragon wagon by my friends but I called her Lynda.

When her transmission failed two years later and I couldn't find anyone that could repair the twenty year old push button automatic, I traded her for a '73 Satellite.

A stupid move.

May 1978: Dave & "Lynda"

specs:
LA318
340 4bbl intake w/Carter Thermoquad
Push-button TorqueFlite automatic transmission
Dual exhaust w/Cherry Bombs

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