Ringo Needs A Bath

Last evening was night of decisions. I decided working with the Evercoat Everglass is not as difficult as I’d envisioned. I decided I’m not automatically going to reinstall the shiny rocker panel trim. I decided the backlight is coming out and the gasket will be replaced. I decided the car will be painted with the backlight out. I decided the front windshield is NOT coming out. I decided not to put the internals into the replacement door until after it is painted. I decided I can’t do any more bodywork until I wash all the grinding dust off the car. Finally, I decided, at 10 PM, to quit for the night.

What circumstances brought me to these conclusions?

First, I mixed and applied three small batches of the new bodyfiller over the welded areas to fill in the pin holes left after grinding. Even though the Everglass is fiber filled, it still spread easily and smoothly.

Second, as I was spreading the filler, I went ahead and filled the screw holes that are used to attach the rocker panel pieces. I’ll let Ariel look at the car before I reinstall these shiny pieces and the stainless trim around the wheel openings. I like the cleaner look, but she may feel differently.

Third, after moving on to locating all the rusted areas that I wanted to properly treat, I took a close look at the backlight. My original plan was to use a better sealant and a special applicator and work with what’s there, but the amount of crap I’ve laid down trying to stop the leaking has made that plan impossible. I started removing the chrome trim from the gasket and that exposed the telltale orange of rust. The backlights gotta’ come out, the opening completely cleaned of sealants, and then the rusted metal will get the POR-15 and Tie-Coat primer treatment before being primed and painted with the rest of the outside of the body.

Fourth, a close inspection of the front windshield gasket as well as a look under the dash indicated the water leaks that are coming in under the dash are very likely not through the windshield gasket, but rather through failed seam sealer under the fresh air intake grill at the base of the windshield.

Fifth, clearing out the rear seat area to give me access to the backlight gasket had me moving the glass and regulator for the replacement door. I thought I’d be smart and get this stuff out of the way by installing it in the door. As I gathered the tools for the task, it occurred to me I’ll be painting the door with the door handle and lock off and it’s harder to reinstall those parts with the window installed. Plus the door is much easier to handle without the extra weight of glass and regulator. So, the door will stay empty as it currently sits.

Sixth, the next project after removing the backlight is cleaning all the surfaces that are to be treated for rust. I didn’t wash Ringo before stating this re-roadification, so there’s a ton of dust and grime that needs to come off before I can lay down any more coatings.