73Tii Resto Build Thread: Barnfind in my own Garage

[JsnPpp]

Continuation from the General forum - this is a build thread on my journey from moving a '73Tii sitting in my garage back a driving status.

 

Here's the original thread: 

 

 

 

[JsnPpp]

So on my journey to full external paint I find myself pausing on the nose. If you recall I've cut two rectangular pieces out on the lower portion of the nose to address rust caused by leaves or dirt sitting there, most likely for a few years.

 

However, while painting the engine bay I left some areas to repair when I had more time. Areas that were not in the main engine compartment.

 

So, before I tackled the welding of the two pieces I chose to first tackle these areas. Plus, Im nervous about welding those panels. So, I'm delaying the inevitable.

 

Distraction #1. The bottom of the nose. This is the area right at the bottom of the nose tray, behind the bumper, behind the nose panel where I cut the metal. The tray along the bottom had scale from water run off. I knew I needed to clean it further before topcoating it.

 

Took a couple of hours of sanding, dremel and ospho to ensure it was dry and clean (and ready for paint). This isn't where it is now, it's even cleaner. I'll take photos tomorrow before epoxy priming.

 

Distraction #2. The two turn front signal buckets. While not difficult I wanted to make sure the entire area - front, back, inside and out - was clean and dry before topcoating. This led me to thoroughly cleaning the entire front wheel wells. What a pain! I pressure washed the dirt while the car was in the garage, good thing it's warm out.

 

I was then able to do the finish work, removing surface rust and scrpaing any loose factory sealer from the back. I'll replace the eealer prior to putting base coat down.

 

Distraction #3. Cutting the nose very carefully to make sure the new panels fit. I can't recall if I wrote on this earlier. Markoing the lines..

 

FInal fit. I'm still not looking forward to welding it!

 

Distraction #4. Which leads me to Welding skills. I'm not bad with 16 guage steel or thicker, but 22 gauge panels in a visible location is totally different. So I started practicing. And blowing through a lot of metal. I have a Miller 135 (120v) MIG welder and started on flux core 0.030 wire because my last welding project was on thick, non-appearance metal. I now realized that was a mistake, and need to hook my Argon tank. 

 

More on my welding prep tomorrow!

 

This weekend I'm going to epoxy prime the turn signal buckets, the new metal nose pieces and surrounding areas AND hope to actually weld the metal. Fingers crossed.

[JsnPpp]

I completed almost all I wanted to do this weekend.

 

TL;DR

• Prepped, OSPHO, epoxy primered front and back of front turn signal buckets
• Basecoat + clearcoat the hidden areas behind the patch panels on nose + the back of the patch panels
• Finalized replacement nose patches, epoxy primed the back side
• Set up Argon/C02 gas for MIG, began practice....

 

Getting the areas ready for primer. Because I wanted long enough I feel like I had to repeat this step 3 times.

 

 

Prepping it took some creativity, especially for the tops of the turn signal buckets.

 

 

Just realized I didn't photo it after epoxy primer. I'll add more tomorrow.

 

So then on to the welding prep. I've got a real hangup on this. Really concerned about it, I don't want to warp the 22 gauge steel. So, I'm going to practice till I get it how I want it.

 

The trusty MIG

 

Looking at the chart... I need voltage 2 and wire speed 30-40.

 

Then started laying beads. Here is my early attempts with the flux core 0.035 wire.

 

Much better with argon/C02 gas and no flux and 0.023 wire. If I can build a set of these I'd be happy. I'm just not sure of my consistency yet.

 

Some of these are wonky but I also didn't have the metal lined properly.

 

Some are ok. I also need to work on the heat spread.

 

Small things I'm trying:

• Hotter than you think to make it a short burst
• Flatten the angle to the butt weld to improve heat penetration and even shorter burst
• About 3/4 inch from the metal
• Two small burst to reduce chance of burn through - one to lay a tiny bead, then another to buid the weld.

As I practice I've decided to move to metal finishing the fenders and working the backs too. Once i get confidence I'll try the nose...

 

 

Edited July 12, 2023 by JsnPpp

[Tommy]

Welds are looking good now. You should also cool the metal after each spot either with compressed air or wet rag to avoid panel heating on area wider than necessary. One thing hoping not to discourage you, but it will get more difficult working in negative angle and awkward position.

[JsnPpp]

Today I didn't weld at all. Felt good.

• Removed paint from drivers fender
• Started metal finishing

I needed a break from constant welding plus I need to buy more 22 gage sheet metal to practice on so I moved on to fender work.

 

First step was to remove the paint. The car has been painted at least twice and the paint was thick in places.

 

Fast forward and the paint was removed and I started some finishing work with dolly and flapper.

 

FIrst sharpied it all. 

 

I then sand blocked it with 600 to check for high/low spots. Fun to see what you can only barely feel.

 

More soon..

 

 

Edited July 12, 2023 by JsnPpp

[JsnPpp]

19 hours ago, Tommy said:

Welds are looking good now. You should also cool the metal after each spot either with compressed air or wet rag to avoid panel heating on area wider than necessary. One thing hoping not to discourage you, but it will get more difficult working in negative angle and awkward position.

 

No, I appreciate any help. I agree the welds are getting better and plan to both go very slow (like only a couple welds at a time, letting it cool completely in between) and cooling it with air. I didn't consider a damp towel and will try that too.

 

My next step is to buy more sheet 22 gage and cut a similar patch in it, then weld it in without warping it.

[JsnPpp]

So, I've pivoted to the wheel wells and drivers side fender. Still building the courage to tackle the weld in front nose. Starting research on proper stone guard and seam sealer. Going with Wurth brand.

 

Progress:

• Metal finishing on fender 
• Cleaning the seam sealer

 

The bottom has some sealer lifting which has surface rust. I will start cleaning it to find the limits. No holes or scale that I can see but now is the time.

 

Old wear mark from oversized tires way back when. I'll need to clean and prep for epoxy primer+ stone guard + top coat.

 

Top corner has loose stone guard which has bare metal showing. No rust.

 

I didn't take photos of the bottom corner but I've started to clean it. Really difficult to reach it.

 

More soon!

 

 

 

 

[JsnPpp]

Lot of fender work today, and even some drivers door. Still avoiding the weld.

 

I always notice if a door is not aligned properly. Either the gaps are off, or it sticks out at the bottom or the top, I can't help but see it. I'm determined to not have the same thing on this car, but boy it takes time to get it there.

 

 

 

Not nearly done yet.

 

I'm becoming closer to happy about the drivers fender. It had some old dents that I had to work out. It's much better now.

 

I have to stop myself from trying to pursue a "no filler, surfacer only" level of work. I don't have the skills to do it fast which would mean an incredible amount of time. But, we will see.

 

On to the drivers wheel well.

I continued pulling old seam sealer out from behind the same fender and cleaning surface rust at the bottom where the sealer pealed off.

 

The wheel well(s) will be yet another digression for me. They are nice condition but aging and now is the time to freshen them up. Again, my mission is always about longevity, so, removing some light surface rust and topcoating any bare metal is top priority.

 

 

One question for anybody. The bottom of the fender can move in and out slightly where it isn't attached to the body of the car. There used to be seam sealer there. Is the seam sealer supposed to hold it in place too? It's not loose, but it's not bolted either.

 

Tomorrow I will hit the drivers door "for reals". Perhaps thats the wrong word. Tackle is better. It has many dings and needs love. Along the top by the door handle there is old filler too that I need to remove.

 

Inside the doors is another story. After I get them how I want them externally I will pull them down and gut them, prep them, spray them, seam sealer them and reinstall.

 

I also need to order the Wurth stoneguard and seam sealer. Another $150!

 

More soon!

Edited July 15, 2023 by JsnPpp

[Tommy]

You plan to get away without removing the fenders? Can you be sure there's nothing hiding?

 

Seam sealer doesn't hold much at all. Atleast oem fenders had a small lip at the bottom that's bent around the edge of the sill. You can find a picture from factory manual, body work section - Blue book

[JsnPpp]

5 hours ago, Tommy said:

You plan to get away without removing the fenders? Can you be sure there's nothing hiding?

 

Seam sealer doesn't hold much at all. Atleast oem fenders had a small lip at the bottom that's bent around the edge of the sill. You can find a picture from factory manual, body work section - Blue book

 

They are factory fenders, have the small lip, so thats a good thing. Factory seam sealer w/paint on it all over.

 

They aren't floppy on the bottom it's just that without a bolt on the forward most facing edge it can move if you push on it.

 

I hesitate to fully pull the fenders b/c I don't want to recreate the lead/brass/whatever metal for the front seam. Just not something I thought of doing, but it may not be that big of a deal.

 

My plan is to pull the bolts that are up against the door hinge so that I can lightly pull it away to see what is there, clean and ospho, etc. I'm not against pulling the fenders entirely just trying to keep scope in check and use visuals to understand what to dig into.

 

Thanks @Tommy All thoughts welcome. Am rethinking my decisions too. 

 

[JsnPpp]

Lots of progress this weekend.

• Metal finishing progress on drivers side fender, door and rear quarter panel.
• Removed door innards
• Pulled bottom of fender
• Generally assessed progress

I didn't take many photos, but will do this week.

 

My hammer and dolly work on these panels takes me time. 50 years of dings adds up. Using it as practice. There are some dents near the door handle that had just been filled during the prior paint. 

 

Door innards. Boy it's gunky. I've never done more than spray lube there.

 

Another first. Never removed the wing glass before. A bit of a tetris game.

 

 

@Tommy asked why I wasn't pulling the fenders. My reasoning is not to disturb the front lead seal between nose and fender. Also, visual inspection showed zero sign of rust at all the seams except for the bottom. So, I cut the seam sealer and removed four bolts and pulled it back. So glad I did. Nothing serious but still in dire need to cleaning and fresh topcoat.

 

 

Not bad, some rust, mostly discolored seam sealer, the other side isn't bad. Clearly water has been there.

 

I'm able to pull it back a good inch / inch and a half.

 

It's really a diffucult spot to clean. Yet another example of a digression that pulls me away from exterior painting. But now is the time.

 

Dents along the top to take care of too.

Edited July 18, 2023 by JsnPpp

[JsnPpp]

Good progress on front fender + drivers door + rear quarter. Photos soon! Still in bare metal, not primer yet.

 

I knew this would be an area where I would go a little nuts on (trying to) get it "perfect". That won't happen but I need to at least get it to something I'm happy with.

 

Photos soon!

 

Broke a cam on our '91 318is so that derailed me a bit.

Edited July 24, 2023 by JsnPpp

[JsnPpp]

Making progress again! Working on fenders, doors and the nose.

 

Photos coming soon! Goal is engine back in and running by Dec 31st.

[JsnPpp]

Been working on nose, doors and keep taking 1 step forward and 15 steps back! Boy it gets tiring.

 

Getting there.

 

Jason

[JsnPpp]

It's been a long couple of weeks. Really slow progress. Feels like I keep looking for things to finish but only keep adding to the list! 

 

But, progress is still being made albeit slowly. Tonight I scraped a bit more of the floor asphault stuff from the floor pans. I'm using heat not dry ice.

 

I need to clean in the back of both front fenders. 

 

Chin patches have been roughed in place. This took a long time so as not to warp the metal during welding.

 

Doors are cleaning up. Inside and out. The old tape residue is proving difficult to remove. Neither goo gone or paint thinner or anything else seems to take it off. I can scrape it but would prefer wipe. Doors are grungy but inside rust free other than some surface stuff near the top window edge.

 

This is an odd one I may post in the general forum. Passenger side of the seat support looks like this:

 

Drivers side looks like this. Is this the way it is.

 

Another one. I'm trying to figure out how the chin spoiler is supposed to bend. It's more like a wave than enything else.

 

 

Generally how it looks today. My plan is to prep the door sills/frame for epoxy primer and paint, then paint that and the front chin + fenders at the same time.

 

Always a helper nearby.

 

More soon.

 

 

Edited October 27, 2023 by JsnPpp