Rookie mistake and the concequences

We all make mistakes as we go along on these builds. Mine is one or the mistakes that usually comes as we first start driving the cars we have never driven before. Although I don't consider myself as a rookie, having driven the car all summer, I still made the mistake of being in a hurry. Mine started on a Saturday afternoon as I wanted to calibrate my speedometer. One of the last things I needed to do. As I was getting ready to get in the car some kids that lived in the neighborhood stopped by an wanted to see the car. Obligingly I showed them the car, raising the front and rear clips and then closing them. The meeting finally ended and I informed my wife I was out to do the calibration. I jumped in the car and headed out. My Stewart Warner guage is one that you have to drive a measured mile and then the speedometer is set for the number of revolutions needed. this was accomplished without a hitch. Once done I wanted to see if the guage was really calibrated. I pulled away from the stop light at a brisk pace and acelerated up to about 45 mph. As I reached 45 in second gear, I heard a loud bang and thought I had blown the engine. One look to the rear told me it wasn't the engine, but was the rear clip unhitched and dragging on the asphalt. Seems I had forgotten in my haste to latch the Aerocatch fasteners(which I had bought to prevent just this from happening). It was still attached to the frame but dragging along behind. Pulled over and "folded" the rear clip like a limp piece of spaghetti back onto the car. I limped home and then surveyed the damage. It took a while to figure out all the damage. The first was the obvious. Both fenders were fractured.
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From the "folding" of the rear clip I knew that the the vertical supports to the fenders were broken as well. Further examination showed areas of delaminations in the upper portion of the rear clip.
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These were dug out and fresh resin applied along with filler.
Having just gone through two scares of cancer, one with my wife and one for me(mine was negative hers wasn't, but is all clear now) I knew I could not afford to have the repairs made, or purchase a new rear clip. So I took on the challenge and decided to do the work myself. It is amazing what you can learn when you need/have to(thank you Youtube) [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoURRmkD8MY&list=TL1nfjNHGxHeA6Z1Jlk-qzKOi1xIxyz993]There's A Hole In My Boat~ Gelcoat Color Matching (Part 1) - YouTube[/ame]. I investigated the fractures further and found that the bonding to the vertical uprights were broken and the bonding of the gulf flares on one fender was broken as well. The flares were added when the tires were sticking outside of the fenders.
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The first order of business was to cut away the fractured fiberglass.
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On this fender you can see the delamination of the underlying fiberglass. this was along the line of the bonding of the vertical support.
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This revealed more problems. The shop that added the gulf flares, evidently had to flex one of the flares to get it to fit. It now stuck higher than its counterpart and a jig had to be made to pull it back in line, and line up the outside edge of the fender.
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Once this was lined up the vertical supports had to be repaired so that everything else would line up. All the old bonding agent was removed, a set of straps were then added to hold the vertical element in alignment, and West Marine Six-10 bonding agent was applied. A bar clamp and wood block was used to pull everything together.
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Following that, the vertical support was repaired with several layers of fiberglass.
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The bonding line for the gulf flare was rebonded and then the repair of the fenders was undertaken using "several" layers of fiberglass including Biaxial fiberglass for streenght.
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After much sanding, filing, and filling the fender began to take shape. Several fractures in the filler on the lower sides of the fender were discovered and were dug out and refilled. Several stress fractures in the paint were found and they too were ground out ad filled. Then the job I hated the most to do was next. Sanding.
I first thought I would be able to preserve the stripes, but due to so many coats of paint it wasn't possible to save them, so all was sanded. There was an area where the heat of the exhaust had bubbled the paint under the rear glass area, so it all had to come off anyway. Now came the hard decision.
A repaint would cost a fortune. The original paint 8-10 years ago cost aver $6K. So today it would be higher. I could get it painted, but it would stress the finances. We had an emergency fund before the scare. It has a big hole in it now. I also developed an inguinal hernia that had to be fixed. I can tell you that if you don't have an emergency fund for things such as these, you are in for a bad time financially. Mine is = to 1 years salary. There is still some money in there and I could use it but I don't like the idea of it being lower than it needs to be.
I had already ordered the 2K primer so it was applied. I decided to go with an alternative that I had thought of several months before. Plastidip. Since I was going in this direction, I would do a little experimenting. I tried(key word) to duplicate the Linden green color to see how it would look on a Mk I full body. Came close but not close enough for me. So after several days of experimenting decided to go with a lighter shade of grey. The color on my car now is actually a dark shadow grey(Ford color) that we took out the red tones. It has darkened over the 10 years and is darker than I like. I ordered an Anthracite grey from Plastidip, which is one of their "metalizers"(sort of a metal flake). There is one problem with ordering their rubber based paints. You can't return it. It turned out that after I bought it there was a Youtube video of a car done with it. It was darker than I thought. So more experimenting(after adding an industrial white pigment) I found a grey I liked. I plan to add some clear coat(Plastidip) to give it a little shine and add some stripes as well. Here it is in primer and block sanded.
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Here it is in its present state.
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This is good for at least 6 months and probably for a year since it will see the elements only when it is clear. I have about 4-5 coats on the rear clip and that was less than a gallon. The sprayer cost $80 and the paint $57 a gallon, the clear is about $60. I have a second gallon of the Anthracite so it should cover the rest of the car. For under $250 not bad. Had I waited til after the video, I could have held it down to under $200. The stripe will be done with regular paint from Duplicolor and should run about $20. This isn't a show finish but it will do til next year.

Bill
 
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Howard Jones

Supporter
I've said may times, fiberglass isn't hard to do, it just itches. You are one of several who have done that, I bet you don't do it again.

I'm glad to hear you and the wife are doing well now.
 
Yes I know that one Bill.
I was at the dyno and I went to put the car on the trailer, The trailer was parked some distance away so I gave it a squirt and up it came.
I didn't brake anything but it teaches you good.

I have pins go through the rear bulkhead into the clip as a safety, I now put them on the drivers seat as a reminder to lock it down.

You did a good repair.

Jim
 

Jack Houpe

GT40s Supporter
Nice Job Bill! I have the worst luck with body work, just don't have the skill and never had anyone to teach me.

Don't feel to bad about the accident, we all have had them and like Jim I forgot to latch my rear deck lid, cost me $1100 to fix the spoiler and repaint, thank GOD it didn't come off, I've never forgotten again. :)
 
... I have about 4-5 coats on the rear clip and that was less than a gallon. The sprayer cost $80 and the paint $57 a gallon, the clear is about $60. I have a second gallon of the Anthracite so it should cover the rest of the car. For under $250 not bad. Had I waited til after the video, I could have held it down to under $200. The stripe will be done with regular paint from Duplicolor and should run about $20. This isn't a show finish but it will do til next year.

What kind of paint and sprayer did you use?
 
Mark,
I bought the Wagner "Control Spray Plus" Lock -N- Load" when it was on sale for $79. It is basically a vacuum cleaner motor in reverse. It is discontinued now. On the Plastidip web site they will sell everything you might need or want. They just recently came out with a new sprayer that is like mine but more refined. Puts out a finer mist. For those of you wanting to use anormal spray setup, you will need a 1.8-2.0 tip. If you want the low down how to keep your cost down with this stuff you will have do go outside of Plastidip. AWarehouseFull
Plastidip sells the ready to use spray for around $67. You can get the unthinned gallons for the same price. Then dilute it 1:1 with xylene or Naptha(($12/gal.) and you double your volume for the price of the prethinned. You might have to add some pigments to get it back up to snuff but the industrial pigments through Sherwin Williams work well. Needs 3 oz./gal of unthinned dip.
This guy will spell it out for you better than I can type it. iamthepuzzleman - YouTube
He has the most experience on the open forum. A real character. Some of the colors are only available through Plastidip. the basic ones are available as unthinned and you can mix and make your own colors.
I have learned since doing mine in how to actually spray the rear clip. With the vents to the upper deck it is precarious. If you decide to do it just spray as you normally would for a flat surface. Don't try to get into the vent. If you manage to miss any part, you can direct a squirt or two into the opening from the middle section approach. Hope that is clear. I got some of what they call "texture" while doing this area trying to aim into the vent(gun too far away). As I said in the original post, it will do for now. Besides if I want to do it over, just peel it off and do it again. The darker colors hide it well. The lighter ones don't.

Bill
 
Bill:
Kudos to you for owning up to that and then posting the repair. I am not a good fiberglass guy and I read the repair process with much interest.
Thanks for posting that whole ordeal.
I only make one mistake a year...but I am up to the year 22,000 so far.
As long as no one was hurt it all goes towards experience.
Be well
Phil
 
Nice job on making the jig for the repair to the clip. I have a project that will come in handy for. Thanks for posting,S
 
The jig was interesting. The height gap was a good 1/4-1/2". I plotted out whee the legs needed to be and put them in as studs so to speak. Then I used rhe floor jack to equal the sides out. At that point I welded the connector pieces in place to hold the position. To get the fiberglass to not sag I used fiberglass reinforced tape. A lot like wide painters tape but it holds much better. The first layers go to the sticky side of the tape. Then when the first layer or two drys, remove the tape and start on the other side. You have to use Biaxial strand mat in order to get the strenght to hold everything together. Fibers run 90 degrees from each other.

Bill
 

Terry Oxandale

Skinny Man
Good post Bill. Fiberglass is my favorite because anything you do to it can be fixed given a respectable amount of inspection prior to starting work. Cracks and stresses need to be found, but when they all are, the work is pretty much straight-forward.

Don't be too hard on yourself. I did something similar and tore the entire hood off a car doing that. After that, I put microswitches under the panel, to activate a piezoelectric alarm if I attempted to start the car without everything latched down. I liked it so well, I then added the oil pressure (lack of) to it as well (saved me when I blew an oil pressure hose one night).

Any photos of the Plasti dip results? I may have to reconsider using this stuff. From what I see on the web, this may be ideal for my project, being a glossy finish is not what I think want.
 
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Jim Craik

Lifetime Supporter
I too came very close to doing the very same thing, I was lucky, when I reached into my pocket for the keys the retaining ring/pin came out with them!

From then on, I always immidiatly put the ring/pin back in the roof, that way it will not close without removing the pin.
 
The owner of Plastidip has done a lot of videos from the basic stuff to the stuff they are pushing now which is the metal flakes and the pearls. Most except for the metalics will come out flat. If you add some of the pearls it lightens the color and gives it a candy type finish. They have a clear coat that will give you the shinny finish. They have done some fanominal colors lately that incorporate so much more than the flat blacks that they started out with. It is so cheap that it is a good choice to try. The unthinned paint comes in 14.7 oz. cans or gallons. The smaller cans are about $6 each and it takes 9 of them to = a gallon. That is $54 compared to the gallons at $67. With the unthinned, you have to add the thinners to make it work. With Naptha at $12 a gal. and a 1:1 ratio, you get 2 gallons for the cost of one. You need to do at least 4 coats because you have to have enough to be able to peel it off and to get the true coverage you need. If you add pigments it is 1/3 oz. per small can or 3 oz. for a gal.. You can order their make your own color kit for about $12 and can specify the color)(s) you want in that kit. It comes with 5-6 bottles of pigment. So you can get 5 of them for that price. It seems to last about a year, mabe more, will withstand a car wash easily. If you tire of the color, just paint over what is there and you don't need so many coats, cause they are already on the car. And as always you can peel it off if you don't like it. If your thinner is right and you use good technique in spraying(all learned on Utube), you will come out looking pretty good for a fraction of a paint job.What' not to like?? For me it was perfect. My color turned out darker than I wanted, and it cost $6K. That is an expensive one to change because you don't like it so much. Just have to live with it, or change it with Plastidip til you can afford a new paint job!!

Bill
 

Randy V

Moderator-Admin
Staff member
Admin
Lifetime Supporter
Bill - glad to hear there were no injuries and kudos to you for a great repair job!
Loved the jig!! Or should I say "I dig the jig!"...
Yes.. I think I should!
 
Bill:

Great repair work. I have been thinking about how to put a warning light and electric latch system in place. Possibly a small micro switch that hits the end of the pin on the aerocatch when latched lighting a warning lamp.
 
I was thinking exactly the same!
Maybe a catch somewhat like a bonnet so that if it's 'closed' it can't fly open even if unlatched and you have to press or do something to open it all the way.
 
You guys may have hit on something. Electronically it could be like an automatic door opener,with the push button retracting the locking rod. When released the rod would go back to the extension position, requiring you to push it again when you close the clip. Or maybe a closing setup like the trunk of a car, and an electronic opener??? As I recall there used to be a double hood type closing system that was cable operated at one time.

Bill
 

Randy V

Moderator-Admin
Staff member
Admin
Lifetime Supporter
Bill - Have you ever shied away from a gadget? ;)

I do like the idea of a failsafe and have threatened to do something like it many times, but once I started putting the hood pins on the steering wheel or over the wiper blades - that ended the airborn hoods...

Now - as long as we're in gadget mode - how about having it somehow interconnect with the clutch pedal so as soon as it is depressed, it will kill the engine if the latches are not secure?

Oh boy - here I am - feeding our addiction!!! :D
 

Terry Oxandale

Skinny Man
Oooooh, I like.

A microswitch in series with the ignition switch, and in parallel with the door latch, so that you could still start the car with the hood up, but only as long as the door was open.

Gadgetry been berry berry good for me.
 
How about a micro switch on rear clip hooked up to a battery electric fence unit feeding into the drivers seat squab, wouldnt take long for anyone to get the message after that.. and ensure that your nice & alert before driving off:)
 
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