Dougs 56 build

[Volksvr6gti]

Thank you

Ok one quick question for all of you. Once I clean everything up and get ready to paint, would the correct order be:

1) master series silver - 2 coats
2) seam seal
3) ag111 black top coat - 1 coat

Reason being is I have read some mixed reviews. Some have stated that the master series coating system does not require you to seam seal as it will penetrate and seal the seams itself. But others have seam sealed and used the master series... just weighing the opinions.

[VW_Jimbo]

Nice job!

Was wondering what pressure you set that blast tank to? I bought one 4 years back, set it up and could not get it to hold air. Kept blowing the safety release. I think I was regulated down to 40psi when it finally would shoot media. But then the time it took was FOREVER. Just curious.

I have read on a few threads that when cleaning out the tunnel, the openings get taped over and then the entire assembly is rotated around in circles. Are you going to somehow rig that assembly up on some supports and do the same? Curious, because maybe I will get there in several more months! Gotta plan for future events. Curious regarding coverage of the interior.

Keep going, it is looking really good!
_________________
Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[Volksvr6gti]

yeah the HF pressure blaster did the job, but it did not come easy and like you stated it took foooooreveeeer. For starters I have an undersized compressor that is old and pretty shot .... I prob should buy a new one soon lol. My compressor is only 21 gallons and could not match the required CFM that the pressure blaster demanded. So I setup one of those bounce house blower fans and aimed it at my compressor to keep it cool and from over heating. I would set my regulator to 60 and it worked pretty well, but I could only get about 4-5 minutes of blasting before I would have to stop and let my compressor catch up. during this time I would sweep up the media and shift it through a screen in 5 gallon buckets. by the time I finished that it would be time to blast again. overall it came out nice but im pretty sure that was about 20 hours of time invested lol....no exaggeration lol. would have been much easier and less time consuming to hire a mobile company to soda blast....but that kind of takes away from the fun and self satisfaction of completing something yourself.

as for the tunnel it looks nice inside. I don't think I am going to plan to apply the master series coating to it. I do need to degrease it though, because some of the residual penetrating oil and diesel that I was using to try to soak out the choke line from its conduit has leaked / spilled into the tunnel. so as I sand blasted the pans, the next morning I would come out and notice an oily / wet look surface along the tunnel at the seams. so I know that some of the oils are shaping from the tunnel seams .... which will be problematic when painting on the master series coating. so my thoughts for tomorrow is to remove the transmission mount and stand the chassis straight up. then I will use my leaf blower (I have a back pac one) and stand on ladder and shoot the air down the front end inspection hole through the tunnel and out the back of the car. hopefully the combination of high air flow and gravity will displace any media that got into the tunnel ( I did do my best to cover the holes in the tunnel before blasting but I know stuff still got in there). after I blow the tunnel out, I was thinking of spraying in simple green to degrease the inside of the tunnel. let it soak for a little bit and then spray a garden hose down the tunnel to clean the simple green out. after this I may degrease once more and then do a thorough rise. lastly I will go back up the ladder and use the leaf blower again to blow the water out and accelerate the drying time. and then off to applying this master series so I don't get flash rusting.

so far I have been pretty lucky to have no flash rust during the slow media blast time. I took me 4 days to blast the entire chassis. yeah I am sure there is some slight oxidation but nothing visible

[VW_Jimbo]

Thanks! Maybe it is worth the price the blasting company charges. Was checking to see if what I had done was wrong or the tool had an issue. Guess not. Damn it! I was hoping that pot valve had an issue, because 100 psi makes it so much more effective!

I forgot about mobile blasting! Thanks again!
_________________
Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[Volksvr6gti]

yeah the valves were just so finicky. yeah try the mobile blasting it may be a good and much easier option... just depends on the price tag haha

[Volksvr6gti]

Got an early jump on the morning. I got off work and came right home and used the back pack leaf blower and was able to get nearly all the sand out of the tunnel from media blasting. Worked good shooting from the front of the car and working my way down through the other holes in the tunnel and directing it out the back side of the car through the two bolt holes in the arms that support the engine/ tranny.

Next I used simple green to degrease the entire chassis and also the inside of the tunnel. Let it sit a few minutes and then hosed it all down with water. Of course it flash rusted, but I was planning to use the master series metal prep and rust remover to correct this. Here’s what she looked like after the garden hose:

And here is after wiping on the metal prep:

To help aid in drying the tunnel out I stood the chassis upright and put my child’s bounce house blower on top and screwed it into the tree. It def helps speed up the process as for the metal prep from master series, it is super easy to work with. Wipe on and wipe off. Pulls that flash rust off in seconds and made the surface nice. Going to try to get my first round of paint on today.

[VW_Jimbo]

Nice job! It looks really good. Bet that paint is going to be beautiful.

And thank you for solidifying my thoughts on the sand blaster.
_________________
Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[Volksvr6gti]

I am def Hopi g the paint comes out superb!
I invested a lot of time into this chassis getting her prepped. For being my first time doing something like this I feel like I am on the right track. Just finished the bottom side:

And here is a shot down the tunnel. The brown in the picture looks like rust but it’s actually just old caked on dust. Not worried about it. Feel she will be just fine.

Now I guess I will wait a little bit of time and then get my first round of master series silver laid down. Pretty sure the metal prep they sell you just wipe it on and wipe it off and then paint once all looks dry.... hope I am not wrong about that statement lol. We shall see

[Volksvr6gti]

if anyone has a parts car the they are salvaging parts from and happens to have the DRIVERS side headliner clips, grabbers, teeth lol ....whatever you want to call them. I am in need of them. worst case I can get some sheetmetal and form it, but figured I would reach out. here is a picture for reference.

[scotty timmerman]

These can be purchased band new. I got some for my oval and they are good quality. Here you go: https://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=VWC%2D113%2D809%2D443%2DA
_________________
71 ghia coupe: Build thread http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=511738&highlight=
71 type 3 fastback auto
71 type 3 fastback manual
73 super beetle
57 oval: build thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8616563#8616563
63 beetle reassembly: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7458619#7458619
2332cc engine build: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8608429&highlight=#8608429
84 vanagon westfalia wolfsburg edition

[Volksvr6gti]

heck yeah man, thanks for the info. will order that !

[Volksvr6gti]

Today I got my first coat of master series silver on. Came out nice, went on nice and smooth. Like others stated get a crap ton of foam brushes ... like 20-30. 1 inch and 2 inch seemed to be the best for me. I also got 2 inch and 4 inch foam rollers which helped a lot. The 2 inch rollers can be purchased at Lowe’s....homedepot did not carry them. I split and poured the master series silver into 4 oz mason jars from target, poured them to the brim, put Saran Wrap on then capped it. Temp was 78 today and 71% humidity and no issues. Plenty of working time. Did the bottom of the chassis first then the top side a few hours later. I’m gonna do the second coat tomorrow.

[Volksvr6gti]

Today I finished the master series silver second coat. Went on easy and came out clean. For anyone that has not used this product and is researching what product to use and wants to know / see the quality of this finish here are a few piks.

The next two are close up after the paint has dried. Keep in mind that this was brushed on with foam brushes and self leveled like a champ.

I can’t complain at all it came out perfect. You will def need more than one quart of you plan on doing this. I purchased 2 quarts and I have 16 ounces remaining. I stored them air tight in 4 oz mason jars so we will see if I need them on anything else. Also be sure to get a lot of foam brushes. A looooot. I found the 1 inch and 2 inch brushes worked the best. I had some 3-4 inch ones but they just became cumbersome to work with.

Fire station tomorrow and then When I get home Monday I plan to seam seal and then apply the AG111 Monday night or maybe Tuesday.

[VW_Jimbo]

Looks like progress!
_________________
Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[Volksvr6gti]

Today we made it to a fun part finally for the kiddos. My two little ones have been sooooo excited to help daddy paint the car. Today was the day we were able to lay down the black on the chassis and the kids loved helping and being involved in this process. To anyone out there that has kids young or getting older, keep them involved. It brings happiness to them to feel being a part of something they know you value and is important to you. Kids will always look up to you and be curious to help and in the end it becomes a fun bond that you have built with them.

Anywho, I started the day masking off all the seams to prep for the seam sealer. For this I used the dynatron 550. It worked easy, laid down smooth and set pretty quick. I found it easiest to work in small sections and apply, smooth it with a gloved finger and then let it sit about 5 minutes and work on another section. Then go back after that 5 minutes and pull the masking tape.

All taped off ready for seam sealer:

And the finished lines:

Daughter helping with her pro painting skills

Son laying down some paint and loving it

End result came out nice.

[Volksvr6gti]

Flipped the chassis this afternoon and rested the chassis on sawhorses using the transmission bracket rear bolts and the front beam bolts so that the paint can fully cure of the top side - can stated 7 days until fully hardened. Once flipped I painted the bottom side and touched up a few hard to reach areas.

Once this covid deal passes and some stores open back up I will start to reassemble the chassis. I still have a little silver and some black left, which I plan to use on the from beam and spring plates. So that will be my next step.

[Cr430c]

Looks awesome. Makes me rethink my current approach. Great work and glad to see the helpers impressive work.
_________________
January 1957 oval https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=730746

[Volksvr6gti]

thanks buddy it is def coming out nice. takes quite a bit of time but is fun and a good hobby and the kids enjoy helping

[Cr430c]

I had my 4 little helpers, my wife(not sure how I got her in the garage) and my brother helping me yesterday to get the chassis together and the body bolted on. I was on cloud nine getting to be with the family and my bug yesterday. Was a great day. Thanks for the inspiration. Keep the awesome pics coming.
_________________
January 1957 oval https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=730746

[ZENVWDRIVER]