Randy's Rag

[chevymaher]

Okay talked me into pics. I wasn't sure if I was boring anyone. It a big deal to me because it my baby, but you know how parents and baby pics are.
Hillbilly Bob method of puttimg the hood on. LOL actually it was hung there to make it easier to paint the edge. Right at eye level. And right where I was working. Less dragging the air hose around the less dust gets stirred up reckon.
Nose piece looks fine but being a body guy eyes are not where it is at, you see much more with your hands. Running my hand over the hood to nose piece changed. don't feel quite right. 15 minutes board sanding will knock off the edge. Tightening all the bolts and inner fenders down changes the shape a hair. It a delicate balance. Don't want to do the bodywork after the jambs are painted or they get messed up. So do it and paint then assemble and block it again.

[Ms Grumpy]

Even if it was Hillbilly Bob's method. If it worked, it worked. lol

[chevymaher]

I got the passenger door and the bad hinge off. I got a bunch of prep work to do where I couldn't get to. probably take a week. I got the emergency call and dragged me away. The wife got into some thing in her school computer and panic was ensuing. So I had to get it going again and something was moving files. Click computer and it is showing documents. What is that? I made a USB linux to boot from the flash drive just in case. If I didn't kill whatever it is I can still run the computer and access her school files. I may or may not have killed it. I deleted some strange files in the windows folder. Hopefully I got the kernal file. But so far so good it working again.
Work and life slowing me down this week. LOL.

[chevymaher]

Inside of the door ready for primer and the door jamb itself is close. I expect to have it taped and ready today. I got to cover the dash and front section real well. Like i mentioned before I out of hardener for clear and almost no clear. Time for a supply run after we get paid monday. re-stock on some things.
I had enough but doing other things I used the clear up slowly over time. Fixed rust on the wife's Durbango. My dad put a nice scratch in his formula firebird. I had to fix that and paint the side. Well not had to but it is dad and well I kind of owe him for putting up with me growing up LOL. You know life happens stuff.
I aint going crazy it is a door jamb but I been doing some bodywork on the parts you see with the door open. Smoothing out the factory wrinkles in the metal from the stamping process. Charlie Anal made a guest appearance my buddy said. He just rolls his eyes back in his head. He is a retired factory line worker from GM making camaroes and firebirds. So I got some inside tips on what they were doing.
I slept in today but i been hitting it real early lately so I can get some hours in before actual work starts.

[chevymaher]

Well I got it done and sqeezed priming in between work and my household taxi runs.
I got sanding and then I got to go to the paint supply. I need hot rod black, clear, some more primer, and tape since I use 10 miles of it every time I turn around. I got plastic. A whole new roll. I painted 3 normal cars. Just mask not every nook and cranny, normal detail. And did everything to this chevelle and there some left. So I doubt I will need more no matter how much I waste.
I got new door hardware so I will put the new in when after it is painted. Door striker will come off for paint and get wire wheeled clean. But I want the primer as a guide because the door is perfect adjustment now. I will use the ring as a guide to put it on. Door latch will be a pain to clean it will be mask for paint to. See the bondo in the door jamb? for those little pesky stamping wrinkles.

[chevymaher]

I still waiting for the supply run. I been working on my moms new house. So I am not in my shop where I can do things between jobs. But i think my 6 Y/O son is awakened to what is going on down there now. He realizes the car down there and the race car game chevelle and the U Tube cars doing the burnouts I watch are one and the same. He has seen me paint and build cars down there since he was a baby. But recently the little switch clicked in his little head. He always want to "Help Me" when I work on the car now. He don't realize he ain't helping but his heart is in the right place and I enjoy the little guys enthusiasm. Father son bonding beginning.

We were just coming back from the store. He points to the gaping hole where the door should be and says. "Look dad got to get to work. Make it blue. So we can put the Lego Chevelle together" He calls it the Lego Chevelle now because I keep taking it apart and putting it back together.

Another muscle car, van enthusiast is being born. My other love is my van.

[Ms Grumpy]

That is so cool. Some of my best memories are with my older 3 kids at Detroit Dragway with my brother. And when I got the Malibu it was sanding and sanding and sanding when we put my car together for the 1st time over 17 yrs ago.

One of the best memories was may years ago when we were on the way to the dragstrip. It was me, my brother and my daughter Jennifer (8), son Matthew (5), daughter Lacie (4). We were sitting in line waiting to get into the dragstrip and playing on the radio was the song "Dirty Deeds". My son was singing along with the song at the top of his voice and we realized what he was singing. We turned down the radio and he kept singing "Dirty Knees not like these". Matthew is 27, and to this day we tease him about it.

[chevymaher]

Made my supply run, got clear, urofill primer, hot rod black, cups, tape. Killin me perfect day to do it but I got to work. So I be laying tile thinking of my poor neglected door jamb today.

[flash]

So tell and show us this van you speak of .

[chevymaher]

Originally Posted by flash

So tell and show us this van you speak of .

Mom and dad got the van new. It was a national rental car under the GM buyback program. 10 thousand miles when they got it. 5 vans in 94 had more options. I got the sheet with the statistics.
It was totalled at 6 months old. Insurance put a new front end on it. It has a bulls eye on it because it been totalled 3X since I have owned it. I welded in a new core support and put another front end on. 2 X-mas ago the drivers side was taken out. New door and massive body work to the drivers quarter. Gettin me warmed up for the chevelle painting it every few years. Other total was a joke the sliding door got hit. Easy to fix.

Now the hot rodders stuff you really care about. I got 295/50/15 indy tires.
Black interior I had to make my self. I rebuilt the rear end. 3.42 gears and detroit locker. I rebuilt the engine after a oil line broke. I ported everything. Intake heads and exhaust manifolds. Decked the block. Crank kit, acid washed, rings usual stuff. Comp Cams .500 lift roller cam 210/215@50
3 inch single exhaust into a thrush muffler.

It ain't a chevelle for sure but it beats Z-71 trucks and mustangs at will. Fun to drive. Tides me over till the chevelle is done.

200W stereo all the silly stuff DVD TV SD card player bluetooth back up ability, I don't have a camera. Little tach in the cup holder. Kinda incognito.

I owned this thing 12 years I only have ever owned 1 car longer. This chevelle I got 6 months before the van. She grew on me was so dependable I fell in love with the old girl and souped her up as my family car daily driver.

4.3 she was born with. To the right the boxes are the new radiator support and front end parts for the chevelle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hun4QS7oY0

Worst looking total.


Horrible pic cig smoke but the new radio and tach.


Door to rear wheel was mashed. This was the I got er done shot of the
damaged area for my van forum.


Painted before the bumpers went back on after the last time I got hit.


Stobe stripes on the lower part of the van. Can't see them in normal shots. See my chevelle in the reflection. My 2 babies always together, LOL.


My office chair in my shop. Cable, computer, stereo, My man cave hang out. But this is a fairly recent pic. Chevelle is to the right just out of sight.