Let's put some color on that Beast

Finally 6 weeks have passed and we are ready to add some color the Stang. I wanted my StangBeast to be painted with an intense yet classy color. I mean, you can color a Lambo Lime Green or Jungle Banana Yellow, but that ain't happening with a Stang. I didn't want a color from the original color chart because they just didn't do anything for my eyes. So I ordered a Dupont Hot Hues color chart to expand my color visual vocabulary, if you will. I knew Black, Blue, and Red, but a color named Sinful Cinnamon? That's what I'm talking about!

At one point, I decided on Blazing Copper with double Gun Metal! stripes running from the front bumper to the rear. Eventually the color and stripes were dropped as were the flames, but I knew that I definitely wanted a copperish-pomagranateish-reddish-metalish-brightish blow your socks off color. So the search continuted.

Until I came across Copperhead Metallic. The color was custom created by Stacey David and Ron Payton of PPG Paint for the 1967 Chevy C10, shortbed, fleetside truck named Copperhead.

So I sprayed the color on a swatch and walked around with it to see how it would look in the shade and in the sun and under the clouds and in the garage. It had a chokehold on me no other colors so I simply said, "Let's Roll!"

Now feast your eyes on the color, let me know your thoughts. After 2 coats of color and 4 coats of clear we will be ready to install that sweet new carpet, those sweet seats, and full interior package. Be sure to come back!

Blocking and Sanding and Straightening, Oh My!

The journey to get the body straight has begun and there will be several days and many pieces of sanding paper to go through before we start to see some progress. The photos here are fast-forwarded in time compared to the actual time that it took to go through the various phases of blocking. So feast your eyes on these and be sure to come back... we are getting near the first coat of paint! Woo Hoo!

The Best Color Ever

I think primer gray is the best color in the world. Something about the 'finished, yet work in progress' look does a little something for me. I guess because you can see all the fine details. There is no hiding anything from primer gray. It is transparent and holds no secrets.

So if I were to color my soul, I would choose primer gray: See all my imperfections, see the places where I need work, see the places where I am solid, unwavering. I'd choose not to hide behind some flashy color that blinds people from seeing the real me. Or some mega dark color that hides all the dark places. Nah, it would have to be primer gray for me. Real, straight up, work in progress.







But I digress, so let's continue on with this restoration project shall we? You can see the sweet orange color is just about gone. Now for blocking, smoothing , and sanding to get every inch of sheetmetal straight and smooth. So stock up on some elbow grease and get ready for the real work.

The Refiner's Fire is Unrelenting

Here we are in another stage of the restoration progress. I hope that you are enjoying this journey as much as I am. If you are new here, just scroll down to the beginning of this particular thread so you can catch up with the rest of the clan.

The details never end for the Stang. My goal is to get every nook and cranny smoothed, fixed, straight, rustproof. I want the sheetmetal to be as clean as possible before she gets an ounce of color. Check out the pics, the new floor pan behind the passenger seat is in. The holes are filled and sanded. The triangular piece that was hacked off has been replaced with new metal. You can't even see a scar!

Smoothing out the rough edges

This journey of StangBeast restoration is a lot like getting ready for that special prom date or class pictures or your wedding day. You take extra time in the shower scrubbing and rinsing, washing and cleaning. In front of the mirror you move inches from your reflection to get all those bumps and valleys and hairs into their right place. So it is for the Stang.

Removing the chrome trim pieces left holes in the sheetmetal that needed to be filled in. 40+ years left waves and dents and rust; all needed extra special attention. I didn't especially like the F-O-R-D in the hood so those letters were popped out. On the driver's side just behind the front wheel I found some rust that was not treatable. So armed with a saw-saw and nerves of steel, a triangular piece was cut out. Fear not though, a new piece of metal was welded in place and smoothed out, you can't even tell the piece was even cut!

The rocker panel moldings were removed as well as the brackets that hold them on. I really wanted a smooth, straight, tight Mustang for the finished product. The Mustang's body lines are so straight and the car is so small, I didn't want there to be any distracting scoop moldings or antenna poking through the fender. Simple, elegant, classy. Oh Yeah!











Looking over these pics sends a chill up and down my spine! But it's a good chill. I hope you are enjoying this journey as much as I am, write a comment and let me know! Until next time...

Stripping the Beast

Before we get to the tear down, we have a few more pics of the outside of the Stang. All those chrome plastics were removed. Metal tabs welded to the fill the holes and given the grind treatment to make the body straighter than... uh, straighter than .... straighter than an arrow. A Loose Arrow.






Alright, tearing into the skin here we have the body just about stripped down. As you are looking at these pics imagine the intense fear I felt as I was looking at her in real life. Ugh, it's like getting kicked in the gut with a combat boot. Takes your breath away and makes you want to barf in the same instant.











Well, made it to the end of this post! Congrats! See you next time!!

5 years ago to the day

(A little interruption in the middle of the Stang Restoration story)



5 years ago to the day
I met the little red haired girl of my dreams
She materialized before me like a vision
and her smile and eyes captivated me

She entered my life and I'll never
forget how she looked that very day
My heart was stolen with one fell
swoop of her voice

I've fallen more and more in love
with this red haired maiden
She's my everything, my all

I love you Mia, my little red haired girl

Interior Pre-Restoration

Continuing on with this restoration blog. Here are some pics of the interior (and a cute little red-haired girl). I took the modest stock interior and replaced it with the the Deluxe Pony interior. The seat upholstery was replaced, the carpet torn out, the foam in the trunk had to be scraped out with razor blades and adhesive remover. The door panels removed and replaced. The inside rear quarter panels were removed and covered with 1/4" padding and vinyl. I like the black on black interior so I decided to stay black on black.

The floor pan with the small rust hole was replaced and the entire floor was rust treated and coated with spray on bed liner. Then I installed some sound foil-backed sound deadener and yute-backed sound deadener to the floor pan.

That's about enough for now so check out the pics, leave a comment and see you later!