'76stingraycolorado

Hello,

I'm in the process of rebuilding the suspension on my '76. I'm just now starting to remove the exhaust, mufflers, leaf spring, strut rods, etc., and will be ordering new parts in the upcoming weeks.

The original leaf spring is in good shape but similar to the rest of the undercarriage, it's dirty, greasy and just "ugly."

I'm likely going to keep my old leaf spring, as it's still in good condition. However, is there a way to make it look new again? Also, the same goes for some of the other old parts....

I just figured that while I'm under here, I'd like to do something to make things look a bit better instead of just putting new strut rods, shocks, etc, into a sea of dirt, grease and rust.

I also noticed that there is also a ton of dirt and grease on the right side of the rear differential. In fact I had to dig just to see the red label on the diff. Not sure if this signals a leak or just 35 years of use.

Thanks in advance for any tips/suggestions.

Easy Mike

A steam cleaner or a power washer will clean things up.

mds3013

I went from this,






to this,








using low odor mineral spirits, coarse scotch brite pads and wire brushes. It takes a while but can be done. I cleaned the fiberglas with laquer thinner. I disassembled the spring and used a 1/4 sheet pad sander to take it down to bare metal. New spring liners are available. It is not NCRS but is not rusting and still looks good. Eye protection and numerous jack stands are needed for safety. mike...

71scgc

1" putty knife for the real heavy grease/grime stuff.

gdh

I've seen Easy Off oven cleaner used to clean the greasy/oily areas with excellent results.

0Willcox Corvette

Remove the center bolt from the rear spring, buy a new liner kit and a center bolt and then rebuild it yourself. The rear spring is a different color than the rest of the suspension too. We are doing a car right now in our shop (we have some good pics on facebook).

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...6912924&type=1

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...6912924&type=1

The spring below is the original spring from this car.


Here are before and afters on the 65 and the spring in this is not an original it is new.. (and not the correct color)





Cleaning the frame is not easy with the body on, we are doing this on another car (dunn) and high speed wire wheels, scrapers, lacquer thinner and rags, and a spot blaster are all being used.

We use the acid etching black primer and when finished we top it off with a color coat.

Willcox

JimmyS5600

Great job,quite a contrast between then and now!

1974ta

I am smack in the middle of doing this on my 70.

I have been using a combination of paint remover on the fiberglas with a plastic body filler applicator to scrape of the paint and junk. Then I use 000 steel wool to get down to the fiberglass. Do not rub hard or it will leave scotches on the fiberglass.

Found the red scotch brite pad that fits in a drill is perfect for 80-90% of the frame paint and rust removal.

I use emory cloth to get at places the scotch brite pad cannot reach. You will go through quite a few pads. Also have used different sized wire brushes.

I like simple green for getting the oil residue off frame and other areas.

For the spring, disassemble as others have said. The closest paint for the gray on the spring is cold galvanizing in a spray can. (Home Depot) It has a very high zinc content which helps the lubricity as the spring travels. Rather than buy all new liners, I moved all my liners up one location and cut to match. Original liners are different than repros. You will need one repro for the longest/bottom liner.

Hope that helps.


Bill

army

That underside shot of the footwell area of the body makes me think twice about flying down the freeway in what is essentially a fiberglass box.

bkvette3

Tried this method on my friend's '73 454 coupe back in the day. Worked great. One suggestion though - skin and eye protection is a must. Surprisingly, it is a wonder I still have vision today. Ahhh, the things I did went I was young and stupid.

Alan 71

Hi,
I believe in order to do a really good job you need to get so dirty that your wife won't let you come in the house with out hosing yourself off outside.
Good Luck!
Regards,
Alan

mark6669

Well put !
Mark

Jasonb86

Agree with Alan! Aircraft remover in spray or brush on works great for me with a wire wheel on anything that it doesn't eat off.

0Willcox Corvette

Guys.. most of what you'll find on the fiberglass will be grease and not paint. And if you find paint it will usually be bubba rattle can vs something with a bite. In most cases thinner soaked rags will work nicely. Brake cleaner works good as a high pressure spray that won't leave a residue on the glass.

And yes.. this is a very messy job so stay protected 100 percent of the time. The cheap wire wheels work great but wait till you catch one in the arm... and yes if you are workign with them in a die grinder you'll have one stick you like a needle if you are not careful.

IMHO,

Willcox

David Ey

Why dont I see any half-shaft catchers. You might consider them before you ruin something expensive.

'76stingraycolorado

Wow! Some of these photos are just amazing. What a huge difference. Simply epitomizes hard work and "elbow grease."

How do you remove this much dirt and grease and not destroy your garage floor? I assume you must be placing a plastic cover/catch on the floor?

Also, are there companies out there that specialize in cleaning undercarriages? I might be better off outsourcing this if at all possible. I did a search here in Denver, but found no one offering these services.

I've noticed that just using something as simple as PB Blaster on a regular basis creates a lot of fumes that seem to find their way from the garage into the house. My concern is using all these other chemicals, cleaners, lacquers, etc., would make both my house and garage smell like an industrial site. Not to mention, I think my HOA and neighbors might frown upon me washing all this crud down my driveway and into the street/gutter.

Thanks!

mds3013

I put down large sheets of corrugated cardboard to protect the floor and cushion my back. It also soaks up small amounts of liquid. Odors can be ventilated with a small high velocity fan. I also used a painters mask alot to protect me from the vapors. Low odor mineral spirits are pretty mild and will do everything except the final cleaning of the bare fiberglass. Make sure there no sources of ignition around the car including drop lights with hot incandescent bulbs that might fall and break. All debris can be placed in trash bag without having any flowing down the driveway. mike...

army

mds3013.. re: the pic of the fiberglass in the area of the footwells. Do you have a before pic of that? It looks super good now and I'm wondering how bad it was to start with. Mine is covered with undercoating, circa the late 70's. I don't see how I would ever get it to look as clean as yours.

army

Actually cancel that pic request. I just realized your 3rd pic is what I was wanting to see.