James

Hers is a quick update with the second to last phase of my restoration on my 1969 convertible (last step is paint job). I have the drivers side quarter panel removed and pretty much prepped for the new quarter panel to go on. As you can tell from the pics I need to repair the far rear drivers side corner of the upper deck and get my new bonding strips in place before I go any farther. At some point in time the car took a bump in this corner and was repaired "OK" but not the best. Whoever repaired it used the incorrect mesh style fiberglass cloth instead of stranded fiberglass matt material. Tonight I plan to begin to repair this corner with the correct materials. I do believe that once I get the new drivers quarter panel and tail light panel aligned up good with the upper deck, door opening, and passengers side quarter panel (passengers side factory quarter panel is still in place) I will bond on the drivers quarter panel, then remove the passengers side quarter panel, get it aligned like I did the drivers side, bond it on, and then bond in the tail light panel last. For the most part things have gone pretty smooth so far. I will try to post more pics as I continue on with the entire process.







[Modified by James, 3:49 PM 12/11/2002]

Alwyn678

Wow that looks like a LOT of work......Looking good though

69stingray

Looks like a lot of work, I agree. I am glad you are doing though. I am sure it is going to come out great, keep us posted with pics. I would not mine seeing pics of the actual fibergalssing of the panels in place. Maybe a few pics of ths sanding process and what it took to get to paint.

DMONSVETTE

Looking good, thanks for sharing the pics. :cheers: :smash: :seeya

paintdaddy

Looks good!! :yesnod: :seeya

'79ProwlerOrange

damn! and i thought my bodywork was a PITA!! :cheers: good job!

burners

Wow, I'm impressed. You have my respect for doing that kind of work. I'm looking forward to seeing the finished product.

NHvette

Nice going so far.
I have a lot of glass bonding ahead of me, so any tips or pitfalls
that you discover along the way would be very helpful.

How are you holding the panel in place during bonding cure ?

:seeya

James

Dave depending how things end up fitting I will either use panel tape (Duct Tape) or I may have to use a few small screws to hold the panels in place while they bond. (removing the entire screw when done if used) I hate having to use screws because then I have more spots to fix. The reference book that I have been using talks about both. I was able to get that corner ground out last light and was able to lay on one layer of matt and resin on it. I was kind of skidish before I started working with fiberglass but last year I bonded in a new front lower valance and that went pretty good which gave me the confidence to attack the quarters and the tail light panel. Thanks for all of the replies everyone.

Ki m Le

James,
Good job! Yours brings back my memory 3 years ago with my 68 Vert. See the link:
http://www.corvetteforum.net/c3/kim_mle/ :yesnod:

silver69

good work on the quarter panel installation. I want to try that in the future on my 69 conv, just gotta work up the nerve!!!
Thank you for keeping us posted with your photos.
Steve

Robd

I used screws; in some areas you will need to pull the panels in closer to line it up with the old panels. In most cases tape wouldn’t do it for me and I had to use screws. And yes, it's more patch up, but at least you know the panel is securely and properly positioned before the bond sets up. Good Luck :rolleyes:

Chuck Gongloff

The only problem with using screws is that you'll end up with a pock mark wherever a screw was placed. These will always "come to the surface" after you've painted the car and haunt you. :)

You could use several of the large "tong" style vice grips to hold the panel. You could also use a screw with a washer on it. Put the screw into the bonding strip...not the fender, and let the washer pull the panel in. Hope this helps. Chuck

paintdaddy

:iagree: :iagree: It will look like a car with bad acne. :yesnod:

A C

Is that what happened to the area around my radiator support? :confused:

Kidding, I realize that is factory acne.

AC

Chuck Gongloff

AC. If you're talking about the area in the front of the car...above the radiator support...behind the headlights....on the so called "surround panel", you have a common problem. In that area, the header bar for the headlight support is riveted by the factory to the surround. The rivets are aluminum. There are ??? rivets there. Over the years, water/moisture leaks usually from the bottom and the aluminum rivets begin to oxidize (aluminum doesn't rust :) ) . The oxidation process causes the paint to raise. You'll usually see a bunch of raised dots which correspond to the factory rivet heads. Chuck

James

Thanks for the tip Chuck. I have seen some articles where guys use screws with washers in the bonding strip area and not the actual panel. The area that I'm the most concerned about getting to bond down nice is the area right behind the door where you bond the quarter to the pillar lock panel. This area has to sit pefectly so the panel is level with the door skin. I may have to see about using some kind of long clamps like you mentioned. Thanks for the tips.