12 year olds and cars - Kathryn's Fiero (Page 29/175) kathryn JUL 26, 08:41 PM oh by the way i didn't totally wreak my sander or my piece so this time trial and error worked just fine! (i kept it dry.) -kathryn michhiker28 JUL 26, 08:42 PM Kathryn liked the auto darkening helmet a bit better than the other sort after she saw how it worked. She was pretty surprised when it darkened right up off the camera flash and then returned to normal so quickly. I think she'll like trying it out on an actual project soon. She did get some sanding done tonight....but she needs to have a good go at it and finish up a few of these body panels. I will update some photos of the most recent progress tonight once I can get them uploaded and sorted out. -MH michhiker28 JUL 26, 09:02 PM So some items that we have been working on recently: We have had no success finding a perfect console skeleton. We have found a couple that are better than others, but nothing that is mint. So it appears that the only viable way of fixing this is to try to mend the one(s) that we have. So here is an attempt. We used some epoxy and aluminum to mend the places wear there were cracks etc. We will still need to do some more work to fill in where a few of the screw holes are just absolutely messed up and then redrill those sections. Here is where we are so far. Kathryn also finished her seats and reinstalled the seat tracks beneath them so they are now ready to be reinstalled in the car. We just have a while to go before that happens, soooo for now they will get wrapped up in plastic and stored in the house so that they don't get ruined. Here you can see them with her firewall and the center console between them. She wanted to see what they would look like in the car. You might remember the earlier picture when we had it mocked up before the new Mr Mikes covers were installed on the actual seats. One of the things that we needed to fix was the plastic covers that go over the seat mechanisms. The tabs were broken and a couple of the screw mounts were also busted up. We used epoxy to rebuild those areas, sanded them down and cleaned them up, and then painted them black to match the rest of the interior. Finally, they too went back on the new seats. You may also remember photos of Kathryn carefully cleaning up the ribbed side rub strip trim. The previous owner had rattle canned this and never really prepped the surface so it was peeling off in flakes in some places and stuck tight in others. Kathryn attacked this with a putty knife, screwdrivers, and various grits of sandpaper. I think she hated me for making her get into all the small crevasses, nooks, and crannies, but she did and then it was cleaned up, wiped down, primed and painted. Here are the results. Finally, this post wouldn't be complete without some of the work on her favorite project.....SANDING! Here is what she finished up so far today. --MH hookdonspeed JUL 26, 11:12 PM quote Originally posted by kathryn: -kathryn ooo ooo lets see what joke works here.... "LOOK!!! daft punks long lost 3rd!!" or "LUKE, i am your...." ok thats been played out i know... CowsPatoot JUL 27, 12:05 AM quote Originally posted by kathryn: I had the same concerns when I was buying my first helmet...I didn't see how it could react fast enough. Then a friend let me borrow his to show me how well they work. I think I ended up with that same helmet. Still works great 2 years later....but I admit, I test it each time before I start welding. I like technology, but that doesn't mean I trust it. I have been following this thread since the beginning...project looks great so far. I will reiterate something that was said earlier though...definitely want to see how bad the reflection of that defroster vent is before you mount the dash. I am the one that was driving in Fierfly's example photo. First project we did on her car was to get rid of that yellow on top of the dash (although we returned the entire interior to stock since the rest of the yellow was not done well on hers). kathryn JUL 27, 09:15 AM believe me i trust it more but i might be doing more test runs before i start striking my arch. thank you all for following and i have gotten pretty far on the sanding, yet those side panels that turn red then yellowish they move so it keeps making me nervous. any way so those two projects are going to take some time welding i don't mind...now sanding on the other hand.... you get the picture. so also me and my dad have one problem the downstairs bedroom has to be emptied for when my grandparents come in oct. yikes!!!! that's where we are storing so much of the done pieces....lucky me so three big projects that need to get done before i can move on. let's see how long it takes shall we? thank you all again and now that you mention the yellow problem for the dash again....hmmmm let's see how far the trial part of trial and error will get me this time..... -kathryn hookdonspeed JUL 27, 09:19 AM quote Originally posted by kathryn: thank you all again and now that you mention the yellow problem for the dash again....hmmmm -kathryn get a sheet of thin black fabric that allows air to pass freely and find a way to put it into place or wrap the yellow vents in, and remove it for shows etc.. michhiker28 JUL 27, 09:41 AM That's a good idea Hooked! -MH olejoedad JUL 27, 11:32 AM A word of caution on the sanding - all you need to do is remove the non-adherant paint, etc. off of the surface. You don't need to (or want to) take it all the way to the 'yellow' body panel surface. Down to the flat black should be far enough, as that is the factory primer/paint system under the clear. Whenever the base material is exposed, you run the risk of sanding a flat spot into the panel - and there are very few flat spots on a Fiero - it's all curves. Flat spots are durn near impossible to fill in with sandable primer, and if you get one, it WILL show up, especially on a black car. Be sure to use a semi rigid sanding block to hold your sandpaper to avoid pressure grooves from your fingers, and do all sanding in an 'X' pattern running at 45 degrees to the axis of the car or the panel. For instance sand the hood from the left front to the right rear, and then fron the right front to the left rear. It will keep the sanding uniform and give better results. You're doing a great job - keep up the good work. Joe larini74 JUL 27, 11:41 AM I lent Dan Wilkinson a pristine plastic console skeleton, and he is attempting to make a new skeleton out of metal. When it is ready, he will have up on http://www.fierofiberglass.com