Ridin' Dirty

The Ford is getting glass installed today. Clint ridin dirty.


Update:



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Happy in paint!


The next shop stunner. Doesn't look like much yet but just wait.

Ben Rega's shoebox. Very inspirational and oddly could be the fraternal twin of mine.

My car is famous...In France

My car isn't even done yet and already has magazine coverage. It pays to be in the right place at the right time. James was featured by a French magazine and my car happened to be there at the time. The car looks 100 times better now than it does when these pics were taken but oh well. It's still pretty cool.

Tired...

Went to the shop last night and sanded the table again and put yet another coat of gloss on. This has turned into a much longer project than I anticipated. When I put the vinyl down for the stencil it turns out that previous coats of gloss hadn't fully cured due to the cold temperatures and when I removed the vinyl it pulled up the clear...Curse! Normally I would take it all the way back down to bare wood and start over but it's just a table after all. I should be spending time building the actual motorcycle not the work table. So on we go and it is what it is at this point. It's not perfect but it will do the job.

I also spent about an hour and half straightening the radiator fins on the shoebox. This is one of the most tedious tasks ever. Staring closely at rows and rows and tiny fins for extended periods of time leads to tunnel vision and eventually hallucinations. I didn't take any pictures but both sides are now free of smashed and rock dented fins. I just have to clean and paint it and back in the car it goes. Detail detail detail.

Ford Update

Zippeay sent me the final update on the Ford seat...It's done!!!

Shop Time

I realized tonight while working at the shop what I enjoy so much about it. I work all day for an internet based company where everything I do is completely digital and intangible. Turn off the computer and I have nothing to show for my hours of work. There is no start and no end. At the end of the day it's rewarding to build something real using just your hands and a few tools. There's a beginning and an end and when you're finished you actually have something to show for it. Yin and Yang I suppose, balance is good.

I worked on finishing up the last of the door panels for the '56 and this time I took some pictures. This is my first time ever making a set of door panels from scratch. I only had to start over a few times but I finally got it sorted out. For the rear panels I had to make a pattern using butcher paper to give me a starting point to transfer it to the hardboard. For the front panels I did have the original door panel which was from the original 4 door car so the panels were about 7" too short but gave me a good starting point. Once they are mounted I can mark the top and door edges and give a final cut to finish them off.








Then I spent the next couple hours sanding my car. Still trying to get it all cleaned up so I can start repairing all the small dents & dings before we start the long journey to prep and paint.

Ford Seat Update #4

Zippeay has been hard at work on the seats and the front just needs final adjustments. I'm pretty excited.

'50 On The Move

The Ford on its glorious adventure to Happy Valley.

Ford Seat

Zippeay sent me another photo update tonight. He's got the bottom seat cover completed now. It just needs to be stretched and hog ringed into place.

Ford...Seat Update

Zippeay sent me a photo update on the progress he's making with the seat. I'm pretty excited and can't wait to see it finished.

Niccoli Designs New Home

Last night we started the build out of the new home of Niccoli Design. GJ scored a great shop space just off Center St. in Provo. It's still in the early stages and needs some attention but when it's finished I'm confident it will be a fantastic shop. I was tasked with painting while GJ and crew started constructing the work benches for the different shop sections. Once the space is finished I will be moving the Ford down there for the next few months while I complete the body work and paint.

Ford

Worked on the Ford a little bit last night. I used my new propane torch and a scraper to remove all the old body filler. I did find a couple of little surprised that I'll have to fix but not too bad.

Ford

I got the passenger side door done this week after having to rebuild both door hinges . Tyler got the door adjusted properly and we got the door top fitted which I finished welding up this week. James got the floor braced up and was able to move the brake booster up another 2 inches for much needed ground clearance. It's getting down to the details now before it goes off for final body work.

Ford Update - Tuck 'n Roll Baby!

Zippeay just sent me a photo of the progress he's making with the seats for the ford. Just seeing this much makes me very excited. I can't wait to see them finished. All white naugahyde with 1.5" pleated inserts for that traditional tuck 'n roll interior.

Ford Update - More Lead

Tyler and I finished up the remaining lead work that needed to be finished. This time around I took a few more pictures of the process.

Here you can see how it started out with the new ring welded in place and ground down. Notice how the profile of the fender and new ring are not continuous. The lead will provide a smooth transition between the two.

Here are the tools used.
Flux - used to prep the surface and give something for the lead to stick to.

Paddles - Used to shape the lead and move it around. The paddles are dipped in wax to keep the lead from sticking to the wood.

Lead - This is the actual lead which is technically an 80/20 mix of lead and tin.

First step is to heat up the surface and with the flux brushed on.

Next is "tinning" the surface with a small amount of lead. Since the surace is warm the lead will melt on contact and once a small amount is acquired you rub the lead into the surface with a rag to embed the lead.

Once the surface is properly tinned it's just a matter of melting the lead and spreading it with the paddles to the desired shape. This is much akin to frosting a cake.


Then you use a body file to smooth out surface and remove any areas of high build.


When the process is complete you have a smooth uniform surface.

Lead Sled Official

It's now official...I own a true lead sled. By that I mean that my car has actual lead in it just like they did back in the day. We did this to bridge the gap that was created when we welded the new headlights rings to the fenders and extended the facia out about 1.5". While it's not 100% done yet it already looks much better.

It's a pretty cool process of tinning the metal which preps the base for the lead to stick, then heating the metal and the 1/4lb lead stick with a torch until the lead becomes molten, at that point you use wooden paddles of different shapes to spread the lead around and shape it until it cools. Once all the lead is in place you use a long file to remove the excess and smooth it all out.

Ford Update

It's been about 12 weeks worth of weekends and a few weeknights of work so far. I'm looking forward to being able to take a break once the chop is done. Finally got the wheels and tires on the car 2 weeks ago and rolled it outside to get a good look at the progress.






The back window is about 97% done, just a small section on the passenger side to finish but I got it welded up finally.





We got the drivers door top finished yesterday, cut all the body bracing out and got the rear package tray tacked back in place. It's starting to look like a complete car again.