Paint out come Well I have enjoyed reading all the responses in reference to PAINT. Guess I might as well jump in and WEIGH in... I am new to the discussion group and didn't know where to start. SO HERE IT IS! I am 46 and have been restoring old chevys since I was 16 and just last year started on a 53-3100 for my 16 year old daughter --- she's the boopster--- hince - log in name. We worked 8 months preparing the raw 100% disassymbled truck, it's in the paint shop now, even though I have painted many vehicles I just couldn't bring myself to paint this one because it is for her {metalic candy apple red with a clear coat}, got over a few days ago to see the progress, nearly got sick to my stomach when I saw the HUGE crater in the middle of the door (1/4 inch dimple only noticable at the right angle) and wanted to strip the whole door down and start over --- I didn't, I made myself walk away and realize that perfect is seldom driven. it's a bute, talking about the truck. My daughter is beautiful and a daddy's girl, she has been in on the whole restoration. Well, my recomendation is - do the best possible work you can with your own skill and enjoy it, take pride in a job well done, and learn from your mistakes. By the way, I am a pastor and a Sgt with the Sheriff department where I live, didn't mean to preach a sermon..... Hope my occupation doesn't turn some of you off. I have restored 2 65 mustangs, 5 64 swb chevy's, 69 lwb chevy but the best came when I got to the 53, these things are real trucks, I have 2 more and hope to get a few more for restoration. Hope it's ok to slip in that I have a 63 falcon, got to work on it next for my wife.... looking forward to more conversation... on behalf of my 16 yo boopster... who loves her 53 and her daddy.
Hey Boopster, glad to have a fellow Texan in the group. Not that i have ever sped from Houston to Texarkana, but just for reference, where exactly in East Texas are you? You've got one lucky girl if daddy is building her a truck at 16! By any chance, is her first name Betty? As far as the '63 Falcon, you've got my vote, especially if it's a Chiefton! Hang with us, we are really harmless. Just watch what you say around Zig, or he'll tell Mom!
Boopster, Sounds good to me. It sounds great that you are sharing this with your daughter. I am 50 and my baby girl is a freshman at UT Knoxville this year. She never was one to care about old trucks. She is an art major. I told her that she needed to understand that my whlole life had been plumb and level or black and white until recently when just a little gray has worked its way into my thinking. Being that I don't have an artistic bone in my body that I supported her 100% but that I would have a hard time understanding anything she did. She is really something when it comes to art but she can't begin to balance a checkbook. It is funny how God has a sense of humor when it comes to matching us up with our kids. Welcome
A thousand pardons. I meant to say "Futura" not "Chiefton". My apologies to both Ford owners and Pontiac owners.
speeding through east texas Rusk, Rusk state hospital, Rusk state railroad, mostly know for our kkkkrazy people. I'm the lucky one to have a daughter that wants to do ANYTHING with her daddy <<<<< KRISTEN>>>>>>. The falcon is a 63 4 Door Futura (only 16000 made) in excellent condition, hasn't been robbed of ANY parts. the boopster
Welcome! Another truck out there gettin' SOME LOVIN"! I too am new to this site and have enjoyed the wealth of knowledge that is shared to help fellow truck lovers get the best advice possible! I can wait 'till I figure out EXACTLY which way I want to go- This thing goes against every male gene I have. "I'll do this! -No wait! I'll do THIS!! - No,no,no- I've GOT to go THIS way! Oh crap- I can't do THAT!" What the???? As I've said before, this site will be what gets my rig to where it needs to be. I'm 46, former USAF, 22 years as a carpenter, and just started my 7th year as a 3rd grade teacher. I have patience. I also have a 4 year old daughter. I have patience. I have a 52 GMC 3/4 ton. I have patience. You work for God- You have an unfair advantage! Welcome to the site. My only advice is... watch using the "R" word. I see a power brake booster, and we all know that that is not "R" I personally would like to know what you've done to it driveline wise. Motor? transmission? backend? My daughter has "helped" me a bunch on my truck already, so I'm hoping that by the time she gets around to driving, she'll look as happy as your daughter setting in the cab!
It may just be my imagination, but i don't think that the bucket seat is original. All of mine were galvanized steel. But then again, mine may not have been original either. You are one lucky man. BTW, Rusk is a neat community and i have enjoyed the choo choo ride to Palestine. Best of luck on your project and we want more pics.
Tailgater, it was definitely the Daytona 500...and Yes, Dale was My favorite NASCAR driver...if a driver is in the fast lane driving slow, with #3 comin' on quick, You might better move over, or get moved ! Dale won the Daytona 500 leading the last 60 laps...I will look through some of My pictures and see if that special car is in My collection...web
I know this is an old thread but I missed this one, Web17, I too had a shop, built many, many show/magazine cars, race cars both circuit and drag, restorations that won trophies BUT I now feel that there is more to life than colour sanding and buffing, life really is too short to worry about the finish underneath the truck! BUT if someone is paying you to do it on their car thats different, take their cash and do whatever they want, but I know that I would rather be driving down a leafy country lane in my truck, on the way to the pub to shoot the breeze than in the garage obsessively trying to get perfection with the paint, for me I would be more than happy with the sort of paint job that the truck left the factory with in 1950, and by that you have to remember that for the bodymen in the factory churning these out it was just another truck on just another day, they didnt put their heart and soul into something that is just a few microns thick! the main problem is where do you stop? at the visible body work? door jambs, floor pan, under the seat? or even under the headlining? just what is a superb job? We have a class of competition over here for restored cars etc, called concourse (dont know about the US) and if you ever hang around the judges whilst marking the cars you realise how anal they are. Its unbelievable the lengths these owners and judges are willing to go to! I honestly have seen cars lose points and competitions on the wrong sort of rubber gromet for the no plate light cable! and even the wrong colour paint on the inside of the chrome bumper of an e-type jag, silver instead of grey I was told, next time you see one try and see the paint on the inside of the bumper, bloody near impossible! but it mattered to them. The point I am trying to make is this, if you watch these owners they are not enjoying this at all, they are stressed out, they have heart palpertations every time a kid runs past their car and the same can happen when you paint your car/truck, you can get too obsessed with it and slowly bit by bit the fun goes out of owning it, there is a happy medium, get the paintwork to a decent standard then go and enjoy driving the damn thing, thats what it was built for, not for being parked in a carpeted garage with humidity control and dust sheets! Thats my 2 cents for what its worth ________ MICHIGAN MARIJUANA DISPENSARY
Yeah, the guy doing my truck is taking pains with what can be seen and, I have to admit, the old gal was in worse shape than I thought. He and I had this conversation. He is charging $12,000 for all of the body work and paint. When we talked about the underside he said, "There's $8,000 more under there. Put it in my hand and I will put it under there." That ended that conversation. BTW, I wasn't considering having him do it. We were just talking about how obsessed you can get if you let yourself.
Hear that rattlin' sound???? I just have to shake that can for two more minutes! Itchy trigger finger! Say- no one's said anything about the smoothness that a sabel brush provides! By the way- 1 hour 15 minutes= one running board safely removed with a nut splitter. No skinned nuckels, minimal swear words, and now it's time for glass -o- red wine! By the way, now that we have a member of the law enforcement on this site, I was just kidding about needing to run 70MPH. Of COURSE I wouldn't dream of going over 65!
Good Thread ! Restoration work ~ ew ! I did quite a few Concours cars back in the day but I'll never have one . I don't want to freak out if anyone gets too close hell , I like to give rides to Ghetto kids , old folks and pretty much anyone else who says " nice old truck " . I like to drink a tanker of 7-11 coffee when I'm driving in the wee hours so no high dollar rigs for me , might spill it . I always thought the Falcon Sprints were cool cars , one of my mechanics has a '64 Falcon Ranchero , it is an original V-ate 4 speed car although the original engien & tranny were long gone by the time he got it never wrecked and original paint in the undented bed and interior too.... Typical So. Cal. used car My hat is off to all who have the patience and ability to do top quality dolly & paint work . My buddy bought his old L.A.P.D. shop truck ('67 F-250 long bed W/ 240 CI InLine 6 - banger , C-6 tranny and HD suspension) ~ being an L.A.P.D. shop truck it's all beat to hell and the others in the shop all whistle the Sanford & Son theme whenever he drives it.... I tried to get him to fix it up as he's a body man but he likes it as-is they salvaged it as NO ONE would touch or drive it but him... You pays your money and takes your choice .
