1958 Limited Four Door Riviera

Discussion in 'Projects' started by Smartin, Jul 13, 2008.

  1. wildcat4

    wildcat4 Well-Known Member

    Hey Adam,
    you wouldn't happen to know of anyone that can rebuild a dash pad for one of these 58's would you?

    My Dad's is falling apart and I don't know where to turn.

    Rob
     
  2. Bad Boattail

    Bad Boattail Guest

    Did you already contact the good people at Just Dashes :Comp: ?
     
  3. wildcat4

    wildcat4 Well-Known Member

    thanks I believe I will give um a call.
     
  4. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    That's about as good as it gets with dash pad restoration....get ready to write the check, though.
     
  5. garry baker

    garry baker Active Member

    great patience,teriffic job adam. makes me feel lucky with my 62 electra:beer:beer:beer Garry. View attachment 229187
     
  6. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    Thanks, Garry! Nice 62!!


    Rear drivers side door ...this is the only door that I couldn't salvage off the parts car last Winter, so I drug it up the stairs today and gutted it. Found a bunch of rust. Started to repair today, ran out of time tonight. Time for some beers with the neighbors.

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  7. garry baker

    garry baker Active Member

    nice job on that door Adam,looks as though your a natural. just curious to know what you use to seal the inside or underside of your repair work especialy the hard to get at places.:beer:beer:beer Garry
     
  8. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    I go as far as I can with Eastwood Rust Encapsulator, which I brush in...and sometimes pour in, depending on what I am trying to cover. When the car is in use, I will use ATF (automatic transmission fluid) inside the doors and other small crevices to keep the water away. It can get messy, but it just wipes off and I'd rather deal with that, than rust popping out through the other side of the panel.
     
  9. garry baker

    garry baker Active Member

    thanks Adam i'll see if i can get hold of some or it's equivalent,my rh front door could end up like the one you are repairing if i let it go too long. i noticed a bubble same place as your's,bottom right corner between door skin & frame. hard to get into, i srayed it with rust converter inside, i'll try your medicine fingers crossed it will slow it down till i can afford to get it done properly. thanks champ keep up the good work Garry.ps cant find any beers,sorry.
     
  10. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    Filling holes...rear left door is done with rust repair. I only needed 6 pieces to make this one solid again. The lower jamb was pretty bad on this door. Then there was the front corner...

    Not a perfect repair, but only a small amount of filler needed to smooth the joint.

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    I pulled out the other rear door this evening, and it is worse than this one. I then pulled out the one from the black parts car, and it is much more solid....still one spot in the front lower jamb that has to be patched, but better than open heart surgery like this door. I will have to drill new holes for the Limited trim and weld the Super trim holes shut on this door.
     
  11. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    I finished gutting all 7 doors from both cars today. The doors from the Super didn't have really any rot in them with the exception of one door in the lower jamb. No skin rot. I am going to try to get them glass beaded this week sometime. I just don't have the energy or interest in stripping them myself, especially the jambs. Ugh.

    Here are the dead doors that came off the Limited. Off to the scrap pile they go!

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    Here are the good/patched doors ready to go to the blaster.

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    I started cutting on the trunk lid this evening, but didn't get very far before I had to wind down for the night...I really dislike Sunday nights.

    The entire inner lip is completely gone, but the outer skin is reasonably nice. I cut off the lower section of a 57 Roadmaster lid 2 years ago to graft it onto the Limited trunk. This should be an interesting repair.

    I've already cut off an inch of the Limited trunk, so there is no turning back now!

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  12. EEE

    EEE Straight out of lo-cash!

    Wow...
     
  13. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    I gave up on the old trunk lid...too much rot. The doors are still at the blaster.

    So since I bailed on the old trunk lid...the 58 Buick Ranch came through for me with another one. He dropped it off to me on Tuesday on his way through town. Also swapped him some taillight bezels and a trunk bar which were in better shape than mine.

    This trunk lid still has some rot on the inside lip, but it is about a quarter of what was on the other one. I can fix this in a day.

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    After I bailed on the old lid last weekend, I took the beltline moldings from the doors and polished them. I finished installing the new window sweeps last night. They look perfect!

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  14. Ken Mild

    Ken Mild King of 18 Year Resto's

    Adam this is amazing, the only person who's taken more time than you is me. :beers2: It will be worth it in the end. I admire your abilities to do all this stuff. I can't wait to see this finished. You definitely need to do a full beginning to end photo album for us and put it on Photobucket or something, a pic by pic pictorial. It's worthy of that kind of documentation for all you've been through.
     
  15. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    Ken, I wish I had more time to work on it...but of course if I had the time, then there would still be a limit to my progress due to $$$$$$


    Rust is repaired on the trunk lid.

    Tacked

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    Weld complete...


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    Ground flat...


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    I dragged the front fenders out of the basement this morning and dismantled them for stripping. This always gives me a reason to vacuum the floor, since I leave a trail of dirt and rust from the basement through the house to the garage door.

    These are rusted in the usual spots just under the headlights. Shouldn't be too bad to repair. There is one spot on the driver's side fender that needs a small patch along the door line.

    [​IMG]


    I disassembled the headlight assemblies, too. This job really sucks.

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    Does anyone know if this is a factory splice? It is on both sides. They were both wrapped in cloth tape and looked very old. Seems to be a hokey splice if it really is a factory job.

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    Of course, the day wouldn't be complete without sweeping and shoveling up 10 lbs worth of crap.

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  16. austingta

    austingta Well-Known Member

    Are you replacing all the wiring, or trying to use what is still good?
     
  17. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    I'm not replacing it unless I need to.
     
  18. BUICK 57

    BUICK 57 Well-Known Member

    Adam: Yeah man, Been following the progress. Tell us, what size wire/riglet are you using in your mig welder and what gauge sheet metal have you been using ( or found to be the general best ) for all your cut out patch panels large and small?
     
  19. chris_58

    chris_58 Well-Known Member

    Not to take away from Adam's great work and documentation, but if you like seeing those repair stories, check out: http://www.57rustbucket.com . It is about a 57 Chevy and the guy is/was doing a fantasic job on sheet metal work and documenting it all, just like Adam.

    Chris
     
  20. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    I wish I could buy new full quarters and fenders for my car! I think he has a slight advantage in that respect :laugh:
     

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