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Post by easyejl on Dec 8, 2016 7:26:57 GMT -5
How much paint roughly does it take per coat for an original Bradley GT ? I was thinking about a quart per full coat. Planning out my paint job now, was looking at some of the chameleon colors. At least they are cheaper now. life is simpler (and cheaper) if I can get away with a half gallon each of black, intermediate clear with chameleon metalflake/pearl and 2 quarts of final clear. Originally I had thought about doing it in black, then just do flames in the color change. But that was based on paint cost of the color change stuff last time I looked, which was around 8 years ago. Now its $20-25/quart for powder to add to clear, which is chump change. Last time I was looking it was around $150-175 / quart for it. Something like this possibly with this mixed in as well
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Post by easyejl on Dec 7, 2016 18:46:46 GMT -5
GOTTA GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE:Quote & Pix From Brian Boggs, Senior Member & inventor of "The Bradley Lift" - - - Here is how I lifted mine by myself. Four posts made up of two 2x4's with a spacer between them. Drilled holes every five inches for a carriage bolt. Positioned them by the wheel wells and slid another 2x4 through from one post to the other. Lifted at each corner one hole at a time. Then when its up you can slide the pan out to work on it then put it back when you are done. yepper, that's where I got the idea from. What I hadn't realized a the time is that given where the 2x4s end up underneath that I can actually lower it a bit, and paint the car while its on there. That should be pretty helpful. I might put it on the floorpan without bolts to roll it outside to do sanding and maybe even some filler primer painting, but having it at a moderate height on the gantry would be excellent for painting.
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Post by easyejl on Dec 4, 2016 11:32:57 GMT -5
Many places make very nice custom aluminum tanks for not a lot of money. I had one custom fabricated for my Avenger from a boat place in Florida. considering i'm in florida that might work out actually looking at it, it was my wife who thought there was a hole. I can' t see one. I'll pull it, which is easy enough up in the air, clean it up and see if there is a hole and decide what to do from there $700 for full new brakes including rotors + drums, all the rubber steering and suspension related components, shocks, etc. Not too bad. then it's $240 on one of the rebel wiring harnesses and it will start going back together. Next week is some floorpan cleanup and the POR15 treatment, then start on the suspension stuff.
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Post by easyejl on Dec 3, 2016 16:17:30 GMT -5
Well.... She's up in the air finally One thing I realize now though is amount other things I need a new fuel tank. I saw some threads that were a little older, just wondering if anyone had some more recent suggestions
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Post by easyejl on Jan 1, 2016 17:54:08 GMT -5
That makes sense. I was thinking somehow the composite 2x4s vs the 3/4 thick material, which was what lost me with the word "laminating". I get what you mean about the end part angles, that way the seam there isn't a extra easy to break point.
So 3 layers should be around 2.25", is that still so much that i'll need to monkey with the steering wheel and/or pedals at all? Don't really mind the idea. Actually what i'd like to do is taper the lift, from about 3" at the back to maybe 2, even 1.5 at the front, but it seems like a lot of effort to get right
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Post by easyejl on Jan 1, 2016 12:12:43 GMT -5
I wasn't the best of picture taking back when I built this car. Here are a few more shots: The material is composite decking material. You laminate it with construction adhesive and I used some small finishing nails. You then template the front napoleon hat area and cut it out. The stuff is formed with normal woodworking tools. It won't rot. It won't compress. It won't hold water. I then covered the entire chassis with Herculiner bedliner. The rear hatch came with the car. No idea if it was custom (I think so) or not. Its a love it or hate it addition. The owner loved it so that's all that mattered. when you say laminate it, do you mean that you used more than one layer of the composite? or that you attached it to the frame that way? Can't really tell from the pictures
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Post by easyejl on Dec 31, 2015 17:34:33 GMT -5
Looks like that doesnt work anymore, I'll re do it sometime. I also have it posted on facebook Where Facebook? Pm me if you want
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Post by easyejl on Dec 31, 2015 14:25:31 GMT -5
I'll probably be pulling the body in the next 2 weeks, so I'm thinking on what i'll be needing to do once I do that. Part of what I need is to figure out what i'm doing more for tires (I like the wheels) and whether I should do a body lift. The wheels it came with have 245/50 r14 tires on them, as a guess i'd think the wheel width itself is either 7.5 or 8". That size tire is no longer buyable at a realistic price ($270 each!!) and looking at it, that size is smaller in diameter in the end than original tires. Good for acceleration sure, but then i'll also need to monkey with speedometer gearing. I don't believe the car was ever actually driven with those on. It looks like someone took a sawzall to the front fenders so it would clear the tires. sigh. At a much more reasonable price (around 150), I can get either 245/60 r14 which is just a hair off original diameter, or 225/50 r14. I figure i'll rebuild front fender flares, so to stick with the 245 at a 60 profile I probably need a lift kit. If I go with the 225 and 50, it should clear ok without the lift kit. The main reason i'm thinking about this now is that even though i'm not going to buy the tires till its really ready to ride, I need to make the choice of whether I do a lift kit or not during the floor pan/suspension restoration. so beyond POR15, brakes + electrical, I need to know what i'm doing for that. Engine comes after, interior + paint comes last What do you all think?
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Post by easyejl on Dec 28, 2015 12:44:09 GMT -5
I wish I had the $ to buy some of that, I miss actual film photography
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Post by easyejl on Dec 28, 2015 11:51:01 GMT -5
I bolted the verticals directly through the ceiling rafters and nothing at the bottom. I gave enough space between them to be able to move about along side. if you set it up with the vertical lengths resting on the ground there's no need for the 2'x2' at the bottom they might get in the way and you'll be tripping over them. the weight of the body will definitely hold the verticals stabile. did you use 2x6's as he did or 2x4s? It seems like 2 2x4s at each wheelwell would be more than strong enough for the little weight of the body
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Post by easyejl on Dec 27, 2015 17:17:19 GMT -5
i'm going to put 2'x2' squares of plywood as feet at the bottom of each, plus have both length and width wise 2x4s at the top to make it more like a cage
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Post by easyejl on Dec 24, 2015 9:21:12 GMT -5
I have a few spare doors for mine, i'm pondering using one of them to cast a fiberglass frame. I'm in Florida, so having the car stay warm enough isn't a problem, having some sort of window I can open for airflow is
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Post by easyejl on Dec 24, 2015 9:19:57 GMT -5
it is a brilliantly simple idea. Did you use anything at the bottom of the verticals for stability?
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Post by easyejl on Dec 23, 2015 18:08:27 GMT -5
The body can be lifted by two or three men. Its not that heavy. It can be set on a good strong pair of sawhorses or build yourself a small wheeled cart. I would also suggest you consider wiring it when its off the pan. Its so much easier! I was thinking of setting up a pulley system hanging from the garage ceiling to suspend it, figuring that would be easier for me as I don't really have enough space for the floorpan, body, spare parts, etc and still have space to work on it. I wasn't sure if it was best to use some sort of support bar under the front end for instance so it's evenly distributed weight wise. Not really sure how strong the body is when weight is applied to limited contact points like that. DEFINITELY doing the wiring + suspension work with the body off is way easier. I'm actually happy the body isn't connected for that reason
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Post by easyejl on Dec 23, 2015 17:36:43 GMT -5
Maybe the first question is "What was I thinking"... But more seriously, there's light pan rust, not rot or holes, is the POR15 pre-treatment and paint probably my best bet? Where the heck does the battery go in these? I can't remember, last time I had one was 1988. I know where it goes in a bug, is it in the same vague spot? With knowing the wiring harness on the pan is iffy, should I just get a standard VW harness and customize as necessary? What is the weight/strength distribution like on the body? Right now its not even bolted down, steering isn't connected, interior isn't in etc, so for the purpose of rust treating it and doing suspension work I want to build some sort of pulley setup in my garage to lift it. I'm just not so sure with the windshield in where my center point of weight is, or exactly where strength wise is best to connect ropes, hooks, etc to so that it doesn't crack in half as I lift it. That's about it out of initial questions, I have to get over the humps of working brakes and running engine before I worry about niceties. Luckily I have no real questions/concerns about the VW parts, its just the Bradley specific that I can't recall from the last one. That one I had bought basically complete, it just had some engine issues that I worked out, and resold the car about 6 months later as I was moving and not going to have a garage.
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Post by easyejl on Dec 3, 2015 17:01:26 GMT -5
I'm going to shortly be picking up a GT and the body isn't attached to the frame currently (but is resting on it). Is it normal to use a gasket between the vw chassis and the fiberglass? if so what thickness is common for that?
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