Discussion Forum - Northstar Chevelle Club

Lost in the 60s · President

Another Chris, another Chevelle...

SShink · 3K+ Club

Nice work .Is that the only spot? Not too much if so .

Did you guys remove the windshield yourselves?

Chris S · Active Member

Mitch has a guy who came and removed the windshield and will reinstall when we are done.

Lost in the 60s · President

Stan, I don't think we will need to replace anymore of the cowl metal, but we will be taking the top, dash panel off another 20 or so inches to eradicate the rust that is started under it.

Lost in the 60s · President

I drilled out the spot welds on another 22" of dash today and then Chris cut it off to get at the rust.

We scraped and ground as much of the rust off as we could and then put a coat of epoxy sealer on it. I didn't have a long enough piece of sheet, so Chris made the patch in 2 pieces.

I ground a 3/16ths drill bit flat to scrape the paint off at the plug weld holes.

We took turns stretching across the fenders to weld them on. Looks a little rugged but will clean up decent with the grinder tomorrow. There is the infamous GM expanded foam behind the windshield mounting surface, so we had to go VERY slow and just make small tacks, so we DIDN'T START A FIRE under the dash... Jenny...

Lost in the 60s · President

I ground down the welds and had a few suspicious pits.

I zapped several again and then it cleaned up better. I then cleaned all the surfaces and applied seam sealer, especially the seam that Chevrolet never did and caused the rust between the dash and cowl panels.

Friday, I should have it in paint and the windshield scheduled for install next week.

Chris S · Active Member

I’ve been waiting to hear how my welding turned out. I was hoping I hadn’t made more work for you.

Looks like it turned out very well. Can’t thank you enough for your time Mitch.

Lost in the 60s · President

It had a few pinholes in both our sides, so I went over it again after that pic. Not a big deal, just 10 minutes to be certain it was all welded shut.
I'll call shorty tomorrow and schedule the windshield for Monday or Tuesday.
Oh, the hinges left yesterday and will be in VA Thursday, but Willie had a death in the family and will be out of town until next week. He is still going to get them done and back as quick as possible.

Jon H · 1K+ Club

Chris your work looks great.

Larry Lucast · Active Member

Very nice.

Lost in the 60s · President

I sanded the seam sealer a little smoother and shot the whole thing with 2k epoxy primer. Then went back after an hour with VHT black but it is 100% flat. I took a pic but you couldn't see any detail, it was like looking in a black hole. I knew that wasn't going to match the dash so scrounged in my paint cabinet and came up with radiator satin black. I had to put 3 coats on to get any sheen over the flat. I think it is close to the rest of the dash and will peel some tape tomorrow to compare.

Glass is going in on Monday morning, so I need this ready.

AK · Active Member

Very nice finish. Looks clean.

BLyke · 1K+ Club

Mitch, can you please please explain "I sanded the seam sealer a little smoother"?

Lost in the 60s · President

The sealer comes in a can and I apply it with a small acid brush. It is self leveling, to a point, but is still a bit rough to just paint over. After 24 hours, it is firm enough to sand with 180 paper to remove the brush marks and high spots.

If you use sealer in a tube, which is a different type than in the can, you can go over it with a fine bristle brush and lacquer thinner to smooth it out and get it to lay down very nicely. I usually lay down no more than 12-18" of the tube sealer before going back with the thinner. If you wait more than several minutes, it develops a skin that is more difficult to blend.