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Body off resto ideas?


Bob Zetnick

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I was going to leave the body on my '29 Dodge on the chassis for repaint, but discovered a lot of rust in the rear seat pan area due to a roof leak. I think that I need to take the body off to get at the rust between chassis and body. I am a novice at all this and don't have the experience or equipment to do bodywork (lift, rotisserie, welder, bead blasting tools) I have ground off the bolts that held the body to chassis back there to get gas tank cover off and it just seems the seat pan edge (about 3" inward) is rusted through. My questions are:

1) If I got everything off the body and had it unbolted, rolled the chassis out, put some 2 x bracing at the bottom, put some 2 x 8 or 4 x 4 lengths of blocking through the window openings of the car and then get some strong guys to lift the whole thing on a trailer does that seem doable w/o damaging the body any further?

2) If I were to have the body stripped of paint is bead blasting the gentlest most time effective method? I was going to strip the body by hand, but if I take the body off it seems worthwhile to blast.

3) Any other thoughts are welcome. I have seen so many cars that have been restored this way, but when you've never tried it yourself it seems overwhelming.

Thanks in advance

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Hi Bob;

I'm in the process of restoring my 1928 Durant. I decided on a body off because of wanting to get it back as close to factory as possible. I live in a community with home owner restrictions and only have a two car garage. I've completely dismantled my car and have restored the wheels, front axle and frame so far as well as many small pieces. I did invest in a good air compressor and a blast cabinet which has really saved me a bunch of money in blasting small parts, but for the larger parts I found a restoration place that will bead blast my larger items. For a small fee he also will prime and paint the item, which I've let him do with total satisfaction. He just did my frame, cleaned it up, blasted it, primed it and painted it for $450.00 with my supplying the paint. I used Eastwoods Extreme Chassis Black which comes in quart cans as well as spray cans. I like this product, it looks good and is fairly durable. With the spray cans, I can clean and paint the smaller parts on my own and save money. If you decide to do a frame off, realize that it is quite a task and a long time project. First take lots and lots of pictures of everything so you can put it back together. Bag and tag each part so 6 months or a year from now you can retrieve them and put them back on. Find a local restoration shop or a good body shop that you can make friends with to help you handle the bigger parts. The one great thing about restoring a car yourself is that YOU WILL know your car from top to bottom and have the satisfaction that you brought this old gal back to her former beauty. It's not a quick job and it is a task, but if you take it in steps, and work on it at least a couple of times a week, soon she will start taking shape. Also you can save some money. I built my engine stand and body cart from 2 x 4 and corner braces from Home Depot. The dolly wheels from Harbor Freight. You will have to invest in some tools you might not have but you can space the expense out over time. Another thing with my body stripped of windows, seats, dash, doors etc, myself and three friends lifted the body by hand off the frame and onto the cart. Good luck.

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Thanks for all the info. and motivation durant28! My situation is a lot like yours as far as space is concerned. I worked on engine, chassis, wheels first thinking I would keep the body on...I even have the roof insert built and screwed into place. I did get an air compressor, some good tools and a cabinet to hold them ...I don't have a blast cabinet, but use a wire wheel to get off paint / rust, clean the parts, then rattlecan primer / paint on the small stuff. As I said in a DB post I don't take enough photos, I draw a diagram of the assemblies as they go together in a sketchbook and note small parts and put them in ziplock bags. Love the idea of a wood engine or body stand w/ corner braces....I can do that as I'm not a welder and don't have equipment. Again, thanks and good luck w/ your Durant as well!

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