Roger Zimmermann

Some one asked already about this detail. Effectively, I neglected to do them many years ago. The hose clamps are on the improvement list! Thanks also to John and Nelson!

Indeed, I wanted to install the door’s wiring. It went not so well, therefore I had to take it out again. I “managed” to break 2 wires; putting in question if, with the door installed, I can install the wiring where it belongs. Before I went up, I had the idea to remove the LH fender; it would help greatly with the wiring matter. Surprisingly, it took about 10 minutes to remove the fender, very easy, compared to the recent model I did, the Mark II. First the rocker panel molding must be removed; I remembered that both small moldings at the front fender and rear quarter, above the rocker molding, are just inserted into a slot because I could not attach them with clips. 4 screws later, the rocker panel is gone. Instead to remove the fender with the wheel house, I removed the 5 screws attaching both parts and 5 more and the front fender is gone. It was then easy to take both pins from the hinges out and the door is removed. Now, I can install the wiring through the door, and assemble it. The RH door has too much play at the above hinge; as the fenders are so easy to remove, the RH one will be removed too at a later date. Anyway, if I have to remove the panel in front of the hood to improve the headlamp system, the fenders have to be removed because there is one screw on each side of the panel with is attached at the radiator cradle. The vacuum motor to activate the headlamp door is of course a fake one. It’s here just for the show and out of view when the fender is installed.

Thanks for the comments, Mike, dale and keiser31. Humoristic comments never hurt! An answer to Dale: the mileage? maximum 1 mile! But you know, it's the age. When a car is not used, all kind of trouble are coming!

Removing parts is most of the time more interesting than the restoration work because it goes so quickly! This is true with real cars and it does apply with this model too: as I know that the retractable headlamp system is not too reliable, the sole way to get at it is to remove grille and front bumper. I’m not sure if I will have to remove the front panel too, the future will tell it. Now I have more and more parts removed; it could be the right time to begin some assembly!

Me too!

@ SiliconS: Oh yes! After 2 years of rust dust, paint dust has definitively a better taste! @Martin: Imagine that I saw a '55 4-door in restoration and this poor '55 was worse than the convertible!

Before I’m continuing with the wiring, I wanted to modify the seat adjusters. It could be that my seat was too narrow as the centerline of the adjusters does not line up with the seat base; the pedestals for the tracks were offset on the old system. I wanted to do similar adjusters to the ones from the Mark II, but due to this distance situation, I had to imagine something narrower. I’m more or less satisfied with the end result; it’s most of the time not easy to adapt something to an existing construction. I did a test with the motor and 1.5V; the seat is moving more or less with regularity. I hope that with 3V it will be better.

It seems that the balls are loose and not in a cage. Not an easy job and very similar to a bicycle! I saw on the previous page your question about separating silver soldered parts. It can be very tricky: I did an error on the front bumper from a previous scale model. To correct the errors, I wanted to remove elements which were silver soldered. I just managed to distord the bumper; finally, I did another one. The temperature to assemble two parts is lower (probably the flux is responsible) than to separate them. Without knowing what kind of soldering was used in the first place, you may end in a disaster.

Thanks! It was the sole way to rescue it: disconstruct (kind of a new word) and reconstruct!

Yes, there were a lot! I had two possibilities: a specific cutter driven with a compressed air machine or another cutter to be used with a drilling machine. Both were good for a number of spot welds, but the wear came quickly rendering the job more difficult. The car is still the type "body on frame". This kind of construction was very convenient for body changes as Americans were accustomed in the post-WW2 area. European cars were also built that way, however, the integrated frame was adopted much sooner in Europe mostly for weight reason. Indeed, your question will be answered later in pictures. Thanks for you comments and interest to my thread!

The used rear floor was welded in early September. As it came from a 4 door model, the sides had to be cut and specific parts made from scratch. The "B" pillars are made with thick steel; they could be sandblasted and primed. They are drying here with some other parts. It's good to have some space for such a job!

With the help of my friend, the trunk floor was welded in place at the end of July 1993. The next step was the rear floor. To have a good access to it, the "B" pillars were removed. Consequently, the RH rear fender had to be removed too. End of August: the rear floor is gone. The rear of the body is totally independent from the front one. Well, not exactly: it was attached to the frame with the usual body screws; I welded also some supports between the trunk floor and the frame. The remaining side panels are better looking, but far from ready. The last picture is showing both rear floor behind the body. Which one is the "good" one?

Take the trim panel away to have a good look! 11% average? Man you must be thirsty all the time, day and night! Usually a dry climate is 30 to 40 % humidity; maybe I'm wrong.

With the exception of a Citroën 2 Chevaux I sprayed during my stay at a body shop mid sixties (with mixed results), I never painted such a large part like your door. I only painted smaller parts or the ones which are not so important like the firewall or the inner side of the trunk lid. As you pointed, it's difficult without the appropriate light to see what you are spraying.

Only practice help to notice that the quantity of paint is the right one just before the run(s). And even with practice, I managed to do runs when the light is not optimal.

On May 11, at 8 PM, the rusted trunk floor was removed! As you can see, I let the RH rear fender and trunk lid in place to help for the alignment. The trunk floor in the background from the first picture is the "good" one. During summertime, I cleaned the used trunk floor; I was satisfied with the results. Some may ask: why was it not sandblasted? Well, it was mainly a transportation problem. To transport such a large part, you need either a pick-up or a truck. At that time, I had just cars at my disposal. Furthermore, I'm very cautious with sandblast and sheet metal parts; I had bad experiences.

It’s now time for a small update. I’m “working” much slowly because I have no pressure! When all the “furniture” was out, I tried to let run the electrical engine which should move the model. It is intended to run with 6 V but with my battery pack, I had nothing. The accelerator is connected to a variable resistance; I could see the wire moving with the pedal but I was unsure how the other side of the resistance to close the circuit. I removed another trim panel at the dash; the view to the resistance was marginally better, not more. There is a black heavy wire attached to the dash’s brass structure; it should be the wire I’m searching…By applying current to the black wire and the slider which is moved by the accelerator, the engine ran. To make it short, I had two days to understand what was wrong! I remember that I used a small transformer for electric trains, which I still have. I connected it to the motor and I had an idle and full power! With that problem solved, I could have a look at the seat switch. I tried to rescue it, but I was not happy with the whole design. I did another one which may be better; the whole is now ready and assembled into the trim panel. I must wrap the wires with some tape and reinstall.

Welcome to the world of paint!

And what about seats, trim and, for example, the steering wheel? Well, with a convertible top not exactly perfect, the leather was hard like cardboard. At least, the hardware was there and could be rescued. I don’t remember if the seat would move electrically; I remember that I had to replace at least one spinning nut. The steering wheel was cracked and bits missing. Anyway, the shape of the inside was not immediately the main problem, the rust was.

No, it will not. The correct flex plate is shown on the second picture from Pfeil. On his first picture, he is showing the transmission you have. The flex plate from your Olds is attached to the crankshaft and with 4 nuts at the flywheel. If you don't have a shop manual, I would suggest you are looking for one. Olds manuals are well done with a lot of drawings or pictures.

Put a picture from your steering wheel. The people who knows those '59 cars will tell you if it's complete or not.

Once the fender was removed, I had a good view over the "B" pillar and the wheelhouse. Unfortunately, there was deep corrosion. With the exception of the lower part which was eaten, the remains of the rear fender were not too bad. For the cleaning, I had the chance to work outside, that way there is less mess inside. But, boy, those fenders are long when you have to go through normal doors! Some years later, I could not have used this solution: the space I used to clean and paint the parts are now paved and used by the neighbors. After cleaning, the inside of the rear fender is not bad looking. As the trunk's floor and the one under the rear seat were so desolate, I was looking for better parts. One of my best suppliers, Ted Holcombe, sent some sheet metal parts from California. These parts were from a '56 Sedan de Ville; they were not new, but in a very good condition, with some exception. Transportation and customs were unfortunately not free of charge that day; I spent about $1500.00. I’m wondering how it would costs in 2019? In between, I found also a correct transmission, condition unknown. It's visible on the last picture.

What should I say with my born date of 1945! However, sometimes still acting like a teenager (but somewhat slower)!

Are you sure that the tinny rust holes at the LH door will not reappear soon?

I suppose the MG will have a solid color, not a metallic one. you can paint one element after the other which is not possible with a metallic paint. In the Cadillac forum, somebody painted a '56 Eldorado Biarritz one panel after the other with great results.