Mike "Hubbie" Stearns
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Posts posted by Mike "Hubbie" Stearns
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I agree with old car fan. Winch it on and off the trailer. You don’t know what condition it’s really in. Looks can are deceiving. Mike
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If we’re me, I would pull the pan and see if there’s an issue there. Mike
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Sweet ride. Hope all goes well. Mike
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I like the color you have chosen. Mike
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IMHO, I like bc/cc. I’ve used both 1K and 2K paints. What I see at the car shows I’ve gone to in the past is that everyone seems to want that smooth as glass look. That’s fine for newer cars and trucks or if thats your goal. To get that old time look, you don’t do the cut part of cut and buff. You just use rubbing compound and Turtle wax on a wool pad. It takes more time and talent to lay down a smooth paint job that doesn’t need to be cut. Back when I started to paint vehicles, there really wasn’t 2K. Lacquer and acrylic enamels were what was available. There wasn’t ceramic coatings, just wax.
It sounds like your painter will do a great job. I would talk to him and let him know what you want the final look to be. Then the two of you can decide what will be best. Mike-
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5 hours ago, chistech said:
Good to hear all went well. Some very good alternative fixes too. Keeping it going down the road while looking for specific items is the way to keep the fun going while keeping the frustration away. It is one of the best things about the restoration forums that some are willing to go above and beyond to help others. You found one of the best guys on the VCCA to help you out. I’m currently helping someone here who just had his starter fail and needs another quickly. It’s all about keeping these cars of ours on the road and if we can help, we will. Happy 4th!
Well said Ted. Mike
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Great news Matt. Once you get the lower hose issue fixed and you fill with antifreeze, you may want the restricters installed. Antifreeze doesn’t absorb and release heat at the same rate as plain water. It’s a little slower. So the restricters may be needed. Enjoy the car show! Mike
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What is the engine number? Mike
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Just go for it. Do it once and you won’t have to worry about it again. It’s only money right? Mike
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Looks like a good starting point. Mike
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Well it’s a bit different. Looks at home. Mike
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Well today was an emotional day. A beautiful day for a drive. I got to lead a funeral procession to the graveyard with my in laws and sister in law nestled between my wife and me. The fire truck great. My wife did the best she could under the circumstances. Afterwards, the truck wouldn’t start, dead battery. So the funeral director gave me a jumpstart and off I went home. A quick check and the alternator wasn’t charging. I used an led bulb for the warning light and I need to get a non led bulb and that will fix that. The drive wasn’t that long, 3-5 miles, but I did push it a little hard on the way home. My sister in law told me that I was running about 40 or so. I still need to get a new speedometer cable. It was a good time all in all. Mike
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I can’t help on the bearings, but the seal are most likely were made of felt. Nice project. Mike
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You have opened up a can of worms. I’ve painted with both and have had good and bad results. I like the hvlp. I run at 20-30 at the gun. It really comes down to your preference. Painting has a learning curve. You’ll need to play some to get dialed in. Mike
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Well as usual, the weather and life got in the way. Thursday I was able to get the gold leaf cleared. Last night I added the pinstripes. Th pinstripes really add that little extra to the gold leaf. Next up is the hood. I just haven’t decided weather to leave in on or remove it. Each has its benefits. Mike
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I then cleaned it up and wiped with a microfiber rag. Start to finish was 2 1/2 hours. Tomorrow I will clear the stripes. Wednesday I’ll add the pinstripes. Mike
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After about 45 minutes waiting, the size was ready.
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Size has a little amber tint, but it has a high gloss. Some gilders add paint to the size so you can see it when applied. Some say it lessens the adhesive quality. I prefer not to.
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I then applied the size and removed the tape
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This evening after work, I started adding the gold leaf stripes to the front fenders. As I described earlier, I laid out the stripes with tape.
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Matt, while reading your post, I was thinking of my personal Chevy truck. It’s a 07 with a duramax. When cold, it holds 60 psi at idle. When hot at 75 with 2000 rpms it has about 25 psi. At idle, it’s closer to 15-20 psi. I run rotella 15w40. Mike
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I did a lot of research on doing gold leaf(gilding). I talked to lots of people that do gilding. Most of them said it’s very expensive so I should use imitation gold. The savings would be about half. After talking to a painter I know, he said if it was his he would use real gold as it will hold up a lot better in the long run. At lunch one day we discussed it in depth. I had one gilder quote me 4-5000 for just the gilding and I would have to find someone else to add the pinstripes. Pin stripers are not cheap. One of the stripers quoted 2-3000 to do all the stripes and lettering and 1000 for the two Maltese Cross. So like many of you, I bought the needed tools and supplies and dove in head first. As it turns out, gilding isn’t that hard to do. ( I didn’t have to do any engine turning. All the gold leafing I uncovered wasn’t engine turned. ) Engine turning is the process of adding the swirling you see in gold leaf. It takes a lot of practice to get them uniform and straight. It is done with felt and a spindle or you can use your thumb. It just take a lot of time and patience. For stripes I used 1” blue painters tape ,1/4” vinyl tape and a block of wood the width of the stripes. Removable vinyl cut on a cricket or silowet for letters, the ovals and Maltese Cross. You just have to remember to weed ( remove the unwanted parts )as a negative. You need to remove all the wax or other surface contamination. Once I had it laid out it’s time for size ( adhesive). It needs to be uniform thickness. Once all the size is on, the tape or vinyl is removed. Then it’s a waiting game. Size is kind of like contact cement, you need to let it tack up for about 30-60 minutes. I use a sign painters lettering brush. Once it’s ready you add the gold leaf. Most of us haven’t ever seen gilding done. Gold leaf is thin. It’s .12 microns thick, so very delicate. The gold I’m using is on a tissue paper backing. I bought it in 5/8” rolls for the strips and loose sheets that are 3 1/8” square. Once the gold is applies I use a very soft makeup brush to remove the excess. If I was doing engine turn, I would do that next. The size then needs to dry for 24 hours before I clear. I used the same clear as I used on the paint just put on with a lettering brush. It has to dry before the pin striping is done. So 3 days to add gold leaf. If I were to do all the gold leaf and pin striping at once, it would take about 4-5 days. If you were to figure material costs and labor, my truck would have cost about $8500. I will have about $1500 in it and I can say I done it by myself.
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8 hours ago, chistech said:
As we say here in New England, it looks freaking awesome!
Thanks. I think so too. Mike
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It’s been a few weeks since my last update. Not too much progress but progress is progress. I did cut and buff a couple of panels. I also got the rear panel gold leaf applied and pinstriped. I even got it back on with the lights hooked up. The hardest thing was getting the Maltese Cross on in the center of the panel. Applying the gold leaf was the easy part. Adding the pin striping took about 3 hours each as well as quite a lot of beer. I was able to get the front fenders cut and buffed as well as starting to lay out the gold leaf stripes. I should be able to get them gold leafed tomorrow. It’s suppose to rain tomorrow so it all depends on the weather. I’ll post some pics when they are done. That just leaves the hood to finish up. I haven’t decided weather to pull it off to cut and buff or just leave it on. There are benefits to both. I’ll decide later on that. Till next time, mike
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1952 Chevy 3100, aka Sam the '52....
in Our Cars & Restoration Projects
Posted
Why did you decide to mount the fenders, hood and doors? Are you going to go back and paint the mating surfaces? Mike