Aussie 1930 Chrysler 66 Tourer Restoration.

[1930 Kram66]

They are done!  With that the paint stage of this restoration is completed.

Sprayed 3 coats on the front and rear guards/fenders, also the cowl and tail lamps- nothing else needs to be sprayed ☺️.

I'm pleased with how these parts came out, with only few runs on the left rear guard/fender edge. Spraying highly curved surfaces is always challenging, well for me anyway.

I intend to let the paint harden up for some time before I wet sand/compound and polish them.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

Edited August 21, 2023 by 1930 Kram66
Spelling check (see edit history)

[keiser31]

GORGEOUS!

[1930 Kram66]

 

Made some good progress since last time. I have completed the wet sanding/ buffing and polishing of the front guards/fenders.

Before I could mount them to the chassis I prepared my welting that I made some time back. Using magnets I placed the welting in position and marked all the holes for the bolts that attach the guard to the chassis.

Then using a wad punch I punched all the holes required, next I bolted both guards in place. Now with the guards firmly bolted in position I will finish of the machine polishing of them.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

[1930 Kram66]

Since last time I have completed the following tasks.

1. Finished buffing/polishing the front guards/fenders.

2. Mounted the wheels and tyres.

3. Fitted the headlight assembly.

4. Wet sand, compounded and polished all body panels.

5. Positioned and raised on axle stands the body ready for lifting on to the chassis.

Before fitting the body back onto the chassis, I want to start applying the pin stripe to the raised moulding on the body while the access is good.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

 

 

[31 LaSalle]

2 hours ago, 1930 Kram66 said:

Since last time I have completed the following tasks.

1. Finished buffing/polishing the front guards/fenders.

2. Mounted the wheels and tyres.

3. Fitted the headlight assembly.

4. Wet sand, compounded and polished all body panels.

5. Positioned and raised on axle stands the body ready for lifting on to the chassis.

Before fitting the body back onto the chassis, I want to start applying the pin stripe to the raised moulding on the body while the access is good.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

 

 

Looks A lovely Paint Job what is the color

[1930 Kram66]

19 minutes ago, 31 LaSalle said:

Looks A lovely Paint Job what is the color

Thank you.

Main colour is called Arabian Mocha stone Brown and the raised mouldings a done with a colour called Light fast Maroon.

This combination was one of several offered for Chrysler 66's in 1929/30.

Cheers Mark.

[Gunsmoke]

Great looking work, this is going to be a stunning car. As the old saying goes, when you think you're just about done, you're about 1/2 finished! I've always found the last few stages seem to take forever.

[1930 Kram66]

Since last time I have refitted the body to the chassis ☺️. Before lowering the body onto the chassis I placed body shims at all mounting positions. 

Next lowering the body down so it was resting fully on the chassis, then starting in the centre, gradually tightening bolts and checking to see what effect that particular bolt had on the door gaps around the body.

Lets say many hours were spent tightening bolts, then loosening said bolt ,then lifting the body to add or remove shims, eventually I got all the gaps fairly decent all round.

Over the next week I found that some of the bolts would slacken off some, I suppose as things settled , after a couple of weeks all bolts remained tight.

The first job in reassembling the interior was to make a place for the side curtains to live in, behind the back seat. I used some thick vinyl to line this compartment, mainly to protect the body sheet metal from the metal frame's of the side curtains. I will eventually make storage bags, out of left over seat material for the curtains, to help keep everything protected.

With that done I fitted the tool/storage box that goes under the rear seat. With that in place I next glued some carpet in the area in front of the rear seat base. I then cut out and bound some carpet for the rear floor.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

[Gunsmoke]

Great looking body sitting on it's chassis. Your workmanship and attention to detail is exceptional. The body colors are very nice. Enjoying your thread and learning a great deal about final finishing process.

 

While black was likely standard for fenders/aprons for all color schemes (assembly line efficiency) did you consider doing the fenders in the dark reddish brown? Personally I think it would look wonderful in just 2-tone.

 

You did not mention, but for those who may be doing a similar body placing, I assume you had the chassis sitting on 4 jack stands and level in all directions (especially side to side) (avoiding any chassis twist) before setting body on and during bolting down sequence, critical to ensure against twisting of chassis and good door alignment(as well as gaps) due to one spring weaker than another, different tire pressure, etc etc. I also understand if using 3/16" canvas belting for pads, and steel shims, bolting down is to be snug not hard.

 

An observation on these vintage cars is noted when you see the clearance between top of rear wheel and inside of rear fender.  I suppose the rough roads required a lot of clearance, but the smooth roads of today would have needed about 1/2 as much, potentially allowing lowering center of gravity considerably, an approach taken 3-4 years later.

[1930 Kram66]

5 hours ago, Gunsmoke said:

While black was likely standard for fenders/aprons for all color schemes (assembly line efficiency) did you consider doing the fenders in the dark reddish brown? Personally I think it would look wonderful in just 2-tone.

 When I started this project I had completely different colours in mind ( medium gray body and dark gray Guards/Fenders 😐). However sanity prevailed and I went with an original colour combination, I figured that the designers knew what they were doing, and I do not !       ☺️                                                                                                                                                                                                   Yes, Black for the Guard/Fenders and aprons was standard for 66's.

As for the actual process of setting the body I should have gone into more detail, but suffice to say it was as you described, very succinctly.

Yes, it does seem a little high in the rear, at the moment, I'm waiting to see what effect putting the car back together has on the rear spring height.

Once again thanks for following along.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

 

[keiser31]

Beautiful work!

[1930 Kram66]

Next on the list was trimming and fitting the tack rail to the rear of the body. Before fitting it I added some trim to the curtain compartment to tidy it up.

Then it was back to the sewing machine to make some Hidem binding to finish off the joint between the raised moulding on the body and the tack rail.

With the rear compartment close to being finished I turned my attention to the front section of the car.  I fitted the seat runners with the intention of getting the front seat in. However I decided to make the front floor mat while I had good access to this area. Next was some cardboard cad work to make a template of the mat. Using this template I cut out the shape required in ribbed rubber matting.

I then used polyurethane glue to attach some U channel rubber strip to finish the raw edge of the mat. I also made the trim pieces that go around the gear stick/handbrake and foot pedals.

For these I glued the matting to thin sheet metal and once again use U channel to edge them. I still have to sew up a boot for the handbrake lever and finish up these piece before they are fitted for the final time. I also placed some under lay under the rubber to help with heat and noise.

Lastly it was mounting and connecting a heavy duty battery isolator. I wanted to mount it in a position that is easily accessed while sitting in the drivers seat. 

Cheers Mark

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Gunsmoke]

Great work! OK I give up, you win!

[1930 Kram66]

Moving along with the reassembly process, next on the list was the bonnet and associated hardware, chrome moulding and cowl lamps.

Before I  attempted to fit the bonnet, I measured the length of the top and side panels of the bonnet and added 1/4inch to this measurement. Next using this number I adjusted the radiator/cowl assembly to get it close to where it needed to be, adjusting the rods that connect the radiator to the cowl. I also found that I needed to lift the radiator about 1/8 inch on the drivers side as well to get the centre line of the bonnet hinge in the correct position. Originally the bonnet tops were riveted to the centre hinge, I choose to bolt these parts together instead. Before actually mounting the bonnet panels I fitted some cowl lacing to the cowl. The bonnet panels when on without incident and I was happy with the general fit of these parts.

Next was adding the lift handle's, rubber corner protectors and hold down buffers- for the buffers I made my own from some block rubber.

Also have been fitting the engine related item's to the firewall as well as routing wiring and cable's to the inside ready to hook up to the dash etc.

Finally I fitted the chrome moulding and cowl lamps.

Just need to do the pin stripe to finish of the bonnet.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

[viv w]

Looking stunning, well done Mark.

[1930 Kram66]

Next on the job sheet was fitting the windscreen posts and gaskets.

As mentioned in a previous post a while back, I ended up making my own gaskets instead of using reproduction ones.

With the posts in place I next fitted a new piece of Laminated glass to the windscreen frame.

To set the glass, I placed a length of soft string long enough to go completely around the perimeter of the screen glass in the brass channel that goes on the bottom of the glass, then sliding this onto the glass.  With the bottom piece on I next fitted both side pieces. No caulking of any type used. I did however apply wax to the string and inside the brass channel to help water proof it.

At this point imagine a piece of glass with three of the four brass strips in place and a bit of string sticking out of the tops of the side brass strips. Next was cutting the string to make a butt join in the centre of the top frame, a spot of glue to hold the ends of the string together then the top brass strip is finally placed in position. 

With the brass strip applied to the glass, this assembly is then slid into the screen frame itself ( more wax). I must admit this seems an odd way of setting the glass in place, but this was how I found the original glass in the frame , I copied what was previously done. Sorry no pictures - I just forgot to take some 😐.

 After bolting the completed glass/frame back in place on the vehicle, I fitted the outer weather strips and the inner grab handles and wiper motor. The rear view mirror is just there for effect, it will need to be modified to fit correctly latter.

 

 

As mentioned in my previous post, I routed the wiring and speedo cable into the cabin, at this point I realised I needed to refit the firewall pad before I went much further. I had made this part a while back and once again like a dummy, did not take any photos of how I did it. To give an idea of its construction- it was made by cutting out the shape of the inside of the cowl from 3/8"thick insulation board with a layer of coconut fibre matting glued to the firewall side of this board. a piece of black vinyl was then glued to the seen side of the pad. I then used 1/4"slotted head bolts and large washers to hold it in place.

With the pad in place I could now fit the dash board with Fedco plate, steering column support bracket as well as the instrument cluster 😉, connect the wiring, speedo cable and oil pressure lines as well as the control cables and blinker switch ( I think I need to paint it black or grey, not sure I like the chrome look 😐 ). I chose not to re-nickel plate the garnish moulding around the instrument cluster, the original plating although a bit thin in places is still quite good and has a nice look to it ( notice I did not say the " P" word ). I'm also not going to refinish the steering wheel for much the same reason. Finally to finish off the dash I fitted the upholstery/trim piece that hides the joint of the dash and cowl.

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers Mark.

[Gunsmoke]

Your attention to details and workmanship has been enjoyable to see. One of the engineering challenges of those days was getting a vacuum operated wiper on these folding or opening windshields, how to route the vacuum line, and how to get motor to clear the top fabric without obstructing the driver's view. I suspect many owners removed the assembly eventually.

 

For my '31 CD8 Roadster, the windshield both tilted and folded flat, adding to the challenge. Chrysler used a groove in the lower stanchion to take a copper line flush with inner edge of stanchion. A pair of holes in the pivot allowed the vacuum to carry to the upper stanchion where a second groove allowed a flush copper tube to go up and eventually out into passenger compartment, where a rubber hose crossed over to wiper mechanism. As shown in the early factory photo, the rubber hose was not a very sophisticated look compared to rest of car's details, but since windshield could pivot at top mount, they needed some sort of flexible joint. Note my post with a bit of the lower original copper line still in place.

[1930 Kram66]

First job back after a short break for the holidays was fitting the rear guards/fenders. I'm undecided about leaving body colour on the inside of the guards/fenders - opinion's welcome. 

Next was fitting and wiring up the tail lamp/number plate assembly.

Lastly the spare tyre holder and bumper bar brackets were fitted.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

[Erndog]

27 minutes ago, 1930 Kram66 said:

First job back after a short break for the holidays was fitting the rear guards/fenders. I'm undecided about leaving body colour on the inside of the guards/fenders - opinion's welcome. 

Next was fitting and wiring up the tail lamp/number plate assembly.

Lastly the spare tyre holder and bumper bar brackets were fitted.

Cheers Mark.

 

 

I think I would paint the wheel wells black. It just looks a little odd. Not sure what they did originally.

[Erndog]

Maybe put some black paper in there and see what it looks like.

[viv w]

Looking really good Mark, well done.

 FYI , I see the spare wheel mounted on its holder, the bracket on the right side that holds the wheel in place has a hole in it, this is to facilitate a padlock to stop theft. The nut that you have holding this in place was originally a threaded casting.  Use a small piece of angle iron and drill 2 holes in it, then weld the nut onto the angle iron, you can then thread it in place and put a lock to stop theft, hope this makes sense.

 

Under the fenders and inside the rear wheel arch were to my knowledge painted black. I had a suggestion made to me years ago, paint under the fenders with a bright red or orange paint, then spray with black stonechip primer and a final colour coat. If the stonechip primer or paint gets chipped at any time then hopefully the bright colour will show up easily and make touchups easy to see.

 

[1930 Kram66]

Thanks Viv, great information as usual.

Looks like I have a couple of additional jobs now. ☺️.

[1930 Kram66]

Quick follow up regarding spare tyre bracket.

As Viv suggested I cut a piece of angle iron to shape and welded a dome nut to it. 

Much better. ☺️

Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

[1930 Kram66]

The last major job left to do is to refit the roof structure (hood irons and bows) to the car and to finalise the roof covering.

Those of you that have been following my project may recall that I actually completed about 90% of the roof covering some time ago, prior to the car being painted. Really only applying the edging to the completed sewn panels was left to do.

The first task was refitting the the roof structure to the car. I unfolded the roof on the floor next to the car. With the help of my trusty, if not reluctant assistant, my wife, we lifted the roof structure onto the mounting points on the car. This is definitely a two person job to avoid damage to the paint work. I did it this way because it was raining the day I had available, otherwise I would have moved the car outside and placed the folded structure on the car and raised it on the car. 

 

With the roof structure attached I started by fitting the rear side curtains. 

 

I pulled the material" up and out"  around the curve of the rear bow to help get rid of most of the wrinkles. 

With these panels stretched and tacked into their final position,  I think I got lucky regarding wrinkles. 

 I then fitted the rear curtain in place.

 

Once I knew it's final position I added 2 press studs on each side to secure the panel to the left and right side curtains.

Next I positioned the main top panel on the car to make sure everything lined up, then I finished tacking all the rear curtains in place.

 

Cheers Mark.

 

 

[keiser31]

BEAUTIFUL!

[1932 plymouth pb sedan]

Beautiful craftsmanship, very talented

[Vintageben]

Great work the car should e beautiful when finished, loving following the progress and thanks for taking the time to share

[1930 Kram66]

Continuing on with the top .....Once I was happy with the position of the top main panel, I started tacking it in place at the centre of the rear bow, then slowly stretching and tacking to the left and right until the material was tight around the curve of the rear bow.

I then moved to the front and started pulling the material tight from the front centre, like the rear moving gradually outward on each side. Working between the front and back until the material was evenly tensioned all over. Well at least as good as I could get it. 😀

With the top evenly tensioned I next had to deal with the front corners, I started by applying tension to the finished edges of the side panels to pull the edge " in and around" the curve of the front bow. Next was the stressful part of working out where to cut the material to make a neat join on the curved part of the front bow. I did this by stapling/tacking the material previously pulled into place, trying the get the finished trimmed edge where I wanted it to end up. With it in place I then cut the material lengthwise along the line of the top of the bow, about 10"long. Then working with the excess material I pulled it "down and over" the material that was previously stapled in position, then I marked a line where I wanted this material to finish, just over the cut line, then I pulled it " down and over "again and  tacked the material in place using the line I made as a guide, finally trimming the material right down close to the line of tacks. All of this was actually not that hard to do, just had to think a bit.  😉

 

 

With the main panel now fitting at the front I then went back to the rear to finish tacking the main panel to the rear bow, lastly trimming away the excess covering.

With the main panel fitted I added the rear apron thingy and tacked it in position.

After final tacking and trimming the excess material away I applied some hidem binding to finish that part off.

All that was left to do was to trim the excess material at the front and apply Hidem binding there as well.

For a beginner motor trimmer I'm very pleased with how the top turned out. It's far from perfect, just decent.  Yes I did finish tacking the hidem binding.  ☺️                                                                        For me this was a very enjoyable part of my project, it was certainly challenging and frustrating at times, but still a lot of fun to learn something new.                                                                                  Thanks to the forum members who gladly assisted me with their knowledge and experience in the early stages of doing the work on the convertible top.

Cheers Mark.

[keiser31]

BEAUTIFUL!

[1930 Kram66]

With the top finished I turned my attention to finishing off the inside items that needed to be dealt with .First job was making a trim piece to cover the roof irons on the inside the car.

I made them so they can be folded in half to fit in the side curtain storage area behind the back seat  😉. Actually I had to because I only had scrap pieces of top material to work with.😁

      

 

 

Next was fitting the door trims in place. However I decided to make pockets in the front door panels. 

 

 

The finish line is getting close.

 

Cheers Mark.

[1930 Kram66]

Well I'm down to the last few items on the job sheet now 😊.

First task was getting the rear of the car close to being  finished, so a spare tyre cover was made and fitted, as well as the luggage rack. I also repainted and fitted a safety triangle which belonged to my grandfather.

 

 

I also added turn signal lamps as well. The rear one's  I made myself using motor bike LED strip lamps.  Cheers Mark.

 

 

 

Edited May 11 by 1930 Kram66 (see edit history)