[birdguy3]

I just took the vinyl top off my 66 coupe and it is solid rust and the metal is really pitted. What can I do to save some $ before I take it to the body shop to have the holes patched? (Sand, etc) Should I just sand off all of the rust and hit it with primer? It is pretty solid in some spots and real thin in others, as I said there is even some spots where it has rusted all the way through which I need to have a body guy patch. I am not going to put a vinyl top on when I'm done.

Thanks,
Brian

 

[Cruzer]

Has the body shop seen the damage? If so then use some rust remover to get the rust out. The holes that go all the way thru will need a patch. The entire roof will need to be stripped. Then after all the rust is gone & patches are welded in, prime & start your bondo filling. Then sand, prime, fill, sand, prime etc...

66 Coupe, 302, Auto, 3.25 gears. [color:red]Candyapple Red</font color=red> with White Pearl Stripes. Cragars.
http://web.infoave.net/~ronniek

 

[avj97]

At least grind off all the rust. The more you can do in terms of sanding, stripping, etc., the happier the body shop will be. That is where you can save some $$

Body shops like to do the quick Insurance jobs. It's fast, guarenteed income. Restorations take more time, are less profitable, and cut into the profitable insurance jobs. So even if you don't want to tackle the actual body work, the more you can do now, the faster they can get it done. Take off all the chrome, bumpers, taillights, etc. That's a big time savings for the body shops.

I did this and it saved me a grand. I didn't do any body work, but I spent a long time sanding and removing everything. ALso, label everything in plastic bags. This helps them a lot as they go to put it all back together (they thanked me profusely for that one.)

JJ
69 Fastback 302 2v 3sp. trans.
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1605599&a=12251632&p=44630868.jpg