Secret experimental 1964 GX 455

[yachtsmanbill]

Is there any way we can get the number of photo postings increased here? This is a second post just to show off what happens when you feel destructive LOL.  Nah; its all part of the master plan...   Bill

[gssizzler]

Looking good! The Buick trunk letters use the barrel nuts! They might be square on your car!?

[yachtsmanbill]

So the letters push in on pins? Theres no access under the lid. Also no rust around the letters, so maybe a skinny glued on gasket as well?  They are in great condition and sure dont want to have to mask (and sand!) around them. Maybe a heat gun and a razor knife?  Bill

[red65gs]

I used a very thin screwdriver and piece of plastic to pop off the script emblem on my glovebox. Have to be very careful and work your way around the emblem. Once it starts moving, the emblem will come loose easier since the pins are tapered.

[yachtsmanbill]

Aint that the Cats A$$???? Got the patch out, straightened and tacked back in today, oh, and ground the tack welds down for a full pass tomorrow. Speaking of Cats A$$es, heres how the hood letters came off. Well at least one for now. THANKS!   Bill

[elagache]

Dear Bill and mid-60s Buick owners who have to cope with whatever winter throws at you . . . . .

To getcha up to speed since youve been sunning on the south coast on the Med, 
. . . . .

Okay, coastal California doesn't have temperatures aren't well below freezing or snow, but the weather has been unusually unfriendly. We have been getting a lot of needed rain, but for our location the temperatures are really chilly. 

I cant believe that GM changed little things as subtle as the headliner pattern between years. Ive been looking til' Im blue in the face at patterns for the last couple of days. The pattern on my '64 is ARIEL and yours is a BASKETWEAVE.  Both of the honest patterns are out of print. To me its apples and oranges, but now Ill hafta get the 2 visors resewn as well. Stay away from the later perforated type. Thats no different than a zip edge on a social security envelope. and ad to that sewing penetrations, you have a double potential for failure. Nuff said on that. Good luck with your choice.

I've been putting off the headliner replacement because I have some enhancements I would like to include in the headliner install.  Right now Biquette has a Custom Autosound rear speaker bar from the 1990s:



Here is another view:



As you can see it is supported on the pillars of the rear doors and doesn't look all that bad.  It does provide very good sound for a station wagon that was designed for nothing more than an AM radio.  However, I would like to instead incorporate speakers directly into the headliner.  I'm not sure how to come up with brackets to secure the speakers.  I have a few other upgrades in mind and I absolutely want to insulate with the best stuff I can find.  Biquette is after all a "long roof" and in the sun, this poor car really heats up like mad.  So, I keep putting off the headliner replacement because of all these challenges.

While its out, its also a good time to pull the seats etc and paint those inside door jams. In your pics, the OEM paint is showing her patina. LOL.

Yes indeed, this will have to be done sometime.

One other issue I encountered; are the trunk letters self adhesive? Theres ZERO access for nuts from underneath. Ideas or comments???

In my sheltered life, I have never encountered a 1964-65 Buick trunk.  However, I don't think any emblems were secured with adhesive back in the day.  What do you'all  trunk owners have to say about this?

Keep up the good work and hope that Pat continues to be on the mend!

Cheers, Edouard 

[yachtsmanbill]

Merry Christmas, and or happy holidays if it goes the other way. Tomorrow marks my one year anniversary with the BADLASS. Took Pat to the sawbones today and she's doing better than expected. She's down the street at OJ's and Tubby's place with the grandkids. OJ is for "orange jumpsuit". Anyway, I feel blessed, so there! After the docs' visit I got some shop time.  I finished welding and grinding the valance and will probably play with some bondo (sic) tomorrow. I dont ever use Bondo; just polyester and chopped glass.

The tail panel doesnt have a drop of bondo on it yet. The trunk lid is an experiment with paint strippers. NONE of them contain MEK anymore. Theyre all green and barely work. Im just trying to keep the dust down Probably #60 on the DA, cough cough... One thing I tried and it worked was to back up the gap with a piece of 3/16 aluminum. I am fresh out of copper. Zip-zip-zip and its done. My auto darkening hood is DOA, so I hafta weld with my eyes closed. The MIG nozzle shields the arc pretty much, but its still pretty bright. No lectures puhlease!

BTW... this is the 102nd resized pic for December LOL...  Bill

[WkillGS]

Bill, I gotta say it's been great to see your progress. I admire your perseverance and wish I could do the same!

As far as paint strippers, it depends on what type of paint you are trying to remove. Lacquers just kind of soften and melt, so several applications are necessary. Enamels are easy since they wrinkle and practically fall off!  If it's lacquer, using a razor blade, utility knife blade, or sharpened putty knife on the softened paint works for me. Some guys even scrape off the original paint dry. The original primer is tough to remove, scraping with a SHARP tool is best. For residual patches I'll apply another coat of stripper and use scotch brite or coarse steel wool to remove the rest. Then I'll do the final prep with 80 grit on a DA sander and coat with epoxy primer.

For backing up welds, get a piece of copper pipe and flatten one end. Or buy a magnetic one like this one from Vim Products:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/VIM-Tools-MPWT-Magnetic-Plug-Weld-Tool/202262477076?epid=1623776290&hash=item2f17c87914:g:47cAAOSwfXFaqxPc

Great to see the progress, Best wishes to Pat for a speedy recovery, and have a great Christmas!

[yachtsmanbill]

Christmas was OK... I dont have any family left so its me and Pat. She spent yesterday afternoon at her sons place, mainly to visit with the grandkids, 2&5 y.o. Xmas is for kids now. I work in the shop most days, especially with her R&R and she doesnt give me any grief. She needs a ride or a hand, Im just a phone call away.

I was ready for some bondo work today, but got sidetracked. I had to clean out the trunk gutter from old rubber weatherstripping, that was OEM glued the entire length. Still needs some more cleaning. The rubber had a 1/8" cotton string embedded in it for removal I'd guess, but it just pulled out, or broke, and made more of a mess. So far Im into it with wood chisels, screwdrivers, and a wire wheel at 20,000 rpm on an air grinder. TUFF STUFF !!

The paint stripper was left on overnight. It did nothing yesterday and this morning was almost totally dry. I tried a few scrapers, then remembered what you said about a razor blade.

 AH HA! I have a few long handled razor scrapers for removing vehicle tags off the front glass Way LOWWW on the inside of the windshield. PRESTO! 99% of the stuff came right off. I dont know what they used for a primer, but that wasnt touched. Next is some 80 or 100 paper on the DA to get where I need to be. Just hafta be careful around a few spots of body putty from the factory, or replace it with new stuff.

I was going to locate and drill for the skylark chrome filler between the tail lights before any finishing work. That meant I had to install the tail lights, and trim for locating purposes. Measuring the piece, it appears to be 3/8" too long. Holding it in position, held off by the mounting studs, it looks OK. HMMM. At worst, Ill need to trim 3/16" off each end. I hope it turns out OK.  Its either the cut off grinder or the table saw (!).

I knocked off at 3 p.m. today to think it over. Took a half a block walk with Pat for some exercise. Tomorrow is another day!   Bill

[yachtsmanbill]

Got away without having to trim anything today YIPPEEEE! Had all the lights and trim on and marked the mounting holes for the valance. All six lined up pretty well, only a few needed elongating with the burr grinder. Even the center badge lined up perfectly! I amazed my own bad self. Pulled everything off and mixed 1/2 oz. of filler for the very top edge and a few minor dabs here and there. I also ran a wire wheel on the grinder to clean the gutter tray out; much cleaner. Blew it all down and masked it for some base blue. This is on top of the galvanized stuff to stop any rust from coming back.

Im using spray bombs for right now just to get some color/primer into the tight spots. This is by no means the finished product.  Happy New Years coming up! Back at it tomorrow! Gonna order a headliner from these guys. 79.00 plus the box aint too bad. Comes with sail panels and visor material as well.    Bill

https://www.autoobsession.com/cart.aspx

[WkillGS]

The paint stripper ...... I don't know what they used for a primer, but that wasn't touched.......

Yeah, the factory primer is tough stuff! I'll still use paint stripper on it, it will soften just slightly, enough to use a sharp scraper to remove it. Timing is critical, stripper needs to be on there long enough but not too long, 5-15 minutes depending on conditions. DA sanding works too but IMO takes longer and makes dust.

Great job on that tail panel!

[elagache]

Dear Bill, Walt, and mid-60s Buick caregivers,

Got away without having to trim anything today YIPPEEEE!
. . . .

Congrats on the progress!! 

. . . .
Gonna order a headliner from these guys. 79.00 plus the box aint too bad. Comes with sail panels and visor material as well.

Okay, I didn't know about Auto Obsession.  I just added another bookmark to my extensive collection of vendors.

However, they didn't seem to sell a headliner for 1965 Buick Special wagons . . . . . . . It's discrimination I tell ya'!!! . . .

Cheers, Edouard 

[yachtsmanbill]

As of yesterday afternoon, no word back from Auto obsession (AO)via email. I did call in the morning but they werent open at 0730 hrs Ca. time. Maybe they were closed for the holidays. Hmmm

Kocked some tin around on the starboard side rear quarter panel yesterday. Its coming along OK, but I may have mis-measured a piece. It was dark-30 last night, and I was done for. What I did install looked good buy working sitting on a milk crate gave me a weird perspective, hence the bad measurement. If its off today, itll be a breeze to redo it. Whats a few more hours eh?

These parts have to be made individually since my 200 ton press and dies are on loan to the Smithsonian in Xiaxing haha. One big BANG with the stamper and it wouldve been done, but now I am down to a single strip, fitting it, and tacking it one part at a time.. its really time consuming, but still turns out OK. Its just old school body working minus the LEAD.

Gonna shift this job into 3rd gear; I need to make some progress... you know, while the reindeer are sleeping it off from the other night LOL... The pics show the new patch after having trimmed out the rotten stuff back into good steel. Turned out well but might rethink doing it. The next shows the 1/4 steel brake line line used as a radius for a corner. The last one is some black quick dry primer with a rub from a sanding block. Note the high spots. If I keep massaging them, they just kinda move around. I'm OK with shrinking sheet metal, but this much means that the excess has to go somewhere else. I hate to grind it flat; thatll make it really thin, and I also hate to fill it with bondo. Thats just not right!    Bill

[WkillGS]

.....Note the high spots. If I keep massaging them, they just kinda move around. I'm OK with shrinking sheet metal ....

Bill do a search for 'shrinking disc'. They work nice for larger areas or when there are a bunch of small spots to shrink!
Neat tip on using the brake line to form an edge. I may use that sometime.

[GS66]

I will probably be stripping paint next summer too on the project car so will remember the razor.