Its going, going, gone!

Today was D day for the Adam 12 car. We finally got all the little bells and whistles installed on here last week and the mechanic came and picked it up today. He has to install a couple of lines and adjust the shifter linkage and the owner will be burning up the streets with this one.  This was a real fun project, especially after we installed the siren. It was funny setting that thing off when the guys in the shop least expected it.  Im sure the owner will stop by from time to time in it as he is cruising around. Im sure he will enjoy all the looks and waves as he drives around. It should be a real head turner.

Even closer

We are nearly finished with the Adam 12 car. Today the windshield was installed and we washed it up a bit. Yesterday the door glass rubber came in and a great portion of the afternoon was spent installing that, the door panels and the billy stick holders. With all the glass in now our check list may be complete. We will go over it one more time to make sure no buffing marks are present then it’s back to the customer.

Adam 12, Adam 12

Adam 12, Adam 12…..  Today we had a visitor to the shop,  Mike Gregson of Gregson Signs. He is the guy in seen in the first picture. He is a vinyl guru. Mike printed and cut these decals to exact specs of the Adam 12 car from the Adam 12 show in the late 60’s to the mid 70’s. Mike came in around lunch time and went straight to work. His work is impeccable. This Adam car is getting closer and closer to being back on the road. Great job today Mike! Thanks again for your help on this project.

Get the door

Back on the Satellite today, Chris did a great job two toning the grill. It really turned out nice. We also finished buffing the body and late today Chris and I had a little time left to hang the right doors. Since this one has all of its parts painted, we should move along on it now pretty good. Tomorrow we plan on installing the left doors and trunk and maybe the fenders.

Adam 12

Friday we were able to get the wet sanding on the Satellite wrapped up. Today we got a great start on bringing the shine back. We got to step 2 before running out of time today. Our first step on buffing is to use a heavy compound to cut the sanding scratches. Then we switch to a milder cutting compound to remove the swirls from the first step. This is were we stopped. Tomorrow we will go over this again with a very mild polishing compound to remove the buffing swirls. Then finally we hand polish it to finish it off. Tomorrow these quarters will look like a mirror.

Adam 12

This afternoon we were able to get the Satellite sanded and ready for buffing. This was painted about 2 weeks ago and we will buff it out on Monday if our plan holds together. We did this just like we do all of our High Performance Finishes. 1000 grit paper first, 2000 next, 3000 grit sand paper last.  Then we will buff the shine back up using progressively finer compounds. A few hours buffing early next week and we hope to start putting this one back together for the customer.

Adam 12, again

Yesterday we started painting the Adam 12 project car, today we finished it. Since we sprayed the white on the jambs and roof yesterday, today’s job was to mask the white so we could lay down the black. We started by setting the fine line tape where we wanted the line for the black and white to be. Fine line is a rubbery tape that has a super clean edge so we get sharp crisp edges. We also fine lined the edges around the rockers and the quarters. Once we got all the taping done it was time to spray the black. This took us up until lunch. After we ate, we untapped the roof and jambs and cleared it all. The clear coat is where all the protection and gloss comes from. In a few days we will start the wet sanding and buffing process for the body. This process will make the surface even more glossy than now. It will remove all the orange peel and leave the surfaces extremely flat and smooth. This project is coming together and finally starting to look like something. Well, a police car to be exact.

Adam 12

Today we started painting the Satellite. We got it in the booth, prepped and ready to spray by lunch. After lunch we applied a coat of epoxy to the door jambs. After that dried, we sprayed  a coat of urethane sealer over the rest of the car. After that dried we switched to white paint for the roof and door jambs. The quarter panels  and back of the car will be black. Tomorrow we will mask off the white and shoot the black and clear it. This is the last of the parts to paint for this one, so when we get it done and buffed all we have to do is put it back together. This will be a cool project when its done. The finishing touches on this one will definitely be what sets it off.

Mirror finish

While Chris was working on the Kia, Chase was busy adding even more shine to the trunk lid that he painted on Friday. Make no mistake, that trunk was beautifully painted and would have looked great on any car. But this isnt just any car. This car is getting a High Performance Finish, so we are going the extra mile. Chase first started off by block sanding the trunk with 1000 grit paper, he then switched to 2000 grit paper. After that he went back over that with 3000 grit paper. Then the buffing process starts. He uses a heavy cut compound first to remove the heavy scratches. Then a mild cut compound to even further cut scratches. After that a super fine polishing compound to ensure a super glossy mirror like reflection. Just check out that picture of Chris. Pretty sharp!

Junk in the trunk

Today we all got back on the Satellite. First thing we did was start prepping the jambs on the car for paint. Once we got those ready, Chris jumped on the trunk. First thing he did was to sand the entire trunk area. Then a coat of epoxy primer was applied. After that dried sufficiently, he applied a layer of seam sealer over the welds. After the seam sealer dried we painted the trunk with spatter paint. Or we at least attempted to. We ran out of paint and couldnt get another can before the day ended. So, tomorrow we will be able to finish the trunk up. We still have to finish blocking out the body, then it takes another turn in the booth.