[Essex_29]

Thank you sammons, Hoping to up the progress a bit for some time, I started my vacation today.

A few days ago, I was under the body of the Buick, it's on jackstands, washing the floor panel and the
whole bottom side with thinners in preparation for paint, when I noticed the raw edge of the wheel tubs.
Laying there looking at the sad looking edges, I took a deep breath and got to drawing and making
some clamping tools to get 1/4" round bar welded to the tub edges.



I saw this design sometime in the winter, on youtube, but didn't exactly recall how they looked. I made
six of them, three and three, mirrored. Six turned out to be enough or this kind of job.



Here's before, when tacked, and after. The edge looks much more like it belongs now, and the clamping
tools worked great combined with vice grips.
I was surprised how much easier to do the other side was than the first one. Learning by doing.

[sammons]

Ahh, nice. It's all in the details. Don't need the woulda coulda shoulda after your done.

[chopper526]

That really turned out nice and only a few will realize it didn't come this way from the factory. It gives a nice feeling of satisfaction, doesn't it?

[sixball]

Nice work! Thanks for sharing the clamp design.

[Essex_29]

Thank you sammons, I appreciate that comment.
chopper526, yes , it does, when it looks the way one planned.
Anytime, sixball. If anyone can use someting I do, or take inspiration from it, perhaps I have done something right.
Thank you all for the nice words.

Yesterday I was back under the body, grinding and scuffing with 180 grit on the orbital sander, shifting to
hand sanding where I didn't get with the machine, which was most anyway. Then washed with thinner.
Used rags all over the place.
I mixed about a pint of epoxy donned my ppe and filled up my brand new spray gun. Cheap as they come, just
bought it to be able to neglect it if I don't feel like cleaning it up after painting.
Then sprayed the underside of the floor and the firewall with grey epoxy primer.



In the evening, when the fumes were lighter, I sanded the inside of the floor, vacuumed and washed it with thinner.
Today after  breakfast I went out to the garage, and sprayed the floor, topside. Then did some paper work, met my
grandkids and in the late afternoon I sprayed the floor inside and out with black industrial 2K, which apparently
 can be applied after 3 hours @ 77 degrees. I gave it six hours or a bit more.



This got to have been one of my most efficient days during this project.
Yes, the paint is specked with dust.  No, it doesn't mater, it's going to be carpeted.

[62131]

Looks good, as you said a little gust but no one will ever see it anyways when your finished

[Essex_29]

Thank you 62131.

Painting the black that fast (before thinking things through) wasn't that bright of a move. I totally
forgot the body sealant.
Oh well, I figure I'll paint over it with black paint and a small brush.

[Essex_29]

Yesterday, before buying that body sealant, I worked on my drip rails. The original ones were thrown
inside the car when I bought it, they were totally destroyed, bent and dinged, and I have no idea how
 I'd have mounted them to the body anyway as  they were from some kind of cast pot metal.
The drip rail was about the size of a 10mm diameter tube ( about 3/8"). I cut away about a quarter of
the tube along it's lenght, that's two 80" long pieces of pipe

I then bent the pipe over a large Pontiac brake drum that had almost the exact right diameter.



Then I cut the base rails out of  14 gauge sheetmetal.



 86 holes drilled for plug welds in the sheet metal.



Welding the tube to the sheet metal strips was tricky, as I effectively had to do it from the back side.
I clamped the drip rail to the roof, and started plug welding it from the rear, bending and adjusting the
warped thing into some kind of submission. After grinding the welds, it looks like I have a driprail.



As usual, now I just have to make one for the other side.

[sixball]

You are good!

[sammons]

Lol, i opened post without my glasses. Thought you were test fitting your black carpet with white pipeing, old school😁 It's easy to get s head of yourself sometimes.

Your rain gutter fab looks great, nice job.

[Essex_29]

Thank you very much sixball, for the nice words!
Lol sammons, my wife said it looked nice with the outlined floor panels, but then she knew
what I was up to, I had groaned about the stupidity of forgetting the sealing work before the
black paint. In any case, it's painted over now, I made a  small amount of 2K paint and brushed
it on with a small brush.

On thursday I finally got the driver's side drip rail done.



After a couple days filled with chores and whatnot, I got to welding the 18 holes where some chrome
and the cowl lights have been mounted.
Welding and grinding done, I sanded the paint off the whole cowl area.
I may have a small patch to do on one door, but otherwise I think the body is done, when it comes
 to rust repairs.



I'll probably weld the hood gasket hold down holes too, when I figure an easy way to make suitable
 round sheet metal plates. Maybe some small washers would fit well enough.