I sprayed 3 or 4 cars back in the 80s.
I learned a lot about myself in the process. Painting takes something i don't have - the ability to stop when something is going sideways, and the ability to not pick at the flaws.
I'll never be a good painter (or drywaller), but that's OK. I know now.
I can paint cars fairly well but don't let me use an airless sprayer as that's another story. My first home I bought we gutted the walls and re-rocked it. Rented an airless sprayer to save time and get a primer coat on the walls and ceilings, I started in a closet so I could get the hang of it ... I pulled the trigger, the paint line fitting popped out of the gun shooting the entire closet in primer and most of me, in two seconds....
@Michael Pickett posted:@ALB, beautiful job! Those thinners seemed to do the trick.
I've sprayed urethanes/polyurethanes a few times over the years; being an industrial paint, they are a little more difficult to work with and get a really nice, automotive quality finish. It's just not what that type of coating was originally designed to do. I've always followed mixing volume instructions precisely using the proper temp thinner for conditions (almost always medium for anything around room temp, iIrc) and never failed to produce decent finishes (the guys were always happy and thought it looked great) but after the 2nd or 3rd time thought it could be a wee bit better. This time around I talked Nelson into letting me buy a liter of slow thinner as well as the medium (the gentleman at the autobody supply store didn't think the slow thinner was necessary) and, working in balmy 78- 80° weather, I mixed the first coat with the recommended amount of medium speed thinner, mixed 20-25% slow thinner into 2nd coat and 3rd coat was close to 50% medium/50% slow thinner (and a splash more thinner than recommended overall as well). It gave the top coat just that little bit longer to flow and outgas before skinning over and produced (what I consider) the nicest finish yet! And that's my brother in the background...
Update: I am not good at the painting.
When my painting attains that level of quality, I switch to sandpaper. I keep lots of sandpaper around the house.
It'll work out.
@edsnova posted:Update: I am not good at the painting.
It's good to know oneself. Self-awareness is woefully lacking in the modern age.
Next time I see you, I'll buy you a beer. Misery loves company.
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Give a man a rattle can and he sands for a day.
Teach a man how to use a paint gun, and he sands for the rest of his life.
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@Sacto Mitch posted:.
Give a man a rattle can and he sands for a day.
Teach a man how to use a paint gun, and he sands for the rest of his life.
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Mitch, you have no idea how true that statement is!
Very true.
So it turns out that if you spray 2-part clear coat at 23 pounds per square inch pressure from a nice spray gun directly at a 10-ounce sheet of bent 5052 aluminum that is suspended from two holes along its top edge, what will happen is the spray pressure from the gun will swing the work farther away as you work down, and the swinging action of this sheet of material will cause the spray distance to vary significantly enough to cause trouble.
So what happened with the slower thinner vis a vis reducing orange peel?
Do you think that it self leveled during the slower cure or is something else afoot?
@edsnova posted:So it turns out that if you spray 2-part clear coat at 23 pounds per square inch pressure from a nice spray gun directly at a 10-ounce sheet of bent 5052 aluminum that is suspended from two holes along its top edge, what will happen is the spray pressure from the gun will swing the work farther away as you work down, and the swinging action of this sheet of material will cause the spray distance to vary significantly enough to cause trouble.
Had the same issue spraying MC gas tanks. Ending up draping them over a door/fender stand instead.
These things are handy for all sorts of stuff. I have a 2’x4’ piece of 1/2” Arboron that I set on top and it’s heavy enough to make a pretty stable work bench.
@Gordon Nichols posted:So what happened with the slower thinner vis a vis reducing orange peel?
Do you think that it self leveled during the slower cure or is something else afoot?
You get serious orange peel when something isn't right, usually either not enough pressure (the paint won't atomize properly and will look in extreme cases somewhat rough or 'pebbly' and too much pressure can cause this as well), not slowing down enough while spraying to put enough on (more important during the final coats to combat the wavy but glossy orange peel look) , the material isn't thinned enough or a combination there of. I think that the slower thinner probably helped it level out, but what I also noticed working with this material is that the overspray that lands on places already coated didn't always melt in the way I thought it should. I don't have access to a booth so everything counts. I'm probably just being picky, and as I said before, no one else has noticed, but I think it made a difference. We're going out with Nelson and his car tomorrow so I'll let you know what I think after the weekend, and maybe have a few pics as well... Al
How much time did you put into that wet sanding? Looks great!!
Spent about three hours messing with it. First I sliced off the runs with a blade. Then I wrapped a wet paint stick with wet 400 grit and ground the drips down close to flat. Then I worked those areas with 800.
Then I wet sanded the whole panel with 800, 2 passes. Cleaned the whole thing with glass cleaner.
Two passes with 1000, two more with 1500 and one more with 2000. Cleaned it between sandings and looked for trouble spots.
Then I compounded with a "rough" sponge pad, 2 passes. Cleaned again with glass cleaner. Then one more with a medium pad. Cleaned.
Once over with a fine pad with polishing compound. Then a buffing wheel to finish.
It's not close to perfect. I'll probably have to re-shoot the drip spot at least.
But it's not terrible.
Ed, you continue to amaze me.
@edsnova posted:Spent about three hours messing with it. First I sliced off the runs with a blade. Then I wrapped a wet paint stick with wet 400 grit and ground the drips down close to flat. Then I worked those areas with 800.
Then I wet sanded the whole panel with 800, 2 passes. Cleaned the whole thing with glass cleaner.
Two passes with 1000, two more with 1500 and one more with 2000. Cleaned it between sandings and looked for trouble spots.
Then I compounded with a "rough" sponge pad, 2 passes. Cleaned again with glass cleaner. Then one more with a medium pad. Cleaned.
Once over with a fine pad with polishing compound. Then a buffing wheel to finish.
It's not close to perfect. I'll probably have to re-shoot the drip spot at least.
But it's not terrible.
My bodywork teacher told me that color sanding/cut and buff was good inspiration for getting your gun set right the first time. A**hole. 
When I did my class project (Mercedes Hood and Rear hatch) I messed up getting the gun back together right and my first clear coat had some globs in it. He had me just lay on a few extra coats, extra thick, to leave enough material to wet sand it out.
Worked great except the finish product turned out nicer than the OEM finish in the rest of the car.
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I think I'd stop now, Ed.
Before long, this will be too pretty to drive.
You'll have to get a trailer for it and haul it around to car shows.
And beach chairs. You'll need some beach chairs so you can sit in front of it at the car shows.
Really, it's nice enough just the way it is.
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You are probably the only one to notice the imperfections, it's better to let it be than to unintentionally make it worse .
I agree. It looks great and you should only mess with it if you get complaints from your sweetie.
@Alan Merklin posted:You are probably the only one to notice the imperfections, it's better to let it be than to unintentionally make it worse .
Think of it as Patina. Probably painted better than any one that left the factory.
Here's the inner clam and spare tire compare/contrast.
I like your clamshell prop better. I'm pretty confident that Al does, too.
@Michael Pickett posted:I like your clamshell prop better. I'm pretty confident that Al does, too.
Good eye, Michael; it took your pointing it out for me to see it, and yeah, it's way cooler than the original!
Yours is truly bespoked to your specification, your looking for someone who can appreciate the nuances of such a build and they are out there. 
Like @IaM-Ray said. You have an amazing eye for detail. Combined with your fabrication skills and patience, you've built a one in a million (or in our case, maybe a few thousand) auto that any discerning collector will appreciate. It is just a matter of finding the right match. Good luck!
And... did we say you did a lot of unbelievable research to find all those nuances.
Just reposting the latest blog update. Cold start after 4 month's rest, shakedown, and a little engine sound compare/contrast with a real one. 
Improved the Spyder's leg room last week.
Seems good after a short test drive.
@edsnova posted:Improved the Spyder's leg room last week. Seems good after a short test drive.
Huzzah! I'm wondering if that brake pedal arm is going to bend if an elephant wants a test drive. Amazing attention to detail, Ed!
Just...update.
Neato. Did you make that?
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Give me a lever long enough, and a place to stand...
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@Michael Pickett posted:Neato. Did you make that?
I did look into making one but for the money Fibersteel made more sense.
And, for the record, I do not have the stones to actually jack the car with it. Yes, it should work, and it can obviously hold the car up, but the angle you start at with that little cup on the jack point does not inspire confidence.
For the picture I lifted the right side with a floor jack and then slipped the lever jack under the left side.
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@edsnova posted:....For the picture I lifted the right side with a floor jack and then slipped the lever jack under the left side...
Is there nothing I can believe in anymore?
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@Sacto Mitch posted:.
Is there nothing I can believe in anymore?
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Ed Garageshopped the pic.
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@Michael Pickett posted:.Ed Garageshopped the pic.
I don’t want the truth.
I can’t handle the truth.
Ed uses words like ‘barber pole vinyl’, ‘autopulse fuel pump’, Wendler badge. He uses these words as the backbone of a life spent defending something.
Deep down in places I don’t talk about at parties, I want Ed in that garage.
I need Ed in that garage.
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This car is still for sale. DM me if interested.
i mdont get under a car unless absolutely necessary and only with oak firewood round placed strategically
Ed, I am utterly confused that someone hasn't bought this work of art. It'll happen.
No worries, Lane.
Three Saturdays ago when I tried to back into a space at Cars & Coffee my shift lever popped off. Disconnected at the base, stranding me 15 feet from my destination. Luckily it was in neutral. I dragooned a couple of bystanders to push the Spyder into the slot.
I quickly found it wasn't broken. Just disassembled. The lever screws into a socket near the floor of the shift housing, and somehow it had backed out. A few minutes later I'd turned it back into place with some borrowed pliers (thanks to this kindly UniMog-with-grenade-launcher owner).
And I was happy, because I now understood why my reverse lock-out feature had been getting funky.
The stock Brandwood shift lever is a complicated thing. Really it's two levers, one nested inside the other, so the outer one can be pushed down to allow the lock-out nub to dip below a gate to get reverse gear. As the inner shaft unscrewed it made the whole thing slightly taller—too tall to allow the outer shaft to be pushed down far enough unless I opened up room above it by backing the knob off a turn or two.
I had cut and welded on that box several times during the build in an effort to make it more compact and Spyder-like, yet never took it apart to see how it worked. Now, seeing how it went together, I also realized how easy it would be to replace with a longer stick.
One of the silly things I added to the box was a reverse lockout lever, the similar to the originals. Turns out it works as intended, so to make the shifter "realer" all I needed was a simple stick, not a nesting doll arrangement.
The other night I got to work.
From what I can gather by photos, the real cars' shifters were about an inch and a half taller than the one I was using, including the extension I scabbed on during the build.
Out of the spare parts bin I grabbed a likely-looking old shifter and cut off the ball end.
The shaft screws in with a 3/8-inch threaded rod at 24 tpi; standard SAE fine threads. Of course I had every kind of bolt but that one, so I ran to HD and spent $3 on two Grade 5 (they didn't have 8) zinc-plated bolts.
Cut off the head of one. Drilled out the bottom of the cut shifter and mocked up the parts.
That loop thingie is what controls the big fore-aft cable. It's about a quarter inch thick. I was going to use a nut for my version but found a piece of quarter inch plate with the requisite quarter-inch hole drilled through it on my work bench. A little surgery with the angle grinder and...
Shortly:
And then:
Once installed, the loop for the cable keeps it from backing out.
The only thing missing now is the correct mushroom-shaped knob. I believe they are available commercially, but if anyone has one loitering about their spare parts bin, I'd sure like to have it. 12mm threads.
Beautiful work, Ed!
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Good job.
Why is it, it's always the guy with the grenade launcher who's most likely to have tools?
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@Sacto Mitch posted:.
Good job.
Why is it, it's always the guy with the grenade launcher who's most likely to have tools?
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@Sacto Mitch if you can’t fix it blow it up 😎🤙
Ed's beautiful blue Spyder -- the gift that keeps on giving. 59 pages and counting. I think @Lane Anderson had the old record.
@calmotion posted:@Sacto Mitch if you can’t fix it blow it up 😎🤙
My philosophy as well.
I had a shift knob that was a certain mm,,shift lever was too thick,,had a machinist rethread to proper diamater...problem solved
Update: found the shift knob I knew I had.
reference photo:
That looks like an early VW shift knob. Did they use that on 550s, too?
The knob I have is a Bug knob as supplied by Vintage Speed. Spyder knob is a li'l different and I don't know of a supplier of the exact correct knob. Here's another int shot with the shifter displayed. This is from a Mechum auction of an Alloy Cars replica.
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Went through the archives and found this of a 502 Motorworks high-end replica (from Monterey a few years ago). This looks like what you are describing, but maybe shows it in better detail. It's a mushroom shape, but a little different from the Bug mushroom.
As any scoutmaster will tell you, not all mushrooms are the same.
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found it. Fibersteel. 
But the price...
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If all you need is the knob (guessing Fibersteel won't sell that as a separate piece), this looks like something that would be a good candidate for 3D printing — and you could spec threads that fit your shifter.
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Fibersteel does make some nice stuff. I have a set of drumskins from them. Also, the front jack points(faux style, not for actual use).
But honestly that shifter is a STOCK-style VW shifter in a cheap steel box with a fancy $2 plastic custom-made knob. $1455? They are a bit too big for their britches over there. They could sell it for $500 and make a ton of profit on it.
And that is why I won't buy anything from them today, they've added the P-tax for replica stuff.
I bought a custom 3D-printed gauge pod, intended for a GTI, and installed it in my Cayman. It was $75 delivered in a week. I'd wager anyone with a 3D printer could sell the knob alone for less than $50 and do quite well.
Get me some white plastic or better yet some aluminum stock and I'll make it for you on my lathe. Then paint it white(I think Marty did this in his former IM).
If you can turn it from Al, you can turn it from Nylon, and skip the paining part. Just sayin' . . .
So you've operated a lathe Kelly?
Plastic sometimes is rough after machining, aluminum is sturdier, finishes better and will hold up to more abuse. Just one opinion...
Powder coat it ivory and clear and it will last almost forever.
Find Ed some ivory-colored nylon(it has to be the CORRECT ivory). Good luck with that.
My machinist said he could turn it down from nylon. He's a Bug guy so he knows the color scheme.
Well yes, I have done a little very simple machining, but I have witnessed (and directed) a great deal at the hand of a few masters. If you have the right profile, I bet a CNC guy could have the first one out in ~30 mins, and the next 100 in another 5 mins each. Just guessing.
My first real job was in a machine shop that made automatic valves for all sorts of industrial applications. (Natural gas pipeines, refineries, nuclear power plants)
We made seals and shims out of all kinds of plastics: Teflon, Abs, Nylon, Viton. Some of it you had to turn really slow, some really fast.
But I have to say, 3D printing would probably be a better way to go with a mushroom shiftknob.
Suddenly, I feel like following in my 12-year-old grandson's footsteps and ask Santa for a 3-D printer for Christmas.
I thought about buying a 3-D printer, but decided that it would probably just end up in frequent, awkward requests for more magenta...
Looks really right, Ed. You've nailed the height, too!
Thanks. It's about as close as I'm going to get with a Brandwood shifter. It works pretty well too.
