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1965 American 440

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KermitDRambler View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote KermitDRambler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/16/2012 at 1:45pm

The gas tanks are the same basic shape from 64-69 but the filler neck is in a different place on a wagon than other body styles. Also, there were venting changes over the years. My 67 wagon has a fitting for a vent hose but the 68 American I had did not.

Matt
1967 American wagon

http://www.mattsoldcars.com
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ramblinfsj View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ramblinfsj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/16/2012 at 3:19pm
Originally posted by kronik kronik wrote:

I think the gas tank was damaged when the car was pulled from a ditch or something.  They hooked the cable to the rear axle and the tension on the cable dented the tank so bad that it's creased it and it has a hole now.  I think that's why the car was parked years ago.  
The same exact thing happened to my '62 Classic but not only did they crush the gas tank, it broke a couple suspension parts and pulled the engine from their mounts. The drivetrain is a torque tube so all the components from front to rear are mounted solid to each other.
1982 Jeep J-20
1965 Rambler American 220
1978 Jeep Cherokee w/401
1983 Jeep J-10
1979 Concord DL 2dr
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote kronik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/17/2012 at 7:41pm
I went on a spontaneous camping trip for a few days and I meant to post some pics of my progress before I left but never got around to it, but here they are...


Filling trim and "american" script holes.  I also got rid of the antenna hole, side view mirror and rear door handles.











The front fender was replaced by the previous owner, they didn't fix the splash shield underneath, so the fender didn't line up right.  There was also a dent on the cowling that I needed access to, so the fender came off.  I wish I would have gotten some "before" pics of the cowling dent because it was pretty bad and it came out quite nicely.  If I posted the "after" pics, it would just look like a regular cowling (woo-hoo). 




Shaving the back door handles... gotta love it when your patch fits perfect the first try.  You can see the raised edge on the lower left side of the hole under the blue tape.  You wanna find those edges and knock em level before you fill holes, as I had to redo several of mine.  The metal distortion is most likely caused by pulling on the door handle over the years.








Surface rust covered the roof, trunk lid and hood.  In my experience old cars with red paint often fade and lose their protective qualities faster than others.  At this point I have sanded half the roof down to bare metal.  I have to use an etch primer or epoxy primer now that I have taken it down to bare metal. 




The hood hasn't been sanded on yet, that's just the 4-tone rusty faded paint.  This is my practice body and paint car.  I figure if I mess up the paint job, it will still look better and be more protected than it was.  If it comes out good, I will be doing my 67 that you see their on the right.




After working on the cowling dent and straitening the splash shield, I was able to put on and line the fender back up.  The fender that the car came with is from a 64 american.  You can tell by the chrome strip location, this is one way to differentiate between 64 and 65 americans from the side.  On the 64s (notice the fender) the chrome is lower, and would stop in the middle of the door.  On 65's the chrome is higher on the body and runs all the way to the back.  I used this tell when purchasing the car; it was advertised as a 64 but I knew it was a 65.  Anyways... rather than finding the correct 65 trim for the front fender and re-drilling holes, I will be removing and replacing all the side trim with a black ghost stripe.




Almost done sanding all rust and feathering paint chips and scratches.  Dents have been hammered, filled and blocks sanded (for hours).  Antenna, side mirror, rear door handles, script and trim holes have been removed and filled.  Rust on the cowling and a pretty dented rocker panel were the major fixes.  I regret not getting any "before" pics of them.  Now it's about time to clean up, hang my paint booth and shoot some primer.  I am self taught and this is my first time doing bodywork and paint.  All work has been done by me, and I have to say... I'm quite happy with the outcome thus far.  It's been a lot of work (mostly by hand), but it should be worth it in the end.  I think that you get a certain special kind of feeling when you do your own work.




This is an earlier pic, the side has been stripped by this point.  Just a view of my shop as it sits now and some of my cars.  67 (black, on the left)  62 (geen brown, in the back) and 61 (black, in the back).  They're dusty from sanding on the 65... I usually don't let them get like that.




Well that pretty much sums up the work I did last week.  Tomorrow I will probably be getting back at it.  And more pics should be coming soon.
65 American
67 American
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nukeday View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote nukeday Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/17/2012 at 11:26pm
Nice! I'm looking forward to coming to see you.

For bodywork, I'm so green I'd love to just look at the tools and equipment you're using, and ask you a million questions.

Curious if there is a photo-chopper on the site that might have done the car up as you'd like it to look finished? 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Richtom1 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/18/2012 at 5:59pm
You are quite right, red usually fades the fastest.

When I pulled the headliner out of my 69 AMX I found the inside roof similar to the rust yours shows. I wanted to do something with the rusty roof interior.   After scraping and prepping I brushed Eastwoods Rust Encapsulator on  then waited the necessary time and brushed a second coat on.  The next day I brushed on a coat of Rustoleum white waited and then brushed on a second coat.

It's important for everyone to note that any sanding and/or grinding done in the vicinity of another car can lead to small rust spots showing on the paint.  Sometimes even overnight.  If a person has to grind near another car make sure to cover any car nearby and/or blow the particles off so they won't stay on and contaminate the cars finish.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 69grumbler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/24/2012 at 1:40am
looking good was this rambler on spokane craigslist if i remember correct, i just bought another 69 up here in spokane.
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kronik View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote kronik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/24/2012 at 4:31pm
Yes, actually it was on the Spokane CL.  Fortunately the guy was buying a car down here in Portland the same weekend, so he was already heading here with the trailer.  Delivered the car for no charge.  He said he wanted to find a buyer that was gonna fix up the car and not part it out.

I finished the first coat of primer yesterday... I'l probably post some pics later after I get em off my camera.
65 American
67 American
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote kronik Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/25/2012 at 2:49pm
Finally got it ready to shoot some primer on it.  I had to move my cars out of the shop so I could set up a makeshift paint booth.  It sat outside uncovered for a couple hours; luckily the weather has been on my side the last few days.  It has been sunny in the upper 70's / lower 80's lately, which is a nice change from the Oregon rain.








By the way... the bird that went poo on my rear window is no longer with us anymore.  It has been a constant battle between that me and that g..Censored..mn bird.  She had a nest in my shop, probably used to invite her friends over to poo on my cars too Angry.  I swear they knew which ones I was working on and they would always aim for them.  If I left a window down, you could see where they would sit up in the rafters (carefully aiming i'm sure) and try to drop bombs INSIDE my car.  Well between Me, a buddy of mine and a little help from my cat.  I haven't had any bird problems lately.




Well I thought it would be a good idea to move the car outside since it was nice and all.  I didn't expect my car to be covered in polled from the nearby blooming spring flowers.  It wasn't that big a deal though, I was already gonna spray it down really good with the compressor and wipe the whole thing down with wax & grease remover before it got paint.




Okay, so here's my $40 paint booth LOL.  It's 25'x18' made with 10' sections of 3/4" pvc conduit ($1.35ea @ home depot), some 2x4's for a frame on the bottom, and painters pastic.  It's not the best booth I have made, but it's the biggest.  All i did was lay 2x4 frame on the ground, drill some 7/8" holes in the frame directly across from each other.  Then took a 30' lengths of pvc, arch em over and stuck the ends in the holes.  It wouldn't stand up freely, so I had to tie it to my rafters in a couple spots.  Overall it was pretty easy.  As an added bonus, I can break it down and set it back up whenever I want, for less than $20 for replacement plastic.  I know it's not professional... but then again, neither am I.




Got her in the booth, wiped clean of all pollen, fingerprints and dust.  Masked and ready to go.  I forgot about it at the time, but raising the car a few inches helps get access to the low spots on the panels.  Next time I will put the car on stands before I paint.  I didn't miss any spots (that I could find) but it sure would have been nice just to have 2 more inches of clearence when spraying the rocker panels




Drab grey olive-ish primer.  A very ugly color indeed... but I love it!  Sure looks better than rusty orange-red with the optional dents, chips and scratches.  Most importantly though, the car is protected from rust.  I used Finish 1 brand etch primer FP301 and FT302 reducer.








The next step is some high build primer and more sanding.











Edited by kronik - Apr/26/2012 at 12:36am
65 American
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ramblinfsj View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ramblinfsj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr/25/2012 at 4:25pm
Nice work on the primer. I'm glad you got it on there too. I'm against Rambler nudity. That is a lot of darn bodywork and you did a great job from what I can see. I'm diggin' the paint booth too.
1982 Jeep J-20
1965 Rambler American 220
1978 Jeep Cherokee w/401
1983 Jeep J-10
1979 Concord DL 2dr
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote nukeday Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May/03/2012 at 2:06pm
Lovin' how you get things done. I wasn't sure what to expect, but both the body work and the paint booth look pretty darn good. Keep the updates coming, looking forward to seeing the finished car in person.

There is a little annual car show in Coburg first Saturday in August. There was a guy who used to bring an early American, but not sure if he's still around. We're hoping to have ours there this year, even though we may end up just pushing it over there.
Rambler/Datsun/Saab fan
'60 American Super
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