Comments: Restoration of GT series 2

[opelspyder]

Please post all comments here on the new restoration. Any advice, memories, or inspirations (motivations) are aprreciated. Remember, I still have to follow the wishes of the customer, but sometimes I speak up to what is the right thing to do.
Keith

[jvandyke]

Glad to see your willing to take the time to post this stuff. Thanks!
BTW that belly pan looks good for another 50,000 to me
And yes, that Yellow is a great GT color.

[namba209]

Keith, IDK if you have a vapor blaster like a K'Archer or a Husky, but it will sure make easy work of cleaning the underside of the car. On Willit?, I didn't have the luxury of a lift, so I just jacked up the rear, cleaned it, then the front and did that also. In fact the whole car got the vapor blaster treatment, when it was a shell. I did remove some paint from under the hood where the prep work wasn't the best by the PO when he changed the color, but it did remove all the oil and grime post haste.

[SpringGT]

Keith,
Yellow was always my favorite stock GT color too. They didn't have any of that color left when I bought mine at the end of the 1973 model year.
Bob

[2 Fast 4 U]

Sure is eazy if you can raise the car like that to remove the engine

[opelwasp]

This thread is great. I wish someone had written it 10 years ago when I started building my own engines. It would have answered many questions I had. The process you are documenting should be followed for any rebuild mild or wild. I never even heard of plastigauge till after my first rebuild, wish I had. Part of this thread should become a sticky.

[tomking]

I agree, a very good and useful thread. One question Keith. On your last photo showing the sealant on the rear main seal, I assume you have put sealant all over the top surface of the rubber seal? But it doesnt look like the rubber seal has the little feet that protrude and seal against the block surface? Did you also put sealant beneath the rubber seal, in the groove I mean? Thanks.

[opelspyder]

Guys, please post all your comments for the 72 restoration here. It will keep the thread easier to understand. Gary, can you please move the last posts over to this thread?
Thanks
Keith

[opelspyder]

The rear main does have the little "fingers" that help hold it in. I use sealant on the outside edge of the whole seal, to yes, seal all around to the block. You cannot see the ridges due to the sealant.
Keith

[Sparky73]

I'm really enjoying your thread on the rebuild. Could you post some pictures of the work you did on the belly pan? I am currently trying to figure out mine as I think it is as bad, if not worse then the one your working on.. lol

[opelspyder]

Wow, its great that someone remembered the comments section to the project...good job!!!! I just put the inside to primer. Honestly I am only making the inside look good, the outside, and edges still have pinholes from sand blasting. Why leave them you ask, because I will be glueing the front air dam to this and it seems redundant to spend hours reworking them. I also thought long and hard about the underside of the belly pan. You see the inside around the battery tray-so I feel it is important to have it painted nice, but underneath I am going to undercoat it. If someone really wants to bend down to look under the air dam at the underside of the belly pan-It would be the perfect opportunity to kick them in the tail. You get my point. I will take some pics Tues or Wed
Keith

[Sparky73]

Hey I really appreciate the pictures. Great work on the belly pan and good luck on that rear corner! . Just out of curiousity, would you happen to know if Opel GT Source's fiberglass replica is complete as that? My bellypan has a good 12-15" area gone due to rust and someone with a hack saw. Weird because the rest of the car is 100% solid.

[namba209]

Originally Posted by Sparky73 My bellypan has a good 12-15" area gone due to rust and someone with a hack saw. Weird because the rest of the car is 100% solid.

Kinda off topic just a bit, but I'm wondering if the PO did that to take out the battery, like they do on the AC equipped GTs. With the condensor in front of the radiator, that's how the battery has to be removed and installed.

[tomking]

Originally Posted by Sparky73 Hey I really appreciate the pictures. Great work on the belly pan and good luck on that rear corner! . Just out of curiousity, would you happen to know if Opel GT Source's fiberglass replica is complete as that? My bellypan has a good 12-15" area gone due to rust and someone with a hack saw. Weird because the rest of the car is 100% solid.

If that is all the area that is bad, then dont go to the trouble and expense of replacing the pan; just repair it. with that little area bad it should be easily repaired with new sheet metal. My pan was about like yours in bad area and it was easily repaired.

[opelspyder]

Anything is repairable-within reason though. The pan will still need to be removed just to beat out the dents. The fiberglass one from GT source is not finished out that nice on the inside-and requires lots of fitting to make it right. Don't think I would want to do one again. Try locating a better one, its always better to start with something in better shape, but do what you can...just remember what end result you are looking for
Keith

[newman27]

Originally Posted by Sparky73 ...Just out of curiousity, would you happen to know if Opel GT Source's fiberglass replica is complete as that?...

FYI - this post has a clear photo of the OGTS fiberglass belly pan before being installed on my GT (later posts show it being installed). Keith did a great job of blending this in and I love that it is fiberglass and one less thing to worry about rusting. However, I do remember Keith saying it was a lot of work and not easy.

Matt

[2 Fast 4 U]

Keith, in post #30 you have some photo's of the rear left end of the car , how are you going to remove al those small dents

[opelspyder]

I thought I mentioned that-I am not. I have lined up a rear panel and side piece I will replace it with. I could spend hours, and still have lots of body filler in it, or a couple of hours and have a better piece grafted in, and then a minimum amount of filler in it. I was not happy when I saw that, but nothing is ever easy over here
keith

[blancojp]

Originally Posted by opelspyder I thought I mentioned that-I am not. I have lined up a rear panel and side piece I will replace it with. I could spend hours, and still have lots of body filler in it, or a couple of hours and have a better piece grafted in, and then a minimum amount of filler in it. I was not happy when I saw that, but nothing is ever easy over here keith

Just cut the existing panel, roll it and re-weld back in place. That is what we would have done to the panel and also the belly pan.

[opelspyder]

Oh, to me I found its actually quicker and easier to replace the whole panel, than to try to fix it sometimes. Only problem is finding good panels used from time to time. I will cut along the factory seams of the filler neck panel, and butt weld around the passenger rear fender well all in one piece, well two factory pieces together, the rear window lip is a good hiding spot for one of the seams. I guess when you say rolling, you are talking about slip rolling a new panel? or rolling a flange? I am going to just cut out of another car, that way I know I won't have to build up filler for a factory body line in the rear. I like to butt weld, as I feel the flange still is a good place for rust develop, if you cannot prep behind it properly.
Keith

[opelspyder]

I reread your post BlancoJP, and now understood what you meant. I thought about cutting out the panel and hammering it back out, and then putting on a english wheel to smooth out. Only problem is that that causes the metal to stretch out way too much, without relief cutting or using heat. Then you still have to refit. Why not use what the factory already did for you, and use a used nice piece, and know the lines will work. Its actually pretty time consuming to cut and beat out and english wheel out. Kinda like polishing a turd all day-at the end of the day, you still got a turd.
Keith

[blancojp]

Originally Posted by opelspyder I reread your post BlancoJP, and now understood what you meant. I thought about cutting out the panel and hammering it back out, and then putting on a english wheel to smooth out. Only problem is that that causes the metal to stretch out way too much, without relief cutting or using heat. Then you still have to refit. Why not use what the factory already did for you, and use a used nice piece, and know the lines will work. Its actually pretty time consuming to cut and beat out and english wheel out. Kinda like polishing a turd all day-at the end of the day, you still got a turd. Keith

It all depends on what type of wheel you use and how much pressure you apply to the panel. No matter how you do it, using the dolly method will also strech the metal.

[Sparky73]

Originally Posted by tomking If that is all the area that is bad, then dont go to the trouble and expense of replacing the pan; just repair it. with that little area bad it should be easily repaired with new sheet metal. My pan was about like yours in bad area and it was easily repaired.

I have considered this a few times, but like opelspyder said, sometimes it's just easier to replace. As you can see in the pictures, the belly pan is basically dented beyond repair. You cannot even tell what the original shape is supposed to be LOL. Plus the whole front end is where the rust is the worst, so much will have to be worked on with the belly pan removed. I really don't think I want to try to work with the Opel GT Source pan. I'm sure I have the skills to make it work, but I'd just rather start with something that needs a little less work.

But this is a thread for OpelSpyder's project.. so I will keep it like that

[Sparky73]

Project's lookin good! I definitely notice a different with the front kit. Really bring me back to my first GT that I also put a full body kit on. Aren't those side skirts FUN? .

[2 Fast 4 U]

Keith, this is looking very good, can't wait to see when you smooth the welds out with filler