VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 Can't Take the Car Apart any Further

Plastic bead blasting has been finished on my 38 body. There is nothing left that I can remove so I'm officially at ground zero. I'm very happy with the condition.

The plastic bead blasting removes paint but leaves the original metal finish which has some kind of an almost galvanized look. A body stamp was exposed on the roof and I've attached a picture. It appears that even though my car was built by GM Canada, the steel was imported from Bethlehem Lackawanna Plant near Buffalo. I'll get better pictures of the stamp on the roof before body prep removes it...

Congratulations on your progress! The body sure appears to be in pretty good shape. I know that you will pleased with the final results.

wow, she's gonna be a beauty. I don't think I will ever strip my 38 down, she's like an older gal that wear a lot of makeup to look younger.

Tim, the body looks amazing. I didn't know such stamping marks existed and have never heard them mentioned before. This is going to be one beautiful car!

Thanks guys. It's nice to start at this point but a lot of work and suddenly every detail matters. Like trying to blast/prime and finally paint the 4 underbody corners where the rotisserie is bolted. The body is so light I think I could lay it on its side on some carpeting lol. The original bolts even though in great condition suddenly look really crappy.

I have GM numbers stamped on some of the hood sides as well. The plastic bead blasting takes it back to the point where the factory was prepping it for paint. It would be nice if it removed a bit more as I have to hit everything with a DA sander, but with the current factory condition exposed, the blaster said it can sit for months in our climate without rusting which takes the pressure off. Especially since I need to rough it up before epoxy prime.

The guy that blasted it has been doing high end restorations for 40 years and mentioned a couple times it was one of the cleanest cars he's ever seen. I really don't think there is any rust repair needed. I still need to sandblast the floor and underside as the bead just cleaned it so we'll see if any holes appear but any rust seems superficial so far...

Tim,
I have spent some time this week at our HASC meet in Muskoka. There was a nice 38 Pontiac there and I had a good look at it. The body appears to be very similar to the 38 Chev from the doors back. The front grill and sheet metal are different and I think the headlights are mounted on the fenders. It had the speed line from the front fender continuing through the front door.

Did you get the guy's contact information? I've kept track of any of these I've encountered over the years, Was it a Coupe? Yep they used the Chevy body with a front end that looked like the USA Pontiacs but shorter.

Unfortunately I didn't get the contact information. I have a couple of photos that I will send you.

Spent 5 hours at a DIY sandblasting yard finishing the floors, rusted areas and underside. Of course it ended up being a 95 degree day here which we rarely get but very pleased with the results.

No surprises other than how much hand brazing the factory did. Probably 20 spots, all symmetrical on body and hood where they used brazing. About a half dozen small body "fatigue" cracks rather than rust or holes but tailpan needs a patch on each side where someone hacked in some dumb tail lights.

Garage is now sealed up with heat and dehumidifiers running to keep humidity about 20% (it been low 30's F and rainy as soon as I stripped this! Will be hitting with my DA sander in a few days to refreshen and then epoxy priming EVERYTHING.
Decided to buy those NOS rear fenders as I can see how tired I'm going to get of bodywork so an investment in my sanity.

I would suggest a self-etching primer as your first coat. All it takes is a very thin coat. Then a sealer/primer on top of that. Most epoxy and urethane primers can also be sealers. Check the label or contact the manufacturer for directions. That will give you the strongest bond as well as insuring that any remaining unseen rust is neutralized. If you are painting any aluminum or galvanized metal self-etching primer is a must.

I didn't know that the factory did brazing. That is fascinating.

Tim, blasted car body looks fantastic shape. Pleasant surprise most of us get when we open the carpet and find a holy mess staring back like a swiss cheese slice.

Most difficult part part is getting all the sand blast media out. I'd be rotating that body more than a few times and shop vacuuming it.

Think about getting BEHIND areas that are enclosed, because rusting will start there first. I use a product called one step MADE BY MAR-HYDE thats a RUST CONVERTER. Neutralizes any hidden rust by converting it , turns the rust black . Could not find it locally so bought 3 cans on ebay usa.

For the brass brazzing , definitely spray these areas with the special yellow primer for aluminum and other metals to guarantee primer paint adhesion. You can get it at Can Tire or other suppliers.

mike lynch

I am not aware of the factory using brazing. All those repairs I have seen are after production. I am NOT a fan of brazing sheet metal. It embrittles the steel near the repair. It is not possible to weld anywhere near the braze. It also is susceptible to galvanic corrosion of air and water get to it. Not a good deal in my book.

There are plenty of rust converters on the market. Also some paint over rust products. The quality products encapsulate the rust preventing water and oxygen penetration which is necessary for rust to form. Good advise Mike.

Good info on prepping the brass. Have to look at that. There was a definite pattern to what was brazed and most of it was hidden under deadener and original paint. Will try to get some pictures.

I've always used etching primers but most of the current paint systems want you to avoid etching primers and use epoxy on an 80 grit scratch. I may not get bodywork or paint done for months or years so I'm choosing epoxy as it protects well long term in this type of situation. If I was moving immediately to bodywork and paint, I'd consider some other primer options. Even the polyester filler and high build primers want to be applied on top of epoxy without self etch being anywhere nearby. It seems the paint systems have gotten very weak and finicky as they've made them more environmentally friendly thus the preference of tough epoxy with a mechanical, rather than chemical bond to the base metal. The focus clearly seems to be on keeping the paint attached (for warranty claims) rather than preventing rust.

I did look at PPG's 2 part/step metal prep that is "epoxy friendly". It cleans, removes trace rust, etches and leaves a new phosphate coating but the Tech Sheets say not for blasted metal as you cannot rinse it properly. I plan on sanding the blasted areas immediately before priming but still had a concern soaking and scrubbing EVERYTHING with acid, trying to keep it wet and then washing the sludge off without missing some acid somewhere. Step one is an acid cleaner scrubbed in with scotchbrite, left wet 2 min, washed off leaving a rust color on all metal. Step 2 is same process but leaves a greenish tint to the metal. Any feedback on this type of metal prep Chipper? Link below. (PPG SX579 / SX520 following PDS OC-36) I plan on using DPLF Epoxy. Love to do this metal prep but fear of paint failure and massive stress while trying to do this to a body inside and out quickly in an organized fashion.

https://www.e-bodies.org/Resources/...tal_Treatments_product_sheet_spec_36.pdf

I found out today that I cannot buy the metal prep system here so makes that decision very easy. Seems that containing the sludge washed off is an environmental disaster waiting to happen.
Also stuck with the low VOC version of the epoxy primer, with a new higher price too. Funny thing is the aircraft epoxy primer (blank can with an MSDS stuck to it) they sold me by mistake was $90 USD and this low VOC automotive primer was just under $240 for a gallon. Ya, I debated using the aircraft epoxy since I suspect it's the original recipe of what I bought as the TDS said it was good for cars and boats.

I will need to do some research on these new paint systems. Might be a problem as I suspect my paint contacts have all retired.

https://www.martinsenour-autopaint.com/finish-1/undercoats/finish-1-2k-hs-urethane-primer
2K urethane from a variety of paint vendors makes a great base that sticks to the metal and body prep underneath and resists shrinking. Use over an epoxy type all metal filler for smoothing out imperfections on top of metal repairs and seams, it makes for a fine surface to top with catalyzed acrylic enamel that will polish out great.

Thanks Videoranger. I'm going to look at the products available thru Napa here for the additional layers of prep on this body. I get a huge discount at the local Napa (usually over 50% retail).