SAAC Forum

During assembly the front and rear aprons overlap onto the shock towers. On the flat horizontal area where the fenders bolt on you can see distinct spot welds.

These overlap areas are very prone to rust.

Lazy shops will hack out the rot and fill the hole with bondo or fiberglass.

Some will sandblast the area to remove the rot and fill with bondo or fiberglass

some will tack or weld in a single piece of metal and fill either side with bondo

proper repair requires cutting out the area and spot welding new metal in

It's one of the easiest areas to spot if a car has corrosion.......and more importantly the level of repair



The most ingenious repair I've seen as I live in a rust belt and most cars here have corrosion in that area was:
sandblasting out the corrosion being sure to get out the black corrosion ensuring it doesn't come back, tacking in a piece of metal in the center of the hole where two layers of metal once was and filling the area with bondo.......then as the bondo was setting.....take and HB pencil and press the eraser into the bondo that is still setting up which leaves a depression the same size as an original spot weld

bring a magnet or paint thickness guage to check the thickness of the paint in this area. Get on your knees and look above the front tires at the same area with a bright flashlight from below......rarely is the area fixed properly from the underside

300-350 estimate by Mecum

I always wanted on of the white Shelby team jackets and learned that Michael had reproduced them. A trip took me to SoCal so I dropped in to see him his shop. What a great place. Some people have a gift, Michael had a gift and passion for all things Shelby. The memorial booklet he put together (in a very tight timeliine) was incredible. The way his shop was decorated had his touch.

The team jackets were simply awesome. What hit me was his integrity.......as a purist that appreciated historical items and knowing that the detail in his jackets were spot on. Michael changed a couple details so that his jackets once they acquired some patina could be differentiated from a 60's original. That's a classy move.

Godspeed Michael

Thanks for posting Bob

Those are wonderful.....I pulled up the ones available on the West Coast

https://secure.cougarpartscatalog.com/69panpatch-cv-ds.html?attribs=88

It's great to see somebody paying attention to the details....as nice as the West Coast panels are they have some wrinkles that yours don't, as you point out it took securing the plates together to rid the end product of these wrinkles. A talented welder can fill those in.

Are these what are referred to as "sand cast" Webers?
 
If not what is the difference between Italian Webers and sand cast ones?

Thx

Thanks!!!

Thanks Bob and 67GT500.

We did adjust the steering box, it took a little of the slop out but had no real effect on the sticky feel. 67.....I have the same feel at low speeds as at highway.

My preference is for original parts......I see Jim Cowles sells rebuilt original boxes....one of the guys on the rally has a Flaming River box and swears by it, the entire unit is new.

Thanks again for the input.....I'll report back tonight with any new developments.

Godspeed Steven

He was one of a kind.

Tenacious, passionate, resourceful, knowledgeable and unique.

I learned a lot from Steven...…….when I first met him, he sold me a 900 mile Hemi Cuda and I wondered why anyone would sell such a great car. He explained that he had just secured a cutaway display Hemi engine and one of the Billboard posters and had no need for the car anymore......I just didn't get it but Steven was way ahead of the curve.

It was a chance encounter with Ed Meyer that changed his life. Special Ed mentored Steven on the rights and wrongs in the parts and automobilia world. It all started with a Mopar clock.


Years later when he set up the building in CA I helped out for a few days......it was a collectors dream. The building was a blank slate. We mocked up each entire wall on the floor before putting it up for final installation. I would tell him that we had an 18" x 40" or 36" x 24" space and he would come out with another sign or poster to fill the space. I still have scabs on my knees from that week. He must have bought 5 miles of Velcro to put it all together.

The best sign I've EVER seen was at the Grand opening of the collection. He had one of those signs with interchangeable black letters. It simply said "Ed Meyer ruined my life". One of the displays has an unused pad of tickets for a sweepstakes draw. Someone actually filled one out and asked were to put it...…..Steven simply smiled.

When he was diagnosed it was a sad day...…..sometime later he mentioned that everyone he had been in treatment with had passed away. Then he called and was simply over the moon. His doctor told him that he had an experimental chemo and asked Steven if he would be the first patient. Steven asked what it was and the doc simply said he called it "GTX"...….Steven being a devout Mopar fan just about lost it. Doc.....put it in me now!!!!

Truth is stranger than fiction sometimes......Steven wrote a novel in his lifetime.

Blue oval and Penastar blood cells for life.

Miss ya Steven. You taught me a lot.