[joshman]

Well I finally found a reputeable place to get my car redone. I ened up going with a Custom Hot Rod Shop. They are going to start taking it apart I think next week or so and get it ready for plastic material blasting to remove all the paint and any rust. He gave me a tour of the entire place as well as the complete process from start to finish.

Depending on what on want to get done it looks like it is going to run me about 3-4k. Not bad for a nearly full restorartion. The also do interior and performance work. I'll make sure to take pictures of the entire process since the shop is only like five minutes from home. All they guys seem really cool and they definately know their stuff. The place kind of reminded me of the show on TLC, American Hot Rod. I think that is the show of Boyd Customs.

They also have a very nice website for a local company, here is the link. Doug Jenkins Custom Hot Rods

*EDIT* I didn't want to start a new post so I will ask the question here. I am getting the Vis Mugen copy front bumper installed which requires the jdm hood and lights. So my question is, can I just use locking hood pins so I don't have to worry about the stock hood latch?

My current hood latch takes two people to open it now. One to pull the handle under the dash, the other to push down then pull up on the hood. I've heard of some alignment issues with the jdm hood so I figure this might be a possible alternative. Also if anyone has any other info that I should pass on to the body shop, please let me know.

Thanks,

Joshua

 

[ComposiMo]

I applaud you for deciding to do it the right way.... not very many people choose to spend the extra $$ and takie a car down that far.

I'm looking for a shell myself to do something similar with... it'll probably not wind up being an oem restoration though. But alas, i can't wait to see how it comes out. Remember, pay for an extra coat or two of clear, so that it can be wet-sanded to a glass-smooth shine.

Couple pointers for ya just in case you hadn't thought about them yet... One big mistake i've seen a lot of 'street rod' paint shops make on these imports, is they use the wrong primer on the polyurethane... I'm not sure which it is (i can find out if you want), but if they use a normal primer, even with flex-agent, it can still spiderweb and crack off very badly during a light tap that normally shouldn't hurt it. The primer considered 'right' for this won't do that, and it'll save the paint job in the event of a light collision (heaven forbid).

One more thing.... probably goes without saying, but i've almost had it done to me... make absolutely sure that when they put your windows back in, that they use ACTUAL OEM Honda clips, seals, and so forth. Believe me, even the seals that the window companies -swear- as oem, are NOT even close... don't take their word for it... be there in person when they put the glass in. Dunno about you, but this is a very key issue with me, because of how anal i am about stuff like that. There is no sense in doing the kind of work you aree doing if they go off and put the aftermarket cruddy seals in

Shoot pleeeeenty of pics 8)

 

[joshman]

No input on the hood latch? I was thinking four hood pins should be plenty, two locking and two just using pins. I'm not really into the look but I figure it would be easier than messing with the latch alignment issues.

Another question, paint color, should I stick with the stock Rio Red, R-63 i think, or should i choose a different red. I was checking out Milano Red the other day. I believe the color code is R-81 but not really sure. Any suggestions?

 

[ComposiMo]

Does it make much sense to spend that kind of money, and time on a car, only to drill two (or more) holes in the hood, and pin it down?

I say go with the OEM hood latch, and do whatever is necessary to make it work. The hot rod shop should be more than capable.

As far as the color is concerned, well.... that is way too personal of a question to be asking other people for their opinions on. From a dollars-n-cents perspective, stick to the same color, because then your paint will match in the door jams and under the hood. However, from a 'custom is cool' perspective, if you can alter the factory paint color, and don't mind paying extra for the door jambs and under hood spray, i say change the color...... but TO what color? Only you can decide that.

 

[sneaky_pete]

As far as the color is concerned, well.... that is way too personal of a question to be asking other people for their opinions on. From a dollars-n-cents perspective, stick to the same color, because then your paint will match in the door jams and under the hood. However, from a 'custom is cool' perspective, if you can alter the factory paint color, and don't mind paying extra for the door jambs and under hood spray, i say change the color...... but TO what color? Only you can decide that.

I totally agree with John on this. Nothing is worse then seeing a nice paint job, and the guy opens the door, and there is the old factory color! That's half-assing it in my opinion!

I don't think that is going to be a problem with this car however, since they are stripping it down, and media blasting it down to the metal. I believe that they will be painting the inside as well.

Am I correct on that?

As far as the hood goes, I would definitely get the hood lined up and use the oem latch. It will look so much cleaner then having hood pins. I wouldn't think that this shop would have any trouble getting things to line up. Remember, they do hot rods, so you're talking about 30+ year old cars that have to have all the panels lined up properly again.

Good luck with your project!

later

Sneak

 

[rex2nr]

color, do you want it to be a custom color? or stock? if you choose custom, definitely do the door jams and under the hood. If your car was black, you could get by with leaving the under hood, but I would still paint the door jams.

I'm planning on painting mine a gunmetal, I think its a Dupont color, 2 stage pewter, this spring. I'm painting the door jams, but leaving the engine bay black, kinda taking the old muscle car influence, and the cheaper route . I also don't really want to take the time to strip the engine bay to hit everything. I am going to mask off under the tops of the fenders.