1980 Hatch Project

[AjentX]

so ive had this car for about a month now.. haven't done to much with it but look at (and begin disassembling) the engine.. but i did some work today.. im just hoping it comes out as nice as some of the cars ive seen on here..

well heres what ive done so far

TRUNK

Before



After



this is the first time ive ever done this ever i think i did pretty good . thats about it so far.. after looking on here though its really inspired me so i should be doin some serious work real soon.

[1982 niGhTmare]

Cool. Looks like the wire wheel worked out pretty good for you

Look forward to some good progress

[AjentX]

yeah it worked great better than i thought it would lol.. but there is some rust around the sunroof.. (ill get pics soon) what can you use to fix that? do i have to use like the plastic filler stuff then repaint.. or is there some other way?.. i need to at least do something to stop the rust.. (i do have the car covered with a tarp but still) thanks a lot i dont know how project this car really is..

THINGS NEED DOING

1. fix/replace engine
2. fix/replace front suspension
3. re-do weather stripping
4. ..what ever comes up when i start driving it.. lol

[AjentX]

so.. long time no.. anything really.. well its been raining here for basically the entire winter and between school and girlfriends there's just no time to work but i did start again just yesterday! I've decided to just tear everything out from under the hood and get all new parts.. there's just to much rush and banged up broken stuff that i don't think i can really keep any of it..

i was (at first) looking to restore the original engine (2.3L N/A) but now it looks like it would be cheaper to just go ahead and get a 302 (5.0L) so it looks like that's what I'm going to do..

any suggestions where to start or ANYTHING would just be awesome.. thanks again guys.. I really hope/want this car to come out really good.. I want to take it on a road trip one day with some other mustangs

[AjentX]

So.. got the seats out and most of the bolts left holding in that engine.. got most of the rust off the runners! they can move forward and backward again! small step but a step none-the-less..

[AjentX]

So.. got the seats out and most of the bolts left holding in that engine.. got most of the rust off the runners! they can move forward and backward again! small step but a step none-the-less..

[kj_80Cobra]

You need to get some rust converter; such as Ospho, Metal Prep, Rust-Mort, picklex20, etc., to treat that spare tire well and any other areas of rust that you use the wire wheel on. It will treat the remaining rust and help protect the metal until you can repaint those areas.

[AjentX]

You need to get some rust converter; such as Ospho, Metal Prep, Rust-Mort, picklex20, etc., to treat that spare tire well and any other areas of rust that you use the wire wheel on. It will treat the remaining rust and help protect the metal until you can repaint those areas.

yeah that would be a good idea.. how much does that stuff run? also should i put it on the paint around it that is cracking? and should i remove that paint?

i was going to look under the seats at the floor pans today.. it looks like under the drivers seat (where the carpet is rotted out because the sun roof leaks) it is NOT rusty!! some great news there.. i was really ready for it to be..

I'm also working on getting the back of the back seat out..

[kj_80Cobra]

yeah that would be a good idea.. how much does that stuff run? also should i put it on the paint around it that is cracking? and should i remove that paint?

Use the wire wheel on any loose and cracking paint because it may have rust under it. I would then sand those areas down too. Then wipe down with rust converter all areas that you have sanded. The cost of the stuff varies with brand and quantity. I can tell you that I used a 32 oz container of PickleX20 on my resto job and it did half the car practically. Call your local auto parts stores and auto paint supply stores and ask them what they have for rust converters.

I had rust in my spare tire well also. This is after sanding and cutting out one section.

[AjentX]

Use the wire wheel on any loose and cracking paint because it may have rust under it. I would then sand those areas down too. Then wipe down with rust converter all areas that you have sanded. The cost of the stuff varies with brand and quantity. I can tell you that I used a 32 oz container of PickleX20 on my resto job and it did half the car practically. Call your local auto parts stores and auto paint supply stores and ask them what they have for rust converters.

I had rust in my spare tire well also. This is after sanding and cutting out one section.

alright cool! that's good to know.. should I also put some on he outside by the sunroof where there is rust? and do normal paint places carry the colors of the car or will I have to go somewhere like a ford paint store?

[kj_80Cobra]

Treating the outside metal for rust is different. It will depend on how bad the rust is because there could be much more under the roof skin in the framework too. Decent auto paint does not come in a spray can. Quality auto paint is carried by auto paint supply stores and must be mixed with the proper reducer for that paint product at the time it is going to be sprayed on the car. Some supply stores sell PPG brand paint and some sell Dupont or other brands but all brands can be mixed to get the correct color of your car if you give them the paint code from the door id tag and the year and make of the car. If you care to read about body work and painting there is tons of info on the web, here is one example. Search and you will find lots more.

[AjentX]

so how do I find out if there is more under the roof skin?

and I figured that I would not use a rattle can.. I just wondered how much more it would be to go and get the actual ford brand paint.. and if that extra cost I worth it or if it's just as food to get off-brand..

[TimS532]

You should put pics of your car on here, Id like to see it.

Thanks and good luck with your project,
Tim

[AjentX]

you can see 25 pics of it in my album section though they are from last summer when I got the car. I will post some updated pics soon in this thread.. of the intirior all emptied out and up top where the rust is..

[TimS532]

Thanks

[AjentX]

Seats taken out and in garage and been de-rusted (somewhat)





Top rust.. had to leave the tarp on.. its a wet rainy day here don't want it to get worse..






Where the seats use to be






Floor pan under the drivers seat surprisingly NOT rusted!! even though that's right where the rain dropped from the leaky sunroof and the carpet is rotted out.. so sometimes good things do happen!





And I'll get some shots under the hood when its not so wet.. but it looks like it's going to be another week till that can happen..

[AjentX]

Oh and the "paint" that's cracking is like 1/8th inch thick.. is this just paint is something else coming up with it?

(don't want to tear it all out then find out i shouldn't have )

[kj_80Cobra]

so how do I find out if there is more under the roof skin?

The only way to tell is to sand away at the roof to expose the metal and then cut out some of the bad area and look at the support pieces. Those pictures look like the roof is very bad. Usually leaks around the sunroof cause lots of rot on the inside too. I would suspect that car is a candidate for a replacement roof skin and some major rust clean up.

You can get quality paint at any auto paint supply store. All the brands make various grades of paint. You could spend $100 - $1000 on paint.

[AjentX]

The only way to tell is to sand away at the roof to expose the metal and then cut out some of the bad area and look at the support pieces. Those pictures look like the roof is very bad. Usually leaks around the sunroof cause lots of rot on the inside too. I would suspect that car is a candidate for a replacement roof skin and some major rust clean up.

so does this lower the integraty of the car to where I should look at this before driving it? and if it needs to be replaced then how much does that usually cost and how big a job is it? like replace the whole top of my car? or just the supports?

You can get quality paint at any auto paint supply store. All the brands make various grades of paint. You could spend $100 - $1000 on paint.

oh wow.. well I'm hoping more the 100$ side lol..

[kj_80Cobra]

You should read all of this thread.
http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthread.php?t=86262

another thread to read
http://vb.foureyedpride.com/showthread.php?t=64153

another site to look at
http://www.forced4.com/projectgaller...ty/rusty7.html

[AjentX]

So yet another nothing day.. Oregon rain sucks so much.. lol.. wish i had a garage i could put my car in to work on it..

On another note.. is there anyone in the Salem, Oregon area that knows of a good scrap yard around or anyone that knows how to find one?

Oh also I did take a look at those other threads and it looks like some work but do-able..

[AjentX]

attempted to take out the center console but got rained on.. and i couldn't get at all the wiring behind it to get it out.. all i need is a third hand lol..

anyway.. plan is to take out center and take out carpet then see how rusted (or hopefully not) the floor is.. ill keep you updated and post some more pics soon..

[AjentX]

so weather says it's going to rain untill Wednesday

[AjentX]

Yay! my birthday in just a few hours! (turnin 20) worked on my car a little today.. only dry day for a while so i figured i should lol.. got most of the cables undone from the back of the center console (one more to go quite inaccessible some advise would be AWESOME).. lol ill keep you guys updated..

[jredline1984]

Hey Happy Birthday! Looks like a fun project, best of luck!