The 1964 Thunderbird paint job --- summer of 1998


 
Here are the photos showing the completed 64 Thunderbird project. I finally got the time to do the long promised body work on the car. I bought it back in 1987 and it was my "daily driver" up until 1993. At present (1998) it's got about 240,000 miles on it. It runs great, the engine is just as strong now as it was when I rebuilt it 100,000 miles ago. Yea, I need a wheelcover! (done in 2002 thanks to ebay)

 
I am very curious how the IROC Z28's hopped up Chevy 350 (FI + mild cam) performs compared to this ones 390 (mild cam, ported heads, etc...). Surely the Z28 will out handle the old Tbird, but it won't turn as many heads. This Tbird would blow away my old 76 Monte Carlo, which would similarly blow away my old 84 Firebird-- so I'm quite curious... The Tbird has plenty of "oomph".

It's hard to put on film how that blue looks on the car. In bright sunlight it glows! The finish is a very rich and deep metallic, with the permanent shine of the clear coat. I'll buff it out next spring.

I'm told that this vehicle (restored) is considered by some a "babe magnet"... If anything, it is unique compared to today's cars. Tilt wheel, power windows/seat/doors, reclining passenger seat, interval wipers.. the list goes on a bit-- surprising for such an old car.
  

Here are a few shots of the rear quarter panel on the drivers side to give you an idea of the type of unseen labor involved in my five week restoration project...
  

 
 
As you can see, the one day prep job of the (very quickly done)1992 repaint job wasn't too pretty.

 
Both sides were about even in their decay. I was tempted to sculpt in some tail fins.. but restrained myself.

Cardboard held in place and covered with "Great Stuff" foam, carved to shape then covered with layers of fiberglass matting. Atop this, add reinforced "Kitty Hair" bondo and "finish" bondo.

It was best to strip the paint totally off the car, and remove the (leaking) vinyl top. I had to remove much of the interior to get the "Landau bars" off the top (just as well as I needed to re-sew the headliner together). A couple of coats of primer (zinc chromate for one) and then a couple of coats of that '90 Ford M1 (leftover from the Z28 job above) and some clear to finish. It's definitely not the stock '64 color (but it should have been!) and with all the bondo, Fiberglas and pitting chrome, it's not going to win any car shows... just look fantastic driving down the road on my "constitutionals".

Here's some photos of the Tbird from April of 2002...

    

Mr Ed buys new vehicle (1998)


 
 
Here's a photo of big Ed with his new 98 GMC Sierra pickup. What a sweet ride this is! Four wheel drive, extended cab, lots of extras (SLE-- power everything), 350 V8. In a few days we'll have the new Fiberglas "topper" for the truck bed (it'll match the truck color too!!). From our measurements, we figure it should be able to fit inside the garage in AZ (3 inches to spare)-- we're crossing our fingers on that! We are now officially "gas hogs"-- neither of us drive anything with less than a 350 V8! (until 2001 when the Pinto Wagon and it's 2.8l V6 joined the stable).

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