28 days till michigan.... the list

[81SPIDERMATT]

Great progress...looking good!

I have the same emblem, I put on mine opposite side of the trunk latch on the back...cool little emblems.

Keep up the updates, enjoy seeing the progress.

i saw that post.... i ordered mine 15 minutes later.... that is why i bought 2... one was gonna be for experimenting on how to attach in the same spot you did... right now i have some bad kitty sticker there... gonna wait till body work and paint then attach... also thought about maybe putting it where the pin badges are at behind the doors.... certainly cheaper than new badges ... should have ordered more.... my buddys wife had a jaguar... think i counted 9 cat emblems on that car .................... SPIDERS EVERYWHERE

[81SPIDERMATT]

from an earlier post... " would be nice to know someone who might help would where that person/s be located."

wow ... awesome command of the language

[81SPIDERMATT]

BEHOLD..... gaze upon the skills of my metal fabricating



and one more with everything in place



ok enough of that.... just over 2 weeks till the trip and still needing to refresh all the electrical connections.... seems a daunting task... and a little scary

figured i am going to need 2 other sets of hands for the attaching the top... it is only off of the front bow but seems to want to be stretched as being put in place... will let you know how that works out...

headlight conversion kit to be done still....
changing tranny fluid
alsso worked out a deal with another member on a windscreen..still waiting for that and hoping it will be an easy install

cant think of anything else at the moment.....

[81SPIDERMATT]

ok .... the headlight conversion kit is in... little troubleeshooting with mark (thanks mark) and it is awesome .. highly reccomended upgrade..... how ever in my case i felt like the headlights were pointing at the ground too much for my liking.... the adjustment screw was at its max and no more room for upward movement..... now the mechanics of the light... trim ring off .. black snap ring thing ..off.... then there is a trim ring that holds the headlight on... this is screwed to another ring that floats on top of or inside the housing for the whole light assembly and is adjusted by 2 screws... one for left and right and one for up and down..... my up and down screw was all the way in ..... now the correct way would have been to drill a hole in that floating ring at the bottom ... tap that hole and put in a screw that would push against the housing giving me more up adjustment.... at least that is how i think it should be done.... but no tap and die set so here is what i did...... took out the whole housing



now this is a piece of tubing... good stiff stuff probably 3/8 of and inch in diameter .... more than i needed but it will compress some .... after sealing the ends with a little "seal all" i placed it at the bottom of the lip of what the housing sits against





then put it all back together..this allowed the extra adjustment needed to get my lights where i wanted them..... awesome

now on to the top.... if you have been following along ..the top was not on straight in any direction you looked at it
... after peeling the top and working on the front bow (cleaning and rust treatment) i was ready.... my helpers backed out on me... so this is a solo job..... poorly taped off stuff i did not want glue on.... supported the frame by jamming in a couple of wire brushes to give me a comfortable work height and held it in place





started from this side because of the pocket where my hand is could be put over the bow and it would give me something to pull against as i worked my way accross



the other side was torn



so spray just the underside of the bow and the matching part of the top and just worked my way across... pulling and aligning as i went.... not perfect but A LOT better then what is started with..... found these in the spare parts box that came with the car... the rubber strip and the plastic piece that holds it on.. for the front of the top... never had it on the car..... make sure to mark the mounting holes somehow as when you put the top on they will be covered up... you could probably just line it up and drill new ones but they lined up so good i decided to try and use them





now after that is done ... imagine with the top closed .. as of now there is no glue on top of the bow attaching the top... did not want to trust everything to just the glue in the channel.... so with the top half way up (for some slack in the material) i wedged the handles of the brushes and a couple of rolled up rage into that space so i could spray some glue onto both surfaces and and then starting from one side to the other take out wedges and smooth top over the bow...... for me this worked out well.... i used 3m spray adhesive and it seems to work just fine








gave the car a good bath and passenger turn signal stopped working.... cracked tail light lens may be the culprit... gonna have to fix that.....

speaking of lights... this is one for the electrical guys.... front drivers side turn signal is much brighter then the passenger side.... when blinking for the signal the passenger light seems to be normal.... regular then bright then regular hten bright.... you get the idea.... but the drivers side is allready so bright that you can not see it blinking ..... any ideas.... this is when the lights or on allready.... with the lights off it blinks normal

couple of other things i have noticed that need to be addressed ..... flat spare..not sure if it just let out the air or needs fixing.... no radio... damn...but that will have to wait.... and the latest thing is i allways worry that when things start getting replaced that other parts of the car will get jealous and break out of spite.... so while i ride around enjoying the car.. i am over sensitive to noises and smells that are not even coming from my car.... i hate that

still have not drained the tranny... procrastinator ..... but i am happy with the way the car runs....gonna do a couple of 3-6 hour trips next week and see how she does.... splitting up the drive to michigan in three days... first day to fort collins ..about six hours.... then next day gonna shoot for a 12 hour day.... leaving about 4-5 hours the last day....getting excited

edit.... oh yeah the spoiler.... really notice a big difference when going faster than you should...lost a lot of that floaty feeling at around ...well you know.... FAST

[RRoller123]

Very cool, great detail in your post!

[81SPIDERMATT]

i have lost... the car has won.... currently trying to solve an issue that now has diminished the trust i have in my car to make it to michigan and back.(see thread engine gets hot ..engine dies)... just bought my plane ticket.... thanks to all who have shown interest and for your help...after my trip i will return to being sweaty and greasy learning as i go in this love hate relationship (only a little hate at the moment)