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Not really. I could see that there were some dents and rough patches under the primer layer. (This unpublished post was found in the archives while I was updating the site. It was written over five years ago.)
These were shallow depressions where the area had not been feather edged and made smooth. There were a couple of creases in the top area of the doors as if the doors had been allowed to swing open and strike the sharp edge of a metal or wood carport post. There was a little surface rust on the front of the left fender etc etc. Then there were tons of little dings and flat spots where the car had been struck by things over the last 45 years. Comparing the condition of my 70 to my 96 when they were parked alongside each other was enlightening. The 96 only had a couple of tiny dings in the sides. The 70 had all those dings and flat spots it had suffered in it's extra 26 years of life. How could you reasonably get a smooth surface?
I could see some repair work on the front edge of each door. It looked like bondo that had not been sanded down completely. The interior of the door gradually gets a layer of dirt and leaves which block the drain holes and cause rust in the lower edges of the door. The rt.door had a loose window guide rail that I wanted to check out plus I was in the process of replacing all the door, trunk and ignition locks.
I hate it when you buy an old car and it comes with four different keys: one each ignition, rt.door,left door and trunk. I bought a complete replacement set. The cost was reasonable and the convenience factor was priceless.
Bondo absorbs water. Unsealed and unpainted bondo repairs will lead to rust in the surrounding metal. I pulled the door panels to gain access and saw that the rust had been filled with what looked like bondo. I sanded the material and found that it was some kind of an epoxy putty. (POR 15?) POR 15 will not absorb water so it can be used to make a very satisfactory repair. It dries very hard and is difficult to sand compared to bondo. I cleaned out the area and attempted to straighten the crease in the rt.door first. I pried against the window structure and tap lightly with a body hammer on the outside surface. I did this repeatedly until I had raised most of the crease. I filled and sanded the remaining depression. I did this on both doors. I decided I would return to the lower repair after the car was painted. I was planning on painting the lower area of the doors and rockers with matte black paint. I liked the effect and I could return later and repair, then repaint the area black again. If you are sanding down a chip or flake in the paint you have to fully feather edge and blend the sanded area to the level of the surrounding paint. If you start with a chip the size of a pea, you will end up sanding an area two to three inches around. You will uncover the primer coat and maybe evidence of a prior repaint or two. This can be a very long and tedious process but if you don't it will be clearly visible under the new paint. How much prep do you want to do? How much time do you want to spend? How much money can you afford to spend? The more time, effort and money spent will reward you with a better paint job.
I found a body shop in Fremont that specialized in production paint jobs. Almost Everything Automotive. They will also do more higher quality jobs with more prep. When I contacted them and told them of my plans they were understanding that price was a major objective
I could see some repair work on the front edge of each door. It looked like bondo that had not been sanded down completely. The interior of the door gradually gets a layer of dirt and leaves which block the drain holes and cause rust in the lower edges of the door. The rt.door had a loose window guide rail that I wanted to check out plus I was in the process of replacing all the door, trunk and ignition locks.
I hate it when you buy an old car and it comes with four different keys: one each ignition, rt.door,left door and trunk. I bought a complete replacement set. The cost was reasonable and the convenience factor was priceless.
Bondo absorbs water. Unsealed and unpainted bondo repairs will lead to rust in the surrounding metal. I pulled the door panels to gain access and saw that the rust had been filled with what looked like bondo. I sanded the material and found that it was some kind of an epoxy putty. (POR 15?) POR 15 will not absorb water so it can be used to make a very satisfactory repair. It dries very hard and is difficult to sand compared to bondo. I cleaned out the area and attempted to straighten the crease in the rt.door first. I pried against the window structure and tap lightly with a body hammer on the outside surface. I did this repeatedly until I had raised most of the crease. I filled and sanded the remaining depression. I did this on both doors. I decided I would return to the lower repair after the car was painted. I was planning on painting the lower area of the doors and rockers with matte black paint. I liked the effect and I could return later and repair, then repaint the area black again. If you are sanding down a chip or flake in the paint you have to fully feather edge and blend the sanded area to the level of the surrounding paint. If you start with a chip the size of a pea, you will end up sanding an area two to three inches around. You will uncover the primer coat and maybe evidence of a prior repaint or two. This can be a very long and tedious process but if you don't it will be clearly visible under the new paint. How much prep do you want to do? How much time do you want to spend? How much money can you afford to spend? The more time, effort and money spent will reward you with a better paint job.
I found a body shop in Fremont that specialized in production paint jobs. Almost Everything Automotive. They will also do more higher quality jobs with more prep. When I contacted them and told them of my plans they were understanding that price was a major objective
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