Paint prep

[Lefty]

This is the car that I kept and always will keep... rare... not made anymore... took four years to restore.... It is really getting dated now and considered "an older restoration" and that description of being dated and somewhat worn out fits me too... Yesterday I put the first coat of paint on the 2004 Ranger.... and it took an hour and a half to get it done... traditionally, I have less than one hour of time into each application coat..... so that is my goal today.... concrete floors are starting to get to me a bit... Some of the rattle can paint I initially used, lifted in four spots so I had to sand those mistakes but the first coat seemed to go on well.... and the only "run" was one from one of the two primer coats that I simply did not see... and that will be my one concession today... sanding down that run before applying a second coat of enamel..... I forgot how demanding this work can be... but it has been a long winter of work.... something to do....

Good to see another Ranger coming back to life.

A friend has an older Ranger with plenty of body and fender issues. He's got a couple of dents and a bad case of rust which includes all lower panels, a door, and the roof. Virtually every panel needs work. I found an identical Ranger at a junk yard. it even was the same color. I suggested he could use it as a donor and bring his baby back around.

He dismissed the whole idea saying that those problems were "largely cosmetic." Maybe he's happy, but body and frame represent the biggest single part of an investment.

Keep up the good work. AND keep us posted.

 

[professor229]

For the most part, the Ranger is done and I put insurance on it yesterday and will test drive it around the neighborhood today..... and then maybe take it out to a faster venue and shoot for 40 mph just to make sure.... There are minor projects to be done.... a box floor patch, some color sanding, seat covers? maybe and that is about it.... I attached a before / after picture I took yesterday.... Oh... and I have to fix the star chip in the windshield but need a sunny day to do that.... and lately, that has been a problem.... $4 kit off Ebay and here's hoping..... 110,000 miles on it.. runs great.... and will pull my 12 foot boat trailer five miles to the lake and back.... Only problem was the lights.... and one in particular with a broken socket... and a fiasco with Rock Auto on this part... send the wrong part and they want me to pay for shipping to return... $5 part... I paid $4.60 to ship it to me and they want $4.60 to send it back... I won't... will keep the socket because it fits the other sockets on this Ranger and cut my losses..... It is the backup light socket so I taped it up so it doesn't short out, and I have only one back up light... How will I ever survive with just one backup light?

For what it is worth.... I will use this truck for one year and make some decisions about what to sell.... I have too many vehicles....

My goal was a 20 footer...... I think it is a 20 footer??????

 

[rumblecloud]

Nice job on the front end. Looks nice and clean. Good job!