Good news. When I got the frame over to the strippers, Russ, the owner, looked
at it. "This is just fine. You did some good work here scraping the crud off.
This should be an easy job. Three weeks. $135."
So, with the 5% surcharge to Waste Control, I am out the door for 141.75.
He says that he always quotes high on the phone (he had told me $250->$375) to
discourage the guys that bring in crap and argue that they were quoted a lower
price.
Russ showed me where he had to drill two small holes in the back tube on the
Europa frame to get a proper flush. Terry Pitts was with us, and he said that
his was the same.
Now I have the three weeks to figure out how I am going to paint it. I have
been going round and round on this for months, and still am unsure.
How about sloshing the inside with Metal Prep, then rinse, dry and slosh with
DP-40 then slosh with Imron or a clone?
Outside areas can be metal-prepped, then brushed with DP-40 then brushed with
the finish coat. Brushing should lower the danger of the toxic fumes that you
get while spraying.
Russ says they spray an industrial hand soap on the frames and bodies when they
are done. If kept dry, it will last for years. If it gets wet, it is gone in
seconds. He has a customer that still has a Chevy body in a pole barn with
just the soap on it and Russ says it still looks as shiny as aluminum.
Russ says you can put the Metal Prep on without rinsing the hand soap off, then
wash them both off together and dry promptly. Serious body shops put the metal
prep on, wait five minutes, then three guys attack the car, one washing, one
drying and a third right behind with the DP-40. Russ says this way the pores
of the steel are still open and the metal is dry and receptive when the DP-40
hits it.
I need input in the next couple of weeks so I can be ready to move on this. Of
course I will post a summary!
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