It was a fire here in Norway, in a car shop named Eiker Motorshop, where 10-15 old cars got lost. I bought this 34 SAR roadster of them, and will try to build it..
Driver side is not too bad however the passenger side might be different from what is show in your pic. Can we get a view of the other side & rear? Looks like decent start anyway if you got it really reasonable.
Hope you don't get surprised by unforeseen circumstances. I hate 'fire jobs'... (worked at a Buick dealer early in my career. Seemed to get all the fire jobs...resumed my Porsche expertise, then BMW...Never looked back.) But now, it's hot rods. And fire jobs on hot rods are not comparable to the same on Rivieras and Wildcats!
As they say, you either got to be tough or dumb, if you aren't tough, you will be by the time you finish it. LOL Good luck and keep us posted!
Biggest issue may be getting paint to stick when done. I'd be tempted to go Rustoleum on a car like that for the first repaint and see how long it lasted.
Eh, that looks very savable. I've brought much worse cars back from the grave. Getting paint to stick to a fire car is a little different than a normal build, but not bad, lol. I'm getting ready to begin on a 56 Thunderbird fire car very soon, myself. Send your 34 over here and let me build it for you! lol... When you get it back, it'll be beautiful! -------------------------------------------------------------- Brandon Prewett Chrome Fins Restoration Tulsa, Ok 918-521-2889
What is the problem with the flame kissed metal and paint. Once it is blasted does the epoxy not stick?
The worst pices is the cowl and the right rear quarter, the frame is bent to, and rusty, so there is a lot of work to get it on the road ..
The metal needs to surgically cleaned from the microscopic soot particles. That's why paint doesn't stick to metal that's been in a fire, soot and smoke in the pores of the steel.
Is there a chemical bath that can do the cleaning or does it have to be done mechanically - sanding or wirebrushing?
flt-blk. 31Vicky beat me to it, but he hit the nail on the head. I speak from to many years of experience here, so try not to look at me like I'm too crazy, LOL, when I explain that the heat opens the pores in the metal and anything thats in the air...smoke, chemicals, fire supression foam, etc can get into the metal. Many times you end up with what can look like solvent pop and adhesion issues all over the car; even on a sand blasted and prepped car, if the car isnt cleaned very very well before body filler or primer are applied. Depending on how hard a car burned, you can also run into issues with the metal being very weak or (more commonly) very crooked and challenging to body work. It can be done, but it takes a load of patience and experience to bring back many fire cars. Rusthaug. Sent you a PM. -------------------------------------------------------------- Brandon Prewett Chrome Fins Restoration Tulsa, Ok 918-521-2889
Wow!!! I had no idea it was that special of a job to fix a fire case. I knew it would be nasty work, but I never imagined the metal would essentially absorb the smoke and soot. The tin canning and crinkling has put me off in the past, but damn if I had gone to the trouble to get straighten it out and then not take the paint. Sheeeit. How do you subscribe to these things?? I want to learn something!!
Looks in the condition of a 31 phaeton I found that was previously hidden in the brush and found after a forest fire exposed it
Lots of work but hey, it's a 34 hiboy roadster. Take your time and bring it back. Medley's coupe was burnt worst and it was saved. Keep us posted on the restoration.
You can do it! ( think "El Matador," Cushenberry's '40 that was a major league "crispy critter) Lotta work that's for sure- good luck with it. It's a cool rig even in it's present state.
I agree that it is hard to keep paint on them, but I don't believe it is soot, it is more likely microscopic rust pits and if an extinguisher was used, chemicals from that. A good wash down with phosphoric acid should go a long way toward making the paint stick. Once the metal is heated above dull red hot it will lose all of its work hardening that it got from from rolling and stamping.
I'd build it. I'd rather fix that than replace the whole bottom of a rust bucket. The body shops I've worked in would not touch fire cars, so I've never painted one....Wouldn't a thorough cleaning with metal prep do the job?
You can never fully clean them, supposedly, microscopic pitting holds soot and dirt and short of grinding off half the metal you can't get rid of them.
Since I'm not a rocket scientist, what's the difference in getting paint to stick to metal that has be subjected to soot and smoke from a fire and annealing metal with soot and smoke from a torch? HRP
It's sad to see an SAR Roadster like that I think if it was me, and considering both the damage and the fact it has been heat effected, I reckon I would contact SAR and get a right quarter, right cowl side and a cowl top. However I don't know the extent of your abilities with metal But that would be what i would do, as at least I know the SAR panels will fit that roadster
HRP, All the contaminates associated with a garage fire, I guess. Oxy/acetalene is a clean fire and would typically be done to clean bare steel.
There was a page not that long ago... Lots of pages about how to prep metal for paint after a fire... Its not that complicated just time consuming... I dont remember what it was called but I had alot of input... Let me know if you can find it and Ill tell you how to do it... Or send me a PM