Body First Approach

[CRAZYBOB]

I heard a recommendation the other day to do the body work first and then attack the rest of the build. There were some good reasons.. Especially not filling your car with dust, space issues, etc.. My real reason is my crappy tax return and bonus that was not up to par this year.. My question is.. If I bought the base kit. What would I need to complete on the kit before completing the bodywork? What parts would need to be drilled, mounted, etc..

I even saw someone mentioned mounting the mirror and rollbars as they effect the fit of the final body. Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks.

Bob

[Kevin Davis]

I'm just getting ready to start my body work (the opposite way around, I'm almost ready to go kart), and I can't really think of anything that would really hinder you from doing the body work. You'd have to have some way to roll the chassis around and keep it still, but that's easy enough (without tires and suspension in place, I mean). Final fit to the aluminum and stuff like that is more of an aluminum issue than a body one.

It seems like with the base kit, you'd pretty much have everything you'd need to do most of the work. That way, you can source out the remaining parts, and keep your eye out for a good donor. I bought a non-registereable 94 mustang for $350. Even not using the motor or rear end (it's a v6), I'll still net a lot of savings out of it.

[Pierre B]

I have posted several times now about warning of not finishing the bodywork too quickly. We need to let the fiberglass cure first, to the point where further outgassing will not cause bubbling of the finish. In my case with my MKII bought in April 2004, I believe the body had been out of the molds for quite a while, and it may even have spent the previous winter with others on an FFR outdoor rack. Cold temperatures slow the curing process, but nonetheless every bit of ventilation helps. Beyond that, my body spent two summers on its buck sunning itself, and so when it was finally painted, most outgassing was complete. Still, though, a few years hence, I had two substantial paintwork blisters: just somthing we should be mindful of.

[gwnorth]

I did my joints and rough bodywork on the body buck and then sprayed the body alone with the first coat of featherfill in my driveway.
After mounting the body on the frame, I fitted the doors, trunk and hood lid to the body after installing all the windshield, inner fenders, rear view mirror etc. I then removed the doors, trunk and hood lid and did the preliminary bodywork before removing them again for first coat of featherfill n the driveway.
I then took the assembled car (now licenced for the road) to my body/paint professional so he could go over the panel fits and level out any surfaces which didn't line up (eg driver's door front edge, trunk lid one side, doors to cowl,etc). He also finished up the nasty front corners of the doors which were I had started on but didn't get finished satisfactorily.
I then removed the body and delivered all the 5 pieces back to the body shop (with the body on the buck) for final blocking and painting (where it is at present, target date end of March).
Although this sounds very long and drawn out when you write it out, it pretty much all has to be done one way or another. This approach accomplishes the following:
-a considerable amount of body work can be done by anyone without skill, experience, and a paint booth
-the rest of the car remains clean
-a real body man can do the high skill part of the job
-I was able to get the car through Quebec's licencing process and drive the whole assembly for a couple of hundred miles before paint completion.
Don't know if this gives you any ideas but it worked for me.
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