Under Door Aluminum Panels
I went ahead and installed the under door aluminum. Very easy and adds a lot to the cockpit. I went ahead and powder coated, of course. The panels wouldn't fit in my oven so I did my Youtube technique. This probably puts me at risk for self combustion but so far haven't had any fires...
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...2&d=1584320370
Incidentally, I have been working on plans to build my own powder coat oven large enough to fit any of the FFR panels
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...3&d=1584320410
I used rivets but no silicone and no carpet yet. Will wait on that until final paint etc.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...4&d=1584320431
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...5&d=1584320455
I made two significant discoveries this week. The first is that Prismatic Powders, my favorite online powder coat store is based right here in White City Oregon! One of my scrub techs told me I should visit her boyfriends job site which produced powders. Turns out its Prismatic Powders. Small world, I went ahead and visited and discovered Cerakote. More on that later.
The other discovery is that the shop I have been seriously considering for painting my MK4 looks to be out of business... :(
Extra Front Splash Guards
I emerged from the Hospital Friday morning with 72 hrs off and went straight to my shop. More than anything else I need to get away from the drama. We haven't been hit hard by Covid 19 at this point but the mental stress is taking its toll on the staff at multiple levels.
At any rate, I've spent alot of time on my wiring and it bothers me that these are exposed to road debris from the front tires.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...6&d=1585538102
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...4&d=1585537973
I fabricated some panels, coated them with the left over raptor truck Bedliner I had used on the underside of the body. I fabricated brackets and mounted them with adhesive stud mounts from McMaster (secured with HSRF). I also had extra bulb seal left over. Here is what they look like. Probably over kill but it gave me something to do.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...5&d=1585538007
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...7&d=1585538137
I have 450 miles on her grin every time I turn the key!!
Painting my Exhaust pipes
I have been planning this for a while decided to go with caliper paint which is inexpensive and easy to reapply when it wears out. Also, needed to do something to keep from burning my leg all the time. For the paint I used the VHT product. I almost went with this Cerakote coating which I think would be really awesome and I'll probably use it on my next build. It is used on guns, check them out here https://www.cerakote.com . It is expensive.
Here is what I did.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...5&d=1586997829
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...6&d=1586997862
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...7&d=1586997923
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...9&d=1586997973
The wrap is DE titanium wrap, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
And I used these stainless steel zip ties https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Overall I'm very happy with it. The pipes still get hot but not enough to burn.
First Year of Street Legal driving
So, my MK4 was street legal last year 2/2020. A couple weeks ago I rolled 4000 miles and the car is running great. I have to say that I couldn't be happier with it. I changed the oil and filter and greased all the zero fittings. I think there were 20. I also put her up on the lift to assess the Raptor undercoating. It is holding out well!
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...1&d=1616388770
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...3&d=1616388830
I need to recheck the alignment and reset the coil overs to make sure there is even distribution of weight. Also, I took her to a pro shop about 7 months ago but they didn't want to touch the alignment. I expected that. Here are a couple photos of the undercarriage UPOL Raptor coating. The car is a little dirty but that bedliner is solid, no chipping, it looks great. Also, I have been driving intermittently all winter on gravely roads.
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...4&d=1616388864
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...2&d=1616388800