Advice/Progress Thread, update on pg4, 5/26/10 Options

[captb]

Hey guys, if you have restoration experience i could really use your help.

The paint job and all the dents finally put me in the position to sell the 6g. problem was i couldnt find a car that can match the 6g's "feel" if you know what i mean. Since having a shop repair her is so expensive, i figured ill tackle restoring her on my own. After watching alot of youtube videos and reading how-to's on restoration, im confident enough to try it, but still have a few questions and would appreciate your opinions.

(1) money and quality wise would you recommend i do a maaco job or tackle painting on my own(either rent a booth or enclosed tent)?

(2) are there any considerations/advice for using bondo or other recommended products on non-metal surfaces such as the bumper and sideskirts? will the flexibility of the bumper be a problem?

(3) Im pretty much gonna sand/bondo the entire car and am considering a bodykit. If i were to get a cheap one off ebay, will getting the thing to fit be the same as sanding and bondoing the thing, or will i need to do some fiberglass work? Id love the gt-four look, have any recommendations on where to get bodykits for cheap?

(4) I am also having problems with rust below both doors. Rust cant be seen from the outside, but looking from the inside, it is definitely a problem. Would u recommend i restore it myself by cutting and welding or just replace the door entirely?

(5) When i do paint it, would you recommend i remove different parts; hood, trunk, doors? also, would it be worth my while to remove things like the lining and windshields? id figure sanding and bondoing would be nicer with the linings removed.

(6) Any videos and/or websites would you recommend i check out before i start. most of the videos i watched seemed to be from the 80's. any videos with more modern techniques? or has restoration been pretty much ageless.

This is alot of info and questions but i would appreciate any input on 1, 2, or all of my questions.

Thanks,
-Joel

This post has been edited by captb: May 28, 2010 - 10:13 PM

[presure2]

these guys, especially 808 and castrol have the right idea.
castrol hit the nail on the head as far as maaco. if they are willing to show you theyre finished work, right out of the paint booth, and it looks good, that helps.
look for paint on any trim, orange peel (the amount of orange peel will depend on if its single stage paint. single stage especially light metallics, tend to have alot more peel than a basecoat/ clearcoat paint job, but cost about 1/2 the price.)
for the doors, if the lower section is rusting on the inside, thats a sign of things to come on the outside.
depending on how bad it is, you can sometimes get away with useing a "cookie wheel" on a die grinder and grinding out all the rust and using somthing like POR15 to stop it from rusting again.
if its rotted, your best bet will be to look for a set of used replacement doors that are in better condition. once the cancer stops, its almost impossible to stop, without replacing the whole thing.