Door Prizes

No work getting done on the Scout this week, but I did get to pay a visit to ScoutCo headquarters for some bits for another project. I even got to take home a few very cool pieces of Scout swag.  Mike is awesome. If you are ever in the area, pay him a visit. And if you aren't, you can order from his Web site. 

http://www.scoutcoproducts.com/

Playing the post

Thanks to Mike Moore for posting some pics of complete B pillars so I have a reference for how to rebuild mine. I didn't get a lot done tonight, but I did get a patch cut, tack welded and drilled so I could test fit the pillar to the new mount. 

It went together easily and I think the door shuts better now than it ever has. 😜

Running time: 40 hrs. 

Testing the fit and visiting Gigi

I figured I'd spend pretty much all day in the garage today, but not long after getting out there, I got a call from Brandon Byrd saying he was heading out to Glenwood to pick up Gigi. I've been wanting to check out his truck, so off I went. 

There's no mistaking a big blue and white Metro, so the shop was easy to find. Gigi looks just as good in person as in Brandon's pics. 

And with a new 350 under the hood, it will go like a bat out of hell too. It sounds totally awesome, as a hot rod should. Brandon took it easy and didn't burn any rubber on his way out. I got one parting shot as I turned off to head home

Back at the shop, I did a little more cutting and grinding. I'm finding that I'm having to cut out a lot, if not all of the previous repair. Not necessarily a bad thing. 

The new mount fits in pretty well and the b pillar bolts up well. I still need to rebuild the bottom of the b pillar. I'll cut and fit some templates while I have it bolted together like this. Nice to see it come together, but there is a lot of work to be done before Pinelands.

Oh, and the battery is totally dead. Gonna have to chase down the short that's draining it. Hopefully the battery isn't permanently dead. It's on the charger now, so we'll see in the morning. 

Labor to date: 39 hrs. 

Friday Frights

The day stayed off well enough. I etched and POR15'd the other side of the mid mount first thing in the morning. Then while that dried, I figured I'd make a run to Crazy Ray's to get a hydroboost for Heavy D. 

As I set out, I noticed that the brakes were really soft. Thankfully, before I had gone to far, I found that the brakes were pretty much gone. I only had enough pedal to stop it from about 15 MPH. Gah! Having a brake failure is the one recurring night are that I've ever had. Here I am living it. Again. (I'll tell you about the other time sometime). 

I decided that I was close enough to the parts store to stop there (hah!) and get some fluid. Topping off the master didn't help. There is air in the lines for sure. So I limped it home and piled into the car to head to Crazy Ray's. Ironic that it's a hydroboost that I was after? I found what I needed, tho it took me a bit longer than expected for lack of a 15mm socket in my bag. 

Back at the ranch, I finished POR15 touch ups on the b pillar and mount, so those should be ready. Just have to fab up a new bottom on the b pillar. 

I then cut out a bit more of the old mount so the new one can go in. I also noticed a little bulging under the floor, so some exploratory surgery was done. Sure enough. Rust was pancaked between the layers of metal. Haven't quite gotten it all out, but it looks like I'll need to replace some of that floor. Even though from the top side it looks fine, it's pretty thin. 

Clock ticking at 37.5 hrs. 

Bit by bit

Put another hour in tonight. This time welding in the support to the mid mount, then etching and painting one side of the mount with POR15. Every little bit of progress helps. 

Back in black

Had a little time for Hanky today, so after grinding down some spot welds on the b pillar, I gave the outside a coat of POR15. I'll hit the inside tomorrow. 

Then, I turned my attention to the center mount. It won't fit over what's left of the original, so that has to come out. 

So, I need to add a support for the body mount bolt.  I happened to have a piece of a small car square tube hitch in the garage, so I cut that down to fit. All I need to do is weld it in place and I'll be good to go. 

Running time: 33.5 hours

A day at the beach

Today was sand blasting day. One of many to come I think. I found that a trash can makes a half way decent blast cabinet. After an hour of blasting, the b pillar looks like this. 

Hour count: 32.5