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The "What Did You Work On Today" thread

3M views 36K replies 388 participants last post by  cerial 
#1 ·
4 hour work day for me at the shop. Used the time to do a valve body swap on a '01 Jetta 1.8t auto .... I successfully installed a transbrake on the car .... that however wasn't my intention.

Its in 2 gears at once in park, all other gears (R/N/D/2/1) are forward gears.... they all seam to be first gear.

I have it torn back down most of the way. Tuesday I'll actually get the VB back out and see whats up.... but part of me wants to take it out for a test drive the way it is just for the fun of it.
 
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#21,161 ·
Today I found out that there is a chrome shop blocks from my house! I didn't even know it. My brother dropped off this adapter for his 39 to get it stripped of the chrome that's on it and gave me the name of the place and I could have hit it with a rock!

Brian
 

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#21,167 ·
Hey, hey, now....am I that critical or something? :eek:

Everything is looking good, and I know it's in the early stages. :thumbup:
Oh heck no, you're cool:cool: I saw your quick thanks and was talking like you just wandered into my stall from across the shop. If you walked into my house I would apologize for the mess. Like that. Speaking of the grouthouse, um... is that thing growing rooms while you sleep? Good grief. Is there a Pugsy cave in there behind a bookcase? Are you saving that ("den") for last or was that first? It's all a blur now but what an amazing crib!:thumbup:
 
#21,168 ·
Thanks.

I got the top from a guy that made it from 2" pine from his nineteenth century farmhouse.
I will need to refinish the top because he stained it real dark and used a high gloss urethane.
Dark stain on pine? Hmm. Are you going to get a fresh surface going then tape around the edges and pour car clear on it? Used to sell Sikkens to a place at Love Field and they used some sort of heavy bodied high build industrial polyurethane 2K clear coat which they poured on and dragged with spreaders. Then out came something like a floor polisher almost, to flatten it when dry. Then buffing or a sprayed clear. Just curious and rambling. I know we will see how you do it. I have put Autoclear on rifle stocks before, for a showy finish. But I use car stuff for everything.:drunk:
 
#21,169 ·
OMG I hope I can find myself out in the garage tonight. I just got home from a LONG day at work. Spent the last few hours trying to align the front end on a late model Ford Fusion that another tech did a bunch of body/frame work on. He is out with a health issue for more than a month and I had the good fortune to help out after another tech put the bumper on and found that everything was out, fenders, hood, lights, bumper, holy crap! I thought I would spend a little time and get it started but I couldn't stop, I just kept going.

I have referred to this sort of thing as a "dance" between the parts, instead of having a few things perfect and trying to make a few that are out really bad perfect, you give up and make everything "so so" screwing up the perfect areas to make the horrible area's "ok," you know what I mean?

Anyway, I am beat and relaxing. I know one thing, I deserve a gift certificate out to a nice dinner for the magic I performed on that Fusion.

Brian

 
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#21,170 ·
Dark stain on pine? Hmm. Are you going to get a fresh surface going then tape around the edges and pour car clear on it? Used to sell Sikkens to a place at Love Field and they used some sort of heavy bodied high build industrial polyurethane 2K clear coat which they poured on and dragged with spreaders. Then out came something like a floor polisher almost, to flatten it when dry. Then buffing or a sprayed clear. Just curious and rambling. I know we will see how you do it. I have put Autoclear on rifle stocks before, for a showy finish. But I use car stuff for everything.:drunk:

Tape around edge to build a border dam and pour on Liquid Glass,,it works really well,,,you might google it and find some ,haven't used any in about 10 years after I quit building cedar chest,
 
#21,171 ·
Tape around edge to build a border dam and pour on Liquid Glass,,it works really well,,,you might google it and find some ,haven't used any in about 10 years after I quit building cedar chest,
For a table top, I won't use any more gloss. I liked it when I first seen it, but now it's not looking good to me. The high gloss and dark colour.
 

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#21,174 ·
Looks like they were going for the "Barn Wood Look " I really like the wide boards,, Are you just wanting to get rid of the shine or are you wanting th grt the color lighter also.
Ya, the shine first. When that's removed, I'll lightly hit it with fine sandpaper by hand and see how it looks.

These are old boards so I don't want to scrape off too much vintage character.
 
#21,175 · (Edited)
OMG I hope I can find myself out in the garage tonight. I just got home from a LONG day at work. Spent the last few hours trying to align the front end on a late model Ford Fusion that another tech did a bunch of body/frame work on. He is out with a health issue for more than a month and I had the good fortune to help out after another tech put the bumper on and found that everything was out, fenders, hood, lights, bumper, holy crap! I thought I would spend a little time and get it started but I couldn't stop, I just kept going.

I have referred to this sort of thing as a "dance" between the parts, instead of having a few things perfect and trying to make a few that are out really bad perfect, you give up and make everything "so so" screwing up the perfect areas to make the horrible area's "ok," you know what I mean?

Anyway, I am beat and relaxing. I know one thing, I deserve a gift certificate out to a nice dinner for the magic I performed on that Fusion.

Brian

there's always a dance and a little wrestling. So many times you can change the hood hinges, have the same issues just less of it, and not see any revealing damage to the cowl, so you don't get paid for it so it's a wrestling match on put together. I can't think of many things the insurance company pays for where damage isn't noticed in the damaged area. This is especially bad on suspension parts. Just swap out the whole knee, but you end up doing piece by piece cause there's no visible damage, yet won't align at the alignment shop. Pulling things out to meet the striker and rolled hinge pillars are a few things they pay for without seeing direct damage, but things like the mounting area on the bottom of the fender to bumper. You have to twist that yourself and get the relation between the bracket and fender edge just right for free cause if it's not obvious they won't pay. Not worth it. If it's bad enough to warrant 1 hour to fix that area than anything worse would call for replacement. Lots of areas where you have to leave it for put together and trust it's in the "ball park" otherwise you fall behind. Yet you still do a mock up and get things squared and in spec. Just have to know how to cut corners when you have to. You won't last if you don't develop them. So when you put someone else's work together it might seem like they left a lot on put together but in reality they knew it all along. I try to do my wrestling before paint though, but it doesn't always work out that way.
 
#21,176 · (Edited)
some recent crap. Super easy rear body and rear deck lid. Those hinges are set into the jamb and they take a hit so much better than the Honda style ones I'm accustomed to. Any hit to The Honda ones where you replace the decklid would call for major wrestling, but this style of hinge left everything in place. Very little wrestling with the deck lid and only a light pull of the rear body.

Bumper Automotive exterior Vehicle Auto part Windshield


Land vehicle Vehicle Car Automotive exterior Bumper


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driver's air bag, passenger, both side curtains. Side curtains destroyed head liner. Motor and cradle will have to be dropped and think this might be an aluminum strut tower and it's riveted to the rail. If the rail it self calls for rivet glueing than this gets farmed out cause it needs to cure on a jig. Even racking it calls for special clamps. Not sure whether or not I will do the rail. All Data will determine that. I hope it totals. :D Farming it out just means more time to forget how this overly engineered car goes back together. Screw this German crap. ahhaha

Land vehicle Vehicle Car Bmw Bmw x5


Auto part Engine Vehicle Car Automotive engine part


Auto part Vehicle Engine Car Fuel line
 
#21,177 ·
For a table top, I won't use any more gloss. I liked it when I first seen it, but now it's not looking good to me. The high gloss and dark colour.
I see what you mean. To me gloss is good if all texture is buried, but that stain did have an unusual effect. A more natural, lighter finish sans glare will look a lot better in that room. Fingers crossed that it turns out like you like. :)
 
#21,178 ·
I see what you mean. To me gloss is good if all texture is buried, but that stain did have an unusual effect. A more natural, lighter finish sans glare will look a lot better in that room. Fingers crossed that it turns out like you like. :)
They'll be crossed a long time.
I'm in no rush for this project. The table holds a plate of grub just fine for now....:mwink:
 
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