Carl's 20th Anniversary #8690 - Graduated... 15,000 miles

[460.465USMC]

Looking really good, Carl! I like the license plate too. Thanks for posting the pictures.

[BadAsp427]

Received this photo today. Overcast, cold day and it still looks fantastic!!!
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[TMartinLVNV]

Received this photo today. Overcast, cold day and it still looks fantastic!!!
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Damn! Looking sharp Carl.

[Racee75]

Carl.. car looks great...

[BadAsp427]

Back in July, I transported my build to Jeff Kleiner in Bloomington IN for him to do his thing. Now, today I have it back home in my garage and can start the process of final cleaning (sanding dust) and assembly. Very close to final graduation.

So here is what has transpired of the past week. On Saturday, I was a very happy camper picking my car up from Bloomington. I had made arrangements with Chad (CV2065) to pick up his car from Spotlight Custom Cars in GA and transport it down to his home near Orlando. This worked out great as I had made prior arrangements with Mike at Spotlight to do a final cut and buff after Jeff completed his body and paint work. When I arrived in GA, Chad and I were able to put the two cars together to really show the Porsche Carmine Red off. Both cars have the same exact color but with the different stripes and accents. I chose to chrome/polish everything on mine and added the metallic gray stripes with black accents and Chad blacked out everything. Here are some great photos.

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This photo, taken at pickup from Bloomington, IN


These next few were taken at Spotlight Custom Cars in GA
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Here is a during and after cut & buff of one fender.
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These are some photos after the final cut and buff
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And back home in it's garage...
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[cv2065]

Wow...looks like it was dipped in clear. That cut and buff completes the picture. Looks great Carl. Now time for some clean up!

[BadAsp427]

It's Christmas Eve Morning, 5:00am. I just woke up and the first thought on my mind was the beautiful Factory Five 20th Anniversary Mk4 that is sitting in my garage. I just walked out, turned on the 15, 4 ft long LED shop lights and lit the garage up like the operating room of your local hospital (67,500 lumens). Bam, it really hits me, Santa came early. Look at the body work results that Jeff Kleiner gave me. In earlier posts, I shared several photos that Jeff Kleiner sent me of the body work he was doing on the car. I truly did not understand how his experience and knowledge of these cars and the work he was showing in those photos would create the final outcome that it did.

Look these photos, NOT for the shinny Porsche Carmine Red w/metallic gray stripe paint job, everyone can see that, but rather look at the fitment of the panels, the precision of the gaps and cutouts. The body work and adjustment made to the hood, trunk and door hinges. I remember when I put it together in gelcoat how much trouble I had getting it to come close, and now I realize just how far off I really was.

This is what you pay for when you want and get great body work on your car.


Notice the door and body alignment, spot on.
IMG_1272.jpg IMG_1273.jpg


Notice the uniform gaps and how the hood and trunk are level with the rest of the body.
IMG_1275.jpg IMG_1285.jpg
IMG_1278.jpg IMG_1280.jpg IMG_1286.jpg



Notice the straight, smooth cuts on the body openings
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Add it all together with a quality paint job, a fantastic cut and buff, and this is what you end up with. Bravo Jeff Kleiner.
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[nuhale]

Super cool Carl. Looks like Santa came early. Looks amazing. Great work Mr Kleiner!

[MSumners]

That car is stunning

[Jeff Kleiner]

Thanks for the kudos Carl, and for recognizing that there’s more to it than just color! Not everyone realizes what all is involved in getting the body and moving panels fitted and shaped well. Enjoy the next 10,000 plus miles!

Jeff

[Ed Mc]

Beautiful car, and seeing Jeff’s work in person is even more impressive. Now enjoy the car, since it is in the twenties here I have a while to wait to get out on the road

[ggunter]

That car is stunning!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[460.465USMC]

Wow! Awesome!

[GoDadGo]

It's Christmas Eve Morning, 5:00am. I just woke up and the first thought on my mind was the beautiful Factory Five 20th Anniversary Mk4 that is sitting in my garage. I just walked out, turned on the 15, 4 ft long LED shop lights and lit the garage up like the operating room of your local hospital (67,500 lumens). Bam, it really hits me, Santa came early. Look at the body work results that Jeff Kleiner gave me. In earlier posts, I shared several photos that Jeff Kleiner sent me of the body work he was doing on the car. I truly did not understand how his experience and knowledge of these cars and the work he was showing in those photos would create the final outcome that it did.

Look these photos, NOT for the shinny Porsche Carmine Red w/metallic gray stripe paint job, everyone can see that, but rather look at the fitment of the panels, the precision of the gaps and cutouts. The body work and adjustment made to the hood, trunk and door hinges. I remember when I put it together in gelcoat how much trouble I had getting it to come close, and now I realize just how far off I really was.

This is what you pay for when you want and get great body work on your car.


Notice the door and body alignment, spot on.
IMG_1272.jpg IMG_1273.jpg


Notice the uniform gaps and how the hood and trunk are level with the rest of the body.
IMG_1275.jpg IMG_1285.jpg
IMG_1278.jpg IMG_1280.jpg IMG_1286.jpg



Notice the straight, smooth cuts on the body openings
IMG_1277.jpg IMG_1281.JPG



Add it all together with a quality paint job, a fantastic cut and buff, and this is what you end up with. Bravo Jeff Kleiner.
IMG_1265-1.jpg

Looks Like A Very Nice Paint Job To Me As Well!

[BadAsp427]

Looks Like A Very Nice Paint Job To Me As Well!

It's good. It took the cut and buff very well. I think I'll keep it... :-)

[BadAsp427]

So I'm really trying to finish off some of the final check boxes. One of the big ones was the door sills. I've been kicking around the idea of something a little different. Remembering back to my 1970 Mach I and other older cars with the aluminum door sill cover plates and wanting to try to emulate that. Here is what I came up with. I completed the passenger side and have plans for something special on the driver's side, I also ran out of the edge molding I used. Here is what I did.

First, I had to trim off the total width of the aluminum door sill for the passenger side. The Driver's side was a perfect fit. I broke out the rivet spacing tool and marked the panels for rivet holes and drilled them and then drilled out the 3/4" tube to match.

Passenger Side Trim Marking.jpg IMG_1823.jpg

One challenge that I was trying to figure out was the transition from carpet on the side panel to the edge of the door sill without having a sharp edge showing. I came up with the idea of using some plastic corner guard from Lowe's and some edge molding. I had to use the heat gun on the plastic edge guard to get it to bend without cutting and having a gap in the two corners. What I ended up with was a custom bent piece that fit perfect. I then painted them with Rust-oleum brand bed liner texture flat black. The goal was to basically have this piece just blend in with the carpet and the edge molding. I scuffed up the plastic corner guard with 80 grit sand paper to be sure the bed liner had something to hang onto.

Plastic Corner Guard.jpg Plastic Corner Guard After Heat Gun Bends.jpg Roughing Up the Corner Guard For Painting.jpg


Next I used 320 grit sand paper and created the brushed aluminum look that I wanted on the door sills. Straight strokes back and forth many, many times. Then I taped up the freshly sanded flat surface and scuffed up the vertical portions so that I could paint them with the black bed liner as well. After the bed liner dried, I pulled off the tape, ran some 320 grit back and forth on it to clean it up one last time and then used Shark Hyde to coat the bare aluminum prior to final assembly.

Brushed Aluminum.jpg Door Sill with Black Bed Liner and Edge Trim.jpg

Close up of Carpet-Corner Guard-Edge Trim- Aluminum-Brushed Aluminum-Door Opening.jpg Passenger Side Final.JPG

Passenger Side Final View.jpg

I've run out of the edge molding so I'll finish up the driver's side later in the week. After that I'll reveal my planned surprise for the driver's side.

[BadAsp427]

Getting closer to graduation. Prior to going to paint, I had fully fit and prepped the cover plate for the opening in the trunk lid. Today I installed the LED light strip. (the one that comes with the kit) I had it previously held up on the trunk with some basic clear package tape. Today, I pulled the wax paper off the self adhesive and placed the LED strip up on the lip edge that goes across the width of the trunk. In this place, you can not see it unless you are actually looking up at the inside of the trunk. I drilled a small hole for the power wire and connected it to the tag light. This way, anytime the parking/headlights are on, the LEDs are on. I then completed the rivet install of the cover plate. Check mark completed.

Trunk Opening Cover Plate and LED Light Strip Install.jpg Trunk Light.jpg


Also installed the Door Straps. Pretty straight forward...

Door Strap, Driver Side.jpg

Installed a small fire extinguisher between the seats also. I used three 1/4" x 20 Nutserts and some stainless steel button head screws to mount it.

Three Nutserts for Fire Ext.jpg Fire Ext Bracket.jpg Fire Ext Installed with Cubby Monster.jpg

Look out for the Cubby Monster...

[Fixit]

Like the filler plate for the trunk lid hole...

You may want to rethink the trunk illumination. I've got LED strip lights in the bed of my DD pickup, hooked up to the parking lamp circuit as well. I've found it to be a PITA. When I need something out of the bed, I light up the damn neighborhood turning all 4 corners of the truck on.
It may be too late for you, but this is what I did on #9365... Or maybe a mercury switch from an old thermostat?
https://youtu.be/c0Jr2jeT_wU

[BadAsp427]

Like the filler plate for the trunk lid hole...

You may want to rethink the trunk illumination. I've got LED strip lights in the bed of my DD pickup, hooked up to the parking lamp circuit as well. I've found it to be a PITA. When I need something out of the bed, I light up the damn neighborhood turning all 4 corners of the truck on.
It may be too late for you, but this is what I did on #9365... Or maybe a mercury switch from an old thermostat?
https://youtu.be/c0Jr2jeT_wU

I've had them this way since day one. I've not had any problems and, they are inside the trunk, not out in the open bed of a truck. I do, however, like the idea of a mercury switch. I could easily put that under the cover plate. Oh, and those little incandescent lights on the corners of this will surly not light up the neighborhood. But I will tell you, that little LED light strip sure lights up the trunk.

[BadAsp427]

While at a Cars and Coffee event this past weekend, a photographer took some unique photos of my Mk4. Thought I would share them.

zz 20th Emblem.jpg zz Driver Side fm Rear.jpg zz Tire-n-Wheel.jpg zz Driver Side.jpg zz Passenger Side.jpg zz DashBoard.jpg zz Tire.jpg zz Rear End.jpg zz radiator.jpg zz Engine.jpg

[Kmcallahan]

Awesome looking car! Great color pics.

[BadAsp427]

Took my car to a private detailer who completed an extensive paint correction process and 3 layer ceramic coating process. He was really able to bring out the depth and richness of the colors...
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[BadAsp427]

And here are some other shots taken at the same time.

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[Fman]

WOW! Beautiful, you should be really proud of your car because it turned out awesome. Hope you are out on the road enjoying it!

[jiriza84641]

Paint looks amazing, the bodywork is outstanding. Soon mine will be along yours!

[PeteMeindl]

awesome! Those pictures are fantastic!

[JB in NOVA]

Stunning! What a beautiful car. What do folks around town think of it?

[BadAsp427]

Stunning! What a beautiful car. What do folks around town think of it?

I get a lot of honks, thumbs up and "can I take a photo" encounters. And driving it is always a blast. Now that it is highly polished up and ceramic coated, I'm almost afraid to drive it. One of the side effects of the polish work is that the "Boogers" show a bit more, but the shine keeps the lookers mesmerized on the "whole picture."

I can't say enough about Mike Bowan's @ Spotlight Customs in GA cut and buff and a local friend, Mike K, for his extreme paint correction and ceramic coating work done most recently. The combined efforts of these two have really brought out the Carmine Red's rich color that it looks like you can reach into. The wheels were also paint corrected and polished/ceramic coated.

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[GoDadGo]

I get a lot of honks, thumbs up and "can I take a photo" encounters. And driving it is always a blast. Now that it is highly polished up and ceramic coated, I'm almost afraid to drive it. One of the side effects of the polish work is that the "Boogers" show a bit more, but the shine keeps the lookers mesmerized on the "whole picture."

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I Know How You Feel & Because The Same Thing Happens Every Time I Drive Mine!
.......................Your Little Red Roadsters Really Rock!

[BadAsp427]

Carl-

She looks great! Nicely done. So, are we going to run a pool to see how many miles you put on her between now and when you send her to Jeff for paint?

I agree with you that she looks great in gel coat. I may be doing the same thing as you. I think it makes sense to drive in gel coat, just as a shake down period.

Congratulations on a terrific job!

Regards,

Steve

So, I had forgotten about this entry by WIS89... the answer was 9,999 miles when I delivered it to Jeff for Body and Paint work...

[BadAsp427]

So I've put about 12,300 miles on the MK4 so far and I've never liked the license tag just..... there.... No frame, just the bare edge of the tag. So I did this... I really like the way it looks and it, IMO, really cleans up the look... The edging does not go into the light, but just up to it. After I put it onto the tag, I then used plyers and crimped it down all the way around it to flatten it and insure that it doesn't come off.

License Tag Frame.jpg License Tag Frame 2.jpg

CLICK HERE for the edge trip product that I used if you would like to get some...

[RJD]

Great idea! Nicely done.

[SSNK4US]

That’s a really cool idea. I’ll have to try that if I ever get that far lol

[Railroad]

I tried door edge guard, but it did not make good 90's and did not stay on. Thanks for the post.

[BadAsp427]

So this happened today during a drive over to a very large Ale & Octane event..
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[Papa]

So this happened today during a drive over to a very large Ale & Octane event..
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That took some serious planning! Not only did you have to get the odometer picture, but to get the speed exactly right at the same time - you have way too much time on your hands.

[BadAsp427]

That took some serious planning!

Well I had less than a minute of planning.

[BadAsp427]

So I worked with Show Cars Illustrated and had a really nice show board made up. I wanted to have a lot of information on it so I chose the larger size. It came out fantastic. They were super understanding of the many changes and edits that I requested and even help with their own suggestions. Here are a couple photos of it.

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Oh, yeah about the "little" mistake... It is to large to transport in the MK4. I will not fit in the trunk or the passenger seat area. 1st world problems I guess... But it sure looks fantastic.

[Jeff Kleiner]

"Hildebrand"?

[egchewy79]

"Hildebrand"?

Whoops...
How are you going to get it to the car show? Bring another car? What's it printed on? If foam board, can you score the back side with a razor and fold it?