John S's Journal

Decided to try a little panel beating because the front valence needed some work. It looked like it had some close encounters with some curbs so I took the larger dents out just bending it over my knee as a first step. Borrowed a hammer and dolly kit from a friend and started tinkering a couple of days ago. I ran a random orbit sander with some 80 grit to smooth out some of the old paint imperfections and knock down some surface rust where the metal was exposed. I should have taken a picture before I started but too late for that. It’s starting to look more like it is supposed to as far as overall shape. Anything would be an improvement and I’m not looking for perfect so we’ll see how it comes out. Hopefully I will only need a minimum of filler


Saturday

Decided to use a heat gun to strip the paint as I didn’t want the fumes or the mess of a chemical stripper. It’s a little tedious but by concentrating on small sections it peels off pretty well with a chisel held at a low angle. Tried the razor blade but that wasn’t getting it done. It’s going to take longer this way but I’m ok with that. The less I have to sand, the better.