So last year around October I bought my first car (93' Honda Civic) with the help of my good friend Arthur. It was a long search that taught me waiting was important to getting what you want. It was rainy, so I didn't get to see the car in its entirety, but it was decent.
It's also a standard car, meaning lots of stalls uphill and in parking lots... and standard driving lessons from the Arthur Si Fu.
This is Claire =)
Anywayyyy... I decided to just take it easy and have some fun. There will be plenty of time for me to be worried later... and so I started thinking about my car.
The majority of people don't get to drive a luxury car, but when you live in Richmond, everybody drives a really <nice> car. That got me jealous, but everyone gets jealous.. it's just I happened to be extremely that, until I got my own car. A nice car is just a nice car, but the car that was bought from your own sweat-soaked hard-earned money really meant something. It was an accomplishment, but I realize now that it is a costly one... It just sucks all your money away from you........
SO.. with my car there were a lot of problems... Including: broken ignition casing, power locks no longer powered, faded paint, dimmer dial broken (so no night-time driving), broken seat belt, broken engine seals -> oil leaks, slipping clutch and more...and Arthur helped me out with a lot of them.
Then there was this one nagging problem, also known as rust, at the rear quarter panels. So I'm thinking to myself.... it costs over $5000 to get my car looking sexy from an autobody shop, but as a student.. unless you're extremely smart/already successful at something OR mommy and daddy loves you a lot, that's pretty hard to get. Good old DIY. That's what I decided to do, so I'm going to fix the quarter panels myself and re-paint it, while consulting Arthur.
Today I started on it. Got around 40$ worth of materials, a stool and started sanding/whatever for about 4 hours. Then did some more stuff.. anyway here's the interesting stuff (PICTURES xD).
So this is how it looked like after about 2-3 hours of sanding (BY HAND.. which is really stupid of me but I don't have a machine). You can see the rust ate right through the sheet metal underneath the outer paint, and even through the metal underneath the sheet metal.
A closer look at how bad it was rusted...
This is how it looks like after the first layer of fiberglass mat and resin. Trying to fit the inside with some stuff so that it'll be easier to put another sheet of fiberglass on top. Of course there's going to be more layers and sanding, and more layers. There'll be bondo after some more layers, and paint on top of that.
I sat for so long that my knees buckled when I got up... LOL.. My fingers/hands are also quite sore and sensitive... so now I realize why autobody work is SO expensive and why you shouldn't be doing this kind of thing unless you have lots of time and nothing else to do.. like myself (well maybe there is stuff that I should be doing....) Sigh
UPDATE//
Some sanding after the resin and fibreglass dried...
A closer look on one side...
Second layer of resin and fiberglass in some areas
And you can see that it's not as ugly as before and it's actually looking like it's starting to take the shape of what it's supposed to look like.. hooray! *relieved*
Another layer, more sanding
And more layers, and more sanding.. actually looking like what it''s supposed to look like.. *more relieved* haha xD...
So more layers and more sanding.. I realized the more resin I use the more fragile it becomes (kinda obvious though... maybe?) There were also a few tiny holes forming in the resin itself, so I had to quickly finish up.. but should be ok with bondo.. I think lol..
//UPDATE
Ok.. today I tried to work on it but I was totally owned by a monsoon and therefore could barely do anything because nothing was drying very well... anyway here's a picture update x)... the bottom part was really annoying.. and yeah, it's not that great but it'll do for now.. as you can see on the closer resin/fiber glass area, there were holes, from applying and sanding too many times I think.. hopefully the next side will be better
<Arthur Si Fu makes his appearance> he dropped by and tried to fix my backup lights.. which could not be fixed because of some mysterious reason.. and then he realized there were no power locks on my passenger side door in the first place so it wasn't even broken at all... LOL
UPDATE//
Finally got back to work.. So I decided today I will bondo for sure, and bondo I did. This is how it looked like... getting ready to be bondo-d
One layer of bondo + sand..
Bondo layer #2... yucky.. and I have to spread it out evenly fast.. the working time for this stuff is sooo short.. unlike the fiberglass resin which was moldable for a lot longer..
Sanded.... and getting ready to be painted (some other day LOL.. still haven't bought primer and paint yet)
Different angle, I think it's going to look ok.. it's as good as it gets.. and again, the more I sand the more imperfections are created.. so you can only sand so much....
And a closer look x).. I think I might add some more bondo on the wheel well (??).. But I'll look at it again tomorrow and see how it is
UPDATE//
Crappy weather.. but I'm preparing..
Ohh yeahh xD.. Paint and primer
Milano Red =)
UPDATE//
Oh my goodness, the amount of frustration for what I did today was absolutely ASNFSDIGNSG.
Added some more bondo to even it out a bit. Began preparing to paint.. by covering parts of the car with tape and newspaper. This would be my downfall.. you'll see later.
Anyway, I messed up with the primer, touched it and then the shape of the layers before all got messed up. I should have gave it more time before I touched it. So next time I'll know better for the other side.
So then I put a few more layers of primer.. and I began to paint. Did I mention that I had to redo this part SO many times because I changed the shape of the quarter panel SO many times. I eventually gave up and began to paint...
Then I painted more and more.. and then I touched the paint which made me just absolutely QQ so hard.
These next pictures depict why I said I would GG myself with the newspaper earlier. I should have given myself more room so this did not happen. The layers built up and then there was an obvious difference in the original paint and the new paint. So then I madly began trying to smooth it out but realized it was not dry enough yet... so I GG-ed myself again. Basically, I have to wait until tomorrow.
One last picture of how the car looks like with this and all... And I have to remember next time to cover my tire too. Next time.. next time..
UPDATE//
Ok.. SO.. I sanded it down, and then prepared to paint again. I think that when I do the full car I'm going to need a gun. There were too many times where I somehow put too much paint in one area, creating bubbly and orange peel looks (open the pictures bigger and you'll see). I think it's impossible for me to make the paint match until I re-paint my whole car.. so I give up for now... It is what it is and here are some pictures.
Sanded
Yeap... Forgot to cover my tire again xD.
UPDATE//
One more picture... before I do anything for a while haha
-DAM
i want MOAR DOUMING!
ReplyDeletegood job douming!!
ReplyDeletedude thats such a nice job!!!
ReplyDelete