I thought you guys might be interested in the photo album of my car at the restoration shop. Here is the link:
http://mikescustomcars.com/projects/projects.asp?proj=SWalker

Nice thorough job they are doing!!!!

A concours car? I see a lot of Nth degree stuff going on. What's the tan stuff on the new sheet metal that he put on after he took off the EPT? Then it appears he put something grey over that. Kinda shines like epoxy.
Real nice so far. Ka-ching, ka-ching, ka-ching. :<)

It was a malibu, but will be a resto-mod when completed. My plans are to go with a zz502 and 700r4 combo, with SS badging and stripes. The primer is actually green, in some pics it looks orange or tan. The reason he strips the EPT is the fact that it generally has rust underneath it. Check the site out again next week, I went by on Friday and he has coated the insides of the quarterpanels with undercoating and seamsealed it all. Also, he did the same to the shell under the quarters, it was really some neat stuff. He does all this to promote the water draining out of the car like it should do. But the pics aren't on there yet. Its been a year almost in waiting for this guy. But I've been real impressed with his work.

how much is left that's original?

how much is left that's original?
Whats left that is original on the body would be most of the firewall (i'm going to fill the heater and blower holes to get the smooth firewall), the roof, the pillars, the rocker panels, most of the rear inner structure, including most of the trunk floor. He is going to have to fab some of the lower cowlsides where it bolts to the front fenders. I am planning on re-using my hood, but pretty much everything else was rust filled.

If GM would have taken that much care, there would be more of these left. Beautiful job. Beautiful car. Congratulations, very very nice.
Paul

Mike does real nice metal work, I wasnt too far from him when I lived in Rock Hill about 10 years ago. Are they doing final finish work also now?

Yeah, Mike comes highly recommended. He does do finish work when requested.

GM tooled or non-GM tooled quarters?

Good work.

GM tooled or non-GM tooled quarters?

Good work.
They were GM licensed Goodmark quarters. I bought them about 2 years ago. I think they were GM tooled.

They were GM licensed Goodmark quarters. I bought them about 2 years ago. I think they were GM tooled.Thanks. Did he have any comments about how they fit?

Thanks. Did he have any comments about how they fit?
He said that they fit real well. There were a couple of "blems" on them, but otherwise they fit good. The new doors on the other hand are going to take some work to make them fit decent.

wow that's nice work

I hope Mike is related to you ....mucho $$ work imo


Looks fantastic :thumbsup:

Looks like just about the same thing I'm doing. Check out my progress in my signature link. Excuse me for being rude, but how much is he charging? Hourly? Or by the job? I'm pretty close to you in NC and was wondering if my guy was in the ball park. He replaced both quarters, complete floorpans (trunk included) inner wheelhouses, cowl and window repair for 10 G's

Looks like just about the same thing I'm doing. Check out my progress in my signature link. Excuse me for being rude, but how much is he charging? Hourly? Or by the job? I'm pretty close to you in NC and was wondering if my guy was in the ball park. He replaced both quarters, complete floorpans (trunk included) inner wheelhouses, cowl and window repair for 10 G's
Great pictures. It looks like yours was in similar condition as mine. He quotes by the job and breaks it down by the item. He is replacing what is seen in the pictures, plus fabbing pieces for the lower cowl and he is going to fill the firewall in for the smooth look. Check out the site again for updates next week as he has coated the inner shell. The full floor pan will be replaced as well. My upper cowl and window trim is in pretty good condition. He is also going to paint the cowl and underside satin black. He generally specializes in Camaros especially 69s. I've heard of several of his projects going into 6 figures. Your guy is in the ballpark with what I am paying for this project. I was going to post some frame pics but cannot figure out how.

My album has been updated if anyone is interested in checking it out.

My album has been updated. Looks like he is almost finished. He still has some work to do on the firewall to make it completely smooth and then the firewall and bottom of the car will be painted satin black. In the 10th and 11th albums you can see the dynacorn firewall being installed as well as the full floorpan. Here is the link:
http://mikescustomcars.com/projects/projects.asp?proj=SWalker&album=10

Do you happen to know what kind of undercoating he sprayed on the inner shell? Thats a pretty cool idea.:thumbsup:

Do you happen to know what kind of undercoating he sprayed on the inner shell? Thats a pretty cool idea.:thumbsup:

It was from a aerosol spray can. It's some kind of rubberized stuff that will help direct water toward the drain holes. I've seen the cans but can't recall what its name is. I will try to remember to find that out.

looks good! kinda like mine!

Wow, man is that coming out great!! That dude is unfreaking believable!!! Great work, attention to detail. Awesome!!!

I hope the guy who starts on mine next month, pays attention to the detail your guy has been doing. Looks great, keep us updated on the progress.

Do you happen to know what kind of undercoating he sprayed on the inner shell? Thats a pretty cool idea.:thumbsup:

I went by the shop and checked it out this morning....It's made by Transtar Autobody Technologies. Its called Quick Dry Rubberized Undercoat. It's available in rattle cans or gallons.

I went by the shop and checked it out this morning....It's made by Transtar Autobody Technologies. Its called Quick Dry Rubberized Undercoat. It's available in rattle cans or gallons.

Ahh, yes. That is good stuff. I prefer the spray on bed liner from Southern Poly. Pretty much the same stuff. Use the lizard skin on the interior and floors, then cover with dynamat will give you a super quiet ride.

Spent an hour looking at all the pictures. Wow. Nice work, this is an example that every car can be saved to perfection.

I have half the amount of work to do and some days it seems overwhelming.

I will go through these pictures again when I need inspiration. :thumbsup:

Beautiful job! looks great.

I would like to know what type of spot welder is he using. Is it similar to the one in the eastwood catalog that you use with an arc welder? Thanks.

Beautiful job! looks great.

I would like to know what type of spot welder is he using. Is it similar to the one in the eastwood catalog that you use with an arc welder? Thanks.

It looks like he is using an autobody spotwelder. I think it's a prospot or an HTP spotwelder. Both are great and less work than using a mig. Looks like he used a mig as well for a few spots. Great work no doubt.

Nice work he is doing so far. Unreal work like that = big $. Keep us posted on the progress.

Question? album 10 Pic 12. Is he overlapping? I look at all panel replacement and this is the most detailed. please correcty me if I am wrong. he has drilled the body placed the new panel over and welded the drill holes and then tacked the panel to the body. It looks really smooth and good. butt welding gives me the creeps and i like what i see with your car.

That is really inspiring. Truly nice work indeed.

Question? album 10 Pic 12. Is he overlapping? I look at all panel replacement and this is the most detailed. please correcty me if I am wrong. he has drilled the body placed the new panel over and welded the drill holes and then tacked the panel to the body. It looks really smooth and good. butt welding gives me the creeps and i like what i see with your car.

Yeah, I've been impressed by his work as well. I'm really ready to get it back on the frame so I can start putting it back together. His welding skills and attention to detail is well known around here. As far as the money goes, I feel like I've gotten my money's worth from him.