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Post by Volktales on Apr 3, 2022 21:28:06 GMT -8
So for the pop-out windows I said screw it, and reused the old seals of indeterminate age. Notice they did not wrinkle at all. Perhaps West Coast Metric could take note of that... I will add pics later of the aluminum track that holds this seal in place... The alloy track and backing seal fit nicely once in place, and I was happy with how this area turned out. Here you can also see the headlining material on the rear pillar... Then time to deal with the pop-out glass itself. I will not be reusing the original glass for a couple of reasons, one being a whole bunch of scratches. Just like the rear window and old windshield, there were scratches everywhere! The glass shown is the parts I saved from the '72 Ghia I scrapped long ago. That thin metal molding on the edge won't work with the '64, otherwise everything else is the same. This is the other thing wrong with the original parts. The latching mechanism was quite rusty on the original '64 parts, yet the '72 version was quite nice condition and exactly the same... This is the original '64 channel now attached to the '72 glass. Getting the old steel channel off was quite fun... I also got new rubbers to seal the channels to the pillar support. Notice the difference? Yes WCM was too cheap to precut the necessary holes out... What a surprise. And here we go. Those holes are necessary to allow those plastic "hinge blocks" to sit in place. These parts were completely missing from my car. Note they are supposed to be pre-drilled to take a small screw to secure them to the pillar support. Do you see any holes drilled in there? Of course not... Yes the hole should be right in the center of that. In reality I don't think this is really necessary due to the design and how the glass fits in the channel. Anyway, enough ranting for now... The catch mechanism was a bit grubby (as shown), but cleaned up well. Then it was time for the big installation! And there it is in place. Actually went in fairly easily once you know the order of installation. Fairly pleased with the fit and finish in the end... Looks good from the inside as well. The screw holes for the catch were fortunately easy to find... Still need to install the one remaining seal, but need to do some more research on how to trim it and the top seal where they butt up to each other. I really do not want to see a bunch of air and water leaks like the old ones did... The next project after the side windows are complete is to unwrap the new windshield that I bought for the car, oh 14 years ago! Think it will be a piece'O'cake to install???
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Post by magikbus on Apr 4, 2022 7:29:51 GMT -8
some day this summer I'm gonna need some help to take out and reset my bus' windshield. Stan
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Post by Volktales on Apr 17, 2022 20:23:57 GMT -8
Still spending a lot of time dealing with my Dad's situation. He is currently in the "Transitions" section of the hospital, meaning if things go well he should be coming home fairly soon. Many others sharing his room won't be going home ever... With the long weekend going on, he is not getting any physiotherapy, and that is what he needs the most right now. All we can do is wait and see.
There is some Ghia activity going on, and hopefully there will be some progress updates tomorrow...
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Post by Volktales on Apr 18, 2022 20:00:45 GMT -8
Soooo, there has been a little bit of Ghia activity going on... One of the few outright missing parts on this car was the heater outlets below the back seat. This has been remedied... I had checked on TheSamba several times for these items, and never saw any for sale. Then suddenly there they were... They were $100 USD which is more than I would have liked to pay, but sometimes you gotta pay the piper... The previous owner appears to have blasted these and painted them. The finish is OK, but not spectacular. I will be combining the original I have with the best parts of these two, and paint them again. Because I can't help myself... Not the greatest picture, but you can see one of them was pretty rusty before with a slightly ragged edge. We can do better than that... And we have to, because these parts are rare and I am unlikely to find more of them... Continued...
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Post by alltypes on Apr 18, 2022 20:24:02 GMT -8
Good news about the air ducts...but the best news, is that your Dad is coming home soon.
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Post by Volktales on Apr 18, 2022 20:41:46 GMT -8
So another thing that I have always wanted for the Ghia is a set of early style trim rings. The originals were anodized alloy, and were very fragile. Lemmerz was the original manufacturer of these and they have been reproduced. For $400 USD for four, and if you want a fifth one, then you will pay and extra $120! Yeah, that ain't going to happen now is it??? Now take a close look at this picture. "Shoe-box" Ford Deluxes from 1949-51 all came with trim rings, and apparently they are a very close match to the Ghia items. And reproductions are available from Bob Drake Ford (a major supplier in vintage Ford circles). And better yet they are made from stainless steel and are significantly less at $35 USD each. That I can handle, and given my car is not exactly original, this is just fine by me. Now I just have to order some... Continued...
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Post by Volktales on Apr 18, 2022 20:44:32 GMT -8
Good news about the air ducts...but the best news, is that your Dad is coming home soon. We are hopeful on this. Every time so far when we think it will be the next day, it isn't. Mom has the house ready, and she already bought one of those powered "lift" chairs that he will be able to get out of. We sure hope he can come home soon. There is literally nothing to stimulate the mind in that hospital, and Dad gets into trouble when his mind starts wandering...
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Post by Volktales on Apr 18, 2022 21:00:15 GMT -8
Now time to play with the front and rear windows. Fitting the molded corners style rubber to the glass was not a big deal. It only goes on one way and is not too onerous. Fitting the chrome trim is another story... The first thing you do is feed some wire into the groove in the rubber that holds the molding. The trick is to use a silicone tube nozzle and it works quickly and easily... The idea is you hold the chrome trim tightly against the rubber, and gently pull out the wire which allows the trim to snug in the proper position. Works pretty nicely on the straight sections. Then you come to a corner... And this is where it all went wrong. Don and I were successful in getting one side of the chrome seated into the rubber after a lot of effort. Then the second side should just pop right in, right? Fat chance. It kept disengaging itself at the corners, and once it did that, even a little bit, then you would have to start again. Another problem was the second piece of trim was slightly bent, and would not seat perfectly. And it really HAS to in this design. Had to walk away from trying to do this more than once. This is one of those jobs that I happily would have left to professionals, except all the guys that know how to install trim and glass like this have all retired. Fortunately Don managed to successfully text the Old Glass Man, and he says he will pick up the glass and trim on Wednesday and install the trim at his home on some kind of fixture. Really hope this will work out... Well the side we did get on looks quite nice... The other side? Nopey nope nope! This car has always fought me in all the years I have owned it, so this should be no major surprise... Well thanks to Don for coming over and lending a hand (or two), anyway... And also thanks to Don for ordering those heater vents for me, as naturally I don't have a Paypal account. Or smart phone. Or anything high tech...
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Post by CrazyBrit on Apr 19, 2022 19:46:22 GMT -8
When we installed the trim in Dad's Ghia, he had already installed the glass first. It was a pain, but it went in. I suspect that there would be less risk of breaking the glass too. We applied a lot of force at times.
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Post by Volktales on Apr 19, 2022 20:12:22 GMT -8
VW or Karmann installed the trim onto the rubber, before installing the whole assembly into the car. This is the recommended way, and also the way the Old Glass Man said it was meant to be done. Others have managed to install it into the rubber after the glass has been installed into the car. Obviously this can work too. Given how much trauma this has caused me so far, I just want it done by someone who can do it!
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Post by PICTUP on Apr 20, 2022 21:01:56 GMT -8
I just want it done by someone who can do it! As we learned today, it sounds like it's gonna be us....
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Post by Volktales on Apr 20, 2022 21:49:10 GMT -8
Not looking forward to this. Not even a bit...
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Post by Rob Sannes on Apr 20, 2022 22:02:48 GMT -8
Hang in there I'm struggling with a few issues on my car too.
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Post by Volktales on May 8, 2022 19:37:03 GMT -8
Well I REALLY hoped to have a new series of pictures up, detailing all the latest awesomely accomplished work on the Ghia... But that only happened in my mind... I am still dealing with my Dad's situation as it evolves. He was released from the hospital after six weeks on Thursday, but did not do well at home. We took him back to the hospital at his request on Friday night to try to get him some help to relax as he simply could not sleep at all. He did return home that night but was taken back by ambulance early Saturday morning. Unfortunately his mental state is rapidly deteriorating, and worst of all he knows it. We can only wait and see what will happen next...
If that wasn't enough reason to justify lack of progress on the Ghia, then how about this. The diverter spout assembly in the main bathroom at my house cracked and started leaking. On further inspection the valve must have been leaking slightly for some time, and the water has been infiltrating the wall. This then made its way into the basement bathroom (which we do not use), and has caused significant damage downstairs as well. Sigh. At least Don came over and made some recommendations and then offered to help fix things. Which really means he will do it all the hard work while I pass the tools. And yes I highly appreciate this and there will be some funds and labour trades involved going his way. Guess the Ghia is going to have to wait longer for some attention...
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Post by Volktales on May 29, 2022 19:21:17 GMT -8
Well this picture says it all. The Ghia has been moved into the storage garage as the project is officially on hiatus. With the passing of my Dad, there are a lot of things that must be done including the preparing and sale of four of his prized cars. These include his '55 (white) and '56 (purple) T-birds, his '56 Bel-Air convertible, and his beloved '37 Ute. His 2000 Harley Davidson Ford truck was the only vehicle he ever bought new, and Mom would like this to stay in the family. Of course the '59 T-bird is spoken for. I will get back to the Ghia at some later date to finally finish it off. Really thought this was going to be year it was finally completed, but things don't always go to plan...
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