Kinda doing this backwards but here are some of the progress shots that went into the frame prep/paint. Media blasted with Black Diamond coal slag with a harbor freight media blaster. Then primed with a couple coats of Master Series rust sealer/primer. Then a coat of Master Series AG111.
Frame is painted. Still have some fine tuning to do. I want to try and smooth out the bumpers especially. They have a bit too much texture from the roller. I think I will add some additional coats and then smooth it out. I did the first coat with a brush and then sanded out the brush strokes and switched to a foam roller. Foam rollers worked much better and faster in my opinion. Happy with the progress.
Alright well some progress has been made. There were some small areas on the front and rear bumper that needed to be straightened and some holes that needed to be filled.
For the bumper straightening I used a combination of portapower use and C clamps with angle iron. No heat was required and I am happy with the results.
For filling the holes in the front bumper I cut and ground down pieces of same gauge steel into small circles that would fit into the wholes and welded them in place. One of the holes overlapped into the large hole for the hand crank, so I had to make an oversized piece of steel, weld it in place, and then used a dremel and round file to reshape the large hand crank hole. This process took a little bit of time but overall happy with the results. It ended up taking 2 rounds of welding and grinding smooth due to there being some low spots and deep pits after the first round of welding. There are still some pits around the welds but I am thinking and hoping that they are small enough that I can fill with the masterseries primer. Can any users of masterseries shed some light on how deep of pits it will fill? The pits around the welds on the backside of the front deeper are a bit deeper I know.
Frame is ready for media blasting and painting. Hoping to get this done next weekend when I have a few days off in a row.
Well son, it's time to post up some more pictures of all the things you have been doing. I'm so happy to see this project finally getting some attention. It's been a lot of fun working with you on dad's old jeep.
Alright guys and gals I have all I need to get the frame painted and move on with the project but I have a few questions.
One is on the front bumper. I need some help identifying some holes in the front bumper. My goal is to find out the purpose of these holes and fill in the ones that are not original and possibly the ones I will not be using. I know the large one just off center of the middle of the bumper is for hand crank. The 4 smaller ones in the middle of the bumper that from a square shape by the crank hole I believe are aftermarket and not original. I plan on filling those. And I know the 2 in vertical alignment just outside the passenger side frame mount rivet are for the license plate holder. The ones I have questions about are the ones circled in red in the picture below.� From what I have been able to find online I believe them to all be original holes but I have not been able to find what their intended use was for. Like I said, I am trying to find this information out so I can fill in what I need to before painting. Any help with answers or some to direction as to where to find the answers would be appreciated.
My second question is in reference to the second picture. There are two bolts with what appears to be a broken bracket of some sort. This is located in the middle of the passenger side frame rail between the front two body mount outriggers. I have been able to find it in pictures of other CJ3As but they to have been broken or missing the bracket piece altogether. This isn't as important to know for moving forward with painting the frame, because I am pretty certain it is something original. Still curious as to what this was used for?
Other than that I have a few minor areas of frame repair/straightening (actually just bumper stuff). Also going to go through the process of ensuring the frame is straight. This isn't something I am worried about, but figured it would be good to go through the process for the experience.
Thanks for the tips fellas. The MasterSeries products are in the mail! Squidtone, that sounds like an interesting approach. Sounds like you are using the masterseries almost like a filler for pitting and scratches. I'm sure that would result in a nice smooth finish. I think I will apply it with a nice brush and see how that comes out. Might ended up taking the sanding and epoxy primer approach if the result shows brush strokes that I can't live with. Right now trying to find some nice brushes to purchase... Seems like each step of this process presents so much research and learning. Never realized all the varieties of brushes. Hopefully I can get one that lays it on nice without brush strokes.
Been busy the last few days with obligations and working on building some doors for the shop so haven't got much done with the jeep. Just some rough scraping and cleaning of the transmission.
And I am happy to help with pictures. The least I can do for all the help I will get from everyone. If there are things people want to see just ask and I will snap picture of what I can.
Hi Ironman 51, Really nice. It's cool to see a Jeep in such good shape!
I would also cast a favorable vote for the Masterseries primer. I have used it on a few projects, and I've always brushed it on. I will say this however: If you use foam brushes, the tendency is for the primer to go on really thin...it spreads out real easy. If it goes on that thin, you can get rust through after a time. If you use a bristle brush, it's way easier to get it on thicker, with a drastic reduction in later rust through. However, putting it on sorta thick with a bristle brush yields brush stroke marks, sometimes kinda heavy. In my opinion, brush strokes in the wrong place are UGLY. Even on frames. What i would do is bristle brush paint everything you want, then go over any visible areas with a little electric DA with 80 or 120 grit to smooth down the brush marks. Don't worry if you break through to metal. (I think the best place for Masterseries is in the nooks and crannies that the sander can't get to.) When done sanding the MS primer, shoot everything with an epoxy primer, even the newly exposed bare metal. Epoxy primer is meant for this. I think this technique will look really good for you. I don't know how original you intend to go, but it can't hurt to get a smooth spray finish on everything.
Anyway, thanks for the great pictures. I know I'm one of several who are poring over the detail shots...it's nice to see how things were since folks like me have giant holes of air instead of metal! Ha!
Iron, I am a fan of these products. I didn't use the Rust Remover or the Metal Prep. For me, sand blasting seemed to eliminate the need for these added steps.
I haven't had long term experience with the AG 111, so we will both have to rate it down the road a few years. I chose the Satin finish. I like the lower sheen on an old Willys.
The Silver is another story. Everything they claim has been verified with my experience. 5 years since first used. No rust. None. I do live in a dry climate, but we have done a fair amount of muddy wet trails and river crossings at the FCT and BHR gatherings. I think you'll be happy with these products.
Thanks for the photos. That tub is SO nice! (the yellow one. )
All these years fooling with cars/Jeeps, I don't recall seeing a tranny/bellhousing mounted on engine stand. I will be using that idea for sure. Even if just for cleaning/painting.
Thanks Tim! Glad to hear about the drawbar. Sounds like you are a fan of the master series products if you used them again on your second project. So 2 quarts of each should do it then. I also plan on brushing it on. Did you also use the Master Series Metal Prep and Rust remover for during your prepping process? My plan of attack is media blast, scuff surface with 220 sand paper, then use the MasterSeries Metal Prep and Rust Remover as described on their website. Just wasn't sure if this was overkill if I am going to be media blasting.
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I will be using that idea for sure. Even if just for cleaning/painting.