D.I.Y. Mik

Washed a perfectly shiny clean looking car. Ready to wax.

Ooh, thats nice. Ok, so ive finished polishing fully now, no more touch ups, i cant see cos i never get a chance on a sunny day. So it will have to do for now. Its washed and ready for the 4 layers of stuff going on. Lime prime to prep the paint for wax, hard wax, soft wax, sealant. Its nice and cold out there at night, polish and stuff doesnt dry, so you get ages to work with it. But on the other hand, wax that normally takes 24 hours to cure will take 48. Ill spray your car no worries, as in just the spray gun and you can do the other 180hrs or so of stuff.... But realistically, youd want to do it to a car with no rego, or do a quickie. Thats just: pull of some bits, wash, a light sand, tape up, dust, wax&grease remover, prime, solid colour (gloss, no clear), a quick polish, done. No bodywork and no idea how long it will last, but an easy way to change the colour. And my compressor needs a service before i use it again. Anyway, i should be done soon, prime lime tonight, and maybe the first wax too if i can.

We need a nice sunny day for photos. Its been fairly nasty blizzard type weather up here lately. But, yeah its ready to go, i even took it for a spin around the block a few times to warm it up. Ive been driving the missus Volvo V70 for 6 months, so its real nice to get in it again.

Probably next weekend or during the week sometime. Some polish touch ups, waxing, rubbers are getting better, a bit more on them, and a sunny day to get nice photos. I just washed it again, pre final polish. Its weird washing a car thats not visibly dirty. But it has to have all traces of coarser polish gone. Had a quick drive around the block a few times to warm it up. Its been a while.

That 34 looks nice at the coast. Finally assembled everything, and i can detail it now, also i can move the bastard out of the shed. And i dont have sht all over the place, its all on the car, i can use the shed again for other things.

Ok just a teaser though. Id like to detail it before showing it off.

When a stock or mildly worked R1 can wheelie anytime up to.... i dunno 260? or something, whats the point having more power? Its not a drag bike now, but i bet it will be modified soon, the owner will realize its the only way to feel the extra power. I remember when Mick Doohan was riding 2 strokes in GP, they had a bike that was too light and they made worse lap times.

Pretty much, just waiting for some glue to dry, and my number plates. And a detail i spose, which wont be too hard cos the paint is new, mostly waxing and washing the wheels and windows.

Boot, back and doors done, mesh glued on front bar, mirrors on. Some big holes in my interior trim, ill just cut some foam to fill underneath, fibreglass, and carbon wrap vynil. Skirts and front bar going on next, then touch ups and detailing the fiddly bits as much as i can be bothered. New number plates should be ready soon i hope. And i still havent decided how to affix the front plate or where. The box of bits is nearly empty, and the nuts and bolts are nearly all gone.......

Rally destroys cars, so be prepared for that. Basically cos your flogging the sht out of it in the dirt, which wears everything out even faster. You measure wear and tear with hours not k's. I could never handle going that fast in the forest with the trees whipping past....... scary. On a bike i feel fine though, its different. Get a good cage.

Putting it back together again, funny cos its been so long since i pulled it apart, and im missing things. What i mean is ill put something on, say like the door handle, then as im doing something else, i find a part and realize it goes in the door handle. So i pull apart the handle, put the bit in, and put it all back again. Did it a few times now. A few scratches and paint chips too, but thats life, ill just touch them up with a tiny brush, or buff them out, when its all done. I forgot how much stuff is broken, so i got a tube of sika 252 assembly adhesive. I used it for the back window seal too, it doesnt work the same as silicon, so it was very tricky to get it looking ok. Im going to have to spend a bit of time on the rubbers, they look pretty bad. The missus cant wait for me to finish it, im already thinking about what i want to do next..... Ill have to give it a break for a while after this, and enjoy driving it.

You are always so humble about the GTR, yet i see it is like one of the title cars for the vid. I guess the photographers really like it too, its a very fine example of a 32 GTR. For most people, an immaculate finish inside and out is more impressive than a big turbo and 1000hp. Especially now i know what it takes, and all the bits and pieces fitting together properly with no gaps or bits of leftover polish, and the rubbers, and the inside, and the engine bay.... And everything perfect. You see what i mean.

Cool.... heres my vid for the day, not entertainment though. So... Whos still smoking cigarettes? Would you like a carton of smokes for $5? Its time to change, and its very very easy. If you want all the info (where to shop, what to get, forums, etc) or links to the info just ask me. Or google. Part 1 Part 2

Yeah, we have a plan........ its a secret. Hey Rob, the body is now polished, and the colour is getting deeper. Very nice. Much quicker this time around, i will assemble it soon i hope.

Id think $500 is about what that costs. $2500 for custom. The price goes up quite quickly. When i was there (belco) it was cheapest to get the same plate re-made ($160). A new number costs more because of the paperwork. Plastic isnt any more expensive, its when you want custom letters the price gets crazy. So... polishing pads alll cost about the same $20-$25, some real nice ones are $40. Thing is you can get a professional one for $22 which lasts for ages, or a bit of mattress foam at Supercheap for $25 which will sht itself very quickly.

Getting into polish no2. Which is far quicker, only have to go once and its good, the first compound took 2-3 goes to get it. Its not going to destroy pads like the first one did. Wow, the colour is deeper. Looking nice, except i left some things for the pros to pick. Plenty of little things, that could be better, but im happy with it.

34T is perfect, nice one. Im getting some new plates too, same letters black and white plastic, slim front. It was the cheapest option. But still will look ok.

First polish done , washed and ready for the next polish, which will remove all the swirl marks. It has fairly heavy swirls from the aggressive polishing compound. The foam lance is handy for cleaning between grades of sandpaper or polish. I just leave it for a bit to soak and rub around the edges to remove anything caught under there. Sorry no pics. ill do something to show it off when its done. Its harder to put time into it as its so cold at night, when i do most of the work, and the machine is loud. Hand polishing keeps me warm, and im so glad wet sanding is all done with the freezing water... thats so cold. So, next... one more polish, easier this time, i tested a little bit. Then assemble the painted bits back on the car, and do the final (3rd) polish then.

finished polish round 1 turned a sanded finish shiney, lots of work to really cut it back so now its shiney but heavy swirl marks all over next polish will be easier i think, just removing swirl marks

Foam dust? Or maybe that resin insulating stuff in electrical things. Like on the alternator coil or starter motor coil.

Its well deserved praise. The car is awesome, so much development and custom made stuff. And it looks great too. Im a bit jealous of how neat you make things.

A quick look under the car can be dangerous. http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/man-70-dies-under-car-in-chapman-20140622-zsi65.html A pity someone died to remind us to be safe. Chassis stands on level concrete at the minimum please.

Hand polishing last night..... keeps you warm. Hand polishing has lots of power to cut back the paint. Seem to be good at it, for some reason my arm doesnt tire easily.