Benn,
A-class metal finishers are the best chromers in adelaide. Expensive but you pay for quality. Im getting my handbrake done at another place called goldstar at hackam as i couldnt justify a-classes price just for the handbrake which is 60% covered in rubber. Will let you know how it turns out. From memory a-class wanted $900 a bar for my mates HQ bumpers and goldstar did both for $900. But as i said u pay for quality and a-class will be getting my bumpers because i know they will be mint for a very very long time, probably last longer than me

Go easy on the spray putty Benn, + I'd probably leave a single component putty longer than a couple of weeks prior to blocking. One of the great advantages of 2pack products is they harden 100% through a catalyst agent at the right temperature of course.

Make sure you dummy fit all your trims prior to paint to make sure the putty hasnt subtly changed any of the trim area shapes. Thats why I intentionally masked the gutters. I'd hate to paint the car and find I couldnt use them without another rub back and respray ! My C pillar trims wont fit properly until the quarter gets blocked back, you wouldnt know until you tried to fit them.

Hey Matt, yeah let me know how the chrome turns out. There is no way I am paying $900 per bar......not ever......Can't justify it. This thing is supposed to be built on a budget.....

Thanks for the tip Gypsy, I hadn't thought of that......Will test fit everything first, especially the chrome....The last thing I want to do is respray it again

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Rockin' the 7 in a street near you.....

Benno,
just got my handbrake back and im extremely happy with the job he did with it. Check my build thread in the next few days on AR. I will start one up on here soon as i prefer this site. The place is called goldstar at hackam, i got him to zinc some nuts and bolts too and they came up a treat.

Good to hear Matt. I will have to go and get a quote on my bars and tail light surrounds. Will keep an eye on the thread....

Cheers for the update.

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Rockin' the 7 in a street near you.....

Spent all weekend on the panel work again. Blocked back the doors, found a couple of minor lows. Also did the boot, found a high that I missed, so sorted that out. Layed down some hifill on the doors and boot.

Blocked back the guards and apron, surprisingly only found a minor low on one guard!!

Decided it was time to trial fit all the hanging panels and start working on the panel gaps. Spent a few hours adjusting and tweaking. Got the passenger side really good, still working on the drivers side. The back edge of the guard sticks out a bit at the top, so will need to keep adjusting till I get it to sit right.

Need to fit the bonnet and boot next so I can align them as well.
Front apron fits a treat considering how bad it lined up with the guards initially so am happy with that.

Next I need to hifill the guards and block back the bonnet.

It is getting close to paint time!!! Not expecting this thing to win any shows, thats for sure, But am hoping it comes out ok. The amount of prep work that goes into a full respray is phenominal....It is doing my head in

Also polished up the stainless sill mould that runs along the side, came up beautifully.

Didn't put up any pics as it still looks like a primered shitbox, but will put some up when all the hanging panels are on and hifilled......

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Rockin' the 7 in a street near you.....

If I can put pics up of a crappy looking car then so can you... I wont object to any progress photos

Don't give up on achieving a perfect finish. You'll hate the car everytime you look at it if it doesn't come out right. Keep at it till it comes out 100%. After lining everything up maybe paint the car in stages, doors and guards one day, bonnet and boot lid another and then concentrate on the shell when the time comes. Not the way a pro would do it but that's the way I'll be doing it. Since we're not using metallic paint and have had the supplier mix the paint in one go there shouldn't be any problem painting in stages. Makes the job manageable for us amateurs. If you screw something up or miss something that wasn't obvious at first you dont have 2L + of paint mixed with hardener that you cant use (probably not an issue with acrylic)

Painting in stages is not as efficient but takes the pressure off an otherwise big job where the end result matters. If I decide the going gets too tough I know a couple of painters that can do a decent job but want to have a go myself first. Did you use a mini gun for the engine bay or full size spray gun ?

Hey Gypsy, yeah know what you are saying. I jusr keep chipping away at it no matter how annoying it gets Had a look at it this morning when I got up and it is actually quite good. Just the drivers side guard needs some adjusting, but I reckon I just figured out what is holding it out. (Amazing what a few hours sleep does)
The factory sealer that is in the joins behind where the guard sits is very thick here and it appears to be pushing the guard out. Until now this guard has never been lined up with the door, so have probable never noticed it.....

Not sure if it would be a mini gun, but the gun I am know using is half the size and capacity as the one I originally used. It is fairly easy to get around the bay with it. Hoping to redo teh bay and jams soon.

As for method of painting, the only panel that i was going to paint seperate was the front apron as it would be a pain to paint on the car.

Came across this on.....check it out....appears to have come out pretty good considering.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xq_jwPJWDJ0

Love the booth!!
Will post up some pics soon

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Rockin' the 7 in a street near you.....

Spent this weekend aligning the panels some more. Sorted out the guard that was sitting out, got the bonnet aligned and also the boot.....

When I removed the inner sleeve from the guards to treat the surface between the 2 panels, I never flattened the top section of the driver’s side one properly. This is why it was sitting out so much. Took the guard off, welded the inner panel back where it should of been.....ooops

This allowed me to get the driver’s door to fit a bit better as well.
Also the last captive nut that the guards bolt into stripped, so I drilled it out and put a rivnut in its place.

First time the car has had all its panels for a lot of years.....



Made me realise why I am building this thing.....I just love the shape.

I trial fitted a lot of the trim and bits and pieces to the car to make sure it is all going to fit. So far, so good!!





Now need to let the hifill sit for a bit longer, then block her back again, make any last repairs and then I will give it one more coat of hifill all over. I need to redo the deadener on the back of the driver’s side guard after today’s welding session.

Then I need to rub back the engine bay one last time, and then I can paint the bay, door jams, bonnet and boot jambs, inside the petrol cap, and the back of the doors, bonnet, boot and front apron.

I will then reassemble all the panels again, line them all up and then rub back the shell in preparation for paint.

A few fiddly bits to do as well – need to repaint the dash, as I wasn’t thinking and placed a file on it and scratched it. There is a lesson in that – don’t paint anything until ALL the bodywork is done!!
Also need to put in a few studs that hold the windscreen clips in (same as what Gypsy has done recently to his RX3)

It’s nice to know that I am very close to paint time......Getting this far has been a challenge. I have done a lot of other odd bits and pieced to the car in between doing the panel work to try to keep my sanity......
I’ve said it before, and I will say it again – I take my hat off to panel beaters. It’s a tough gig, and one that you have to be SO thorough with. It has taken a LOT longer than I had ever imagined to get the body to this point.

I have had a look back at photos of the car from pre and post bodywork to truly understand and appreciate where all my time and effort has gone.....
BEFORE



AFTER



I would say that I have 3 or 4 more sessions in the shed blocking and finishing off fiddly stuff and then it should be paint time.
More pics soon!!

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Man i cant wait to see this painted, and cant wait to see mine rust free

The only difference I see is the car has gone backwards and that you have collected alot of Shell junk, at least the car had a windscreen and wheels before you started

Try these guys for a new set of indicator lenses. I bought a set when he first made them and I think they are very good, you cant have shiny paint and faded old looking parts now can you ! The liaring twit in QLD sells them for almost double the price however I refuse to deal with him even if he had (which he doesnt) the best prices purely on principle and ethics. http://cgi.ebay.com.au/MAZDA-R100-RX2-r ... 3a60262716

I feel like Im not far behind you but still feels like I'll never get to the paint stage. Will you be using a 12a twin dizzy engine, the once unwanted twin dizzy engines seem to be coming back in vogue which was unthinkable years ago. Are you going for a standard or ported engine ? Nice progress by the way

Thanks for the confidence boost Gypsy!! Ha ha, you have a point though. At least it had wheels!!

The lights fitted in the pics are the originals, I have new lenses already in a box - somewhere.....Bought them from MR RX3 in Perth prob 7-8 years ago when I bought the rubber kit for it. They appear to be good quality too!!
Need to get the chrome surrounds for the lights rechromed when the bumpers get done.

Funny thing about those lenses is that I contacted this guy years ago to see if you could repro a set of RX2 lenses, he said he would need to borrow a set to tool up, but the cost was nuts. Obviously a few more people have asked him the same thing and he has since made them. From what I have heard, ALL his lenses are pretty damn good!!

I bought some front indicator lenses (JDM Style) from your mate in QLD, arrived broken, but he did eventually send me some new ones.

Unfortunately I have had to get a few bits from him, quality is generally not that great, but sometimes I have just had to deal with it. I got a set of quarter vents from them, bit rough around the edges, but I couldn't justify paying $400 for a second hand set or $800 for NOS ones. I set a budget and I am sticking to it as best I can. If money was no object, I would go all out, but I need to be sensible. Especially if I want to do anothe project after this one

As for the engine, no 12a twin dizzy for this one! I have already sourced an RX4/5 vintage 13B with a large extended Bridgeport. Engine will run 12a timing cover, S4 water pump, electonic dizzy, modified nikki carb and gilmer drive. Box is a 12a turbo cosmo/rx7. I love the sound of the old school early nineties style rotors - back when Bridge and J ports ruled the streets with their big brap at idle!!

I probably should put a stocker 12a in it, but I cant help myself

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Rockin' the 7 in a street near you.....

Just became a member to comment on this build! A great read and well done on whats sure to be a great car once its complete

Well done Benn, it's looking fantastic.

Mo's here as well now, half of ausrotary will be here soon.

(welcome mo!)

Thanks for the comments and support guys!!

Yeah a few AR members here now!! Hopefully the better half of them!!

Welcome Mo, good to see another genuine Mazda enthusiast on here.

Yeah, I am hoping the car will turn out pretty nice, just after a nice cruiser with a fair whack of detail and a blend of original and modified. As you can see, the car is all home built thus far by a qualified nothing!! It has all been trial, error and some great advice from people that are willing to share their experiences and knowledge.

Very close to paint time for the old girl, then got to put her back together.

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Dude, this build is awesome...... can't wait for paint!

Thanks Mate!! It's funny you know, I have a few pics from the net of your car (and a handful of other RX2's) that I use as inspiration to keep going and not put a pick axe through mine

Yeah I can't wait for paint, I am just going over and over the shell to make sure it is going to be as good as I can get it. Hopefully the paint will start to flow soon.......

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You're doing a phnomenal job with this car. It's nice to see so many early Mazda rotaries getting restored back to standard condition. I know for me it'd be hard to resist the temptation to throw on a set of flares and a fire-breathing 13B.

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-Cam
1988 Mazda RX7
1980 Toyota Celica
a bunch of cool other cars I'm not allowed to list

keep it up, i love the shape especially the tail on the rx2, looking at the twin tail lights make me happy!

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Yeah, me too! Love putting them in and then just standing back and looking at them......

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