0019 Clementine changes colour

0019 She changes colour
4th May 2020
Paint on the top and the bottom.

4 litres of Clementine

I bought the Clementine-coloured 2 pack paint from Harts myself in order to make sure I got the right colour, and also to keep the costs down so I am not paying a 3rd party.  It took them about 20 minutes to mix it all up to the correct VW colour code - 4 litres of paint and two litres of hardner - The paint shop will then mix the two as they need it because once mixed it can go off (hard) quite quickly.   Once home with the paint, I checked with GC  Restoration to confirm a time for delivering the car - But unfortunately they have a few hiccups during the current virus and asked to delay everything for a couple of weeks.  Oh.   Well I guess that means I have two weeks to do some stuff that I was really not planning on doing - At least not currently.

 

0018 The list seems to get longer !

0018  The list seems to get longer !
11th April 2020.
There seems to be more to do with every day that passes !

Why isn't the list of things to do getting shorter ?  I don't understand - I keep getting things done each day, but by the end of the day, there are another bunch of new things to do !

0017 Corona Virus strikes !!!

0017 Corona Virus strikes !!!
31st March 2020
Self isolation is easy when you have lots to do !

In my last post, I had prepared all Clementine's panels for painting - Primed, rubbed down with 600 wet & dry, and ready to go for painting.  So this Monday I went over to check that the paint was ready - "Sorry, the tints haven't arrived yet, and not sure when they will get here".   Grrrrr.  So I then go over to the painters, and it turns out they are having a bit of upheaval at the moment, and it will be 6th April before they will be able to take the car for painting !!  Bugger.   Well, at least the paint should be here by then !! (If not, I checked with another local paint supplier, and he has the tints in stock. )  So I guess I have the time to do some or all of those jobs that I was either putting off, or not planning on doing at all ?!!  Always a silver lining in every black cloud, I guess !!

0016 Lots of painting and sanding

0016 Lots of painting and sanding
21st March 2020
Trying to get everything ready for painting

Almost ready for the paint shop !

It has been a really busy couple of weeks as I am trying hard to get everything ready for painting.  In order to save money and time, I am trying to have everything primed and rubbed down with 600 wet & dry and masked off so that when I move it to the spray painters they spend less time (and money !) having to do the preparation work, and can just get on with the spraying.  But I see how the costs of spray painting quickly mount - The painting itself is the easy bit - It is the preparation of the car that takes so long.  And there are so many nooks and crannies, as well as the body shell, plus the 8 panels that all need rubbing down - It sometimes seems like an endless task.  But I think I am making  
                                                         good progress !

0015 Is anything ever easy ?

0015 Is anything ever easy ?
Sunday 1st March 2020
When nothing seems to go right !

The wiring is a problem !

The last 2 weeks have been extremely frustrating.  As I have mentioned before, I believe, I am only
pretending to be a mechanic - Underneath I am still just someone with an inquisitive mind who is willing to have a go.  As a result, when some of the more "difficult" mechanical skills are required, I am often left floundering.  With the Healey it was somewhat easier because the car was mostly located in Classic Car Clinic with their expert mechanics, so when an issue came up that stretched my knowledge, I had them to fall back on, and often they were able to even help me do the job.  Another issue is age !!   My strength is not what it was, so often difficult bolts are hard to undo, and additionally, as I do not have a hoist, my car is at floor level, and much of my day is spent getting down on the floor and then up again repeatedly (often to get a spanner I forgot !), so at the end of the day I am exhausted.  As a result of this, I decided to have a few days sitting inside the car doing the wiring - It may have been less physically exhausting, but since I am even less proficient as an auto electrician than I am as a mechanic, it would prove to be mentally exhausting instead !

0014 Back to Qld and work on the VW

0014 Back to Qld to work on VW
20th January 2019
Time to head home.

Janet & sister Sally in Mt Eliza

Had a lovely 3 days with Sally and Mike in Mt Eliza, which included lots of games of cards as well as an excellent lunch in The Grand Hotel in Mornington.  Quite cool in Melbourne, and it rained a bit which was good, but it was time to head north after a very enjoyable time with them both.  Due to the fires to the east, we drove via the (somewhat boring) Hume Highway to our

With Jos & Tony and family in Yak

friends Jos and Tony in Yackandandah, just in from Albury.  Normally I would drive through the beautiful Snowy Mountains to get to Yack, but the fires have made this impossible at the moment.  As always, great to catch up with Jos and Tony and kids and grandkids.  We had a lunch in Albury where Tony had a doctor's appointment, but the rest of the time was spent at the farm, either playing cards or drinking red wine !!   Very pleasant couple of days.

0013 Heading back to the Mainland

0013 Heading back to the Mainland
17th January 2020
Sightseeing in Tasmania

Evie & Olie inspecting Troopie !

We left Benn & Sarah & the girls in Hobart on the 14th January after a wonderful month with them.  Lots of fun exploring the area, getting to know the girls, reading lots of stories and having lots of adventures, and also learning a lot about Benn & Sarah's Fox Friday brewery, which I am most impressed with.  Impressed with their vision for the future, and also impressed with their beer !!  After saying farewell, we headed NW out of Hobart, on the road to Queenstown and Strahan.  We had 3 days to get to Devonport to catch our ferry, so we were just planning a wander up through the NW corner of the State.