Trying to Trim Everything!



1/9/04
Trying to Trim Everything!

I was a little schizophrenic today trying to work on several projects at one time for the Ferrari. The Holidays put a halt to any major progress because East Coast Trim was off for most of it, but now it was a matter of trying to get back up to speed! I need Frank to sew several pieces for my interior to make any progress, but as you can imagine, he is also trying to get his own work done so he can make a living!


I wanted to consult Frank on what to do about the rear window trim pieces. These aluminum pieces were formed with a rounded over profile and are made up of two parts welded to form the shape of the rear window.


One of them broke at the weld, and I need to figure out how I’m going to fix this piece. The right way to fix it is to take it to a competent aluminum welder, and have these two pieces joined. After it’s welded, I can remove all the excess weld with a file, and after it’s covered, no one will be able to see the seam. Another way to fix it is to use fiberglass and bond the two pieces together perhaps even using an extra piece behind it to help strengthen it. The more I think about it, I want to have the piece welded, but that just means I’ll have to find a good welder, and the time to take it there.


Still needing the armrests for the car, I began taking apart the old armrests so I could get patterns for the new leather. Frank had made one armrest several months ago, but I still needed one for the opposite door, and the two rear armrests as well.


I took the right rear armrest apart for my pattern, marking everything so they would go back on the correct side.


The last time I was up at the shop, I completed the door pocket pulls so Frank could stitch them, but disaster struck. Frank’s sewing machine decided to become cantankerous on my door pull and skipped a stitch on one of the pulls.


The stitching got even worse on the second door pull where it became uneven, and erratic. Old sewing machines can sometimes become finicky, and Frank seems to have a love/hate relationship with them. They take a lot of abuse, and they often need attention to keep running correctly. The problems we saw on my pulls were signs Frank’s sewing machine was needing some adjustment or service. Unfortunately, it was at the expense of my door pulls!!!


The skipped stitch was not that noticeable, and the other one with shitty stitch was on the back of the pull, so it wouldn’t normally be seen, but…I’ve come this far to do things right, why should I compromise here? When I made these door pulls several weeks ago, I was not 100% happy with some of the minute details of the pull, but decided to let it go. Now that the the stitching is bad, I’ve got a second chance to make them perfect! Compare the picture of the two pulls above (the old ones) with the one below of the new ones. The little raised section in the middle of the tab is a little smaller than the old ones. Now they will look more like the original tabs.


It took me another hour or so to get two tabs done. Actually, I made a few extra cardboard pieces in case the sewing machine decides it didn’t like the new ones! I left the backing pieces wide so it would give the sewing machine foot more material to grab, and will cut off the excess after it is successfully stitched.


I made some final adjustments to the inside of the doors before fitting the splash shields. I made sure there were no rattles in the window, and all the fasteners were tight. Once I glue the plastic in place, it’ll be a pain in the butt to get back there, so I’m going to try to get everything working properly before everything gets glued down. The plastic sheeting is 6 mil sheeting found at “Home Depot.” Luckily, I needed some at the house for a vapor barrier, so I didn’t have to buy a few hundred square feet of this stuff just for my doors!

The countdown continues for the arrival of my daughter. She’s due on the 19th, but that means she can come at any moment! Luckily my wife is not neurotic to have me at her side at this 11th hour of the pregnancy so you and I can still enjoy the process of this Ferrari restoration! I know a lot of you have warned me that my Ferrari will become secondary in importance, and I totally agree and in fact am looking forward to it, but I’m still optimistic about the continuation of this restoration! It might just have to go on hold long enough to have my baby, and get things settled before I begin work again!

I want to thank everyone for their well wishes. My wife and I appreciate every one of them, and are warmed with the knowledge of your support! I promise you this site will remain dedicated to CARS, and will try my best to keep baby information out of this website unless it’s car related (Today, my daughter said “Ferrari!”).

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