Cad Plating



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I picked up the first batch of plating that I sent out for the 275GTB/4. The plater I use does a great job on the cadmium plating and this batch is no different. It’s taken me a while of trial and error to find a good guy. Most places that do industrial cad plating don’t take the time to make sure the pieces are clean enough to take a good plating. They’re used to doing large batches of new fasteners and don’t have the patience or care to plate old pieces of steel that require more attention.

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I immediately got to work installing some of the freshly plated pieces on to the engine.

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The brake parts were ready to go back together after all the various parts were rebuilt, resleeved, and replated. 10339_104

The hardest part of putting the booster back in place was getting the clevis pin installed along with the washer and cotter pin. Access was not easy!

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Speaking of access, one nut on the booster can only be accessed behind the fender, and while I had the splash shield removed, I noticed a bunch of dirt accumulating inside the fender. Cleaning this out will avoid future rust problems as this dirt will trap moisture and eventually rust out the rocker panel.

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I ordered new tail light lenses as the old ones were cracked and discolored.

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I started to assemble the coil over shocks and found the new rubber boots covered with a white talcum powder residue. This release agent was pretty well stuck to the rubber, and needed to be washed off.

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All the parts were laid out and ready for reassembly.

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The devil is in the details, and a big score this week was finding a supplier for the red horn hose. The hose on this 275GTB/4 was a clear PVC hose found at any hardware store, but not correct for the FIAMM horns.

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This hose is well hidden between the grille and the radiator, but an eagle-eyed judge will be looking for these small details. Lucky for us, we’re ready for them!

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I made good progress this week putting all the parts back on the car, but it almost seemed a shame to put such pretty parts back in places that are not easily seen. It’s a good thing I have pictures of the parts to admire whenever I want!