PG. 6)                                         

I was asked(by a fellow SHOwner) to SHOw some of the steps to my cut,compound,and polish procedure,and It just so happens that I was working on the car yesterday,and took some pics while I did the procedure...

First and formost I need to say that this is a labor of love,and I cant stress that point enough!,now having said that ...the second point that I need to make is that it has taken me many hours of T&E,and I have read many articals on various procedures,on polishing...and there is one truth of polishing that anyone who attempts this needs to know,and keep in mind...as you reduce the mida grade,what you are essentialy doing is trading big scratches for smaller scratches until the scratches are no longer visable to the naked eye.

I do this whole procedure,except the final wax,by hand.I do it this way so that I can feel the sand paper or the compound on the paint,and I can hear it as well,you can use machines to do this,but you run the risk of spinning on the surface for too long,and burning through the clear,or the paint,and if that happens you just ruined all that you where trying to do!..and please practice on a piece of the car that you cant easily see,or even a junk piece(fender,door,bumper,etc...)to perfect your own technique,befor tackleing a piece of something that you love!

Now for the supplies...you will need a bucket,1500,and 2000 grit wet/dry sand paper,rubbing compound,wax,an applicator for the rubbing compound,and an applicator for the wax...

                          you dont have to use these products,but they work for me

                         (WATCH THE PROGRESSION OF THE SHINE IN THE PICS TO COME)

first you need to clean the area very well(you dont need any piece of dirt getting caught inbetween the sand paper,and the paint,because this will drasticly change the sanding mida,and create gouges in the surface,so the cleaner your work area the better!)

start by soaking the 1500 grit sand paper for at least 15 minuts,then start by sanding the area until the sand paper moves smoothley(re-dip the paper to keep it wet!),then switch to the 2000 grit sand paper and sand until the paper moves smoothly,then dry your area,.It almost has a shine to it doesnt it?here is some pics after the wet sanding was done...

 now  for the compounding...wet your applicator,and use a couple of drops of the compound,work this into the paint that you just sanded(this shouldnt take too long,if you sanded corectly),keep the applicator damp...when you are finished working it in,let it dry,then wipe it off...

looks good enough doesnt it?...not over yet though,now you need to protect it with some wax...apply the wax like you would do on any other sunday,and buff it off...

                            ...and we are done,sit back and check out that deep shine!

and while I was doing all of that,I decided to do a little detailing to the upper radiator support,here are the brackets,and bolts that fasten all items to the support...

ok...can you make out the difference...normally the mtx cars carry there batteries crooked(left hand pic)...I wanted a cleaner look,like what an atx car is set up like...

I needed new battery cable ends,anyway so now was the perfect time to cut these origanals off,and install just the ends(for now),and its a good thing that I did,bc I found a lovely shade of green inside of the cables(under the insulation)...

I had to get an automatic overflow tank,and had to lengthen the wireing harness so it could reach to its new location,I had to butcher the mtx battery tray,had to relocate the power steering reservoir and,bracket,had to shorten the powersteering return hose ass...and to make the battery fit right I had to trim the handle off of it(its not like I am going to carry the battery around!),and part of the handle support(for the top bracket mount to hold the battery like it should)

here is a couple of more pics of different angles,and I have to make a bracket so that the third mounting point for the top mount can be utilized...(I had to do the same on the O.G.)

here is another pic of the finished install...and the pic on the right is where the old mtx style coolant reservoir used to call home...

                                       here are some pics of the old broken cowl..

here is another pic of the old cowl panel,and the pic on the right are the new cowl panels,one stock,and the other beautified...

                            here are some pics of the old wiper arms...paint beat off of them...

                                            a painted set of wiper arms...very nice!!!

yeah I painted the screws too,I hate to let a little detail like that ruin the work that I have done,when the screws start to rust!...

            here are the the finished cowl panels,installed,along with the wiper arms...looking good!

                                                       some views from the top...

                         and some long shots!...I think that this turned out rather well!!...

update...06/10/09...scored some rear subframe bushings at the self serve yard,and these are an upgrade over stock rubber bushings.because they have a nylon insert.

                                                         a little cleaning up

                                                          a little paint for protection

                                                      all painted up and ready to go!

                                                             now for the install

          there thats one side done,but as far as the other one...some nit wit installed the driverside  bushing with a torx head bolt...I have the cheapy socket to fit,but I opted to get a quality socket from the snap on man(in 1/2 inch drive,bc that damn bolt so tight!),and he had to order it...so now I have to wait to do the other side...damn it!

     update...06/15/09...AHHHH...finished the rear subframe bushing upgrade!...feels A TON better!

 oh yeah,this is the junk that I took out!...sloppy handling...check,tough to shift...check,makeing funny noises when I am driving...check,tough to make l/h turns...check...its amazing the difference this makes going from totaly  worn out pieces to a fresh upgrade!

                             update...06/29/09...ahhh just receved my reinforced motor mounts

     check out the seperation between the mount housing,and the rubber insert on the front mount

                   here is the seperation on the other end of the same side of the front mount

even though you can see the seperation in the other side of the front mount,I guaged it any way to show just how fun it was to drive this car!

check out the bolt in the center of the mount...it should be straight!...and in the other pic notice the whole reason that I had mount problems in the first place...a broken bolt!(got this racing a '02 maxima...I won,but it came at a price)

                                             another pic of the broken top bolt

again even though you can see the seperation between the mount housing and the rubber insert I guaged it,but this time its the rear mount

                        and here is the other side of the rear mount with more seperation

   update...7/21/09...Its tune up time baby!...NGK iridum plugs,and accel plug wires...woot...woot!

                                me preping the wires,and cleaning the valve cover

 and a shot of the mess that I have all over the pavement!What a difference the tune up made!the deuce is really getting fun to drive!

update...08/25/09...you guessed it ...alternator took a shit...and it needed belts too...checked before changing alt...output at 12.30 volts,checked output after the swap...14.10 volts!...good to go!

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