Early model Ford's likely did more to popularize automobiles than any other car that has ever been on the market. Henry Ford's Model T was a global hit and the Ford Motor Company was able to sell over 15 million of them worldwide. The car made such a name for itself that even today you can stop by the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn and learn a few things about Model T repairs and manufacturing. Over one hundred years later, even children know this car's name and significance. By the time 1927 rolled through, the aged Model T was replaced with the slightly more updated Model A which was later replaced by the Model B in 1932.
My own grandfather came to Detroit from Mississippi in search of a job with Ford whom he worked for over many many years before retiring from the company. Some 80+ years after he helped to make the originals, AutoLavish Fine Automobile Detailing would help a Ford Model A Street Rod rearch aesthetic perfection. This is the story of one beautiful Ford that continues to turn heads today.
The owners contact us to do a little work on the vehicle. They are undecided to sell, but know the car could not be shown in its current state to fetch top dollar. We are scheduled for 8 hours.
Then we arrived on location and see this: the car has its own room! Climate controlled, secure, and up on show stands 24/7. It is surrounded by trophies, medals, and other era specific car paraphernalia. Best of show, Best in Class, Best in... they go on and on. Impressive!
Getting ready to work, the owner pulled it out in the sun so we would have the chance to look everything over once last time prior to getting started.
At this time we made subtle changes to our plan of attack to help streamline our process. The engine had some overflow from a hot radiator leak at one point we were to take care of, and while at it we were scheduled to detail the rest of the engine bay. Due to the lay-out, everything would have to be washed by hand using spray bottles, microfiber towels, cotton swabs, brushes, etc.
Starting on the cool engine with a light dilution of Meguiar's All Purpose Cleaner Plus, brushes were handy to allow for physical agitation which always goes a long way to break up residue, grime, and dirt. As I got started, Jacob continued to get the E-Z Up into action as the outside temperature was rising very quickly. Once everything was set to go, I helped to place and secure the tent so we could continue working.
Spark plugs/boots/wires:
Jacob gently wiped off residue of the Optimum No Rinse solution that was used to flush away the loosened dirt and grime along with the All Purpose Cleaner residue. Everything was then wiped dry with a microfiber towel.
Sacrificial cotton swabs:
Around 90 minutes later, everything was looking much better:
Next, we started working with the paint. The roadster was kept relatively clean, but needed a light washing before clay and polishing could commence. Even without a wash, it was easy to see the reason the owner came to us: to correct some significant Random Isolated Deep Scratches and Swirls that accumulated over the years from car show wipe downs, washes, and a few road trips.
The sun was in full force, and it is always important to avoid working in direct heat. To prove the difference even a few minutes of shade can make, we used an infrared thermometer to take temperature readings.
Jacob taking readings:
One-hundred fourteen and a half degrees at 10:27AM
So we pulled shade over it:
Now we have a max temperature reading of 76 degrees at 10:36AM - 9 minutes after the first set of readings, let alone the time it took to move the pop-up tent.
Testing the local water for dissolved solids helped us decide it would be OK to use it to wash the car.
The car was built solid: it is a driver and not a museum piece, so we opted for a garden hose version of the foam gun in addition to a rinse bucket with grit guard method.
Carefully foamed with the foam "gun":
And careful rinsing:
Blow dried:
Polishing combinations were determined using the trunk: a nice, consistently sloping (but straight) surface to perform inspections on, with adequate surface area to try multiple polishes, pads, backing plates, machines, and techniques.
The lucky winner for the cutting was the 3M UK green pad under 3M grey ultra-soft foam backing plate on the Flex. The soft backing plate allowed less pad marring then the 3M yellow foam backing plate, and also allowed the 3M pad to contour to the shape of the panel easier. The Makita is much smoother and better suited for finer work, but the Flex rotary is easier to maneuver on a vehicle with such extreme curves, and allowed for a better cut during the initial polishing stage. The Green UK pads were imported from England at extraordinary cost, but they worked much better than the typical LLC orange in both cutting and finish. The pads did not survive to do another vehicle, but that's the difference in choosing a detailer that lives by low volume, high attention to detail work from one in which "Cost is King."
Still, it would take multiple passes:
Some defects required very careful sanding:
(here the Makita provided enough clearance for the gas cap)
Refining was performed with 3M Ultrafina (UK edition) on the Ultrafina pad using the flexible 3M backing plate which helped to lighten pressure from the pad's edges leaving a perfect finish.
Got Red? The result of the cutting stage, polishing stage, and final refining stage was red bliss
The next day we arrived and started an ONR wash to get any dust off prior to resuming polishing:
Places like the trunk and doors were finished, but areas like the fenders still needed further polishing and / or refining to hone the finish.
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