[landarts]

Got the fenders ready to go back on and started looking at the attention the firewall needed so I allowed good old project creep to step in. Pulled the motor and found several wiring issues, bad spark plug wires, cracked exhaust manifolds, and a few more minor issues with the motor. While it is out I will freshen it up and add a few new items and paint to the motor.

I inspected the firewall and found no rust spots to repair which is always a good thing. On the driver's side where the emergency brake is bolted to the firewall, the metal was torn/ripped from the stress of the emergency brake being used. I cleaned up the metal real good then laid down a few spot welds and some hammer work to get it straightened up again. After that, I added a washer to each hole and spot welded those over the top of the repair. Then added some spot putty to clean it up. Then laid down some plastic on the garage floor and began spraying the firewall down with some Oil Eater Degreaser. Let that sit for about ten minutes and then go over the whole thing with a green Scotch-Brite and flush with some hot water and a sponge. Tomorrow I will get it scuffed up, cleaned and ready for paint on Monday.

While the paint cures for a couple of days on the firewall I will be getting the motor stripped down, cleaned, and prepped for paint. By then a few of the items I ordered for the motor should be in the shop to install.