and they say hindsight is a wonderful thing!
All of the cosmetic stuff you can put down to patience and all of the mechanical stuff is just down to reading the manual.
Most daunting = replacing rear shock springs. Each contains enough stored energy to punch its way through a brick wall. Use the correct tools for the job.
kind regards
Marek
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Iāve had some pretty unnerving and one downright scary experience in the past, with springs from other cars Iāve owned. I was younger/stupider and less experienced then. I was able to work my way out of a bad situation without hurting anyone or damaging anything, but boy, the pucker factor was HIGH!!
When it came to removing the springs from the Eās rear assemblies, I used the rear brake disc tool design I found on the JL list. A couple of links I used are below. I removed the springs just last night and the tool was rock solid and worked great!!
A couple of pictures of my setup:
Links Iād referenced to duplicate the design:
From @David_Lacey and @DouglasBuchan:
From @Davidxk:
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I am SO thankful that the body repair had been completed by my dad!
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I concur with avoiding paint damage ! ā¦and its good you accept this will need fixing
To what extent are you planning on assembling this yourself ?
If you have demanding professional career, and this is a relaxing hobby, time management
finding the right people, to do the work, or guide and assist you
do you still have your Dads contacts ?
most people are intimidated with auto electrical work, so a good auto electrician, if the vehicle needs that work being done ?
dont like anyone touching my vehicles that doesnt have at least some grey hair
I am sure you understand this, the first time I conduct a technical procedure on machinery, it takes ages, and I roughly halve the time it takes to do it subsequently, till a baseline is reached
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I enjoyed doing the bodywork, lots of panel beating and welding which was fun. I have not built an engine before but looking forward to doing it when it comes back from the machine shop, although I think I will be a little nervous when I start it up for the first time.
But I have found there are enough resources around to tackle any job and get good results.
Jay
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At this point, these are the items left to be completed:
Boot hing needs to be painted
Exhaust
Install all interior
Wiring in dash complete a few items
Trunk latch
Trunk seal
Ride height adjusted
Door seals and windshield seal replaced
Splash shields and covers under car
Running, has not been driven since restoration
Rear sway bar
Touch up paint scratches
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Thatās a lotā¦but hang in there!
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For my very small two cents worth I would say:
DO NOT build an engine by yourself for the first time. The risk/benefit is way too high. A small error can be very expensive.
Have a friend who has done it stand by and help.
LLoyd
Itās not what you look at that matters. Itās what you see.
Henry David Thoreau
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I absolutely agree, Lloyd, but by all means donāt be afraid of the reassembly job. I had never touched anything inside an engine prior to my rebuild in 2013. With help from the forum and Mr. Crespin, it was really a rather straight forward job and a very fun and satisfying one. For every task that we do, be it restoring a car or jumping out of an airplane, there has to be a first time. Go for it!
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Good advice for sure but donāt assume that because you have it rebuilt by a professional that it will be done right.
Cheers,
LLynn
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Boot hing needs to be painted
the hardest thing here will be to realign the lid so the gaps are even and angle correct and the edge doesnāt interfere with the body and ruin the paint. Itās a two person job. After reattaching it, very slowly lower it while the other person watches the back edge like a hawk to ensure it doesnāt foul or the paint will chip. Keep running test strips between the two parts to ensure there is no binding.
Exhaust
with a proper fitting one, itās pretty easy. Use anti seize on the joints to help seal and be removable if need be. Consider wrapping the down pipes in DEI heat tape. Stainless pipes will last forever. The SS system on my car is unfortunately NLA but other people can recommend one.
Install all interior
fussy but doable. Use good glue or panels keep coming loose from the heat and will continually need regluing. The seats are the hardest and the most obvious if done poorly.
Wiring in dash complete a few items
super easy as long as the wires are connected right. The wiring diagram is very easy to follow and color coded
Trunk latch
Same issue as with the hinges. Work slow and donāt force anything. The lid bends easily and can be ruined or at least crack the paint if it flexes so itās important that you not resort to slamming it
Trunk seal
I was never able to find one that fits and I just have door sealing weather strip stuck to the bottom of the lid
Ride height adjusted
Thatās hard for anyone but the steps are well laid out. Donāt be surprised or get frustrated if it takes 2-3 attempts to get it right.
Door seals and windshield seal replaced
Door seals carry the same warning as the boot. Two person job, work slow. Do not close the door until it can be proved that the front edge can pass by the body. Any time the door hinge bolts have been loosened you have to verify that it can pass the body safely. Some people have managed to glue it in with the door on the car. I didnāt do to that way, but if you can itās better.
Since you know your screen fits it might be doable with two people. The hardest part is getting the trim pieces on. I still have not once succeeded in getting the lower trim piece on. I have managed to get the side pieces and caps on with help and training. Actually setting the glass into the rubber is merely tedious but doable for most people. There is a special tool for inserting the rubber locking strip, 10 bucks on amazon
Splash shields and covers under car
Super easy if the parts fit
Running, has not been driven since restoration
Turn key, choke on, push button!
Rear sway bar
Easy enough
Touch up paint scratches
Iāve no great advice to offer here. Paint is no fun. Avoid too much caffeine before trying to wield a tiny brush. The hand shaking is counterproductive
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Thankfully, that is in the rear view, as is the trans/body work.
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I seriously love your knowledge with these cars!
On the windscreen, the windshield is in, I just need to get that top chrome piece on, thanks to your input, will abandon the ever seal approach (what a PITA)
As far as the paint, the shop owner is well known for his body/paint work, so those jobs are on him (he did the damage moving the car around, so itās his responsibility to fix it anyhoo 
)
The biggest issue we are facing is the ill fitting aftermarket parts. Makes me wonder if we just do not know what we are doing, or the parts really are that poorly fitting.
Not only is Erica a font a knowledge, she has some very good explanations of things about how to deal with OTSs.
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It helps to live in the same city as a primo restoration shop. I picked up a lot of great tips from the guys working at Team CJ.
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My OTS was so rusty that I couldnāt open the doors without putting a jack under the body. I drove it like this for a summer (ah carefree youth!). I had a stack of old heavy duty shelving that was turned into a rotisserie. I also made a support structure inside the cockpit to keep everything aligned when I ripped the middle out. I made this goofball setup of hoses with coloured water for a level that went to all four corners and the places called out in the crash repair guide (this was before cheap laser levels). Much banging and fudging got everything correct before I started welding in new panels. The not-at-all-stock
sill reinforcements where suggested by my engineering officer at the time. He was a mech eng and car nut who was interested in my restoration. I had him over for beer and pizza while he came up with this strengthening panel. It works well too as I get a LOT less door movement than two other convertibles Iāve ridden in.
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Looks very much like the reinforcing panels I fabricated for my ots. Mine donāt have the fancy weight reduction perforations tho! In case anyone is interested in reinforcing their sills Martin Robey manufactures a similar reinforcement panel. One of the high end restoration shops advertises that they use the Robey panel in
all their restorations.
Thatās ingenuity!
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