The Little Things - Restoration Checklist (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Tony_Farson

Club President, Battle Born Cruisers
GOLD Star
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
Threads
213
Messages
1,567
Location
Reno, NV
Website
battleborncruisers.com
So I am sitting here enjoying my after festivities... festivities? I am thinking about all the things I should be thinking about when it comes to the little details of a restoration. Granted, I am not going for showroom as much as I am for usable on trails and such, but the devil's in the details and I know I am forgetting so many little things. Here's my starter list...
  1. Weather Stripping (minus hard doors and top)
    • Kick vent
    • Windshield
    • Door edge
  2. Bolt Kits (Overland Metric kit for starters)
  3. Side Apron Shim/clip
  4. Hood Pad kit
  5. Radiator shim kit
  6. Grille bolts/grommets
  7. Hood tie down hooks
  8. Windshield hood bumpers/brackets (kit?)
  9. Windshield hinge and gold cad screws
  10. Hood hinges
  11. Door hinges
  12. Mirrors
  13. Brake and fuel lines
  14. Emblems/badges/stickers
  15. Hoses, clamps, belts, brackets
  16. Starter, alternator, water pump, pulleys
  17. Bulbs, switches (working on something pretty cool!)
I'm curious if anyone has a list they've made or can think of anything off the top of their heads that I should add. @lelandEOD, I know you put extensive effort into your 40 build. Do you have any lists laying around or input you'd be willing to share?

Thanks everyone, and Merry Christmas!
 
Put a big piece of cardboard up. Break it I to categories. Body, electrical, drivetrain, etc. Then put your list together. Once you have it, use numbers or letters to categorize things that are interdependent so you don't install something, then have to remove it for the piece you forgot to install.
 
Put a big piece of cardboard up. Break it I to categories. Body, electrical, drivetrain, etc. Then put your list together. Once you have it, use numbers or letters to categorize things that are interdependent so you don't install something, then have to remove it for the piece you forgot to install.

THANKS! :) I have started this in Microsoft Project. Organizing is the easy (ish) part for me. My project manager OCD comes out when I am planning. I am more concerned about what I don't know. Little things that someone who's never done a 40 series resto before might not know to add to a list. Obscure parts and such.
 
It's the little things that is like plastic clips and screw inserts that usually bite me.
 
Yup it is the things like the bolts, nuts, washers, etc. that you will either be waiting on to get from a vendor or making multiple runs to the hardware store to grab.

Main thing(s) that I dont see mentioned on your list are..
- rebuild carb/dizzy (if OEM still, HIGHLY recommend JimC)
- wiring upgrades (battery cables, ground cables, headlight harness, etc.)
- paint for things that could use a coat or two to refresh (or those things that won't be touched by a shop for painting like rollcage, brackets, etc.)

Rummage through sites like Cruiser Corps or CityRacer and that will spark thoughts in your head of those little ancillary items you may be forgetting.
 
Yup it is the things like the bolts, nuts, washers, etc. that you will either be waiting on to get from a vendor or making multiple runs to the hardware store to grab.

Main thing(s) that I dont see mentioned on your list are..
- rebuild carb/dizzy (if OEM still, HIGHLY recommend JimC)
- wiring upgrades (battery cables, ground cables, headlight harness, etc.)
- paint for things that could use a coat or two to refresh (or those things that won't be touched by a shop for painting like rollcage, brackets, etc.)

Rummage through sites like Cruiser Corps or CityRacer and that will spark thoughts in your head of those little ancillary items you may be forgetting.

Exactly! I am ordering a pretty fancy bolt kit, but I know it won't be absolutely complete no matter what they say. I want new tie rod, shock mount, motor/trans mount nuts and bolts too, and I want all the visible ones to match in the gold cadmium plating too. This is where my OCD can cost me a lot of money!

Regarding your list:
- I have an EFI kit. That should be LOADS of fun installing! :rolleyes:
- I have a computer controlled HEI distributor from Performance Distributor
- I have a 26-circuit weatherproof chassis harness to install. I still need to order connectors, bulk wire, and build all my sub harnesses for the front lights, rear lights, and interior. I have battery, box, and cables on my list.
- I'll be continuing my powder coating obsession with most of it, Raptor lining stuff that can't be powder coated using the same setup I used for my Bronco bumper (looks almost identical to the powder coating I selected), and using body color paint for much of the rest. The bolt kit is already plated in gold cadmium and I'll either have my powder coating guy do some faux gold cad, or I'll buy the Gold Cad Paint Kit from Eastwood.

Thanks for the advice on the sites! I have done that on CR and SOR so far. I'll go through CC next.

:santa:
 
@Tony_Farson LOL... believe me I am well aware of how badly the OCD kicks in with stuff like this.. Hence why I was only able to last a few months with mis-matched doors before I HAD to paint it.

TREs, Mounts, Etc. talk with Georg and get them from him. TREs should be 555 brand, rest of the stuff he probably either has or can get for you easily.

For the coating... I would recommend Monsta-Liner over the Raptorliner. UV stable and seems to be a more "hardened" product than the others out there. However, just like any other application, the prep is the key for a good, long lasting adhesion.

Other site to check our is CruiserYard and Cool Cruisers of Texas (CCOT).
 
@Tony_Farson LOL... believe me I am well aware of how badly the OCD kicks in with stuff like this.. Hence why I was only able to last a few months with mis-matched doors before I HAD to paint it.

TREs, Mounts, Etc. talk with Georg and get them from him. TREs should be 555 brand, rest of the stuff he probably either has or can get for you easily.

For the coating... I would recommend Monsta-Liner over the Raptorliner. UV stable and seems to be a more "hardened" product than the others out there. However, just like any other application, the prep is the key for a good, long lasting adhesion.

Other site to check our is CruiserYard and Cool Cruisers of Texas (CCOT).

Thanks man! Georg is selling me the rest of my steering stuff as well as my shackles. I have decided not to line the exterior of the 40. I'm gonna paint it. The only thing I am planning on using liner is the underside of the tub and fenders and probably my steering column. I can tint Raptor to match my body color, last I checked Monsta cannot be tinted. Thus the reason I chose Raptor.

I will check out CruiserYard and CCOT for more. I sure wish these places still did print catalogs! It makes it much easier to stumble across things when flipping through pages.
 
It's the little things that is like plastic clips and screw inserts that usually bite me.

Yep! That's what I am trying to avoid. I know I can't completely avoid it, I just don't want to have a massive delay because I forgot some obscure thing I need to order from Australia or something.
 
Thanks man! Georg is selling me the rest of my steering stuff as well as my shackles. I have decided not to line the exterior of the 40. I'm gonna paint it. The only thing I am planning on using liner is the underside of the tub and fenders and probably my steering column. I can tint Raptor to match my body color, last I checked Monsta cannot be tinted. Thus the reason I chose Raptor.

I will check out CruiserYard and CCOT for more. I sure wish these places still did print catalogs! It makes it much easier to stumble across things when flipping through pages.
Actually Monsta has always been able to be tinted. They even posted in the Monsta thread what you need to ask the paint shop for (straight pigment with no binders, etc.). But whatever, for underside protection you will be fine with just about anything.
 
Just add 3 kids and you can change projects from restoration to drivable pretty quickly...
 
I have two, but both are teenagers and one is a serious P.I.T.A so that counts for at least 4 regular sized kids. My problem now is I have gone too far down the rabbit hole and have to pay attention to the details or I won't be able to put all back together!

:cry: Oh and I just found out that the transmission and case I took to Georg are bad too... rusted out. So yeah... I don't know what I am going to do now... :poop:

They need a "throwing cash away" emoji on this forum
 
Rusted isn’t the end of the world. If georg doesn’t want to deal with it, you have to make a choice. DIY or buy a good one. He probably doesn’t do the things I would do because he has a reputation to uphold.

Washing all the parts in solvent then bead blasting the rust off, or soaking them in rust remover will fix a lot. You aren’t going to be pushing this thing that hard towing so pitted gears will live a long time.
 
I agree. He just offered me a new rebuilt trans for $400 and is already changing stuff out in the stock case to make an Orion, so I guess I'll just stick with him. I was giving some thought to ordering an H55/transfer case combo for $2K and just calling it a day. However, it is from cruiserparts.net and I have heard some bad things about the stuff they sell. IDK
 
Go with the $400 one. You won't notice a 5 speed unless you plan on long trips. Even then, with 4.11's and 35's you won't need it. $2500 will buy a lot of gas.
 
Well that is $400 on top of $1600 to do the Orion. I would scrap both the $400 trans + $500 rebuild parts and labor, and $1600 Orion build for the H55/transfer case combo. Both would be the same amount of money after shipping. I am leaning Georg's direction this. He has a rock solid reputation and Cruiser Parts does not and I'd be putting a lot of trust in them since neither would get rebuilt before bolting them in.

Either way my budget is blown and I'll have to take some time to recover before proceeding with additional expenses since I have a daily driver that needs brakes, new tires, and the 85K service done in Q1 2019. I gotta share the love!
 
Go with the $400 one. You won't notice a 5 speed unless you plan on long trips. Even then, with 4.11's and 35's you won't need it. $2500 will buy a lot of gas.
With a stock engine the 5 speed is a waste of time except on flat ground, IMHO. In the mountains you will be in second or third going up hill and third going down hill. On 35's you will have "rubber overdrive" on the flats anyway.
 
So I am sitting here enjoying my after festivities... festivities? I am thinking about all the things I should be thinking about when it comes to the little details of a restoration. Granted, I am not going for showroom as much as I am for usable on trails and such, but the devil's in the details and I know I am forgetting so many little things. Here's my starter list...
  1. <snip>
I'm curious if anyone has a list they've made or can think of anything off the top of their heads that I should add. @lelandEOD, I know you put extensive effort into your 40 build. Do you have any lists laying around or input you'd be willing to share?

Thanks everyone, and Merry Christmas!

Replace the rubber pads on the pedals. Best, maybe only, restoration buy I ever made.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom