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Butler Bruised
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Well, it happened and now I have to deal with it. It actually happened in the garage when a friend of my daughter's (read dumb a$$) turned the key with the car in gear. The thing starts so easy, it just jumped into a box and welder stand (good thing know one was standing in front of it).
Anyway, after the tears, yelling, pacing, and hyperventilating, it's time to get it into the shop. I need recommendations for one that can handle fiberglass with perfection...preferably in the south bay. I looked through Joe Kennedy's thread from his damage last spring, but did not see where he went or how long it took. Any input much appreciated. Thanks |
Roy,
Deepest sympathies---I can't imagine that BEEEYOOTIFUL car marred in any way! Lots of body shops have fiberglas specialists, but check a boatyard or (sometimes even better) a boat builder. Most boats which are aimed at the high-end and racing market are faired, sealed and then finished in AWL-GRIP. Look for a boat builder who has someone in charge of finishing DARK-colored hulls. You wouldn't believe the ability of these guys to turn out mirror-shine hulls. Your car's black--it will show any dips or flaws in the paint. That's just a thought. A friend of mine got the hood of his midnight blue show-horse Corvette crfunched by a tree-limb. Took it back twice to the body-shop. No dice. Looked up a local boat builder in Middlertown R. I. and got a couple of guys who were willing to work on Sundays. Car came out FLAWLESS. New paint feathered into old---couldn't see the difference! Good Luck!!! |
Hi Roy,
Sorry about your boo-boo. I have a feeling you may be looking into installing a neutral safety switch... The only fiberglass specialists whose work I've seen (and who I would trust) is Toy Works in Concord. I've seen their work on other Cobras and it's second to none. They're not cheap, but they're good. Good luck, Randy R... |
65 Blur,
Give me a call. I might be able to help. PS- I have better references than the Toy Works!(CSX4264,CSX4250,HTM65CO131) and the Toy calls us for their paint problems. PS- I also live in Watsonville Shannon Fry 408-202-9153 Cell |
Oh Roy :CRY: :CRY:
It sounds like Shannon has a good line for you to follow since he's down in your neck of the woods. If you need a second I can give you my painter/bodyman's info if you like just email me. His shop is in Livermore, he know's fibreglass as well as how to paint ( check out my car). anyway just a backup and a second option to consider, take care, Mike |
Roy....
Sorry to see any damage to a Cobra. Looks like an easy fix. Give Shannon a call. - Bill - |
Roy, is the kid still alive ? b
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Hey Roy...
Sorry to hear about that. Hopefully nobody got hurt. A good glassman and a painter will have you fixed up in no time.
Years ago I had a roomate that decided to get in my newly painted 68SS Convertible Camaro (when I was away) where he played 4-speed vroom vroom driver in the garage. He left my car in neutral. His freshly painted 67RS Camaro was behind mine. I came home to my car rolled backwards into the front end of his nice new RS/hideaway grille front-end and the back of my car wiped out. Two new paint/body jobs had to be completely redone again only after 2-weeks on both cars... These things happen. You'll get it fixed... See Ya. Good Luck. |
Thanks for the replies and sympathy. Kid still alive and actually very shaken-up…hopefully a tough lesson learned and thankfully no injuries. Shannon, I will give you a call later today.
Thanks again, |
Roy,
That is a beautiful car and it is to bad about the damage. But it is a car and it can be fixed. Joe Kennedy brought his up to Emerson's in Redding. I talked to him at the Cobra get together last Month at Jay's place. Now I know why I have a neutral safety switch in mine. Ron |
Sorry to see and hear about the damage! We spend so long on these things, it's like a knife wound to the gut whenever they get damaged!
Maybe instead of the neutral switch, you should look at a battery cutoff switch? Then you can pull the handle off and put it in a toolbox - it's a little more absolute. They're fairly cheap too and will prevent a drain in the event of a short. |
i have both a neutral safety switch and a trunk mounted batt disconnect swiitch enabling batt to be shut off and trunk locked so no access to the switch....nothing can prevent an accident, but sometimes deterring same is helpful.
by now hopefully you have found a great body shop to return it to as new condition with no insurance hassles...and hopefully the kid will think first next time. the beauty of fiberglass is its ability to be repaired, but key is the paint match afterwards. then again, if a good painter, the computer match of colors ' as is' is great thereby accounting for any fading that may have occurred vs the original hue (pre any fading). good luck. bet you have settled down now, but still feel kinda crappy about it. at least no injuries to humans. bill. |
Install ...
A Cole Hersee brand battery kill switch. You can get it at a heavy equipment supplier/dealer. It has a heavy duty metal key that is no larger than a door key. Then you can walk away from it and not worry. Good anti-theft device as well. Mine's hidden.
How many cat-o-nine tails strokes is he (the dummy) gonna get? I would recommend at least 25..... |
Hi Roy,
Sorry for the delayed reply, I've been off the air for a while. I ended up taking my car to Bill Emerson at Emerson Motorsports in Redding. Bill spent many years building boats before he began building custom cobras. As such, he knows fiberglass and he knows cobras. Also, there were a couple of his cars at the saturday morning brakfasts, and his reputation was impeccable. My car took a little longer than the original estimate, mostly because it got stuck in the paint shop for a while when the weather was too wet to paint. Bill is a perfectionist, and I couldn't be happier with the quality of his repair work. All who have seen the car have been impressed as well. Though I've spent lots of time trying, I simply cannot detect any evidence of the repair. If I can be of further help, let me know. joe kennedy |
It's in the shop
Shannon,
Thanks for taking a look at my car and for the good advice. I ended up taking it to Autoline in Hollister. Ken seems very knowledgeable, he is a Cobra fan, and I got several other recommendations regarding his work. After he took a good look, he agreed with your assessment that it would need the entire front half repainted. After quizzing him about the difference with the front being two stage, and the original being single, he said that over time there would be differences in fade rates and that it may become noticeable. He quoted me a price to do the entire car and with me doing some of the prep (taking off the bumpers, badges, windshield, and lights) it worked out to be reasonable. So, it should be out of the shop early next week, and ready to roll to Tahoe with the gang by the 26th. Tom, nice meeting you while I was up at Shannon's. Hope rear end is better. :D Pictures to follow. |
Going out in the garage and take the keys out of the ignition right now...
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Roy, It was good to meet you. Got the cobra back Fri. and went down to Laguna Seca Sat. The rear end sounds great (no more noise). Down at Laguna Seca I did 3 hot laps in a Porshe, boy was that a blast. When you get your cobra back I'd like to get the 2 together to see the differences.
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She is back, along with some new meats and a fresh rear. Looking and driving very nice now.
Hopefully the lesson was learned. :D |
Sweet Ending
And a very nice ending?:3DSMILE:
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I cringed when I saw your pic! I installed a single pole/
single throw toggle switch under the dash that just breaks the circuit going to the start relay. It was a simple installation that is well worth the short time it takes to put it in. Sorry about your mishap. |
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