Lots of Time - Labor of Love

[bpossel]

Hi All!

Having taken my car apart, virtually every nut, bolt screw, etc…  for my rotisserie restoration, it has re-enforced my appreciation for master restoration experts like Gernold (SL-Tech) & others in a similar business of classic car restoration.

It is clear that these 113’s are very special and a lot of time and effort was put into them when they were going down the assembly line some 40 years ago.  As Gernold stated in a recent email to me “…the Factory assembly process was nothing short of a miracle…”.

Each day as I inch closer to getting my 113 back on the road, I keep hoping that the next small project (I look at putting my car back together again as many, many small projects…the only way to keep sane) will be easy, or easier than the previous one.  To date, this is not the case…

This past weekend, I spent many many hours re-installing the heater core, fan box, air distribution box, air ducts, etc… I installed new foam insulation which is a bit tricky to ensure that it stays even and lined up as you maneuver the various pieces into place…  Also tricky in that the wiper transmission needs to be installed 1st., which I didn’t do.  Of course, I had to drop the entire system (again) to install the wiper trans…

Next came the installation of the air flaps, the little flappers that sit under the air-scoop.  These 2 flappers have brass pins on each end and pivot on small hard white plastic washers.  In the process of pushing one of these washers into place, whoops.. the darn thing drops down into the abyss.  I squeezed my arm and hand down to try and reach it and it drops below the fan.  Can’t push my hand and arm down any further, feels like it is pinched and bleeding.  At this point its late into the night and you feel like screaming!  You sit back and think…  will it be ok if I just leave the plastic booger at the bottom of the fan housing.  No one will know…  It may just sit there for another 40 years and behave itself…  Then you start to think of the reality…  I will never be able to sleep at night just knowing that thing is in the fan box, loose and out of place…  it will roll around in there at each turn and road bump.  It will fling up and sound like loose marbles in the fan box.  It may melt and cause the fan to seize…  So you then come to terms that you need to pull the entire system out again in order to get the plastic washer back out.  This is what I did.

These are stories that I am sure we all have.  The good thing with myself and most of us, we are only working on 1 car, our own.  It gives me a real appreciation for those that do this everyday and on many 113’s.  It is very clear that when the “master restoration experts” quote a huge amount of hours to restore these 113’s, these hours are accurate.

Bob  

[thelews]

The advantage “master restoration experts” have is "been there, done that."  That *should* translate into restoration efficiency, proficiency and quality of product.  It doesn't always.  Some "amateur" restorations, motivated by passion are in fact better than "professional" restorations motivated by profit.

You tell the story well, I had to laugh.

[Markus]

I can relate, the only thing left in my car during restoration was the wire harness. It took me about 10 years, between work and raising a daughter. Every bolt and nut replated, now the revisions start, 3.27, sanden A/C etc, but it will keep you out of the pub!!
Showing the car has also proved to be a lot of fun, my daughter and I took 3rd in our division at the all British and European Car Day in Dallas on the 4th (Only beat by a Porsche 356 and a 190sl.)

ps.  My shoe box full of pictures taken while dismantling would aswage my fears and night sweats of not remembering how to put Humpty Dumpty back together again.

[Mark280SL]

I sure can relate to going back after the fact to retrieve something dropped inside, or even undoing a lot of work to go back and be sure something is exactly the way it should be when I could not remember exactly and was haunted by it. I've had that happen to me when working on a car more then once. I'm sure the pros know things inside and out from experience but I'd bet it even happens to the best of them now and then.

Is the factory assembly process Gernold described anyplace? It would be very interesting to learn more about that and how the cars were built on the line, I guess I'll do a search of the forums after I post this  

[rwmastel]

quote:Originally posted by Mark280SL

Is the factory assembly process Gernold described anyplace?

Not that I know of.  He has gone to Germany several times (I believe he grew up there) and he probably got this information by talking to the "old timers" who actually worked there at the time.  Gernold knows a lot.

[psmith]

When I inevitably drop something in an abyss, my last resort is to try a wad of duct tape (or bubblegum if you own a teenager) on the end of a coat hanger.   It only works about half of the time, but it's worth a shot.