Step three is basically just removing everything for prep and paint... starting with the top.

It was much easier to remove than I thought it would be. (I will soon be posting a page specifically about working on the top...removing, rebuilding, installing.) As this was my first time removing a convertible top, I was a bit surprised how much wood was used. The hinge covers, the rear tack strip, the front bow...I believe there are a couple more wooden pieces in there somewhere. It does not seem like a logical material to incorporate into a convertible top, but having said that, some of the pieces are still in OK shape - after 38 years.

The first two pictures show that, although ratty looking, the top is in pretty good mechanical condition. It goes up and down fine, latches properly, and seems to have all the parts.

The third picture shows the area behind the back seat...nasty.

Check out the fourth picture above. These pieces were not in good shape. I don't know for sure, but can only assume that the original rear tack strip was one piece - bowed. After removing my top, I found 5 pieces back there - kind of shoddy and rotten. I would swear that a couple of them had been had carved out of 2x4's or something.

This first picture is another shot of the rear area after the top had been removed. Among the things that I found while cleaning up back there were some old screws, nails, rotted padding, and a rock. I wonder how long that had been there?

The next picture is a shot of the interior after removing all the carpet, the passenger seat, and of course the top. (I yanked the seat cover off of the passenger seat, and found the original seat color - soft beige.) The pan had been replaced sometime ago, so, except for some surface rust on the bottom, it is in good shape. Also, see all the orange, rust-looking stuff? What that is, is 99% glue - stuck to the car after removing the carpet. But, the orange stuff towards the rear of the car, like in the first picture, IS mostly rust...hopefully only surface rust.

These are just a couple shots of the front area. The one on the left shows the end result after welding. My weld line is somewhere between the two holes. The one on the right is a slightly different view, including the top of the clip(just below where the gas tank goes) that I have fixed, smoothed out, and shot with some primer. (There used to be that after-market metal clip there - another one to hold the gas tank in - but not needed on a '64.) And, off to the right are two "before" pictures of this same general area. Whoa.

Note: those speaker holes that I had fixed... I have spent a few more hours going over them some more. I am still not 100% satisfied with the finish, but I am very close now.

Above are some pictures of more of the car to this point... Although I am excited about being closer to painting, I am also getting that sickening feeling again. What the hell am I doing here?

Anyway, I have also removed the windshield, the front door windows and vent windows, the rear view mirror and sun visors, the chrome molding on top of the doors and quarter panels, all the rubber around the area, the door handles, the running boards, the exterior chrome trim, and anything else that I don't want blasted or painted. One note about the windows: All the regulators are in good working condition... especially after I oiled them... nice and smooth!

So far this car has come apart quite easily. I am labeling and separating all the parts as they come off, and making notes where I think I need them. I am also continuing to purchase replacement parts as necessary. I am confident that it will go back together just as easily.... we'll see.

I'm now attacking those areas on the car that I always knew needed work before paint, but have saved them for last because I considered them "easy-to-fix". Easy or not, they still take some time. Below are some them.

This is the front left fender. There was what I thought was a crack in the front lower corner...I was all ready to fire up the welder, but it turned out to be just some old filler cracking apart. I removed the old and added new. Pretty easy.

This is the lower right corner of the left rear quarter panel. I knew there was some filler in there, but didn't know why until I got it all out. Yow! I then cut out around the area, made my measurements and template (my highly scientific method - using cardboard), cut out a new piece of metal to fit, welded it up to the car, smoothed over the work with filler, and shot some primer. The longest part of the job was getting the rust out of that little corner... it took a while - using a wire brush grinder, along with some petroleum jelly.

Here's the radio hole...Joe Hi-Fi strikes again. The left side got all messed up somehow...maybe from a robbery? Maybe from Joe? Who knows. Anyway, the metal had been bent open and then cut on top and bottom - and kind of pushed in a little, too. I made some small tacks with the MIG on the back side of the dash where the cuts were...one on top and one on the bottom...just to give this area back it's strength. I then sanded off the surface rust, and finished with some filler and primer. It really turned out good.

The license plate light housing and the right rear tail light housing both had small dents in them...not too bad to fix.

I've been continuing to "touch up" here and there. Here is the rear clip area again. I've just finished up some cosmetic work near the weld lines. I put the "before" pictures here, too, just for comparison.

You'll notice on the third picture, towards the bottom, some small bumps are still visible. I didn't get overly concerned about making that area perfect because I plan to undercoat all the wheel wells anyway. But, also notice the part that will show - the ridge of the car that tapers down to a point and the rest, towards the engine compartment - is as close to perfect as I can make it. No, I haven't tacked on the decklid seal strip yet.

I'm getting closer every day...