I cleaned the entire underside of my RX-7 before I POR-15'd it and the only way I can describe it is "brutal". I took the majority off with a putty knife, then used lots of Kerosene to remove the residue, then loads of Super Clean to remove the Kerosene. Then any rusty spots needed to be wire wheeled. I think it took 3 weeks and I'll never do it again. Just not worth it unless you are going for a full show-ready resto. I think by the time I'm done with the Cosmo I'll have most of the undercoating removed anyway. It's less of an issue when it's done a little at a time.

That sounds positively terrifying. Eastwood has some undercoating removal spray which is probably just Kerosene in a can or similar.

The only issue with that is that it needs to be epoxy-primed as soon as it is blasted. Otherwise, the panels will begin rusting immediately. That's one of the reasons I'm doing it a little at a time. You can see how much the floor has surface rusted since I blasted. Won't be an issue for POR-15, but would be for almost any other paint system. Not something I'd want to deal with on the body.

 

it depends on where you live and how dry it is.

 

http://foxed.ca/rx7manual/manuals/RX...ng,%201976.pdf

According to this wiring diagram, that box is a emission control unit. The other little one seems to be the wiper relay.

Somehow you make it entertaining to scrape undercoating off a car. Normally, I'd be skipping though the video, skimming through the talking and working. With these, I actually watch the whole thing. Great updates and great jokes to keep people into it.

 

same here it was good to see what i will be tearing into. I have lots of rust to deal with also but i have 4 rx5 cosmos as parts cars to choose my parts and panels thank god

 

True enough. Around here humidity is always fairly high, so it only takes a day or so before the metal starts becoming tinted with rust. Also careful of hand prints, because anywhere you touch will rust up within a few hours. I'm still undecided whether I will re-blast the floor before I POR-15 it. Not really necessary to do so, but it pays to be thorough.

The others were labelled, so not too much mystery there. I took a look at the diagram a few hours after I posted the video and confirmed that it was the ECU. Seems to only control the solenoids, choke, ignition cut and a few other engine bits, so it's going in the parts bin and the bracket will be used for the Megasquirt (and associated relays and fuses).

I had only intended to show about 30 seconds of scraping, but as I was editing the footage I found that talked a lot during filming so I didn't want to lose those words of wisdom.

4 parts cars, eh? Well, you'll be getting a PM from me fairly soon (or rather, I'll reply to the one you sent about the housings). How the hell did you end up with 4? I've only ever seen one.

 

I don't often venture into the Old School Section, but I'm glad I did a couple weeks ago. Since then I've caught up with the Cosmo Sport restoration thread that I lost track of ages ago, and I've now watched all of your videos from start to where you are now on your Cosmo RX-5 restoration. By the way, my son (six months old) loves them. It must be the sound of power tools, plus he loves the intro.

You are very thorough Aaron, and I expect that will show through in the finished project. I've enjoyed watching all of the videos and have even picked up a few tips and ideas that will help me in my RX-7 TII restoration. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to seeing the progress.

 

need updates

 

What, updates, already?

A lot has been keeping me away from the shop lately but when I have been able to get there, I've been just doing sheet metal. Having the floor still looking like Swiss Cheese is bothering me so I've been fixing it up a little. I'll likely just bank all that footage and do a whole floor episode.

On the plus side, I've basically discovered all the rust at this point.

 

Just got lost in this thread for an hour, way cool stuff, figured it applied so here it is.

http://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23323

 

Wow! Left me speechless! Guy has got some talent!

 

Oh good, there's another few hours of reading I don't have time for.

Thanks for the link! It's always nice to see the work of someone who actually knows what they are doing with sheet metal (unlike myself, who just bungles through it).

 

good thread i am in your same boat aaron with my cosmo although i have it worse and i have never fixed rust like this before

 

So I read that thread. At least he had the luxury of being able to buy patch panels! Plus of course many years of prior experience.

 

yea, buying the patch panel always makes it go so much smoother. Now think if you had to make all the character lines and ****. Wish they mad panels for 7's, would make my life a hell of alot easier

 

That Flop guy is pretty famous on The HAMB. He's done some amazing work.

 

Most of the RX-7 sheet metal is still available at Mazda, in my experience. Bought quarters, fenders, rockers and a few other bits here and there. Actually now that you mention it, I should buy new rear quarters for my 2nd gen, just so I have them when I'm ready to fix the rust.

 

Aaron, thanks so much for the videos...I'm learning a ton watching them!!

One quick question, I'm looking at getting a parts washer to begin cleaning up parts on my 93 as I tear it apart. I've noticed that you can get water/non-water based solvent. What kind of stuff are you using in your parts washer? Do you know if the water based stuff is any good?

Thanks!
Justin

 

I tried to buy quarters, door skins, whole doors for the vert.... Local mazda dealer said theres no such thing anymore. I took it as your a ******* idiot...called malloy mazda, they tried every possible way to find the parts i need and no go.

 

Buy a "industrial" parts washer if your looking into buying one. Or buy a industrial parts washer pump. I have 2 that have plastic pumps...well were plastic pumps. The ancient industrial one i have still has the same fluid in it for 15yrs or more. In my parts washers i just run K1/diesel/whatever else. The "newer" parts washer solvents suck ***. EPA blows

 

I use a solvent called "Dunk" that is non-water based. It smells a lot like kerosene and comes in a 4 litre jug. It is water soluable so it is easy to wash the part off afterwards. Honestly, all of the water based cleaners I have tried suck. The heavy solvents are what's needed to remove years of baked on crud. The follow it up with a degreaser like Super Clean cut with water, and then finally a scrub with regular old dish soap and water.

Weird. I wonder if it's a 'vert issue? Did you have part numbers?

 

No i didnt have a part number. Idk were to get one at, or even how to get one. Malloy says they can't even find anything like that.

 

You can find the body and chassis parts catalogs here:
http://www.mazdaspeeddevelopment.com...s/rx7pubs.html

A very valuable resource when ordering sheet metal as it has the parts for every stamping on the car. How much of it is still available, I don't know. But I've had good luck ordering common parts like rockers, fenders and quarters. Granted that was about 10 years ago when I painted the RX-7.

 

Thanks Aaron, I'll definitely avoid the water based stuff!

Justin

 

ok aaron, its been practically a month.

your fans are starting to jeer.

 

Yeah, Aaron. More videos please!