[Donkey8012]

Sorry Johnson, I meant to give you props. You were the main inspiration. The only difference is that I am taking the red up to the mirror.

[BSjohnson]

No worries. Yeah, continuing the red is a good idea. My little outline was just a quick "Let's see what I can to in MS Paint."

[Donkey8012]

Here's some crappy cell phone pics of the sanding-process. It's amazing what you can get your buddies to do if you bring the beer. Also noteworthy: the rust over the drip rails sucked balls. It was rusted all the way through in one spot. We got that stuff out and were about to apply filler, when we discovered something equally as cringe-worthy as the rust. Whoever repaired the rails before us applied not only Bondo, but also caulk down in the drip rails. We had to get it out with screw driver and a hammer.

[Donkey8012]

Here are some experimentations with ideas for ending the red in the back. I thought I was going all the way to the door, but it looks kind of off. Thoughts?

[Fifthrider]

I'm all for that first one. Sometimes it makes sense to come back to the edge of the rear door but not this time. I like #1 a lot.

Heh, caulk and bondo..... Wow..... Sorry. This car needed you more than you needed it.

These Pontiacs and their lack of fins.

Yeah, but those Pontiacs are so cool looking. It's like the Monkeemobile meets the Ectomobile. The stealth fighter has less fins than the average aircraft, as does the B-2 bomber. They're somehow even cooler.

"Well, you can do it to your Ecto then." That usually earns me an indignant look and a bit of silence.

Right on. I'm so tired of hearing "You should do this" and "you should do that" about making my car. Go build your own.

[Vincenzo330]

I'd like to suggest something like this for the fins. It's a curvy car so boxy designs don't mesh well. That just my opinion though.

[Donkey8012]

Some more progress pics. Almost done with Bondo. Gotta sand it down one more time, wet sand the car once more, then tape it for painting.

[Carpeteria]

The gentleman from San Diego makes a fine point.

[azmyth]

did i mention I hate you for how fast your getting this done?

[Donkey8012]

My apologies. I've had alot of time with it being Spring Break. The actual painting, as well as the roof rack, should slow me down quite a bit.

[Donkey8012]

I have a small update. The sanding over the rails is almost complete. I think it already look 1000 times better than it did. Also, I took a couple pics of the car with a lightbar on top; I think I may have a problem. I already bought two lightbars for the car, and they look like they may be too narrow. I got the shorter of the two versions in which LP6000 is offered because they are 46.5" and the acccurate bars are 48". I thought it would be close enough that it wouldn't matter. However, I did not take into account that the Pontiac may be wider than a '59 Caddy.

What do you guys think? Does the lightbar look too narrow?

[Fifthrider]

NO! My God, no! They're fine. I've seen lightbars that go over the edge and ones that are too small. Both extremes hit a point where they've crossed the line but until that point is hit? No, they're fine! I've seen 54" ones on a '59 and they weren't really a problem. I've also seen 46" ones but that's probably the smallest I'd go on a full-sized car like any pro car.

[Boomerjinks]

I think it looks fine right now, but the size difference will become apparent when you get the spotlights and roof rack up there.

[Donkey8012]

I thik I can offset the width, or lack thereof, of the lightbar by spacing my spotlights closer together. One of the things that make the bars look more narrow is that the ends of them angle in, whereas the XL's angle out.

[Donkey8012]

Small update. I'm going today to order the decals. The car should be getting painted within the next ten days or so. The plan is to paint, apply decals, then clearcoat over everything. I'll post pics as soon as there is some movement on this.

[Boomerjinks]

Prevent a headache, make sure your logo ghosts are empty!

[Donkey8012]

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying. You mean not white in the logo?

[gb4ever]

Yeah, I believe that's what he means.. So that the white in the logo doesn't clash with the white on your car.

[Donkey8012]

Ah, I see. Thanks for the tip Boomerjinks. I hadn't thought about that.


EDIT: I just talked to the guy at the shop, and he this in mind anyway. I am hoping that they can work me a deal if I get the decals and tinting done there at the same time. Here's hoping to get this done for under $500. There's just so many damn windows.

[69428scj]

DO NOT apply the decals and then clear them....you'll ruin the coat and/or the decals when they start to expand and contract from heat.

[Donkey8012]

I'm really out of my element when it comes to the body of this car, so I appreciate the advice you guys are giving me. The guy at the graphics shop said there shouldn't be a problem with a clear coat over the decals. He told me that they're already laminated, so it would be like two layers of protection. They main reason I wanted to clear over them was to keep anyone from being able to pick the edges of them.

[Boomerjinks]

Yeah, clearing over your vinyl is pretty much the worst idea ever.

[JoeLuna33]

If you clear over the graphics you will be kicking yourself when the ink fades and you have to sand and paint the doors just to replace decals.

[Donkey8012]

Ok. Don't clear coat the decals. Check.

[Donkey8012]

Well, I promised a massive update, so here it is. Today, we got it taped and painted. Do not adjust your monitor, we did this outside. No, we're not idiots; we simply did not have access to a paint booth and we're too damn stubborn to build one. Yes, there are bugs in the paint. However, there are ZERO runs or waves. Also, there is no pollen. The car will go to an ACTUAL booth later this week. We will then wash the car, wet sand out all of the bugs, touch up some imperfections, apply the clear coat, and finally buff it. It should look great by the time we're done. Thoughts?

[Boomerjinks]

That didn't come out looking nearly as good as I thought it might. Those f****g fenders man. Those f****g fenders. Maybe painting the red on the upper part of the rear side panel is the way to go.

[Donkey8012]

To be fair, the pictures don't really do it justice. I took them with my phone. Is there a picture of what you mean?

[Boomerjinks]

http://i340.photobucket.com/albums/o360 ... ne/p20.jpg
That one, pretty much.

[GhostGuy]

If you want the stripe on the side to be more accurate, I think the original stopped just before the triangular window on the side. And I think Boomer's critique is that the red band isn't wide enough.

I threw together a mockup:


I guess you need to decide if you're trying to make an Ecto like they would have if they'd used this model of car, or if you're trying to make an Ecto which looks as close to the original as possible, shape of the car be damned.

I don't know how the car looks in person, but if it were me, I'd go with what looks best rather than what's most accurate. Tough trying different revisions though to determine that when each requires a repaint.

[Donkey8012]

http://i340.photobucket.com/albums/o360 ... ne/p20.jpg
That one, pretty much.

I mean do you have a picture of how I could improve on the design.