Bye Bye Spider

[TommyClocks]

I've been wanting to start this project for over a year and my wife said...."Just do it!"

So I sent the Spider off to finishing school.......I waved BYE BYE as the painter drove away with the old girl.

At last, some much needed body work. Almost every panel had a small dent or ding and the body shop is making the "rough">>>>"smooth"

While the Spider gets a face lift, I will be rebuilding/renewing the mechanicals. I just finished cleaning up the steering box and could use a gasket/seal kit. I found the input and output shaft seals on eBay, but have not found a gasket for the top plate. I saw that the front plate has nylon shims so I bagged and tagged them for reuse. Anybody know where I could find the top gasket? I was surprised that those nylon shims provide a good seal without any gasket sealer. The Pittman arm is really difficult to remove using the removal tool........maybe a torch is in order.

Any reassembly advice is welcome, as this will be my first tear down and reassembly of a Spider. Restoration is a very overused term, but I think this is pretty close to a "body-off" or a "ground up" restoration.

My "Goomba" Tony from X-Web was here to help with some of the teardown. After the working on the car, we all sat down to big bowl of Rigatoni and meatballs.......good friends and good food,....it just doesn't get any better.

As soon as the bodywork and paint are done I can reassemble the car, and then send the motor out to Mark Allison for a much needed freshen-up.

Enjoy the photos and please wish me luck....

[wachuko]

Subscribed! That shell is looking great!

I want to do the same... but first I want to get it running without problems. That will be the task for the next few weeks. Once that is done then I can think about taking it apart again to send it to the shop to fix the small body work details that it has. Then it is the engine with dual carbs that I want to build... this s* never ends...

[TommyClocks]

Thanks, I'm really happy with the body work so far. The painter took the car apart even further than I had. I'm glad he removed the doors it will make painting the door jambs easier and will look nicer overall. The painter just finished a '64 GTO and once I saw the quality of work his work, I knew I made a good choice. The reassembly will be slow because I'm pretty picky and want everything to work right and look right.

You are right, this S*** never ends but we do it because we love it....and besides it keeps me off the streets and out of trouble.

The best part about building these cars is driving them ........and I plan to do a lot of that.

[SLOSpider]

I pass by your way alot heading to Apple Valley. If he does good work maybe I can drag mine over there for him to paint.

[TommyClocks]

I'll let you know when I get the Spider back from the body shop. You are welcome to drop by and see the finished product. I'll keep you posted.

[TommyClocks]

I thought I would give an update on the project. It has been a busy year for me but I am chipping away at the Spider project a few hours at a time.

The fuel and brake lines are back together. The steering box is a rebuilt unit from Bayless and all the steering gear is new. Gas tank and fuel pump are back where they belong. I blew out the fuel lines with compressed air, cleaned and painted the gas tank.

I notice that I spend more time looking for stuff........ and as I find car parts, I install them right away before I take the chance of losing them again.

I took a picture of the fuel system where it connects to a device that I can only guess is a fuel regulator or filter or both. I would like to replace it but have not found a replacement. This regulator has "Fispa Torino" embossed on top of it, and a glass fuel bowl underneath. If anyone out there knows if I can get an aftermarket replacement, please point me in the right direction.

Re-assembling this car has been a lot of fun. I was able re-use a lot of components, just needed to clean and/or repaint most items.

I had a nice visit with Mark Allison a few Saturdays ago. I dropped off the cylinder head and Mark will work his magic on the cylinder head and then bolt it to a new 1800 short block. Thanks Mark for all the help.

The car won't be ready for the "Best of France and Italy" show this year, hopefully next year.

Here are a few more photos:

[PininF]

Looking good Tommy , great job in the boot and engine bay ... I had lots of overspray when mine was done what a pain that was, had to clean everything..in the end I really think you get what you pay for and professionals don't cut corners, looks like you have the right guy on the job.

Cheers & good luck with your project.
John

[fiatfactory]

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[TommyClocks]

Thanks John, I am really happy with the body work and paint. The body shop removed the doors, trunk and hood to paint those spots that get overlooked. I am enjoying the experience of re-assembling this car, and looking forward to driving it again.

[TommyClocks]

Thanks for the reply Steve, I may need to get another assembly since the latch on the bottom of the bowl broke off. I'll keep checking on-line, I may find one on eBay.

[westy64]

Thanks for the reply Steve, I may need to get another assembly since the latch on the bottom of the bowl broke off. I'll keep checking on-line, I may find one on eBay.

It still exist and it is called Filter King.
If you google "filter king regulator", you will find suppliers, mainly in Europe.
It is very much used in the VW world, to protect the needle valves of the twin carbs against the excess pressure of many market electric pumps.
Not sure it adds a lot of safety as you have a return fuel line on your car.

I bought one once that I could not prevent from leaking (brand new).
There is also a smaller model without the glass bowl and paper filter
http://www.europaspares.com/filter-king ... -85mm.html

[TommyClocks]

Thanks for the tip on Filter King. If I can't find a used one locally it is good to know that new units are available.

[TommyClocks]

I am still plugging away at the Spider project, it is great to see some progress. We installed the windshield last weekend and the dashboard went in 3 weeks ago. What seems like a 2 hour install can sometimes take a lot longer. The dashboard took a while to get every thing to fit correctly, and I am pretty happy with the results. I was curious if there is a piece of molding to fill the 1/2" gap between the base of the windshield and the leading edge of the dashboard. I have not been able to find a molding but am pretty sure that one exists, if you know of one please let me know. Here are a few more photos of the progress, the Spider is starting to look like a real car again.

[SoFlaFiat]

Tommy, the car is looking amazing!!
But, am I the only one who can't see the recent pictures? I wanna see!!

[TommyClocks]

Sorry about the photos, I couldn't upload pictures from Flickr but uploaded the link instead. If you right click on the icons and select "open image in new tab" then you will be able to view the most recent pictures. I'll need some time to figure out the Flickr thing....

5-5-14 I figured out the Flickr thing.

Anybody know if there is a piece of molding that fills the gap between the leading edge of the dash board and the base of the windshield?

Tommy