Auto Restoration 101

RC Sandblasting should return this week if the weather permits. This time to take care of the frame and some of the other small parts. I spent the previous week gatthering all of the chrome and stainless parts that need polishing and repairs. If I can, I like to repair my own parts before the parts are delivered the the chrome platers.
I straightened the bumpers the best that I could. I hammered out a few dents and also used a press to bend them back to the original shape. I used a large crescent wrench for straightening the bent edges. The over-riders also needed a lot of repairs. I had to replace some of the stripped out nuts and broken nuts with new ones and weld up any cracks.
I had to do a lot of disassembly work to get all of the chrome pieces ready. I had to take apart the bumpers, dash, grille and convertible top assembly. The owner of the car will take care of getting the pieces plated for us.

This is the front bumper over-rider that was cracked and in need of repairs before plating.

This is the over-rider after the repairs. I straightened the damage and then welded the crack. I finished the metal with 80 grit paper on a DA sander set to grind. The platers will be able to take it from here to final polish.

Bumper over-riders with stripped out and missing nuts needing repairs before plating.

This is the convertible top which we disassembled for sandblasting and for chrome plating.

I grabbed the camera to get some pictures of the dash before taking it apart. I then noticed the word “special” written under the dash in chalk. Does anyone have a thought as to what this would mean? An optional radio? clock? colors?