1953 Jowett Jupiter - Ho So Nearly Finished

So with the Triumph out of the workshop - I had a good clean up and moved the Jupiter into a work ready position 



Just need to get the final profiles on the nearside wing & bonnet correct 



And we can start to edge ever so close to thinking about final preparations for the primer coats 

Chris, what filler do you use for the first few coats?

I’m getting close to finishing off a rear wheel arch/ lower B-pillar repair on the Herald and will need to blend the new sections in, so soon needing to try my first bit of filler work.

Thanks

Karl

I actually really like this phase now - when I'm on the last 2 major panels - once these are done the mountain has been climbed and its just the easy descent with the somewhat minor stuff that requires the profiles sorting - windscreen frame, door apertures, front valance, flange edges on the wings, bonnet & rear shroud - none the less all still important bits 

Main profiles now sorted on the bonnet 



Likewise on the wing and both are now ready for a skimming of glaze 



I've removed the lower door hinge in order to allow the profile to be completed on the bottom of the A post 



And the new floor sections have arrived - this is PVC coated plywood - both faces - they will require trimming into fit - more tomorrow 

Getting close to some paint now Chris? They always look so different back in a single colour , even if its only primer.

Busy day today with several visitors to the workshop so not too much achieved but a good sort through the parts that are left that require preparing 



And got the front bumper valance fitted ready for profiling 
 

Quick update before heading into the workshop 



Checked the nearside door hinge location pins were still compliant to the door alignment before removing the door 



This is great way of ensuring that you return the panel to the exact fitting & alignment that you had prior to removing it for paint rather than run the risk of damage to the fresh paintwork whilst refitting / rehanging the panels 



Hinges removed to ensure that the area behind the hinge on the inner A post / hinge mount face gets painted rather than painted around and goes unprotected 



All the hinge shims marked for orientation - again nothing worse that having to faff / risk damage to the fresh paint when rehanging / refitting panels 



The door aperture / sills could now be prepared for profiling 



Initial profile skimming applied 



Care taken to not loose the detail of the original factory spotwelds whilst undertaking the profiling works 



Profiling on the inner door frame / door shell also being advanced 



And after a few applications of glaze & blocking / profiling back 



That is all of the outer body panels completed from a profiling prospective - I still have to attend to the flange edges of the panels once they are removed - more updates later 
 

More stuff happening 



Profiling progress on the nearside door 






Likewise with aperture 



Prep work on the inner bulkhead panels 





And floor rails 



Some of the loose panels can now start to come back off the car to allow access to the flange edges 



For which the underwing stone guard needs to be removed to allow access to the wing panel bolts 





Probably mentioned this before but with the Jupiter's being handbuilt every body panel carries the the body number assigned to the car 







The underside of the wing will receive a anti stone chip coating prior be painted body colour - with the panel forming part of the clamshell bonnet when its all back together it would be better if it all matched in the body colour but I need some resistance other than just paint to fend off the road debris being thrown up from the wheels 



More later 

Door shell flanges / faces now completed 



Likewise for the nearside front wing 



I like to seam seal the edges / flanges / repairs in advance of the main primer being applied 



But I don't like to apply seam sealer to bare metal surfaces hence the primer applied where required 



And this is where its worth reading the tech data sheets for the primers that you are considering / planning on applying - the Jupiter is a largely alloy skinned body onto steel frames - so it suffers from dissimilar metals corrosion - its next to impossible to provide protection / isolation between the two metals due to the methods of construction that are utilised on the car from new - but you can prevent a lot of the issues with the corrosion with the correct use of primers / sealers / cavity waxes etc - For decades we have relied on self etching primers or acid etch primers for use on difficult surfaces such as alloys / mixed metal construction etc - However, whilst etching primer has its uses its really a outdated product in the automotive trade - there are many primers in todays market that are formulated for high adhesion properties across multiple surface types - its not unusual to have a combination of steel, alloy, plastic, carbon fibre etc all utlised in the construction of a vehicle that are all painted surfaces with a single primer / paint finish  - cut to the chase then - I'm going to use 2 primers on the main body / panel surfaces of the Jupiter - first one is a 2 pack high build polyester primer / filler once that is sanded back a 2 pack wet on wet primer system is applied prior to the final paint finish being applied - Now the important bit - the vast majority of high build / polyester type primers will react against a self etching primer so I'm just using a simple red oxide construction primer to apply the seam sealer to - moral of what I've just written above is always read the data tech sheet for the paint that you are applying - Yes I know its boring and you just want to get the primer / paint on after months / years of restoration work but it may just be the undoing of all your hard work if you don't read up on the primers / paints that you are applying first 



Outer edges sealed neatly / carefully 



And the inner edges / flanges / seams - You will be surprised as to how much water can ingress into a door shell and run down inner face of the door skin / door shell - then create rust ingress (especially on a classic / older vehicle) - whilst sealing the edges is important to take care not to create a tank by sealing all the edges with the possibility of water finding its way in but there's no egress point for it run out of hence creating a rust problem rather than undertaking a rust prevention measure 



Nearside front wing sealed 



I'm leaving the rear wings on for now as I still have to address the rear wheel arch liners / stone guards