When I was a teen and wanted to learn to drive my father made me his “gopher” and taught me how to change a tire, the oil, and other necessary skills to keep my car running healthy. These were the direct teaching he gave me, but there were many other observed lessons in just watching him work for others.
My best memory is of him taking two wrecked Porsche bodies and removing the front from one, and the tail from another, then putting them together to make a whole and attaching it onto his friends frame. Much sanding, painting, buffing, painting, etcetera went into the remake of his friend’s Porsche.
When he was done his friend was very pleased and dubbed the car his Glazed Tomato! It was very red, and very shiny.
So why am I talking about this?
Because this morning I happened upon the following 29 minute video about the finishing process this fella went through to make his car as smooth and shiny as the Glazed Tomato. WOW! All those tools, all that fancy new miraculous tech and coatings to make his car look as good as my dad did by hand in his garage at home.
Life on the Farmlet 
I love the name “Glazed Tomato.” I’m not going to watch the whole video, but I know enough to know that the 400 grit wet sand I end with in my work would only be the beginning for those guys!
Linda, yes, it was! I can’t believe how much detailing went into this car and it is a RACE car with roll bar in the back! He has a custom suede headliner and a lot of other expensive details put into this puppy! No mention of the total cost for all this work, but you know it is in the hundred(s) of thousands.
You recall the saying, “If you need to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it”? A Perfect Example:/
I’ll stick to my bicycle.
That is understandable, Tom. It is the Rolls Royce of bicycles! 🙂
I think it’s also fair to say that your dad had more sense than money, rather than vice versa… Wouldn’t you be terrified to drive that thing for fear of tar, birdshit, stonechips, etc? And don’t even get me started on the maintenance.
Yes, he did, Kate! I often didn’t like his methods as a father, but he was a genius at crafting and repairs!
Maintenance? Oh heck yeah! But I think that all over “bra” covering was key to the paint preservation from birds and road debris. That said, I do wonder about how they manage bra replacement should it become damaged in any way. 😯
Actually, you likely notice that you don’t see them anymore? Those paint bras usually only wound up making a horrible mess of your front-end because dust and grit would get between it and the paint and act like a sander…
Deb, you are correct. However, he is using new technology and has had a “clear bra” attached to the whole surface of the car. At 23 minutes he explains what he had done and why. Although it beats heck out of me how they get all the bubbles out!
Dads are wonderful!
Lynn, yes they are.
Oops – sorry about the apostrophe and even sorrier for feeling I had to mention it.
Apostrophe? 😉
Part 1… Okay, so I haven’t watched the video yet, but here’s a bit of a rundown on *normal, everyday* paint protection; ) 3M vinyl has two side protection – like that used for cell phone screen protectors – and is applied for automotive advertising body-wraps, pin-striping, window tints… Before application – but only after meticulously removing all dirt and impurities – spray the surface with a fine mist of water. Then use a small squeegee (looks more like a flexible credit card with finger-grip ridges built in) to smooth out the surface.
The stuff for bug & stone deflection is applied to the leading edge of vehicles – places like the hood and the curved body parts immediately behind the wheels – is made of mylar and very tough stuff stuff: ) There is also a much newer product (well, new to automotive protection anyway – has been used for decades on electricians’ tool handles for grounding and better grip – called PlastiDip: ) which, as the name implies, was originally a dipped application, but for larger surfaces of an auto body is usually sprayed on…
Part 2… Okay, so I did watch and refer back to “if you need to ask how much it costs”. Obviously there were considerations made for the fact that this was 1/2 hour of (incredibly detailed!) advertising for all the the companies involved, but wow; all of the people, skills, hours upon HOURS of work that went into this car is totally mind-boggling. Because the body wrap used here is incredibly flexible, the surface is SO incredibly smooth (and they had unlimited man-power to keep it taught: ) there likely would’ve been very little air trapped between the skin and paint, but (you notice it wasn’t mentioned here; ) guessing the actual finishing technique is likely a closely-guarded trade secret; ) Oh, but one other thing that came to mind… Pre-80’s (what decade was it?) with the inception of the new base-coat/clear coat type of paint, your dad likely would’ve likely been using the original, environmentally unfriendly (toxic!) but bullet-proof, single-phase automotive paint: ) Sorry for the endless, run-on comment, Lynda (& Linda); but this is a topic near and dear to my heart… Also a Daddy’s Go’fer; )
I’m glad you have those happy memories from your childhood. My father was the least handy person you can imagine, but he did teach me to ride a bike and drive a car.
Thank you, Steve! Yes, riding and driving are two of the most vivid memories for anyone. Riding was exciting! Driving, well, he was a perfectionist and no body got hurt. LOL!