OLDSmobility.com - The 1967 Oldsmobile Cutlass and 442 Resource -

September 03, 2001 - FINALLY!! I've actually begun to get back to work on my 442 clone project, after a year or so of kinda dragging my feet. As I write this, I've decided NOT to powdercoat the undercarriage like I'd originally planned, and decided instead to simply paint them, since this is something I can do myself in the shop whenever I have some free time. I started sandblasting the frame in June, but kept having problems with water getting into the sandblaster, which required I replumb the shop with air lines two different times from scratch. The third time around I finally got it right, and things are running along very smoothly. I put together a little tutorial on how to properly plumb your garage with air compressor lines which is definitely worth checking out if you're considering this shop update! CLICK HERE

Here's the sandblaster I'm using to clean the undercarriage parts. This is a 40-lb unit I purchased for around $100 at Harbor Freight. I'm not sure why they call it a 40-lb tank, since a 75-lb. bag of silica sand will fit with room to spare. I've partitioned off a portion of the shop with heavy-mil plastic sheeting to act as a sandblasting booth, but let me tell you from experience...no matter how well you try to hang the plastic to contain the sand, it WILL get into EVERYTHING! This does keep the mess to a minimum, however. Behind the plastic you can see the air compressor, with a fan blowing on the motor and compressor to aid in cooling. As mentioned previously, this compressor is a bit on the small side for air-intensive tasks like sandblasting, and if you don't take frequent breaks to allow the compressor to catch up and cool down, you run the risk of burning it up. In addition to the fan you see, I also have a squirrel-cage fan blowing on the tank itself, to aid in the cooling of the compressed air which in turn assists in a more rapid condensation of moisture in the tank which can then be drained. My first feeble attempt at plumbing the shop with the air compressor lines resulted in a lot of water getting into the sandblaster, which turned the silica sand into a gloppy mess...so be sure to follow the accepted standards on air compressor line plumbing, to allow the hot compressed air time to cool and condense the moisture.

ALLRIGHT! Looking good! Here's a shot of the 99% completed bare-metal frame, ready for some color. After I finished the frame and took it outside for cleaning, I used a garden hose to rinse the shop floor and the driveway in front. The frame was sitting outside in the hot sun on a 95-degree day, so I didn't see any problem with giving it a quick rinse job as well, to clean off the dust and any sand left over inside the rails after blowing it off with compressed air. BIG MISTAKE! You could sit there and literally see the rust flash back on the bare metal! It certainly surprised me. Oh well, live and learn. Consequently, I had to fire the sandblaster back up and redo the whole frame...fortunately, the flast rust came right off, and I was able to redo the whole frame in about 45 minutes. The pictures below were taken before I cleaned the flash rust off the second time, hence the small rust spots here and there.

This is the date code found on the outer left side of the frame, about 16" up from the rear. The PON signifies Pontiac. According to the Oldsmobile Chassis Service manual, two different frame sources were used: Pontiac and A.O. Smith. Seems like Pontiac frames were used on regular 2- and 4dr A-bodied cars, and A.O. Smith frames on extended station wagons and convertibles.

This is a shot of the VIN stamped on top of the left rear frame rail about 12" from the end of the frame.

Here's a mysterious stamping I found on the inside of each frame rail, just in front of each lower rear control arm mount. Any ideas?

I included this just for the hell of it. This is the motor-mount pad for the original 330 Olds engine. The 455 bolts right into this frame using this pad and the 330 motor mounts.

Here are are the suspension pieces awaiting their turn in the paint booth. These pieces were sitting in my paint booth while painting the frame, so there's a little overspray on them. I wasn't overly concerned with that, since it had also been almost a week since they were sandblasted and there was already some flash-rust appearing, due to the humidity. I'll have to reblast these prior to painting. The front springs were supposed to be in this shot, but were still hanging from the rafters after getting blasted. It's amazing I forgot to grab them for this group picture, considering the number of bruises on my head from running into the damned things while working around the shop!

One of the things I've learned after a LOT of research is that anyone can do painting in their own garage, providing you have a decent gun, a good air-compressor and a buddy who knows the ropes and is willing to give some help and advice. In researching the basics, since I've never painted anything in my life and I had to start from ground one, I discovered several websites that were extremely helpful, with messageboards monitored by seasoned veterans willing to answer questions from newbies such as myself. Granted, it CAN seem a little daunting at first, but if you're like me and determined to do as much work as possible yourself, you'd be surprised at just how much you'll pick up...and when (not if) you make mistakes, you'll have a great place to turn to for answers. The three messageboards I found most helpful were:
- Auto Restorer Online Auto Body & Paint Bulletin Board
- Autobodystore.com Bulletin Board
- Paintucation Message Board
Len Stuart at Autobodystore.com has produced a video (which I purchased) which can help with a lot of the basics for the first-timer.

VOILA! Here's the freshly-painted frame. Considering that this is the very first time I've ever picked up a spray gun, I was very impressed with how this turned out.
It looks beautiful!

Another shot of the new paint. My homemade 'frame transport device' works very well for this process, though I probably WILL have to do a few minor touchups around the rear bodymount holes in the frame, where my rear trolly system is currently mounted. However, I believe the new body mounts will completely cover the tiny bit I wasn't able to get to with the gun.

One more shot of the
front crossmember area

One thing I really wished I'd done better prior to applying the paint was cleaning the frame. Even though I spent almost a half-hour blowing residual sand from every nook and cranny of the frame, as soon as I started painting, I found grains of sand magically appearing and getting stuck to the paint. Fortunately, the few places these got stuck into the paint were in the inner frame rails, where it won't be seen. About the only way anyone would ever notice this is if they were to actually run their hand along the frame rail, or perhaps if a car show judge were to inspect those frame rails with a mirror....but like my paint advisor (thanks, Shawn!) told me, if you've got your car in a show and it's to the point where a judge does this, you've already won. However, for the rest of the suspension pieces awaiting their turn with the spray gun, I will definitely be a lot more attentive to cleanliness.

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This page last modified on June 09, 2002.