I admit up front that I'm not
one to follow instructions very closely. I read them and take them
into consideration, but I usually modify them to fit my situation better.
Building the Lone Star will be no different,
My overall plan to
construction is to pre-assemble the frame and body components up to the
point where disassembly is still easy, then take it all apart for paint.
Then I will do the final assembly and details. Now, I can't say for
certain where that point is at because I don't know the kit that well, but I
plan to avoid any installations like wiring and interior details until after
paint. I also plan to paint the body off the frame, rather than in a
constructed state. I know that this is more construction work but
that's the plan.
As a result of these
decisions, I did not order the frame components powder coated. I left
them in raw steel so I could drill the extra holes and make any needed
changes without regard to messing up the powder coat. Another reason
for doing it this way is that I am planning on a custom color on the frame.
Lone Star only offers up Black and Silver. That's not enough selection
for me. Since I already know the color of my car, and I've already
painted the engine, transmission, and rear-end that color, I'm going to have
a local shop custom powder coat my frame parts.
I expect my
construction plans to change over time because I don't know what I don't
know. That means that once I get into the build more deeply, I'm
likely to change my mind on a number of the finer points. We'll
see. At least I have a starting point established.
So
to recap, I've defined what I want to build and why, determined who are the
best vendors to get a majority of my parts from, picked up the kit, set up
the shop, and established a plan of attack for getting the project
completed. I think the only thing left is to get started. My
established start date for construction is January 1, 2010. That's
enough "Getting Ready", now it's time build!
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