Car Craft Magazine Homepage Car Craft
Get Adobe Flash player

Project Car Tips and Tricks

Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Spray Gun
Think of the air volume adjustment... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Spray Gun
Think of the air volume adjustment like a sink faucet. It adjusts the amount of air flowing through the gun without necessarily affecting the pressure. More air can mean thick coats of paint but also more messy overspray; too little can mean thin, grainy coats of paint. Start with the adjuster in the middle. Spray some paint on a test panel and fine-tune the adjustment until you are satisfied. Note that you may need to make small corrections to the air pressure regulator as you adjust the air volume.
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Spray
This photo shows the air pressure... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Spray
This photo shows the air pressure cap at work. As it exits the fluid tip, the paint is atomized by compressed air rushing out of a series of precision-machined passages in the pressure cap. The two horns on the pressure cap each contain a pair of air outlets. Those, combined with several smaller outlets in the face of the cap, influence the way the paint is atomized and the pattern it forms in the air. This spray pattern is referred to as the fan.
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Spray
Adjust the fan by turning... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Spray
Adjust the fan by turning the fan control knob. On some paint guns, it is located on the back of the gun above or below the needle adjustment knob. The fan should look like the letter U-relatively flat sides gently curving back into the fluid tip. On a test panel, the shape should look like two parentheses facing each other ()-thinner at the top and bottom and wider in the middle.
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Tools
Tap Extension In any long-reach... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Tools
Tap Extension
In any long-reach situation where the t-handle of a standard tap will not work, try welding the tap to a 1/4-inch extension. It needs to be straight; remember to grind the chrome off the extension so the weld will hold. If you don't want to weld, you can also buy sockets with a square female that are a little more bulky but do the job.
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Tools
Wiper Arm Puller If you have... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Tools
Wiper Arm Puller
If you have ever mangled your wiper arm or scratched your paint while trying to pull it off the cowl, you need this wiper arm puller. It has a plastic-covered bottom jaw, so all you have to do is insert the jaw between the base of the arm and the surface of the car and squeeze. Get one from the Matco guy using KD Tools PN 2039.
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Tools
Boot Puller Engine heat glues... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Tools
Boot PullerEngine heat glues the boot to the spark plug, and when you yank on the plug wire to remove it, the connector is ripped out of the core and leaves the terminal hanging on the tip of the plug. Solve this and third-degree burns with a plug boot puller. This one is from Theaton Tools using PN 334 or just ask the Snap-on guy. He sold us this one many years ago. We also like to add a little MSD Spark Guard dielectric grease to the inside of the plug boot.
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Firewall Hole Puncher
Firewall Hole Puncher Don't... 
   
  read full caption
Tips Help Ease Project Car Work Firewall Hole Puncher
Firewall Hole PuncherDon't use a hole saw that is designed to cut wood. Instead, use a sheetmetal hole punch like this one from Greenlee. Select a size, drill the pilot hole, then tighten the bolt and let the cutter do the work. It's perfect for cutting a hole for a wiring harness to pass through the firewall. You can get these at any major tool store.

Prev | 1  | 2  | 3  | 4  | 5  | 6  | 7  | 8  | 9  | 10  | 11  | Next

Discuss in Our Forums
Dodge Charger Research
Dodge Charger When looking for your next vehicle, think about the Dodge Charger, a stylish car with nice features. With available rebates and prices, you can find a new Charger for $25,080.00. It comes with a standard Automatic transmission, and RWD drivetrain. You also might want to research the Pontiac Grand Prix and the Chrysler Crossfire.

Related Photos

Related Articles
 
Are Nitrous Cams Worth It?
Follow along as cams are tested in a 466ci big-block Ford.... more
 
GM LS Engine Build - Lester Scruggs
You'll have to email Smith to get the story behind Lester Scruggs... more
 
Real Street Eliminator IV
RSE was back at this years CC Summer Nationals. Here's how it went down... more
 
Barracuda Drag Car Fire - Action!!
This is why Freiburger won't run an automatic transmission.... more