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Restomod Old Mac? Side Box Project

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freudianfloyd

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So, I bought this box at a yardsale on Monday, and decided it was needing to be fixed up instead of just using as is. The old man I bought it from said he bought it used in the 70's, and from the research I've done, I think it most resembles a Mac.

Now usually when I attempt a project, one of two things happen...either I lose interest halfway through or I get impatient and rush it. I also tend to forget before pictures so posting my projects is pretty anti-climactic.

My hope this time is that if I start a thread on the project from the beginning that I will not only put more effort into it, but also finish it right. I also hope to get input from those with more experience than me. So without any further delay....

So here is what I started with.
View media item 86697
With vintage PAW decal
View media item 86705
View media item 86702
And after a few hours of sanding...

View media item 86704View media item 86701
I plan on taking the drawers to work to sandblast them, there are too many nooks and crannys to sand them.

I am still undecided on a few things though, first the color. I dont want to just do red, I want this box to stand out. I was thinking something like this.
View media item 86706Maybe do the outside of the box light blue, and do the drawers in orange? I would love to do stripes, but I'm no painter and I think it would look bad if I try.

I'm open to other color combinations if somebody has a better one.

I also dont know what to do with the handles, the chrome is pitted. So I can try to polish them, but they will never be perfect, or they can be painted too. Any suggestions?
 
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freudianfloyd

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Obviously I still have a lot to do, I want to put in the extra effort and fill all the spot welds and pull out the dings and dents, but that will have to wait until tomorrow.
 
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zkling

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While you have it stripped down, see if you can see a stamping anywhere on the back or sides.

Post a picture of the slides. All the big names in tool boxes made a little hang on box like that back in the 60's-80's.
 
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Stuart in MN

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I like the Gulf color scheme, a blue case with orange drawers will look good. If you wanted to make a 'swoosh' stripe like on the front of the GT40, you can get black pinstripe tape for cheap from the auto parts store that would cover up any imperfections in the border between the two colors (that's probably why the GT40 has that black pinstripe separating the two anyway. :) )

I'm pretty sure I've seen the color codes or equivalent paint colors posted online somewhere for the Gulf paint scheme, you can probably find them with a Google search.

I'd try polishing the handles. The pits won't go away, but I think they'll still look a lot better than if you painted them.
 
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freudianfloyd

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zkling said:
While you have it stripped down, see if you can see a stamping anywhere on the back or sides.

Post a picture of the slides. All the big names in tool boxes made a little hang on box like that back in the 60's-80's.
Click to expand...

I have looked all over this box and cant find any name. I will post pics of the slides when I get home, they look similar to Mac slides that I've seen as well.
 
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freudianfloyd

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Stuart in MN said:
I like the Gulf color scheme, a blue case with orange drawers will look good. If you wanted to make a 'swoosh' stripe like on the front of the GT40, you can get black pinstripe tape for cheap from the auto parts store that would cover up any imperfections in the border between the two colors (that's probably why the GT40 has that black pinstripe separating the two anyway. :) )

I'm pretty sure I've seen the color codes or equivalent paint colors posted online somewhere for the Gulf paint scheme, you can probably find them with a Google search.

I'd try polishing the handles. The pits won't go away, but I think they'll still look a lot better than if you painted them.
Click to expand...

I would love to make some racing stripes on it, but I know I cant do it justice. I just dont have those skills.
 
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freudianfloyd

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freudianfloyd

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I do have a question though, how long do you wait before you sand down the bondo and what grit paper do you finish with before the primer?
 
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tym

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I like the blue, though I'm biased 'cuz I ordered my Mustang in Grabber Blue.
 
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freudianfloyd

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Lookin4'67Galaxieconv said:
Bondo dries fairly quick. I'd use 80 or 150 grit to start and finish with 1000 grit wetsanding.
Click to expand...

Is there an issue with waiting too long. I sanded it some last night, but it was getting late so I decided I would go back this weekend. Does it need to be sanded when fairly fresh, or can I wait till its fully hardened?
 
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Cruzan80

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Looks like Waterloo handles to me, along with identical clips. They were the OEM manufacturer for several people.
 
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freudianfloyd

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Well a few updates but no pictures.

I got the bondo smoothed out as much as possible, and after scraping a bunch off that didnt harden and starting over, I got the box to pretty good shape. I then proceeded to primer the box, and for some reason the rattle can primer only wants to come out in a stream instead of a cone shape. Needless to say it streaks badly and looks like garbage.

So that was last night and got frustrated and went to bed. Decided to give it another try today and I never should've bothered. I spent most of the day working on brakes from hell where everything that could go bad did, and then had other stressful things to deal with, so I took a break in my garage just sitting there staring at the box and decided I would try to do some more primering. Bad idea!

I recoated the box and hung it from a wire I used last night. Turned around to get a drawer to start spraying, and somehow the wire let go and dropped the box right on the corner from a height of about 6 feet. I picked it up, threw my gloves in the trash cussed out the toolbox and then went in the house.

The box held up pretty well, but it still looks like ****. I will give it another go when I am more relaxed. I wish I could learn to relax when working on stuff and take it all in stride, but this is usually the point where my projects get put in a box never to see the light of day again.

I'm going to really try not to let that happen but man did it piss me off.

Thanks for listening to my rant.
 
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freudianfloyd

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Well a small update for anyone who cares. I didnt give up on the project. I went out to the garage after work with a clear head, knocked the dent out from yesterday and got to finishing the primering. I cant say I'm happy at all with the spray stream of this primer, instead of a fan or cone shape, it comes out like a small cloud. I tried three cans and they all did it so I'm not sure what the problem is. It also seems to dust on instead of laying on wet. Hopefully a light sanding will salvage it.

Anyway here it is currently.
View media item 86771
 
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freudianfloyd

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Stuart in MN said:
Looks pretty good in the picture. Sounds like you need to toss those cans of primer and get a different brand. :)
Click to expand...

They seemed to smooth out pretty good after a wet sanding. I just put a coat of color on and besides the runs, it looks pretty smooth. Few more coats and another wet sanding I guess.
 
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Ohmthis

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Don’t get discouraged, that’s a lot of work you’ve been doing. It’s showing good signs too, keep at it. I like the color combo, can’t wait to see it finished.
 
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freudianfloyd

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Well I stayed up late and got some color on this box. It's not as deep of a blue as I hoped, so instead of the more modern Gulf Racing colors, it will look more like the old school colors. Either-way, it looks pretty good. Not perfect, but as my wife said when I was complaining about it...."it's just an old toolbox"
View media item 86809View media item 86810
And in the meantime, while these parts are drying, i will work on polishing up the handles.
 
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Mr_B

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Lol, your wife needs read this forum more and understand the personal value of 'an old toolbox' :)
Should look a treat as had plenty prep work .
 
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freudianfloyd

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Assembly time!
View media item 86812
And I decided to try something a little different on the handles. They were extremely pitted and buffing was not going to fix them, and I didnt want to paint them, so I did the following.

I used 320 grit sandpaper and broke through to the copper coating under the chrome then polished with scotch bright. The copper looks good on the orange drawers and the parts where I didnt break through took on a darker steel finish. I then cleared them to make sure they stay this way.
View media item 86815
 
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Lookin4'67Galaxieconv

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freudianfloyd said:
Well I stayed up late and got some color on this box. It's not as deep of a blue as I hoped, so instead of the more modern Gulf Racing colors, it will look more like the old school colors. Either-way, it looks pretty good. Not perfect, but as my wife said when I was complaining about it...."it's just an old toolbox"
View media item 86809View media item 86810
And in the meantime, while these parts are drying, i will work on polishing up the handles.
Click to expand...

What are the specific colors and manufacturer of the blue and orange?
 
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freudianfloyd

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Thanks guys, I have one final touch to do to it to make it perfect, and then to figure out what to keep in it.
 
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ConductorChris

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Wow, those are my personal favorite colors. I have dreamed of a Porsche in those colors! But I have long wanted to paint something with them. I don't know why I never put 2 + 2 together and while refinishing a tool cabinet with them. Thanks for motivation!
 
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