The Bimmer Basement

[Mpower5266]

Can you share a link as to where you got the watch parts? Thanks and no advice from me![emoji23]


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Long Island watch. And I am going to regret that advice stuff arent I? Haha.

 

[BruceH]

Long Island watch. And I am going to regret that advice stuff arent I? Haha.

Another great part source is Yobokies, which is Seikoboy spelled backwards. He'll mod you a new one too. https://seikoboy.com/ Pic attached of one he did for me.

 

[Mpower5266]

Another great part source is Yobokies, which is Seikoboy spelled backwards. He'll mod you a new one too. https://seikoboy.com/ Pic attached of one he did for me.

Love it. I have had my eye on a similar black bay homage from them.


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[Mpower5266]

Worked on the wagon detail last night. I got home from work and taped it up before dinner.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I was hoping that I could 1 step it with just a polish since I did a full detail right around a year ago but after a test spot I knew I was going to have to 2 step it. I did the correction last year with a Porter Cable random orbital and some Meguiars compound and polish. I was never really happy with the results. I recently purchased a Maxshine Pro15 (I am too cheap for a Rupes) and its a night and day difference. Even though the Max is a cheapish machine it has a ton of power and never stalled on me. I used a Megs microfiber cutting pad and Jescar correction compound and I am very happy with the results. Its hard to see on a white car but here are some before and afters.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

There are some spots on the hood that I couldn't get out but it is an 07 with almost 90k miles so I'm not being too hard on myself. I wiped it down in preparation of polishing it tonight. Hopefully that will hide more marring and go a little quicker than the compounding.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

 

[Purist]

I think I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on a Maxshine M15 Pro Series II. And this just reinforces that notion.

 

[Mpower5266]

I think I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on a Maxshine M15 Pro Series II. And this just reinforces that notion.

I have been happy with it except it gets a little warm and it vibrates a lot. Other than that, its been great for the money. Now I am hunting for something 3".

 

[Purist]

I have been happy with it except it gets a little warm and it vibrates a lot. Other than that, its been great for the money. Now I am hunting for something 3".

I was going to sell my Harbor Freight 6" DA, but a buddy of mine suggested I slap a 3" backing plate on it and use that as my dedicated 3" machine, so that's what I'm going to do. Already got the backing plate in the mail. Just need to order the MaxShine.

 

[Mpower5266]

I was going to sell my Harbor Freight 6" DA, but a buddy of mine suggested I slap a 3" backing plate on it and use that as my dedicated 3" machine, so that's what I'm going to do. Already got the backing plate in the mail. Just need to order the MaxShine.

Maybe Ill do that with my old PC. Where did you get the back plate?

 

[Purist]

Maybe Ill do that with my old PC. Where did you get the back plate?

eBay. They had the best price on the Lake Country 3” backing plate.


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[Mpower5266]

I got back to work on the wagon last night. My weapons of choice.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I polished out the car and then topped it with Jescar Powerlock. The paint is so... smooth.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I also cleaned up the black trim and roof rails with a hand polish and sealed them with Powerlock.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Its looking good, and I still have two more coats of Collinite 845.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

While I was removing the tape the drivers side fender side marker light broke. I ordered a cheapo one from amazon since it can get here by Saturday(I hope, everything has been delayed lately) and I will likely order a set of Oem ones soon. Tonight Ill get the first coat of 845 on, clean up the windows, coat the trim, clean wheels and tires, and maybe work on the interior a bit. Sorry for all the boring updates, but its almost done.

Also the M3 has been my daily through this and it now has "over 150k miles." I guess I will just drive it more now.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

 

[Arclitgold]

These updates are awesome!! That white really pops after a good detail and those wheels.... mwah!

Keep it up! I’m digging the detailing content


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[MacTexas]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that still uses Collinite 845, it makes my white truck really shine. I like it better than the new ceramic coatings.

 

[Mpower5266]

These updates are awesome!! That white really pops after a good detail and those wheels.... mwah!

Keep it up! I’m digging the detailing content


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you. I will have more I think, I need to do my parents cars and the E9 isnt far off.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that still uses Collinite 845, it makes my white truck really shine. I like it better than the new ceramic coatings.

I really wanted to coat the car, but I chickened out. I did my wheels about a year ago and I was asking people on a facebook group if I could just re-coat them. They all said I would have to polish the coating off first, that kinda turned me off coating the car. It seems like a lot of work to remove it. Plus the coating would be around $100 and I have almost brand new bottles of Powerlock and 845.

 

[jonshonda]

I really want to try the 845 wax, but tried that Turtle Wax Spray on Hybrid ceramic wax instead. I don't have any great feedback as it was applied to the Miata which sits in the garage 95% of the time.

You also mentioned getting a suburban a few pages back, and although I know that there were issues with users chiming on on goofy advice I just wanted to give you a heads up on big/tall vehicles and car seats. Just make sure your wife/you can easily put the car seat in place before you buy a vehicle. Although there will be lots more room in the back seat, it can be a real chore to get a car seat up and into tall vehicles and once the little one starts packing on the weight, it gets more and more difficult. Same goes with the stroller and hiking that up into the back of the burb. And the rear visibility *****, to if you test drive have the wife take the vehicles to the normal spots she goes to ensure it isn't too difficult.

 

[Mpower5266]

I really want to try the 845 wax, but tried that Turtle Wax Spray on Hybrid ceramic wax instead. I don't have any great feedback as it was applied to the Miata which sits in the garage 95% of the time.

You also mentioned getting a suburban a few pages back, and although I know that there were issues with users chiming on on goofy advice I just wanted to give you a heads up on big/tall vehicles and car seats. Just make sure your wife/you can easily put the car seat in place before you buy a vehicle. Although there will be lots more room in the back seat, it can be a real chore to get a car seat up and into tall vehicles and once the little one starts packing on the weight, it gets more and more difficult. Same goes with the stroller and hiking that up into the back of the burb. And the rear visibility *****, to if you test drive have the wife take the vehicles to the normal spots she goes to ensure it isn't too difficult.

845 is where its at. I love it except for the oil issue after the first application.

We currently have a Tahoe so the Burb would just be a little longer. My wife doesn't hate anything except mini vans and PT cruisers so we will just have to deal with it. I think the Tahoe will be around for another few months at least so we will see how it works out and make the call then.

 

[swimrr]

Just chiming in to say thanks for all the updates, especially the detailing. I'm learning more about detailing just by reading your posts.

 

[Mpower5266]

Just chiming in to say thanks for all the updates, especially the detailing. I'm learning more about detailing just by reading your posts.

There should be more over the weekend. I worked on the car last night and coated the trim, but that doesn't photograph well. I will probably knock out the windows, interior, the last coat of 845, and all the other stuff tonight.

I did however mod another watch, I hope everyone isn't sick of watch stuff. I bought this Seiko SNZH about 4 months ago and the face was already modified to look like a Blancpain fifty fathoms. This is what the original watch looks like and they sell for up to $50k.

This is what my $200 Seiko looks like. Close, but I wanted the bezel insert to match the Blancpain.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

So I popped the bezel off and removed the insert with a sharp pocket knife. The hardest part of the whole project was cleaning the goo off the bezel.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I had recently ordered a crystal press because the crystal on the other seiko is trashed and I want to swap it out. I am glad I had this handy, because I could not get this bezel back on with out it. It was tight.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Once it was on, I gave it a good wipe with IPA and applied a thin layer of super glue. I ordered this with a double sided tape ring, but I screwed it up so I used the glue instead.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

And the bezel in place, and looking very good.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Of course I had to go to a dark room and get a lume shot right away.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I tossed it on a sailcloth strap I had for now, but I have a period correct rubber tropical ******** the way. I am very happy with how it turned out.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I have a few light mods planned for the other watch, this one needs a new crystal as well, and then I am probably going to build a watch completely from parts. This is going to be a dangerous hobby, I can tell already. Anyway back to car content for a while.

 

[Ronin22]

I'm going to unsubscribe now. I really don't need another hobby. I forced myself years ago to forget I love watches so much! This thread is not helping lol!

 

[jonshonda]

845 is where its at. I love it except for the oil issue after the first application.

We currently have a Tahoe so the Burb would just be a little longer. My wife doesn't hate anything except mini vans and PT cruisers so we will just have to deal with it. I think the Tahoe will be around for another few months at least so we will see how it works out and make the call then.

Don't disrespect the van!!

The automatic sliding doors are worth their weight in gold when loading and unloading kids, from new born until infinity! Vans get hated on, but if you are a secure individual you can power through!! haha

 

[pat9198]

It's your thread, we're just living in it. Have a good weekend!

The watch looks great!

 

[Mpower5266]

I worked on the wagon a little Friday night but I needed some time to relax, so I knocked it out Saturday after cars and coffee. I gave the paint a final coating of 845 and wiped it down. It came out so nice.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I also wiped down the engine and did a full interior clean. I used Colourlock mild cleaner and leather shield on all the leather surfaces.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I took it on a beer run Saturday night and snapped a couple pics. I think this car is going to be around for a while, I cant think of a better daily.

IMG_7924-3 by Nick Wood, on Flickr

IMG_7900 by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Going back to Friday, I was driving home in the M3 and noticed the AC wasn't blowing very cold. I called by dad and he said he would recharge it over the weekend, so I dropped it off Friday evening and picked up the Wagoneer since there was a cars and coffee event Saturday. After tooling around in the m3 with its anemic AC this vent was a much welcomed change. Those who know... know.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

On the way home from picking it up, we stopped for dinner at one our favorite places and I couldn't help but snap a pic downtown. Alan Jackson is from my little town, this isn't just a mural by some rabid fan.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Cars and coffee was great, and we even cruised around for a bit hitting yard sales in the wagoneer. Hof had been in the house for a few hours so we decided to stop by and let him out before going to pic up lunch. My wife made the mistake of saying the word "Jeep" when we walked in the house and this sends Hof into a fit. He LOVES Jeep rides so much that we cant even say the word Jeep around him. If you do, he runs to the door hopping up on his hind legs barking. It is hilarious, I need to get video. Needless to say we tossed him in the backseat and headed to pick up lunch.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Hof was flipping out and running back and forth on the back seat sniffing out of each window for about 45 seconds.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

We made it about 200 feet before vapor lock hit, I should have left it running while we were getting the pup. My dad came by and we towed it back to my house and let it sit for a few hours, after that it started right back up. We are shopping some EFI set ups.

I cleaned up the garage and chilled out Sunday. I did have an issue with trash and little pieces of wood getting in my microfiber towels, so I looked in the downstairs washer and saw that it was pretty nasty. I think when I did the addition, the workers drilled above it with the lid open and there were some small wood chunks in there. I tore it down and gave it a good cleaning.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Freshly cleaned. I hope this will keep my expensive microfibers from turning into shop rags. I am going to do a couple test washes with my junky towels first before tossing in the good ones. Ill have to sneak the good ones in the nice washer when my wife isn't paying attention.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I don't want to jinx it but I think the E9 might come home this week so stay tuned.

 

[TX4runner]

Any teaser pictures from the painter of the E9. Hope it's this week. I know you have been waiting awhile for it.

 

[Mpower5266]

Any teaser pictures from the painter of the E9. Hope it's this week. I know you have been waiting awhile for it.

Over 6 months... My dad is going out this afternoon, I just hope its some shade a blue. If it is I will post something.

 

[Mpower5266]

Ultra boring post. While daily driving the M3 last week, I got random brake light warnings. Its not really a big deal, except the check control light comes on the gauges and a warning scrolls constantly on the OBC. So I decided to put the new switch in last night. It is located on the brake pedal and you have to take the lower half of the dash out, which isnt too bad but does require laying kinda upside down/sideways for a while. To remove the switch you have to hold down the brake pedal with one hand, slide a collar out with your other hand which pinching the connector with your 3rd hand and pulling with your 4th hand. Since I am not quadhanded I just put some vice grips on it to gently and carefully crush it.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I installed the new one and the brake lights worked. I noticed the plunger for the similar clutch switch was missing the plunger, so I may have do this again soon.

Since the switch didn't take as long as I thought I decided to tackle another little watch project. I have a new crystal coming for my other seiko, so in the next week or so I will have to completely disassemble the watch to press the crystal out. Since my FFF, is much cheaper to replace, has obviously been apart before, and it had some dust on the face, I decided to take it apart to clean the dust off.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I took my little puffer thingy, cleaned off the dust and put the watch back together with no issues. It was easier than I though. I did notice that the crystal was very scratched on the FFF, its easier to see with out the movement in it so I need to order on of those as well. But it still works with no dust inside.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I am really hoping for some E9 updates later this afternoon. I am kinda running out of projects.

 

[Mpower5266]

Picked up a new project car last night.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

One of my buddies from the local vintage BMW group emailed me the other day asking if I wanted it and I couldn't turn it down. Now I need to tune it up, I think it needs a new battery, and get it ready for the twins when they get a little older.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

My garage is starting to look like Enthusiast Auto Group for little kids. I think the m3 is going to go out to grandma and grandpas for when the little ones are over there.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Or maybe I can teach Hofmeister to drive it, he doesn't seem too keen on that idea though.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

And I am really hoping that the E9 is going to get its first coat of Hot Pink metallic today.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

 

[Jarch]

Cant wait to see some paint on that thing!

it amazes me how much choice there is on power wheels these days... no longer is it just different flavors of jeep to choose from

 

[S54_2UZ-FE]

Stunning work on the E91! Alpine white looks so good clean.

 

[TX4runner]

I know a certain E46 member who might steal that M3 to go along with his Raptor. Lol.

Hoping you get to see paint on the E9 this week!!

 

[Mpower5266]

I know a certain E46 member who might steal that M3 to go along with his Raptor. Lol.

Hoping you get to see paint on the E9 this week!!

Hes already been all about it on facebook. Haha. I know for a fact the Barbie Pink paint is in the possession of the painter and the car is in the booth.

 

[pat9198]

I'm excited to see it!

 

[Mpower5266]

Still no paint on the e9, but as far as I know it could have been done on Saturday. I did however get the 02 back together. Replaced all the trans output shaft seals, guibo, center support bearing, etc etc. I took it out for a drive and it rode great.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

After that I cleaned up the garage a little, and started to install the lip splitter my wife got me for my bday.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I think I got it twisted up a little putting it on because one side is hanging off the bumper. My dad and I are going to pull it off and work on it this week and maybe do a little redesign. While I was doing this my wife and inlaws went to some estate sales, and she found this. I dont know what I am going to do with it but I had to have it.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Sunday, I got up early and gave the wagon a much needed wash and put the first coat of beadmaker on since I detailed it.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

I have a buddy that imported a Bmw and is driving it back from New Jersey to Cali. He works for Liqui Moly so hes stopping at some shops across the country and seeing friends. We were supposed to meet up, do a little photo shoot and grab some lunch. He was on his way to the house and noticed something was up with the car so I had him divert to my dads shop. I drove the M3 over, thinking that the lip needed some work and I could borrow parts from it should he need something. He pulled into the shop and we immediately put it on the lift.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

We quickly found the issue. I am going to leave it at that since someone fairly well known in the scene worked on the car last. While it was up we checked everything over, and I found this little Easter egg on his coil overs.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Once we got everything buttoned up, I swapped his car out and put the m3 on lift. I left it over at the shop since my dad and I are going to work on the lip this week. I borrowed my moms wagon and we stopped by the hanger so my buddy could do a little photo shoot. His pics will be out soon, likely in the CCA magazine, but I snapped one on my phone.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

Then we all rolled over to my house. They wanted to see my garage and I got pretty dirty working on his car and I wanted to change before heading to lunch. I ran up stairs to change and took this shot from the deck. So much roof in one place.

Untitled by Nick Wood, on Flickr

We then went to lunch, basically dinner at that point, had a couple of beers and chatted about cars. It was such a great weekend. More on the e9 this week... *fingers crossed*

 

[GirchyGirchy]

Is there dye in the M3's AC system, or has it been leak tested? That's one of my peeves...the refrigerant's going somewhere, so recharging it without finding the problem is half-assed.

 

[Mpower5266]

Is there dye in the M3's AC system, or has it been leak tested? That's one of my peeves...the refrigerant's going somewhere, so recharging it without finding the problem is half-assed.

There was dye in the system, but we could never find a leak. My dad used to do commercial HVAC so he knows his way around it. This last time we pumped everything out of the system and recharged it. I usually get 2 summers out of a recharge before it needs to be topped off. Its either a leak or just a 90's BMW ac system.

 

[davidstutler]

My gosh - that E36 Touring is beautiful! Cannot wait to get mine stateside.

Is that Daytona Violet or some other purple hue? Beautiful color.

As I now know we share a birthday, hope you have a great one tomorrow! Your last one before fatherhood takes over your life, so enjoy The rest will be ... different.

 

[Mpower5266]

My gosh - that E36 Touring is beautiful! Cannot wait to get mine stateside.

Is that Daytona Violet or some other purple hue? Beautiful color.

As I now know we share a birthday, hope you have a great one tomorrow! Your last one before fatherhood takes over your life, so enjoy The rest will be ... different.

It's Daytona and in really great shape. I wish I could keep it for a few days to slick it out, with a few days I could have it really popping.

Happy bday tomorrow to you as well. I have had a few people make the "your life is over" and "you wont be able to do car stuff anymore" comments but I am really not worried. Priorities will change. I may miss a few car shows here and there but I will get to spend time with my kids. We are 4-6 weeks out and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared but I am also really excited to meet them.

 

[davidstutler]

It's Daytona and in really great shape. I wish I could keep it for a few days to slick it out, with a few days I could have it really popping.

Happy bday tomorrow to you as well. I have had a few people make the "your life is over" and "you wont be able to do car stuff anymore" comments but I am really not worried. Priorities will change. I may miss a few car shows here and there but I will get to spend time with my kids. We are 4-6 weeks out and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared but I am also really excited to meet them.

Your life is definitely not over - most dads would say it's just about to start. Being a dad is likely going to be the greatest thing you do - despite your incredible detailing abilities What you find is the stuff that you thought mattered, may not matter as much. The stuff that you truly love to do, all that will persist. I'll be 45 tomorrow and I have a 15 year old and an 11 year old. Since they were little, they loved going to C&C with me on Saturday mornings. I have the opposite problem now - getting nervous about doing those things alone when they leave the house.

 

[Mpower5266]

Your life is definitely not over - most dads would say it's just about to start. Being a dad is likely going to be the greatest thing you do - despite your incredible detailing abilities What you find is the stuff that you thought mattered, may not matter as much. The stuff that you truly love to do, all that will persist. I'll be 45 tomorrow and I have a 15 year old and an 11 year old. Since they were little, they loved going to C&C with me on Saturday mornings. I have the opposite problem now - getting nervous about doing those things alone when they leave the house.

I cant wait to take them to cars and coffee's. I really hope my dad will be able to still go on long road trips when the kids are old enough to go to weekend events like the Vintage. I wasn't a huge fan of my Grandfather later in life but I have great memories of going to shows with my dad and grandpa.

 

[TX4runner]

I must be getting old. I forgot you were part of the 8/18 birthday group. Happy early birthday to you and David. Besides being my birthday it's also 2 people in the Houston BMW CCA's birthday. I often have co-birthday parties with one of them as we are all friends with the same local CCA people and often we are road tripping to O'fest on our birthday. This year will of course be different but are trying to do some type of outdoor social distance gathering for all three of us next weekend.

I guess I'm the old guy as I'll be 1 year older than David.

 

[davidstutler]

I must be getting old. I forgot you were part of the 8/18 birthday group. Happy early birthday to you and David. Besides being my birthday it's also 2 people in the Houston BMW CCA's birthday. I often have co-birthday parties with one of them as we are all friends with the same local CCA people and often we are road tripping to O'fest on our birthday. This year will of course be different but are trying to do some type of outdoor social distance gathering for all three of us next weekend.

I guess I'm the old guy as I'll be 1 year older than David.

That's amazing! I have a twin brother too, so he's part of the BMWCCA birthday bunch as well.

 

[Mpower5266]

I must be getting old. I forgot you were part of the 8/18 birthday group. Happy early birthday to you and David. Besides being my birthday it's also 2 people in the Houston BMW CCA's birthday. I often have co-birthday parties with one of them as we are all friends with the same local CCA people and often we are road tripping to O'fest on our birthday. This year will of course be different but are trying to do some type of outdoor social distance gathering for all three of us next weekend.

I guess I'm the old guy as I'll be 1 year older than David.

That's amazing! I have a twin brother too, so he's part of the BMWCCA birthday bunch as well.

BDAY GANG!!!!

Haha.