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Magazine

Runabouts to Rockets

President's Message

 

Runabouts to Rockets
Volume 4
4 #1-2
January - February 2025

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As we begin 2025, I assume that most of us will be making New Year’s resolutions. My resolution for 2025 is to complete some of the outstanding car projects that have been going on for years so that I can move on to others that I really want to work on.  I regret that I did not take the advice of a few of my closest Oldsmobile friends over the years.  They told me to finish one project before starting the next one and to stop restoring cars for others.  I really thought that restoring cars for others would create some extra cash that I could use to support my car addiction.  Prior to my retirement (over 8 years ago), I took on two restoration projects for close friends thinking that I would be able to crank them out quickly since I would have so much free time after I retired.  Sad to report that both of these cars are still in my garage and are not finished.  

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When I was in high school and college, I painted many cars and most of them were finished in less than a week.  A few may have taken a month or two, but I recall a couple that were done over a weekend.  I am not sure if my current problem is the result of “perfection paralysis” or to the changes in the painting systems.  Back in the day, everyone used lacquer primer and many left it in the gun.  You just shot some clean thinner through it the next time you needed to use it.  With the newer urethane and epoxy products, you must clean the gun after every use and only mix what you need because the left over is wasted because of the catalysts.

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I was on track to finish painting one of the two cars this past June before it got too hot.  The color is a metallic aqua so I tried to paint all of the panels on the same day because I was concerned that the panels would not match if I painted them on different days.  Also, as a precaution, I installed a second window air conditioner and used them between coats. Wow! What a mistake. The panels that were close to the air conditioner did not flow out, and dried really rough.  The exhaust fan in the rear window was also not able to vent properly since I cut off the intake air by having the AC units in both side windows.  I wear a complete hood fresh air respiration system when I paint but visibility was minimal due to the lack of ventilation.  Luckily, I was smart enough to stop after two coats of basecoat.  I now  missed my Fall window to repaint the car since I spent most of October and November raking leaves and getting cars ready for Winter.  This past week, I spent 20 hours sanding the entire car with 600 grit so that I can try again if we get a couple of mild days this winter.  Otherwise, it will be on hold until Spring!

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Now back to club business; Dale and Debbie Huefner are doing a great job organizing the 2025 NAOC Meet in Wadsworth, Ohio. The registration form and list of classes are included in this month’s issue. We hope that you will consider attending this year’s meet. We continue to keep our registration fees as low as possible. Please complete your registration form and book your room as soon as possible. It really helps the meet host plan the event if you register early.

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Happy New Year!

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Greg Minges

President

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ABOUT US >

We welcome all people interested in Oldsmobiles from 1897 to 1989.

 

Ownership of a car is not necessary for membership.​

National Antique Oldsmobile Club

121 North Railroad Street 
Myerstown, PA 17067

E: membership.naoc@yahoo.com

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