.:Ninjapants Master Project Thread – The life of a GLI:.

[psudubber240]

Quote, originally posted by ninjapants »

exactly, pop out the little coin cup in front of the rear cup holder, remove rear cupholder and it's base (2 parts) and there is a torx screw right there you need to remove. Then you can lift the console up a bit but be careful as it's still attached in the front. Slide in the mounting bracket from the under the console and then bolt it down to the 2 open holes to the right of the e-brake and then the one spot next to the e-brake. Then lower the console back down and bolt the armrest to the bracket and reinstall the 2 trim pieces that go around the armrest base. Screw the console back down and reinstall the rear cupholder and you're good to go. Took me like 5 mins.

cool man

I thought there was a wicked easy way to get an arm rest to work with our interiors wit out having to loose the center console and all the glorious cup holders we have with our centers, that rear extendable piece is perfect for fitting a half gallon of tea for long hauls

[ninjapants]

Ohhh yea I didn't want much to change, that's why I was happy it's a simple swap

[psudubber240]

yeah the front cup holder is perfect for the ipod but seriously thanks for the the info I appreciate it

[JettaGetUpandGo]

How do you like the armrest? I put one in briefly, but felt that it got in the way of shifting so I took it out right away. I had a leather one too which didn't match the interior at the time.

[ninjapants]

i like it but I'm tall and a gangly mutha so i sit with the seat all the way back and leaning a bit. That puts my elbow and part of my forearm on the armrest when shifting. Granted it's a little to get used to but as long as it's at the correct angle i don't mind it. If I were doing enthusiastic driving however I'd lift it all the way up straight just to get it out of the way. I can only imagine though the comfort on a long drive, that was my main reasoning. It can always be flipped up if I don't want it.

[ninjapants]

So this is some of the stuff I've been working on randomly, obviously the valve cover still needs some more polishing. Nothing has been hit with rouge yet either as the button on my dremel wore down and now i can't get the bit out so I have to borrow one so I'll rouge everything at once.

I also finished stripping the first wheel today. I used steel wool after the stripper had time to work and it made a world of difference. Mind you it was a PITA to get in all the spots and scrub the paint and primer off but the progress for a single application of stripper is greater. I only needed 2 more coats before I decided I was done with the stripper for this wheel. We'll see how many it takes using the steel wool on the next wheel. I'm guessing 3 to 4. Ohh and getting closer for longer made the fumes even worse so again children.... always use protection.

After scrubbing off the 4th coat. You can finally start to see the metal shining through.

After the 5th coat.

You can still see some primer there but I got sick of the stripper and it'll be easier to just clean of the last little bits of primer in the first sanding stage. Still got lots of work to do but now I can get down to the polishing.

[BIG DUB]

looks good mate

[ninjapants]

thank you

another ****ty day in the middle of the woods. I won't be stripping the other wheels today but I'll do some random stuff. I'll continue polishing and I have a center cap that refuses to come out so i have t remove it before I can strip that wheel. Don't expect too much to get done today. We'll see how much I get done after I finish watching Taxi, the originial french one with sick driving, not that stupid jimmy fallon movie.

[Bnana]

looking good bud
i guess we won't be expecting as many updates because your fingers probably hurt like a bitch right now

[ninjapants]

ohh they will be later. Sanding is the only thing i'll be doing today for the most part.

[JettaGetUpandGo]

I can't even imagine the pain that will follow. Take pictures.

[ninjapants]

hahah yea thanks, i'm looking forward to it, even with gloves your hands just shred after a while. Ohh and I'll have pictures, I'm a photographer born and bred and though I can't afford a real camera right now this little point and shoot I have does a decent job and is always by my side I'll have some pics up tonight of what I can accomplish. I've been avoiding the valve cover because all the corners where the bolts are and **** just piss me off to no end. Polishign sucks when you're an extremely anal perfectionist.

[ninjapants]

so i'm not sure if I'm going to get very far today. This surface is so damn pitted, with all these spokes..... ugh.

[Dutchmastr9]

lower it

[ninjapants]

yea thanks Evan.... like I don't know it. Ok so in case anyone wants to donate to the build, specifically lowering the ****er, my paypal is:

bradley@bradleycurtis.com

If everyone donates a dollar I might be able to get a set of vmaxx lol.

Ohh and I got some e-mails today. Some parts for both cars should arrive tomorrow

[Dutchmastr9]

dont get vmaxx

[ninjapants]

what should I get Konis?

[am1899]

Ground controls

[ninjapants]

I need something cheap or it won't happen this year I'm getting desperate.

The ground controls don't come with shocks? Shoot me more info.

[am1899]

I was being sarcastic about the ground controls. I would strongly advise against them...but here ya go:

http://www.ground-control-store.com/products/description.php/II=115/CA=65

[ninjapants]

hahah yea i looked at them and was like wtf. Evan, I know you say no vmaxx but for a budget and with the proper modifications I think they can suit me for now. I'm not looking for the most amazing ride or the lowest, I just need to get rid of this wheel gap, with an ok coil that won't explode after 100 miles, and for cheap.

[Dutchmastr9]

Quote, originally posted by ninjapants »

what should I get Konis?

dont go low unless u modify them, get fks. **** vmaxx

[ninjapants]

yea I looked at fks but they are a little more expensive. Brian swears by his vmaxx and the price is tempting.

[Dutchmastr9]

Quote, originally posted by ninjapants »

yea I looked at fks but they are a little more expensive. Brian swears by his vmaxx and the price is tempting.

i beat he swears, swears everytime he went for a ride because of the crap ride. but hey if u like bouncy then go for it

[ninjapants]

hahaha hey i'm just relaying info, i'm just trying to find something decent and cheap which yea i know isn't always possible but there's a line you have to walk.

[woteg]

should hit up a middle/high school, most have sand blasters in them, my buddy went to one and got the teacher to let him use it on his wheels

[ninjapants]

I'm in the middle of the ****ing woods lol. The local high school is so small I doubt they'd have anything like that. I'd have to go 60+ miles to find anything like that. Thanks for the heads up though.

Thank god for my DA sander. Even with this thing it's still a process though to get the last of the primer and the pits int he metal out. I won't have the first stage done until late tonight or tomorrow

[Dutchmastr9]

hurry up already, its been like 2 days since u made this thread, u done yet??

[ninjapants]

sorry i took a break from polish to let feeling work back in to my hands and to watch Lost. I got the face done and am working on the lip now. Then comes the hard part and i have to get inside the spokes and where they meet the barrel, and the lug area. Ugh this first stage is always the worst. Luckily since there's no real tight corners the rest of the stages won't be as bad.

[ninjapants]

So my progress for today. This first stage of sanding it a pain, even with a DA sander. Here you can see how pitted the surface is.

I started with the with larger section of the faces

Then I went to work on the face of the spokes

Then came the lips

Since I run these I need to to get rid of all the text in the area to make it look nice and smooth. Such a pain. That will come tomorrow.

Minor battle wounds... it'll only get worse from here (this is with gloves)

Ohh and this is where I need opinions. I'm stuck as to where to stop the polishing. I was planning on painting he barrels black but I'm not sure now. It's a matter of where to stop. Do I paint the back of the faces? Do I polish them? My reasoning is that you can see the back of the spokes where they meet the barrel from certain angles. I obviously don't want to polish more than I really have to to get them looking good as this **** isn't easy. Well... it's easy but painful and time consuming and a wicked pain in my arse. So help me out. What to do? You can see what I mean in these photos.

Modified by ninjapants at 9:28 PM 3-23-2010

[JettaGetUpandGo]

I would paint the back of the faces and the barrels black. Because you can see so little of the back of the spoke the black will make the back blend with the barrel and not be noticeable. It will also provide a sharp cutoff line of polish to make the faces pop a little more.

[ninjapants]

that's what I was thinking. The only thing about that is that it will be one hell of a job taping off the spokes and such with how they curve as they meet the barrel.

[Uzi does it!]

fully polished, barrels and all

[ninjapants]

Are you trying to kill me B? I know it'd be sick but damn son...

[Shinex1]

If you're looking to win shows, polish the whole thing, otherwise that ridge is a natural delineation. And maybe versus painting black, just paint sliver/gray?


Modified by Shinex1 at 2:25 PM 3-24-2010