Base to VR4 Swap + Complete Restoration

**green-lantern** · 04-14-2015, 10:44 AM

That goo that's in the holes? It's fine, we just did one. The oven was at 250F. I'd say under hood temps would be worse anyway.

**green-lantern** · 04-14-2015, 10:54 AM

Speaking of powder coating, yeah I'm set up now! I need to read your thread (or blog) about it.

Here is some pics from 3 weeks ago.

I hope you don't mind me posting pics here. It's good to see you back to work on it.

**99ishVR-4** · 04-18-2015, 03:41 AM

Originally Posted by green-lantern

That goo that's in the holes? It's fine, we just did one. The oven was at 250F. I'd say under hood temps would be worse anyway.

I've seen them coated before but just wanted to make sure. Thanks. The powder I am using cures at 400. Are you using some kind of low cure powder? 250 is the lowest I have seen.

My original plan was to polish it but I hate polishing so I've convinced myself that it will look better in matte black so it highlights the polished upper plenum and fuel rails.

Originally Posted by green-lantern

Speaking of powder coating, yeah I'm set up now! I need to read your thread (or blog) about it.

Here is some pics from 3 weeks ago.

I hope you don't mind me posting pics here. It's good to see you back to work on it.

I don't mind at all. Those parts are looking good. I'm curious to see how the 02 housings hold up to the exhaust heat. That spray booth is awesome, looks like you have a huge space to work with. Wish you were closer, I would have to talk you into letting me come over to use that big oven.

**green-lantern** · 04-18-2015, 07:04 PM

Yeah if you lived closer you could school me on this stuff.

About the temp I'm not sure. My buddy has done it a good bit but this was my first experience. The oven has a 350 max, it will alarm after that. He said he normally does 200 but with small parts and small oven. He bought this oven from a shop that upgraded their PC oven so he got it cheap. He didn't have room for it and yeah I got a big garage so he brought it here. I rewired it and it worked pretty well.

**99ishVR-4** · 01-23-2016, 05:40 AM

I have barely touched the car for awhile until last week. I am torn on whether or not I want to part it out. I have started going back to school full time so I really don 't have the finances to see this through currently. I have been considering it all year and can't make up my mind. I was bored last week and decided to work on it and really enjoyed it but it was all freebie stuff since I can't really afford any significant parts. I powder coated the front calipers, didn't bother with the rears because they are 1st gen vr4 and I would like a set of 2nd gens. Also a pic of the lower plenum finished but its nothing special.

These early pics are floating around somewhere in this thread because i planned on coating them a couple of years ago but I ran out of red powder halfway through so I blew them off and stuck them on the shelf until now. I'm glad I did because I feel red would have been a mistake now. I know black won't pop out as much but I like it.

Before with caliper paint:

Media blasted:

Wiping the uncured powder from the letters before sticking them in the oven:

After they finished baking, I decided the polished letters looked a little dull so I taped them up and covered the rest of the caliper with Glad press n'seal and repolished the letters with a dremel:

And then I re-assembled them with the re-plated hardware:

I pulled out the rotors to coat the hub but they could use replacing. Need new pads too.

**Beef6** · 01-23-2016, 12:34 PM

Amazing work as always. I'd hate to see it parted, any reason it can't just sit until you can fund the project again?

**99ishVR-4** · 01-24-2016, 05:40 PM

Originally Posted by Beef6

Amazing work as always. I'd hate to see it parted, any reason it can't just sit until you can fund the project again?

That's the thing, it has basically been sitting for 2 years waiting for me to fund the project already. The amount of work I have done in those 2 years is pathetic. If I keep up my current enjoyment though, I should make some good progress for the next couple months though. Another factor that has been a pain is that I rent. I have moved 5 times in the past 7 years and I have had to tow the car and pack up the garage and set it all back up again 4 of those times. My lease is up November 2016 and I will likely have to move to Gainesville to go to UF. My goal is to get the car painted entirely by November. If I can do that, it won't be parted out.