bgkast wrote: What tools/ techniques did you use to knock out Tuna's truck project? Very impressive!
Yes, tell us more!
OK OK, sorry. back to your normally scheduled 'actually-completing-a-project' type thread.
bgkast wrote: What tools/ techniques did you use to knock out Tuna's truck project? Very impressive!
Yes, tell us more!
OK OK, sorry. back to your normally scheduled 'actually-completing-a-project' type thread.
bgkast wrote: What tools/ techniques did you use to knock out that dent in the door? Very impressive!
A rubber mallet, a wooden hammer handle, and a block of wood with a rag. That's it! Takes a lot of finesse and patience. Use the rag covered wood on the outside of the door and whack at the dent from inside with the mallet, either direct or through the wood handle (sharp area).
In reply to tuna55:
I'll trade you! You finish the metal welding on the truck and ship it out here for me to get it painted, and I'll ship you the Javelin to have the rusty bits cut out and new steel welded in.
I changed the oil this morning before work.
Yes, I drove it in again, and yes, I'll be working on it even more today. I took the highway this time. The Saab does 80 smooth as silk. Quiet at speed, too, which was surprising.
Great purchase and great work thus far!
I finished polishing round 2 over lunch and started cleaning the interior.
No leaks on the engine. Runs nice and smooth, no CEL. Idle hunts a little.
Final segment:
Yesterday I brought the SAAB to a car wash to use their mondo vacuum (and found a dolla bill y'all under the seat). I also bought some floor mats and finished cleaning the interior:
I also put a coat of wax on the paint and used Back to Black on the rubber trim, thus completing the outside:
I had a potential buyer coming over but there was one more project. The driver's door card had a floppy insert, and it was bringing the interior down:
One star screw and it pops right out, where I was able to reattach it:
And reinstalled, much better!
Buyer #1 was a no-show, but Buyer #2 was super serious. (Insert Mike negotiations - Hold out yer hand, you bought yerslef a crakin motor!):
Recap:
We bought this tired motor off of a local classified ad for $350 squids. The owner thought the head gasket had gone again after a rebuild, but we had diagnosed it as something else.
After me mechanic, also me, drove the car home, we diagnosed the issue as having to do with timing, and found the distributor hold-down bolt to be loose. After mending that, we treated the old girl to a good tune up, a thorough scrubbing and mop, and some new cosmetics.
Wow, what a stunner! All told, we were in it for 10 hours of labour spread over 11 short days of ownership. Here's the breakdown:
Total Profit: + $628.56
(I also put a splash of gas in it, but then drove it to work and on errands for 3 days, so it left with the same amount it came in with. At 10 hours of labor, that's about $62 an hour for my time, which I enjoyed, to rehab this motor.)
Until next week, good night!
So the purpose of this thread was not to show off, it's to hopefully share tips, tricks, and advice. Just about anyone here on GRM has the skills and tools required to pull their own flip job like this. I'm more than happy to answer any questions about the process! I hope Wheeler Dealers USA - GRM Edition Episode 2 will be hosted by another one of you, so I can watch and learn as well.
Happy motoring! 
Good job man! Getting paid for something you like doing. Doesn't get better than that.
fanfoy wrote: Good job man! Getting paid for something you like doing. Doesn't get better than that.
^^^^^ What he said good job
Nice job. It would be fun to do that but I would get attached to the car.
Nice job! I doubted that you could pull it off before the 21st as originally planned but you sure showed me!
In reply to 2002maniac:
Never doubt Javelin's ability to flip a car! 
What about registration/tittle fees? Do you not need to worry about those in Oregon?
In Illinois on the flip I am embarking on (1990 Civic DX Sedan). I will be into it for the same purchase price but I have to pay ~200 in DMV fees to get it in my name. Holding an open tittle in Illinois is bad gamble.
Ugh...I forgot how easy it used to be to flip cars for cash. I could make a serious addition to our family income if I went back to curbstoning cars.
makes me not want to get rid of mine now... having not driven it in a year, I had forgotten how pretty they really are
In reply to nocones:
Good question! I am in Washington, not Oregon. You have 15 days to transfer the title in this state without penalty. That is why I have accelerated turn-around times. We have multiple transfer boxes on titles, so I can just re-sign the title back over to the new owner, who then has 15 days. By not transferring the title, I save myself all of the title transfer fees and taxes. Additionally, I am allowed to sell 4 vehicles per year without having a dealer license. (And SWMBO can do 4, etc, etc...) I haven't done 4 since back when it was 6. Laws will vary state to state.
Fantastic flip. Thanks for letting us tag along on this one.
Perfectly executed flip!
In reply to Javelin:
So are you essentially "jumping" the title? Meaning there is no record of you owning the vehicle? I used to do this occasionally here in NY but started transferring/registering the vehicles for fear of doing something illegal.
Also, you say you drove it to work a few times, did you register/insure it? Just curious how the title transfer works in your state. Here in NY in order to legally be driving the car it needs to be titled and registered/insured in my name.
In reply to Markde:
No, not quite. Jumping a title means you never sign it at all. That is very risky, and could be illegal in some states. I signed the title. I also took advantage of my state's title law, and used the 15-day period as my flip window, which is totally legal. The DOL will have a record of my ownership when the new owner brings in the title. Registration wasn't a worry as the car still had valid tabs (and you don't change registration until you change the title, the plates stay on the car in my state).
I did insure it for a week, but the cost was so low that I chalked it up to normal garage consumables like rags, electricity, etc. My agent loves me!
Indiana "requires" a transfer every time the car is sold. You have seven days to transfer without penalty. You can transfer a title without registering the car for 25 bucks. But you can sell 11 cars a year without a license.
Javelin wrote: So the purpose of this thread was not to show off, it's to hopefully share tips, tricks, and advice. Just about anyone here on GRM has the skills and tools required to pull their own flip job like this. I'm more than happy to answer any questions about the process! I hope Wheeler Dealers USA - GRM Edition Episode 2 will be hosted by another one of you, so I can watch and learn as well. Happy motoring!
There's no need to explain your motivations. This was a fantastic thread!!!
Top work that you managed to turn a CRACKING profit!!!
In reply to Javelin:
Thanks for the clarification. You guys out west have an awesome advantage in this sort of thing with the lack of rust and easy title transfers. The northeast sucks for car flippers. 
Oh and nice work, c900s are slowly disappearing, good to see this one saved.
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