Second Start

Well it has been a month and some, it is probably time to write.  It has been a slow start with delays on the completion of the new shop that I am to work in.  I have taken all the seats out, as well as all the trim wood that I feel I can safely remove without compromising the car.  Much of the finish trim is integral to the structure.  I have been researching materials and methods used on the original car.  I have learned that some things are available at a price others are not.  A lot of parts will have to be fabricated.  Most of the processes are still done, at a price, but others will have to be done with more modern techniques.

One of the more interesting finds is the clerestory windows.  All the windows were broken out by vandals, with many of the shards falling between the screen and sash.  The original glass was an etched ruby flash glass.  Flash glass is a thin layer of colored glass melted onto clear glass.   The flash glass is first coated with an acid resist then a pattern cut into the resist is peeled away leaving the design.  Next, this is the tricky bit, you put it in a bath of hydrofluoric acid till the thin layer of colored glass is dissolved.  I don't think I will be trying that.

I hope to be more diligent in recording progress in the future. Please feel free to respond.