I'm in the process of tearing down my 69. It's in fairly good shape but need some minor body work.

When it comes time to repaint, should I have it done before I put the engine /tranny & interior in or after the cars is assembled?

I've never done this detailed a job before so, I don't know what is best.

Thanks!

First off, are you building a driver or show car? We painted the engine bay and undercarriage b4 the outside. We installed the engine and drivetrain next. The biggest concern is overspray, so be ready to mask everything you don't want the same color as the topcoat. It is very time consuming but well worth the effort when it is all done. Bill

It's going to be a driver and I'm going to have the painting done. (I'm not even going to try and do it myself!)

I just want to know when to take it to get it done. Before I reinstall the interior, ...

Thanks!

I strongly recommend putting the drivetrain in before painting. Especially if you have the front fenders, hood etc off the car. It is much easier to cover the drivetrain during painting than to go back and have the front fender repainted because it got scraped while putting the motor in or the air cleaner dropped on it or whatever. And if the fenders and radiator support are off the car, it is REALLY easy to slide the motor in and hook up the exhaust manifolds and all.
Oh yes, do the interior last of all. Life in the paint shop is very dusty and the primer and paint and thinner leave an odor. Best to do the interior after all this is finished.

[This message has been edited by denverRS/SS (edited 05-03-2001).]

Definitely easier to install the drivetrain first. We installed the motor and transmission on Tuesday. Finished the trans support today (changed to a 700R4 from a TH350), installed the headers in 10 minutes, the starter in 5 minutes, and the fuel pump in 5 minutes. Next is installing the A/C bulkhead (smoothed the firewall so the Vintage Air block off panel doesn't work). The brackets are being powder coated then we hang the A/C compressor, the alternator, and the power steering pump.