[RHClarke]

The temperature this morning was absolutely wonderful. Warm and dry enough to sandblast away years of paint and road dirt from the Pilot Model axles. It took two pots (four bags of grit) to do both axles. It helped that they were given a good going over with the wire brush and then washed with gasoline before sandblasting.

We noted with some amusement that the CMP metal seems to turn a shade of Airforce blue when sandblasted. I noted that the colour (rust red) the metal turns later must be from embarrassment...

After the initial blasting, care was taken to search out grease deposits that only seem to get revealed after blasting. Once scrubbed and washed, the whole axle gets a phosphorus treatment. Then comes the paint - or bug attractant, as we at the barn call it.

I have had great success with Tremclad rust paint over the years, and despite the ever increasing price of the stuff, I will continue to use it. My choice of finish for the first coat is gloss black. Given time and temperature, it binds with the exposed metal nicely, and if left outside to cure overnight, it will repel raindrops without running. It is also easy to clean before adding the green paint.

This ends the frame and drivetrain portion of this project - next step is reassembly, followed by a lot of welding on the body and roof. The engine can wait until later on.