After the car was completely stripped back, from the engine, underside and interior to every last nut and bolt, it was time for her acid dip. We did Lucy the old fashioned way (hours and hours of sanding). It was a long and expensive process. We all agreed, from the results of other cars in the shop which had been through the acid dip process, that acid dipping was by far the best way to go. Less time and money plus better results. Every single piece of rust on the car is "flushed" out by the acid bath. Some don't like to acid dip, others swear by it. As long as it's done properly and sealed correctly, the end results of the body shell are far superior to that of a wire sander and many months of elbow grease. The acid dip took 1 week from shop to dippers then back again. Would I do it again? You bet! The restoration shop won't do anything but acid dip!

Acid dipping is fine if done correctly and sealed properly. If not, you're asking for trouble. Having seen the excellent results first hand on Dad's car, the restoration shop, myself and other restorers who pop in were very impressed; so impressed it'll be the system for future customer builds at said places. In restorations there will always be "that system vs that system", it's nothing new. Do what you feel comfortable with, don't short cut procedures and do your homework and research prior, as you should with anything. Having the car dipped removes all rust, nothing remains. As long as the shop uses the appropriate rinses to ensure that all the solution is neutralized, everything is fine. If it isn't done correctly and cleaned properly, it causes a caustic "weep" back through the finished paint job. The shop should also apply a rinse coat of an anti oxidizer before transporting it home, otherwise you have nothing but bare steel. You need some interim protection from the elements until such time as an epoxy primer etc, is applied.

The 'Cuda was delivered to my house on the Dolly (same dolly as Lucy used) and tucked away in the garage until the metal work stage commenced. The problem areas were the front valance and both quarter panels, for which I have new replacements. The floor pans were "repaired" by one of the previous owners and the job was that of someone on the booze, so this had to be fixed. One of the worst spots on the car was the hood hinge area. Apart from that, for a car of it's age, it was very solid. The rear window area that was rusted out on Lucy was like new. The trunk pan, hood, doors and trunk lid were all okay. There were the usual small rust spots/bubbles on the lower panels but nothing major to fix these.