Paint and Assembly: 1953 Porsche 356 Pre-A Cabriolet Part Six

This post takes us to the end of the journey for this project where we are in the final assembly mode of Porsche restoration to get the 356 Pre-A Porsche Cabriolet back on rolling wheels, as it came to us.

This is part six of a series of posts covering the Porsche restoration of this 1953 Porsche 356 Cabriolet, taking us through the final paint and mechanical assembly of the body.  The introduction post on this Porsche restoration 356 Pre-A shows pictures of how the Porsche came to us, then after dismantle was complete, and then after the body was media blasted.  Post two covered the beginning of the nose rebuild, leaving the new section TIG welded into position.  Part three looked at how the rest of the front end of the Porsche was repaired.  Part four described how the restoration of the floors and inside cab was accomplished.  Part five showed the results of metal finishing all over, where the 356 Pre-A was ready for paint!

Each mechanical component was methodically cleaned and restored back to its original factory specs with the aid of literature.

The owner will now assemble the remaining components with support from The Metal Surgeon if needed. We will update the build photos as the owner reaches certain stages.

We were given generous permission by the owner to take the car in the current state of finish to the Creme de la Chrome show in Denver. We have a booth at the show every year and always take a couple of cars, typically one in paint and the other in bare metal to show our services and capabilities.

As ever, thank you for following along this build!

Porsche Restoration: Pre-A 356 Porsche Cabriolet in Paint

Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Front end details, with trim re-chromed.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
The wood tack strip courtesy of Ted Capps woodworking skills.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Overhead shot on the show floor.

Porsche Restoration: Porsche 356 Pre-A Cab Interior Colour and Detail

Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Interior shot of the ‘Azure Blue’.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Rear end view at the Creme de la Chrome 2015 show over Thanksgiving weekend.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Transmission clean up and detail underway.

Porsche Restoration: Porsche 356 Pre-A Mechanical Details

Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Mechanical components painted in the correct finish.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Time to assemble all these parts!
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Front hub assembly in progress.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
View of the hand made battery tray and front set up.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Transmission assembly and detail to original factory specification.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Steering detail.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Under dash assembly detail with a mixture of painted and raw state finished parts to 1953 factory specs. Dash and windshield colour finish in the original Porsche colour ‘Azure Blue’.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Interior body rebuild and finish coat.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
New wood tack strip installed with the help of Ted Capps.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Exterior finish in the original Porsche colour ‘Fashion Grey’.
Porsche Restoration-Paint & Assembly 1953 Porsche | The Metal Surgeon
Wheel detail with natural finish hubs.

 

This is part six of a series of posts covering the Porsche restoration of this 1953 Porsche 356 Cabriolet, taking us through the final paint and mechanical assembly of the body.  The introduction post on this Porsche restoration shows pictures of how the Porsche came to us, then after dismantle was complete, and then after the body was media blasted.  Post two covered the beginning of the nose rebuild, leaving the new section TIG welded into position.  Part three looked at how the rest of the front end of the Porsche was repaired.  Part four described how the restoration of the floors and inside cab was accomplished.  Part five showed the results of metal finishing all over, where the 356 Pre-A was ready for paint!