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Got My Finnie

LWB250

LWB250

"He'll see everything. He'll see the big board!"
Member
Some of you asked that I post when I found a finnie, so I am...

Bought a 1965 220SEb out of Tucson, AZ. Car arrived yesterday and is in the garage awaiting the start of the long and laborious process of returning it to close to its original glory. As with my former 400E, I've set up a blog to document the work being done on the car, which you can get to here:

http://penoff.com/1965_220SEb.html

Today will commence the paint recovery, which I expect will go to the weekend depending on the available time. Along the way I'll be doing some maintenance and inspection to assess future needs. This will be an interesting journey I'm really looking forward to.

Dan

1965 220SEb 12172018 - 25.jpg
 
:wahoo:

:welcome3:

Congratulations, and welcome to the forum!

Perhaps we should start a "Finnie Restoration" sub-forum, no?
 
gsxr said:
Can you stuff an M119 into that?
Click to expand...

Grease it up good, maybe. I think the width would be OK, but the length would be an issue. Would probably have to beef up the front suspension, too....

Dan
 
LWB250 said:
Some of you asked that I post when I found a finnie, so I am...

Bought a 1965 220SEb out of Tucson, AZ. Car arrived yesterday and is in the garage awaiting the start of the long and laborious process of returning it to close to its original glory. As with my former 400E, I've set up a blog to document the work being done on the car, which you can get to here:

http://penoff.com/1965_220SEb.html

Today will commence the paint recovery, which I expect will go to the weekend depending on the available time. Along the way I'll be doing some maintenance and inspection to assess future needs. This will be an interesting journey I'm really looking forward to.

Dan
Click to expand...

Dan, your Detail work alone on that blog is tremendous. Looking forward to the Fintail Chronicles.

Cheers,

maw
 
maw1124 said:
Dan, your Detail work alone on that blog is tremendous. Looking forward to the Fintail Chronicles.

Cheers,

maw
Click to expand...

Thanks, maw.

I'll have updates probably on a daily basis for the next couple of weeks, then things will slow down a bit.

Today I've gotten the hood, roof and tops of the front fenders buffed out and waxed. Polished some chrome as well. Gotta go break some clays with my boss for a few hours, then I'll be back to it for a little bit.

Dan
 
Last edited:
Dan,

As a former “1967 230 Finnie Owner” Congrats on your purchase. I enjoyed my time with mine. I bought it from my wife’s girlfriend w/ a blown engine for $500.00. Piston thru the cylinder wall. It was in perfect cosmetic condition. I had the cylinder re-sleeved and re-built the engine in the garage. It was a Euro 230 Model with 4 speed trans and had a six cylinder gas engine w/duel solex carbs. This model was originally set up for a diesel. MB left the diesel trans which had a granny 1st gear. It was fun to drive. One memorable trip to San Diego a metal brake line broke (not fixable on the road).
I drove it 80+ frwy miles (in the slow lane) back to Orange County using 1st gear and the emergency brake to stop. It was a challenge that had my wife a little wound up. Another time I found out the had way that it had a tempered glass windshield. Unfortunately while my wife was driving it exploded into 1/4” pieces when a rock hit it. I’m still hearing about that to this day.

I also had a Euro 1964 220seb Coupe but that’s a story for another day.

Have fun

Take Care
 
Last edited:
LWB250 said:
Looks like the relative positioning on my blog page is messed up. I’ll put the fix to it when I get home today. Sorry about that...


-D
Click to expand...

Fixed. That's what happens when you use a classic HTML editor, too. Goes with the car....

-D
 
Duh_Vinci said:
Dan, just dove right on in, huh? Lots of work, but mostly, looks like a very manageable tasks!

Regards,
D
Click to expand...

Thanks!

Yes, just lots and lots of little stuff. Will definitely keep me occupied for some time, no doubt. At least that's the plan.

Dan
 
I'm really enjoying this. I've got a deep soft spot for nice finnies. Nice work, Dan! Nice blog, too. Some of my all time favorite MBs in there...
 
Dan,

I also am enjoying you blog. It brings back a lot of memories of my time with my two older MB adventures.

Is your wood a veneer? I also stripped the wood on my 64 220seb Coupe. If I remember correctly it was solid mahogany and was quite easy to sand out the stains. At one time in my life (about 25 years of it) I re-finished a hell of o lot of antique furniture. I quit about 15 years ago when the EPA got involved w/ the finishes. Anyway what I would do if I were you is re-glue all of the joints w/ a marine type of wood glue. There also may be wood bleach available and spray cans of wood toner that can be applied between coats of finish. One thing to note all of the finish material must be compatible.

If you don’t already know, I’m sure you will do your homework on the wood.

Anyway good luck with it.
 
Thanks to both of you for the kind words.

Ever since I had my 1962 300SE almost 20 years ago I’ve had an affinity for finnies. The body style is so distinctive and unique, as it always made me picture a staid German designer struggling with traditional designs and adapting them to a more modern world. As in, “there are all these raucous fins on cars today, how can we give a nod to modern styling and retain some dignity?”

In simpler terms, I think they nailed it.

This old gal really needs some TLC, and she’s getting it. I’m having loads of fun sorting all this stuff, much of which is pretty simple things for the most part. I’ve got some big jobs coming, such as front subframe mounts and springs, but once those are done I won’t have to get into those areas again.

As for the interior wood trim, I designed and built high end hardwood furniture as a hobby for many years, mainly for myself and my family members. Moving to Florida (twice!) forced me out of the hobby due to the loss of a basement. I’m using those skills in the refinishing of the interior wood trim, so I’m pretty comfortable with what I’m doing in that regard.

I haven’t decided how aggressive I’ll get with the refinishing. I may try and bleach out some of the stains. Amazingly, the wood along the dash cleaned up well and shouldn’t require any repair or treatments. The windshield surround has not fared as well, however, so I’m not sure what I’ll do there just yet. I’ll have to go back and check now that much of the finish is removed, but I think the window surrounds may be veneer. I hope not, but the stripping and rinsing with a ScotchBrite pad didn’t seem to affect the surface much, so they could very well be solid wood.

I’ll use a sanding sealer to minimize variations in the wood when staining. As for glue, I’m a purist and will probably stick with a hide glue for the splines in the windshield surround. I haven’t decided on an aniline or oil based stain, but I will topcoat everything with MinWax spray spar varnish, as it has UV inhibitors that will keep the sun from damaging the finish and it holds up well.

Dan
 
VERY inspirational stuff for my new year ! Thanx for sharing btw.

The keys to a similar white 'Annie' has yet to show up in my stocking even tho I have had a new grill assembly waiting for it..... 8-)
 
sheward said:
Saw this pop up today. https://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/wto/d/hoschton-mercedes-trim-pieceschassis/6786675102.html If there is anything you can use i'll be glad to help as a go-between.

drew
Click to expand...

Thanks a bunch for the offer, Drew, I really appreciate it!

He's got one piece I'm looking for, but unfortunately it's not in any better shape than the one I have. Lots of good stuff there, but I'm lucky in that the majority of my brightwork is in really good shape.

Let me know if you see any more - I'm specifically looking for the trim piece on the rear doors that is letter "R" in his ad.

Dan
 
Hi Dan -

I was reading through your blog - great stuff! Reminds me of a restauration (haha) I did on a Citroen CX ~ 20 years ago!
The matchbook in your ashtray mentioning the Fish Market in Palo Alto ---- that restaurant is still there!!!! Although, the street is technically called "El Camino Real," not "El Camino."


aa.jpg
 
Jlaa said:
Hi Dan -

I was reading through your blog - great stuff! Reminds me of a restauration (haha) I did on a Citroen CX ~ 20 years ago!
The matchbook in your ashtray mentioning the Fish Market in Palo Alto ---- that restaurant is still there!!!! Although, the street is technically called "El Camino Real," not "El Camino."
Click to expand...

Yeah, I noticed that as well. I lived in an apartment at the infamous El Rancho Inn on El Camino Real in San Bruno for a few months when I was working out that way.

Dan
 
Nice progress Dan! I wish I had the patience to "document" every step of the progress and make it into my blog for self references...

Regards,
D
 
Duh_Vinci said:
Nice progress Dan! I wish I had the patience to "document" every step of the progress and make it into my blog for self references...

Regards,
D
Click to expand...

Thanks!

I just keep a camera close by and ready all of the time and take pictures when I think it warrants it. Doing the blog is sort of an introspective thing for me, as it allows me to go over everything I did that day and document it. I keep very detailed records on this stuff, such as part numbers, prices, etc., so with the blog entries I can skip a couple of days of work and go back and do my accounting and have everything right. It also allows me to review what I did and plan future work as it relates to what I did on that day.

I use the Apple "Notes" application (and have for many years) to manage my parts lists, orders and work so it's synched across all of my devices. That way if I'm at work and something pops into my mind I can make an entry and have it on my phone, computer, tablet, etc. for future reference. It's especially convenient for keeping all the orders straight between me, my dealer and other vendors so I know what I got from whom and on what day. As I review my parts needs I add things to my notes so I can research them (like springs and spring pads, for example) and then move them to my "order" section so I know that I'm ready to order them with good part numbers.

Since it's on my iPhone I can easily copy and paste into my messaging app to message my order or parts list to the parts people at my dealership. That's also the way they let me know when things have arrived or to give me price and availability. Saves on a lot of phone tag/time, too, not to mention makes their job easier because I can text them a list of parts and they've got the numbers right there.

(standing up) "My name is Dan, and I have OCD."
 
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