Editor's Note: This is the second in a series of restoration articles planned for the XKs Unlimited web site. We'll follow complete and partial restorations from start to finish and periodically update their progress.

XK-150 Roadster, Chassis Number S830287; 3.4 liter without overdrive.

Arrival Date: March 18, 2005

Installment Two: Disassembly and Body Repair
Our technicians have removed most of the interior and external trim to better assess the condition of the body.

The rear fenders have also been removed. The sills will definitely require replacement because of fairly extensive rust, but the shut pillar assemblies may be salvageable. A previously-damaged section of the right front fender has been cut out and will be replaced with a new panel from England. Because the sills must be replaced anyway, we will slice straight through them to cut the body in half.

Two halves, rather than a complete body shell, are far more manageable for our media blaster, who will remove every last trace of paint, factory applied lead, plastic body filler and rust with a process that won't work-harden the metal. At that point, the body will be completely sealed with an epoxy chromate primer and we can accurately assess the entire shell and either repair or replace damaged sections.

When the body comes back from the blaster, it will be mounted on another XK frame and repair work will continue. The chassis and mechanical components can then be rebuilt concurrently in another area of our shop, saving a great deal of time. A few notes on how we prepare an XK body. We drill out the spot welds on the headlamp pods and sidelamp housings on the tops of the fenders and remove these pieces.

This is the only way to ensure that all rust has been eliminated and that the hidden areas under the pods and housings can be properly sealed. If this isn't done, rust will eventually lift the seams of these panels away from the main fender sheet metal, not unlike a tree root lifting a sidewalk. This is especially common on the lower-most point of the headlamp pod, where water can easily collect and rust the two panels.

We also melt all factory applied lead from all seams prior to blasting the body. Again, this is the only way to ensure that all rust has been eradicated and won't bubble through a beautiful paint job a few years hence.

As we've said many times, there are multiple ways to do a given operation. Initially, the quick route may look just as good as the more laborious method. Time, however, will always tell.

Next Installment: Disassembly and Paint Stripping