1967 Ford Cobra 427 - First Time 'Round

As anyone who has built a car can tell you, color choice is right up there at the top of the list of things that take the most time. Richard had ordered over a hundred dollars worth of color chips to help with the pick, but it turned out only to confuse him. In the end, he threw up his hands in frustration and turned the color selection over to his wife, Tina. She didn't seem to have such a problem with the task and had soon settled on a DuPont basecoat clearcoat Hot Raspberry Metallic as the basic color. Richard came back into the picture and selected a Gray Metallic to complement the base.

With all the major decisions out of the way, John's Auto Body went to work on the final preparation stages. The body was blocked, blocked, and blocked again before the paint was applied. When everything was as straight as humanly possible, John's Auto Body's painter, Alan Normann, laid down the color-a paint job that was a true compliment to all the hard work that had gone into the body prep. Richard and Tina couldn't believe how slick it was after it was sprayed, and it was only going to get better after the clear was buffed.

While the car was away at the body shop, Richard kept himself busy taking care of a bit of upholstery installation and preparation so that everything would be ready when the body returned. The seats were covered in black vinyl, the door panels prepared, and the black wool carpet was made ready for the car. When it returned all buffed, polished, and prepared to settle in on the chassis, Richard spent every spare moment finishing the car. Every nut, bolt, piece of plumbing, strip of wire, and accessory item had to be bolted in place for one last time.

By late December 2003, the car was complete and as you can see, a real thing of beauty. The color, the abundance of chrome, and the flawlessly detailed interior make this car appear to be more of a show car than a driver. But when this winter's indoor show season is over, Richard and Tina plan to spend a lot of time running this beauty up and down the highways. They'll be easy to spot-they'll be the ones with the ear-to-ear smiles plastered across their faces!