Holes? In My Z06?

[Patrick]

Okay, everyone, a little tale to tell. Some time ago, a member of my local Corvette Club showed me pictures of his "reserve" Z06. It was blue, and he'd had the various mesh screen on it painted gold (Michigan colors. Go figure.) Not being a Michigan alum, I didn't think much about it at the time.

But over this past winter, I did think about it. Adding some accents to my Z06 the way he did to his.

This got me thinking.... What color would work well with black? Red! Of course! And I have lots of areas where I could introduce some red accents to give a very mean looking appearance.

The result is as I present it here. What do you all think? Personally, I think my Z06 has now taken on a very wicked personality...

 

[Eric]

WOW! That's pretty coolio Patrick! I don't think it would work with any color other than black. I bet it looks cool coming up in the rear view.....passing by.....as the taillights turn to specs in the distance.

Nice work!

- Eric

 

[vette-dude]

Jeeesh, you send a guy to Chicago and he comes back with Evil thoughts!! Next thing you know you'll be cruising the main drag in Aurora looking for some low cost providers of certain bedroom activities!!!

I like the look so what does that say about me??

Randy

 

[MsSchroder]

Patrick, you have now crossed the line from "stealthy" to "diabolical".
I like that

Tammy

 

[6 Shooter]

Not bad . . .

. . . now ya need to replace those nasty red letters with these!

C5 Brakelight Red Lettering Kit

Later . . . . . .
6 Shooter

 

[Patrick]

Patrick, you have now crossed the line from "stealthy" to "diabolical".
I like that

Thanks Tammy and Eric! I'll take that as modified version of a "Hell Yeah!" :L

Diabolical... I like that. My goal was two-fold: obviously add a little color to make the stealth black even more dramatic, but also plug those holes with mesh that came, strangely, wide open. I think they look more complete with the wire mesh in them know.

Randy, trust me, cruising around Aurora is a sure way of catching something you'll need loads of anti-biotics to cure. I'll stick to cruisin' around places like Silverthorne and Breckenridge, nice, cool mountain vistas. :cool Oh, and to answer your question:

I like the look so what does that say about me??

...it says you're easily tempted to "The Dark Side." Find your nearest Jedi Knight and seek assistance immediately. I'm afraid it may be too late for me.

Dwayne, you know, I do like those lettering kits. I may just have to explore that a bit.

-Patrick

 

[Billybeau1]

Looks mean Patrick. I think orange would work as well

 

[Hitman1]

You non-red corvette owners just try to put as much red on your vettes as possible, dont you?

"All corvettes are red"

 

[Patrick]

You non-red corvette owners just try to put as much red on your vettes as possible, dont you?

"All corvettes are red"

Yes, we're just jealous Hitman: We really want all those speeding tickets God intended us to get with the color God intended the Corvette to be. :L (See, I haven't forgotten out little debate about color at the Assembly Plant back in June.)

Yes, I added some red. But the red is really accentuating the depth of the black. As Tammy said, "Diabolical."
:cool

-Patrick

 

[mqqn]

Hi Patrick -

I like it - very unique - it would (as said) only work on a black car IMO....

I would explore the upgrade to the rear letters - the "orangey" vinyl stickers aren't befitting a corvette IMO - but the poly letters are a real nice touch.

Just make sure you use some better adhesive than what comes with them to apply them to your car (ask me how I know this...) I used clear silicone sealant (the good stuff - not cheap stuff...)

best regards -

mqqn

 

[Patrick]

I like it - very unique - it would (as said) only work on a black car IMO....

Thanks, Andy. And I think you're right- the only color to work with Black would be Red. Everyone has commented on this, but has not gone beyond it to wonder why.

Now here's the thing everyone has been dancing around but not quite recognizing. Red and Black... where do they occur together in nature? Answer: the Black Widow Spider. That's the inspiration for this accent color- presenting something both curious and terrifying, as it occurs in nature. A predator, stealthy, fast, lethal, only noticed when it's too late, and by then, a kill has been registered.

I'll tell you a little story. About a year ago, in September of '04, a co-worker of mine was over at his in-law's place, clearing away some bushes they wanted removed. During his excavations, he apparently ripped up a Black Widow nest. A spider the size of a half dollar ran out onto his leg, and moved with lightning speed. Before he could even respond to do anything about it, it bit him three times. He spent weeks recovering, although he was only in the hospital for two days. The venom was quite powerful.

I found his story intriguing. Two months later, he actually captured a Black Widow, walking across his driveway when he opened his garage door one morning. With all the interest in Black Widows he seemed to have developed, we, his co-workers decided to start calling him "Captain Arachnid." He was highly amused, and even brought the captured Black Widow into work and put it in a jar on his desk for a while. The stark color of that thing was what confirmed in my mind that black and red would work well on my Z06, if I didn't overdo the red.


As for the natural connection, I'm shocked no one else saw it. Although, I certainly enjoy the "diabolical" label Tammy applied. :L

I would explore the upgrade to the rear letters - the "orangey" vinyl stickers aren't befitting a corvette IMO - but the poly letters are a real nice touch.

First of all, the lettering I have is torch red, not "orangey" red. :L It actually matches the color of the paint on the screens to a tee.

Second, I have to admit, Dwayne's suggested lettering, as both Black and Red, and raised, has a certain appeal to the Black Widow theme I'm developing. I'll have to think about the other items I'm considering, and decide if it works in the grand scheme. On the whole, those, Dwayne's suggestion does really seem to work.

I just need to give it some thought, given the other things I'm thinking about doing...

What are those other things? Diabolical masterminds keeps their secrets, thank you very much.

Just make sure you use some better adhesive than what comes with them to apply them to your car (ask me how I know this...) I used clear silicone sealant (the good stuff - not cheap stuff...)

Okay... I'll ask: how do you know this? (You had to know I would.)

-Patrick

 

[LT4man]

Nice job, Patrick!

Your Vette looks incredible!

I need to ask: did you paint the mesh yourself? If so, how did you prepare the screens and what type of paint did you use?

Save The Wave!

Gregory

 

[mqqn]

Okay... I'll ask: how do you know this? (You had to know I would.)

-Patrick

Hi Spidey (I mean Patrick...) -

Because the ones I put on the back of Maggies coupe started to fall off - I called Mid-America and they knew there was a problem with the adhesive -

They sent me a replacement set with no questions asked. I used silicone to stick them on and they have been on for several months - I can even spray them at the pressure wash with no problems.

Didn't mean to cause a fuss over the stickers - the ones on my buddies coupe were more orange than TR - although they were advertised at TR....I bought him the poly lettering for his b'day and he was much more pleased with the look.

best regards -

mqqn

 

[Patrick]

Nice job, Patrick!

Your Vette looks incredible!

I need to ask: did you paint the mesh yourself? If so, how did you prepare the screens and what type of paint did you use?

Hi Greg,
Thank you very much for the compliments!


To answer your questions, the first thing you have to do is take all of the screens off of the car (I didn't want to have to try dealing with using painter's tape around, for instance, the break ducts.)

The formula from there I got from the owner of a Corvette repair/aftermarket upgrade shop located not far from me:
- Clean the screens with high quality lacquer thinner and let dry
- Prime the screens with self etching primer. (This is important as any other primer will not adhere to the screen. Self etching primer can be found at the local automotive paint store in aerosol cans.)
- Paint the screens with a high quality enamel paint found at the local hardware or parts store. I just had to look for something that was as close to torch red as I could find.

Greg, are you thinking of doing something like this yourself?


-Patrick

 

[Patrick]

Hi Spidey (I mean Patrick...) -

...I can even spray them at the pressure wash with no problems.

Hmmm... I'll have to let you know how much of an issue this is when I go to wash my Z. I mean, the kit I bought seemed to use a pretty good adhesive.

And there was no fuss over the stickers. The only fuss is likely to be about being called "Spidey." :L

-Patrick

 

[LT4man]

Patrick,

You certainly took your time to do the mod. The screens painted like that look factory.

I asked because if I decide down the road to do a mod and I do not ask, then I will never remember who did something I was interested in. Did you understand that? I hope you did. I had trouble typing all of that. :confused

The etching primer reminded me of my contractors who would have to paint some sort of metal on the exterior of a building. Say gutters for example. They would always tell me they had to use an etching primer. That one step is the difference between your Vette looking really rad and the darn paint falling off. You did well to research what you wanted to do. Kudos to you again!

Save The Wave!

Gregory

 

[Patrick]

I asked because if I decide down the road to do a mod and I do not ask, then I will never remember who did something I was interested in. Did you understand that? I hope you did. I had trouble typing all of that. :confused

I think I got all that. We'll call it good, anyway.

The etching primer reminded me of my contractors who would have to paint some sort of metal on the exterior of a building. Say gutters for example. They would always tell me they had to use an etching primer. That one step is the difference between your Vette looking really rad and the darn paint falling off. You did well to research what you wanted to do. Kudos to you again!

Again, thanks!
You know, that etching primer is something I would never have known about, had it not been for my friend Alex at Rocky Mountain Corvette. He's done this before, and has gone through the whole trial and error thing already. Alex was the whole reason I was able to get this mod that I'd been thinking of doing for so long done at all.


-Patrick

 

[MsSchroder]

And so the metamorphosis is complete:

Nice avatar. Well, not nice, but very apropos :L

 

[Patrick]

It certainly seems to have caught 6-Shooter's attention.

Hey, Dwayne, care to step into my asphalt parlor?

-Patrick

 

[geekinavette]

I believe the "spidey suit" is supposed to have some blue in it as well?

Next thing you know he'll be trying to climb walls! :L

Bill