1955 Chevy Cameo Auto Body Repair - Bodywork Basics, Part 3

he bedside's spine is very eye-catching-and so too is its unevenness, a flaw straight from the GM factory some 50-plus years ago. No reason it needs to stay that way, nor...

...the side reveals on the bed, which are just as wavy and uneven, if not worse...

...Legend has it that the Cameo project didn't quite get the factory attention the Corvettes did, and after seeing this one's bed, we believe it!

The taillight, which is an original item, as there are no repops that we're aware of, serves as a body line vantage point reference-despite the fact that it's about as straight as the bedsides. Unfortunately, it can't be altered, so the adjustments will have to be made around it.

Just to give you a quick idea of how the scribe lines are used,...

...Butch takes a short block and begins sanding the surface in question down until it gets closer and more uniform with the line.

In essence, to avoid making waves (or more of them, in this case), use longer sanding blocks on larger panels or areas, as Kelsey is shown doing here. But, because of the multicontoured shape of the area she's working on, she's careful not to get carried away and gouge the recess below the block. Masking tape can help prevent this, too.

The easiest thing for a beginner to do when block-sanding is too much-too much sanding, that is. Along with getting the "feel" of the block, it's important to maintain the feel of the surface being worked on. Constantly pass your hand along the surface to gauge progress.

Without exaggeration, the taillight was put on and taken off more times in one day than it had been in its entire life. Why? To avoid sanding too much material off,...

...that's why. As you can see, the spine is starting to take shape, literally.

Along with physical reference points, another good way to gauge shape progress is with a method called "guidecoating," which is simply sandable black spray paint fogged over the surface. Lightly sanding will quickly reveal high and low spots.

Butch also rescribes vital areas over a fresh guidecoat just to keep everything in line, so to speak.