With Finn’s help, I was able to pull the new bumper off and replace it with the original on Saturday. I also mixed up a little bondo and filled some of the larger holes and valleys on the swingarm, as well as the exploratory divot I made in the bondo skim on the driver’s door.
The mirror came in on Friday, and it looks great; I shot the mounting bracket with primer and let it sit to dry. I need a #107/5mm steel bit to drill mounting holes, and then I can tap them for the included screws.
While I was out there I also took the soft top bows apart; they’re looking rusty and beat up. The lever bracket is the worst, so I hit it with the flap sander. All of the mounting bolts are stripped, rusty, and worn, so I picked up stainless steel replacements at the store. When I wire wheel the bumper I’ll hit the ends of the bows themselves and then POR-15 everything that’s bare metal; then I’ll shoot it all with the same semi-gloss black I’m using for the bumper.
Thinking about Jen driving the Scout got me to thinking; the RPM band is a lot lower in Peer Pressure than it is in our Honda, and it would be great to have some indication for shifting (instead of by feel). Tiny-Tach makes a tachometer that installs simply by wrapping a wire lead around one of the spark plugs and grounding the other; it’s a little ugly but the price is good. Plus, there isn’t as much guesswork with installation as with a mechanical tach.