Stripping Firewall Paint

I spent a some time this weekend stripping the paint from the firewall and back fender aprons. The work is slow and difficult but the end result is going to be nice.

The variation in metal color in the pictures below is due to an etching solution on the metal. I treated it with etching solution after stripping the paint with a chemical stripper to avoid flash rust. I then used a wire wheel to spot clean areas and used the etching solution again. The newly sanded areas look a bright white compared to the rest of the firewall.

There is a considerable amount of surface rust around the master cylinder (visable below). The wire wheel takes the rust off but the metal beneath is pitted. I'm thinking of getting some metal filler to smooth this area before painting.

There are also four small screw holes in the firewall which I need to have repaired.