742 replies to this topic

[MrBounce]

Have not had a lot of time this week so this is once again a short update. More sanding, more filling and I was able to get the captive nuts on my brackets welded up round at Tink's. I gave them a coat of paint and have started to make the brackets for the rear. I have made sure that the new brackets will not coincide where the old rusty wood screws once were. More soon.

 

Brackets looking all shiny and nice.

 

 

Cunning use of Sharpie pen to show where to site the brackets at the rear.

 

[MrBounce]

More bracket work has been going on. Andy mended my welder so I made more card templates then used the majority of the steel I had left to make up the brackets for the rear bumper. I drilled them and welded on some nuts before spraying them up - the first one looked a little bit splattery but I soon sorted that out. Whilst these were drying I mixed some epoxy resin and stuck in the brackets for the front bumper. I shall fibreglass over the edges as a "belt and braces" approach. It should be dry tomorrow so I will mix some up in the morning.

 

Brackets made up (before drilling).

 

 

New brackets in primer.

 

 

Front bumper brackets stuck in with epoxy resin.

 

[MrBounce]

Another quick update - I have glassed in the first set of brackets (one side only) which all went ahead with no issues. Would have done more but need more paintbrushes... I also made a captive bolt bracket for the pedal box to replace the really thin and badly-made brazed one which came with the car.  More next week!

 

Brackets fibreglassed in.

 

 

Pedal box captive bolt bracket. Not perfect, but FAR better than what was on there!!

 

[MrBounce]

It's been a little while so it's time for a quick update. There has been much prepping which is incredibly dull and boring so it really isn't worth writing about or providing photos. Then Shaun came over, brought a couple of things with him and this happened...

 

 

 

First 2 coats are on; time for a flat back before adding more. Starting to look more like a car again...

[Udo]

With all the prep on the other parts it should go together quickly. Although time spent now getting the body right will be well spent, you'll never be happy with it else

[Rocket.]

Looking good !

[Ben_O]

Is it sprayed on this time?

[MrBounce]

Yes Ben it is.

[MrBounce]

I am a VERY frustrated man. Couldn't spray before I went on holiday due to the wet weather. Then after getting another coat done on Thursday, I go away for a couple of days and return to more rain. There will be more updates I promise, but they will be weather permitting. I can't really do anything in between as everything else is behind large amounts of plastic sheeting. There is supposed to be better weather next weekend so watch this space...

[MrBounce]

Well, I have given up on the spray job until next spring. My main problem was operator error - I was over-excited and tried to rush it which was a bad plan. I mixed the paint badly (too runny) and got drips & runs everywhere so it'll have to be taken back and done again.

 

So over the winter I shall put the thing onto its wheels by chucking on the subframe and beam, install brake & fuel lines and start sorting an interior. I'll then spray the body once the weather improves again.

[timmy850]

I can sympathise with you on the painting. Mechanical work is easy, electrical work is difficult (but at least logical), but painting and prep is an absolute dark art!

At least it looks great all in the same colour now, and more like a finished car to keep you motivated to keep going.

[MrBounce]

Well I have spent a ridiculous amount of time rejigging and sorting out my garage as I didn't want to do any work on the car. I spent a lot of time correcting bodges (now where have I heard of that before?) and started by removing my workbench which was an old door nailed to some batons. I have had a lot of fun with hammers, jigsaws and runs to the tip. There was also a "cupboard" in the corner which was constructed of two old doors with some other random wood attached. I am kind of annoyed that I didn't take any pictures of this lot but let's just say I have a much nicer working area and fewer crappy old doors. In addition I had to remove and reposition two sets of shelves as well as sorting out what was on them... Finally I have obtained a new stainless steel workbench which is electrically height-adjustable. It's great and was a real bargain. It's also rather heavy, and I have the bruises to show for it when trying to move too much of it on my own.

 

So now I have a much nicer working environment, (which I only finished yesterday!) what have I done to the car? Very little in fact. I have however remade the captive bolts for the damper mounts as I wasn't happy with the bolts I'd used before. Two thick-ish bits of steel and some time with the angle grinder, drill and file have them ready for welding and painting. And whilst I was at it, I did the same for the captive bracket for the throttle pedal. I shall get the welding done at Tink's next week as a) his welder is better and b) it's not buried under a load of stuff...

 

Damper brackets prior to welding

 

 

And throttle pedal bracket ready to be zipped up too.

 

[Ben_O]

I'd like to see this bench 

[MrBounce]

Well I have not been able to do any welding on my brackets due to illness round at Tink's, so I took some stuff I'd received through the post into the garage. I have decided to fit an oil cooler to Project Zippy, so I removed the old pipe and did a trial fit of the cooler pipes and the cooler itself. I can't really sort out where it's going to go until the engine's in the car, but it was nice to bolt something new on again! I'd managed to get some orange overspray on the distributor clamp so I rubbed that down and gave another coat of silver, finishing the paint in the process.

 

I have got a new speedo too. I have always been a fan of the 70s Triumph Smiths instruments, and a 120mph Spitfire item (I think) was a bargain at a fiver. I also got the necessary worm and pinion to (hopefully) make it read correctly. They were of course a bit dirty, so out came the parts washer. A quick dunk and brush with the toothbrush and they were looking much better. I will give them a further clean before fitting anyway, but my excuse is that it was late in the evening when I cleaned them!!

 

Cooler pipes on

 

 

Cooler on too

 

 

Newly-sprayed distributor clamp

 

 

Triumph speedo

 

 

Filthy - they aren't going in my gearbox like this!

 

 

Much better! They'll still get another clean though.

 

[MrBounce]

It's been a very poor couple weeks garage-wise as I have done next to nothing on the project. However, I will regale you all with a health & safety related story.

 

I was never very happy with the captive bolts I'd made up for the shock mounts (which fit inside the bulkhead) as the bolts were too long, and similarly the throttle pedal bracket as my welding was atrocious. I remade the brackets from some thick steel I had lying around then popped to Tink's one evening to borrow his welder - this is a far better piece of equipment than I have. So I popped the brackets in the vice and zipped them up nicely. It was only after I'd finished that I noticed a strange glow from the side of the workbench. Yup, we had a fire. I maintain that this was down to Tink's garage being a tip - it was an old Mr Kipling packet that was burning!! So we both sprang into action and cleared the burning stuff out of the way and away from the garage, stamping it out and leaving it in the rain on the driveway. However, as we were doing this, Tink put his hand on the vice to steady himself - straight on to the newly welded bracket. Ow. His wife told him off for not wearing welding gauntlets. I had borrowed his...

 

I am due back round there this week - hopefully all will now be forgiven. Let's be careful and not set fire to our friends' garages.

 

Newly welded brackets. Paint to follow.