764 replies to this topic

[stretch tech]

today we finished off the repairs to the boot floor and fitted the rear valance + closures



we then seam sealed the welds



and primed and stone chipped from the heel board back



i then had a poke around the sill with a screw driver...



...how this got through the last MOT i will never know ...







...we were lucky to drive this the two hours home without it falling apart

so we got to work cutting out the last of the rusty metal ( hopefully ) and you will be surprised to know that this side isn't as bad as the other...how ?



new subframe mount repair fitted



2mm thick angle iron to repair and reinforce the base of the companion bin and rear inner sill ( the same as we did to the other side )



then we made a panel to repair the rest of the inner sill ( apart from the front floor pan )



then we gave the new metal and welds a clean up and a coat of etch primer



before we packed away for the night, we gave the door step, jacking point and any other areas of remaining rust a coat of rust reverter

tomorrow we will fit the new front floor panel, fit the outer sill, repair the flitch panel, fit the other scuttle closure and then maybe fit the new scuttle and...well...we'll see what happens

Rhys

Edited by TH3aRchit3ct95, 01 March 2012 - 09:03 PM.

[freshairmini]

Its looking good! Wish I had somewhere to do mine, it keeps getting rustier and rustier!

[stretch tech]

Its looking good! Wish I had somewhere to do mine, it keeps getting rustier and rustier!

thanks, we are nearly there now...i know the feeling, i keep finding more and more rust............................this body is currently for sale by the way

[stretch tech]

today we started by fitting the lower rear quarter repair



when i said that this side was in better condition than the other, i was wrong ...........the rear quarter was slightly bowed, the jacking point needed re constructing, the door step needed a patch from the hinge panel to the middle of the door frame, the flitch is rotten from top to bottom on the very edge and there was a split in the base of the bulk head from the transmission tunnel to the O/S sub frame mount...all fixed now though ( apart from the flitch repairs )

front floor pan fitted and jacking point repaired



sill fitted, bulk head split welded shut, door step repaired ( utter nightmare to make a patch for ) and all primed and stone chipped





that's it, the floor is now completely done and solid



now it just needs a coat of paint and then wax oil

tomorrow is our last day of work as my dad goes back to work Monday and we aren't working Sunday...so we need to finish ALL of the body work:

- repair the O/S inner wing
- repair the O/S flitch panel
- patch the pedal box mount
- repair top centre of bulk head/dash rail ( where the rust hole in the scuttle was )
- wire brush the roof guttering to check for rust ( fingers crossed it is just surface )

and anything else other than the front end panels as we want to spend out time getting the alignment right next weekend

i might go down to the unit some time in the week and start flatting down the old paint and paint the underside

Rhys

[stretch tech]

when we left today, the repairs business next door had just taken delivery of a partly stripped mini piccadily shell and a rusty one at that ...i forgot to take a photo but the parcel shelf, rear seat/bulk head and roof pillars had rusted, good luck to who ever's mini project that is and i don't blame them for paying a company to carry out the body work as it looks like it would be a challenge for even the most experienced of fabricators ...does any one know who this person is ?

Cheers

Rhys

[DeanP]

Looking good Rhys. I remember when the Mini 30's were brand new and the cherry red was a lovely colour at the time. Keep up the good work.

[stretch tech]

Looking good Rhys. I remember when the Mini 30's were brand new and the cherry red was a lovely colour at the time. Keep up the good work.

Cheers, i am keeping the cherry red so hopefully it will be a lovely shade once again as the paint was very faded and has had touch ups in areas (badly)

Rhys

[joezone2001]

Looking good Rhys. I remember when the Mini 30's were brand new and the cherry red was a lovely colour at the time. Keep up the good work.

Cheers, i am keeping the cherry red so hopefully it will be a lovely shade once again as the paint was very faded and has had touch ups in areas (badly)

Rhys

Hi rhys.
Have you got as far as to see about how much a respray would cost. I've looked into it and Nottingham mini bits quoted anything upwards from £800 depending on how much prep work is involved. I really want to do my 30 myself but I just don't think I would do a good enough job. I am also sticking with cherryred.
Looking good anyway.. come and do mine if you like! Lol.
Keep up the good work
Joe

[stretch tech]

Looking good Rhys. I remember when the Mini 30's were brand new and the cherry red was a lovely colour at the time. Keep up the good work.

Cheers, i am keeping the cherry red so hopefully it will be a lovely shade once again as the paint was very faded and has had touch ups in areas (badly)

Rhys

Hi rhys.
Have you got as far as to see about how much a respray would cost. I've looked into it and Nottingham mini bits quoted anything upwards from £800 depending on how much prep work is involved. I really want to do my 30 myself but I just don't think I would do a good enough job. I am also sticking with cherryred.
Looking good anyway.. come and do mine if you like! Lol.
Keep up the good work
Joe

hi joe, we've had a bit of luck and a friend of a friend has said that he will spray the whole car in 2 pack pearlescent cherry red and a coat of lacquer for £150 as long as we do all the preparation work our selves ...it's a good job too as i know how expensive paint jobs are and if i would have had to pay those sort of prices, we would spray it our selves

Rhys

Edited by TH3aRchit3ct95, 03 March 2012 - 07:02 PM.

[stretch tech]

today we only worked a half day as cliff is now all done body repairs wise other than the front end

first we cut out the rusty parts of the flitch and repaired them



i was going to buy a flitch/hinge repair panel but after the experience we have gained at panel making, we decided to give making one a go any way...it went fairly well and it only took one hour from start to finish...nothing can stop us now

we also seam sealed all the welds



we then repaired the rest of the inner wing, fitted the shock mount, fitted the scuttle closure, seam sealed the welds and etch primed all the new metal + welds











we then repaired the top of the bulk head cross member, seam sealed and then etch primed the new metal + welds







next weekend we will fit the front end panels and then check the car over for any rusty patches...primarily the roof gutters and window frames, hopefully the bubbling paint is just surface rust...we are fed up with welding for now

during the week i may pop down to the work shop and:

- give the car a good vac out as it is covered in dust and full of flakes of old rust
- prime and stone chip the floor and boot
- stone chip and paint the underside and engine bay in brush able cherry red

well that's it for now, in 6 days we have spent a total of 60 hours on the car ...10 hours of solid work a day, i need a break and a good lye-in

Rhys

Edited by TH3aRchit3ct95, 03 March 2012 - 08:00 PM.

[stretch tech]

hello people, i have not been able to do much on the car this week as i have been working with my uncle to earn a bit of cash for the money pit

all i have been able to do is give the car a good vac out and paint the cab floor



we seam sealed the remaining welds and gave the floors and sills a good thick coat of stone chip









we also cleaned out the rear bins, seam sealed the welds and gave them a stone chipping but there is no flash on my phone and the sun light was fading so i couldn't take a photo ...we will fill them with wax oil when we are finished rolling the shell onto it's sides all the time

we were also going to finish the boot but we ran out of seam sealer half way through *typical*

tomorrow we were going to fit the front end but my dad's car needs some attention first so we will just fit the scuttle and paint the underside instead

it'll get done eventually ..............sooner rather than later hopefully as it needs to be done by the end of may

Cheers

Rhys

[stretch tech]

went down to the unit today, took the photos of the rear bins that we finished off yesterday

N/S



O/S



then we seam sealed the repairs in the boot



wheel well



N/S rear arch



O/S rear arch



we then primed and stone chipped the entire boot floor, battery box and rear arches...but i forgot to take a photo

we planed on starting to fit the front end today but we only had enough time to fit the scuttle because it took longer than we expected to repair my dad's car for it's re-test but then, when we thought we couldn't get held up any more, we ran out of gas for the welder so we didn't bother trying to attach the scuttle...so the plan (version 5 or 6 by now ) is to paint the underside of the car and wax oil every where necessary during the week so that we can finally get the front end on next weekend...then next week we will start sanding all the paint down and then it's ready to go off for a re-paint ................................................................................................i can't wait

any comments or advice on what i have done is always welcome

Cheers

Rhys

Edited by TH3aRchit3ct95, 10 March 2012 - 03:10 PM.

[yousmeg]

Great project mate, will be following this one

My birthday is also 31st May - high five lol

[stretch tech]

Great project mate, will be following this one

My birthday is also 31st May - high five lol

cheers pal...high five what are the odds ?

Rhys

[joezone2001]

Looking good Rhys! How long before you think she will be back on the road? We've just started welding my car and my rear bins were that bad we couldn't tell how they originally would have been so your pictures are ace mate! They show you just how it should be. I think my car must have missed the anti-rust painting stage at the factory! There is barely any paint inside the bins/sills. She's getting there though.
Keep up the good work! I really am jealous of your car! haha
Cheers
Joe