1843 replies to this topic

[Petrol]

Any up dates Pete?

 

Sorry no, still working on the Red 200SX

[Petrol]

Got a bit impatient so I bought this

 

 

12 Months MOT so it will be on the road pronto

[Ben_O]

Any plans for this Pete or just enjoy it?

[Petrol]

Any plans for this Pete or just enjoy it?

 

Its pretty much sorted Ben so I'm just going to enjoy it. Have to say, it's great to be back behind the wheel of a Mini and has given me a right kick up the backside to get on with this 998 build

[pete l]

Hi, great thread which has given me loads of ideas about how to do mine.

 

could you explain in more detail how you split the seams and not weaken the weld ?

 

And could you give me your views on the magnum front panel you used ? Fit and metal thickness. ?

 

Thanks

 

Pete.

[Petrol]

It's just a case of opening the seam up to the spot weld. It takes a huge amount of force to split a spot weld open. The weld is stronger than the steel which would tear before the spot weld gave way. Ive posted some pics up on page 25 post #367. Ive done it on this Nissan as well. Have a look here http://sxoc.com/vbb/...ll-refurb/page2

 

I didn't have any problems with the Mangnum front panel as far as fit goes. The captive nuts welded in were a joke so I either put riv nuts in or replaced them. As far as metal thickness goes, the thinner the better as far as I'm concerned as it save weight. Thicker metal doesn't last longer, it just takes longer to corrode through once the protection has failed. One of the reasons I chose a MK5 shell for this build is that it was made out of 1mm steel which is a bit thinner than earlier Minis. Extra stiffeners were fitted to improve shell rigidity so it's light and rigid - all good for this build.

 

Got one of the doors out to fit the mirrors before paint

 

 

Slight change of plan here, I'm going for Tex stainless

 

 

The problem is the mountings are plastic and they tend to work loose

 

 

Bought these alloy mounting plates

 

 

But decided I need some metal plinths for the mirrors. As with anything Mini, it takes some effort to do a proper job. I'm also going to mount the mirrors to the doors with riv nuts. 

 

In the meantime, I covered the plastic battery box cover I made with some interior trimming fabric

 

 

 

This won't warp like the stock item does At least Ive made a bit of progress Hopefully more updates soon.

 

 

 

 

 

[gadget555]

[Petrol]

Fuel tank flatted back

 

 

Sprayed in 2K

 

 

 

 

[pete l]

Hi, when you split your seams and fill them with deox:

 

how long do you leave it ?

How do you clean it all out afterwards ?

 

thanks

 

Pete 

[Petrol]

Hi Pete,

 

It depends on how rusty the seams are. Deox will remove slight rust in 24 hours but can take up to 3 days if it's pretty crusty. It's a good idea to scrub the deox with a toothbrush after 24 hours as this removes the softened rust and reapply the gel. It's important to remember that badly corroded steel will compromise the strength of the shell and if it's pretty bad, its probably worth replacing the panels.

 

To clean the seams out, I rinsed them with a hose pipe and dried off with compressed air. This was followed by a very light shot blast with fine media before applying zinc paint.

 

Pete

[Petrol]

I posted up some time ago that I was waiting for a supplier to sort some issues out with parts that didn't fit / not suitable.... Guess we've all been there done that.  One of them was the front seat belts which didn't retract fully. Think I had 2 sets of these -

 

 

I collected a new set recently which now fully retract - Happy days!

 

 

 

Might seem like a small update to everyone reading this thread, but for me it's a major challenge sorted. All I need now is a tint top windscreen that's the right size and an oil temp gauge that reads "roughly" the right temperature

 

 

[Jared Mk3]

Glad my belts were right the first time - I'm a little far to return items.

[Petrol]

Your not kidding Jared Mk3!

 

Few more bits blasted

 

 

 

Mirror mount. Rivnuts in the door and stainless bolts. Ive also fitted an alloy mounting plate rather than the plastic one

 

 

 

Mk3 style Tex mirrors

 

 

 

 

 

Pete

[Jared Mk3]

Classy 

[Petrol]

MK3 was the best vintage IMO

 

Sprayed the door all one colour before final paint. Going to get the shell paneled up and water tight.

 

 

 

Back of bonnet in base coat

 

 

Then clear coat

 

 

 

Ive decided to go for KYB AXG Adjustable shocks. Ive had them on other cars for years and they have served me well. I need to get the NS rear on then I can get the fuel tank in.

I'm looking for a blue tint top screen. If anyone knows where I can get one, please let me know.

 

Thanks for looking,

Pete