313 replies to this topic

[Ben_O]

This week is the big push with the Midget.

 

I started by fitting the handbrake lever

 

 

And cable mechanism

 

 

Then I prepped the radiator shroud and front tinwear for paint and applied primer

 

 

 

And then a fresh coat of gloss black

 

 

 

Whilst that baked off, I filled the inner cavities of the shell with waxoil. 

 

 

This is a good one and it goes in everywhere due to the hose with it's end full of multidirectional holes

 

With the rear end cavities filled, I started fitting some of the carpets

 

 

I can't really go any further with that as the front end needs to go on first.

 

Once the tinwear and shroud were painted, I prepped and hung the front panel

 

 

And then primed and painted it

 

 

I also did the bumper irons

 

 

Whilst that baked, I fitted the rad shroud to the new radiator and installed it to the car with a new electric cooling fan

 

 

And then bolted in the tin wear either side

 

 

I wired in the fan kit and installed all of the coolant hoses too.

 

Once the front panel was baked, I bolted that onto the car

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow, Ill start by pressure bleeding the brakes and clutch as access to the reservoirs is so much better with the wing off and then ill get the wings painted and hopefully installed too.

There are many other bits and bobs to do so i shall probably do those inbetween painting.

 

Cheers

 

Ben 

[DeanP]

 Lovely stuff.

[JDImini]

 Lovely stuff.

I second that!

[Ben_O]

I now have one of the wings finished.

 

I started off by hanging it in the booth and giving it a final prep. There were a couple of small marks on it from where it's been standing in the workshop so those were sorted out and some small spots of local primer

 

 

Then it was on with the top coat

 

 

Whilst that baked off, I pressurised the braking system to check for leaks and made a few adjustments before bleeding the system..

I fitted the bumper irons on the front and finished the wiring for the electric fan.

 

After lunch once the paint was hard enough, I fitted the wing to the car and bolted it all up tight for the final time

 

 

 

 

 

And then applied waxoil into everywhere I could get.

 

Next, I sorted out the headlamp and side light, cleaned them up and reinstalled them

 

 

And then sorted out the wiring and touched in all of the wing bolts.

 

There wasn't time to paint the other wing so instead I fitted the exhaust 

 

 

It just needs paste and the clamp fitting this end

 

 

And the back end is bolted up but needs adjustment to bring the silencer up to level.

 

More tomorrow.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[JDImini]

 

 Lovely stuff.

I second that!

 

even more lovely stuff! And BAPS new home is almost ready just waiting for the garage doors to go on and put some paint on the ceiling and walls, so it's all coming together, almost like a plan.

 

Quite please the midget wasn't finished for the weekend as the weather at Goodwood was the usual mixed bag of heavy showers and sunshine so the car parks were good and muddy by the end of the weekend. Thankfully the marshals took pity on Jack and I in the mini and let us park near the exit so not too much mud to negotiate and no long queues for us     

 

 Jack and mini revival 2017.JPG   88.46K   2 downloads

[Ben_O]

Glad you had a good weekend at Goodwood.

 

Sounds like you had a result being parked near the exit!

 

It's great to see a picture of the Mini. I think it must be the first time I have seen it since you picked it up.

 

Sounds like your new garage is going to be really good. Did you say it was room for both cars?

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[JDImini]

Glad you had a good weekend at Goodwood.

 

Sounds like you had a result being parked near the exit!

 

It's great to see a picture of the Mini. I think it must be the first time I have seen it since you picked it up.

 

Sounds like your new garage is going to be really good. Did you say it was room for both cars?

 

Cheers

 

Ben

Both cars and space to work

[Haygate]

I really enjoy these threads, do we have a next project to see or nothing as big?

[Ben_O]

I really enjoy these threads, do we have a next project to see or nothing as big?

Next up is a mk2 Cooper s 

[Vinmin]

Just one comment you have the side light lense and chrome surround fitted upside down. Other than that it's looking good.

[Ben_O]

Just one comment you have the side light lense and chrome surround fitted upside down. Other than that it's looking good.

Yeah, I noticed that when I was reviewing the photos last night. All swapped round now though

[Ben_O]

Another day has quickly flown by and we have another update.

 

I fetched down the bootlid from the stores, stripped it and prepped it.

 

 

And then hung it in the booth with the other wing for some local spots of primer

 

 

And then painted both 

 

 

 

Whilst that baked off, i decided to make a start with some of the polishing. I like to do it inbetween other jobs to break it up a bit.

 

First off, I need to flat the paint right back to remove any imperfections.

I'm looking for a uniform flat finish like this

 

 

That was done with 2000grit wet on a rubber block.

 

Then I polished a spot with a sponge pad to show. This only takes about a minute on a fairly high speed moving slowly back and forth. This does generate some heat in the paint which you want but not too much or it will scorch.

 

 

I then finished the rest of the panel

 

 

 

We have the shine and depth now but there are swirly marks made by the sponge.

I then switch to the waffle pad

 

 

I use this with a very fine compound to remove the swirls left by the sponge

 

 

 

 

Apart from a wax, we are done with this panel.

 

Anyway, by now the wing was ready to come out and fit to the car

 

 

 

And then I fitted the lamps

 

 

 

I have also refitted the air intake pipe for the heater and clamped the downpipe up.

 

 

next on went the horns and the grille. The grille frames need freshening up as they are marked at the edges but the grille itself is such a tight fit, any fresh paint i put on there first will just get scraped off fitting the grille so I have fitted it as is and will sheet the car up and paint the frame now everything is fitted

 

 

And finally, the bumper

 

 

Ill paint the bonnet in the morning and then that can go on so I can align the front end properly. I might re-paint the bootlid too depending on how it flats back as I'm not 100% happy with the finish.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[JXC Mini GT]

Ben

 

Yet another great restoration project and a lovely finish.

 

PS. I have booked the ferry for the 25th October and if it's ok will leave the Mini with you on the 27th.

 

John

[Ben_O]

Ben

 

Yet another great restoration project and a lovely finish.

 

PS. I have booked the ferry for the 25th October and if it's ok will leave the Mini with you on the 27th.

 

John

Thanks John.

The 27th is absolutely fine. I'll look forward to seeing you then.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[danie garry]

fantastic build!

 

nice little how to on the polishing too!