395 replies to this topic

[stuart bowes]

Used same method as above to create first piece of the long middle section, skipping the drawing and marking up stages here to avoid repetition

 

 

 

(just to clarify that bandsaw blade was not involved at any point it's just a place to put things)

 

used the shrinker to get the slight curve required for the window edge

 

 

 

spent some time evening that out and going back to stretch because I overdid it slightly

 

anyway eventually got the curve right and clamped in, plug welded to the window lip

 

(through persistence and perhaps a touch of luck that edge lines up perfectly to the window shape, not the slightest bit of filing down required to match the outer panel, get in)

 

 

 

gently and carefully twisted the larger flatter section by hand to match existing shape, and gradually tacked it to the shelf, happy with the alignment in the end

 

the picture makes it look like the window edge has bowed outwards slightly towards the middle but I think it's just a trick of the camera angle, it's a smooth curve as it should be

 

 

tidied up the outside enough for now and lobbed a bit of primer on it

 

 

that's a nice easy job to get on with next time, straight out with the welder and get on with it

Edited by stuart bowes, 30 May 2023 - 01:50 PM.

[stuart bowes]

found a way more comfortable resting position and look what difference that makes to the welding.  keep forgetting how important that is 

 

 

ground down and primered for now, again this will all need a decent smearing of filler I think but main thing is it's totally rock solid

 

 

tools were already out so cut out the next bit which also gave me a chance to have a good clean up on the top side of that boot lock bracket, access otherwise being more or less impossible

 

the lip part along the window here came off with almost no effort at all, I think there were 2 spot welds actually still holding on

 

 

this will be a lot easier to fabricate because it's the central piece, so it's symmetrical, and flatter instead of having a twist to it.  also I've cut it so the next bit along after that will be a mirror image of the bit I just did and I can use the same templates (work smart not hard)

 

cleaned up, kurusted

 

 

 

as well as deleting 30 years of grot another plus point is I've currently run out of 0.8 and this is all being built out of 1mm, so this back edge is at least (probably more than) 10% stronger than original

 

on an related note all of this work is making me question if I really need 28 holes of varying sizes in the parcel shelf.  I might fill some of those in, especially the 2 big ones, also if I'm going to cut speaker holes in, best time will be now (suggestions and recommendations welcome)

Edited by stuart bowes, 24 May 2023 - 08:58 AM.

[stuart bowes]

taking a slightly different approach this time for a bit less back and forth

 

cut the lip part first and used the stretcher to make that fit the curve of the window spot on 

 

 

then tacked that gradually to the other part starting in the middle and working outwards both ways, so it curves both ways and the lip is at near as dammit the right angle

 

 

checked the fit, boom straight in (apart from a little bit of trimming required on the near side obvs)

 

 

and then welded it up properly which though I say so myself went quite well, I really feel like I'm making progress with this welding thing.. occasional moments of complete nightmare with lots of positive in between instead of the other way around

 

 

then I ground all that down flush and I'll trim and fit it over the weekend, hopefully will get a chance to finish off the shelf right to the other side

 

the C pillar corner pieces / seatbelt brackets turned up today as well and they look like they'll be a nice easy fit.   Just got to apply a load of seam sealer to those long seams while access is still available, and a bit of paint to protect that whole area before fitting

Edited by stuart bowes, 25 May 2023 - 07:05 PM.

[stuart bowes]

welded in centre section, cut out and kurusted remaining section

 

 

fabricated / fettled / fitted and tacked in remaining two pieces

 

 

fully welded in and a well deserved cup of tea.  much grinding and power filing to do but at least now the whole thing is replaced and totally solid

 

alignments checked with C post caps and no issues there for fitment

 

 

too late to do any more grinding so got out seatbelt reel brackets, drilled out plug weld holes, checked fit, did some bending etc to perfect them, and spraying back side before fitting so they have at least some coverage

 

Edited by stuart bowes, 27 May 2023 - 07:25 PM.

[colinf1]

Good solid repair, at least you know it's all good material there now!

Your getting a good run on it while you can, have you a good cover for it if it's going to be sitting up for a while?

[stuart bowes]

yeah it's got a normal fitted cover all elasticated and stuff, and then it's under a gazebo as well with curtained sides so totally bone dry no worries there 

[stuart bowes]

fitting seatbelt reel brackets, really wishing I did this before putting the rear quarter panels on, live and learn I suppose

 

mark up area, wire brush, check metal good (it is), hoover out crud, prime, fresh lick of paint because I won't be able to get at it later

 

 

 

 

 

yes I did spot that little beam of light coming through and it reminded me to close up that corner, I'll do that today as well

 

Mark up plug weld points, power file away those points only, do best to weld in bracket using a bunch of weird yoga like poses, tidy up as well as possible due to awkward angles, paint again

 

 

outer side penetrated well, inner not so good, bottom almost totally useless.. plus a couple of welds on the top edge that went in fine

 

(forgot to take pic before tidying and painting but you get the idea)

 

used penetration marks from under wheel arch to work out where to drill from that side and weld that way as well, to make sure I got 3 or 4 good ones on each side.  welded, linished back

 

 

it's sufficiently strong, can probably lift the car with it and it's the best I can do so it will have to do despite me not being completely happy with appearances 

 

did all exactly the same on the other side, and results were pretty much identical, won't bore you with the same pictures twice

 

as promised welded up that end of the sill and did a bit of finishing on that, although when I'm finishing off the boot floor that will probably get another go over at least to clean up that surface rust I'm not just ignoring it honest

 

 

 

doesn't seem like I got a lot done but I am cream crackered

.

Edited by stuart bowes, 30 May 2023 - 08:16 AM.

[colinf1]

Welding in this heat surely takes it out of you, especially if you've full PPE on...

[stuart bowes]

Another thing I remembered yesterday is, after drilling a hole in metal, you don't absentmindedly brush away the debris with your bare hand

 

I'm so used to woodworking where you don't end up with shredded fingers (the occasional splinter maybe)

[stuart bowes]

getting these C pillars finished off..

 

good liberal coating of seam sealer in the seams and that rough bit of welding (not just to make it look better, I also figured it would stop damp collecting in the dips and ridges) and then painted while I can still get at it

 

 

 

Then, just as I decided to give some of the welding a bit more smoothing over I found a tiny hole which when welded turned into a bigger hole.. and after a while of chasing that around the shelf I gave up and cut a section out for replacement, beat a piece to shape, welded in and flushed off

 

 

 

 

you can see there the shelf has warped a bit out of shape, when I hit it a bit and then welded in the corner piece that straightened out a lot.  Am not overly concerned as it will be covered with sound deadening and then a shelf covering anyway so unless someone takes a ruler to the underside it won't be noticed

 

clamping and plug welding the sides

 

 

 

and I decided to just seam weld the bottom 

 

 

checking for sufficient penetration underneath (compared to a few spot welds I'm sure it's more than enough)

 

 

tidied up the worst of it for now

 

 

 

same both sides, pretty much identical won't bother with the other pics

 

and then the gas ran out so that's on order.   Next time when I manage to get another day on it I'm gonna do a load of grinding and tidying to try and catch up to where I'm at now, I've left a lot of that behind recently and it's making the work look a bit of a mess which annoys me slightly

Edited by stuart bowes, 08 June 2023 - 07:13 PM.

[colinf1]

Have you the grinder on silent mode or ear defenders on the baby?

[stuart bowes]

lol no the cars at my parents and the baby lives at the missus house, we're still saving up for the mortgage

 

for now though actually it works out quite handy for these kind of issues :)  although I spend half my life driving between the two places lucky they're only like 3 mins drive apart

 

if anyone invents a silent grinder they would get seriously rich lol

Edited by stuart bowes, 09 June 2023 - 08:25 AM.

[colinf1]

Well congratulations anyway!

[stuart bowes]

cheers mate! all gone well just getting back into routines again now and all that :) 

[Designer]

lol no the cars at my parents and the baby lives at the missus house, we're saving up for a house

 

for now though actually it works out quite handy for these kind of issues :)  although I spend half my life driving between the two places lucky they're only like 3 mins drive apart

 

if anyone invents a silent grinder they would get seriously rich lol

 

There are two types engineer's file or wet and dry.