hi all, just a quick update....have been cracking on.....
ive got a bit bored of sanding the body so just to mix it up i started timkering with a few other bits of bodywork which need repair .....firstly, the bumper.
So it looks like its had a below 5mph bump in the past - luckily the mk2 bumpers look to have taken most of the force (have taken the gelcoat back on the shell and all good so rebuilt back up in resin).
some very dodgy historic fibreglassing...
IMG_20190706_154422[1] by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
i found this chaps name on everything - the builder/ glasser maybe?
IMG_20190706_154424 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
old fibreglass pulled out - wasnt too hard (then sanded/ ground for good key).
IMG_20190706_193506 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
some slightly better fibreglassing - first effort in 10 years - pleased i practiced on the bumper and it all came back to me ie loads of resin - mat over and dab until it settles - bit more resin and gently stipple etc until all settled - and repoeat lol.
IMG_20190706_201657 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
thought id have a tinker with the doors - bit of surface rust - not too bad but clearly lots of pop rivets used directly to the door has meant loads of cracking to the gelcoat - think i might fepair all the holes with resin and use some good countersunk/ flat screws maybe?
IMG_20190630_175831 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
ps - that winder arm really is a bit of a "hold it up bob - yep, that looks right, weld it there" kind of a thing..... will probably just clean and repaint as it works.
you can see the pop rivets a bit closer in this:
IMG_20190630_175845 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
the top of the door has a few bits missing so some repairs there to do, the aluminium angle (talked about on forums) has cracked at the weld with the glass frame as i suspected - once you unscrew it it literally flaps about! no wonder the top of the door wasnt alligned well - some crafty reinforcement here when putting back together i think.
IMG_20190630_175905 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Getting there - oh good lord - more cracked gelcoat - lots of resin repair practice here to do...
IMG_20190630_183142 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Just a photo to see how it all looks when the frame is out
IMG_20190630_183515 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Ah - it is a ford door handle! might need to get a new handle one side - rusty pins etc and thought id post a photo of the part code.....
IMG_20190630_184843 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Now.....door hinges - the perennial debate - complete replace or repair, well at least the bolts are well protected from the weather - i wouldnt like to try to crack these nuts - only just enough room for a ring spanner:
IMG_20190630_184853 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
So - once off - the bottom hinge is very slack and the top almost rusted solid..... the odd thing is they look different sizes when put side by side, anyone know if they are different upper and lower hinges or just stretched from use etc?
IMG_20190630_185656 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
So the door fully stripped sanded back and inspected is in really good shape! just the repairs to all the holes and its fine - doesnt look half as daunting when stripped:
IMG_20190630_205344 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Anyway - cant avoidit - back to the bodywork.... heavy handed dremel work and alot of shining bright lights through the shell have reassured me that the fibreglass "flexed" when it had its bump - no signs of structural cracking or delaminating so straight on with the resin repairs - im using the west system epoxy with a filler agent (spent ages discussing it with a professional boatbuilder re the best systems to use on gelcoats)....... looks kind of funky....
20190824_130759 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
a bit closer photo - the trick here (thanks guys from the club for the advice) is that the resin repair and the gelcoat are differing densities - so you need to do long blocking strokes or you end up with raised "ridges" where the repairs are - ive learned the hard way as usual...
20190824_130804 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Now after a bit of dust coat, you can see the micro stress cracks all over the rear quarters - when ground down they are only just under a mm deep so ive just ground back to good gelcoat and built back up with resin - lots and lots and lots of coats - i bet it still cracks after a year lol - hey ho - i have to accept its an old car at some point - do my best and understand that the first road hump i hit will expose new cracks - and that will be part of the charm (maybe i will just put a little red dot on the end of each crack as we did in my flying days when inspecting the wings).
20190825_145130 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Nearly missed this one - corners and hinges of the bonnet mount - sorted
20190904_222731 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Oh look - i found another one lol - although i like the look of this crack repair - almost caterpillar in shape.
20190908_115918 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
So, for some realism - this is the donor mini - my first car - very sad after dad kicked it out of his garage 2 years ago - the shell has literally gone from being "restorable" to OMG in 2 years! its near boston in lincolnshire so i suspect the sea air has a big part to play.
20190811_100133 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Now sorry i dont have any photos of the action - but under that tarp is the 1293 stage 2 i built from block about 10 years ago, dad turned it over every few months until last year when she was winterised with oil in bores etc......so, after some cleaning of the starter bendix , oil flush, carb clean & remote fuel tank, running in oil and a battery, it started fine - bit noisy but thats just the complete absence of silencer lol.
So hopefully it will just be a light recondition (head, gearbos off, clean and seals etc).
20190811_100143 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
So on to the bonnet (avoiding the body again....well all i can say is star cracks - everywhere - attacked the "bulge" with the dremel and repairs under way.
20190904_222659 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Crack at one side (loss of strength to lip) so ragged right back - cosmetic repair to top - underside DA sanded as thin as i dare and rebuilt back up in ned fibreglass matt/ resin etc (forgot to photo as it was the first thing going well so didnt want to jinx it lol).
20190904_222721 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
If you sqint - you can almost imagine it finished....
20190905_082343 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Well, even corners need a bit of love - a few hours spent making sure the chipped corner matched the other side:
20190908_203953 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
SOOOOOOO - Excited - ti "think" i may nearly have finished the main repairs - first barcoat laid on (necessary as despite endless sanding - im sure there will be some cellulose somewhere to ruin my day - awesome stuff - bonds amazingly to a good 200 grit key and now just have to finish the front valance and fill all those devilish pinholes........
Like these - everywhere......
20190727_225836 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
Progress to date - looking ready fro some high build primer i think......after finishing the front valance.
20190908_142118 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
20190908_142124 by
Timothy Ordway, on Flickr
so to finish this update - i will be honest, there have been times when ive been so fed up with the prep work i could have cried, its way way harder than prepping a steel car (my last resto - a VW camper was easier to block than this) but ive stuck with it. ive had lots of advice, some good, some less so but always well meaning and supportive so to anyone who has been there before - i now understand what you mean by "prepping is the key" ie "dig in for an extended stay - this is going to get messy". I might not have done a concourse job, ie it might not be the best resto - but its my best, and am really pleased.