Mk 1 Project Zippy. Looking Like a Car.

[Geoff Butcher]

The lead is not a hazard as it doesn't get anywhere near hot enough to vapourise. However the flux is alleged to be harmful but unless you're breathing it in all day long it won't do you any harm. Luckily I have a roll of proper Sn/Pb which is probably big enough to see me out!

[MrBounce]

February sucks. It is either too cold outside to do anything worthwhile or something rubbish happens (whilst I like doing project stuff I do draw the line at working in temperatures of -4 degrees). Can you guess what happened this weekend???

Thought I would turn my attention to the rear hatch hinges which have been sitting in a box in various places whilst I tried to find a pillar drill. They were in the garage, then my brother's shed (he didn't have time despite having a pillar drill) then in the car whilst I went to pick up a pillar drill (which wasn't there - long story...) then back in the garage again. All four bolts in these had of course snapped off when I tried to remove them. This was most likely something to do with the bolts being steel and the hinges being aluminium. They don't tend to like each other over time. So my only option was to drill them out, hence the pillar drill - many thanks go to Paul for the loan of his.

So off I went to the hardware shop and bought some amazing (& expensive...) drill bits - bolts are notoriously evil things to drill out. I grabbed a piece of scrap steel and drilled a 6mm hole in it (the same as the bolt) so I could then use this as a template to accurately find and drill a pilot hole in the centre of the bolt. I also used chalk to mark exactly where the bolts sat as it was all the same colour. I started drilling with a 3mm bit and gradually worked my way up to 4.5mm. Once I had done this I should (in theory) be able to collapse the remains of the bolt and then re-tap.

However, this was not what happened. Having successfully drilled the bolt, I put the hinge down on top of the vice. And knocked it on the floor. It broke. So I now need a new one, preferably two. Thanks to Lankyjames, there's one on the way.

February sucks.

Hinge with broken bolts & template



Using chalk so I could accurately place the template.



Then this happens. Nuts.

[Geoff Butcher]

Some days you're the windshield, some days you're the bug...

[lankyjames]

Replacement hinge is in the post Dave!

[MrBounce]

You sir are a star!!!

[MrBounce]

I really know how to rock a Friday night. Mrs Bounce was out with the girlies so I did man stuff. This meant opening a bottle of beer and getting down with the rear loom in the lounge. I had already had some help from Mike the previous evening (in between inhaling cellulose thinners and fibreglassing his Biota's underside) where we tested all the wires to make sure they were all working. One wasn't (one of the rear lights). This was because it was all corroded, black nearly all the way through. All the others were fine.

So we took the tape off that section of the loom and followed that bit of wire down to where it joined the other rear light wires and cut it off. We then replaced it with a new wire (the same colour from another loom in Mike's bits box) and soldered it in place. This was then heatshrunk and everything tested again. All that remained was for me to clean up the ends and fit new connectors where required and re-tape the loom. I even used yellow tape. Attention to detail and all that...

There's still a couple of small bits to attend to i.e connectors on the foglight & fuel sender, but they can wait until I have fully decided what I am using.

Loom on sofa (Don't tell the wife)



New wire soldered in & heatshrunk



Now all tidy & almost finished.

[MrBounce]

As I was wanting to avoid the wiring (and hatch hinges!) for a bit I started looking at the front bodywork again, now that I could go into the Manroom and not lose all feeling in my hands. I needed to have a closer look at the offside front as well as finishing off the nearside. I have avoided the very bottom of the airdam for now as it will be MUCH easier with the car on its side.

My afternoon was mainly spent using the Dremel, chasing cracks and grinding them out. I also found a bucketload more filler, most off which was unceremoniously chiselled out. It seems that whoever did the "bodywork" on this front end just used a bucketload of Plastic Padding with little regard to what it would end up looking like or how it would react. Still, once I've stripped it back, resin, fibreglass & a LOT of sanding will have it looking better before painting. It surely can't look any worse... There was one piece of gelcoat that had so many cracks on it that I ended up just cutting it out with the Dremel & throwing it away. It's pointless chasing 93 cracks in such a small piece of plastic when I may as well start with a blank canvas.

Engine bay lip, star-crack ground out.



Indicator surround, looking a little... gouged.



Full of Filler?



Not any more...



More filler removed



Offside is full of gloop too



It appears to be a USA Freeway Intersection map



This bit was rubbish...



...so I removed it.

[MrBounce]

Had an unexpected afternoon in the Manroom today so made full use of it. As it was unlikely that I would be able to get the cast aluminium of the one hinge I have left to take a thread given my meagre tool set, I drilled it ready to take countersunk bolts (similar to the type that hold the rear drums in). It was then that I realised that the hinges are "handed" to match the small curve of the hatch opening. Lankyjames had sent me a spare and we didn't realise that they were different. Guess what I have got... That said, I don't think it is necessary to change them. A small amount of work on a grinder will make the "wrong" one fit fine, and unless you look REALLY closely I doubt anyone but the most anal will even notice.

Whilst at the bench I also took time to knock out the rings that the bearing races roll against in the hub. It's a job I have been meaning to do for ages (thanks, cold weather...) and I will shortly clean up the hubs ready for paint before sorting replacement bearings and balljoints.

I went back to the front end - the area where the bumper sits on the driver's side was a total mess. I reckon it was here that took the brunt of the impact when the car was shunted. There was so much cracking and badly replaed fibreglass I cut it all out - it saved a hell of a lot of time. Although it would be under where the bumper sat and therefore "unseen", I would rather it be solid than the dodgy mess it was. Dremel cuts! There was a large lump of fibreglass filler which fell out - this was where one of the bolts which held on the grille mesh had snapped. Horrible.

Talking of the bumpers, I haven't even looked at them since removing them 18 months ago. I grabbed the front one and spent AGES removing all the expanded foam from inside. There's plenty of star-crazing all over it just like on the body, which someone has tried to disguise using badly applied black paint. It's also been repaired (badly) at least twice. So that's another thing to add to the long list of repairs to do. I will also try to sort some "invisible" fixings rather than using a wood screw through into the bodywork as it was when I took it off...

Hinge redrilled & countersunk to take crosshead screw.



Oops! Two the same...



Hubs now bare apart from steering arms. Time for clean-up & paint.



This area was nasty and needed to be taken out of the equation...



...so out came the chopper.



This was the lump that fell out. Yuk.



Bumper before being attacked.



All the crap foam removed. It's a lot lighter.

[lankyjames]

If you'd like to swap for the other hinge Bounce, it can be arranged (PM Me)
I knew I probably should have checked before sending!

Good progress so far, nice to see a full rebuild, I'd love to do it to my own one day!

[MrBounce]

Well it's been a while. That's because my hands threatened to drop off anytime I went outside during most of March. So I didn't. I have spending my eBay funds (and birthday money) on stuff that I need for this project so numerous little parcels arriving in the post were gratefully received. I also went to Mini Spares to get some heavy stuff and to exchange an old steering rack for a new one.

The list is as follows:

New front wheel bearings
New balljoints
Exchange Steering Rack
Rack to body bush
Rack to U-bolt strips
Rear brake drums
Some core plugs for the block
A pair of brake discs
Handbrake levers (for the rear drums) and their gaiters
Lower arm bushes
2 TR7 fuel caps - one of which was the wrong one. Doh!

I also received a petrol tank sealing kit and a set of TR7 rear light gaskets for my birthday.

I was so fed up with grinding and sanding fibreglass (I am also helping a friend with his Biota - it's got about 5 layers of paint and makes my car look in good nick) that I decided to do some mechanical work. I spent the afternoon fitting the new front wheel bearings and shimming up the balljoints. I remembered that I always used to hate balljoints. After this afternoon... I still do. Only one of them was easy to sort. Each of the others took at least 10 minutes each!! At least the bearings were nice and straightforward. As I was on a roll I thought I would do the rear hub bearings too - the previous owner had chucked a couple of rear bearings in the spares box. Never trust someone who's selling you a project with the truth about bits. They were indeed bearings, but they were different from each other & neither was for a Mini. One was a rubbish ball-bearing race (and the grease had congealed - nasty). I don't know what it's from as the part number has ripped off the box. The other was a nice Timken kit for a Marina/Allegro/TR7. So that's something else to add to the shopping list.

I also decided to prepare the fuel tank for the sealing kit, so I have put the sender unit back in (not sure if Gaffa tape will hold up to it). Of course one of the bolts has sheared off. And one is missing. Where's my hammer???

New Discs



1st new fuel cap, showing how badly wrong I got it. Of course the two fittings are totally different...



Steering Rack! (A present from Mrs Bounce xxx)



The 2nd fuel cap. This one fits.



Hubs all bearing'd and ball-jointed up (yes I will knock over the lock tabs before fitting to the car!)



1st "Mini" rear bearing - for Allegro/TR7/Marina...



2nd "Mini" bearing. I have no idea what it's for. Apart from the bin.



Tried to get a photo of inside the tank. You can just see how horrible it is in there.



Sender unit bolt snapped. Yay.