Adventures with a 68 Mini

[MiniDave]

Wow, that looks familiar.....you're doing a great job!   

[blaked]

Some progress from last weekend. Fitted a couple closing panels and got most the perimeter of the floor done before depleting the shielding gas. More grinding, welding, and hamering before its done. Companion bin will be next. Does anyone have tips on welding the base of the bin to the floor?

[blaked]

Rear floor panel is complete! Fitted the front and rear slinger brackets and outer sill. Forgot to snag a few pics before closing it up - was really in the groove of just getting it done. This feels like the second big milestone for the car (with the first being the front end). Next up companion bin and boot floor!

[MiniDave]

You're killing it! Looks great....

[blaked]

Another big weekend in the garage. Completed the plug welds on the outer sill, installed the companion bin, installed the ashtray, and test fit the boot floor. Really happy with how the boot floor is lining up with the bins, heel board and wheel arches. Shocking actually. With respect to the companion bin, I cheated a little and did fillet welds on what will be the vehicle's noticeable interior. I attempted to weld the flange from inside the bin; however, after one attempt I definitively concluded this was not the way for me. Perhaps possible for someone with actual skill in the craft. Certainly, I would have made a huge mess with poor quality welds in an unreachable location. Ultimately i'm happy with the outcome.

[blaked]

Spent the last month redoing the previous owners shotty repair work on the seat back including a rebuild of a portion of the flange that mates to the boot floor. Then I  cut out the stiffener bracket (betwen seat back and shock absorber turret) and cleaned all the mating flanges for to accept the boot floor. After much effort the boot floor is nearly in the final resting place. I wanted to test fit the large panel before welding in the new stiffener bracket and repairing the rear arches. Maybe another month before the boot floor actually goes in.

Question for the group - the new boot floor panel has several 1" or so diameter holes - 2 where the spare would go and 2 on seat pan. Would anyone recommend filling these? Ive never had a mini with a solid boot floor and intuitively i wouldn't think holes in the floor are a good idea.

Also threw in a pic of the outer sill after finish welds and grinding.

[94touring]

The boot floor holes are really for water drainage or fuel with the tank back there should you get a leak.  As easy as it is to weld them closed, I'd still just use the appropriate grommets. Customer car in the shop didn't have his fuel sensor unit sealing properly unbeknownst to me. I added 6 gallons of fuel and suddenly had it pouring from the holes which I hadn't added grommets to yet.