I've decided to combine all my future projects into one thread. So here goes...
Today took on an early 80s that has a variety of problem areas. I use to own this car about 10 years ago.
Poking around
...
Front end dismantle.
Had some time yesterday to dig back into this wing area.
How do you like the new welder, now that you've had a chance to work with it?
It's great, easier to weld and cleaner welds. Took me a trial period to get a regulator that worked properly. I need an extension on my chord to reach the very far end, but that's not a big issue really.
Is the entire front end on, or just sitting in place? If its on, I don't know how you do it
That's just the first trial fitment. I'll paint the backside off the car, then reinstall.
...
How's life on Sandy Beach? Any sandcastles yet?
Haven't had to sandblast in awhile.
Tore into the cill on a car today. 3 or 4 layers of metal. What could have been good floors turned into ruined floors with an overcill and then extended metal for absolutely no reason. Trapped water and this is the end result.
Pic of the paint booth put to use.
Shame about the cills. Scary how much is hidden from the eye.
Paint booth looks great though, no more flies on fresh paint I'm guessing!
More rust = more money ;D.
Less risk for bugs but primarily keeps my shop clean from overspray. No more hanging plastic over 6 cars.
Quote from: 94touring on October 08, 2016, 08:30:58 PM
Haven't had to sandblast in awhile.
Tore into the cill on a car today. 3 or 4 layers of metal. What could have been good floors turned into ruined floors with an overcill and then extended metal for absolutely no reason. Trapped water and this is the end result.
Pic of the paint booth put to use.
That is an obnoxious ammount rust within those ugly Cills and floors! whew could be overwhelming!
When I first cracked it open. Went hmm that's not good.
Oh geez
Who put the granola flakes in that rocker?
There's a lot of bodge jobs on this one.
Subframe dropped showing the lack of attach panel left.
Everytime I see this photo:
(http://www.restorationmini.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1047.0;attach=5061;image) (http://www.restorationmini.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1047.0;attach=5061;image)
It reminds me of these fish:
(http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc296/minigene/Goldfish_zpsqykmq637.jpg) (http://s216.photobucket.com/user/minigene/media/Goldfish_zpsqykmq637.jpg.html)
Ha good comparison!
Rear subframe and floor pan reconstruction. I mounted a bare subframe to properly align the section of subframe attach panel.
Is this Patton's car or Rusty the Clubby?
Very similar huh! Pattons car. Basically the same job though.
Here's a better view of the magic lol.
A little more today.
Rear valance and bottom of boot floor. Super rotten.
Another side completely rotten.
How far will you get on this car in the next week or so? Ready for paint or at least in primer?
Had time to do anything on Rusty lately?
I see Dooder sent his car off to the shop to see about the broken transmission.
I think I'll have the metal work done this week. Still some tricky spots though. It's been awhile since I've touched rusty but once this car is done I'll have time. Didn't know Dean sent his car in, must have gotten worse?
I don't think he's been able to drive it for a while now......
Pic he posted on FB today.....
(https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/15894449_10158069278995204_3514982176469654598_n.jpg?oh=3c21309f85cae883156c11ea2e38eee5&oe=58ED455D)
One of todays projects.
Hey, what's a few more holes.....eh? ;D
Final outcome...
Eh roof corner.
Isn't that pretty hard to fix? Seems like lots of compound curves to deal with....
Yeah a pita.
So, do you have a spare roof to cut parts from or does someone sell patch panels? Weird that it rusted way up there.....
I have a mk1 corner but it's different, though may work. Otherwise I'll just have to custom make it. Too bad no one sells just a corner. It became this way due to the roof gutter leaking in the corner but more importantly factory foam soaking up water.
Used bits and pieces and made a corner. A little bit of prep and it will turn out very nice.
Nice job on that. How long did that take?
Oh a few hours I guess.
Did you have the piece fabricated before you cut or did you cut and then make it?
Looks ace
I cut out the old and then fabricated to match it, then welded in place with minor tweaking.
Pattons car got some primer today.
Will this one be red too?
Yeah paint matched red.
I think I'm going to stick with white for the Moke when the new body comes in.
Started throwing color at it.
Seems to have a lot of orange in it....is that Tartan red?
Nice to see cars moving thru the shop and getting finished like this.....
It's called skittles red. It's pretty orangy.
Is there a break-in period for RX-7 motors - say to seat the tip seals? Or is it pretty much good to go from first start up?
Yeah the factory had an outline depending on if you use new bearings or using it as a race motor. Everyone else has their own opinions from zero break in to thousands of miles and countless oil changes. Since my housings and irons were reused it should take awhile to build full compression as all the seals bed in. You have apex seals but also corner and side seals. I only have 300 miles on it and at the 500 mark will change the oil and go above 4k rpms and start lightly boosting. I will check compression at that point to see where I'm at. I checked it right after the build and had steady compression across all 6 faces within a few psi, which is a very good thing. Overall was a bit low but to be expected. The main thing is having them all be the same. Piston compression testers also aren't the most accurate way to get readings on a rotary. Kinda tricky.
On the to do list are new disc front and back. My 6 puck clutch and lightweight flywheel has been very easy to drive too.
Today finished off this roof and interior spray.
Put 500 miles on the rx7 so began tuning. Piston compression tester said my engine basically sucks, but butt dyno says otherwise. Burns the tires to shreads in 2nd and blurry vision fast in 3rd. Still some tweaks yet to do. My boost controller or wastegate is acting up.
That's the Patton car? Very orange! 77.gif
It's Pattons. Just not the old faded orange anymore!
Just a few areas that need a little more prep and this one will be painted and ready for reassembly.
Here was the update to skittles.
Jeff is blasting subframes today.
My mirrors fell off and dented my doors. Adding this to the various projects column. The up side is insurance covers it and I happen to know a body guy.
How did you manage to have BOTH mirrors fall off at the same time?
Vandalism. Punched or hit off with some kind of object.
That's truly a shitty move, I'm sorry that happened to you. But it could have been worse, I'm sure she'll be back on the road in no time.
Indeed. But what they didn't factor in was I'll come out ahead since I'm capable of doing the work myself.
Shall we break more stuff and put in on the insurance?
That's just so wrong on so many levels. Find something else to do with your time then destroy someone's property. Glad you'll be able to fix it.
I lost mirrors once. The passenger side was ripped off by a wire I parked to close to and then backing out it caught it and snap. The drivers side, of the same vehicle, later rattled off while driving down the road due to the insane stereo(2 12" subs) I had in it(83 s10), along with the rear view post that eventually cracked in half and fell to the floor. Good times.
Estimate came in at $4850.
I may just end up letting another shop do the work. I could easily slap on new mirrors and paint the doors and fender but...they want to replace the glass to get behind the a pillar to fix a dent, which in turn means painting the whole car since the a panel blends into the body. There's also a few weather strippings they want to replace. About 2 weeks worth of work. So I could do it my way and pocket a bunch of cash but it take me forever since I'm backed up OR have them knock out the whole car. Bonus features are I had a previous ding and scratch on each door that bug the crap out of me and the windshield has a rock chip. Front panel has a lot of rock chips too for that matter.
106.gif
Well, that really stinks, but might as well have them do it all, as long as you have control over the quality of the work done. Just don't let them drive your new engine before you've got it fully broken in.
A few years ago, someone walked on Hyacinth's car. - life in the city, some drunk teenager on a Friday night. A new bonnet, new roof, new rear hatch and associated 'bits' (Toyota Yaris). The car was only 3-months old at the time. We had the dealership take care of the work, as we wanted OEM panels and trim bits.
Now it's starting to rust around the rear wiper, the inner bits of the bonnet and a few spots around the roof antenna.
18.gif
Never F*ck with another mans vehicle, it is against the rules.
I guess the silver lining here is you get a nice freshen up on the entire car, and a new windshield.
NWS due to language. But so appropriate.
Today I did all these in one shot.
Those colours looks familiar!
I ended up taking the insurance payout on the rx7. There's a bunch of upgrades I've wanted to do to it and this funds all that. I'll even be trying a new paint line on it that the paint shop says has better coverage. Now to find time...
Note the rx7 mirrors in there too.
Finally got rid of the huge grandma style steering wheel and put in something sporty. Relocated the cruise control that's mounted to the old wheel, and put on my new mirrors so I can see what in the H I'm doing. Life is getting better.
Aside from vikrams doors and boot hinges, I have my rx7 spoiler, and not shown is the orange mini boot hinges and brg 66 s boot lid.
Some Vikram door prep, a headliner started on another car, and my spoiler did up.
Isn't the headliner a 2 man job? don't you have to stretch both sides at once to keep the wrinkles out? I'll be curious to see how this goes....
It's a one man job when you're me! Lol. Heavy duty clips fill in for a 2nd man.
I did manage to find time to install the spoiler while paint dried on other projects. Took some effort to get it positioned properly. I also took out the rear wiper motor and arm which I never use. Weight savings to offset the wing weight right?!
Sounds reasonable. Looks awesome. Favorite rx-7 body.
Back in high school my friend and I turned his 85 gxl-se into a scary beast. Car was fast and handled great, but it never felt planted in the road. Like those jet boats that just skim across the water.
This rx7 is a beast. Plus I'm about to install water/meth injection and crank the boost from 15 to 20psi. I'll need some stickier race tires for that. Already smokes them all of 1st and 2nd and tries to top of 3rd. A few suspension upgrades have been made and a few more on the list. The 3rd gens were nearlyperfection from the factory as is.
Doing brakes on the rx7.
Ummm, shiny bits...
Sadly the other side didn't get done. But I bought an impact wrench to get it done.
Don't use force, get a bigger hammer! ;D
I broke a socket adapter trying to break a bolt free with the breaker bar. Plus no room to swing a hammer.
300ft lbs and some extreme heat later broke the passenger sidr free. Even the disc hub needed beat to hell to pop off. The rears will have to wait till I get Vikram done. I also managed to replace the rear hatch hydraulic arms. No more resting the hatch on my head! Even opens by itself when I pop the lid.
Quote from: gr8kornholio on April 28, 2017, 12:53:55 PM
Sounds reasonable. Looks awesome. Favorite rx-7 body.
Back in high school my friend and I turned his 85 gxl-se into a scary beast. Car was fast and handled great, but it never felt planted in the road. Like those jet boats that just skim across the water.
I used to have a 1987 RX7 that had over 500HP and weighed around 2600 lbs. I had it up to 175 MPH racing a Porsche Carerra GT and I never felt a lack of confidence in that car at speed. Although that car had coil overs, sways and we dialed a rake into it when corner balancing the coil overs for high speed stability.
My 1983 RX7 was the same as your friends at 110ish (terminal velocity in a 110 HP 12A Rotary) it was floating around. It was bone stock though.
Dans car is a beast and once he gets meth in it watch out. Seem like this vandalism deal turned out to be a blessing in disguise for you, I know it ate up some time. That FD is coming along really nice.
http://www.miniguy.com/vehicles/red60primer59/
Cause you can never have too many projects right? It's 2 MK1 minis with loads of parts.
Trust me, I have too many projects. 20.gif
Got this new front end on. Initially the plan was fit it, take it off, and paint it. After the struggle to get it on I'm thinking I'll paint it on the car. This is a stock 99 bumper and the openings are yuge compared to my 94 bumper.
I like the NACA duct in the former (?) headlight cover! 77.gif
Yes, so I did the Efini style body basically, which includes the naca vents, the 99 bumper, and efini badges in place of the Mazda toilet bowl looking badges. Just a minor face lift. Hard to believe it's 23 years old!
A before and after comparison photo.
I know you like the style better and the larger openings are functional, but it's starting to remind me of a previous generation Camaro.....
You'll have to show me cause I know zilch about cameros.
Hes talking about this catfish...
(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/ca/b1/78/cab1787d84d9052a6c1be5d0d34e02f3.jpg)
I suppose kinda the same shape, but that's about it.
Started putting the OKC mini back together.
The rx7 is getting ready to get it's hair did.
Face lift... check. New hair do.... check Fast RED car.... check Midlife crisis here I come! ;D
Few minor blemishes to smooth away.
Came out most excellent. Can't wait to go for a drive.
oooooooooh.........shiny! ;D
Best part of this whole ordeal, aside from getting to buy parts with the insurance payout, was being able to fix a few previous dings that drove me nuts. No more rock chips either!
Looks great.
Quote from: 94touring on May 29, 2017, 02:48:27 PM
No more rock chips either!
Now you've just jinxed yourself.
Yeah, but if it does get chipped up, he knows a cheap body shop..... ;D
BTW, one of the local Mini guys needs some work done on his 94 SPi, how far out are you scheduling work now. I think the rust is minimal, mostly I think he just wants it cleaned up and painted pretty again.
Some pics of the worst areas..
Anywhere it's cracking like that means it needs stripped. The front end looks questionable too. I'm backed up till at least end of summer.
I know you'll need to see it to give a good idea of what all it will take, I just wanted to show you the worst areas, most of it is straight and rust free. A winter project would probably work well for them, but I will have them contact you if/when they want to go ahead with it. They've had quotes from a couple of local shops but I told them to just bring it to you.
Time to go for a spin!
That looks terrific!
I'm pretty happy with it 4.gif
Bruce dropped his car off for me to have a look at a few areas of concern. So far there's this.
Yeah. More than a little pissed off about that since I was assured the had solid metal and no bondo. Hell, they stripped it down to bare metal before the painting - not that they could miss that. Now i see sombody took the time to mould fake panel seams into the bondo.
That is so terrible. Like I express to others, whatever happened to an honest days work? An honest dollar, your word meaning something. When did we become a civilization of who can screw who over the most. 8.gif
A new experiment when I did my rx7 was trying a clear blender. I decided to try this stuff because when my A pillar was dented, it would require I paint the entire main body to avoid getting a clear coat line. Figured it was worth a shot. It was easy enough to use, requiring you spray it over your clear line each clear coat application. I simply masked off and moved the line back a hair each time. The results on the A pillar were perfect. As luck, or bad luck would have it, yesterday buffing the one fender my pad flew off the buffer and the velcro base instantly took a big gouge out of my new paint. Usually this would mean masking off the fender and just reshooting it. I decided to try the blender again as an experiment. I sanded down the gouged area, to my surprise it didn't dig into the paint. This means all that's needed is a clear application. In the photo you can still catch a glimpse of scratch even after I hit it with 600 grit. I used my air brush and gave it a few coats of clear to build it back up, using the blender each time. Came back this morning and color sanded and buffed and there's zero trace of anything.
Looks perfect.
That stuff is great axalta bought imron Im glad they kept that around, u pol also has one that is good.
We used to do it with straight reducer in another gun it worked but not as well as the blending solvent. The blending stuff seems to be relly hot and melt it right in.
The other way is to 1000 sand the clear prep area and then spray a back mask soft clear line then sand that edge down right away while soft, let it dry another few days then 1500 grit the edge then buff it will disappear but you need to have enough factory clear on it for this method.
we blend the shit out of clear because what else do you do on a 45 foot motor home side wall it's not feasible to paint the whole side.
It's definetly a good product to have on the shelf.
Here's some Bruce pics. I had a little time yesterday to dig further. He also sent pics of the build which helped give me an idea as well. This right wing had a ton of filler around the front. After digging in I'm not entirely sure why. Aside from the one hole I found on the initial dig, the base metal was all there, just a bit rough looking. Almost all the spot welds were broken as well. Since the wing overall was in great shape and I had a front section of new wing on the shelf, I went ahead and grafted in a section.
Poor Emma has a black eye! I'm sure she will heal and Dan will have her looking perfect again.
That RX7.... Sweet looking!
Could all the broken spotwelds have something to do with why it won't line up properly with the subframe?
Quote from: MiniDave on June 06, 2017, 07:19:38 AM
Could all the broken spotwelds have something to do with why it won't line up properly with the subframe?
That is exactly what I asked.
Actually no, those didn't effect anything. I was able to shift the front end over about the quarter inch it needed to move to line the holes up. Had to get creative, but it's as close as it's going to get. Should have taken a before photo, but it really wasn't lined up at all. Bruce must have had a hell of a time getting those half inch bolts through.
I sure did! Took many, many cuss words.
Had some time to finish the welds and grind it all down.
How far will you go with the new paint, to the seam and the whole front end? Looks like liberal use of stone chip under the bumper and on the valance?
Well with everything else that's being done with flares and plugging old flare holes, basically the whole car minus the roof and windscreen surround. Found a bunch of orbital sand marks on the bonnet, so fixing it too.
Merlin/Justin fabbed up wheel dollies. Bruce's car is the guinnie pig. They work quite well actually. Need to put your weight into the front a little but easily doable. Floors must be clean and crack free.
I really like this idea but I would need large rubber tired casters to move on my cracked, broken up floor.
Don just bought a set of dollies for his garage, with the addition of the Midget roadster he'll need them to get everything in his garage when winter comes. His have a jack handle to raise the car up.....
He bought four of these, but they were on sale for half price.....
https://www.harborfreight.com/1250-lb-capacity-vehicle-positioning-wheel-dolly-62234.html (https://www.harborfreight.com/1250-lb-capacity-vehicle-positioning-wheel-dolly-62234.html)
(https://shop.harborfreight.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/i/m/image_26579.jpg)
Dan, how do the new castors slide? What reduces the friction?
They have ball bearings on each one. We discussed how to improve them just a hair. Right now they have 3 bearings per, and it may be better to have 2 directly down from the wheel studs. As it is now the 3rd one may or may not take much load depending on camber, and 2 would eliminate some drag when rolling. I do like them a good bit as is too. Easy lugging your vat around.
Did up my water/meth injection today. Fabbed up a mount for the reservoir and then it was a matter of running wires and hoses every where. Started tuning and I'm still pulling fuel out. Started off so rich it would fall flat on it's face. Anything richer tjan 10:5 and it's not happy. Currently hanging in the mid to high 10s and trying to keep boost steady at 20psi. Having some fluctuation issues. Either way it's fast and loud. Oh and it's 60cc direct to the turbo and 625cc on the elbow.
Back to my day job today, which means sitting around drinking coffee pondering car stuff. Inevitably this means I buy things. Trying a new set of springs on the rx7 to go along with the adjustable front shocks I've neglected to buy since doing the rears over a year ago. My rubber shock mounts were worn on thr rear and I replaced those, now the fronts are and getting replaced. Also ditching this electric boost controller I've grown to hate and going to try to manually control the wastegate to see if I can get some consistency.
Manual boost controller installed. Took me awhile to get it hooked up properly, as there were no instructions and online diagrams were not consistent. Boost seems to be steady now. Only gripe is it's sensitive between the clicks on the controller knob. 4 clicks in is 18/19 psi, but click 5 hits 23psi. Does have an allen key to lock the knob so maybe I can fine tune between the clicks. I wouldn't mind running 23psi but I hit fuel cut, or it floods out or something. Happens too quick for me to see what my air/fuel is.
Otherwise started laying carpet in a car and got new visors to go with the new headliner.
That went in well!
How do you ever get all the body dust out of one of these when it's done - one that you don't take all the way to bare metal top and bottom and put on the rotisserie?
I just end up doing a thorough cleaning at the end. His dash is filthy and I'm sure the seats that go back in are too.
Is your boost knob a potentiometer a multi position switch? If it was a the first, we could put in a trim pot to adjust pressure between positions.
It's a spring and ball mechanical unit. I found a diagram from the maker of my wastegate with way they say route lines. So tomorrow will try it out.
Right, MECHANICAL. Missed that bit.
Shock, spring, and bumpstop day. Old bump stops were non existent.
Also put on the sway bars. These springs are stiffer than what came off, plus the adjustable shocks tighten it up. With the new bump stops it actually rides smoother though.
Just an FYI, I'm totally in love with your FD. It's one of my all time favourite cars, and extremely hard to find LHD in Canada these days.
RHD versions are a dime a dozen up here, but still cost >$15k CAD. I saw a bone stock LHD go for >$40k.
They are becoming hard to find here too, at least for one that's in good shape. Prices just keep going up on them too. Going to try to get an alignment today after I fiddle with a few things from yesterday.
Yea I think the latest low mileage example on BaT went for 32K or so.
Finally fixed the boost problem. The diaphram wasn't torn, but two of the four tiny hex screws that hold the diaphram body to the plunger had worked themselves off. This allowed a leak, which in turn caused crazy boost. Probably why my engine blew to begin with.
OK, problem found and corrected.....time to do some tuning and driving. 62.gif
I made easily 30 pulls after fixing this. I have 10psi to 19psi tuned pretty nicely. Going to put in the bigger nozzle pre turbo and do 19-23 psi tomorrow. 19 is when the pre turbo nozzle kicks in. I hooked the electric boost controller back up and debating what low boost to go with.
Finished up some interior.
That car is about ready to go home....... 4.gif
After he saw the pics he decided may as well add new door cards, so ordering those now.
I wish my car's headliner looked that good.
I looked at yours and seemed fine to me 8.gif
Maybe I'm remembering wrong.
Dug deeper into the rx7 tuning. I couldn't get it above 21-22psi. It would fall flat on it's face and occasionally have bad ignition breakup, presumably from the 800cc of water/meth at that level. Decided I'd buy new coils as these for all I know are the originals and are prone to loose their punch over time. Pretty confident that will fix any ignition breakup. As far as the car falling on it's face after 21psi, I did some research and found that the computer I run has a setting where it fuel cuts at a specified psi. Opened up my laptop and found my fuel cut was set for 22psi. Problem solved!
Couple pics of Bruce's car.
Nice and shiny - even without the clearcoat yet.
Maybe it's the color, but that's 3 coats of clear. As shiny as it gets!
Do you cut and buff the clear or is it good to go right out of the gun?
Quote from: 94touring on July 12, 2017, 05:06:41 PM
Maybe it's the color, but that's 3 coats of clear. As shiny as it gets!
Oh, it looks plenty shiny. But when you said you might not have to color sand it, I took it literally thinking only the color had been laid down so far.
I meant it sprayed out so good I may not need to color sand out imperfections like minor orange peel or dust nubs.
Tear down for the respray.
I can't wait to see her with her new wheel arches.
Here's some masking pics for the others to see.
You're shooting the whole car then? I thought you were just doing the front and boot lid.....
Minus the roof, doors, front scuttle... Kinda have to paint the whole thing when plugging holes from the old flares.
Some updates on Bruce's car. The minor rear window rust was spread out further than anticipated. All the flares are fitted and rrady to go back on after paint. Both front wing seams are cleaned and properly sealed. Knocked down a lot of filler which had caused cracking.
How are you liking those wheel stands?
Work good though we determined that one ortwo bigger bearings would be better than three to reduce rolling friction.
Sanding and sanding and more sanding. Did I mention sanding.
UH, Houston, do we have a problem?
His car is Pepper white (new MINI color) IIRC
That's white primer Dave. The previous shop used white also, so this helps blend just that much better. No problems in Houston.
Aha! What I don't know about painting cars could fill a library! ::) 8.gif
Got Bruce knocked out in the paint department.
Emma is looking very good indeed!
Came a long way!
It sure did. All that bondo on the right front wing was a big surprise to me.
Front shield in. 35 minutes flat! I spent more time getting the ribber on the lip and centered up than it took to get the glass actually in.
Brand new housings for the next monster rotary build.
You need to port them first?
Yep. I've got the porting templates and the carbide burrs all ready to go.
I'm getting probably as excited as Bruce is to get his car back and see it in person. Really hoping to get this vibration issue with mine fixed and get out and do some proper driving 71.gif
4.gif rotary build
Couple more pics. We ended up painting the doors. Car was done in single stage originally and just didn't have the same effect without doing the whole car in base/clear.
Today I got Bruce color sanded up and ready for a buff. I need tp replenish some supplies before I finish it off but here's a wing.
Started porting some rotary irons. So far so good.
Some exhaust porting.
Do you make house calls for windshield installs? :D
I can't find anyone to do this windshield on this 73 Mini.......the guy recommended to me broke two appointments - hell the first time he no-showed and no-called - and I told him to pound sand the third time.
Quote from: 94touring on August 24, 2017, 11:38:26 AM
Today I got Bruce color sanded up and ready for a buff. I need tp replenish some supplies before I finish it off but here's a wing.
I know that right front wing is composed of two parts welded together, but you sure can't tell based on the perfect reflections. Very nice!
Quote from: MiniDave on August 24, 2017, 02:08:15 PM
Do you make house calls for windshield installs? :D
I can't find anyone to do this windshield on this 73 Mini.......the guy recommended to me broke two appointments - hell the first time he no-showed and no-called - and I told him to pound sand the third time.
That sucks! Haul them cars down here and I'll knock them out!
Bruce- unless you stick your head inside the wheel well and see the stiches and fresh paint, you'd never know.
You text me about intake porting. You want my response here? I know a LOT about this subject having made my intake 25% larger before anyone was doing it.
Will respond tomorrow I am beat, I am getting up every morning at 05:15 to head to gym.
My life is insane right now
I'll update the rotary stuff later. Here's Bruce's finished product minus me putting some chrome back on.
She looks fantastic! Much better than when she rolled into Dan's shop.
I really like the look of the new flares too. I am pumped about getting her back home soon and enjoying my refurbished Mini!
Dan, did you ever consider making up a sticker or decal for your business? I'd be proud to show one on my car.
LOOKS FABULOUS!! 4.gif
Quote from: BruceK on August 31, 2017, 02:46:26 PM
She looks fantastic! Much better than when she rolled into Dan's shop.
I really like the look of the new flares too. I am pumped about getting her back home soon and enjoying my refurbished Mini!
Dan, did you ever consider making up a sticker or decal for your business? I'd be proud to show one on my car.
I haven't. Mainly cause I'm too busy to come up with anything, plus I'm trying to work less on other people's projects and more on my own. I can't get anything done! Lol
Another pic on the show room floor.
Anybody know a graphic designer or artist who can create a business logo for Dan? Once you have the design or artwork it's very easy to get a run of stickers or decals made.
Emma looks awesome!
I'd be happy to have one on my car too, but I don't want to overburden Dan with work anymore than he already is! :-)
What would you have for a logo?
Almost forgot about the door issues I had today. Went tp roll down the passenger door to put the mirror on and all hell broke loose. Thought the one rail had fallen off, which it did, but also found that the rubber had twisted up inside the door. However the main culprit was the door mechanism popped off the track. In order to fix it required taking it out of the door, drilling out 2 rivets that hold a plate over the teeth, then simply placing the terth back where they needed to go, put the plate back, and reassemble. I gave the plate a few hits with the hammer to make it more snug with the gears so they are less prone to slipping off again.
Exactly what I had to do with the '73 Mini......
If Dan or anyone has a logo idea, my misses is pretty crafty. I'll mention it and see if she has any ideas.
Quote from: MiniDave on August 31, 2017, 05:02:36 PM
Exactly what I had to do with the '73 Mini......
Took me a couple hours of fiddling and investigating before I had it all worked out. It helped I have a spare guts to a door I could look at to figure out what went wrong.
So rotaries. Finished all my porting this evening. I've also come across a company that makes some go fast parts for rotaries. Suffice it to say I'll be dumping money when I pull the motor eventually on this intake system they make. They bore out the throttle body much larger, then offer their own lower and upper manifolds that are 35% bigger in the airflow department. Also the manifold is setup to accept 4 injectors, rather than the stock 2. Gives me the option to run a better fuel system basically. Power wise it was dyno tested on a 13b at 14psi and the results looking at the graphs they posted were at minimum 25rwhp gain throughout the whole powerband, 50 more at peak (375 to 425) and at 8k rpms the power was previously roughly 315 and went up to 415...gained 100 there!
Final photo.
Ok Bruce, you can't park next to my mini anymore. That looks awesome 77.gif
Bruce's modified tow bar. No longer crooked and got to ditch the 8 inch long bolts for 4 inchers. The previous tube spacers also had a lot of slop for the bolts to shift around in. I use a series of spacers that overlap one another and fit snuggly over the bolt, creates a beefy mid section. The spacers fit perfectly into the front end panel recess as well. From there it was just a matter of making up some brackets to go with his tow bar.
Where did you find the spacers?
Looks strong now, should tow nicely.....is that the cross bar Justin cut out?
Yep, I can see the "tescorp" still written on it.
Lowe's carries them. I could probably weld the outside sleeve together if I really wanted.
It looks great! Much better than the old towbar arrangement.
Quote from: 94touring on September 06, 2017, 06:02:26 PM
Lowe's carries them. I could probably weld the outside sleeve together if I really wanted.
What was the final length?
Decided to get fancy and weld on the washers to make one solid piece. Also easier to install.
Edit: and Justin the diameter is equally important.
When I had the tow bar support done for the Moke, we used 1/2" ID 'black pipe' cut to the appropriate length and welded to the backside of the support brace.
Welding the spacers to the support bar works for the Moke as it does not have the license plate brackets to interfere with installing.
Each side needed 3 washers for just the right length. It's nice welding them to the spacers because it gives a good foot to disperse force.
Door day.
Which car is this for?
Okc car for Patton.
Clearancing side seals today too.
My Mini is now appearing on the Home page? Woo-hoo! Hit the big time! 4.gif
I've been bad about updating anything lol
The fairwell photo.
Just arrived home after towing Emma down from Dan's shop this morning. By the way, she looks wonderful in person. 77.gif Fantastic job! And the new tow hitch worked.... well.... without a hitch as they say.
Have you tried the disassembly yet?
No. I will remove it tomorrow.
Well good luck at the car show! Maybe you'll win 1st place 77.gif
Thanks! I will share the event here.
Quote from: BruceK on September 09, 2017, 05:16:51 PM
No. I will remove it tomorrow.
The new towbar was easily removed today (other than some parts sticking together because it was freshly painted!). And the normal front subframe bolts slid into place no problem - big improvement on that car
The only issue is the outer edge of the front tires rub the new flares when starting a turn. Dan saw that was going to happen and relieved part of the fiberglass to help mitigate that but it's still happening. So either I put up with it and see if the tires or flares wear away, or grind away more flare material, or raise the suspension. I really don't want to do that - the main reason of changing to these WP style flares was to be able to lower the car.
Raising the car up might not help, rather it just moves the problem down to a lower place on the flare.....had the same problem with Buzz....same flares.
Seems like the wheels are a little far forward in the wheel opening, but the only way to move them back will change the caster.
If you could shave away a bit more of the inside edge and have it not rub, I'd go that route
I probably should have tossed a few sand bags in when I was doing my trimming! I'd just cut more out. I looked at mine at 0 dark 30 when parking on my way to work after thinking about our convo the other day, and mine are cut much further in and up than what I did on yours.
The other thing you may want to consider if you decide to lower it much further is taking a cut off wheel and trimming off the area where the wheel was previously rubbing the wing lip. The shiney area where it has rubbed is what you'd want to cut out.
What about the body shims between the front panel and subframe?
The caster is fixed to the subframe - that is where the control arms mount. The factory often used shim plates between the front valance and the subframe to "stretch" the wheel opening for rubbing issues.
You may still have to do the trimming Dan indicates, but might be able to minimize the trimming with a couple of shims.
Thanks Michael, but after all the front end panel work Dan did to my car, not to mention the painting of said panels, I don't think I want to try moving sheetmetal around. I'd rather attack the flare and/or adjust the height.
He has the standard later model spacers affixed to the front end panel that sandwich against the subframe when you torque down the eye bolts.
Dan answered the question - the shims are already in use.
Next on deck is just bought a 2 year old barely used harness for the rx7. As mine turns 24 years old and 100k miles they get crispy and begin to break down. However the other important reason is I'm doing a single turbo harness simplification. This involves depinning and taking out tons of unused clips and wires that go unused from the stock configuration. They came with the "rats nest" and some 100 feet of silicon hoses for the complicated twin turbos. Trying to keep things as clean as possible. After I unwrap this new harness I'll use some high temp engine bay wrap and do it up nice to hopefully have it in tip top shape for another 25 years+
Wiring spaghetti. YUM!
It should look like this when I'm done, and hopefully work!
A friend of mine is building a DF Goblin, (sort of an Ariel Atom type thing) and they have a terrific series of build videos.....the donor is a Chevy Malibu (??) and in one of the videos (actually I think it's 4 or 5 videos!) they redo the harness like this, it was pretty interesting to see them pluck the unneeded stuff out and what they wound up with......same process you'll be doing.
Yeah when I installed the last engine and hooked up the old harness I thought...boy this is cluttered with unused stuff. Just nice to keep it simple and clean. Easier hooking things back up too instead of wondering if you forgot something.
Harbor freight 12 ton press #60604 review.
Bought it over labor day for 25 percent off. There's a few things on it I'll weld to make it stronger just cause, but otherwise easy to assemble and worked great on some rotors I needed to press bearings on. Also bought some bearing races from HF. The specific one I needed from Atkins rotary to do this job was $80. So $40 later on a race set, there was one that would suffice...though I had to put it on my drill press and turn it down to get it to fit perfectly. No big deal.
I have the 20 ton version of this press I bought off of CL for $95, a fellow bought it to press some axle bearings on his Mustang and didn't need it again after that so - his loss my gain! I use mine all the time and while it does take up some floor space, it's so handy to have! I shortened the real legs so it would fit up closer to the wall but it's still plenty stable.
Yeah one use and it's already paid for itself. I looked at the 20 ton but it had a hefty frieght charge since I had to order online. The 12 ton was 6 bucks shipped. I figure if I ever need more than 12 I can put a 20 on and weld on some supports.
That press is slick, I love that you are diving into a hard core rebuild.
Good luck sir!
My deep down rotardism is cheering for you.
I'll post up my rotary engine rebuild bench tomorrow. I do have an engine stand on the way, but the bench is so cool I just want to have it there for viewings lol.
The engine parts table.
(http://www.restorationmini.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1047.0;attach=7719;image)
When I build my project car I'll have a similar task, removing air bag harnesses, ABS wires, all sorts of extra and unneeded circuits and systems....but I'll have to do the whole car harness not just the engine - if I want to use the HVAC and instruments and such from the donor car.
Luckily for me others have done it before so I have diagrams to go by.
I'm going to buy a factory wiring schematic.....that's the other reason I want to use a Fiesta for a donor, less complicated electronics - fewer options.
Dan,
I'm just wondering how you can get such a smooth finish on a drill press? How much material were you taking off?
I took about 2mm off the inner ring and maybe 1mm off the outer. I used the corner of a file to take the bulk off, then used 40 grit paper, 80, 120, and then 320 wet.
Cobbled together brackets for the engine stand to work with a rotary.
I will have to take my time reading through this whole thread.. looks like some good info.
Don't get confused....Minis don't have rotary engines! ;D
Quote from: 94touring on September 19, 2017, 11:16:01 AM
Cobbled together brackets for the engine stand to work with a rotary.
I've seen photos of rotary engines for 40 years, but I never saw one disassembled in person until Dan showed me his engine last week. What struck me was the size of the rotors - for some reason I thought they were much larger - all the photos I've seen have no point of reference as to size. I was surprised to see that you could stretch out the fingers of your hand and pretty much cover up a rotor.
Started in on this harness. Very tedious so far.
Quote from: BruceK on September 19, 2017, 06:37:08 PM
Quote from: 94touring on September 19, 2017, 11:16:01 AM
Cobbled together brackets for the engine stand to work with a rotary.
I've seen photos of rotary engines for 40 years, but I never saw one disassembled in person until Dan showed me his engine last week. What struck me was the size of the rotors - for some reason I thought they were much larger - all the photos I've seen have no point of reference as to size. I was surprised to see that you could stretch out the fingers of your hand and pretty much cover up a rotor.
Bruce, we have one on a stand at school and I never could quite visualize how it all worked - ours has an electric motor attached and you can run it at slow speed and once you see if moving, it all becomes clear. If you think of each lobe of the rotor as the top of a piston, that's a pretty good amount of volume - and because each lobe fires on every revolution, with a 2 rotor engine it's like having a 6 cylinder 2 stroke......even tho it goes thru 4 "strokes" each revolution too. Genius!
They are tiny, compared to normal engines. I remember when we removed all the stuff from my friends gen1 and realized just how little in the engine bay was actually engine.
Cut out everything on the harness I think. A few wire colors don't jive with the book so I'll need to go though my current harness on the car and verify I didn't cut out something I need. In the meantime I left the wires and pins in and zip tied together off to the side before I wrap it all back up. I must have taken half of the plugs out. I do have 6 new injector plugs coming for an improved setup I intend to run. This goes on the back burner till I save up for that though.
And...it was time to order sand paper for the shop. Was running low on 40, 80, and 2000 grit. I forget how expensive it is 100 sheets at a time. :-\
Can we install your existing engine in a mini after the new one goes into the RX7?
Lol no, it gets redone to bump up the compression and sits on the shelf as a very expensive spare till I need it. However, can we schedule a time to grab that 1275 on your former employers shelf? The pickup truck begins paint soon! By soon I'm thinking February. Gotta squeeze your truck in.
If you want to put a date on the painting, then Ill make sure you have all the parts at that time.
I will try to pick that 1275 up today.
Quote from: Merlin on September 22, 2017, 08:22:34 AM
If you want to put a date on the painting, then Ill make sure you have all the parts at that time.
I will try to pick that 1275 up today.
I absolutely have to get the orange mini done and gone and get cracking on the 66 suspension so my customers don't get pissed. The 66 wouldn't even be here but took on the work for my idiot cousin. Nothing like 3 car builds, a full time job, house remodel, and no help. Finished rebuilding doors for the orange mini, which was the end of it. Those will be painted soon and then button things up. It's nice getting shop space freed back up!
Merlin's "former employer"?
And no way, the Pup is actually going to get painted? After only 10 years? ;D
He got a new employer ;D
Quote
Nothing like 3 car builds, a full time job, house remodel, and no help.
Unfortunately your probably in the middle, location wise of all your help. We should organize a mini meet at your place and bang some stuff out. I love to learn while working. Body work I'm new at, suspensions I know pretty well.
Door week. Hopefully just one more day of sanding.
On the door in the foreground, what it the tape wrapped piece sticking up where the window glass normally would be?
It's the rubber. Easier than removing. The other door rubber was split and I stuffed it in the door.
Will have to mount these next week.
Holey smokes, that's some serious rust
Adding this here. I know I'll be looking for a hood for this thing and maybe the proper intake cover.
1950 Crosley Hotshot
Powel Crosley Jr. made a fortune during the 1920's and 30's manufacturing radios and refrigerators for the masses. In 1939 he introduced the economical Crosley automobile. Following WWII he turned his attention to creating an American sports car. The result was the Crosley Hotshot, introduced in 1949. Powered by a 44 cubic inch, 4 cylinder engine creating 26.5 horsepower, combined with the lightweight body (just 1184 pounds), the Crosley could go! In 1950, a Hotshot won the first Sebring 12-hour endurance race, an amazing accomplishment for the little roadster. The race put Crosley on the map and made the Hotshot a force to be reckoned with on the racing circuit.
Just 835 Hotshots were produced in 1950, with production ending completely by 1952. It was a car ahead of its time.
That is a really cool car. Sort of an American Bugeye Sprite - nearly a decade earlier.
Some of the first makes had disc brakes that were used on aircraft. That was short lived as they froze up in the winter due to salt on the roads. Not sure what this one has on it yet.
Wow. That must be one of the earliest applications of disc brakes! Is there a hood? And I'm asking that in both the American and British senses in the word.
Supposed to have a hood but I don't think he ever sourced one. I'll keep checking ebay and other online sources for something to pop up.
About have one car put back together.
And my mini finally died via crack, dumping 5 quarts of oil in a real hurry.
That crack might be fixable, but you do have another case that could be built up into a good gearbox.
Hope it didn't break the spider gears, that could make the case unusable.......be careful trying to drive it or even flat tow it till you find out if it broke internally.
It is interesting that the crack is in both the main case and the differential case.
I have the used rod-change transmission from the 998 going into the Moke available. It includes the drop gears.
I'm thinking broken spider gears may have caused the cracks.......
Bought Michael's gearbox. This cracked one will now be used for parts or an eventual rebuild based off of what I currently have laying around. Dave probably knows more of what I have gearbox related than I do, lol.
Buffing day.
Only a few minor details left.
That's two for Patton this year? Does he have any more for you to do?
I think the other of his I finished last year technically. Not sure, I hope not lol.
Finally done with this one!
That turned out great, he's got to be happy with that result! 4.gif
Shot out in the sun. It really pops in the light.
Yep......that's orange! ;D
The car looks great!
I like that color, what a surprise huh......
High visibility, for sure! Nice job!
Quote from: Willie_B on November 20, 2017, 06:05:53 PM
I like that color, what a surprise huh......
One of these days we'll get you redone.
In other various projects I built a coffee table. Pretty much a brainless project. Bought a piece of maple chopping block and some legs which I shortened. Applied a couple coats of stain and voila. Jen and I have been undecided on a coffee table for the past year, so why not make it yourself.
Finished off a birch counter top and put in the biggest stainless sink that would fit. Measures 33x22 inches. The bar side is nearing completion once I get the rest of the supplies.
Test fitment of the velocity stacks on new hs4 carbs for the fast road 1275.
A proper before and after shot.
That's a sexy kitchen!
Side 2 of kitchen counters coming together. Bought this stainless unfinished. After some elbow grease sanding it's coming together. Will get a color sand and buff tomorrow lol.
A gaggle of subframes cleaned and ready for paint.
One of these is mine 4.gif
One of those from my 59 pos?
Nah but I was tempted to go ahead and spray it too.
Today was back in the kitchen. I beam came in. Just need to put the bar stools together and finish the trim.
Anything going to cover that electrical box and conduit hanging down on the left side of the picture?
Nope. Have an industrial look.
A deep clean and organization of the shop. Always a good feeling to have the place in order.
that orange mini came out nice
Thanks. The owner was pleased with it too.
In fact he was by yesterday and we ran it for about 15 min, he's getting excited to take it home and drive it!
Here's the new trailer to haul sand and cars with. 16' by 82".
Looks good. Like the security measure.
I have a cable running between the wheels on the other side as well.
Nice, you can almost haul 2 Minis on that!
2 shells would fit pretty well I think. Maybe one roller and one shell. I opted for the extra width to be able to open up doors.
THAT was a great idea, most trailers you either push or winch the car on, otherwise you have to climb out the window.
The price was negligible too. My only other option was buy a 20 foot car hauler without the side rails. That was out of my price range and overkill for size. I actually wanted a 14 footer but this guy didn't have anything in dual axel shorter than 16 foot. His prices were better at 16 than most in the 10 to 14 foot range, so why not go a little longer. The width of a mini should give a lot of room for opening a door. A regular car may be tight. The ramps are 5 feet long but I may lengthen them to help avoid bottoming out.
Went ahead and put on an extension with a little angle thrown in. It makes quite a bit of difference in ramp angle and should help with clearing the floor when driving onto the trailer.
Ordered a winch 20.gif. It will serve 2 vital shop functions. One being it will go on the trailer to assist with non running cars. The other purpose is having it mounted to my shop floor to pull cars back in that are on the rotisserie. Uphill in sand is no easy task. Even after I put in a concrete pad it's a good incline best suited for a winch, rather than yanking, pulling, and pushing. I went with a harbor freight badland 5k lb guy. I read a ton of reviews and after multiple YouTube clips of it pulling cars up steep inclines or huge trucks out of snowy ditches, I was sold...after the 20% discount with shipping and handling to the tune of $167.58. I have a newish spare battery from the mini to power it.
The remote controllers are a great feature, in case you have to go back and turn the wheels as you're pulling or put a chock behind before you stop. That $5 winch mounting plate is cheaper than yo can make one!
One suggestion, if you're going to weld up a mount for the trailer, don't have it at bed level, but up a bit so the wire rope doesn't drag over the end of the trailer. Also, if you're going to weld up a mount think about a modular design that will let you move it easily from the trailer to the floor mount.
One thing you can do is use anchor sets, then it's just a matter of bolting it down to the floor.... I've had good luck with hollow core or drop in anchors both - the drop in are quite a bit cheaper. You can rent a hammer drill if you don't have one but you'll need a 3/4" bit for anchors for 1/2" bolts.
I may fab up something so the mount bolts to the trailer, unbolts and mounts to the floor.
Yeah those hf mounts are so cheap I bought one for fabbing up my rotary engine mount to the engine stand.
You could also fab up a little wheel to guide the cable over the end of the trailer so it doesn't rub as Dave mentioned.
Quote from: gr8kornholio on April 09, 2018, 01:15:52 PM
You could also fab up a little wheel to guide the cable over the end of the trailer so it doesn't rub as Dave mentioned.
I was thinking the same thing. Great minds.
Nice trailer! You can use it to pick up the project Mini I have in storage in Arkansas. :D
We learned yesterday the ramps will puncture holes in a mini floor. To solve this problem I cut some material off at an angle. I took it one step further and welded what I cut off on a calculated point on the ramp to decrease pitch as the front wheels are on the trailer. End result was not impaling Stans car a 2nd time.
Showing off how much room I have to open doors.
Good to see you using safety chains......I'll need to pick up my project car donor at some point this summer.
Quote from: 94touring on April 26, 2018, 08:32:56 AM
Showing off how much room I have to open doors.
Dan,
Where are you hooked up to hold the mini in place? I thought about using straps and going through the wheels to hold the mini down.
Tie rods on the front and subframe in the rear.
Tried out the winch. Mounted on the floor and centered up with the garage door, it was able to pull my 2700lb rx7 in the shop, up the sand dune, over a concrete lip, and with little effort. The battery was the old one out of my mini. I had it on a charger yesterday for today's tryouts.
So yesterday after pulling the 7 in, it was time for some exhaust work. A few years ago when I bought it they had a catback with ginormous tip, which I loath, and a midpipe with no muffler. The end result was a loud as hell rotary. I put on a magnaflow muffler on the rear with tip that I can't fit my head in, and used the old catback section and welded it into the midpipe. Things looked better and sounded a little better. Problem was the midpipe section that I welded in sat a little low since it was a fairly large round canister style, so it would scrape and rub going over certain objects. I bought a new magnaflow muffler to go in it's place. Actually bought the wrong size initially (perfect for a pickup truck if anyone is interested), so new muffler came in and back under the car I went. New muffler is tucked high and tight. No more rubbing thank goodness. Sound wise it maybe dropped a few decibels but nothing too crazy, though I notice less interior rattling, so it made some kind of difference. Still a bit droney cruising so next step is to fit a resonator prior to the catback to hopefully tune out the drone. Read a few articles and that seems to be the winning position.
Another day of exhaust work. Put resonators on both the rx7 and the JCW that was fitted with a straight exhaust when we bought it. Last year fitted a cat off the header which dramatically improved how loud and obnoxious it was, but the catback wasn't hung the best and would hit the bumper and cause tons of rattling. Plus it was still raspy and droney. Today after the resonator install and repositioned catback, all rattles and drone is gone. It actually sounds like a normal car but with some grunt. Jen was pleased. The rx7 was also improved with resonators but still a fairly loud car. Much butter overall though and air/fuel ratios remained the same as well.
Time for new rubber on the 7. My extreme summer tires offer zero traction till 3rd, 5th if damp, so went with a track radial. Proxes r888r in 275/40/17. Almost went full slicks but decided I'd better not. Come highly recommended.
Few new things to report on. Bought a battery charger for the shop. A fancy one from harbor freight. I hooked it up to a battery that's been sitting on my floor dead for 2 years, that's 6 1/2 years old. It went into maintenance mode and after a day said it was fully charged. So put it to the test and pulled my very heavy truck into the shop with it. Didn't flinch. Then I thought I'd test the winch strength even more and put the truck in park. It began to drag the truck across the floor. I think the winch and battery charger will work.
The long line of blood sweat and tears.
Dan,
Is the one that's stripped and in the middle of your last picture gr8kornholio's mini?
If so it sure looks a lot different than the last time I saw it in person.
It is! We have minimal rot. I'll have repair pics soon.
Minimal rot is great news. Can't wait to see the photos.
Mark, is this your new color?
Naked mini in the middle. 4.gif
Looks like you're running a mini assembly line in that picture-LOL
That's what it feels like too!
Just tugged my shell back in. I ditched the steel cable and went with nylon rated for 8k lbs. It's a world easier to work with.
That winch is way bigger than I expected.....
When it said 5k pulling capacity it wasn't joking.
Was able to find a few minutes to tackle my truck brakes. I have a road trip in the mountains coming up and lately the brakes have started to wobble the wheel under hard braking, more so when hot. New rotors and pads went on, old rotors were definetly worn down good. Much better feel now, no wobbles and seems to stop better.
The trailer came in handy this week to go pick up 2 new vanities for our upstairs bathroom. Downstairs remodel is done and now it's the 2nd floor undergoing work. The vanities weighed roughly 500lbs between the both of them. Solid wood, granite, sinks, boxed in cardboard and wood on palets...heavy. Took a fork lift to get them on the trailer. Getting them upstairs was a task, but we did it with some help. Old 1970s vanities out. Jen is pleased.
Quote from: MiniDave on June 06, 2018, 11:27:50 AM
That winch is way bigger than I expected.....
That's what she said!
Giggiddy! 71.gif
Forgot I had this thread. Doing a little work on a 60 shell.
Had to do a little tweaking to the bottom repair panel to get the skin to fit perfectly to the door frame. They only make knockoff repair panels and the lip needed trimmed back. All gaps check good and time to bend the skin lip and weld it up.
Better fit than the factory.
Thanks.
Today was a door on the 68 pickup. It was even worse than the 60 door. Turned out good though.
Back to the 60 shell today. I've noticed I work on each car in the shop a day or two before getting unenthused lol. Good thing I only have 4 to work on to keep the rotation going :-[ Anyways, got the boot floor out that needed replaced and the new section in. Had to order new closing panels and the brackets on the inside also since they ended up mangled beyond use. The closing panels were already not in great shape so best to replace them anyways.
Save the spare tire hold-down bolt and cap from the old floor!
Quote from: MPlayle on January 02, 2021, 04:14:21 PM
Save the spare tire hold-down bolt and cap from the old floor!
Yep, that gets transfered over!
Which reminds me I need a hold down cap for my 60. Anybody have one laying around?
Front subframe torn down to be cleaned up and rebuilt with new parts.
Which car is that for?
I have some straight tie bars if you don't want to straighten those....
I already have new tie bars in the big suspension order. It goes to the pickup for Bill.
The one inner cv joint on the short axle was a real monster to get off. Finally had to put the torch on it for awhile.
I have new inner CV pot joints coming for that engine.....couldn't get it off with the 20 ton press?
Quote from: MiniDave on January 03, 2021, 03:12:26 PM
I have new inner CV pot joints coming for that engine.....couldn't get it off with the 20 ton press?
Too difficult to position on the press so didn't even try. I let it soak for a few minutes in wd40 then went to town with the torch. That one end was rusty and crusty while the others were clean as a whistle.
Clubman is ready to be delivered to Dallas. Engine/subframe combo is available.
Glad it didn't bend in two when you lifted it up - before you welded it up some it probably would have! ::)
Finally got around to painting this 60 shell in Speedwell Blue.
Wow, that turned out great!
What's that I see on the a panel? a reflection or something? Looks like a knob or something?
Edit: Never mind, I figured it out.....that's where the hinges bolt on.
I just happened to forget to tape those holes behind the panel so stuck some rolled up tape in them.
That looks really nice. 77.gif
What are the plans for that one?
Oh to finish other various items and for the owner to come get it! He'll be assembling it once back home.
I'll bet he's excited to be getting these pics with color on it......been a long wait. 77.gif
Indeed it looks great! I am sure they will be excited to be able to get to work putting it back together.
Let's see, paint the bonnet, boot lid and doors, then cut and polish everything.....only another what,.............year's worth of work? ;D
Quote from: MiniDave on February 02, 2022, 03:15:23 PM
Let's see, paint the bonnet, boot lid and doors, then cut and polish everything.....only another what,.............year's worth of work? ;D
Haha yes exactly, it's too much work! I'd rather be flying! Or driving my bus around! Speaking of which this speedwell blue will be what I paint the lower half of the bus. Hopefully have enough leftover from the gallon I had to buy for this mini to spray it too.
Ok well every last bit of this one has been painted and it's ready to go out the door.
That looks great! I so need to get mine repainted they look so much nicer.
That turned out beautiful! Now the owner just has to make it into a car again......another 2 years of work!
Well done. 77.gif
I doubt people realize just how much WORK it is to paint one of these, even one that's already in good shape.
I really like that colour. Almost regretting tweed grey, but I've got an interior color that won't go as well with blue. Speedwell and Island Blue seem to be getting popular for Minis.
Looks good. What was the roof color on that one?
Dave you are so right, I'm on a year and a half but finally seeing the light of getting it on the road.
The roof is new mini pepper white. Goes well on the classic minis.
That's what I was wondering. Yea, Totally agree on that. My interior guy has a houndstooth fabric that is fused to padding so it's not super white which matches the roof color perfectly.
Another car out the door. Sure feels nice!
I've started on another shell that's been on the wait list. Actually one of 2 which are the last ones I'll be doing for other people. It's been rolling around the shop floor for awhile till I had time to start in on it. Fixed up the front left corner the past couple days. Found an old mouse nest inside the cross member.
Quote from: 94touring on July 20, 2022, 05:09:41 PM
Found an old mouse nest inside the cross member.
Neat.
Started cutting away back here. Found some stuff I didn't like and a really bad quarter panel repair where the seams weren't even connected for a section. Instead it was caked with body filler. Had to order a few extra panels repair sections to finish it off.
More on this car.....did the roof paint the past few days. Here's color sand and the after buffing pics.
You do good work, it's shame you are retiring 4.gif ;D
Have to make time to paint all my cars!
A couple patches this past week on a car. Battery box replacement. Don't mind the sand from the sandblaster to clean up surface rust.
Then a floor patch with some inner and outer cill work and a little corner work.
Coming right along, should be done by summer?
Quote from: MiniDave on December 28, 2022, 05:38:42 PMComing right along, should be done by summer?
Probably sooner than that. I have some underside cleaning to do and then just finish prep for paint.
Oh and this was last week...
I've been sandblasting in the paint booth this week. Absolutely miserable job. I found the only way to keep sand out of my eyes...
I have safety glasses on under the goggles as well!
Sandblasting is a nasty task outside of a cabinet for sure. Have you tried a hood style over a hard hat? It can be a pain in the butt if you have to stick your head inside of somewhere.....like the internals of a car, but I have never had much problem with it getting in my eyes at least.
Of course with your get up, you could always try out for a spot in the next start wars film :grin:
Todays work.
Tahiti blue is such a great color!
If his subs and engine are already done, he'll be back on the road by spring.....
Buff day. :040:
Quote from: MiniDave on August 22, 2023, 03:22:41 PMTahiti blue is such a great color!
If his subs and engine are already done, he'll be back on the road by spring.....
Theyre done. I do think I need to pull the rear one apart though as I might have overitghtened the front mounts against the bushings, they appear ever so slightly squished but its enough to make it half a bolt hole narrow when lining it up to the old shell.
Dan, loving this work!!
Door skinning
Finishing up.
Was that black POR?
Yeah PORd them and the bottoms got epoxy where the frame and skin press together. Keeps it preserved from moisture. I'll slosh a little POR in there tomorrow to cover anything towards the bottom I might have missed where the epoxy spreads out.
It's a good thing you're not subjected to drop-in visits by OSHA. If so, they'd be all over you like a cheap suit due to your choice in footwear.
Flip flops and shorts week at the shop!
Headliner day.
Turned out really well!!! :great:
Went well considering it's been a few years since I've done one.
Well that's a wrap on this one.
You do excellent work, paint looks great!
How much assembly are you going to do?
Zero. Aside from do his glass and help him mount pre built subframes.
Taking parts from the old shell and putting on the new.
The rear subframe on this one took a lot of fiddling to get all the bolts to align.
The Rocky Mtn region Mini groups are really active, I'll bet he'll have it on the road by next spring so he can join in on some runs! :steeringwheel:
The rear glass also fit semi lousy. The rubber must have been thicker than what I've used in the past. I have 5 different rear windshields at the shop and all measure the same dimensionally so wasn't the glass.
I've had Daves car in the shop to respray the rest of the body to match the front end repairs made last year since it didn't match properly. Ended up finding a little extra to repair while it's here.
Always more to it than you hope, but worth it in the end!
Here's what you should do before finishing welds and painting the car....fit the door! In Dave's case it was a perfect factory fit. The A panel is heritage and seemed to match as you'd expect, but the flitch repair sections are knockoff. There's always a little doubt as to how well they'll align things up so best to double check before the pain set's in after the job is done.
Daves car got it's face lift completed today. Sure will look amazing once it's all put back together. Perfect for the spring!
Purty!!!!
Color sand and buffing.
Starting to come together nicely. Sure does shine under my shop lights.
Waiting for Dave and Don to arrive. Have it waxed and staged in the shop.
Working on this last shell. Needs a whole lot of everything. I was about to drag out the rotisserie, but found out I can roll it on it's side very easily to work. Having genuine panels on this one has made what little bit I've done go pretty smoothly. Still in the clamp, screw, and bolt phase before I do any welding. I'll need to weld up the side test fitted before cutting out the other corner.
Brant will be so excited to see work getting started on his Mini!
Yeah and it dawned on me the other day he's going rod change, so we ordered a new tunnel and associated cross member. The front foot and half / two feet needed cut out regardless.