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Wolseley needs new home.*bran find* not Focus, KA,Corsa, Vibrator


D Spares & Tyres

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There is mention of this somewhere but I can't find it so thought it could use its own thread. Its not really shite but although I am fixing it up, it is definitely not a restoration,just getting it back in the road in a useable condition. Lots of welding needed but no bodges, I don't want the rust coming straight through. post-19511-0-93780000-1511462693_thumb.jpg

 

Bought by me around four years ago, I parked it outside for two years and bought it home after that to start work on it but it got ignored for a year or so.

 

It started life in burgundy but I decided to paint the lower half white or cream to brighten it up.post-19511-0-35462800-1511462860_thumb.jpg

I can only work on one side at a time due to the size of my garage but that's fine with me, I have been doing one panel at a time to help with moral. If I stripped the whole thing down it would look too daunting.post-19511-0-37472800-1511463028_thumb.jpg

So I painted the front wing after many hours welding it. Virtually remanufactured the drivers side front panel but winter came before I could paint it so I decided it was time to turn the car around and start welding the other side... Painted it black just to keep the damp out.post-19511-0-70744900-1511463192_thumb.jpg

You may notice the side is white but the wing is cream. I'm just experimenting with colours and will paint it all again next yearpost-19511-0-46733900-1511463274_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-60736100-1511463301_thumb.jpg

Back in the garage now, it makes a change to see it this way round although it does look sorry for itselfpost-19511-0-12875900-1511463404_thumb.jpg

My little lad has renamed it the Holesley for obvious reasons...

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Some welding pictures. I tend not to take photos as I'm going along, but here's a few of some rot and some repairspost-19511-0-27369600-1511464002_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-65825200-1511464026_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-66457100-1511464059_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-13217700-1511464095_thumb.jpg

Annoying having to cut away decent metal to get to rot but this was the best way to get to the rotten chassispost-19511-0-13740500-1511464182_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-81980300-1511464202_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-66000200-1511464233_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-11103600-1511464264_thumb.jpg

No idea if you can buy replacement arches but its as easy to make my own and far more cost effective! Sealed them with some fibreglass filler. It can be painted as soon as it gets warm again in the spring. Until then it can look bodged, but I know the truth.

 

Done loads if welding underneath but you don't need to see all that.

 

Will have a go at the sill end next...post-19511-0-92484300-1511465312_thumb.jpg

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Opened the front garage door to find the Wolseley looking a bit shifty.

 

What is it up to? No wonder it looks so rough....post-19511-0-01972300-1511781228_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-37959800-1511781245_thumb.jpg

 

Turns out to be filler dust that had collected in the bumper over rider. The bungy has slipped and all the suspicious looking white powder has fallen on the floor in a neat little pile...

 

More updates later, I'm going to try to finish the n/s/r corner of the car today and put the back end back on wheels

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Today I started with the rot on the end if the sill, it wasn't that bad. Its on its original sills. Well mostlypost-19511-0-17195400-1511816857_thumb.jpg

Cut a bit of old washing machine to fitpost-19511-0-50818600-1511816895_thumb.jpg

That'll do. I'll paint it then fill and paint properly next yearpost-19511-0-28826300-1511816973_thumb.jpg

Time to move onto other areaspost-19511-0-89386300-1511817030_thumb.jpg

Yep that's a bit past its best, post-19511-0-19566400-1511817083_thumb.jpg

Every time I measure and cut a plate it ends up wrong so I put the remains on the new metal and spray over it with an aerosol, then I know approximately where to cutpost-19511-0-09573200-1511817182_thumb.jpg

Good enough for me apart from one bit that looked solid but was too thin to world properly so had to cut an extra small platepost-19511-0-79854800-1511817259_thumb.jpg

Found some filler that was put in the floor years before I had it. This bodge lasted quite well! I strangely enjoy finding ancient bodgespost-19511-0-67347300-1511817375_thumb.jpg

That's it for today. I'll do a couple more hours on it tomorrow.

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I've raced  few of these in my time............Sorry.

I've raced a Cortina, Escort, Capri, Triumph Acclaim, Maestro, Civic, Lada Riva. They were all worthless old cars at the time, although the Cortina was too good to race really and just on the verge of being a classic.

 

Had far more fun racing that than restoring the Wolseley though! That was years ago. This is my penance I suppose

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More restorations should aim for just 'getting it back on the road!' Good luck with it. I've always found these rather charming. Go well in Riley tune too...

Excellent stuff, Mr D.    Putting something like this back on the road inevitably hides the amount of work involved.   Well worthwhile.

Hours and hours of graft that doesn't really show! Some of the work I have done looks a little shoddy. For instance the rotten floorpans have been replaced with flat steel rather than the fluted originals to save money and time. I've hammered ridges in for strength though but if you look underneath its really obvious where I've skimped. If I was after perfection though, it would never get done

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How do you find using old washing machines compared to some fresh zintec sheet. I have heard washing machine steel is galvanized which is good for rust protection but not so conducive to being welded.

I just use the sides which are powder coated I think. Or just whatever steel I can find. I'm out of washing machine so an Audi A3 bonnet is next in line to get butchered

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Great work - I shudder to think of the underneath TBH. Another on my 'lovely old English cars' that I've shied away from due to a. the crap I've already got   and  b. they apparently rust even more than my exhibits a.!!!!

Two tone would really suit this......

Crack on good sir........

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Great work - I shudder to think of the underneath TBH

Its not as bad as it could be. Although today I have found rot in one of the main chassis rails that run most of the length of the car. It is rotten by the gearbox cross member. There is an lazy part of me that just wants to patch it up and weld the chassis to the crossmember but I must resist the demons from my past... Tomorrow I shall try to remove the crossmember without snapping all the bolts...

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Today's work:post-19511-0-26826800-1511991630_thumb.jpgpost-19511-0-52769100-1511991652_thumb.jpg

 

Made up the main chassis rail. The bottom section was rotten as was the lower inch of the sides. I enjoy welding steel of this thickness, its much more pleasant than welding thin body panels. No washing machines were harmed today, I got some thick steel offcuts from my local fabricator

 

Looks better with paint. I didn't tidy up the welds with the linisher, it was getting a bit late for making a racket. post-19511-0-94382000-1511992016_thumb.jpg

 

I have to cut away more good steel tomorrow from inside the car to access the top of the crossmember bolts and weld them in place.

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