Workshop/Project car thread. Hot snot metalwork action

[JMotor]

Time to put some work into this strut tower area.

Chopped more out. As can be seen that old patch was getting quite the coating of rust.

Removed the upper seat catch bracket and cut back to gain a better idea of what needed fixed.

Not pretty is it? 

Ach well. Let's make a start. Cleaned up a small area and started to weld fresh steel in. What I needed was a point to build from.

I've been researching by looking at photos of other cars to see what this area originally looked like. I think, BL also mirrored the pressings for both sides. So maybe the drivers side might give me the references I need?

My attempt at remaking this section won't be fully accurate. If it's close enough, that will do. 

[grogee]

18 hours ago, JMotor said:

Time to put some work into this strut tower area.

Chopped more out. As can be seen that old patch was getting quite the coating of rust.

Removed the upper seat catch bracket and cut back to gain a better idea of what needed fixed.

Not pretty is it? 

Ach well. Let's make a start. Cleaned up a small area and started to weld fresh steel in. What I needed was a point to build from.

I've been researching by looking at photos of other cars to see what this area originally looked like. I think, BL also mirrored the pressings for both sides. So maybe the drivers side might give me the references I need?

My attempt at remaking this section won't be fully accurate. If it's close enough, that will do. 

Probably no help but I can take pics of mine when I get it back from storage on the Spring 

[JMotor]

Cheers for the offer. 

Think I'll have the bulk of it done soon. Well I hope so! 

[JMotor]

Apologies this is a "stuff happened, but doesn't look like much has" post with the Maestro. With a small rant towards the end. 

Dived in with making the first new piece for the strut tower. 

Chopped even more out. The rust had crept in further. Resisting the temptation to chop it all out. Can't rebuild it from fresh air.

So this is what I went with. The easier to form strip at the top. Shall build from and too this, might be a patchwork to redo the shapes. 

Want the inside of car stuff done first. Then rebuild the inner arch strut tower reinforcement thingy. As I'll have something to build on. 

Will it be neat. Nah! No chance. 

Scored a bargain radiator too!

Another Monstro anomaly. These go for silly money! One sat on eBay for £145, plus postage! For a bastard 1300!! 

This one was £45 delivered. 

Why mention this. Well the cooling system when I first got the car was a fucking mess! 

Wrong radiator, bypassed matrix with the pipes to it rusted out and then crafted from epoxy (by me).

This was the last major part which returns this system back to how it should be. I still have to dick about with a bypassed cooling fan switch, which is nothing in the grand scheme of things.

It'll get there. 

Hopefully 😆.

[JMotor]

I wasn't kidding with the patchwork 😆.

It was the only way to replicate the shapes. I don't have the means to make larger shapes in one go. 

All the fresh metal is from leftovers from previous repair panels of other cars I've owned. Stuff I would had normally thrown out. 

I shall continue this method with the rest. Welds will be smoothed down when it's all welded in.

[rm36house]

Great job Sir! You are showing great methodes, something what I will need to use myself. Thank you.

[JMotor]

11 hours ago, rm36house said:

Great job Sir! You are showing great methodes, something what I will need to use myself. Thank you.

Cheers.

Learnt a fair bit from other resto threads on here and other forums. So happy to share my work if it helps someone else as well.

EDIT - That's not my neatest welding on show. Burn through and gap filling was the reason. A flat bit of copper was a VERY useful thing to have. Saved me time instead of making stupid little filler pieces of steel for some gaps.

[JMotor]

Shit picture. 

I'm such a thickwit at the best of times!! 

Anyway. That section is done.

Made templates using the masking tape. Then laid the pattern on to the leftover replacement arch section I used on this car. Might as well use up the unused steel. Keeps the cost down in my mind.

Once welded on. I went over the area with a dust over of primer just to keep the damp off it. 

Tomorrow will be rebuilding the outer side of the arch tub. With the aid of a VERY* technical drawing. 

[JMotor]

Sooo today's work. 

This is the upper portion of the strut tower reinforcement rebuilt. 

I made strips of metal off to make the return flanges and to link to the old piece that was salvageable. Tek screwed those on to the car.  Then filled in the space in-between. Doing this way I could see where I needed to make pieces to fill in the empty space.

As this is thicker steel in this section. Slots had to be cut to help bend and adjust the metal to where it needed to go. Squirted metal to fill them back in. Then a pass with a grinding stone will hide the sins. EDIT- I have to dress the welds down, as they look FUCKING horrble! Looks like a welding practice piece!

Amazingly. I had more scraps of the same thickness metal in my little scrap box. The bulk of the material was an old leftover Corsa B chassis rail repair section 😆. 

Cleaned the arch tub and slapped the red oxide on. 

Same with the area it's covering. Smoothed off the welds where the section fits onto. Then the rest just were lightly rubbed over. They won't be seen and help keep some strength. 

Next week, I'll weld this section back on. Then maybe I can get back to the original job of undersealing the inner tub.