j-j Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 Incredible! Unbelievably good work. Any thoughts on a final paint job? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooters Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 well done - what an effort - fibre glass is nasty stuff when I was a hulking youth I used to make kayaks out of fibreglass to sell to make some cash - 5 years later I was still pulling bits of glass fibre out of my hands...mind you I would have another Scimitar - these wee Rebels are nice wee motors though - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted August 25, 2011 Author Share Posted August 25, 2011 Incredible! Unbelievably good work. Any thoughts on a final paint job? We thought we'd try ratlook! seriously though It will be red again, we've had an offer to spray for nowt / low cost but it will mean getting the car to the IOW...! It will almost certainly go for an mot in its pre paint state and we'll worry about paint / inside once the mechanics and electrics are up to scratch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 Incredible! Unbelievably good work. Any thoughts on a final paint job? We thought we'd try ratlook! seriously though It will be red again, we've had an offer to spray for nowt / low cost but it will mean getting the car to the IOW...! It will almost certainly go for an mot in its pre paint state and we'll worry about paint / inside once the mechanics and electrics are up to scratch.I painted my Peerless with foam rollers and Rustoleum, cheap and easy, but not too quick Linky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted September 6, 2011 Author Share Posted September 6, 2011 I've let the photos showing of progress on the Rebel get a bit behind, These photos show the glassing in of the new steel stiffeners into the body and the work to fit modern seatbelts. Steelwork in channel above side window and over the rear window, A pillar close up, the steelwork ends in the front wing in the same place as reliant had theirs B pillar view Steel support ending in boot, Steelwork overview, We then folded up some steel bar to make mounting points for the seatbelts this photo shows a passenger test bracket fitted, Seatbelt stalks test fitted, Seatbelt overview, Dave made up a new battery tray as the old one had mostly dissolved Its slightly larger to accommodate a scimitar sized battery, With a battery tray and a battery borrowed from the Scimitar we spent some time refitting the electronics. Surprisingly most items came to life without too much trouble. The wiper unit worked and parked nicely, most of the old bulbs were all fine once the connections were cleaned up and even the lucas flasher unit worked! Tail lights and indicators, Original Headlight units working, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted September 6, 2011 Author Share Posted September 6, 2011 Following the success with the electrics we wanted to find out weather the charging system worked ok. There was a small issue with this we had no radiator... So we decided to set up a temporary system with the heater matrix and fan acting as the main radiator. No lift pump meant we had to gravity feed the carb with a length of tube. There was also an issue with a lack of exhaust beyond the end of the manifold down-pipe which is positioned directly below a 5" hole in the transmission tunnel . But we sort of ignored that! All topped up and ready to run... Header Tank/Filler! Thermostat blanked off with a bit of stainless sheet sandwiched under the housing. (note large space for missing radiator!) By some miracle the ancient 1960's lucas positive earth dynamo worked without even having to clean the brushes or cut-out contacts.Emboldened by this and light headed from the large quantities of exhaust fumes filling the cabin from the missing exhaust we decided to lash up a better fuel supply using a plastic funnel electrical taped to the A post and give the transmission a test.... After the success of running the car we had a bit of a comedown when we realised our sexy New Old Stock bonnet was different to the original The new bonnet is designed to take external hinges (now unobtainable boot hinges from an MG-Y)Our existing bonnet has internally mounted hinges with a differant inner moulding so there will be some alterations to make... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete-M Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Impressive. Especially the kwality bodgery re: getting the thing running Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted September 9, 2011 Author Share Posted September 9, 2011 This final update brings the photos of the rebel right up to date: New exhaust system being fitted: The old exhaust was mostly swept off the garage floor the a section of pipe just below them manifold has been replaced with flexi pipe bought form a local exhausts place. Its the first time we'd used it and It will be interesting to see how well it lasts. We picked up an new silencer which is attached to the original tailpipe section. It would have been nice to have fitted a replacement but the pipe bend over the axle is going to take some fabrication and there is techincally not much wrong with the old pipe! This photo shows the new seatbelt support straps, now painted and fitted, Astute observers will also notice we now have a handbrake cable fitted. We have also refitted the windows and 2 regal doors which i picked up for £10 the channel section on the old doors requires extensive repair and will be revisited later. The new doors were spectacularly brown, I ran out of Coarse Da pads which accounts for the slightly odd look! Given the doors are 8 years newer than the car they required quite a bit of shimming to get them to sit right, presumably slight differences in the mouldings at Reliant. Door closeup, The handle and latches have also been refitted and the door can only be locked on the latch from the inside, oddly the drivers door appears to have always been unable to be locked from inside the car, Presumably to stop you locking your keys in! Drivers side door, An inside view, Not really sure why I took this picture tbh, Before fitting the windows the internal moulding needed bonding back in, A scimitar Rear view mirror has been fitted until we can get a more appropriate one (the old one was in poor condition and did not survive removal.) This final photo shows damage to the boot where the latch should mount we need to bind in new captive nuts to the holes: The shortlist for an Mot is now: Sort out a cooling System,Fit the fuel tank,Fiberglass work to the bonnet and boot to allow them to be fitted,We need to buy a battery and do some other small finishing off jobs. Sorry to make another long post its a bit much all at once. somewhatfoolish 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M'coli Posted September 9, 2011 Share Posted September 9, 2011 don't worry about the long posts, they make great reading. Re the driver's door locking - does it not lock from the inside if you push the lever the other way from opening it, like the passenger door? I know it works on the Imp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew e Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 So, so, so mightly impressive sir! Are you going to paint the floorpan though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted September 23, 2011 Author Share Posted September 23, 2011 So, so, so mightly impressive sir! Are you going to paint the floorpan though? Why would I need to paint it? Inside gets carpeted/ trimmed outside is fibreglass so it doesnt mattter what it looks like so long as the chassis is well protected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Bo11ox Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 Are you leaving the outside unpainted then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted September 23, 2011 Author Share Posted September 23, 2011 Are you leaving the outside unpainted then? Outside is going to be painted red again but theres some doubt as to weather it can be done before next spring, it will go for an MOT in its current state. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yes oui si Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 Wonderful stuff. Isuzu 1.5/1.7 TD lump for the frugal daily oddity win. *n Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted September 23, 2011 Author Share Posted September 23, 2011 Wonderful stuff. Isuzu 1.5/1.7 TD lump for the frugal daily oddity win. *n I havent given up on that Idea so once this is finished I (or at least road worthy) I'd like to take on a van/estate version to make that a reality. Unfotunately I'd also like to own some more British Leyland chod in the next year so any future project will be competing with that for my space/time/money! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan_dyane Posted September 24, 2011 Share Posted September 24, 2011 So close! Wonderful job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted October 24, 2011 Author Share Posted October 24, 2011 This thread has been neglected a bit, we have recently been doing the odd jobs to prep the car for the MOT. Lots of these were done without taking many pictures but these are the ones we did take. Boot had new captive nuts set into the fibrefglass to mount the latch mechanism boot refitted, The boxes contain Foden Engine spares! Number plate light was replaced with new, The original radiator was recored, The drivers seat diaphragm was replaced, With the safety critical jobs done we took the car for its first MOT in just over 30 years. Home with new Tax disc, and an extra 50 miles on the clock. The 598cc engine is actually a bit better than I had expected, It will cruise at 50pmh even if it is a bit loud and make a satnav verified 65mph going downhill. Uphill the best that can be hoped for is about 45mph. In the mid term the engine will be swapped for a 750 or 850 Once one is rebuilt and will possibly get a different (fully syncro'd!) gearbox. There is potential for playing around with diff ratios as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedSparrow Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 God what a labour of love. You're a hero! Massive respect for getting it back on the road, and thanks for a most enjoyable thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M'coli Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 Nice one, did the tester have anything to say about it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollywobbler Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 Brilliant. I got to drive a really ratty Regal 3/25 recently and was surprised at how nippy and un-horrific (but yes, noisy) is was. You can't really beat that neglected glassfibre rat look. No matter how rusty you manage to make the bonnet of your Volkswagen Golf... Has been great to see this come on so quickly. Great stuff! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted October 24, 2011 Author Share Posted October 24, 2011 Nice one, did the tester have anything to say about it? There was a look of Horror on his face when we turned up - Followed by surprise when he looked underneath No Advisories Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tayne Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 Well done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete-M Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 Ace. Looks great on the Rostyles. Always great to see rebuild threads that actually end in things being rebuilt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Nice one, did the tester have anything to say about it? There was a look of Horror on his face when we turned up - Followed by surprise when he looked underneath No Advisories Top effort Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baldrickthecunning Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Top marks! Congratulations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 That’s a great job, very well done! I love the way it looks on Rostyle wheels, are they MG Midget ones? The late Reliant engines used a Mini radiator, check yours is big enough if you swap the engine. I’ve had a couple of fibreglass cars but a Rebel has eluded me so far. There’s no doubt they are TEH SEX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrett Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Congratulations!This has been great fun to see coming together, and seeing it pass first time is hugely satisfying. Can't wait to see it in paint.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M'coli Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Nice one, did the tester have anything to say about it? There was a look of Horror on his face when we turned up - Followed by surprise when he looked underneath No Advisories Tip-top! It does look well on those Rostyles, I'd be tempted to leave the paint as-is for the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coalnotdole Posted October 25, 2011 Author Share Posted October 25, 2011 The Rostyles were off a MG Midget. The bloke I bought them off had swapped to Minilights . They wont stay in the long term as they are a bit crusty in places, Happy to take suggestions for period alloy alternatives once we are decided on what size wheels, gearbox and diff ratios. For anyone who is wondering the wheels that came off were not in the best condition hence the change, we could get direct replacements but the original 12" size is likely to be problematic if we upgrade to triumph disc brakes so we are keeping all options open for the moment. The car is never going to be a like for like restoration as it needs to be practical for daily use. The Rebel is now ready for the next stages; interior fit and prepping for a coat of high build primer. I've just ordered the Carpet (in red) and the Red Vynide that will be used to line the rear area around the armrests. As well as new door seals and fabric for making the headlining. The Interior jobs list is something like this: Create interior cover mouldings for B pillars the rollover bar, - These will be custom made in fibreglassRemake trim panels for A and C pillars originals were pressed aluminium new ones will be thin fibreglass and probably trimmed in Vinyl,Make and fit headlining,Fit insulation,Fit carpet,Fit internal panels and refit windows,Fit door seals,Clean dashboard up, probably repaint in like for like colours. We will also have to carry on prepping for Primer (sanding, sanding and more sanding) and think about the final setup for engine, gearbox, wheels then the last thing will be paint and bumpers. Its likely that there will be quite a few more months of work to do before its truly finished! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rml2345 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 This has been such a winning thread, thanks very much for posting!I'd be really tempted to use it like that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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