Prrdys Thread, Restoration of a slightly rusty '81 A/C

[benlawlor85]

Hi All,
Well the work has started,
Today i stripped out the interior, which tbh was crap. so no loss there. i have left the RnR in at the moment as it means i could still use it if needed.
To my horror the drivers side inner cil is badly rotted and after attacking it with a hand wire brush i could see day light!:-( The whole length from B post to C post will need to be replaced and maybe some of the B and C post. I then went on to have a closer look at the throttle cable that wouldnt pull the throttle mechnisim to the stop. Turns out to be a little odd. I removed the rear piece of tinware to find the cable housing has has a piece welded onto it. and was through what i assume was the wrong hole. I have changed this so it goes through one of the small holes and have used some earthing insulation so stop it rubbing, a bodge but it will do intill i place an order for parts.
So my to do list is as follows.
LEARN TO WELD!
Welding needed
passengers cab step,
cab floor,
B posts possibly both.
C post on passengers side.
Inner cill on drivers side -(big job)
Im sure there will be more!

Replace speedo cable
grease CV joints, The boots look ok but i suppose its worth replacing them anyway.
Clean and paint trailing arms they look shocking.
also the underneath of the van could do with a paint.
Sort out Washer bottle as it doesnt hold any fluid. Looking at old MOTs it failed about 10MOTs on this point!

Shopping list,
CV boots.
Paint for trailing arms plus welded areas (what do i use?? i ahve hammerite but you guys seem to hate it! why? and what should i use instead?

Throttle cable with outer!
Speedo cable
Throttle return spring

There is obviously loads of other things i need to do but these seem to be the most important and most of the welding would be needed for MOT.

Am uploading pics at the moment so they will follow in a bit.
Please comment guys i need as much help as possible!
What paint to use, what welder to get and where. what other tools will i need? lots of clamps im presuming. a metal working vice?

Cheers
Ben

P.S if you havent guessed the van is called PRRDY as its plate is PRR 395X

[benlawlor85]

Photos!
Couple of the inside when im about to start



Rear ply removed

Rust around the windows, bean repaired in the past by the looks of it.



Wasnt happy finding this.



Laminate floor removed and binned best place for that kind of material.



few more ofter ive cleaned it out



The odd throttle cable stop

Rusty trailing arm


Hole in Drivers side B post Cil area.


Sorry for LOADS of pics.

[Plasticman]

nothing wrong with picks.
B post lower and jp will be fun as will the sill/side panal/floor, whats the inner sill like
mm

[benlawlor85]

HI MM,
Think inner sill is fine. will cut out the rotton area covering to it to find out, The seam between outer sill and the lower body work panel is mostly non existent for a good proportion of the effected area, do you think im best to replace the outer sill and lower part of the body panel? im sure ive seen a sill plus lower panel repair piece. where is best to get repair panels from? I see brickwerks do the jacking point repair plate, so that should make that bit easier. Sorry for lots of questions.

Ben

[Plasticman]

the one part over sill and lower panal is the easy way round it if you canmt do the correct repair and it will work and look ok, jp rep part get from any source as they are much the same ,its how you attatch it that matters as much,
as fro repair parts, well the usual suspects are all much the same for this,schofields/jk etc
mm

[benlawlor85]

As always your a star! thanks for the info will start looking for where to get the one part sill and lower panel. And try and find a welder that wont break the bank, Not a clue what to look for, although i did read somewhere that there is not point getting a Gas MIG if the welding will be done outside, which it will be.

[Plasticman]

gas mig every time and sheild the worlk area and wind the gas up
mm

[Dazco]

hope you are looking through MM resto threads for ideas if you follow his methods youll not go far wrong. wish i could have afforded a profesional resto from this man but couldnt. Maybe next time
Was the wooden floor bonded onto the already rusty van floor? looks like it in the pic

[benlawlor85]

Floor had filler strips bonded to the sound floor then underlay then laminate. Only the floor above the sill is rotten. As for a gas mig think that might be outta my price range. Maybe ill get a gas no gas as I can always upgrade it later on if needed. A new version of the sip model dazco has seems ok. But I am watching a couple on ebay that are for sale locally.
Ben

[Dazco]

you should be able to get a gas cylinder and regulator for around 100 notes, check BOC out if there is a local stockist. i know when i was looking into it i just couldnt aford it but wish i had, the cylinders are done a rental basis and once youre done with it you can chop em back in and get some coin back. Be worth looking into.
Daz

[benlawlor85]

Hi Dazco,
Do you think gas would have made it that much easier/better? £100 better?
SIP T135 gas/no gas is about £200 new. at my limit price wise TBH.
Ben

[Dazco]

In hindsight I wish I had used gas , if I was to undertake this kind of job again, I would.

[benlawlor85]

Sorry for another noob question but why do you wish you used gas?

on the shopping list tool wise i have
http://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-9554nb ... nder/53964#" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
what discs do i need for the grinder, brush twist cup for the rust, flap disc for grinding back welds plus normal grinding and cutting discs.
and possibly
http://www.sipuk.co.uk/tools/info_SIP04790.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Cheers
Ben

[mm289]

Same repair areas as most of us have found, welcome to the club

Gas is MUCH better to use in my experience, you get a cleaner weld, less spatter, more control and much neater. I also find it easier to control when welding thin materials.

I use core fluxed/no gas on thicker stuff, welding angle etc where neatness isn't such an issue or where I can't easily carry a big bottle.

If you get a gas outfit look for someone like Adams gas who do proper sized cylinders for about £40 plus a £50 deposit on the bottle.

If you need more info/ideas have a look on herehttp://www.mig-welding.co.uk/mig.htm really useful and forum.

Gas units needn't be that expensive, I picked up a fantastic Lincoln unit from a farm auction and a snap-on/cebora unit from VZi. Just need to keep your eye's open for some of the better makes.

Cheers

MM (not mm)

[Dazco]

You will need the thin slitting discs for cutting the panels , these make a very meet cut and if you do it right very straight .
As for using gas, I had fun welding in the new window surrounds and you can see a slight ripple down the side where it's got too hot and distorted. I have read of people using a compressed air to keep the area cool and also using damp clothes etc , not too easy when you're on your own and besides I didn't know this at the time . Ohhhhh you're gonna have so much fun .
Tackle one bit at a time.
Daz