Club 80-90 Forums

discipleofsketch wrote:hmm, yeah I think I can spot where the streaks are coming from now!

iv just done mine,dont think about blasting as it will come back!remove the Chanel that holds cover on and replace (schofeilds)
this is is just friendly advice

Have to agree. Might be wise to get in there and replace with new metal as it'll be back otherwise - that includes the steel behind the top channel. That could be made up I'm sure. Just cut out and renew. A gritblaster would leave you with holes I'm sure. Not worth it.

slider channel needs to come off as well or just half a job done,
mm

I reckon a full side is needed. Might as well replace the roof as well. Oh, and if you go that far you may as well replace the gutters too.
Sorry, being sarcastic now, not like me at all
Anyway, it really is case of asking yourself "How far do I want to go?"
You could spend several thousands of pounds and still not get a finished job. Or you could spend a few hundred and get a presentable job..... for a while. It really comes down to how much you can afford and how much, and how long, you want to keep your van. We can all invest loads of money in our vans and line the pockets of those who can do a great job, but can you afford to give someone your hard earned and still enjoy driving/ camping in the van? Let's face it: As long as it has an MOT and tax and insurance, and it's safe, you can enjoy it. The most important consideration for me is that it gets me there and it gets me back. I do not mean this post as an insult to anyone, whether they be the 'menders' or those who have been to a 'menders'. I just think that getting there and back without a breakdown is the most important part of owning a campervan.
This is just my opinion, please don't have a go at me.

I'd subscribe to that too Meggles. I'm very much in the basic line when it comes to keeping everything running (as everyone knows when I turn up), plus once a vehicle is off the road, its always harder to get it on again. Mine is full of dents which is unfortunate really as the underneath is almost like new. You can only cake on filler so many times though.

We plan to keep this van long term, and one day pay a professional to sort out the bodywork including replacing panels where necessary and respraying a different colour. Can't afford that for a year or two though so right now i'm just throwing everything the discerning amateur who lives round the corner from halfords can throw at it

I've removed as much of the rust as I can get at and treated it with kurust and filled the holes. It's now sat in a dry warehouse until I can get some time with it again. Next week it's a coat of hammerite, then spray waxoyl over the top of that (just on that bit that will be hidden by the flap). Hopefully that will buy me a year or two, although that panel will obviously need replacing in the future anyway. The rest of the van is in much better nick, nothing like that bit, so i'm not too worried.

Can I get to the inside of the panel - even just to spray some waxoyl around? I haven't looked or tried yet...

in thaqt case wirebrush and clean all the grease and crap out from it and when dry treat the rust and waxoyl or simmilar, if you start welding bits and bats then it can make life harder and ££££ when it has to be removed to do it correctly, ask me about it !!
mm

meggles wrote: Anyway, it really is case of asking yourself "How far do I want to go?"
You could spend several thousands of pounds and still not get a finished job. Or you could spend a few hundred and get a presentable job..... for a while. It really comes down to how much you can afford and how much, and how long, you want to keep your van. We can all invest loads of money in our vans and line the pockets of those who can do a great job, but can you afford to give someone your hard earned and still enjoy driving/ camping in the van? Let's face it: As long as it has an MOT and tax and insurance, and it's safe, you can enjoy it. The most important consideration for me is that it gets me there and it gets me back. I do not mean this post as an insult to anyone, whether they be the 'menders' or those who have been to a 'menders'. I just think that getting there and back without a breakdown is the most important part of owning a campervan.
This is just my opinion, please don't have a go at me.

This is a great post.

So far I have found that the little things that I dislike about the appearance/presentability of our van just don't matter at all once we're and about and enjoying it.

Whilst the van is sat on the road outside our house I spend too much time thinking about what needs doing, how I'm going to spend the next bit of my (modest) budget on it etc, but these worries disappear when you're in the middle of a field miles from civilisation cooking a nice meal on the van's gas hobs.

Jerome K Jerome who wrote "Three Men In A Boat" and "Idle Thoughts" etc, once said there were two types of cycle enthusiasts - those that actually ride them and those that overhaul them. He was quite right and its too easy to get fixated on the latter and forget why you bought one. Its the same for music enthusiasts that end up fixated on 'tweeters' and purity of sound. Get out there and enjoy it.

CovKid wrote: those that actually ride them and those that overhaul them.

Sadly I've just realised that I am the latter type! Have owned my van for several years now and have never driven it yet

yours is like the forth bridge though
mm

metalmick8y wrote:yours is like the forth bridge though
mm

Ha, sounds about right....
From wikipedia...

"Painting the Forth Bridge" is a colloquial expression for a never-ending task, coined on the erroneous belief that at one time in the history of the bridge repainting was required and commenced immediately upon completion of the previous repaint