My Minis. The Works.

[kalkat]

Looking very nice there Stu!

Who's or what epoxy primer did you use please?

[Stu]

Thanks kalkat.

It's HB 989 mixed 4:1 with hardener. I picked it up from my local paint factors but it's readily available on-line.

If spraying it you'll need a 1.8mm gun, and will need to thin it with solvent.

100 parts epoxy paint / 25 parts hardener / 25 parts 2K thinners.

I need to take out the pot filter otherwise it wont spray, but it goes on really well and dries quickly giving a very hard and waterproof surface.

It sands well and provides a stable base for all topcoats. I wont use anything else now

[kalkat]

Thanks for that Stu :-)

[Stu]

I managed to get Molly's front end finished last night and went out for a long awaited drive.

I've got a local show to go to in her this weekend, then I think I'll have a break for a week and then start on the next section. Probably the A panel to the rear quarter and door frame both sides. Then that'll leave the rear panel, boot door, boot space, the roof and the doors. I just hope I have enough time to get it all done this Summer

[Stu]

I've been sidetracked over the last few weeks with purchase and inspection of two other blocks. One is a 1275 auto gearbox without the engine and the other is a 998 box and engine.

I've had some fun with them and have stripped them down for parts as I got them for this puropse. The 1275 is differerent though, as it's a late 90's box with a Park function. This means the valve block and forward clutch is different than one without, so these elements are not much use to me really because my box is 1985 without a Park. The geartrain's also toast due to major damage to the planetary gear splines, but there are lots of other useful bits I could use for spares if needed.

I really need to get back to my orange 850 and continue the bodywork, so will be starting that again this week.

Today I've ordered the Master overhaul kit from JPAT so I have it ready for when I re-build my 998 auto box. Turns out they have a new stock of the clutch friction steels so I'll be getting the full kit. I've held off ordering the bands as mine have a fair bit of material left on them, but I'll need to inspect them closer and decide whether I'll be putting them back in. If I'm in any doubt I'll probarbly get some replacements on exchange later on.

I also ordered the forward clutch and top / reverse clutch seal fitting tools, and a purpose made Torque Convertor puller.

[Stu]

I decided to take a spare valve block apart to see what's going on inside.

I also checked a spare oil pump to see if it was too far gone, or whether the wear on the lobes is within tolerance for further use. Turns out this one is still good for a few thousand miles yet, so That at least is good news.

I also received my master overhaul kit from JPAT.

All the components are there, so I'll be storing it away until I'm ready to properly overhaul my auto unit. For now though, I'll be checking everything for wear to ensure going forward I have good components and a strong gearbox. Lots of cleaning to do too !

[Stu]

Started to work on Molly again this week. The plan is to re-spray the offside then do the other side. I knew I had to repair the rear quarter top rail due to corrosion so I've started there.

Glass and seal removed.

Corrosion to top rail and quarter panel.

Corrosion cut out.

New section fabricated as good as I could get it.

New section welded in. Its a bit shallow in the rail but a little filler skim should fix it before re-spraying hopefully.

I've still got the welding to finish and grind down. It wont win any prizes but at least its clean metal with no rust. Once I'm done you'll never notice the repair.

More to come ....

Ground down. Just need to linish and then I can get some skim filler on.

[tony105]

Your Mini looks excellent Stu!

[Stu]

Thanks Roger.

[simonw]

Well done mate ! Keenly looking on from Australia , as I'm in the middle of a 68 minimatic resto

[Stu]

Thanks Simon.

[Stu]

I've been prepping the panels for primer this last week and got her ready for spraying.










All turned out pretty good, except for some sagging to the A panel due to me laying the epoxy primer on a bit thick, but it's not a problem as I'll just rub it down and re-do it tomorrow.

I also cut and polished the bonnet which turned out nice, although I took the front of the bonnet through to the primer slightly, so had to lay in a bit of paint with my mini gun. This left some overspray to deal with and blend in.

 

I used some G3 and finished with G10 then swirl remover to end up with a good invisible touch up. Shh. don't tell anyone



So the bonnet's looking great. I've still got to cut and polish the rest of the front end but I enjoy doing this stuff so its not a problem, rather a labour of love.



I'll post up some more photos once I've got some colour on  Thanks for looking.

[niceboy1275]

That looks fantastic Stu, considering its a "backyard job", it looks like a real professional spray booth job. Well done! Don't suppose you want to come over to Aus and do one of mine? Lol

[Stu]

Thanks for that. I'd love to come help out, heck I'd just love go to Aus. Not quite round the corner though unfortunatly

Still, its great to be able to see what were all doing to our Minis on the forum though

[simonw]

We might just have to fly him out eh niceboy?

[Stu]

It's been in the upper 20's today which is great as I planned to topcoat Molly's drivers side.
Started by getting the necessary out  



and got the car masked off and prepped for spraying.



All finished with seven good coats. Flash off time between coats was about 30 seconds to one minute due to the high temperature, which was great and reduced the risk of runs. I wish it was always this warm when I sprayed



Masking removed and looking good with no serious defects, thank goodness.



Got the top rail done too and it turned out well after the minor filling.



The finish from the gun was fairly good and should only require minor flatting / cutting before polishing, but that'll be in two months to give time for the solvent to evaporate.



The browny orange is slowly becoming less as I work around the car. Nearside is next, then the rear panel, roof then the doors and boot lid.


That's all for now, thanks for looking in

[notamini]

The striping looks kind of neat! Too bad it's just the sunlight from the open slat roofing.
Great job. Wish I had the self confidence to pull such a job.

[Stu]

Thanks. It's not an ideal environment for spraying but it normally turns out fairly well. I just need to choose a decent day with fairly good temperature and no wind or rain, which for Yorkshire in England is asking quite a lot 

[simonw]

Awesome work mate

[Stu]

Thanks Simon.

[Stu]

The weathers starting to turn cooler now, so I've decided to stop work on Molly and start again on Felix. I'll complete Molly in Spring next year.

So I resumed with undertaking some surgery to the bottom corner of the windscreen where it has corroded, and started to make an extension to close off the top of the inner wing.


























That's as far as I've got for now..............

[simonw]

Brilliant work mate ! What's the setting on your mig for this ?

[Stu]

Thanks Simon.

For butt / seam welding using my Clarke 135TE I have the wire speed set to between 6 and 7 with the settings t min and 1. For plug welding I crank up the wire speed a bit and flick it to Max keeping the other switch on 1. All with 0.8mm wire and Argon / Co2 gas with a flow rate of 10. 


When I can I try to clamp a piece of copper behind the weld face as it seems to prevent blow-through quite effectively.

[Stu]

I've not updated for a while but I've not got a huge amount done really.

I finished the closing section to the top of the inner wing.



and spent a bit more time checking panel fitment.



I then moved onto the bulkhead to finish the small patch repairs and to get it ready for paint. I'd lost a captive thread for the throttle pedal so had to install and weld in a new one.



I ended up replacing both with new threads as it was just easier.



Next I fabricated a new inner wing to crossmember stiffener. Oddly the passenger side one was already spot welded to the heritage inner wing but the drives side did not have one so I had to make my own.



I also had to undertake repairs to the dash shelf and bottom rail because it had corroded away from a long term leak.



I also made up some crpet sound proofing tags to replace the ones that'd broken off.



and plug welded them in place.



Once I'd got the bulkhead repairs completed, I preped the panels inside and out, treated the surface corrosion with phosphoric acid and applied 2 coats of Electrox.





I also gave the inside of the croaamember 2 coats of Electrox and a thick coat of Epoxy Mastic over the top. THe sam was also applied to the rear of the stiffener plate I need to weld in.





I think I'll weld the stiffener plate to the inner wing first then plug weld the whole panel to the crossmember flanges as it'll be easier to do this way.

I've also painted some scrap metal which was heavilly corroded with Electrox and one section with Electrox and epoxy mastic. I've put these in the garden in the elements and will be spraying regularly with salt water over winter to see how the performance of the paints hold up. All the samples have just had a quick wire brush, no rust prep or treatment and no degreasing before applying the paint.



I've done quite a lot of research into the best paint application for my situation restoring a mini in my garage and topcoating with Cellulose and am confident that as long as I properly clean, key an prep the surface to take the paints I've chosen they should provie good long term protection, so if the same paints I've just slapped on the samples prevent any corrosion then I'll be most impressed.

[Stu]

Small update.

I got the other inner wing welded on and zinc primed. I decided to weld the stiffener to the wing first and then weld it all onto the car. It worked better that way I think.



I also zinc primed and epoxy masticed the rear face of the stiffener where it butts onto the cavity of the crossmember as I won't be able to get to it once the wing's on.



Plug welded in.





So I now have both new inner wings completed.



Then I moved onto welding in a new floor pan to the passenger side.

Front plug welded in and perimeter tack welded.



Butt welding completed both sides and ground down.





The line of the flutes is good and straight from the original floor so I'm very happy with it



Once I'd treated the surface corrosion, keyed and panel wiped the panels I brushed on 2 coats of Electrox zinc primer.

This is as far as I've got for now. Next I'll be replacing the drives side floor pan and then should be fitting up the front panel, outer wings and A panels with a view to completing everything forward of the crossmember. Once thats all done I'll be looking to replace the inner and outer sills and door steps. I'm hoping to use MMachines complete sill sections with the floor to the first flute.

Thanks for looking in and if you want to please leave a message so I know you've visited.

[hbroodryk]

I can't decide if you are a madman or a genius. One thing is clear though; you are VERY good at this game!

Awesome work. Keep it up and good luck (not that I think you need luck...)

Regards
Hannes

[Stu]

I'm certainly no genius Hannes, but I do like a challenge. As for being a madman ..........

Thanks for you comments. Much appreciated.

[jockduck]

I like your plug welds, nice and neat, well at least compared to mine.
Jock

[Stu]

Thanks Jock. My welding skills ars getting better but still lots of room for improvement.

[simonw]

Your an inspiration ! I keep putting off my floor repairs , how do you cut your panels so neatly ?