1974 Daimler Double-Six VDP (higher axle stands)

i have heard its easier to extract a broken bleed screw, after the caliper has had a deox-c bath? in theory the bath will remove the corrosion even down between the threads. should help anyhow?

Hi again naki. I could have tried the DeoxC but for some reason I wanted to attack it with the heavy artillery and it came out. Ironically the caliper is now in the DeoxC - to get it nice and clean for painting.

First of all I sandblasted around the thread, which shifted a fair bit of rust then I heated it with oxy-acetylene(I never enjoy using that as it feels very dangerous and seems to cost you £20 every time you light up plus It doesn't seem to actually heat the component that much.... I should perhaps crank up the regulators) which seemed to draw in the WD40 then it was the tried and tested MIG blob on the end which usually works but failed completely on my original caliper. This time it worked but it's hard to say if it was the blasting, heating or MIG that did the trick. Maybe they all helped. Main thing is it is out. I had a go at getting the pistons out but it was nearly 1 am by that time so I'll get back on it on Wednesday (watching the Barcelona - Celtic game on Tuesday )



good old MIG blob was final stage in the task



cone end of nipple has slight step in it. over-tightened?

Ok, after a night off watching Celtic have a heroic battle against Barcelona it was back on it tonight.

Was quite impressed at how well the new caliper cleaned up in the DeoxC after only a day or so. It wasn't fully submerged so you can see the difference on the part that hasn't been in.

I spent the evening getting the pistons out. My approach was a bit crude in welding blobs onto the pistons to give me something to lever and chisel against to loosen them enough to pull out with pliers. I had tried popping them out with the compressor but even at over 100psi they weren't moving.

The other night I had welded a bar to the pistons to lever them out but for some reason tonight the bar would not weld. It just kept breaking off so I gave up on it.

I also include a picture of the state of the broken bleed nipple on the original caliper. I can't see it ever coming out now.

And lastly there's a pic of the exhaust-to-IRS-cage brackets after a couple of days in the DeoxC. ready for paint now



new caliper cleaning up well in the DeoxC bath




compare against area not yet submerged




pistons come out with a bit of encouragement




original driver's side rear caliper bleed nipple stuck forever?



over-axle exhaust pipe brackets ready for paint

These aren't the best pictures but I got to the barn on Saturday afternoon and finally got some paint on the newest caliper. The other ones are still in the bath but I think the mixture has lost it's strength and it's a bit of a palaver mixing up new stuff in hot water which I didn't have time to do on Saturday.


Also got some epoxy on the other wishbone and a couple of small pieces.

Would be nice this week to get them all top coated andhave a set of calipers painted.

Next step will be to order pistons, seal kits, bleed nipples and a few bearings and things for the wishbones.

I have also seen a set of Series 1 XJ cradle mounts. Seems a bit crazy to buy used mounts but I'm curious as to whether these ones will fit so will prob buy them.




ready(?) for paint. this Halfords caliper paint was bought around 10 years ago to do the front calipers



some slight traces of rust left behind. no-one will see it



painted but not the best pic



paint dried quickly in cold temperature. tin says re-coat after 20 minutes or wait 6 weeks if 1st coat dries!!




epoxy mastic brushed onto wishbone. not the best finish. chassis parts only I reckon. caliper paint can be seen better in this shot

Thanks eurogranada. I was looking at your thread the other day. Mk1 Granada also a stunning car but it's dawned on me that, at 42, and still never having totally finished a project I'll never have time to own/rebuils all the cars I like (Humber Imperial, MkIV Zodiac, Mk1 Granada GXL, SD1 VDP, etc etc) so I'm just going to enjoy this one. Which isn't bad really

Anyway. Back to the job in hand. Yes, predictably, more caliper pictures. I have just won two more series 1 XJ rear calipers. Having took nearly 2 years to find one I had to buy two I saw on Ebay for £0.99

Ended up paying £10 each but I'm happy with that. I have also nearly got a pair of the series 2 ones. I got one a while back of Ebay for £3.50 and I believe they are interchangeable so I've always got spares.

More on that when the time comes but the 2 I dropped in the DeoxC bath on Saturday were somewhat surprisingly ready for paint tonight.

They are both passenger side. One early & one late. The late one is the one I got for £3.50 as the seller had listed it as a driver's side one when I was desperate for a driver's side one. When we realised it was the wrong side I thought I'd buy it anyway as it was so cheap. The early one is the manky original I posted some pics of a few days ago.

There's not much to say really apart from the very tips of the mounting lugs were not submerged so they haven't been de-rusted and it highlights a point about these chemical dips. You get a very aggressive reaction where the chemical meets metal and air at the same time and it etches a groove into the metal. So, if you are planning to dip large items bit by bit they will end up with deep lines etched into them.



original passenger side rear caliper after a couple od days in DeoxC bath



acid etch lines at point where part poked above surface of bath are visible here



coat of caliper paint on early NSR caliper



and on later NSR unit



NB I know it's a big subject but does anyone know what typ of paint this caliper paint is? cellulose, enamel, acrylic, none of the above.....

Tonight I found myself back on another little job that I've been putting off finishing.

On the underside of both footwells the floorpans have a rectangular plate spot welded on. I guess it's for adding a bit strength as this area has the floor mounted accelerator pedal and all the driver's foot action going on.

Mine weren't holed but, for some reason, the underseal had came away here more than in other area leading to unsightly rust. I cleaned the floorpans up with the sandblaster but you couldn't get in behind the plate so I ended up drilling out the one on the driver's side and discovered a hole plus it gave me the chance to smooth out a dent.

One thing that puzzles me is that there are two unused threaded holes on both driver's and passenger sides of the car. The have no obvious use and I could have deleted the one on th driver's side as there was a hole round about it but being an originality freak I retained the captive noy and welded a patch in around it.

I actually blasted and enamel primed these areas last winter but it was disappointing, but perhaps predictable, to see some specks of rust appearing. When things get really moist in the barn condensation hangs from the low points like this

I'm not getting the blaster out agin at this stage of the rebuild due to the mess it makes so I'll just have to hope that wax etc will keep the moisture out once everything has it's final top coats etc on



passenger side front floorpan showing plate similar to that on driver's side. both have plastic plugs inside unused threaded holes




inside. brackets at front locate floor insulation. captive nuts have no obvious purpose and have plastic plugs in them (one is hidden behind accelerator pedal bracket)




blasted




not possible to get in behind plate to clean it, weak ploorpan has bent at accelerator pedal mounting



strengthening plate removed reveals rust & hole at accelerator pedal area







cut out rot leaving captive nut on tag






plate blasted some time later



painted in epoxy-mastic



dampness?



closer




repair after grinding




footwell with bracket




cleaned and ready for plug-welding plate back on


I did actually get the plate 3/4 plug welded on tonight but ran out of time so it should be finished next time I post up.

Hi again naki. As far as I'm aware that is the last bit of rust on what I'd call the body tub. The blasting was actually done a year ago, this is me just getting round to putting the plate back on. The front wings and doors still need repaired but I don't really count them as part of the main body.

The idea about shipping brackets is good. I thought perhaps it was a facility for bolting something like the 'auto gearbox advance transmission rear left carb brake servo boost balancing tool' but whatever they are for at least they're still there.

Anyway. The plate is back on and I'm a bit disappointed as my plug welds weren't good. Not exactly sure why but I think the cable on my welder has become frayed and not getting full power through. The bracket won't fall off and the floor is firm again in the pedals area but after all the work and the length of time it's been off the car I would've been much happier if all the welds were great. Two or three look good. The others are a mess




plate plug-welded back onto floor panel and bracket back in place



good plug on right and rubbish one on left




plate finally back on



mixed reults with plug welds from below. ones on left look good. those on right are a pointless pile of weld blobs




similar results on inboard end of plate



Lastly. You asked about rust.... well I've never looked right into the footwell at the transmission tunnel but after taking a picture of the plug welds there I found some crustiness. I'm pretty sure it's superficial, probably caused by soggy carpets from British rain, but I'll have a better look next time. My lamp is about 4` high so to get it into the car the seats need to come out.




what's this?

Just a few pics from last night before I go to work and I'll add the words later. It's pretty mundane stuff about the fixtures and fittings from the 2nd hand calipers





2nd hand calipers threw up a few spares missing or damaged from my originals. originals are on RHS of pic




strangely both handbrake-pad spreader-forks are out of shape compared to original on RHS. doesn't look too bad in this shot but.....





.....when stood up like this you can see bottom two are well distorted





passenger side early rear caliper after removal of silver paint. my original is ok but this £10.50 spare slightly better I reckon





there were no stripped threads or seized bleed screws

Cor, I wish I had half your drive to get on with my own projects right now. Work seems to really be taking it out of me lately so it's heartening to see someone else plugging away and getting stuff done on their car.