Mk1 VW LT 35 Tipper Truck 'Lucky Lloyd'

That is the cat's whiskers!

In my last update, I showed how the welding had come to an end. Which meant, it was time seal it all in with epoxy. 

Now....I took a week off work to get this next bit done as it was heading toward Autumn and I wanted to get some paint on it. 

I spent 4 days cleaning, degreasing, keying up and prepping the inside and underneath of the cab ready for paint. It was with out doubt the most boringly painful part of the restoration yet. So boring....that not a single picture exists of this process.



All I can offer you is the result!........epoxy and seam sealer.....































Then on with some stone chip. My preference is Dinitrol 447 as it's rubberised and sticks like the proverbial to a blanket. It's not cheap....but it's the best I've used....and I've used a few disappointing products in the past.











......and once all that was done....there was only one thing left to do......2k acrylic top coat.....in white...











While I was there.....I masked up the engine bay and painted satin black ( rattle can ).......








One thing I was really pleased about was, there is absolutely no filler used anywhere while completing this bit. There are a few small imperfections, but its all going to get covered with either sound deadening, floor matts or interior trim.

commycouper





Not sorry for quoting some random pics, mainly as a reminder from the previous page. Not that we forget.


So where do any of us even begin.



I, like so many others can only look at your work in absolute amazement.

Despite you having the scars, experience, truck and seeing what you have built here, I really wonder if you know what you managed to create here Dan.

Some of us manage to just get stuff done to a functional standard, but you have gone and built this truck as if it is a prosthetic limb for someone very special.

Your attention to detail, finish and fit is above what a manufacturer would offer.

Your build deserves to be on the shortest of short list of mind blowing builds.

Looking superb, I'm with you on not using filler on the underbody(even though my repairs are nowhere near as good as yours) with the higher stress in the panels and propensity to absorb water using filler seems a recipie for future corrosion.

Absolutely beautiful.

Do I see the beginning of a stripe design there?

Looks like that will compliment the lines too...

Cheers 👍🏻👍🏻

Thanks Norman 👍🏻. I've been doing some more paint work on the truck yesterday and today. But it all went horribly wrong 😕....that'll be two days wasted then. It would seem that it was too hot for paint today. The paint was drying to quickly.....and all I have to show for hours of preparation is a white lumpy mess. 

Thanks Jonsey 👍🏻 👍🏻

Thanks Mr Tea 👍🏻👍🏻

Thanks Wildrover 👍🏻 👍🏻

😁😁....yes, the way its pictured in the thread it would suggest so. Unfortunately, the whole cleaning and prep stage wasn't captured for evidence! My feeble excuse is, as I was underneath the truck rolling around on the floor a lot, I kept my phone indoors so that it didn't get damaged in my pocket.....or, I just plain forgot....which is probably closer to the truth! 😁😁

Once again Rain, thanks for your kind words. I quite often find myself spending way too long on areas that won't even be seen. I keep having to remind myself that this is a work truck and I should reserve all the attention to detail stuff for my next project. 

Also, thanks for bringing the content over from the previous page. It's really annoying when you do a big post and then it immediately gets left behind because of a change of page.....I appreciate it 👍🏻

Thanks 👍🏻.....even on the outer panels I try to keep filler to a minimum. Working under the tent means that what ever filler work I do, has to be coated with epoxy on the same day. As the filler is hygroscopic, the last thing I want is for it to absorb any moisture over night.

Just..... WOW!

Right, a quick update today. Only a few more and I think I'll up to date.....ish.


Once the inside and underneath of the cab had been painted, it was time to turn my attention to the rear of the cab.....well....the lower half of it. 


First job was to remove the old mastic type stone chip. which with a sharp chisel was fairly easy.... 













Then prep the rest of the rear panel for epoxy primer...











........and then on with said primer.......














Next was to seam seal the join that ran from top to bottom on both sides of the cab. Its the 'Dutch fold' bits of the panels that I was banging on about in earlier updates.

Not sure if the photos really show what going on here.....but they're the only two I have for your perusal....so here they are...










I had a different brand of stone chip coating ( not the brand used recently under the arches since the full resto ) that I had used on the drivers side underside way back at the beginning of this thread. It was ok.....but I wouldn't use it again for anywhere under the wheel arches as I found it had started to chip off in the short time I had used the truck between putting it on and then taking the truck off the road. But, the bit I had left was earmarked for the rear panel. Now.....from standard, the very lowest part of the rear panel was heavily coated in stone chip. So I tried to replicate it......sort of. I tried to get heavy spatter without runs....I think I just about got away with it.....
















Then it was on with the Dinitrol 447 over the whole area......













To top it all off.......white top coat. While I was there, I repainted part of the chassis immediately after the cab. Despite begin covered up, it had gotten a bit bashed about and suffered some 'grinder rash'..( not a euphemism )  while sorting the rear of the cab.....




























That's all for now folks......I'm busy next weekend, so I'll update the week after.

Cheers Dan 👍