teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Sept 29, 2023 21:09:14 GMT
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Right then, I'm just going to have a moan about things first if that is ok. Ever since my accident people have been saying things like, 'Where there's blame there's a claim', 'Ooooh you'll get thousands!' etc etc. To be honest, that hasn't been at the forefront of my mind whilst I have been trying to get over it but, as my brother-in-law is a highly respected lawyer, I asked him what was what. It seems, as far as I could make out, that the insurance companies and the government have done some kind of deal between themselves and come up with a fixed 'menu' of compensation. They have been very generous with the figures.  Well, they have been generous to themselves. I'm pretty sure that someone, somewhere received a massive plain brown envelope to sign that off. If you came at it the other way, as in, someone would say, 'if you are prepared to take this much pain for this much time I'll give you two hundred and forty quid', you would politely decline the offer and probably give him a quick knee to the love spuds for his impudence. Anyway, that's enough of that. Looking at getting all the edges prepped for the new panel it seemed like a good time to sort this bit in the rear wheel well.  Yet another disaster area caused by a grommet which was used as part of the corrosion protection procedure. Absolutely none of this was visible until I picked at the underbody coating and peeled it away. The first visible things to attack were the spot weld at the top right and a small run of MIG weld half way down, also on the right.  The wire wheely thing had exposed this tell-tale.  You can't feel anything if you run your finger over it from this side so it must have been MIG welded from behind, before the outer rear quarter went on. I ground that section out with the dremel then folded the overlapping panel back.  I am going to see if I can save the little strip on the left hand side to weld the new piece to for a couple of reasons; firstly, the joint behind there is quite complicated and difficult to get at without chopping out loads more metal and secondly, this piece is made of quite thick metal so despite the pitting it is very solid. It got a good wire wheeling and some phosphoric acid treatment. I got the old bit out.  Look at the state of it but all the stuff you can see behind where it was is pretty much mint. This is the back of it.  Also hideous and all emanating from the grommet hole. You can see where it was MIG welded from that side at top left. I will be able to re-do that weld from the outside because there is now a hole in the overlapping panel where I ground it out, I just need to make the new piece slightly wider to accommodate it. I cut out my paper template and went up to the shed.  That is the left-over bit, not the template. Thus armed, I got out my workmate bench, my 1.2mm sheet of steel and all the other glabber I would need to cut, shape and drill the new piece then the Lovely Doctor said she was going to the hairdresser and if I went with her we could go out for something to eat afterwards. So that was that, my repair section is still just made out of paper and I forgot to get any wallpaper paste when we were out so I guess I'll have to make a metal one next time. I had lasagne, by the way. Cheers. |
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Sept 30, 2023 7:27:59 GMT
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If my arms are that long now, I hope I can still manipulate them enough to get this CUSTARD RECTANGLE (SLICE) into my mouth.  |
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Where were we? Oh yes I remember, I was doing that bit in the wheel well the other day when I was tempted away by Italian food. I found my paper template in the shed and traced round it onto some 1.2mm steel.  I made it a bit wider on the right hand side to allow me to weld it from the front, where it was originally done from the back. You can see that it goes further through on the right than the existing bit.  It looks like it is a flat piece of metal but there are a few creases and bumps in it, which I copied from the old one. Once I was happy with the fit it got a quick squirt of weld through primer, I did the back and the bit where it will be covered by the overlapping piece at the front.  I also put a bit on where the plug weld will go.  It was then ready to tack into place.  I grind the tacks down so I can weld straight over them without creating a large bump.  A quick tickle up with my fancy new power file.  Then it got another squirt of weld through before I folded the other piece back down on top of it.  When I folded the other bit back down it didn't want to sit flush because of the springiness of the metal but I could just reach the bottom part with a clamp.  Once it was tacked I could tap the rest down and weld up the slits I had to put in it to create the fold. I used a bit of copper to get a reasonable edge when I welded it.  It all ended up ok.  Here it is compared to the old bit.  It took me all weekend to do that. At this rate it will take me another two lifetimes to finish it. I know I'm not the fastest in the world but I'll be glad when I'm able to pick up the pace a bit more. Cheers. |
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Darkspeed
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,880
Club RR Member Number: 39
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Spiffing
Have a 911 indulgence
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Darkspeed
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,880
Club RR Member Number: 39
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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No doubt it's fantastic but for all the bits you need to build it you are looking at spending over sixty grand! That's a lot of creamy bun cakes... |
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Oct 10, 2023 21:07:03 GMT
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I thought that I would be able to indulge myself with two custard rectangles this evening but we either have mice, or the lovely Doctor has decided that she is no longer on a diet. The 'mice' did leave one for me, thankfully. Well, I have been deep undercover for over a week which means that I have done no car stuff in that time. I went back to work last week and it was quite difficult because I am still not able to sleep through the whole night. I am upset about this because sleeping used to be my speciality. As a youth I would introduce myself to the ladies by saying something like, 'Hi, I'm tea Boy and I'm very good in bed, I can sleep for hours...'. I never did have that much luck with the ladies back then, despite my obvious talent. What was I talking about? Ah yes, back at work but limited sleep meant no energy afterwards for going in the tent. I did have a look at the weekend but it hasn't done itself so it looks like I will have to somehow summon up the enthusiasm. The lovely doctor was working late tonight so it was the perfect opportunity to give it a go. The current job is to get all the area around the back of the car prepped ready to take the new panel and once it is prepped I am going to paint it with epoxy before the new bit goes in. Firstly, there were a couple of holes where the metal had torn around the spot welds when I removed the old panel. I welded those up.  The big arrow drawn on there was to remind me where they were.  Next there are the scabby studs which hold the brake pipe clips and whatever else. These.  I marked them up so that I would know where to put the new ones once I had chopped the remains off.   I think there were five of them to do. Then I had a look in the boot and you could just about see where they were from the inside, so I put a black dot on there to show me where to centre punch and drill. Can you see it?  Ok, is this better?  When I drilled it it came out almost perfectly above the old stud, which was left hanging on by the skin of its teeth.  With the remains pulled off and the area cleaned up.  I had prepared some self tappers, cut to length with the ends blunted and a slight taper. These went into the holes.  I welded them from the inside and power filed them down.  Underneath looks ok.  I must remember to put something on them so I don't end up with them stuck in the top of my head. When I repaired the seat base, part of it was above the old axle panel so I couldn't see the back of it. I was being a bit careful to try not to weld the new seat base repair to the panel which I would be removing but this meant that the weld penetration was not as good as I would have liked.  In fact it looks terrible, so I decided to go over it from below the car. I was going to say that I had forgotten how much I dislike welding upside down with sparks dropping all over me but I hadn't forgotten at all, I had just pushed the memory to the back of my mind.  That really was enough for one night. In other news, the replacement 'Y' piece from the fuel filler area that the zinc platers forgot to plate the last time, so it had to go back has now been plated. One of my colleagues collected it (along with some other bits) for me whilst I was off. Here it is.  All the other bits and pieces came out fine but this looks like it has chickenpox so it will have to go back, again. Oh, they also took a tenner off my man for the plating of those bits despite the fact that I had already paid for the batch but these had been missed and left in the bottom of the box. Oh well, we'll get there in the end, I hope. Cheers. |
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Oct 12, 2023 20:58:05 GMT
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In the words of PC Dixon, 'Evening all'. I didn't do anything last night because I was late home, it was cold and tipping down. I was late home tonight too but it was dry and pleasant so I had a couple of hours whilst the Doctor took Fat Al for a walk. As you may have gathered I am obsessed with grommet removal. There are three left inside the boot which I haven't tackled yet. These three are surprisingly not rusted but I don't want to take any chances. This one is in the right hand rear corner near where the battery box is. Actually, the battery box is still in the shed but you know what I mean.  See, it is pristine but the one at the other side of the boot wasn't so it is for the chop. I stuck a disc of steel in with masking tape. Sorry about the rubbish picture.  I welded it up and gave it a quick go over with the power file, I haven't sanded it yet.  The underside too.  The next one is just behind the passenger side wheel well.  It got the same treatment.  The underside before filing.  And after.  I said there were three left but the third one will be above a closed box section once the axle panel goes in so it won't be exposed to the elements. I might leave that one in place, just to remind me of all this hideousness. Half way through the job the head strap on my cheap Lidl welding helmet snapped which was a bit annoying.  I will have to repair that somehow. Another bl***y job! Cheers. |
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Try plastic welding it together using the soldering iron. Then add roughly 800 grams of duct tape. Then a strap of thin steel with some rivets. That should hold it.
Please post pics up when done so we can all have a jolly good chortle at the beautiful repair.
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Darkspeed
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,880
Club RR Member Number: 39
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Try plastic welding it together using the soldering iron. Then add roughly 800 grams of duct tape. Then a strap of thin steel with some rivets. That should hold it. Please post pics up when done so we can all have a jolly good chortle at the beautiful repair. Alternatively, your £240 injury compensation claim may cover the purchase of a decent Lincoln mask You may even have enough cash left over for a new pair of gloves and a cup of vending tea whilst waiting for someone to turn up at the counter..... |
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glenanderson
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,355
Club RR Member Number: 64
Member is Online
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I spent years using my dad’s old handheld mask, with a graded lens in. When I finally splashed out on an Aldi automatic one it was quite a step up, but when that one inevitably broke, the proper large window “full colour” one I treated myself to is an utter revelation. Without a doubt, worth every penny. Not only can you see so much better, it’s way more comfortable to wear.
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My worst worry about dying is my wife selling my stuff for what I told her it cost...
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Looks great the work you are doing, really impressed with the panelin the wheel arch, couldn't tell it has been done, except no hole.
I am currently dealing with the rear floor pan grommets on mine, luckily no cutting/welding, just derusting and painting!
The BMW grommets I am replacing have a lip on one side and hot melt on the inside and are usual covered in underseal from factory, as mine won't be I am going to put them in upside down so the hot melt sealing on the outside, rather than having a lip to trap dirt/water.
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Alternatively, your £240 injury compensation claim may cover the purchase of a decent Lincoln mask [/quote] Yep this. I splashed out a few years back on a lincoln 3350 helmet and its great. Very clear, quick, comfortable and has a natural tint to the lens which helps for tig welding. Apparently. Because my tig welding is still not instagram worthy...  But at least I have a nice helmet. |
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Oct 14, 2023 18:57:29 GMT
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Funny that you should mention buying a better welding mask because I've been looking at these recently.  Has anyone got one of these, are they any good? Friday turned out to be a very long day at work so I didn't get into the tent when I got home. I had to get some tyres for the Doctor's cars.  I took all the wheels from the dogging car with me but I couldn't take the wheels off her Audi because she was using it for work, so I just collected some loose tyres for that. I was going to fit the Audi tyres this morning but the Doc had to go in to work today, I will have to fit them another time. I put the wheels back on the dogging car this morning so that I could go for breakfast at Ten Acres. I went to the creamy bun shop first but there was a huge queue and I could see that there were no large custard tarts left so I didn't bother to wait. This afternoon I thought I would do a bit more cleaning up under the floor to get it ready for painting I cleaned off the area under the rear seat then thought that I'd do a bit further forward whilst I had the tin of degreaser out. The floor along the left hand side of the tunnel, where the brake and fuel pipes run get coated with some stuff at the factory and it does a fantastic job of preventing rust but it is a swine to remove. I wish they had put it on the other side as well, that would have saved me loads of work. It is this black stuff.  I went at it with a scraper first.  After loads of applications of degreasing solvent and scrubbing it with a toothbrush and plenty of rags it came up like this.  The bare metal bits are where there was surface rust which I wire wheeled off then they got some phosphoric acid treatment. I had had enough by then because scrubbing overhead made my shoulders really ache. In a stroke of good fortune, the Doctor called in at another branch of the creamy bun shop on the way home and she managed to come up with the goods.  She didn't get me any Frosties because she said the price was absurd.  I suppose we'll have to go out for for breakfast again in the morning. I won't mind that at all. Cheers. |
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Oct 14, 2023 19:44:04 GMT
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I was starting to worry about you Mr Tea! I thought that you had maybe gone into hiding and shut yourself away from the world with nothing but a kettle, Yorkshire tea and copious amounts of of sweet treats. But I've just found out that most of my bookmarks are not alerting me to updates anymore 🤔🤔. So, I've just spent 20 minutes catching up on your mischief. Of course, I wasn't disappointed.....it's brilliant mischief as always. Going by your logic...for the first time ever, I can self proclaim that I'm great in bed!....I just struggle once I'm out of it!
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Opel Commodore A Coupe
Opel Rekord C Coupe
Opel Rekord C Saloon
Vauxhall Magnum Coupe V8 (Magnumania)
Mk1 Scirocco GLS
Mk1 Scirocco GLS (early chrome bumper)
Corrado G60
Mk1 Cortina 2 door Pre Airflow
Mk2 Escort 1300 2 Door
VW LT35 Tipper Truck
BMW 320D E91 Tourer
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Darkspeed
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,880
Club RR Member Number: 39
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Oct 14, 2023 19:53:04 GMT
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R Tech thing seems good enough - Just looks like too many things going on with it for me - I use a welding mask for welding and googles and ear defenders and a filter for grinding. I think the inner and outer replaceable protective screen on my Lincoln are a fraction of the price and the Lincoln helmet weighs <600g
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I can't justify over £200 (even with man maths!)for the amount of welding I do but I have noticed Screwfix do a large field of view one for £42 which I am thinking about.
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Oct 16, 2023 20:29:52 GMT
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R Tech thing seems good enough - Just looks like too many things going on with it for me - I use a welding mask for welding and googles and ear defenders and a filter for grinding. I think the inner and outer replaceable protective screen on my Lincoln are a fraction of the price and the Lincoln helmet weighs <600g I know what you mean DS, but the R Tech is cheaper.  I can't justify over £200 (even with man maths!)for the amount of welding I do but I have noticed Screwfix do a large field of view one for £42 which I am thinking about. I paid just over £200 for my Speedglas about 25 years ago which was a fortune back then and I have had a lot of use from it but I don't want to pay Speedglas prices now. Keep us informed if you get the Screwfix one. Anyway, as a stop gap I've borrowed a Sealey mask from work. I can get away with this for two reasons; firstly, I'm the only one who does any welding jobs at work and secondly, I have the welder from work in my shed at home... On Sunday the Doc and I went out for breakfast and when we got home she was going to shovel and wheelbarrow three tons of hardcore up to where her new patio is going (I've dodged a bullet with being injured so I can't dig) and I was going to go in the tent for a bit. I had just got into my work clobber when my pal Luke messaged me to say he was going in to work if I wanted to go and use his equipment to fit the tyres to the Doc's Audi, so I went and did that. I could get that job out of the way and still have plenty of time to go in the tent afterwards. When I was at Luke's the Doc phoned me to say that my pal Shultz had turned up. I arrived back home to find that Shultz had been roped in to the shovelling job with the Doc. When they had done that we spent the rest of the day gassing and drinking tea whilst the Doc watched the egg chasers on TV, so I never got into the tent in the end. Tonight after work there were no surprise visitors so I made a start on scuffing up the under seat and boot floor areas for paint. This is an incredibly tedious task. There were also quite a few suspect areas that had a bit of surface rust under the E-coat so I sanded those off completely. It doesn't seem like that long ago when I was thinking that it was almost too hot to work in the tent but it has definitely changed now, it was very cold and I had to dress up accordingly. I think winter is finally setting in. With this in mind, I didn't want to leave any bare metal bits overnight so I gave them all a going over with some spooge. This is what it looks like now, after two hours of sanding and scotch pad rubbing.   There is still plenty of sanding to do before it is ready for paint and that hole next to the 'spare wheel well' needs sorting out.  I can't just weld that shut because it is a wiring pass through, so I will have to repair it and re-drill the hole. That is a job for another day because I need to smother myself in deep heat and get up against a radiator to try to recover from the cold. Cheers. |
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Oct 16, 2023 22:04:30 GMT
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Here's some sunshine and warmth from our place for you... (well about 2km away as the crow flies)  |
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