Burt's rebuild

Discussion in 'Restorations' started by Burtthebus, Sep 15, 2014.

  1. When life throws you lemons..................
     
  2. Cut them up, stick them in a strong Gin and Tonic and the whole world seems a brighter place......

    Until the morning after, then you have a headache and a slight stomach upset to add to it.
     
    paradox likes this.
  3. Sills and jacking points tidied up and some primer blown on.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Chassis rails welded up and primed

    [​IMG]

    Front cross member and floor rails

    [​IMG]
     
    paradox, D5andy and Flakey like this.
  4. Front off, Inner Screen panel out

    Inner screen panel in, Inner wheel arch tubs in, cab floor repair panels in.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    We have also done the deformation panel, repaired the surround on the ventilation box and the panels above the front jacking points, but the camera battery went flat.
     
    vwbusman, paradox and zed like this.
  5. Zed

    Zed Gradually getting grumpier

    Crikey, you're belting along.
    Have you welded the new tubs to the bulkhead behind the seats? I hope they're the right height for the arch/doors. :)
     

  6. Not yet, we were about to and were taking all sorts of measurements when we thought,'hold on, we could be clever here. Why don't we wait to weld them to the bulkhead, and the back of the floor to the tubs until we know exactly where they need to go.' Saved some potentially serious embarrassment, significant cutting, re-welding/cleaning time and will hopefully get a better finish too. I did do this, :chewie: when they went back in as it was a major milestone reached.

    We carefully measured the deformation panel fitment, and will be working everything else back from there, including the outer sills, arches and rear corners etc so they all line up and flow nicely.

    Progress has been great, however I'm away with work for the next two weeks so will grind to a halt until I get back on the 15th.

    We have set a target of Busfest at Malvern to go to, so we need to keep the momentum. It's a target not a deadline as if we get tight it is not going to be rushed.
     
  7. I thought I would also share a couple of the things we have found along the way which have been very helpful. We have been using self drilling screws to hold panels and plates tight during the welding process. We have managed to minimise the amount of heat distortion on longer weld runs and ensure we have the overlaps really tight using them. These are the ones we used

    http://www.screwfix.com/p/timco-cla...ile-wafer-screws-4-8-x-22-x-4-8mm-pk200/39464

    We used them on the sills (Inner and middle), top hat floor supports, jacking points, cross member, deformation panel, panels above front jacking points and cab floor repair panels.

    On the deformation panel for example, we punched the weld holes, clamped the panel in place and double checked the measurements, then we put one of these in every 3 - 3.5 inches self drilled to the inner panel. Then we welded all the other holes from the centre out, then removed them one at a time and welded the remaining holes in the same order.

    When we started getting the panels ready I was using a 6mm drill bit in a battery drill to make the weld holes. The bit constantly needed sharpening and needed punching first to ensure the holes were in the right place. After the first night and not exactly overwhelming progress I was lent one of these hole punches.

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001ELTP0K

    When I had to give it back it was first on the list of new tools. I recon it has saved 6 - 8 hours drilling and bit sharpening.

    I have also used the flange tool to get an overlap on repair sections in the rear top hat section under the jacking point and in a number of our repair pieces we have fabricated.

    If you have a significant amount of welding to do, I would definitely recommend at least a box of the screws and seeing if you can get hold of the punch tool.
     
    Pathfinder likes this.
  8. Back from work travels and on with the rebuild.

    The rear tubs are cut out and one has the new tub offered up and not welded.

    I concentrated on the front this time, rebuilding the inner panel section above the deformation panel

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  9. Then it was onto the A pillars and their rebuild.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Seam sealed the inner panel

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Then we went for the front

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]



    So far so good. the inner screen panel is not a great fit and is going to take some adaptation and fettling. Looking back we should have dry fitted the outer panel over the un-welded inner panel to leave less work to get a good fit. As it is we will need to do some cutting and welding to get it to fit properly. it should be fine as it will be behind the dash and we should be able to get a good finish on it, but we could have saved some time and effort with a bit more forward planning.

    The next stage is to get the doors back on, then trial fit the wheel arches and b Post repair sections. When it is right, then fit the B Post repairs, the arches, then the outside edge of the floor panels and the seat tubs.
     
    paradox likes this.
  10. B Post repair and first arch in in place, spot welded front and back and to the tub. It wasn't a great fit, but went in with some adaptation and persuasion.

    [​IMG]

    Seat Tub welded in too
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Next session (Thursday) is the floor to seat tub, Floor to step on this side, then B Post and arch on the other side and a couple of minor repairs up front. Given what we learnt on the first side, the second should be quicker....
     
    vwbusman, mollysdad, Coco and 2 others like this.
  11. some really tidy work going on there! the sills look really good!! :)
     
  12. Thanks Bluething. It's starting to look like a vehicle again, which is nice.

    I like bluething itself too. I think a doublecab might have to accidentally find its way to me at some point int he future, they are cool as cucumber. :cool:
     
    bluething likes this.
  13. Cheers, it's been a journey having the double cab. it's surprising how many people think Ive chopped the back off myself. They dont belive me when i say it's factory
     
  14. Progress made but no pics tonight, so proper update follow when I can do a post worth showing. This is a question.

    Im in the process of putting on the outer sills back to the rear arches. I was hoping that they would help provide a good line for the rear arches, but with the bottom of the c-Post having rusted away doesn't give me any reference. Having checked the usual places I can't find a replacement panel so will be fabricating. I am planning to do one of the following to get the right fit.

    1. Match the curve from the inside of a bpost repair panel, then tac the sides in place.
    2. Match the profile inside the replacement rear arch panel we have (Klok), the adapt from there

    What has anyone done on here for them?
     
  15. Some progress made in the last 4 weeks.

    Both wheel arches in, seat tubs welded in ( One wheel arch wasn't a great fit and took some persuasion) and the floor repairs in place and welded up.

    The stuff on the step is crushed glass. The surface rust is starting to come thick and fast now, so it is clean and prime time regardless of whether the welding is finished. The floor has been blasted whilst the seat back has been treated with fertan. that will be blasted tomorrow ready for paint on Friday. It is £6 for 25 kg bag, which can go through the blaster 4 or 5 times. First time through it is a bit harsh and abrasive for the side panels, but once it has been through a couple of times it brings the sides and roof up nicely.
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    In this pic you can see the seat mount after blasting, silver again compared to the brown of the fertan treated in the pic above.

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Jul 22, 2015
    paradox and JamesLey like this.
  16. Both Outer sills are in (Photo of sliding door sill to follow tomorrow)

    The curve on this sill was well off. It took a lot of work to get the shape right so it flowed top to bottom and also into the rear arch.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    paradox and vwbusman like this.
  17. Both rear wheel tubs were like a cheese grater, so new ones needed to go in.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    paradox likes this.
  18. Engine bay repairs fabricated and welded into place

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    paradox likes this.
  19. Rear offside wheel arch in place.

    It has been glued along the join line then welded front and back seams. I had to put the glue on twice. the first batch out of the mixing nozzle looked mixed, but hadn't properly. 2 hours later it hadn't gone off at all. Added a new nozzle, cleaned the panel and tried again. Went off in about an hour and fifteen. So much so it was hard to get off the clamp strip we added.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Main Battery tray is in.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    paradox likes this.
  20. MorkC68

    MorkC68 Administrator

    excellent! Its coming on good fella, what a transformation!
     

Share This Page