Ive got one disc back plate fully finished and ive got all the suspension arms cleaned up and in etch prime Ive managed to get the first coat of paint on and cured on three of the arms Im hoping to have the fourth painted by the end of today Hopefully i should also be able to get the other disc back plate cleaned up and in etch prime by the end of today
Dandy job you're doing there mate. Every bit done is another bit done. You've only got to read Shielsey's thread to see what's left when you think he must be nearly finished! It really pays dividends in the final straight if you crack off a few extras as you go - as you're doing Your bus is actually in pretty good nick isn't it Para? I'm Nr Mildenhall In Suffolk and I'm quite serious about the painting. We'll talk about it when you get nearer, but you'll find you've drawn the short straw doing all the hard work and I'll step in at the end and take the glory. He-He.
tell me about it but zed, para its all worth it in the end , ye would nt want it half done now would ye owen nw
Cheers for the offer of painting dude its greatly appreciated and like you said well have a chat about when im nearing that stage. Ive never painted a full car before never mind somthing the size of a bus lol My bus wasent in as bad as condition as a lot ive seen restored but had a fair bit of rot and bodges If im honest though my welding has been learnt on this bus as all my other projects have only needed small bits welding and i rushed a fair few parts last year in an attemt to just chuck it on the road when my personal life went tits up Ive replaced Both front seat belt mounts (happy with them) Both front arches (happy with them) Front top hat behind bulkhead (happy with that) Other sections of top hat (happy with those) Both front jacking points (happy with them) Repair patch to rhs bulkhead (Going to re weld that) Drivers side cab floor repair (happy with that) Small repair patch above cab floor on lhs where the wheel arch tub starts (Needs cutting out as i bodged it) Both closing panels between a post and deformation panel (Re doing those as there not the best) Repairs to cargo floor(used flat plate and didnt butt weld but happy enough with those) Lhs battery tray (happy with that) Lhs outer arch sections ( contemplating cutting it out to fit full arch tubs and full outer panel) Rhs full outer arch (Bodged that by sliding the top of the panel under the bus panel before welding so thinking of cutting it back out to fit full arch tub and fresh outer arch panel) Replaced very rotten rear tailgate with rot free import (happy with that) Replaced very rotten engine lid with rot free import (happy with that) Sliding door inner bottom section and outer skin ( Rushed and semi bodged that and want to replace with rot free import) Rear outer valance replaced (need cutting back out as someone has ground back the ends of the chassis rails that should stick out of the back of the bus And it looks awfull) The rear jacking points need sections grafting in and the rhs sill needs a section grafting in The front panel under the windscreen seal will need sections grafting in Both cab doors need small repairs So as you can see theres still a lot to do before im at the prepping for paint stage and i need to decide if im going to fit new rear arch tubs or repair the originals Also i need to figure out what im going to do about the chassis rail ends that are mising My plan for now is to get all the mechanicals and the underside in good condition then tackle the above ground bodywork rolling resto style On a good note my engine spat a big end after a few days of owning the bus so now its got a fully reconditioned engine in there
The rear jacking points need sections grafting in and the rhs sill needs a section grafting in don t even go down that lane , if in doubt cut it OUT , and replace it , you ve come to far in the right direction to turn on your self now , you ll FLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY throught it owen nw going to a wedding to day irish wedding drinkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk lol i ll have one on ye then lol owen nw > :
The sills have been done sometime in the past owen to a fair standard it really is just one section with a few small holes So im going to cut that section out back to fresh steel and graft in new steel nice and flush The jacking points at the rear are solid enough again like the sill its only a small hole so im going to graft in fresh steel nice and flush The front jacking points were rotten and had been fiberglassed over so i replaced them but the thickness of the steel on the replacements was very poor so much so id rather repair the rears than replace Have a good time at the wedding dude and sink a few beers for me its been a while since ive had a drink
Well after writing that list this morning my mood really dropped Its horribly daunting when you look at the entire picture in one go and you feel like its never going to be finished Luckily the courrier came with some more parts to add to the expanding collection and seeing them all together reminded me to just concentrate on one area at a time. Im checking every part of the mechanicals and if somthing is worn or degraded then im replacing it with the best quality parts i can afford. Some may think im going too far but i want my bus to drive as close to a brand new one should as possible and to not need fettling every weekend Once ive driven it for a while getting used to how a standard bus should feel then i will be able to tell if any future modifications have a positive or negative effect. Is it only me that gets excited seeing a load of new parts ready to be fitted?
If you got one going spare mate, i'll take it off your hands see how it goes though as i say the new cap isnt a great fit. Cheers Para .
