I was at the bodyshop yesterday, taking the gearbox out so they can get good access for when the Raptor is applied. That all went pretty smoothly considering it's probably never been removed in 41 years.... some of the bolts put up a bit of a fight but nothing snapped! Whilst I was there I took some photo's of the progress on the roof and rear quarters. A second skim of filler has been applied to the roof and needs rubbing down, but you can see how it's starting to take shape. First Skim on the rear quarter. Making a start of the rear arch panel. My wife thinks I'm having separation anxiety and she may have a point!
When we trial fitted the elevating roof it was a good surprise to find the bellows were in good shape, the only problem being they had been painted white with canvas paint (which the previous owner said was not one of the smartest moves as it flaked off every time the roof went and resembeld a snow storm!) So if I could remove the remaining paint, I would have some good, original quality bellows and there is only a 4" split which needs repairing. From the first picture I took when the van arrived, you can see the problem when the roof is up, this is what it looked like when removed from the top Using a plastic ruler as a scraper, which worked really well, and a scrubbing brush, I was able to get the majority of the paint removed. It's amazing how the paint was flaking off but some areas were very firmly bonded. So it now looks like this after 4 hours... Really happy with the results and such a nice change not to be chopping out rusty metal and welding! Has anyone got suggestions on what to use to repair the tear?
So the work at the bodyshop continues, taking a bit longer than the 10 weeks originally quoted but pleased with the progress so far and I'm assured it will be ready to collect in 3 weeks. The sides look really flat and the roof now forms one fluid shape rather than a collection of welded together parts and the inside has received the first of the paint At home in the garage I've been working on the bumpers and pop top roof brackets which were originally plastic coated but will be now painted They are now painted L90D white and look pretty reasonable but for some reason I didn't take any pictures and they are now in the lock up to stop them getting scratched. The fan housing has been taken off and repainted. I keep thinking this is the last bit of pink left on the van and then I find a bit more! However, I really do think this is the case. Also stripped back the tinware to bare metal and colour coded it with Marino Yellow....... it sure is bright! Next is the dashboard- I was going to paint the vertical section in yellow with the top in satin black, but I'm now having second thoughts as it might be a bit 'vivid' first thing in the morning! Have also refurbished the existing gelcoat on the elevating roof and used gelcaot filler where necessary. Lots of rubbing down with progressively finer wet and dry, followed by cutting compound, T cut and polish
Thanks Iain, the Marino Yellow does work well with the double top. Will be very happy if my bus looks as good as yours when it's painted
Only the front looks that good, it’s multicoloured for the rest of it after previously having work done
Just been down to the paintshop and they are doing the door shuts Doors, tailgate and sliding door are going to be refit tomorrow as the insides have been painted, in readiness for the main painting.
Have been to the bodyshop today and the bus is ready to be collected! I can't take any credit for this part as I realised early on that painting is not one of my strengths, so based on recognising my limitations I farmed the work out. It took a lot longer than planned but I'm super happy with the results. Transport has been arranged for Monday and then I can start putting it back together.
So the bus was delivered home, looking rather different (and substantially better) than when it left' Then into the garage for the rebuild to commence. The gearbox was refitted and I'm going to upgrade the linkage between the selector and gear stick as it always felt a bit less than precise. Then onto the fuel tank. There has been lots of talk about E10 fuel causing old pipes to fail so I decided to change every bit of the rubber connections and without fail, every one I took off showed signs of perising including the filler cap to pipe, pipe to fuel tank and the breather pipes for the emission control which attach onto the fuel tank, then the joins from the plastic pipe to the metal pipes which disappear up into the rear corners and finally, where they meet on the way back down which eventually goes back into the carb. After this the fuel tank could be installed And the closing panel got a new coat of Dove Grey L249 Ready to be installed once the sealing material arrives.
The last couple of weeks have seen some progress. The engine has been installed... so much more difficult to do when your trying not to scratch the paintwork! The heat exchangers were very rusty so I've bought some new aftermarket one's. Suprised there was a note on them saying the paint was for transport only and needed to be stripped off and replaced with high temp paint. This took an evening to do each one, and seems a real waste of time....but they are done now and then the newly purchased Vintage Speed exhaust which looks great.
This restoration is looking really good. I'd be keen to know how that exhaust affects the performance and of course, sounds..I need a new one.
Thanks @tburton100 this is the fun bit. After years of taking it apart its good to see it going back together. I will report back on the sound but don't think I can give you an accurate view on the performance because the bus was driven from Cardiff where I bought it with sticking brakes, especially a caliper, so I think fixing these will give the biggest performance improvements! There are plenty of experts on here. @JamesLey pretty sure I've read you have a VS exhaust- did you get any performace benefit? Must be honest and say I made the purchase because it looks good!
I've been spending quite a bit of time putting the bus back together recently, dashboard has had fine scotchpad over it and a fresh coat of satin black- wanted to keep the original finish, the wiring loom has had all the wires connected using all the photo's (over 900) which I took on the strip down and the the dash top was installed, again, given a coat of satin black as per original. Then onto the headlining. Firstly I used Dodomat sound deadening on 50% of the roof, followed by 10mm Thermo Pro insulation. This is self adhesive an very easy to apply providing you take the backing off gradually and roller it to ensure a good bond. If you take it all off in one go it sticks to everything! Won't make that mistake again! Then onto the headlining itself, which was purchased off Ebay. The original was very mis shapen so couldn't be used as a pattern, therefore I started from the back as this has no movement and becomes the datum. The hoops were positioned in roughly the right places and I gradually tensioned the lining from the centre until it looked right. Lots of trial fitting and eventually when I was happy it was glued at the front. Then the sides could be tucked in and the excess cut off. There were minimal creases and using a hot air gun, I was able to use the heat to gently remove them. Need too get the bus back on it's wheels tomorrow so I can roll it back and finish gluing the lining around the windscreen lip ready for the glass to be fitted on Friday.
Over the last few weeks the glass has been fitted- the OE quality seals from Schofields which I bought as a kit just didn't seem close to fitting so after destroying two, went to Machine 7 and their top quality one's were tight but did fit. I was advised not to use Fairy liquid on the seals due to the salt content reacting with the metal but we found that Johnson's baby shampoo solidifies when in a cold environment and was excellent for the job. Then the locks were fitted. I bagged and tagged everything when taken off the bus nearly 3 years ago and it's amazing how you forget how it goes together! Thank goodness for the additional photo's taken at the time (but I still had to look om the internet for the sliding door mechanism). On Friday I took her on the road for the first time since all the work as she is going back to the paintshop to go through the snagging list and final polishing. This is one of those key moments where you realise ther has been significant progress https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC95mmlNj3wlhkrkYj7oz6Zw
Fantastic. The feeling you get from driving your restoration after a long period off the road is just great.
Been there its so hard going on money and time but your near near there bit more and you will be there. best wishes Geord.
Now onto the interior. I looked at many different options for soundproofing and insulation which really is confusing as no one seems to be the undisputed leader but there is a huge difference on cost. In the end I went with Dodomat as there are some good reviews for both soundproofing and insulation and the price was reasonable for an automotive insulation. As the aim is to get 50% coverage for the sound deadening, I fitted it into the troughs of the panels which took a lot of cutting but is easy enough with sissors. The first strip going on. and then the rest..... hope it makes a difference! Then onto the insulation applied over the top. This stuff really stick to everything! Not yet finished, but happy with progress today and should be able to do some more during the week.
