Oh dear, not touched this since April Well I didn't state which winter, and I have done the pickup in the mean time Back on it now, where was I up to? Door bottom repairs, Schofields panels good but too much bend and not enough rear! Bit of cutting and bending required , Drivers door done, Same story on passenger side
Cab doors done, now on to slider, it's had the usual repair section spot brazed and half an inch of filler Ground the edges off and it virtually fell off Luckily the new panel is a bit bigger Got to sort the inner bottom edge out now
The garage next door have got a plasma cutter he said I can borrow, not used one before and things I've seen them cut look a bit messy, also not sure how much distortion it might cause on a long cut in thin metal like that, do you have/use one?
They are great in certain circumstances like if you're taking all the sills, crossmemebers and jacking points out etc where it's hard to get a grinder in. No good when there is something behind the piece you want to cut as it will go through that too if it's close enough. For long flat panels a 1mm cutting disc is king, they last ages too if you don't bully them! Toolstation sell some made by rhodious and they are very good.
If it's a good one, then you can do dead clean and straight cuts... The key is having a new nozzle in them, as they wear out with use, and the airflow goes wonky... As it's mainly the jet or air that controls the cut than the actual arc I've got one, but it only gets used for certain jobs, as you can't use it to cut where there is more than one layer, as you cut through everything... grinder with a thin disc is much more precise
Ok just to keep you all happy I went shopping on the way here this morning Then set about the inner repair
plus everything you cut with a plasma needs a bit of cleaning up first. Ive got a plasma cutter at home and like Paul said, it's good for some things but double skin stuff just gets chopped through regardless. Ive cut panels and sheet steel and you don't get any distortion but everything has to be fairly clean and new tips and nozzles are a must. They're good fun to play with though
Back on it today, Hoping to get the three doors prepped and primed tomorrow then I might even get some colour on this weekend!
Decided to bare metal the slider as it had so many layers of paint and filler on, Prepped cab doors as well, right time consuming job, next time I'm having them dipped or blasted Watched the landlords crew set off for the weekend They hooked a Discovery on an A frame behind the trailer as well !! You think our busses are slow
I snapped up a pair of import doors from the same chap I got the early bus from 4 years ago, a few dings and screw holes to fill but no rust, just dirt.
