Found Object

[ardiesse]

Trial fit of the crush tubes went OK (for the moment).  The distance between centres was good.  I may need to take a smidgen off the tubes, but I did engineer in an extra millimetre in the event . . .

But there'll need to be a couple of repairs on the upper part of the leg.  Here's one, done just before the sun went down.



More fun tomorrow.

Rob

[ardiesse]

Things didn't go perfectly with the repairs to the upper part of the subframe leg.  Shrinkage got me, and the bolt hole at the end of the subframe leg is offset about 4 mm.  I tried peening the welds, but it didn't have much effect.  But I'm going to cut most of the leg off anyway, so I figure it won't matter.

I reproduced the bottom section of the subframe leg where the bolts for the engine mount bracket go through.  It's the bit that was bent out of the way in the previous photo.  I made the flanged holes by drilling 3/16", and then driving a centre punch through using the vice as a press and sockets of different sizes as dies.  It's convenient that my centre-punches are 3/8" diameter.  The other holes are so I can plug-weld the crush tubes to this piece once assembled.



Here are the parts I've made so far trial-fitted, showing the crush tubes in place.  The bolts line up with the bracket (bonus) and I can adjust the overall height of the member to match the other side . . . but the Rare Spares replacement leg is about 2 mm thinner.  I can adjust that up too.



I've just finished bending and trimming the "side-wall" on this side, and still have to make the one for the other side.  And I naively thought I might have everything finished today . . .

Rob

[ardiesse]

The two "sides" of the repair to the leg are now welded in:



The masking tape is to indicate the line of cut for the Rare Spares section.  And then -



On the other side (not shown, thankfully) there's a second weld, parallel to the main weld, but exactly 25.4 mm further forward.  Who would like to guess why?

Masking tape has two edges.

I said some uncomplimentary things to myself about paying attention.  But I remember some wise words to the effect of, "If you stuff up, cut it off and start again."  I "just" needed to weld the misplaced cut up, and paint it over on the inside before making the cut in the right place.

This is a major project milestone reached: the subframe repairs are complete.  Fingers crossed.  I'll trial-fit the subframe to the body before speaking out of turn.

Rob

[ardiesse]

Hmm.  Fitting the subframe to the body single-handed is a pain in the rear.

I got the RH outer bolt in without too many swear words.  But I must make up a set of "subframe-bolt-bullets"*.  No.3 Phillips screwdriver in place of the RH inner bolt.  The left hand side was less cooperative.  The two left hand legs ran into the No. 1 body crossmember at the rear before the bolt holes lined up - I'll have to trim the left side legs (at a guess) 8 mm.

Rob

*It would be ideal, of course, to draw them up properly on a CAD package, make STEP files, and go to a place with a CNC lathe and order a hundred.

[Errol62]

Yes it’s a challenge but I’m sure you’re up to it Rob. Those big Phillips heads do come in handy for lining things up.

Are you intending to repair the bolt on brackets? I may have some usable ones.


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[ardiesse]

The Rough-As-Guts Home Engineering Workshop -



This is a much easier task on a lathe . . .

I made two subframe-bolt-bullets, one out of a 3/8" bolt, and one out of an M12 bolt.  Accurately finding the centre of a stud by eye isn't easy.  I drilled down 3/4" or so, then tapped 5/16" UNF.  The smaller one I tapered in the drill press with an angle grinder.  The larger one I had to "turn down" to size with an angle grinder first, before tapering it.

Rob

[ardiesse]

Clay,

Do you mean the two brackets at the front of the no. 1 body crossmember that the inner subframe legs bolt up to?

I'm still naively hoping they're OK, but if not, I'll give you a yell.

Rob

[Errol62]

The rear engine mount brackets. They look rusted out in your photos from memory. I don’t have the inner leg brackets. Think I gave them to Bruce Robbo for his ek ute.


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[ardiesse]

No.  I'll use my own.  They're rusty, but not rotten all the way through.  Anyway, I have a welder.

But the trial-fit of the subframe wasn't a huge success.  The right hand side lined up OK, but the left was a worry.  I got the bottom bolts in with great effort, and it was hard to line the skirt up at the cowl.  So I'll have to slice through the LH legs' welds and re-do them.

[ardiesse]

Subframe off.  Amputate one leg (and boy, do I dislike cutting through a perfectly good weld), cut through three sides of  another, and make a lengthwise cut at the end of the RH outer leg.

Subframe on.  Put the bolts in through the skirts first, then RH outer and RH inner.  Bend LH outer leg down and insert bolt.  Bolt the amputated LH inner leg in position and line it up.  Weld the two LH legs, as much as practical, in position.  Drive a screwdriver into the cut on the RH outer leg so the pad on the subframe leg sits flat on the inner sill.



Subframe off.  Finish the welds on the two LH legs, and weld up the slot on the RH outer leg.

I think that's the subframe finished (apart from a lock of paint here and there).

Rob

[ardiesse]

Not much to report this weekend, and nothing photo-worthy -

I ground some welds down and painted most of the repairs.  The wire brush pinged a few rust scales off the apron, which revealed holes to be welded up.  Fortunately only a couple of minutes' work.

Rob

[ardiesse]

Paint-scraper and broom on the floors: one kitchen-tidy bag full of dirt, rust, sound deadener and busted bits of interior trim.  There are lots more clear-vision parts of the car now.

The body shell tips over to 60 degrees now.  Only just.  The roof passes to within a hand's thickness of the carport roof beams, and the sill just misses the bottom of the rotisserie -



And once I tipped the shell over, look what came out of the No. 1 body member on the left hand side:



Rob

[ardiesse]

A scoop of laundry detergent in warm water goes a very long way . . . when combined with a cubed cubit of elbow-grease:



So the car had had parts of the underneath painted, perhaps twice.  I think that was long before its service as a paddock-basher.

The driver's side and the passenger's side lived in completely different environments, as far as I can work out.  The driver's side is, well, a rotten mess:



It doesn't show up too well in the photo, but there are big holes in the inner sill.  And I'm going to need to find a sill reinforcement (jacking point).



The bottom of the B-pillar is rotten, and it's interesting that the floor around the outline of the sill reinforcement at the base of the B-pillars has rusted away on both sides.  Suggests to me that metal fatigue set in.

On the other hand, the left hand sill may only need "minor" repairs: patching, rather than outright replacement.

But the size of the job ahead is becoming painfully apparent.

Rob

[mcl1959]

That’s really unusual as lots of country roads in the fifties were often only 1 lane wide meaning that cars had to drive off the side of the road to pass.
All my cars were worse on the passenger side than the drivers side.
Ken

[Errol62]

I think now the cars have been sitting unused for so long that significant rust takes place after the car has been taken off the road. It then depends a lot on how the car was stored. Not to discount what you say. I agree passenger side always cops more of a stoning from shoulder hopping.


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[ardiesse]

Clay,

And in this case you'd be absolutely spot-on.  The car was probably parked facing east, or driver's side downhill.  Or both.  Much bog in the RH sill.

How much of Errol do you still have?  A sill reinforcement/jacking point?

Rob

[Errol62]

I sold Errol as a rolling shell to gledge for $250. I did try #nd salvage a couple of jacking points from the fb I cut up but they were rusted out.


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[HAD 708]

I love this topic it is great!!!!
Brett

[Rod]

Couldn't agree more Brett. Following Rob's build has got me into action and inspired me to do some work.

Rob, keep up the great work / thread.

Cheers Rod

[my8thholden]

A wet Saturday .so doing some indoor stuff , great resto Rob ,enjoying following all the current ones ,looking forward when we have a run , this Covid has kept us at home ..Vern