Rudolfs 2+2: The gleaming emerald......

[PB260Z]

Nice work Rudi coming along very well.

 

Making me feel a bit guilty for not doing much on mine for the last few weeks.

[gav240z]

You make me wish I had my own place, I'm worried if I strip my Z down too far I'll get evicted from my rental and stuck with a half stripped S30z. Anyway good work so far, motivates me to get stuck back into mine. For various reasons I haven't got much done on mine lately.

[AK]

Hi Rudi

If you are anything like me the amount of time I have spent thinking about sunroof option is boraderline certifiable but in any case I in some ways I do want to keep a fixed sunroof and others I would like it gone completely it certainly a little bit of easy fix to shape some 8mm acrylic to fit the roof shape although I looking at some specialist help to do this as you need a large oven Pizza Oven size to get it heated to right temperature to shape. I think you can certainly get a acrylic roof in place with no water ingress if done correctly. The botched patch up job you speak of is most likely a different scenario where they had patched up existing hole and with gap filler between the sliding metal roof and the fixed roof . Significant rust would of been around the edges and the roof and you would not get a not got track of seal and the seal from the glue/silicon would be done on rusting surface all not going work long term. Fish tanks stay together and hold water for years with no problem - anyway I think it can work and your right if not done right it could be a disaster and then I would be kicking myself that I did not get a blank welded in, of a whole new roof skin, or doing Carbon roof as Ben did from Otomoto which looked super cool and really trick I will revisit that build again by I do struggle with how he got the roof to seamless blend to the existing metal body.

 

I have got my Drivers door off at the moment full disassembly and clean it out get the rust out POR - 15 treatment - re-lube everthing, get the rust of the widow mechanisms' POR 15 treatment, weld up the mirror holes going for the fender mounts, my stainless steel frame was cracked halfway through where it went into the door on the lock side, took this to a stainless steel fabricator specialist who specialized in industrial kitchens who welded the crack up and put a 1mm plate on it.

 

Already done the full reco on the passenger door came up perfect - love a good set of doors on a classic car nice and solid and working perfect - if let go much further another year or 2 they would of been cactus jack.

 

In regards to colour I starting think I may change to candy orange with a Gold metallic fleck - pretty in your face but not seen that often

 

Thanks for the perspective on my build - keep up the good work buddy. Cheers AK Don't worry I still considering options for the sunroof delete.

[C.A.R.]

Looking good Rudi

[CroS13]

UPDATE 20/1/16: ENGINE BAY PROGRESS

 

So i have been slowly chipping away at the engine bay, and was not really looking forward to tackling the battery box area, so i started by removing the mount for the charcoal canister, because that got tossed over the shoulder!

 

 

Once that was done, it was time to get stuck into the battery box, it looked "reasonable" at first glance, but it kept bugging me. so i broke out the spot weld drill and got to work, which once removed and hit with a wire wheel, showed the extent of the damage, which left me with paper thin pitted metal:

 

So i cut, and cut and cut.... but kept running into rusty, pitted metal..... once it was all removed i was left with quite the sorry sight:

 

 

 

And hence why its been a while since my last update, this would be quite a complex panel to make, with multiple curves in many directions, it would be my biggest test yet!

So to start, i had to patch the hole in the firewall, where the rust had eaten away at the join:

 

 

Next was to drop down a plate vertically, as i had removed quite a bit of metal during my exploration with the wire wheel:

 

 

 

and now my 300mm sheet metal roller really started paying for itself, glad i bought it after all:

 

 

a couple of relief cuts later, and we were getting close. I had welded to the firewall from the underside, you can see a little penetration, but overall im happy with the result as its alot neater:

 

 

And yesterday i managed to finish it off!

 

 

from the underside:

 

 

unfortunately....in my haste to GTFO of the garage yesterday, i reefed open the garage roller door while standing at some stupid angle, and i threw my back out.... I am now in quite a fair bit of pain, on pain killers and have been given the rest of the week off work. So ill probably be out of action for a week or two.... happy days......


Rudi.

[gav240z]

Sorry to hear about your back mate, but that is some really good work on the battery box area. What roller did you buy? I think I should get 1 also for complex curves.

[PB260Z]

Hi Rudi

 

Sorry to hear about your back. Back injuries can be real bad news.

Nice to see some more progress on your car.

 

Once mine is registered I will have to come for run out to your place and have a closer look.

 

Rest up and get your back sorted.

 

 

Cheers

 

PB

[PB260Z]

Hi,

 

Dropped into Rudi's today and must say that the car is looking good, very good. You have done some great work, reading this thread you don't really get a true impression as to how good it is looking.

 

Also, first time I have seen a resto that didn't need work on the slam panel.

 

Cheers

 

PB

[XYZ]

What great looking work - really like the sleek black look of your suspension. Seriously wish I had but 1% of the talent and patience most of you guys seems to have.

[C.A.R.]

Seriously wish I had but 1% of the talent and patience most of you guys seems to have.

 

It's actually called Beer.

[CroS13]

 What roller did you buy? I think I should get 1 also for complex curves.

 

http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/S267

 

There is a Hare and forbes in North Parramatta, Its like being a kid in a candy store, except the candy you want costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, and you don't have a jar big enough to fit it all in!

 

Hi,

 

Dropped into Rudi's today and must say that the car is looking good, very good. You have done some great work, reading this thread you don't really get a true impression as to how good it is looking.

 

Also, first time I have seen a resto that didn't need work on the slam panel.

 

Cheers

 

PB

 

Thanks for the kind words Pete, its everyone Else's support, and their builds that keep me chugging along with mine. Great to see your Car in person and on the road, it looks a million bucks.

 

What great looking work - really like the sleek black look of your suspension. Seriously wish I had but 1% of the talent and patience most of you guys seems to have.

 

The talent you learn as you go mate, I'm no fabricator, the only other time i had done any welding was a 1 week module at tafe in the first year of my apprenticeship over 10 years ago. Couldn't weld for shit before i bought my car, just invest in PROPER tools, a quality welder, some gas, and practice practice practice. Watch some YouTube video's, read some tutorials on how to set up the welder and have a go.

 

I went to the local metal distributors and bought $50 worth off 0.9mm off cuts, Zinalume, cold rolled, a bit of everything, and i practiced and practiced and learned the welder for about 2 hours every day after work for a week, before i even attempted to do something on my car. And when it came around to doing work on the car, i started in a area you wont see, so if i cocked it up, no harm done.

 

As for the patience.... trust me.... this car has tested my patience on more than one occasion, i just close the roller door, and like Locky said, go inside, sit on the computer, crack a beer and unwind. Plenty of tears were had so far, and plenty more im sure.

 

Rudi

[mspecr]

Just had a read, great work dude keep it up ! I'm going to borrow your idea for the battery tray area soon

[CroS13]

Update 16.4.16 - Fuel filler hole finished, floor done


Got abit done over the last 2 months. Firstly, big shout out to Locky, He made me the fuel filler panel, and it wasn't 100%, I messaged him and he told me to send it back down to him with my fuel flap, and he had it fixed and back to me within the week.

So firstly i finished of in the engine bay, i had rust under the windscreen washer bottle, so that was fixed up:

 

 

I had a few holes in the floor that needed to be fixed too:

 

 

 

 

And finally i had to tackle the fuel door area. from the outside it didn't look as bad as it actually was:

 

 

but it was very rusty from the inside, and by the time i had cut out all the cancer, i was left with a decent sized hole. I got a tip from a mate who is a body man and restorer, he said where possible, cut circles or ovals for your replacement sections. as if you cut a square, the panel will want to distort when you come to the corners. so i took his advice and cut a ovalish shape:

 

 

 

was quite a few days trimming the hole to line up with my patch, but i started stitching it in:

 

 

 

And the finished product. It has sunk in and pulled in the pannel along the bottom edge the most, and i went really really slow, but its nothing a bit of bog cant fix:

 

 

Next up on the list is to clean up my filler neck box, and weld that back in place. I might have to cut off the mounting flange on it, and re make that section, so it will be a bit of stuffing around.

After that, fix the small amount of rust in the bottom of the rear hatch where the glass sits, and then, probably the hardest task of them all. 

I have some rust in the inside of the cavity of the roof where the hinges fold into. I know this is a problem area, because Pete mentioned his was the same, and i think you said Locky just treated that area with rust kill? If i attempt to fix it, i will probably try from underneath. So un stitch the inner panel that the interior done light bolts to, then cut out the offending areas from the back, so i dont disturb the roof.

But i might hit it with a wire wheel first and see how bad it actually is.

Apart from that, thats all the rust fixed, then off to sandblasting!

Rudi

[PB260Z]

Hi Rudi

 

Yes my bus had a few signs of minor surface rust in the back of the roof that were visible through the hinge aperture.

Lockie and I discussed this and I elected to treat it rather than pull the entire roof apart. Not the perfect solution, but the most appropriate for what I was intending with my car.

 

Cheers

 

PB

[Brabham]

Good work Rudi, do you use an air gun to cool the panel while welding, I have found this helps. My bus has the same problem with rust in the hatch hinge area, and I was planning to unstitch the panel from the underside, so will be interested to see how you go with that area. Try to take a few pics of it when you do that area for reference.

 

Cheers

[CroS13]

^^^^

Don't worry there will be plenty of photo's of anything i pull apart.

I usually don't use a air gun when cooling panels, i have before, but i just spot, move maybe 15-20cm away do another spot, then wait until i can touch the weld with my bare finger and not burn myself (i get burnt alot haha ) then carry on from there.

Rudi

[gav240z]

I usually don't use a air gun when cooling panels, i have before, but i just spot, move maybe 15-20cm away do another spot, then wait until i can touch the weld with my bare finger and not burn myself (i get burnt alot haha ) then carry on from there.

 

I wouldn't bother trying to cool things down faster either, rapidly cooling any weld like with a damp rag may actually cause more distortion. It's best to let it naturally cool, you of course have to wait a while 15-20 seconds per weld which is why this stuff is time consuming, but that is the advice I've been given at my workshop/tafe class.

 

I posted a link in Andrew's build thread but will post here also for others interested.

http://www.speedhunters.com/2014/03/the-101-how-to-weld/

 

This is probably 1 of the better tutorials out there in my opinion, I quite liked the tape template idea.

 

The best advice I'd give anyone and that includes myself is to be patient. I know every time I make a balls of something it's because I've been rushing to get done.

[CroS13]

Semi-Update 6.5.15 - Video updates from now on

 

Ok guys i want to try something different for the rest of my build. I want to do a youtube video series for the rest of it.

Lets say its like Toms Turbo Garage but with 99% lower quality in Video editing and post production haha!

Anyway, i made episode 1, its pretty much me waffling on with the back story and you have all seen it so far. I have been chipping away at it, and have taken go-pro footage along the way of me working on it etc so hopefully the next episode will be more interesting.

So give me some feedback, good and bad, how i can improve it etc, the wife said it was pretty good, but we cant trust her, she doesn't want to deal with a grumpy Rudi if she says something wrong and un-supportive. 

 

Rudi

[C.A.R.]

Edited May 7, 2016 by Lurch ™

[Brabham]

Looks good Rudi, maybe you can do an episode on unpicking and repairing the hatch hinge area as that is a common rust area on 2+2 models, probably caused by them not having the rubber hinge pockets. There are a few double/triple thicknesses in that area too when you go near the corners.

 

Cheers

[Impatient1]

Pretty good video, the only point I would make is the beginning intro. You could have voiced it over also, instead of filming and speaking, that way you could have shown more of the car as you talked. Considering how you did it was very good.

 

I'll have to fix the fuel area also so I'll be keen to watch the next one etc.

[PB260Z]

Hi Rudi

 

Nice vid well done.

You have just lifted the bar on build threads.

 

Cheers

 

PB

[CroS13]

thanks for the support guys
 

Don't worry Locky, I took your first reply as a compliment... made me laugh actually! 

 

Looks good Rudi, maybe you can do an episode on unpicking and repairing the hatch hinge area as that is a common rust area on 2+2 models, probably caused by them not having the rubber hinge pockets. There are a few double/triple thicknesses in that area too when you go near the corners.

 

I will try. Not even sure how i will attempt to tackle that area, most likely from the underside so i don't disturb the roof.

 

Pretty good video, the only point I would make is the beginning intro. You could have voiced it over also, instead of filming and speaking, that way you could have shown more of the car as you talked. Considering how you did it was very good.

I'll have to fix the fuel area also so I'll be keen to watch the next one etc.

 

I've been told by some workmates:
1. The end/outro was abit dark, try not to film at night which ill keep in mind from now on
2. Im abit monotonous when i speak.... hmmm don't know how i can fix that one 

Next videos should be better with action shots, Now i wont lie.... Ive f**ked up the fuel box area while repairing it, mainly due to my impatience.... i went to fix it, and f**ked up again.... i have all the footage, in process of trying to rectify or salvage it... ill put it all on the table in the video to show where i believe i went wrong and how to avoid it, so stay tuned

Hi Rudi

Nice vid well done.
You have just lifted the bar on build threads.

 

Thanks Pete! thought why the hell not, try something different!

Rudi.

[Scoota G]

Subscribed, good to have video it adds dimension to the build. Keep up the good work Rudi   

[mspecr]

Top Job Rudi, great way to raise the bar on your build thread, makes it so much easier to be " more involved/following " in someones build. Keep them vids coming !