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PostPosted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 10:06 pm 
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Nice work Matt

Dave


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PostPosted: Mon Oct 28, 2019 10:34 pm 
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Progress has been quite steady since my last update.

I had a welcome visit from Scott, my mobile welder who returned for a couple of days to attend to the nearside cill and any other jobs I wanted him to sort out. This time, we arranged for me to remove as much of the old as possible, so he could crack on with the new metal and save some time (and ££)!

With the car up in the air, I removed the very rusty outer panel. Like the offside, this isn't the original. It came off with relative ease. The inner cill was also cut out.
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I was pleased to see the inner reinforcer in far better condition than the offside - just the very lower lip was frilly, so I carefully trimmed this out. Everything was cleaned up and given a coat of rust converter.
When Scott arrived, he made good progress on fitting the replacements. First of all he extended the reinforcer panel so it could be welded to the inner/outer, before then trial fitting everything. The doors were refitted temporarily before he welded the outer cill to make sure the gaps were all even - a good job we did as both the front and rear doors were too close to the cill at the leading edge (front) and leading edge (rear). The original cill must have had a very slight curve at each end? After some fettling, we managed to get this sorted and Scott welded the new outer back on.

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Progress was good, so I got him to fit some jacking points which I had made up (using measurements from OPD - still sporting the originals). He also made a nice job of the closing panels at each end of the cill, meeting my request to try and replicate the seam which runs down the inner arch.
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A really good job done and nice to have solid cills again. Everything is now in epoxy primer until all the other repairs on the car are complete.
The cills will have plenty of cavity wax applied - Dynax or Waxoil when I get round to it.

With that complete and Scott on his way, I decided to finish off the outer rear wheelarch repair. I had previously cut out the rotten area and repaired the inner wing. As this area wasn't so bad as the offside, I didn't have enough room to joddle the panel, so decided to butt weld it instead. Knowing how scarce my repair panels are, I took my time and carefully cut the panel to the approximate size of the repair area, before final fit and trimming. I applied some 'cold front' putty to try and prevent distortion while I welded the panel in place, just tacking along the panel bit by bit, slowly until all the gaps were filled.

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Once complete, I ground down the welds with my little file sander. A skim of filler will be required, but I am pleased with the result.
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Both rear wings will require repainting due to the amount of repair work. I am still pondering on whether to temporarily do this myself, or get it done in a bodyshop… for now it will be left in epoxy primer until everything else is complete.

So, next part of this project....

I now need to make a few repairs to the n/s front inner wing area - this doesn't look anything like as bad as the o/s, so should be relatively straightforward...should.
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However...
The headlamp panels (inner and outer) are shot on the nearside, the eyebrow potentially repairable... the offside from initial inspection reveals a rotten eyebrow. So I think some considerable time will be on the front end in due course.
I managed to pick up some repair panels from our own Alun, so these will be put to good use - I may not need the eyebrow for the nearside, but better to prepare in advance.


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More soon folks.

Regards Matt.






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Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 2:06 pm 
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Location: Outer Hebrides
Looking good Matt, did you manage to get rid of the filler in the rear wing too.

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Triumph Dolomite Sprint,RNK 957W

Built 26/6/1980 (one of the last built), Auto, Porcelain White - Genuine Mileage 52,820 (warranted).

Only 3 previous owners, (2 within the same family).

Supplied by Lavender Hill Garage Ltd, Enfield, London, by garage owner Jimmy Metcalfe on 30th September 1980 to Geoffery Robinson, Enfield.

Club Membership No: 2017092


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 3:16 pm 
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Quote:
Looking good Matt, did you manage to get rid of the filler in the rear wing too.
Thanks Murdo. There doesn't seem to be much filler to be honest. I will however strip it fully before I repaint it due to the multiple repairs. There is some grot just below the vinyl too which will require investigation.

_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 3:36 pm 
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Location: NANTWICH.
It's coming along nicely now Matt 8) Re painting.... Why not have some paint mixed and put in aerosols? At a decent paint supplier (not Halfords) they will be able to match your paint as near as original, and the spray pattern is excellent.

Tony.

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PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 5:17 pm 
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Location: Harrow Middlesex
Matt

The rear arch has come out looking good,Ive still got mine to do,but my inner arch has gone as well,did you do any repairs to your inner arches

Dave


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 5:29 pm 
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Quote:
It's coming along nicely now Matt 8) Re painting.... Why not have some paint mixed and put in aerosols? At a decent paint supplier (not Halfords) they will be able to match your paint as near as original, and the spray pattern is excellent.

Very good point Tony. I think this would be a good option and my welder agreed too. I had some paint mixed for the boot area and, as you say, the match was superb and quality of the aerosol good too. A good interim for sure. Many thanks.
Tony.

_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 5:34 pm 
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Quote:
Matt

The rear arch has come out looking good,Ive still got mine to do,but my inner arch has gone as well,did you do any repairs to your inner arches

Dave
Hi Dave. Yes both sides required repair as the lips had gone. The offside in particular. I think I included a few pictures earlier on but I managed to make up some repairs in sections. It helped having the outer in place as a guide. Not perfect but I'm happy that they are solid. The M12 bolt with a slit in the thread came in really handy for this task.

_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:28 pm 
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Joined: Sun Oct 08, 2006 4:32 pm
Posts: 470
I continue to chip away at the crusty bits on SWU...

I have now moved onto the n/s inner front wheel arch/ wing, which is in generally better shape than the offside was. A small patch was required just above the rear subframe mounting, and I also cut out an old patch repair and fabricated new for the area just behind the roadwheel. There were a few small holes which I managed to fill with MIG weld, using a piece of copper behind to aid.
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Just like the o/s, the upper arch/bulkhead area corner was rusty, so I cut out all the grot and made some repair sections, all now in Epoxy primer before I finish off with a skim of fibreglass filler, prime and top coat.
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Now the cills are all sorted, I thought I would concentrate on tidying the underside before I put the exhaust back on (removed to facilitate access to sills). The car has been thoroughly undersealed in the past, very thickly in places and although mostly sound there are a number of areas where it is lifting. Thankfully, so far nothing more than surface rust, but I have decided to remove all the underseal and start afresh. Much of the floor is as it left the factory. I intend to remove all the underseal, clean up and apply rust converter where required, followed by a coat of Epoxy Mastic and over top with Dinitrol 4941.
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In the past I have always used a heat gun to soften and remove old underseal, but as it is so brittle, I have found that an old wood chisel is just as good to chip it off - not so messy either.

Unfortunately, the n/s chassis leg is rustier that I thought. It has been repaired before, however no drain holes were added (like the sills), so although it looked solid, numerous holes have appeared underneath the underseal. I could repair this, however will fit a replacement from Alun. The front of the leg is fine, so I won't need to lower the subframe etc, I will just cut off the affected area and splice in a new piece. My mobile welder is booked in for a final visit in December, so I may get him to weld it in if I don't get round to it.


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As the downpipe runs so close to the leg, I decided to take this off last weekend. Plenty of penetrating fluid was used, but I managed to get all the bolts out - much less space compared to my 1500! I removed the heater fan assembly to aid access - this will get a lick of paint while it is off.
Interestingly, there is a 'non o/e' inspection hatch cut into the bulkhead to facilitate access to the downpipe bolts! This was just stuck in place with filler.....
As I managed to undo from within the engine bay, I will clean this up and weld it back up in due course.


To be continued...….

Regards

MC

_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Sun Dec 15, 2019 10:07 pm 
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Over the last week or so I thought I would tackle the nearside chassis leg. As mentioned before it had been repaired around 6 years ago.. The offside was completely replaced.
Alun kindly sent me a replacement so I set about removing the corroded remains of the original. Having thoroughly checked the leg in the area around the rear subframe mount I was satisfied the corroded section could be removed and a new section grafted in.
I cleaned all back to bare metal and carefully drilled out the old spot welds before removing the old leg. The floor underneath was generally good bar a few holes that appeared on the edge of the soundproofing pad.
I was reluctant to have to cut out the edge of the floor, so thought I would try to fill the holes with weld. With the aid of some copper strip behind I was able to slowly fill the holes and linish them back with a flap disc.
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I then carefully positioned the new leg and cut it to fit the remains of the original. With some careful trimming I was then able to butt weld the two together.
The new leg was prepared by drilling 7.5mm holes along the lip. I applied zinc rich weld through primer to all surfaces and the inside of the leg too for added protection.
I then proceeded to plug weld the leg in place. I seam welded the new piece to the old at the front. Quite tough welding upside down! I got there in the end though and once the welds were linished down it looks quite tidy. You can clearly see the welds from inside the car so I think it has penetrated well.

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Next job will be to epoxy prime the leg and then I will cover with epoxy mastic along with the rest of the floor now that all the underseal has been removed.
I've cleaned up the gearbox crossmember and given it a coat of paint ready to go back on along with the heater fan etc..


All the best. MC
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_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:17 pm 
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Its been quite a productive period over Christmas and into the New Year, although I did take a break for a while to paint the hallway and landing at home!

With all the welding complete underneath and the underseal removed completely, any localised rust was treated with EM121 rust converter followed by a coat of Epoxy Mastic paint. I applied this with a roller, so didn't take too long at all.
In general the underside was/is very good, just a couple of small holes in the corners of the floor where the sound deadening pads are applied - I managed to fill these carefully with weld.
I then applied 2 coats of Dinitrol in aerosol to the underside. A nice finish has been obtained and I am glad I took the time to get rid of the old underseal.

Prior to all the painting, I had removed the old fuel lines. These were well protected with previous applications of underseal, but some areas, particularly over the back axle were very pitted. I decided to make up new using 8mm microbore copper pipe.
This, along with new fuel clips from Bresco was quite straightforward using the old pipes as a pattern. The only area I stuggled a little was where it loops over the propshaft, I had a couple of attempts. It is reasonably tidy, but getting the tight radius' with soft copper was not as easy as I thought. All fuel hose was replaced with R9 fuel hose for ethanol resistance.

While underneath I decided to drain the auto gearbox oil. I was amazed how clean it was inside with the sump off. A new gasket and a coat of paint to the sump and refitted...being careful not to overtighten the bolts.
I refitted the gearbox crossmember which I had previously painted up - all fitted up well.

To facilitate the painting, I removed the propshaft. This revealed a very worn centre bearing carrier and also a suspect UJ. I decided to take it up to Dave Mac Propshafts in Coventry for a refurb and balance etc.. as I write I am awating their assessment.

The exhaust is a Rimmers stainless steel, so that is good. After I removed the exhaust prior to all this activity, I cleaned it up using some Harpic Power Max toilet cleaner! It came up really well. Refitting with new clamps and rubbers where required went ok, although the exhaust downpipe bolts are quite difficult to get to.

An interesting 'inspection panel' cut into the bulkhead to facilitate access to the downpipe bolts wasn't really any help... I removed the wodge of filler holding it in place and managed to salvage most of it to weld back in place. The patch was Epoxy primed, seam sealed, primed and then painted - just black on the inside and blue from the engine bay.

With all that complete, I was then able to refit the previously cleaned and painted fuel tank into my repaired boot floor. I did spray some Bilt Hamber clear wax on the bottom of the tank and surrounding area for added protection.

A gallon of fuel this Thursday evening and I was ready to fire up the car...it has been idle since March when I purchased it (although turned over regularly).
I syphoned through the fuel using a very handy syringe and primed up the pump - cleaning out the filter while at it. After a few attempts she fired up well. I had to nip up the downpipe again, but hopefully all is well.

I will fully service the car in due course and replace all fluids before she hits the road.

Next jobs include headlamp panel replacement, lower front wings and welding on the offside rear wheelarch repair panel - currently just held on with self tappers, but all prepared for the mig welder. My mobile welder is also booked in for a day in Feb, so may get him to tackle around the windscreen... still plenty to do, but I feel there is a light at the end of the tunnel now!

My wife is delighted with this lovely picture I bought from Facebook Marketplace over Christmas....now in our living room but alas I think it may end up in the garage!


Till next time....

MC
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_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Fri Jan 17, 2020 10:07 am 
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Nice work as usual Matt, underneath looks neat.

Was your Auto sump leaking before taking the sump pan off? I took mine off, cleaned it and refitted it, but still leaked in the same corner, so going to get a local engineers to check that it is completely 'true' before refitting it again.

_________________
Triumph Dolomite Sprint,RNK 957W

Built 26/6/1980 (one of the last built), Auto, Porcelain White - Genuine Mileage 52,820 (warranted).

Only 3 previous owners, (2 within the same family).

Supplied by Lavender Hill Garage Ltd, Enfield, London, by garage owner Jimmy Metcalfe on 30th September 1980 to Geoffery Robinson, Enfield.

Club Membership No: 2017092


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PostPosted: Fri Jan 17, 2020 12:38 pm 
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Joined: Sun Oct 08, 2006 4:32 pm
Posts: 470
Thanks Murdo. Yes it was leaking a little so I replaced with a cork gasket.. Not rubber as also available. As you say it is important that it is all true and I was surprised at how little torque is required for the bolts. Time will tell if mine leaks or not.

_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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PostPosted: Fri Jan 17, 2020 2:02 pm 
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Joined: Wed May 17, 2017 6:28 pm
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Yes, nice work Matt :thumbsup: One thing? On some sites they recommend you dont change the oil on Borg Warner box's unless absolutely necessary, is this a load of cobblers? I have never had much to do with auto box's, but now i have three Triumphs all auto and all with leaking gaskets although minor :wink: The oil in all of them looks very clean and red and no nasty smells :D
Opinions on this matter please? I seem to remember someone on here being an expert on Borg Warner matters?

Tony.

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PostPosted: Fri Jan 17, 2020 3:15 pm 
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Hi Tony. Like you I've never had an auto before, so I am venturing into the unknown too!
As I have no record of the oil being changed, wanted to make sure it had the correct oil - critical, and the gasket was leaking I decided to change it. But, having done so, what I drained out was as good as what I put back in fresh! perfect!
I was also perplexed at one point early on why it had lost lots of oil whilst sitting idle - apparently this is common too where it drains from the torque converter. It would have required a top up anyway.

I'm sure it can't harm it having fresh, but if it wasn't for the above, I probably wouldn't worry too much. I don't think modern cars with auto's have regular drains either (except possibly DSG?) but anyway hopefully it has done a good job.

Will I like the auto though? The previous owner liked it, although many have said at 60mph+ it becomes a bit 'revvy'.

MC

_________________
Matt Cotton

TDC Oxfordshire Area Organiser.
TDC/TSSC group meeting - 3rd Tuesday of the month
The Duke at Clifton - OX15 0PE

1980 1500HL - OPD
1976 Sprint - SWU


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