where do I start?

[Jon Tilson]

is a cleaner IMO...

ALways swear by Plus Gas myself.

Better than nothing I suppose...and its cheap.

Jonners

[Toledo Man]

John Simpson of Practical Classics must swear by Duck Oil. He mentions it enough times in his articles.

[xvivalve]

Simpson? Simpson?... French is it?

[Fen-yak]

I've recently started...
taking all the pipes, cables and peripheral engine compartment bits out (radiator, SU carbs, etc. - these will all need cleaning, exchanging, replacing, as and where applicable, etc). Spraying loads of stuff with GT50. Think it's going to be a long haul...

Just removed the headlights to find the usual rust - bad but not as bad as some I've seen on here.

Good fun this - well it's ok at weekends during the day - evenings prove to be a nightmare here in the south wales uplands due to a tiny, tiny gnat/bug/fly (only 3mm long) that irritates/bites like hell.

Currently optimistic, but rapidly realising that it's going to take time.

[xvivalve]

As Dave Poth has said, when you get to it, the Club do repair kits for the inner wing box sections. You need to keep the subframe close to position in order to locate the new parts correctly; with Adam's drop it all out scenario it will be nigh on impossible to effect an accurate repair such that it could all be bolted back up. The Club kit has been designed so that it can be installed with major items 'in the way' so to speak, piecing it together in sequence whilst still allowing a mig torch access

Check out:

viewtopic.php?t=1872&highlight=repair+panels

There is now also GRP front panels, and coming soon GRP rear screen vent panel

[Fen-yak]

OK, thanks for the tip xvivalve
Once I get to that point I'll consider which action to take. Sounds like the in situ subframe sounds the most accurate depending on me finding a decent welder...

Cheers,
Nick

[straylight]

just caught this thread. good work on getting started

you are right, it is a long haul, but keep at it and lots of advice (and encoragement) on this forum. I was in a similar position and a while later (about 9 months to be exact), my car is in pieces and I'm waiting for the bodywork to get done. Excitement and motivation has not dulled !

and adam, that looks quite a radical subframe removal.....

keep going, take lots of pics

stu

[Toledo Man]

I second Jonners with the Plus Gas. (bought some since my last post on this thread) WD40 was originally developed to disperse water hence the name. (it was the 40th such formulation during development) I've only just got my 1850 on the road (got the garage to do the work needed when it was MoTd) so I hope it inspires you.

Good luck.

[Purplebargeken]

Good to see that you are making progress. It is a long haul, but it'll be worthwhile in the end. Plusgas is great, but so is Duckoil.

Piccies?

Keep going!!!

Ken

[sprint95m]

I think it will be sensible for you to remove the petrol pump, fuel line and petrol tank before you start the welding especially since you are working in an enclosed space.
Also, I suggest storing these items in a different location.

Are you going to remove the engine as well?

[Fen-yak]

I'll remove the fuel pump, fuel lines and fuel tank once I found somewhere to store them - that's likely to be just before I start on the cutting/grinding/welding part.

as for the ;pus gas - that stuff looks like it'll work wonders - is it better in aerosol or liquid form ? (Suppose that depends on how much I'm likely to use)

I'll try and get some pics sorted as soon as the weather lifts ( I live 100ft up, so at the moment we're in the cloud base!)

[Fen-yak]

I've also got a couple of screws/bolts that have lost their head slots coupled with seized nuts (non-critical parts) - any suggestions as plus gas won't make a difference there? One of these screws with a knackered slot is the wing mirror removal screw.

AS for photo's - is it the down and dirty rusty/corrosion bits you want to see or just progress?

[straylight]

all pics are good pics.....

a bit fiddly to use, but something called an "eazi-out" or screw extractor might be useful for getting out the wing mirror screw. It is hardened steel with a tapered left handed thread. You drill a small pilot hole in the screw you want to remove and then screw in the extractor until it bites. It will then (hopefully) unscrew the offending screw. Cheap enough to buy, usually get a kit with several sizes. Be careful though, I've managed to break the extractor inside a screw which then makes removal very difficult

stu

[DavePoth]

The wing mirror screw was an issue for me too. My only suggestion is to let the plusgas soak in. Ditto for the siezed nuts. I was haivng real trouble getting my manifold removed from the downpipe, but as it was off the car I was able to lean it so that the WD40 was pushed down the thread by gravity. It came off quite easily afterwards. If you can make a kind of funnel/reservoir with sellotape it might do the job.

[Fen-yak]

thanks for the advice once again, will be putting it all to good use. Found screwed screw/bolts on the front grills as well.
Will be joining the TDC in a week or two when funds allow (it's the end of the school hols and the kids are back next week so I'm short-term skint).
Nick