RUK - Project Recommission 1972 'Dolomite' Auto

[oily66]

Hope you’re well
Looking forward to a good catch up if we can get a meeting arranged soon.
I’m sure we all have a tale or too to regale

[yorkshire_spam]

I started cleaning the rust off the N/S front wing corner, in the vain hope it was surface rust.
It wasn't, the crud/damp had gathered behind the panel and it had rotted through from the back.

I've cut it back to sound metal and I'm waiting for a partial second hand wing to come through the post to make a patch.

[dollyman]

Oh dear, you did have that feeling Sam

Tony

[oily66]

While it’s open Sam I’d consider making the headlight panel removable.

[yorkshire_spam]

While it’s open Sam I’d consider making the headlight panel removable.

Something to consider! Have to balance the rush to get it back on the road VS longer term benefits!

[yorkshire_spam]

As part of "Operation: Slow the rust" I've removed the headlamps, badges, bonnet, grill, radiator, bumper+under riders.
My plan is to patch the wing, strip all the rusty bits back to bare metal, treat the rust, filler+sand and then respray the nsf wing and the front end. I plan on adding stone chip to the inside of the front lower valance and the wings and lamp boxes. Maybe even the front of the lower valance (over-sprayed in body colour)
If I get any garage time tonight I'll take photos of the progress so far.

[new to this]

As part of "Operation: Slow the rust" I've removed the headlamps, badges, bonnet, grill, radiator, bumper+under riders.
My plan is to patch the wing, strip all the rusty bits back to bare metal, treat the rust, filler+sand and then respray the nsf wing and the front end. I plan on adding stone chip to the inside of the front lower valance and the wings and lamp boxes. Maybe even the front of the lower valance (over-sprayed in body colour)
If I get any garage time tonight I'll take photos of the progress so far.

Sam

As you repair the wing paint the inside of all metal patches before there fitted,with the eye brows fitted not sure how much access there is, ive got the same thing on my car but drivers side

Dave

[yorkshire_spam]

Sam

As you repair the wing paint the inside of all metal patches before there fitted,with the eye brows fitted not sure how much access there is, ive got the same thing on my car but drivers side

Dave

Cheers Dave, I paint the back of any panels with a rust cure/proof product and then over-paint. I'll try and make sure I remember the backs before I can't get to them anymore.

[yorkshire_spam]

I found about half a dozen small holes in the front panel and lower valance. I've patched/mig'd those up and welded in the wing repair this evening.
I'll get it ground back and checked for pinholes etc. tomorrow. Then a quick skim of filler and I can think about paint!

[yorkshire_spam]

Wing repair stitched in...



A smear of filler, sand back and paint.
When I paint I plan on spraying the ns wing and front panels all in one go - I've been sanding and rust proofing any rust spots so the whole thing looks patchy at the moment.

[yorkshire_spam]

Much filling, sanding and pratting about with stone-chip that reacts with the paint underneath...
... this evening I took the plunge and sprayed the front end with a cellulose undercoat/filler that I'll flat off and re-coat and then apply some celly top coat to.
It won't look showroom, but it'll look better than a patchwork of filler/rust proofer/original paint.

First time I've ever sprayed with the compressor/gun - so it might be a total fsck-up.

Appropriate protection required (at least it's "only" celly and not a 2k!)

[yorkshire_spam]

Sorting the paint out has turned into a total b1tch of a job, there are patches of some sort of paint (maybe from previous touch-ups?) that reacts incredibly badly when over-painted. Sanding them back doesn't seem to help, in fact the paint still seems "tacky" underneath when sanding. Covering with barrier paint just caused the over-coat to flake off when dry. The only way I've managed to get primer onto the panels has been to bare-metal them. A few patches I'll have to re-do and I don't have the time/space to do the whole front end at one go.
Very annoying.

[James467]

Looking great Sam, I don't think I did a lot on that side of the car the worse of the rot was on the other side. How's that looking?

I had the same problem with the paint which is why it never looked that great. I wonder if I had a badly mixed batch of rattle cans which is why you're having so many problems with it.

[yorkshire_spam]

Looking great Sam, I don't think I did a lot on that side of the car the worse of the rot was on the other side. How's that looking?

I had the same problem with the paint which is why it never looked that great. I wonder if I had a badly mixed batch of rattle cans which is why you're having so many problems with it.

Thanks James! I've stripped the NS wing completely but the worst of the "bad" paint is in patches on the front and the nose of the other wing - but who knows what's caused it - it's just a PITA to sort out. I'll eventually work my way around bare-metaling the whole lot.
This "batch" should see NS wing, front panels properly sorted. Then I'll sort the OSF wing sometime in the future.

[Carledo]

My money is on synthetic paint (AKA "Knacker Laquer" or sometimes "Valflash" which was a trade name for a particular brand which became a generic in the same way as a vacuum cleaner is called a "Hoover" no matter who made it) causing your reaction problem.

Hardly used these days because of the problems it causes, it was a favourite of used car dealers back in the day because it was cheap, easy to use, and flowed out to a nice shiny gun finish that didn't need any compounding, T-cut, or even wax.

The downside of it being impossible to cover with any other type of paint was lost on those jokers, who only wanted to move metal as quickly and cheaply as possible! Because it stayed slightly soft underneath a hard shell for very long periods, it was even difficult to flat and paint over with more synthetic once the first lot had lost it's shine!

The front wings from the Carledo, which were tacked on replacements, that I salvaged when the car went to GRP panels and used one on the Dolomega turned out to have been painted with the stuff, first coat of etch primer after i'd flatted it and I may as well have painted it with neat brake fluid! I didn't even think about it, just got out the orbital and 40 grit and ripped the lot off back to metal! It's the only sure way to get rid of it, even specialist "isolator" paints can have problems.

Steve