A light rear end rebuild before Tea

[Vanny]

For some unknown reason i got a little bored last Sunday and decided 4pm on a Sunday was the right time to take the rear bumper off and check on a rust patch i knew about.



Patch appears to have become more than a quick 2" repair!





First patch went in reasonably well, then i ran out of metal, gas and will to live!



Laura seems to think this wont pass the MOT, but i've seen worse



It should probably be noted that this is the first time i've really done something this major without adult supervision/assistance.





Fortunately the rot hasn't got too far, and isn't in the chassis rails. The repair patches are probably a bit OTT for what was actually rotten, but at least this way i know I've got the plague out, and its made patching a LOT easier. I'm learning fast that's for sure!

Tomorrow is going to be something of an epic battle if I'm to make it to a car show on Sunday!

EDIT Just ran out of gas, so looks like I'm not heading North tomorrow

[Mothman]

A good job well done bud. Give yourself a slap on the back but not too hard

Andy

[Paul296]

Lovely job! My TGD has started to go in exactly the same place but I think I've caught it before it gets quite that bad. I wouldn't mind learning how to weld; with two 20 year old BXs it might be a good skill to have. Is it that difficult?

[citsncycles]

Looks a lot of work, but a nice job there!

[rutter123]

Lovely job! My TGD has started to go in exactly the same place but I think I've caught it before it gets quite that bad. I wouldn't mind learning how to weld; with two 20 year old BXs it might be a good skill to have. Is it that difficult?

Get a little mig gas rig does the job inc chassis, practice trial and error, easy to use, i use an old s.i.p migmate gas rig 25 years old, does a good job, you WILL need one at some point and it will save you many beer tokens over time and teach you skills you never knew you had. 50 shades generally needs welding somewhere every mot so its been a godsend. Buy yourself a 4 inch angle grinder and a selection of wire brushes and discs and your good to go. Oh and the safety glasses a must. Fire extinguisher optional.

[bx petrol auto saloon]

Dear Vanny,
That didn,t look like very much rust at all when you look at the first photie, but what an excellant job you have done there. A little overkill, but at least she won,t be going rusty there again, this century
Vince,

[Paul296]

Lovely job! My TGD has started to go in exactly the same place but I think I've caught it before it gets quite that bad. I wouldn't mind learning how to weld; with two 20 year old BXs it might be a good skill to have. Is it that difficult?

Get a little mig gas rig does the job inc chassis, practice trial and error, easy to use, i use an old s.i.p migmate gas rig 25 years old, does a good job, you WILL need one at some point and it will save you many beer tokens over time and teach you skills you never knew you had. 50 shades generally needs welding somewhere every mot so its been a godsend. Buy yourself a 4 inch angle grinder and a selection of wire brushes and discs and your good to go. Oh and the safety glasses a must. Fire extinguisher optional.

I've had a look at welding gear - there's gas rigs and gasless rigs - what's the difference and which would be best?

[mat_fenwick]

Go with gas - it's difficult to get a neat looking weld with gasless. It's possible to modify a gas welder to use gasless wire just by reversing the polarity if you regularly weld in windy conditions which is the only advantage of gasless I can see. Oh, and even a cheap (eBay) auto darkening mask will help massively!

[rutter123]

Lovely job! My TGD has started to go in exactly the same place but I think I've caught it before it gets quite that bad. I wouldn't mind learning how to weld; with two 20 year old BXs it might be a good skill to have. Is it that difficult?

Get a little mig gas rig does the job inc chassis, practice trial and error, easy to use, i use an old s.i.p migmate gas rig 25 years old, does a good job, you WILL need one at some point and it will save you many beer tokens over time and teach you skills you never knew you had. 50 shades generally needs welding somewhere every mot so its been a godsend. Buy yourself a 4 inch angle grinder and a selection of wire brushes and discs and your good to go. Oh and the safety glasses a must. Fire extinguisher optional.

I've had a look at welding gear - there's gas rigs and gasless rigs - what's the difference and which would be best?

i dont know as i have never used a gasless mig but have heard they are quite good, im sure the web will provide enuf info and any advice. my rig is gas/no gas but have never used it without the gas.

[Vanny]

A few brief updates from Saturday before the gas ran out GRRR


Out rigger made up and ready to fit



Bit of panel beating, seems one edge of the vice has just the right angle to match the dints in the boot floor



Partly welded the rear cross structure in before disaster




I did spend the rest of the day making up the remaining in files, priming the underside bits, prepping for seam sealer etc Now have a gas refill and a better flow meter in among various other supplies so the chaos will recommence tomorrow

[Vanny]

i dont know as i have never used a gasless mig but have heard they are quite good.

Who are these people and where can i find them? Gasless is completely pointless and creates dreadful welds, usually flawed and full of crap, by my experience. If you're doing so little welding you think you wont need gas, then use disposable canisters.

the BOC PD Hobby bottle is pretty good, £18 rent, £16 per refil (+VAT), only 440 litres (about 4x a disposable) but withe that ground rent it would be madness not to have it over a box full of disposables.

[Paul296]

chaos

Mmmm 'chaos'? Doesn't really look like chaos to me Vanny. Job's a good'un by the looks of it.

[Defender110]

Lovely job Vanny.

+3 for gas, gasless gives poor and expensive welding and is pointless now bigger gas bottles are readily available to the hobby welder.

[citronut]

that reconstruction looks first class Vanny,
i buy Co2 from my local drinks trade supplier, i think the last re/fill was around £16 quid,
no rental charge at all,

also you should not mig weld galvanised as the coating is highly toxic, and it causes an issue with the quality of the weld,

if i every do i always grind the coating away first,

i have bought a stand alone/proper spot welder, which is very good and achieves factory type welds were possible, like new to new metal or new to good existing metal,

its great as theres no grinding and cleaning afterwards,

i also use a weld through Zinc rich primmer so all contacting surface's are coated,

regards malcolm

[Vanny]

that reconstruction looks first class Vanny,

Thanks, I'm quite impressed with how well it's coming out. I think it's as good as it is only because i'm taking my time with it!

if i every do i always grind the coating away first,

Completely agree, i'm not sure if the pictures show it too well, but the two piece of galv have the welded areas ground clean for at least an inch from the weld site. I've had mild arsenic poisoning from welding galve before, i was rather ill, and that was only grinding, outside, on a windy day!

i have bought a stand alone/proper spot welder

How much did that set you back? I'm very tempted to get one for the impending mini i have to rebuild (hopefully this summer). Are they easy enough to use? Do you need a lot of electrodes/fingery things for it?

i also use a weld through Zinc rich primmer so all contacting surface's are coated,

I'm using a Zinc Aluminium primer which personally i find takes a weld much much better than a simple zinc rich primer. Only down side if that you have to use the whole can in once session, after a week or so from first use the can completely blocks up.