Re-conditioning Parts

[Guest nelly]

Probably about time I got back in the garage after a bit of a break.

 

I need to prepare my chassis and suspension parts before beginning construction. The trailing arms and tube are a tad rusty looking but sound. I was thinking of having them blasted and powder coated, as I don't fancy all that wire brushing! Problem is, the rubber bits on the tube and arms won't come out easily; but do they need to?

 

Also, if I get the chassis powder coated, is it possible to leave the roll bar as stainless and get it polished?

 

What's the best way to go about cleaning/de-greasing the engine and repainting it? I'd like to do this with as little deconstruction as possible as I know my engine is in good running order and it would be nice to put it straight in without a strip down (bar necessary removal of wiring, fuel lines etc.,).

 

Please feel free to tell me how misguided I am if this is the case (it is usually)!

 

Alternatively, helpful suggestions will be gratefully received.

 

Cheers,

nelly

[Guest bloke]

i didnt enjoy the degrease of my engine but when done it was worth the effort

 

my engine was on a stand and i fabricated a large tray underneath to catch the gunk, made a wooden blank fannimould for the exhaust n inlet holes on the block and plugged the rest with rags - messy job (wish id got the thing steam cleaned while in the donor

 

when that process done i power hosed the last bits so not too much sludge on the drive

 

why are you p.c. the ss chassis?

 

took me a while to bash the rust crust off my t arms, blasting works well having see colins

 

hth bloke

[Guest Battery Bill]

Nelly

We tried allsorts to derust our trailing wishbones and found the best thing was a heavy duty wire brush that fitted on our angle grinder, it worked wonders and was very quick at getting it down to bare metal. Look here and you can see the results.

Remember to wear a mask though it gets bloody dusty

Then we painted them with Hammerite, No idea how long that will last but it looks good now anyway

[ibrooks]

I may or may not beat Jim to it but don't use Hammerite (Jim has a more accurate name for it). Much better for the underneath bits is some stuff called POR15. Just get some rubber gloves to wear. It says on the tin that if it dries on your skin only time will remove it. Only three days with black patches on my hands made me believe it. Get it from www.frost.co.uk or from their shop in Rochdale.

 

I've never seen powder coating stand the test of time (at least not on a car) as the inevitable scratches let water in and the tin-worm spreads under it like crazy.

 

The bushes in the trailing arms can be replaced with polybushes which are designed to be an easy DIY fit. The old ones were pressed in and will have to be destroyed to get them out. Best way I've seen (outside cos it stinks) is to set the thing on fire and wait for the middle to drop out. now carefully attack the outer sleeve with a hacksaw blade - make sure you don't cut too far you only want to cut the sleeve not the housing. The one in the end of the tube - well polybush do one but I'm not sure how easy/difficult they are to fit. Again the old one would have to be destroyed to remove it. Shot/sand blasting would destroy them just enough to be un-usable but not enough to remove them.

 

Iain

[Big Jim]

I agree with most of what Ian has said. The only thing hamme*bleep*e is good for is holding the garage door open whilst it's still in the tin! :angry:

Steve (bloke) is also correct about cleaning the engine off. I first used parrafin to get the worst off, then Gunk with a fine wire brush to make sure.

I'm sure that the stuff Ian has mentioned must be good ('cause he does know these things, does our Penfold ) The stuff that I've used to good effect is household radiator enamel, from B&Q, it glossy, it's black (you can get white, but who wants a white engine?) and it's heat resistant. I've used it on the last couple of engines and it's been a million times better than the coloured engine laquer that I first used (cracked & peeled in 12 months) I also use it on the bits & pieces that I keep crashing into dog bins etc.

I will however comment on the Poly bushes, yes they are easy to put in, and they will initially feel better than the rubber OE ones, but they wear like hell!

I can only tell you of my own experience. I put them into the bottom radius arms, within 12 months they failed MOT, there was that much play it was beyond belief! I won't use them again. To put the correct metalastic bushes in, you need a special tool, if you've got it, they're easy, if you've not, forget it!

[stevedohc2b]

Hi I used a gallon of engine de-greasing from partco a lot cheaper than halfords Ie 5lit for price of 1 lit at halfords. I cleansed rear with a wire brush and drill and repainted do not use hammer*bleep*e as it is crap ( I know I did )

If I did it again Kit FIT do a full reconditioned one for I think £300 with new brakes etc.

Have fun

Stephen Altwasser

[Guest daveg]

Nelly

 

Also....if you paint/coat/whatever your chassis...don't forget that you have to hammer the side panels/dash/rear panels etc against the chassis what will that do to your nice fancy coating!

 

Dave

[Guest nelly]

Cheers guys,

 

Looks like a bit of manual work after all then if I'm going to save those bushes Jim.

 

Bloke, I only fancied powder coating the chassis for looks under the bonnet. I bought my kit part complete (i.e., left in an open garage for 3 years) and the stainless don't look so good now. It's shiny(ish) and no corrosion but even after a god clean it just doesn't look smart. Only cosmetic I know and no-one's going to see it while I'm carefully negotiating the back roads of sleepy Sussex - just an idea really.

 

Sorry Bill - looks like you've been outvoted on the hammerite issue. Let's hope this doesn't turn into a 'front or back?' issue! I like the idea of the wire brush on the grinder though.

 

My donor chassis is still rolling. It could easily be towed for a steam clean if that really is the best way, but I have declared SORN - anyone know how I stand legally? Is towing ok or does it need to go on a trailer? If so I think I'll try the gunk-shifter route that Stephen and Bloke suggest.

 

Dave - my panels are pre-bent as my car was part built. I just unscrewed them and took them off. That's probably going to save quite a bit of heartache when they go back on! Mind you - if powder coating is as cr*p as Iain says then maybe I'll go 'naked' anyway.

 

Cheers again guys. One day I'll have something helpful to offer back!

 

Nelly

[enforcer]

Forget towing your doner and risking a tug from the boys in blue for the sake of a steam clean - never mind the SORN, you would need a policy of insurance as for any motor vehicle being towed.

 

Pop down to your local filling station and get a gallon bottle of parrafin for about 3 quid. It's the best degreaser I have found and cleans up very easily. It also dries to a non-greasy finish you can paint onto.

 

I'm with Bill as far as the rotary wire brush in the angle grinder goes. By far the quickest and most effective way to clean up those arms. The brushes I used cost as much as the grinder, and shed a few wire bristles in the process. Several of these went straight through my overalls and stuck in my legs! And for God's sake don't skimp on a decent pair of safety goggles.

 

I persevered with Smoothrite and eventually achieved a terrific finish on four coats. I just hope it lasts.

 

Richard