Restoration

[Outcast]

Wish I had the space and time/money to partake in a project same as this

http://forums.atomicmpc.com.au/index.php?showtopic=39974&st=0

[Lorem-Ipsum]

I'm hopefully going to be doing something similar with a pre-'90 Austin mini mayfair.

[M4T VW]

I hope you can weld!:lol:

[Lorem-Ipsum]

I hope you can weld!:lol:

Going to be teaching myself ASAP. :D

[633Squadron]

Gasless MIG welders are good and easy to get the hang of; the only thing is that the metal has to be really clean or the weld won't take.

Arc welding isn't quite so fussy about clean metal but is harder to master on thin sheet metal and distortion can be a problem. I taught myself to arc weld at the age of 19 when I stuffed the front of my Mk.2 Escort.

[Outcast]

I'm hopefully going to be doing something similar with a pre-'90 Austin mini mayfair.

Good luck on that. Progress pix are a default requirement !!

:-)

[M4T VW]

Gasless MIG welders are good and easy to get the hang of; the only thing is that the metal has to be really clean or the weld won't take.

Arc welding isn't quite so fussy about clean metal but is harder to master on thin sheet metal and distortion can be a problem. I taught myself to arc weld at the age of 19 when I stuffed the front of my Mk.2 Escort.

I wouldnt use a gasless as a novice, It means using special wire and its less common.

The only problem with gas is getting hold of any. The tiny little bottles you get are useless and expensive. I have a local man who can get me a pub bottle full but i have used one of them just welding my rollcage in:(

[sneeker]

Any reason why you want a pre 90 mayfair?
Ive had, 76 1000, 89 mayfair, 91 cooper, and tbh the mayfair was actually the best car rust wise, it was a write off though when I bought it for 3 dents, bootlid, roof and bonnet.. I think it had been run over.

Anyway, if restoring a mini, just find the best shell, nothing else really makes much odds, and find a decent bodyshop that knows minis, because a lot dont, and will either bodge it, or nothing fits quite right.

Heres the results of quite a bit of money, and about 5 years work on and off... and its still not finished.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4681591065_8f1f397bd7.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5054/5520314243_3dd3de4384.jpg

[Outcast]

Excellent work mate. Front grille off to be re-chromed ?

[sneeker]

The grilles off because step 1 of working on a mini engine is.. remove grille.
Ill probably end up buying a new one, mines done 70k miles and theyre not that expensive anyway, probably less then rechroming. It has 2 circles on it that are shinyer where the spots used to live.

Got a lot more to replace before the grille, needs an oil cooler, rad and some more suspension bits and an interior before I even bother with shiny bits

[Outcast]

Ok. I assumed that was a pic of the engine going back in.

As I'm having to work on the bodywork of my car a heck of a lot now (it's 18 years old) I'm googling unsuccessfully to find those huge C clamp things that enable rolling a car on its side without damage occurring so you don't have to be a contortionist to weld underneath.

Any GoogleMeisters help me out of that please ?

[sneeker]

http://www.cjautos.org.uk/phdi/p1.nsf/supppages/cjautos?opendocument&part=4

Thats the first result on car roller in google :D

Bottom pick of mine the engine had just gone in, but, even once its in, everything wiring wise is there, and ive got to fit a dizzy now as dad broke it putting the engine in, also needs a new rad, oil cooler etc. so no point fitting a grille till it all runs nicely

[Outcast]

http://www.cjautos.org.uk/phdi/p1.nsf/supppages/cjautos?opendocument&part=4

Thats the first result on car roller in google :D

Bottom pick of mine the engine had just gone in, but, even once its in, everything wiring wise is there, and ive got to fit a dizzy now as dad broke it putting the engine in, also needs a new rad, oil cooler etc. so no point fitting a grille till it all runs nicely

Brilliant. Now why couldn't I think of that search term ?

[zaz]

As Sneeker said, any mini will do as long as the shell is in good nick. Personally id have another Clubman, i think they look better than the saloon but thats just me.

Ive had a '79 998cc, a '97 mpi cooper and an '80 1198 clubby, you can bet your last penny i will be buying another sooner rather than later, despite how much the mrs shouts at me about it, mini's are fantastic.

[Outcast]

Remember this thread ?

Well a few more pix of the projects progress have been posted.

http://forums.atomicmpc.com.au/index.php?showtopic=39974&st=60

Epic status achieved !!

[scottmac]

That is looking great, wish I had the time and money to do something like that. My old man is now pretty much semi retired and has started restoring motor bikes, taught himself to weld and now has a new lease of life

[Theninjagecko]

Reminds me of an old car my uncle had when I was a kid.

http://www.scott-h.co.uk/userpics/photos/userssigsavsandvariouseuplaodedpics//img040%20(Custom).jpg