A Reshuffle Of Toys and The GTM Is In The Clean Build Area

 

The Front Rebuild Begins

New polybushes fitted all round, I was quite surprised how easy they are to fit compared to other cars/kits I have done. Greased up and fitted in minutes 

I did a dry build checking everything for fitment and sequence

Hilos pressed into position

Looking like a very different car now!

I had measured up the old Allegro radiator and whilst browsing ali twin core rads online, I came across this one for a Cossie Ford. Hardly used and a fraction bigger than the old one

Temporary positioning by modifying the brackets that came with the car. I just need to make a couple tosecure the bottom in place. Very pleased with the results.

Just waiting on some new bumpstops in the post.

 

Front Running Gear

 The 2 x subframes are due back from the powdercoaters today, I had decided to focus on the front first. A - Its lighter and B - That will make 'wheel barrowing' the chassis around when needs be will be much easier. 

Lower front arms were cleaned soaked in metal prep and then rinsed and painted with POR15

Then onto the steering rack

I used  the grinder and then Hydrate 80 and Hammerite spray

I am waiting on new gaiters and track rod ends which should arrive soon.

Onto the greasy (VERY greasy) top arms

They are currently back to bare and coated in ACF50

Then my new wheels arrived! SHINY!!! 13x7 Minilites with Nankang tyres. 

I'll be off car work until next week now, Then I hope to rebuild the front to better than new condition.

Chassis Tub Resto Completed

 Well it felt like a mammoth task but Im very pleased to say the chassis is now done. In hours I reckon it was 3 full days. The chassis was £300, £60 van hire and £250 in materials, so compared to buying a new one for £1900 and then £450 in powder coat or £200 in paint its a bargain. Its a thankless, dirty task and hard graft but Im very proud of it. I feel like a know more about it doing it this way too. 

This was the last day and the longest Ive spent at it continuously with the grinder. I did the whole interior of the tub.

Any rust was ground down and then treated with Hydrate 80.

I used silver spray for the visible areas. Gives a kind of ali tub look and allows me to paint the car any colour I choose, now or in the future.

My subframes are due for pick up from the Powdercoaters on Thursday. I still have some suspension arms that I need to treat and then I am on to the clean part of the build. It's going to look amazing!

The Dirty Work Continues

 So as to keep them momentum and to get me to the clean part of the build, I have cracked on fully stripping the subframes so that I can get them off for blasting and powdercoating. 

I dropped them off at my normal place for the work to be done and at £200 for the parts in these pictures its one of the other reasons for not using them to blast the tub. Dont get me wrong, I have used them many many times as their work is exceptional but it would have been big money for the chassis and it would have just been etched without all the treatments I am using.

So on to stripping the back, I may have said I have broken this thankless task into sections over a few days.

(Not sure why this image makes the chassis look wonky on my lift, cos its not!) :-)

Same products, only difference being is that for visible areas when the boot or bonnet are open I am using silver Hammerite spray paint on top of the surface treatments. Just for a more visibly pleasing finish.

First coat of Hammerite spray and first brush coat of POR15 on the rear bulkhead.

Im really enjoying this, it's my first full resto for many years which include the full resto of my first car, been building multiple kit cars. Building kits and refurbing parts is great BUT.... I really feel like Im saving something here and I love it! Saving the car that arrived on a transporter and now saving a tub that I have no history of. It's dawning on me how influential the GTM Coupe adverts I drooled over as a kid have affected my car life.

Love it!

New Tub

Heres a couple more images to show the extent of the rust, the car had been off the road for 20 years and allowed to rot.

this is where it will live behind my garage, I'll keep it a while as I am sure there will be the odd bracket or three that I will need later

So off I went to see Dereks premises and pick up the tub, below are a couple of pics of one of his cars, very nice too!

The new tub was loaded in my hire van and I headed home, it has rust but no rot which is great news

For the recon I'm using the following products to make this car good for at least another 20 years! 

Bilt Hamber Hydrate 80

POR 15 Metal Prep

POR 15 Rust Prevention Paint

UPOL Gravitex

ACF50

Not cheap gear but the best!

Some people might think 'why not blast and powdercoat'?

Reason is I want this future proof particularly floor and sills, when powdercoat chips water gets in and you see no damage until the water pressure and rust pop the powdercoat, by the time that happens you may be too late. WIth paint and gravitex you can clean and retreat just like you would any other classic car.

Thats my view anyway, Ill save the blasting and powdercoating for the subframes and suspension parts.