Stu

[slinger]

I have a tiny bit of sill to replace . It's what's left of the original sill where my heavy duty box section was joined. A small bit of 3mm steel will sort that out.



Starting to think about painting now

[karatestu]

Some repairs were required to a tiny section of the original sills where the front wings bolt on. Both front wings are off. Had to weld some new steel in . These bits didn't get replaced 9 years ago when the 3mm box section sills were put in because the front wings wouldn't have fit back on properly.

[karatestu]

Got some proper primer on now rather than just the weld through stuff that went on first. Fuel tank is primed up and looks kinda sexy. Both sills are primed and all the new rear arches and bits of new floor.

Some bits had rust convertor applied three times . First coat left a few days and then removed. Same with second coat. Third was left on and then primed over the top. Degreasing and keying was all done to give the paint the best chance of adhering.

[slinger]

It's definitely rockin' that orange, Stu.

[slinger]

It's definitely rockin' that orange, Stu.

Unfortunately it's only primer so will be covered with top coat. As I don't want the hassle of changing details on the V5 or the potential insurance increase from declaring modifications then the majority of the vehicle will have to stay the original colour.

I am painting these new bits, the front & rear bumpers, plastic wheel arch extensions, sills and bottom of doors in Upol Raptor textured bed liner. It's matt black and tough as he'll- doesn't chip and scratch like most paints. It was designed initially for the load area of pick up trucks where things get thrown in and dragged out. There is quite a trend these days with people painting their whole vehicle with it. That is my intention (eventually), with the bottom being black and the top the original colour (raptor is tintable).

It's a bit of a marmite paint as some love it and others hate it. It's bumpy and not a shiny gloss. It is much more forgiving of preparation, slight imperfections get covered up and it is super tough. As this vehicle works for a living and goes off road most work days then it makes sense . Plus I've never been one for giving a shit what it looks like as long as it does its job and stands the test of time without costing me a fortune.

[slinger]

The old "functionality over form" argument. I can see that.

[karatestu]

Just when you thought it was safe to put the welder away . Front bolt on wings and front bumper.

Bumper has two bolt on plastic corners. Daihatsu spot welded a steel bracket on each end of the metal bumper give support to the plastic corners. These are right in front of the front wheels and have no protection from splash. Both sides were rotten so cut out and repaired with 1.5mm steel and no silly brackets added back.

[slinger]

Front wheel arches are no way near as badly rusted as the back. Near side wing required on small repair. The off side was worse which is usually surprising as it is not in the puddles at the side of roads. In this case the rot is due to the collision which occurred in 2015. The wing was never repaired properly and the damage was actually behind the plastic arch extension. I left the mud flap off since 2015 as the wing was pushed forward a little which made the mud flap touch the tyre on certain locks of the front wheel.

A proper repair was overdue. It was rotten behind the plastic arch extension in one place just behind the front wheel. This was cut out and repaired with 1.5mm steel. Had to do it in several pieces as the contours were too complex. It's now all tacked together and ready for full welding. One piece needs trimming back - the irregular shaped one which creates the curve of the arch.

[slinger]

A couple of weeks ago I finally got the top coat on my new steel plus a few other bits including the fuel tank. Black raptor bed liner was used. A polyurethane 2K paint which is a matt, textured finish. Hard wearing as it was originally designed to go in the load area of pick up trucks.

It went on well bur as is the case with 2K paint it smelled very strongly and I had to wear a mask to avoid a very big headache. Much like the kind of headache I got from getting too intimate with bison kit glue

There is much more painting to do. All the plastic wheel arch extensions and bumper corners are abraded, cleaned and degreased ready for the same black raptor. I have a few bits to take to the local sand blasters tomorrow- front & back bumpers, two front wingsand a few other odds and ends. They will need priming with 2k epoxy primer ad soon as I get them back. Front wings are only getting the edges blasted where the rust is and any welding I have done.

Most of the vehicle will get painted with raptor which is the same colour ad the original blue. It will look different though as it will be matt rather than metallic gloss.



















10mm thick rubber belt in the back of there. Should take some abuse

[slinger]

Is the go-faster stripe going to be a one-off up the bonnet and across the roof, or will there be two; one down each side?