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- #21
September must have been a busy month with work. About the only other little job I got done was repairing the broken wheel arch extensions.
My HJ61 Rejuvenation (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Fifty Hertz
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- #22
About this stage I was ready to get into some painting. This where the main garage came into play. With a bit of rearrangement (and selling another car...) I freed up one side, which was thenquickly converted into a spray booth.
Temporary dividing curtain:
I bought a 900mm 3-phase fan off Gumtree for $60. One window in the back wall was removed and the fan installed on a sheet of plywood:
View from outside:
Over the steel mesh is a layer of 20mm spray booth filter media, held in place by a second piece of mesh:
On the inside a baffle was installed to disperse the airflow and prevent it just blowing a gale down the centre the area:
And that's one way to build a spray booth in a weekend. It works on positive pressure, which is the only way to go for a rough-and-ready setup. That way you don't have to worry about getting the space perfectly sealed. The fan feeds filtered air in and maintains positive pressure inside so that the air bleeds out through all the leaks, effectively keeping the interior reasonably dust-free and well ventilated. This is quite important, as you don't want to allow VOC's to build up to explosive levels. A rapid and continuous exchange of air is safest, both from an explosion risk and toxicity point of view. I do also use an organic respirator of course.
Temporary dividing curtain:
I bought a 900mm 3-phase fan off Gumtree for $60. One window in the back wall was removed and the fan installed on a sheet of plywood:
View from outside:
Over the steel mesh is a layer of 20mm spray booth filter media, held in place by a second piece of mesh:
On the inside a baffle was installed to disperse the airflow and prevent it just blowing a gale down the centre the area:
And that's one way to build a spray booth in a weekend. It works on positive pressure, which is the only way to go for a rough-and-ready setup. That way you don't have to worry about getting the space perfectly sealed. The fan feeds filtered air in and maintains positive pressure inside so that the air bleeds out through all the leaks, effectively keeping the interior reasonably dust-free and well ventilated. This is quite important, as you don't want to allow VOC's to build up to explosive levels. A rapid and continuous exchange of air is safest, both from an explosion risk and toxicity point of view. I do also use an organic respirator of course.
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- #23
I was away for work most of October and didn't get much done. Towards the end of the month though I found a day free to finish prepping the fenders and shoot them in 2-pack epoxy primer.
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- #24
During the following week after work I back-filled the little rust blisters with clear epoxy. With a base of POR15 and over treatment with epoxy paint and resin, this should be as permanent a repair as possible. I also seam-sealed where appropriate to eliminate all the moisture traps. The rust won't be returning!
Up here in the rust belt that's not rust it's just "patina". It's not rust until you can see through it. Nice paint booth set up and nice work. Keep 'em coming.
Eric
Eric
thats uncanny my car had rust blisters in exactly the same spot on the front guards did the same thing repaired and the rust has never come back.
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- #27
Yep I've seen it on a number of 60's. The spot welds are exposed and trap any water that gets in there. It's one place that should have had some seam sealer from the factory. I've now sealed that join from both sides so it'll be all good.
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- #28
November. Time to finish the wheel arches and get them ready for re-installation. Surprisingly there was zero rust in these. They needed new paint though. As can be seen in the close-up, most of the factory stone-guard coating came straight off when I water blasted the body prior to bringing it into the workshop. I stripped the undersides to bare metal with a wire wheels but the topsides of the arches where fine and the factory primer adheres well, so I just scuffed them and shot the epoxy straight over the factory paint.
I haven't used the stone-guard sort of coating before and I just picked up some stuff that the guy at the paint shop recommended. It's super easy to apply and gave a nice finish - not that I'm worried about that under there.
I haven't used the stone-guard sort of coating before and I just picked up some stuff that the guy at the paint shop recommended. It's super easy to apply and gave a nice finish - not that I'm worried about that under there.
Looking great! My paint is in worse condition than yours - but I can scratch it without cringing... If I do eventually paint it, I am considering the Matt Grey that the new VW Amorok is available in..... Either that or the factory colour that it is already...
I have rust holes on the front fenders on the vertical surfaces just under the edge of the bonnet.... It is a job to be done one day....
I have rust holes on the front fenders on the vertical surfaces just under the edge of the bonnet.... It is a job to be done one day....
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- #31
Patina. Love it
Seriously though I *may* be a little OCD when it comes to rust. Once I start I can't stop!
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- #32
Yeah I'm not gonna go over-the-top with the paint. As long as it a passes the 10-foot test I'll be happy. This rig will be used hard again when it's done.
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- #33
Wow that's a very sweet looking 60 mate. Jealous!
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- #34
OK so I'm up to April this year now. Things have changed a fair bit in life. In March a took a new contract working on a project in Mongolia. Very very interesting place and lovely people to work with - really liking the new gig. The roster has me away for 4 weeks at a time but I then I get 2 weeks off. So it's a long haul away but I can get a fair crack at project work during my R&R at home.
The most important thing to happen on my first R&R was a decision. I bit the bullet and decided to upgrade the turbo. I've been interested for years on the very nice work that G-Turbo does. It's a local Perth-based outfit that specialises in custom turbos for diesel powered 4WD's. They've done many 12H-T builds and have several direct bolt-in options for this engine. With the whole front end apart and such easy access to everything, the time is right for an upgrade.
So I ripped the old one out on a Friday and dropped it into G-Turbo.
View attachment 1463744
View attachment 1463745
The most important thing to happen on my first R&R was a decision. I bit the bullet and decided to upgrade the turbo. I've been interested for years on the very nice work that G-Turbo does. It's a local Perth-based outfit that specialises in custom turbos for diesel powered 4WD's. They've done many 12H-T builds and have several direct bolt-in options for this engine. With the whole front end apart and such easy access to everything, the time is right for an upgrade.
So I ripped the old one out on a Friday and dropped it into G-Turbo.
View attachment 1463744
View attachment 1463745
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- #35
On the Monday I picked up this beauty. It's essentially still a CT26 but the compressor side has an all-new casing and impeller. I think the hot side casing is a modified CT26 with a new wheel. And they also fit a new waste gate actuator on a custom heavy duty bracket that doesn't bend under pressure. Mine's set to run at 22 psi.
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- #36
Now I really had to get back into prepping the front end and engine bay stuff for reassembly. I decided to paint a few select engine bay items to give it a bit more visual appeal and give the under bonnet presentation a bit of a lift. Here's my tried-and-tested process for painting things that don't need to have the bare metal treatment.
First, clean with concentrated degreaser. To really make light work of it I use something that's got sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide.
After that I treat any surface rust with hydrochloric acid. Definitely need to do that outside though as it liberates a fair bit of chlorine gas.
Finally I scrub every surface down with domestic cream scourer compound. The fine grit removes the last vestiges of dirt and also gives the old paint a good key, similar to what you would get with sandpaper in the 400-600 grit range. It's so much easier than trying to get sandpaper into every crevice. Just use an assortment of brushes and a scourer like a Scotchbrite pad or similar.
First, clean with concentrated degreaser. To really make light work of it I use something that's got sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide.
After that I treat any surface rust with hydrochloric acid. Definitely need to do that outside though as it liberates a fair bit of chlorine gas.
Finally I scrub every surface down with domestic cream scourer compound. The fine grit removes the last vestiges of dirt and also gives the old paint a good key, similar to what you would get with sandpaper in the 400-600 grit range. It's so much easier than trying to get sandpaper into every crevice. Just use an assortment of brushes and a scourer like a Scotchbrite pad or similar.
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- #37
After a rinse an an afternoon in the sun to dry, it was into the paint booth. Seeing as these won't get any appreciable UV exposure I've shot them in KBS Rust Seal in satin black. It's similar to POR-15 except better and less expensive. It's perfect for under bonnet stuff.
That was about it for my first R&R. Back to work for a month!
That was about it for my first R&R. Back to work for a month!
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- #38
Well I am almost up to date with the build log now. Let's go over activities during this R&R.
First up was the body lift. With all the front panels off it's the right time to do it. I decided to go with a modest 50 mm lift, just to give a bit of additional clearance mainly to stop the front tyres fouling near full lock with an tilt on. Some of the old mounts looked pretty tired, so I had preemptively ordered a complete set of new genuine rubbers from Japan.
All told the lift was actually pretty straightforward. I just used a trolley jack under the sill and about what looked like the centre of gravity. The setup may look a little precarious but the whole frame is already supported on stands so it can't fall. And when I had it elevated inserted a couple of blocks of timber between the frame and the tub, so that there was no chance of getting fingers squished if the jack failed.
I would like to have taken the time to strip and paint the tub at each mount. But I was under time pressure and only had a helper for one day and we had to smash through it. The factory paint was still intact with only a few little bits of surface rust. So I just for coating everything liberally with white zinc grease and it'll be fine.
First up was the body lift. With all the front panels off it's the right time to do it. I decided to go with a modest 50 mm lift, just to give a bit of additional clearance mainly to stop the front tyres fouling near full lock with an tilt on. Some of the old mounts looked pretty tired, so I had preemptively ordered a complete set of new genuine rubbers from Japan.
All told the lift was actually pretty straightforward. I just used a trolley jack under the sill and about what looked like the centre of gravity. The setup may look a little precarious but the whole frame is already supported on stands so it can't fall. And when I had it elevated inserted a couple of blocks of timber between the frame and the tub, so that there was no chance of getting fingers squished if the jack failed.
I would like to have taken the time to strip and paint the tub at each mount. But I was under time pressure and only had a helper for one day and we had to smash through it. The factory paint was still intact with only a few little bits of surface rust. So I just for coating everything liberally with white zinc grease and it'll be fine.
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- #39
Mounts installed. My plan for the underside of the body is to treat with a rust proofing compound such as a fish oil derivative or one of the many tar-based products. Simply because the factory paint is mostly intact, I don't care what it looks like... and I can't be jacked prepping and painting. I'm fine with re-applying product every couple of years.
There is a little bit of rust in the rear arches as cant be seen. That will be properly fixed and the arches themselves will be stripped and given the same treatment as the fronts.
There is a little bit of rust in the rear arches as cant be seen. That will be properly fixed and the arches themselves will be stripped and given the same treatment as the fronts.
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- #40
The next little job to do was modifying the radiator mounting to work with the body lift. With the front panel out, this is a piece of cake. The top mounts just get 2 new holes drilled 50 mm lower. The bottom mounts are also easy. There is already a blank hole exactly 50 mm below the existing top bracket hole. I just used this and have drilled a new hole for the lower hole on each bracket. The third hole on the lower bracket is tricky as this coincides with a curved profile area on the panel that doesn't really lend itself to a bolt. So I'm just leaving this unused. 6 bolts in total (2 top, 4 bottom) will be enough to hold the radiator in place.
