Sublime Pandamonium II
Discussion
So the Payday Fairies came yesterday and I have been weighing up the options for this month.
1/ Patch the sill (Grrrrr!), get the car M.O.T'd and back on the road with my insurance renewal due as well.
2/ Buy a new sill and wait another month for the M.O.T and get the car back on the road mid-November (sill £100, paint £25, time means the insurance will have to wait as well).
Just double checked and my insurance isn't due until the 8th of November and the Payday fairies are back on the 15th So if I get the car patched up for M.O.T and she passes I only have a week or so to cycle to work.
Hmmmmmm. Decisions eh?
1/ Patch the sill (Grrrrr!), get the car M.O.T'd and back on the road with my insurance renewal due as well.
2/ Buy a new sill and wait another month for the M.O.T and get the car back on the road mid-November (sill £100, paint £25, time means the insurance will have to wait as well).
Just double checked and my insurance isn't due until the 8th of November and the Payday fairies are back on the 15th So if I get the car patched up for M.O.T and she passes I only have a week or so to cycle to work.
Hmmmmmm. Decisions eh?
The vote has been added to the Norfolk Police commissioner elections next month. 
I had today planned (here we go again). First off I overslept. Stupid night shift.
Then I was planning to photograph all the work I was doing with the car today and it started out okay...
...took the plastic trim off the arch to see how bad it was...
...not too bad after I cut all the rot away...
...tack welded the inner and outer rear wing together, made a panel and seam welded it in place.
Welded up a bit inside as well just so the cosmetic grind and flap didn't weaken the weld surface.
All I needed to do then was cut a few flaps so I could curve the edge and seam weld the gaps.
That's as far as I got with the camera. I settled into a rhythm and completely forgot to take photo's so some after shots tomorrow as it was too dark by the time I stopped.
I had today planned (here we go again). First off I overslept. Stupid night shift.
Then I was planning to photograph all the work I was doing with the car today and it started out okay...
...took the plastic trim off the arch to see how bad it was...
...not too bad after I cut all the rot away...
...tack welded the inner and outer rear wing together, made a panel and seam welded it in place.
Welded up a bit inside as well just so the cosmetic grind and flap didn't weaken the weld surface.
All I needed to do then was cut a few flaps so I could curve the edge and seam weld the gaps.
That's as far as I got with the camera. I settled into a rhythm and completely forgot to take photo's so some after shots tomorrow as it was too dark by the time I stopped.
Interesting thing welding in the damp and fog. The moisture in the atmosphere become plasma in the arc. Resulting in porous welds and a brighter blue spark. Not so much of an issue with M.I.G welding as the dip transfer technique doesn't require as much of an arc to work. Having said that dip transfer whilst upside down is a pain in the cheeks. Anyway the sills are done, so far as to say patched up ground, flapped and hammerited.
Just as well really this is all the metal I had left...
...just a couple of fiddly jobs to do pre-M.O.T and hopefully I'll get that booked for my next day off.
Just as well really this is all the metal I had left...
...just a couple of fiddly jobs to do pre-M.O.T and hopefully I'll get that booked for my next day off.
Woe; woe and thrice woe. It's insurance time again. Rather than solving world debt this year I'm paying the more than reasonable sum of £239.12. 
Thank's to Simon from Adrian Flux Insurance for being the most patient call center representative ever. I'm sure a recording of the conversation will end up being scripted and used in a civil court at some point.
Thank's to the M.I.B for doing their absolute best to ruin my life I can no longer pay by installments and the payday fairies don't visit until next week. Even though it would be a deposit of £34 and £20 a month it wasn't an option. So I cycled trough the rain, mud, spilled diesel, road rage Muppet drivers and other crap into town, put some money into my account to ensure there'd be enough to cover the policy in one go.
As annoying as cycling through weekend traffic is, especially in King's Lynn where filtering is regarded as witchcraft and offenders have been burned at the stake for it; I found a great deal of amusement from this necessary evil. Just as the filtered and frustrated drivers were about to move I was a mile away and on a cycle lane that runs along the River Great Ouse (sounds nice but you get an arse end view of South Lynn's ghetto district and some industrial units the other side of the river; not that you can appreciate the view at all due to the amount of dog poo you have to avoid) out of town and out of range of any abuse.
So the important thing is I'm insure the car is taxed and nearly ready for M.O.T.
Also as it's been paid in one go I no longer need to worry about paying £80-£100 a month so that can go towards my red Panda and general Fantasia upkeep.
Instead of doing the little jobs on the Panda I ended up working on my sisters Daewoo Matiz. I'd parked the car out of the way and in gear. Someone (probably my nephew) had been in the car messing about as boys do, pretending it's a rally car (Rally a Matiz? Hmmmm) and had jammed the handbrake on. Subsequently the car would not move. My sister couldn't tell if the clutch was slipping or the wheels spinning.
Does it smell like a urine stained mattress that's been set on fire?
No! Why?
Well it's not the clutch then.
Sure enough the passenger side front wheel had dug itself down to the wishbone. So I used the mighty Panda to pull the car out far enough to get to the rear drums. Hit them a few times with a hammer and they were properly stuck. Jacked the car up, took the wheels off and belted the crap out of the drums with a bigger hammer, put two nuts on the studs and cranked the wheels round with a six foot length of bar and then the jack handle. It moves now and the keys are well hidden both from my nephew and sister (she's the one who nearly drove my Justy down a twenty foot dyke when I gave her a one and only driving lesson).
Thank's to Simon from Adrian Flux Insurance for being the most patient call center representative ever. I'm sure a recording of the conversation will end up being scripted and used in a civil court at some point. Thank's to the M.I.B for doing their absolute best to ruin my life I can no longer pay by installments and the payday fairies don't visit until next week. Even though it would be a deposit of £34 and £20 a month it wasn't an option. So I cycled trough the rain, mud, spilled diesel, road rage Muppet drivers and other crap into town, put some money into my account to ensure there'd be enough to cover the policy in one go.
As annoying as cycling through weekend traffic is, especially in King's Lynn where filtering is regarded as witchcraft and offenders have been burned at the stake for it; I found a great deal of amusement from this necessary evil. Just as the filtered and frustrated drivers were about to move I was a mile away and on a cycle lane that runs along the River Great Ouse (sounds nice but you get an arse end view of South Lynn's ghetto district and some industrial units the other side of the river; not that you can appreciate the view at all due to the amount of dog poo you have to avoid) out of town and out of range of any abuse.
So the important thing is I'm insure the car is taxed and nearly ready for M.O.T.
Also as it's been paid in one go I no longer need to worry about paying £80-£100 a month so that can go towards my red Panda and general Fantasia upkeep.
Instead of doing the little jobs on the Panda I ended up working on my sisters Daewoo Matiz. I'd parked the car out of the way and in gear. Someone (probably my nephew) had been in the car messing about as boys do, pretending it's a rally car (Rally a Matiz? Hmmmm) and had jammed the handbrake on. Subsequently the car would not move. My sister couldn't tell if the clutch was slipping or the wheels spinning.
Does it smell like a urine stained mattress that's been set on fire?
No! Why?
Well it's not the clutch then.
Sure enough the passenger side front wheel had dug itself down to the wishbone. So I used the mighty Panda to pull the car out far enough to get to the rear drums. Hit them a few times with a hammer and they were properly stuck. Jacked the car up, took the wheels off and belted the crap out of the drums with a bigger hammer, put two nuts on the studs and cranked the wheels round with a six foot length of bar and then the jack handle. It moves now and the keys are well hidden both from my nephew and sister (she's the one who nearly drove my Justy down a twenty foot dyke when I gave her a one and only driving lesson).
Not often you hear praise for insurance companies so it's nice to hear they can provide good service. I'm slightly surprised you can still get repair panels for the old Panda, there can't be very many left now.
Liquid Knight said:
drove my Justy down a twenty foot dyke when I gave her a one and only driving lesson).
How do you get a twenty foot dyke in a Justy? Mine is the last green Fantasia in the UK. Most panels either come up as new old stock in the UK (rarely) or you have import them from Europe.
This chap has loads of old panels for sale...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/mount197909/m.html?item=...
...but this is my Panda guy...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/xunil20/m.html?item=2209...
...I'm looking forward to being able to afford parts in the near future.
This chap has loads of old panels for sale...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/mount197909/m.html?item=...
...but this is my Panda guy...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/xunil20/m.html?item=2209...
...I'm looking forward to being able to afford parts in the near future.
Didn't know you were in Lynn. I was in Terrington St C this evening at a bonfire party. Would love to see the little green wonder some time....when I have worked out why my lights, electric windows, speedo and immobiliser LED have all failed at the same time. Got a mate coming round tomorrow to help me take the dash apart and check everything. Suspect mouse activity.....
Liquid Knight said:
I live in Terrington, where abouts are you?
I have an eBay run this morning and I'll be about later if needs be.
Thanks for that kind thought. I was sorting out the horses from 6.45 am, fixing the bathroom lights after that, and then doing the car with my friend Alex until 3.30. Busy day!I have an eBay run this morning and I'll be about later if needs be.
Small world! I am in Outwell. I now know what my electrical woes are - multiply mouse chews, about 10-15 wires and two ribbon cables, plus the rubber and leather gaiters around the gear lever and handbrake.
Soldering all done, just need to order the ribbon cables and gaiters, plus get the speedo wires soldered, and I should be able to put the interior back together and get back one the road. Last night was done in the daily driver.
Quietlybonkers said:
Liquid Knight said:
Ah-ha! I knew I had a photo' of my Maestro somewhere.
Don't somehow think you dd 200 mph in that.......I had one on hire in the 1980s, struggled to break 20mph in it.....
My Maestro was excellent. There's a tread on the PPC forum about an automotive bucket list. a few people have the humble MG Maestro in their top ten cars of all time. Mine was the 2.0 EFi "O" series and was my first car with over 100bhp. The best I had out of the old girl (on a test track officer) was 120mph according to the speedo' Sat Nav's were military use only in them days.
Quietlybonkers said:
The one I had on hire was brown, with a brown interior.......maybe that's why it moved about as fast as a week-old cow pat
Sounds like a Clubman or (more likely) Countryman (I don't think they did a Clubman in Sage) with a 1275 A+ engine. Too much car for the engine really but not as slow as the 1.3 309 or Escort of the era. Quietlybonkers said:
........
Soldering all done, just need to order the ribbon cables and gaiters, plus get the speedo wires soldered, and I should be able to put the interior back together and get back one the road. Last night was done in the daily driver.
Having problems getting the bits. Soldering all done, just need to order the ribbon cables and gaiters, plus get the speedo wires soldered, and I should be able to put the interior back together and get back one the road. Last night was done in the daily driver.
Maplins don't stock the ribbon cables, so I am going to have to create some from bits and solder.....joy.
Gaiters also a problem, but am having the leather ones made, just the rubber ones to source, so doing a trawl of the breakers yards.
Soldering the speedo cable booked for Thursday, with a back up offer from a friend with his own ramp. It needs a ramp to get at the wire from the sender, on the back of the gearbox. Little gits chewed it off where the wire enters the car.
How's the little green wonder progressing?
I'm at work today and it's raining so no progress as yet.
Give my uncles at R W Brockwells Tennyson Avenue King's Lynn a try. Half way between the rail crossing and the college on the left hand side. They do anything from minor interior repairs to complete custom hotrod trim. Not the cheapest but by far the best round here.
Give my uncles at R W Brockwells Tennyson Avenue King's Lynn a try. Half way between the rail crossing and the college on the left hand side. They do anything from minor interior repairs to complete custom hotrod trim. Not the cheapest but by far the best round here.
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