what a lovely chassis
Discussion
I got bored at christmas, had a look around the car and found loads of surface rust on the chasis and suspension members so I decided to strip and recoat them to avoid having serious problems in the future. I attach a couple of photos of the completed work to the engine bay back to the front bulkhead done so far.
Having spent 2 days on the front part I now know what and how to do it and more importantly what not to do! It is possible to get at all the areas without completely stripping the car but it needs a logical and very thorough approach. If anyone is thinking of doing a similar winter job let me know and I will provide the benefit of my experience.
[pic]http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
[pic] http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
[pic] http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
Having spent 2 days on the front part I now know what and how to do it and more importantly what not to do! It is possible to get at all the areas without completely stripping the car but it needs a logical and very thorough approach. If anyone is thinking of doing a similar winter job let me know and I will provide the benefit of my experience.
[pic]http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
[pic] http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
[pic] http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
Nice looking job, mines in for a complete chassis out refurb at the mo. Unfortunately having the mexhanical skills of a baboon I have had to leave it to the professionals which will cost an arm and a leg. Certainly from my thread I know there are quite a few interested in taking similar project on, Ridds to name but one... sure he will be along shortly to pick your brain.
S
S
Hi
Just started the mammoth job of de-rusting the chassis. So far I have been pealing-off the old coating around the front wishbones and chassis but I am finding it difficult to gain access to all areas. The areas I have done have now been painted with a rust neutralizer and a coat of hammerite paint. My intension is to then wax oil the whole chassis. I am concerned that some areas are impossible to de-rust yet they may be critical. Please enlighten me on the best plan of attack.
Do you actually need to strip sections down to gain access?
I look forward to your thoughts but not the hours of scraping and painting ahead of me.
Just started the mammoth job of de-rusting the chassis. So far I have been pealing-off the old coating around the front wishbones and chassis but I am finding it difficult to gain access to all areas. The areas I have done have now been painted with a rust neutralizer and a coat of hammerite paint. My intension is to then wax oil the whole chassis. I am concerned that some areas are impossible to de-rust yet they may be critical. Please enlighten me on the best plan of attack.
Do you actually need to strip sections down to gain access? I look forward to your thoughts but not the hours of scraping and painting ahead of me.
jesfirth said:
I got bored at christmas, had a look around the car and found loads of surface rust on the chasis and suspension members so I decided to strip and recoat them to avoid having serious problems in the future. I attach a couple of photos of the completed work to the engine bay back to the front bulkhead done so far.
Having spent 2 days on the front part I now know what and how to do it and more importantly what not to do! It is possible to get at all the areas without completely stripping the car but it needs a logical and very thorough approach. If anyone is thinking of doing a similar winter job let me know and I will provide the benefit of my experience.
[pic]http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
[pic] http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
[pic] http://ph.uncle-dave.co.uk/upload/images/cerb%20chas [/pic]
Wow...i am jeleous, fantastic job
we are all think along the same lines ...
we will all need the body off job in the end but last summer I
had to cut out a top tube and weld a new section in ...
... at the same time welding the cracked manifolds ...
I would say the top tubes under the exhaust manifolds would be a pig to strip and paint
with manifolds on - was hard enough with them on.
I still need to attack the easier bits inside wheelarches - probably this weekend!
Mines a 98 with 58k miles - when the engine needs to come out I will lift the body!
.. the joys of motoring they call it!
Good luck all ... DAS
we will all need the body off job in the end but last summer I
had to cut out a top tube and weld a new section in ...
... at the same time welding the cracked manifolds ...
I would say the top tubes under the exhaust manifolds would be a pig to strip and paint
with manifolds on - was hard enough with them on.
I still need to attack the easier bits inside wheelarches - probably this weekend!
Mines a 98 with 58k miles - when the engine needs to come out I will lift the body!
.. the joys of motoring they call it!
Good luck all ... DAS
budaholic said:
This thread brings back some memories, 
did mine last winter, horrible, horrible job...... but worth it in the end!!
I tell you what would be a good research idea, take some pics of her underneath tomorrow and bang them up? lets see the state after 12 months since the last major treatment?
So far it has been a complete pig of a job with skinned knuckles.
My approach has been:
jack up the front of the car and put it on axle stands-get it as high as you can so that you can lie beneath the engine. If you cant lie beneath the engine and get full access to the underside of the chassis your are wasting your time.
Take off the front wheels and cover the brakes disks and calipers in bags or tape
Take off the fibreglass cover in front of the engine.
Cut all the cable ties holding the pipes cables etc to permit them to be moved.
Dependant upon the layout of your water pipes you may also need to remove some of them. take a photo first so they go back in the right order!
I stripped the chassis starting with a chisel to remove all large rust patches, flaking paint and rough areas.
I then wire brushed all the areas with 2 sizes of wire brush-a large one for flat surafces and a small one for awkward areas.
I then bought a wire brush attachment and long socket extension for the battery drill so that i could properly clean all the tight joints and welded joints in the chassis members.
Finally I used 80 grade sand paper to sand all the areas that I could reach by hand to try and get a smoothish finish
I then vacuumed all areas wiyh a long nozzle and cleaned it all down with white spirit to remove and final residues of oil etc.
I applied by brush 2 good thick coats of flat silver hammerite. You will need a 1 1/2 inch wide brush to get at most areas and a small and very long (at least 12 inches ooh err) artists 1/2 inch wide paint brush for the areas that you cannot get to by hand.
Between the 2 coats I spent over 2 hours lying undre the car and on top examining every chassis member from every angle to ensure that all areas are coated. This is a pain to do and I went round retracing my steps I think 4 times before I was happy that I had not missed any little areas.
The one place a paint brush cannot get is at the junction of the top wishbones. I cleaned these out with a chisel then the drill wire brush atttachment and then sprayed them with hammerite to match.
The top chassis rails beside the engine can be done but you need to remove the airboxes and then pin back the silver insulation fitted to the bodywork. i slipped the sandpaper round the chassis tubes and pulled the paperback and forth to get it cleaned properly. you can buy paint brushes which have an angled head which is helpful. you can check the underside with a small mirror.
I also suggest you get a good lead light preferably 2 so that you can light all areas from above and below. i also used a small battery powered head torch which was useful when I was under the car.
you may think this is all a bit anal but if you do it you need to be thorough.
Rather than clean paint brushes I just bought lots so that I was sure that the brushes were clean and that the hammerite wasn't diluted by thinners.
Oh and when you get to the steel water pipes between the engine and radiator you will be horrified by their condition. I am replacing mine before they rust through. The pipes are badly painted, so I am going to strip the new pipes and coat them with hammerite them before I fit them.
So there you go - easy when you know how! Good luck all
PS I havent yet worked out how to do the tops of the outriggers but I will!
Cheers
Jes
>> Edited by jesfirth on Thursday 5th January 20:15
My approach has been:
jack up the front of the car and put it on axle stands-get it as high as you can so that you can lie beneath the engine. If you cant lie beneath the engine and get full access to the underside of the chassis your are wasting your time.
Take off the front wheels and cover the brakes disks and calipers in bags or tape
Take off the fibreglass cover in front of the engine.
Cut all the cable ties holding the pipes cables etc to permit them to be moved.
Dependant upon the layout of your water pipes you may also need to remove some of them. take a photo first so they go back in the right order!
I stripped the chassis starting with a chisel to remove all large rust patches, flaking paint and rough areas.
I then wire brushed all the areas with 2 sizes of wire brush-a large one for flat surafces and a small one for awkward areas.
I then bought a wire brush attachment and long socket extension for the battery drill so that i could properly clean all the tight joints and welded joints in the chassis members.
Finally I used 80 grade sand paper to sand all the areas that I could reach by hand to try and get a smoothish finish
I then vacuumed all areas wiyh a long nozzle and cleaned it all down with white spirit to remove and final residues of oil etc.
I applied by brush 2 good thick coats of flat silver hammerite. You will need a 1 1/2 inch wide brush to get at most areas and a small and very long (at least 12 inches ooh err) artists 1/2 inch wide paint brush for the areas that you cannot get to by hand.
Between the 2 coats I spent over 2 hours lying undre the car and on top examining every chassis member from every angle to ensure that all areas are coated. This is a pain to do and I went round retracing my steps I think 4 times before I was happy that I had not missed any little areas.
The one place a paint brush cannot get is at the junction of the top wishbones. I cleaned these out with a chisel then the drill wire brush atttachment and then sprayed them with hammerite to match.
The top chassis rails beside the engine can be done but you need to remove the airboxes and then pin back the silver insulation fitted to the bodywork. i slipped the sandpaper round the chassis tubes and pulled the paperback and forth to get it cleaned properly. you can buy paint brushes which have an angled head which is helpful. you can check the underside with a small mirror.
I also suggest you get a good lead light preferably 2 so that you can light all areas from above and below. i also used a small battery powered head torch which was useful when I was under the car.
you may think this is all a bit anal but if you do it you need to be thorough.
Rather than clean paint brushes I just bought lots so that I was sure that the brushes were clean and that the hammerite wasn't diluted by thinners.
Oh and when you get to the steel water pipes between the engine and radiator you will be horrified by their condition. I am replacing mine before they rust through. The pipes are badly painted, so I am going to strip the new pipes and coat them with hammerite them before I fit them.
So there you go - easy when you know how! Good luck all
PS I havent yet worked out how to do the tops of the outriggers but I will!
Cheers
Jes
>> Edited by jesfirth on Thursday 5th January 20:15
jesfirth said:
So far it has been a complete pig of a job with skinned knuckles.
My approach has been:
jack up the front of the car and put it on axle stands-get it as high as you can so that you can lie beneath the engine. If you cant lie beneath the engine and get full access to the underside of the chassis your are wasting your time.
Take off the front wheels and cover the brakes disks and calipers in bags or tape
Take off the fibreglass cover in front of the engine.
Cut all the cable ties holding the pipes cables etc to permit them to be moved.
Dependant upon the layout of your water pipes you may also need to remove some of them. take a photo first so they go back in the right order!
I stripped the chassis starting with a chisel to remove all large rust patches, flaking paint and rough areas.
I then wire brushed all the areas with 2 sizes of wire brush-a large one for flat surafces and a small one for awkward areas.
I then bought a wire brush attachment and long socket extension for the battery drill so that i could properly clean all the tight joints and welded joints in the chassis members.
Finally I used 80 grade sand paper to sand all the areas that I could reach by hand to try and get a smoothish finish
I then vacuumed all areas wiyh a long nozzle and cleaned it all down with white spirit to remove and final residues of oil etc.
I applied by brush 2 good thick coats of flat silver hammerite. You will need a 1 1/2 inch wide brush to get at most areas and a small and very long (at least 12 inches ooh err) artists 1/2 inch wide paint brush for the areas that you cannot get to by hand.
Between the 2 coats I spent over 2 hours lying undre the car and on top examining every chassis member from every angle to ensure that all areas are coated. This is a pain to do and I went round retracing my steps I think 4 times before I was happy that I had not missed any little areas.
The one place a paint brush cannot get is at the junction of the top wishbones. I cleaned these out with a chisel then the drill wire brush atttachment and then sprayed them with hammerite to match.
The top chassis rails beside the engine can be done but you need to remove the airboxes and then pin back the silver insulation fitted to the bodywork. i slipped the sandpaper round the chassis tubes and pulled the paperback and forth to get it cleaned properly. you can buy paint brushes which have an angled head which is helpful. you can check the underside with a small mirror.
I also suggest you get a good lead light preferably 2 so that you can light all areas from above and below. i also used a small battery powered head torch which was useful when I was under the car.
you may think this is all a bit anal but if you do it you need to be thorough.
Rather than clean paint brushes I just bought lots so that I was sure that the brushes were clean and that the hammerite wasn't diluted by thinners.
Oh and when you get to the steel water pipes between the engine and radiator you will be horrified by their condition. I am replacing mine before they rust through. The pipes are badly painted, so I am going to strip the new pipes and coat them with hammerite them before I fit them.
So there you go - easy when you know how! Good luck all
PS I havent yet worked out how to do the tops of the outriggers but I will!
Cheers
Jes
>> Edited by jesfirth on Thursday 5th January 20:15
All very commendable, thinking of having go at my chassis some time, though one point, how heat resistant is Hammerite? it seems the chassis tubes in the vicinity of the exhaust headers get so hot that whatever you coat them in eventually melts. I was wondering if that area could be coated with something like silver manifold paint, at least its heat resistant to very high temps.
SXS said:
This thread brings back some memories,
did mine last winter, horrible, horrible job...... but worth it in the end!!
I tell you what would be a good research idea, take some pics of her underneath tomorrow and bang them up? lets see the state after 12 months since the last major treatment?
No pics yet, but I can tell you that there are a couple of rust blemishes in the paint.
Even 2 heavy coats of Hammerite can't keep TVR rust at bay. and my Cerb lives in a garage and rarely gets driven in the wet...
Bud
good point about the heat resistance of hammerite. i hadn't thought about that. I will post next winter when it has done a season and advise. Needless to say I will be wayoiling the whole thing before it goes on the road but i guess this won't help the higher up chassis members that suffer from the heat.
Andy-have you supercharged Johns car yet? I've heard that Adrian and Coxy have also got rebuilt engines for 2006! so the competition will be tough.
Andy-have you supercharged Johns car yet? I've heard that Adrian and Coxy have also got rebuilt engines for 2006! so the competition will be tough.
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