The rebuild of Frankie Jordan (70's Trav)

[MsRose]

Finally, I can post in this section

Last weekend I collected my first Morris Minor Traveller. He's a 1970 and has been named Frankie Jordan.
Paperwork was my very first job. Log book copied and then sent to DVLA for change. I've written to the first owner of the vehicle and hoping to receive a reply as I like to have background history.

Like most of you I have to fit the work in on Frankie around everyday life which involves running a garage, a farm shop and looking after my herd of miniature ponies with two toddlers in tow.
I'm hoping to have Frankie Jordan delivering veg boxes for the farmshop once he's back on the road. I think he will be eyecatching and great for the shop.

So, here's what I've done to Frankie so far:

He's in the garage at home whilst I strip all the panels so I've put a new battery on allowing me to start up and drive in and out of the garage to do the work.

Back doors removed
Drivers door removed
Passenger door removed
Bonnet removed
Back seat out
Front and rear bumpers removed
Fuel tank removed (and didn't the gone off fuel stink)!
Boot wooden panels removed
Bits of carpet gathered up and stored for reference
Passenger seat removed

I still have the front wings to remove, but need to bring the cutting discs from the workshop. Both wings are scrap and so I'll cut them away and then sort the rusted up bolts.
All that's left then is the headlining, glass removal and sides removal.
I am leaving the car in a drivable state to allow me to get it onto the trailer easily and take it to work to remove engine, box, axels, suspension and screen. I'll also remove and label the wiring and dash panel whilst in the workshop.

The floor was surprisingly sound, although this may change after blasting The worst part of the car so far as I can see is the front end of the chassis

[MsRose]

A couple of pics[frame][/frame]

[MsRose]

[frame][/frame]

[MsRose]

Can anyone help with a question on the fuel tank please?

Can the fixing on the fuel tank which holds the supply pipe be replaced? The pipe had already been removed from the fixing. The fixing to the fuel tank is solid and I'm unsure if it's just seized. I don't want to apply much pressure in case it breaks and I need a whole new tank.

[davidpidge]

Wow. Another classic on it's way to being saved. Most people would call that a basket case and scrap it. Although I'm not sure ho much your going to be able to salvage! Still, if it makes you feel any better you'll have it finished before mine.

[MsRose]

It's been some time, but I promise I've been working on Frankie!

In the last few weeks I've managed to get Frankie into my Husbands workshop (and been given access to the toolbox)

The Traveller is now stripped totally to just the shell. I'm alarmed at the state of the front nearside chassis leg, but it's all replaceable I guess.

I have some questions though and would be grateful if you could all help/advise.

The shell is going for blasting, but before it does I want to know if the shell should be strengthened beforehand. If so can I see some pics of where you guys strengthen please?

I also have the problem that the shell is sat in my garage on tyres and I'd like to have some mobility. Has anyone on here made a trolley like system? If so, can I see pics please?[frame][/frame]

[MsRose]

Stripped down[frame][/frame]

[don58van]

Hello MsRose
I see that Frankie needs a lot of TLC.
I strongly recommend that you study two threads below that will give you a wealth of information and inspiration.

One is by NeilMG and the other by rosetaupe.

All the best for you and Frankie.
Don

[kevin s]

You could make a trolley but I think most of us just put the suspension loosely back on it is only 20 or so bolts.

[MsRose]

Thanks Kevin, but it's ready to go for blasting so I prefer putting it onto a trolley so that I don't have to keep messing about too much.

Then need a spit for when it comes back.

Not sure if I'm looking forward to it arriving back from blasting

[Neil MG]

I am sure you have a good plan, but am wondering why you would blast before welding. Means you will blast it twice? It is ideal to get it painted straight after blasting in order to protect the surface? That is best done within hours of blasting as the steel begins to oxidise immediately.

Most definitely you must strengthen the body with supports for the moving around and blasting process. Unless the car is exceptionally well preserved, which it doesn't look to be, it will be severely weakened by the blasting process. I guess you have the kick panels off by now so you can see the condition of the sills. If it is not adequately braced it may be very difficult to get it correctly jigged for welding and you could have some serious panel fit and wood assembly problems. You could also end up with everything fitted, but the chassis twisted. You can see the temporary supports on my thread, but basically you need to brace across the door apertures, with an additional triangular brace for rigidity. I used the old wood as my brace while I was welding, but, as you have already removed that, you will need to brace between the rear roof and back of the rear underbody.

I used a small trolley and a simple (very quickly thrown together) spit to do mine, again shown in the pictures. You could certainly improve on that, but will maybe give an idea. Any fairly strong trolley will do, with a few pieces of timber to support the chassis rails.

I think these links were missing from the post above
http://www.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=48882
http://www.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=25298

[MsRose]

Thanks Neil MG for popping onto this thread. I've studied your build progress with great interest.

With regards to the blasting I was always under the impression that if I sent it for blasting first then it would give me a real idea on the amount of poor metal. Can you explain to me why I should get the welding done first? I have no idea on welding and fabrication and this part is the real nightmare for me. It would be great if I could understand.

Many Thanks

[Neil MG]

I am sorry, reading my reply made me realise how pompous it sounds!

Actually, you are right; shotblasting will expose all the areas that need welding, especially those pinholes that might normally be missed. The problem with doing it before welding is that it may also remove corrosion that is actually holding the car in shape. Same as moving the bodyshell around before it is strengthened can. The other problem is that the shotblasted surfaces need to be protected straight away, which could mean repeating both shotblasting and painting processes. So I would not say do not shotblast first, but make sure you strengthen the shell and be aware that it will start to oxidise (rust) straight away afterwards. Perhaps the blaster can apply a coat of inexpensive primer that can be blasted off again after all the welding is done.

You shouldn't be worried about the welding process, you will gain confidence as you go. The most important thing is to make sure that the bodyshell is not distorted before each area is welded. The whole body is extremely flexible, much more than most people think, and any welding done when the bodyshell is not supported correctly will stiffen it in a distorted position. Tolerances are quite forgiving on a Morris Minor, but they can easily stack up if you are not careful in supporting and checking during welding. You can use the doors and front wings as checking jigs after each stage of welding and there are reference dimensions for the suspension mounting points.

I definitely recommend shotblasing (again perhaps in your case) before painting, as it provides an excellent key for the paint. The surface must be degreased and (ideally epoxy) etch primed immediately after blasting to be sure there is no oxidation under the surface.

[MsRose]

Thanks for your input NeilMG, it really is very helpful to me.

It's my intention to get it strengthened before it goes to blast now.

The guy doing the blasting said I have literally just a few hours after blasting to apply a coating, so I've arranged for the shell to be dropped straight back to the workshop after the blast so that I can get the airline onto it and apply a weld through primer. Would that suffice?

[Neil MG]

Yes, you're blaster seems to know what he is talking about. I wouldn't bother with weld through primer, it's expensive and not a particularly good primer. If you are going to get the shell blasted again after welding, which I would strongly recommend, then I would suggest the cheapest primer you can find. You don't need to worry too much about weld through as you will be cutting off any corroded metal and you can easily remove the primer, in the areas you weld, as you go.

[MsRose]

Thanks for the heads up on the weld through primer. I think I'll just apply a cheap coat for protection.

Today has been a hectic one and so I only managed an hour in the garage. I've cleaned the wiring loom up as much as I can and it's drip drying - seems an odd thing to do to put a wiring loom in soapy water, but hey ho.

I've gone round the shell trying to jot down exactly where all the problems are and I need some help with some of the following areas - I want to know if there are repair panels available.

Here are the pics and I hope someone can help.[frame][/frame]

[MsRose]

Assume the part below the seam is part of the inner wing, but is there a repair kit for the top bit or does a patch have to be made?[frame][/frame]

[MsRose]

Is there a repair panel for this bit at the bottom?[frame][/frame]

[irmscher]

You might be better having it soda blasted and this will leave a coating on and is kinder to the body

[Neil MG]

There are repair panels for just about everything, but they are mostly not as original, so you will have to "fettle" them. You will also have to make some small repair sections, if only to avoid having to buy a whole panel for one small hole. Often it is not only much cheaper, but also much easier much easier to cut a couple of small repair sections than modify a repair panel. by the end you will be an expert at making small cardboard templates!

I notice you still have the kickplates on (covering the sills in the door aperture). You need to remove those (should be just self tapping screws along the top outer edge) to see the condition of the sills and boxing plates.

Making repair sections is really very easy. The trickiest bit is making the template from cardboard (and that is not really very tricky) . Once the cardboard is exactly the right size (sometimes takes two or three goes) and folded or bent so that it fits perfectly, it can be drawn around onto the steel sheet. I find permanent markers excellent for this. Then the shape can easily be cut out with a jigsaw and bent or folded as the cardboard. I used just a hammer and a vice for just about everything. fine adjustment can either be done with a file or carefully with the angle grinder.

I found it saved a lot of time having two grinders, one with a flap disc and one with a cutting disc. Also, cheap angle grinders don't last very long when you are doing a lot of work like this with them!