sri lanka repair panels

[mattyb]

Any one have any thoughts on sri lankan made repair panels ? i presume these are from a well know specialist now in Bristol ?

other well know parts suppliers state "British made" ? are the British made panels far superior ?

Need to do the outer lower sills and one box plate on my 4 door and i'm quite near Bristol so was thinking of going to the Bristol supplier......

any thoughts anyone ??

cheers

Matt

[8009STEVE]

PM sent

[chickenjohn]

LMC Hadrian panels, although not perfect, seem to be the best available. Rather than buy a hand made panel, go on a restoration course and learn how to make your own!

[bmcecosse]

Better send your replies by PM (as steve has done) or you could end up like Jono ......

[charlie_morris_minor]

I seem to recall jono from JLH rates ( or at least did when he posted here ) the sri lanka boot skin repair panel as being one of the best fits available, but did not comment on any of the others panels available.

[linearaudio]

Perhaps you could do worse than contact "god" himself (via other means than this), as he is not only very knowledgeable, but very approachable, and will give individuals an honest opinion. I know there have been problems in the past with panel fit even from British manufacturers, down to tool wear etc, but it would seem these are noted and tackled as they occur(I may be over-optimistic there!). From what I recall there have been huge discrepancies in some front panels, which could not even be put down to wear(not accusing Brtitish manufacturers neccessarily on that one!)

[mattyb]

thanks for the PM's and replies

Did use the "sri lankan" panels on a previous 4 door resto and didn't think they were too bad (about 6 years ago)
having restored minis and MG midgets i've always found that most panels need tweaking.

I'll let you know how I get on

cheers

Matt

[chickenjohn]

Better send your replies by PM (as steve has done) or you could end up like Jono ......

Why would that be then? ;-)

Another point, as well as having to "tweak" and adjust some panels as said above, do not trust the black paint! Test with thinners, if the paint comes off it is cheap transport primer not a decent e/ etch primer, and there very well might be rust underneath! If the black paint come off with thinners, then clean it all off, remove any surface rust and zinc / etch prime the panel.

btw, this applies to UK as well as foreign made panels.

[bmcecosse]

I'm reliably informed that the 'Heritage' panels are by far the best.......

[Alex'n'Ane]

I've used both repair panels, and have on both occasions found they they both need adjustment, but I think this is as much down no two minors being identical, and overlaps etc as much as anything else.

[KeithGSY]

The thing that bothers me most about repair panels is the thickness. Some bought from a well known source but of unknown manufacture were significantly thinner than the originals. You can't tell when you buy by phone. On the plus side it saves on carriage. Solution as previously suggested is make your own. Its also cheaper. Maybe not so practical for curvy bits like wings though.

[mattyb]

well Ive gone the sri lankan route ! wait and see how I get on !

anyone got 4 wings and 4 doors ??? !!!

regards

Matt[frame][/frame]

[chickenjohn]

If the wings and doors fit the car, you'd be much better off repairing them rather than replacing!

[Neil MG]

From the picture it looks like the wings are GRP (fibre glass)

[Ratbag]

Better send your replies by PM (as steve has done) or you could end up like Jono ......

Why would that be then? ;-)

Another point, as well as having to "tweak" and adjust some panels as said above, do not trust the black paint! Test with thinners, if the paint comes off it is cheap transport primer not a decent e/ etch primer, and there very well might be rust underneath! If the black paint come off with thinners, then clean it all off, remove any surface rust and zinc / etch prime the panel.

btw, this applies to UK as well as foreign made panels.

I'll add to this - ALWAYS remove EVERY TRACE of the black paint & prep properly by rubbing back & etch priming.... it has next to no adhesion. On thicker panels I do this with a flap wheel in an angle grinder - a bonus is this gives a lovely surface for welding. On thinner/more visible areas use thinner/wet'n'dry & elbow grease.

Phil.

[mattyb]

wings are indeed GRP and will have to go regardless of their resistance to rust !.

Agree with cleaning up repair panels and removing rust - MIG welding works so much better on clean metal[frame][/frame]

[mattyb]

Well the Sri Lankan panels have turned up from the Bristol/Bath supplier.
Very pleased with the service - delivered to work because we have a 24/7 security which meant not worrying about being in when the courier called.

ordered - boxing plates, floor pans, c post repairs and "full outer undersill " both sides CHS734 and CHS735.

Interestingly one of the full outer undersills looks to be made by Hadrian - has a sticker to say this on it and there are subtle differences between the panels (as well as being handed !) both panels look good. still wont know if one is better until I fit them but I'll also have to allow for the fact that the near side is much worse than the off side (as is often the case - my dad had a theory that this is due the camber of road leaving road salt, dirt, mud, dead wildlife etc in the gutter and then being picked up on the passenger side of most cars - makes sense to me)

The thing I have noticed though is that the Hadrian panel weighs less than the Sri lanken panel ( according to my kitchen scales anyway) not sure that this makes either panel "better" but a fact none the less !

now to fit them ![frame][/frame]

[mattyb]

another pic[frame][/frame]