hey guys
i understand that there is loads of strength in the side seams, but what about the rear bumper seam?
ive just fitted a curley front so im not running a front bumper any more, and i quite like the smooth rounded look.
its really tempting to de-bumper it at the back...
is it just as big a job as the side seams? and is there much strength in that rear bumper seam? im confident i could grind it down and weld it up well enough, i just dont want to do it if it will make the rear panel massively flexy
thanks
nick
De-seaming
Started by
Ade
, Nov 01 2004 01:56 PM
33 replies to this topic
#31
Prawn
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- 938 posts
One Carb Or Two?
- Local Club: Basingstoke Mini Club
Posted 01 January 2005 - 09:24 PM
#32
SCURVY DOG
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- 617 posts
Super Mini Mad
Posted 03 January 2005 - 12:45 PM
I HAVE DESEAMED ONE OF MY MANY MINIS A FEW YEARS AGO
DESEAMING THE REAR VALANCE IS EASY
THE CAR IS A LITTLE MORE WORK
FIRST OFF I GOT INSIDE THE REAR OF THE CAR AND WELDED ALL OF THE SEAM I COULD GET TO IN SIDE THEN PLATED OVER THE SEAM
THEN LEAVING A 2 INCH STRIP I GROUND OF A 2 INCH SECTION AND WELDED IT
LEFT 2 INCHES AND SO ON THAT WAY YOU GET LESS DESORTION THE FRONT WAS DO IN THE SAME WAY ON THE OUT SIDE
AS LONG AS YOU TAKE YOU TIME IT IS A STRAIGHT FORWARD JOB
AS FOR LOSING STRENGTH THE CAR IS STRONGER IF DESEAMED AS THE FULL LENGTH OF THE SIDES ARE WELDED INSTEAD OF BEENING SPOT WELDED EVERY FEW INCHES THATS WHY A RALLY CAR SHELL IS SEEM WELDED TO GIVE IT MORE STRENGTH AND RIGIDITY
THE ONLY THING I WOULD DO IF DOING ANOTHER ONE WOULD BE TO LEAVE THE SECTION OF ROOF GUTTERING ABOVE THE DOORS AS IT IS IMPOSSABLE TO STOP RAIN GETTING IN ALL THE TIME
DESEAMING THE REAR VALANCE IS EASY
THE CAR IS A LITTLE MORE WORK
FIRST OFF I GOT INSIDE THE REAR OF THE CAR AND WELDED ALL OF THE SEAM I COULD GET TO IN SIDE THEN PLATED OVER THE SEAM
THEN LEAVING A 2 INCH STRIP I GROUND OF A 2 INCH SECTION AND WELDED IT
LEFT 2 INCHES AND SO ON THAT WAY YOU GET LESS DESORTION THE FRONT WAS DO IN THE SAME WAY ON THE OUT SIDE
AS LONG AS YOU TAKE YOU TIME IT IS A STRAIGHT FORWARD JOB
AS FOR LOSING STRENGTH THE CAR IS STRONGER IF DESEAMED AS THE FULL LENGTH OF THE SIDES ARE WELDED INSTEAD OF BEENING SPOT WELDED EVERY FEW INCHES THATS WHY A RALLY CAR SHELL IS SEEM WELDED TO GIVE IT MORE STRENGTH AND RIGIDITY
THE ONLY THING I WOULD DO IF DOING ANOTHER ONE WOULD BE TO LEAVE THE SECTION OF ROOF GUTTERING ABOVE THE DOORS AS IT IS IMPOSSABLE TO STOP RAIN GETTING IN ALL THE TIME
#33
AlexF2003
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Ring Runner 2005
Posted 03 January 2005 - 05:27 PM
Deseaming is not for the faint hearted...
it can be lighter than std seams if you do the job properly...
http://www.afracing....jects/mini7.htm
It is a MAJOR job.
Alex
it can be lighter than std seams if you do the job properly...
http://www.afracing....jects/mini7.htm
It is a MAJOR job.
Alex
#34
rallysportreplicas
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Learner Driver
Posted 03 January 2005 - 05:43 PM
scurvy is correct,
the best way to deaseem is from the inside as much as possible then remove sections from the outside.
think of rally cars herd the expression "seam welded" its just the same idea the panels of a standard car are spot welded to gether so in 3 feet of seam edge you get about 1 inch of joined metal. dont bother lead loading a panel its time consuming heavy and most modern fillers are far better whilst a modern filler might crack if it were lead it would fall out completely (think of a filling in your mouth) with greater ease.
when you weld (mig only tig is a waste of time and generate too much heat in steel using tig in ally is done as ally spreads heat along its length quickly so it disapates a tig allows you to vary the flow of filler and the temp of weld) you have to remeber that its not the heating up that distorts its the cooling down that cause a contraction (they reckon a fully mig welded AC Cobra chassis shrinks by 15mm overall from its cut length pre welding) to prevent this weld no more than 15mm slugs at a time and do it more than 12 inches from the previous weld basically if you can feel a hot panel before you weld do it some where else its time consuming but you can get a rythm going.
we remove interior and weld in each of the 4 corners from the middle up and down 1 guy moves from corner to corner each time as the torch will reach ok.
we then use a grnder with a stone on it and grind of 40mm sections of seam every 40mm so you end up with a flange of 40mm steps you then weld a 25mm slug in the centre (we do the 15mm inside then 25 outside as distortion should be removed and all you ar doing is filling in any missed bits) then we do this one slug per corner and move round more of a pain as it means draging the mig about.
once done we the grind of the other 40mm flanges and weld up the gaps in 2 attempts of 25 and 20mm slugs. finally gring of worse with a stone and linish away with a soft pad grinding disc (you should buy these from partco or brown bros as they are about £8 for 50 not £5 for 5 from b+q)
skim over with filler in the worse bits first and rub down approx then skim all over and spend your time rubbing!
a trick for filler work.
if you need to put more filler on cover the whole area that has filler on it not just the bit you think needs more. the reason is as you rub it down you remove a small amount from around the new bit and will always get an edge a final skim of filler over the whole job even a very thin one stops this, if you cant feel the high and low spots spray it with black aresol and rub the high bits dissaper the lows remain black.
still stuck? call us!
happy new year to all
james
the best way to deaseem is from the inside as much as possible then remove sections from the outside.
think of rally cars herd the expression "seam welded" its just the same idea the panels of a standard car are spot welded to gether so in 3 feet of seam edge you get about 1 inch of joined metal. dont bother lead loading a panel its time consuming heavy and most modern fillers are far better whilst a modern filler might crack if it were lead it would fall out completely (think of a filling in your mouth) with greater ease.
when you weld (mig only tig is a waste of time and generate too much heat in steel using tig in ally is done as ally spreads heat along its length quickly so it disapates a tig allows you to vary the flow of filler and the temp of weld) you have to remeber that its not the heating up that distorts its the cooling down that cause a contraction (they reckon a fully mig welded AC Cobra chassis shrinks by 15mm overall from its cut length pre welding) to prevent this weld no more than 15mm slugs at a time and do it more than 12 inches from the previous weld basically if you can feel a hot panel before you weld do it some where else its time consuming but you can get a rythm going.
we remove interior and weld in each of the 4 corners from the middle up and down 1 guy moves from corner to corner each time as the torch will reach ok.
we then use a grnder with a stone on it and grind of 40mm sections of seam every 40mm so you end up with a flange of 40mm steps you then weld a 25mm slug in the centre (we do the 15mm inside then 25 outside as distortion should be removed and all you ar doing is filling in any missed bits) then we do this one slug per corner and move round more of a pain as it means draging the mig about.
once done we the grind of the other 40mm flanges and weld up the gaps in 2 attempts of 25 and 20mm slugs. finally gring of worse with a stone and linish away with a soft pad grinding disc (you should buy these from partco or brown bros as they are about £8 for 50 not £5 for 5 from b+q)
skim over with filler in the worse bits first and rub down approx then skim all over and spend your time rubbing!
a trick for filler work.
if you need to put more filler on cover the whole area that has filler on it not just the bit you think needs more. the reason is as you rub it down you remove a small amount from around the new bit and will always get an edge a final skim of filler over the whole job even a very thin one stops this, if you cant feel the high and low spots spray it with black aresol and rub the high bits dissaper the lows remain black.
still stuck? call us!
happy new year to all
james
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