374 replies to this topic

[miniboo]

I have been quoted $750 to do the outside with plastic blasting. I am going to get a quote for soda blasting today as well hopefully

[Joe250]

I have been quoted $750 to do the outside with plastic blasting. I am going to get a quote for soda blasting today as well hopefully

Sounds good. I'd go for it. Stripping the car down by hand will cost you far more in time, materials, and frustration.

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Looks really good mate!

Wheres the EX hinges?<_>

[Joe250]

Looks really good mate!

Wheres the EX hinges?<_>

Laying in a heap of old parts! I'll definitely be fitting external door hinges though. As I said earlier, I really want the car to look close to original. At this point, I don't even plan on running fender flares if I can get away with it!

And thank you for the encouragement.

[mk1leg]

its comming on arealy well keeps pics comming......................

[Joe250]

I dropped the car off at the rollcage fabricators last week. Beyond just the standard cage, I'm having them tie into the suspension mounting points front and rear. This should aid handling and feel. And of course, it's also a safety measure. Lots of pics when I get the car back in a couple weeks.

Now on to the parts that have shown up:















I pressed the bearings into the hubs - not a big deal, but something I'd actually never done before. Next time I think I'll use a press!



KAD makes some nice stuff! MiniSport too - that's their alloy swivel hub and drive flange.





And what problems have I run into? I found 4 things that didn't fit:
1. MiniSport alloy drive flanges - the holes for the brake rotor retainer bolts were too small! I drilled them out a bit and all is fine.
2. Revolution 10x5 wheels - the holes for the lug nuts were too small as well, but only on 1 of the 4 wheels. Strange. I have carefully drilled them out slightly also.
3. Mintex front brake pads won't seat in the front calipers completely as they conflict with the supplied caliper spacer bushes. No biggie though - just 5 seconds on the grinder and they slid in.
4. The Pro-Tech coilovers are made to mount to a 3/8" spindle on the rear swinging arms, but I spec'd these KAD units with 1/2" spindles for added strength. I thought I could just pick up larger ID bushes but I've had a difficult time locating some on the Net. Also, my email directly to Pro-Tech has gone unanswered so I think I'll just try to bore these out to the correct size.

So just a few minor setbacks, nothing huge. Of course the project has a long way to go yet...

Edited by Joe250, 05 July 2014 - 11:54 PM.

[mighty mini jack]

very nice bits indeedy !

well done so far fella

[Joe250]

its comming on arealy well keeps pics comming......................

Thanks, leg. Should have a lot more pics in the next month.

Joe

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Looks really good mate!

Wheres the EX hinges?<_>

Laying in a heap of old parts! I'll definitely be fitting external door hinges though. As I said earlier, I really want the car to look close to original. At this point, I don't even plan on running fender flares if I can get away with it!

And thank you for the encouragement.

Cool, I Just wouldnt be able to own a Mk1 Mini with no external door hinges

[enneaitch]

hey man i too have a 62 mk1... im going for the 95% original look though have an exracing 890cc engine for it... nice to see you bringing it back to life though.

Nick

[Wired]

Great project.. I really like the idea about making a sleeper mk1!

How do those recaros fit? how much space will there be between the seats?

Keep the pictures coming!

[tedmcedd]

this is cool! love all your shiny bits!! lol

just out of interest, what dash was in it!? it looked really different through the hole in the bulkhead!

Ed

[panelbeaterpeter]

That looks pretty solid compared to most British minis! Good luck with the build, looks like it's gonna be a beast. Are you keeping the arches and skirts? could look good if played about with a bit, at least they're metal and not fiberglass rubbish!

Edited by panelbeaterpeter, 02 October 2008 - 10:26 PM.

[Joe250]

this is cool! love all your shiny bits!! lol

just out of interest, what dash was in it!? it looked really different through the hole in the bulkhead!

Ed

Thanks. The car came with the upper dash trimmed away and missing. The lower dash was cut out and laying in a pile of other parts. As for the firewall, I'm imagining a previous owner cut that out to allow some big carbs to fit. Who really knows though. The history of this car is quite a mystery.

My plan is to re-install both the upper and lower dash and install the 3-instrument binnacle, then fabricate a fiberglass housing behind the steering wheel to hold the R1's original dash unit. I'm kind of looking forward to working in fiberglass again. I tried it for the first time a few years back and although the job was messy and a made the part too heavy (way too much resin), the finished product turned out quite nice.

http://www.joe250.co...d/gaugepod.html

Edited by Joe250, 22 October 2008 - 09:37 PM.

[roofless]

have you worked out your plans for the R1 yet ?

make sure those exup blanking plugs are knocked in real good - I lost one a fortnight ago and it sounded real bad.