Got a bit more done this week, was hoping to do more but oh well.
Started off by waxoiling the inside floor as this what ML had done but had gotten grubby. Not entirely convinced the waxoil will set like they said but we shall see, if it doesn't work I will probably just clean it up best I can and just make with some fresh paint. Possibly hammerite or similar for a bit of wear resistance.
Next up the steering rack went on. It's a recon item from Minispeed. Seems pretty good, no play I can feel which is a good start. There was a small amount of oil dripping but I suspect this is from the grease in the wheel box where it's been sat. Will keep an eye on it though.
Painted U bolts with anti friction strips:
The new rack:
Bolted to the car. Not fully tight atm as it need to be free to move when the columns put in.
You can also see the under seal here which has done much better than the stone chip.
My top arms came back from Dave Yardy who removed the old bearings for me.
To refit the new 1st the bearings 1st went into the freezer for a bit. This cools them down and so they shrink a little.
Before pressing in I warmed (not too much just warm it up a bit) the arms so they grew a little. I know this probably won't make much difference but it should just mean the bearings go in that bit easier.
I used my monster vice to press in the bearings, which worked brilliantly:
Finished item:
I then checked the pin in the arms. 3 bearings fitted perfectly, but 1 was too tight. 1 pin would go in then jam up 1 wouldn't even go in at all. Not sure if a damaged one by pressing it in on the wonk or similar or if the tolerance was out as I forgot to check the bearings for fit 1st. Result is 1 good arm, 1 useless one. This will be going back to the Yardy to have the bad bearing removed and I will order a new kit as 1 shaft was damaged by the duff bearing.
I also painted up 2 tower bolts so they looked a bit nicer. Hoping if I am gentle the paint won't crack when I do them up, if they do I will just have to clean them with a wire brush again.
Pic of the bolt and 1 of my KAD mounts just too see what it will look like:
Subframe was cleaned up last week so I started to paint it this week.
Cleaned up frame:
1st coat of red oxide on the top (2nd coat done now)
The subbys quite a maze so while painting I have spotted some bits that have been missed with the wire wheel. These will be done once the paints dry so it doesn't stick to the wet paint. I also probably missed a few bits of the frame doing the 2nd coat so will have to look once I reposition it to do the other sides.
Finally I put in the closing plates into the engine bay:
Drivers side, clutch is probably 180deg out but needs to come off so I can fit the brake master anyway.
The new plate made in stainless for me then painted to match. Bolts are only nipped up atm as I need to get some one to hold the spanner for me.
