23 replies to this topic

[animale]

Have just read the article in Mini mag about SPL treatment for dipping shells.
They don't mention a price anywhere , just say its quite an expensive option to de rust and treat.

Anybody had any experience of them and could hazard a rough guide price......

Edited by animale, 07 May 2012 - 06:34 PM.

[charie t]

different companies will charge different prices, round up companies local to you and do some ringing around. There is quite a wait on them i believe

[JakeJakeJake]

http://www.surfacepr...o.uk/index.html charge about £1000

[animale]

If that's for the full process and electrolyte protection after that's nottoo bad.

[Dan]

That depends on how much rot it reveals!

[animale]

But surely the more rot it reveals, the better. If that makes sense.

[mini_in_progress]

i worked at prostrip in notts and we had no end of there bodges in to sort out, and iirc its nearer 2-3k fully processed in electrolyte..... thats if they found a new company to do that as they shut down a year or 2 back as we had work from there customers to do second ops! they were looking into nickel plating a car back then....

But surely the more rot it reveals, the better. If that makes sense.

you want less, more rot... more holes less strength, id at least weld up any visible big holes in the main strength of the car like sills before dipping a mini

[Sleeping Park Lane]

m_i_p - interesting post. When you say "bodges", what sort of things were they?

Just wondering how you bodge a chemical strip - is it something like not neutralising (as in an acid dip) so the chemicals leak out afterwards and attack the paint etc.?

SPL certainly seem to have a good PR team as they get good coverage in the classic car mags etc.- I'd always thought I'd use them if I had the money when I eventually get round to rebuilding my Mini.

Steve

[mk3 Cooper S]

I have too heard about stories of leaking out of the seams and attacking internal parts/paint.

What about a media / walnut blast

[mini-luke]

I have too heard about stories of leaking out of the seams and attacking internal parts/paint.

What about a media / walnut blast

That's what I'd do, that way you don't have the risk of the chemicals remaining in the seams etc. and rotting the shell back out. Bungle says a number of VW owners have had that problem.

[Black.Ghost]

Yes but the problem with the media blasting is if they get that wrong it can warp and damage your good panels. If you go for that option you really need to do some research as well to get the best person do it that you can afford.

Whichever way you look at it though, restoring a Mini completely is not cheap (depending on your definition of cheap - for a millionaire it peanuts ). Pretty much most people who restore the car say take your budget and double it!

[animale]

Would it perhaps be cheaper in the long run then to buy one of these

http://www.minispare...ty=pb&pid=32798

I'm just curious as I know my mii has a lot of rust and am going to want a good base to start from and try and encourage longevity

[Black.Ghost]

No way - that's a lot of money. If you are after a completely rust free mini, I would spend some time looking around for a shell that has already been repaired that someone else has done. They will be much cheaper than buying a heritage shell, and you should be able to see enough of it to decide whether it is a good starting point.

Don't be frightened by the media blasting - you just need to make sure a competent person does it with time and care, not someone who will just rush it through and damage things.

[mini_in_progress]

i wouldnt blast it ether, unless it were just the really bad areass of the bulkhead, id say the main thing we had in off them was when they promised the e-coat finish and the plant had closed down, but yea they bleed out the seams as at the time i beleive they used hydrocloric acid ( nasty stuff...) when i worked at pro strip we developed a phosphric based (none such a nasty acid but very affective) and it contains an inhibitor to prevent the bleed out,

if your interested contact tim and say dave who used to work there sent you his way, check it out here http://www.prostrip.co.uk/car-auto

[mk3 Cooper S]

Walnut blast media is not very harsh