133 replies to this topic

[Gillybobs]

Well along time since I updated this and nothing much has happened! Been busy with my baby boy and a whole host of other things and not touched the mini. Had a new shed in the garden which im going to use as a workshop, hoping to tidy my garage over Christmas and move some stuff into the shed to give me some more room to work on the mini. Hopefully getting sorted for the new year to restart this project!

 

Fingers Crossed!

[Gillybobs]

Well six months on and still not much more progress! I have got my shed sorted and got my work bench in and thats looking good.

Also in Febuary it was my birthday and had this great cake

With my birthday money I got from my family and friends I decided to treat myself to a mini spares ms25 stainless bumper kit with overiders . Unfortunately the rear bumper wouldn't fit properly and I had to return them.

So after returning them I bought a Mayfair walnut dash that I have trial fitted

And I also bought pair of front door bins with some JL Audio speakers fitted.

So towards the end of Feb with spring on the way I thought I was going to get going again with the project. I thought I might be able to get the car on the road for the end of summer. I was really looking forward to being able to take my 2 young lads out in the car but in March we had some real bad news. My wife was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo surgery and at the moment is undergoing chemotherapy. Obviously the mini hasn't been touched as my family is far more important.
As a treat last week my mother in law took my wife and kids away for a few days so I've had chance for a little play with the car . Just did some little stuff like fitting seat belts and Sun visors .I also thought I'd have a go at fitting all the decals .



Really pleased with them as ive never done anything like that before.
I've got a bit of motivation back now so think I'm going to get the engine out as my dad has said he 'll have a look round it with me. I also want to tidy the engine bay up. Well that's it for now I'll try for some more regular updates!

[blueovalcraig]

Gorgeous car, well done!

[minimans]

Well done!! A great looking car, Hope all is going well for the wife, My girlfriend beat breast cancer, 6 years ago, now in remission so keep a good head!

[Gillybobs]

Well done!! A great looking car, Hope all is going well for the wife, My girlfriend beat breast cancer, 6 years ago, now in remission so keep a good head!

That's great! Just the kind of story I need to hear!

[slidehammer]

You need to be strong and positive to help your wife through this very difficult time. Having a bit of 'me time' on your Mini is a great way to keep yourself strong for the family. Goof luck you wife's fight and finally the Mini looks great as does your 350LC, I have a Suzuki GT250X7 and love the old Jap 2 strokes (great hooligan bikes).

[Gillybobs]

Well my Mrs has finished her chemo so I've found a little time to do something on the mini! Not done a lot but I have managed to refurb the front brake caliper's . My mates have got a bead blaster they let me use so I blasted them, striped and cleaned them,painted them and fitted new seals and stainless pistons. Glad to made a small bit of progress!




Hoping to get the engine out in the next month or so and get it to my dad's as he's going to help me sort the engine and front subframe out . See how we go as my wife start radio therapy in a couple of weeks time .

Hopefully another update soon !

[Junior Mini]

Good luck with the radio therapy mate, hope your wife is fighting fit and you can enjoy the sunshine in Italian job next summer

Those callipers have come up well. What are you going to protect them with?

[Gillybobs]

Good luck with the radio therapy mate, hope your wife is fighting fit and you can enjoy the sunshine in Italian job next summer
Those callipers have come up well. What are you going to protect them with?

I sprayed the caliper's with etch primer after blàsting them to stop them going rusty. I then cleaned them to make sure there was no grit internally in them. I then fitted the new seals and pistons and then brushed painted them with silver smoothrite . I'm really pleased with how they have come up !

[Gillybobs]

Time for an update! Well my Mrs has finished her treatment so she bought this as a treat for herself!


Back to my project . I've started to remove the engine and strip the engine bay.

As I've started to remove the wiring loom I've found a few tasty wiring bodge's . I'm surprised the car not gone up in flames with the repair to the alternator wiring repair . Its a piece of domestic 6mm cable crimped in
that's been that hot when you bend it the insulation just crumbles





At least I had a helper !



Don't know if you can see the photos as I don't know if the photobucket thing has been sorted out.

Hopefully be more post soon as I'm hoping to get the engine out in the next week or so.
Hoping to rebuild the engine and sort the engine bay over the summer. Maybe even hit the road in 2019! We'll see how I get on .

Edited by Gillybobs, 30 January 2018 - 09:09 PM.

[Jgguinness]

Great thread, Ive just read it from start to finish as im stuck in a boring meeting.  A far better use of my time :)

 

Great news on your good lady, my sister in law had the same.  Shes now got a nice 2CV as a toy.  My wife had a large stroke at the age of 42 back in 2016.  Ive found it difficult to get time on my Defender as a result, and havent made a start on my 1275GT yet.

 

The Mini is looking spot on, lovely work so far.

[Junior Mini]

I can't see the photos

[Jgguinness]

I can't see the photos

The only ones I couldnt see were the ones posted on 28th Jan this year, I think the wrong embed links were used.  The others I could see on my PC using Google Chrome.  

[Northernpower]

Time for an update! Well my Mrs has finished her treatment so she bought this as a treat for herself!


Back to my project . I've started to remove the engine and strip the engine bay.

As I've started to remove the wiring loom I've found a few tasty wiring bodge's . I'm surprised the car not gone up in flames with the repair to the alternator wiring repair . Its a piece of domestic 6mm cable crimped in that's been that hot when you bend it the insulation just crumbles .











At least I had a helper !


Don't know if you can see the photos as I don't know if the photobucket thing has been sorted out.

Hopefully be more post soon as I'm hoping to get the engine out in the next week or so.
Hoping to rebuild the engine and sort the engine bay over the summer. Maybe even hit the road in 2019! We'll see how I get on .

The pictures are not displaying. Photobucket is not a long-term solution, now would be a good time to change over to a different picture hosting site. Many on here use imgur.com, its simple to use and easier than Photobucket.

[Gillybobs]

Just got a imgur account and edited the post hopefully you can see the pictures now .
Also bought a second hand loom so hopefully it's the right one for my car so I might replace the loom rather than repair the one in the car .