George’s Cars

I have been making progress over the last while, started re-assembling the van so it looks more complete. I should say we as Steven has been involved in every step with me. Steve in Alma’s brother and has been taking time out of his busy drinking schedule to help!!

As you can see the outside of the van is getting there, all the windows are tinted and back in the van. They even got a hose turned on them and so far no leaks but the real test will be when i start driving the van again.

I also got the light bar painted and installed.

The underside of the van is also nearly done.

I’ll get better pics tomorrow. Happy enough only 3 runs which can be sanded down

So after a month of sanding i’m finally seeing a glimpse of the end of the road.

Its just the inside of the van and the backs of the dropsides but its a start.

the dropsides look rough because they are!! they where coated with stonechip on the inside before i primered and painted them

Well I have been doing a bit of work on the van over the last week, actually I should have we as I have had Stephen working with me all week all be it, it was a steep learning curve for him but he got up to speed by the end of the week.

We spent most of the week doing body work, anyone who has undertaken this type will know its fill, sand, fill sand, sand some more, fill a little more sand a little more.

I also had to do some work on the locker door, I got new doors but one of them was so full with filler that drastic action was needed.

Here was the original.

I cut the skin off the old which wasn’t bad but the frame was rusted.

Marked it off on the new door, cut out and replace. A lick of filler and it was job done.

Today it so nice and warm that I decided to prime the body. It turned out well but highlighted a few spots that will need a little bit more work.

since my last update but i have been working on the van in the background, mind you, thinking about it now it doesn’t seem like a lot but not to worry, it was never supposed to be a rush projects.

I’m going to have to try remember what i have done in the mean time.

Well i do remember doing the locker floor and and load bed, both where cleaned off with wire brushed and then stone chipped.

I don’t have any picture of the locker floor, but i do have the weld on a new catch for the door. After the load bed the focus shifted to the inside, i want to start getting the interior ready for paint but stumbled across a problem straight away. The caravelle seat it a tight fit in the doka, too tight, especially when i wanted to raise it up a couple of inches to fit a speaker system in underneath the seat. When raising the seat I also have to make a mounting system to mount the seat to which will have to be welding in place which is why all this had to be finalised before i could start painting the interior.

First set was to create the speaker box so i knew how high the seat needed to be. This was the first attempt but the boxes where too high and even my feet where dangling so i had to redesign the sub boxes to give me a lower height but still the same volume of air inside so there would sound their best.

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00325-20100429-2030-500×375.jpg[/img]

You can see the height difference between the first and second attempt.

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00327-20100430-1335-500×375.jpg[/img]

This is the finished box.
[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00336-20100504-1247-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00334-20100504-1247-500×375.jpg[/img]

Now i had the height of the seat base, i could figure out the height for the back of the seat. Surprise surprise, another problem the seat back was too wide for the van and the door wouldn’t close. Lowering the seat again wasn’t an option as I wanted the speaker system but i had to have a narrower seat back. Out came the grinder and welder!!

I took off the seat cover to expose the metal frame, cut about 1 and half inches off the frame and welded it back together. Repeated on the other side.

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00329-20100430-1516-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00330-20100430-1521-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00331-20100430-1525-500×375.jpg[/img]

With the cover back on you’d never notice the difference and now i have enough clearance for the door to close comfortably.

I decided to finish the speaker box just to have it DONE.

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00338-20100504-2147-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00342-20100504-2224-500×375.jpg[/img]

Now i could finish getting the interior ready for painting. The floor was cleaned and stonechipped.
[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00361-20100511-1803-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00362-20100511-1804-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00363-20100511-1804-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00364-20100511-1804-500×375.jpg[/img]

As you can see the rest still has to be primered and painted red but the focus had to change again. I got a loan of a pipe bender so i had to make the light bars while i had the opportunity. It was my first time trying to bend pipe and there was a few lessons to learn. Firstly when using 2″ pipe, don’t use the 2″ former if you do the pipe will kink.

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00352-20100510-1356-500×375.jpg[/img]

The 1.5 inch former works well for 2″ pipe, don’t ask me why but it does.
[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00355-20100510-2036-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00365-20100511-18051-500×375.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.gacurley.com/cars/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/IMG00359-20100511-1803-500×375.jpg[/img]

So thats where things stand at the moment. I have had some help with the van, my brother in law stephen has been idle since he came back from Oz so he have been a second set of hands for the last few jobs.

There will be a few little bits more welding to do as time goes on but for now i’m declaring the body welding finished.

I had also cut off the tail gates, i’ll have to figure out a way of putting them on again but the pins where ceased in the hinges but i’ll sort it out in time.

I also cleaned off my workbench!!! Should have taken pictures to prove it.

Next while i’ll be sanding the body if anyone wants to help your more than welcome!!

but i have been doing work on the van just haven’t been updating the blog as its slow going. I’m starting to make some progress, i’m nearly finished the welding on the main body, then the bodywork can start.

Since i updated ye last here is what i got done.

The side panel bottom was rotten, as was the B pillar where the replacement would mount to so the two where cut out and replaced. I forgot to take a final picture but i have a picture of it half way done, the bottom of the panel is now welded also.

After:

I too apart the front bumper and using 17 odd stone of pressure managed to get it straight enough to weld on the replacement panel.

Before:

After

The bottom of the box on the passenger side, the one beside the engine bay was rotten, i mentioned it before well, there is no more rot now.
Before

After, bottom of the box

A part of the front section of the inner wings also need to be repaired.

I also repaired the rear panel.
Before

Replaced:

Front drivers side arch, cut out.

Replaced

I still have to weld on the wing and the small panel behind the wing, like i already did on the drivers side. The the main welding on the body will be finished.

I also picked up some wheels for the van.
16×7 for the front 16×8 for the rear.

Well, i haven’t updated this in a while. Since i last blogged, I finished stripping the donor van, its now ready for delivery to its new owner.

I also got back to working on the doka. I got the old 1.9DG engine removed but not the gearbox. The drive shaft bolts on the donor where allen keys bolts, according to the manual the doka’s ones should be allen keys also but they are not, they are some sort of trox like key but with twice the number of splines so until i can figure out what they are they gearbox is still in the van.

Dad and i also attacked it with angle grinders and removed all the rear panel work. This produced a few surprises!! There are some holes in the inner wings but again its apparently a common problem.

Drivers Side rear wing

Passenger side rear wing

Holes in the drivers side inner wing

This is from the inside looking out, as you can see, the bottom of the inner wing is also gone.

Thats about as far as i got saturday, today i cut out the rust.

And replaced with good metal

I also cut out the top part but didn’t get an after pic, annoyed too as that repair was nearly seamless!!

I also had one or two smaller holes to fill also then the rewarding part, putting the outer panels back on!

So thats where things stand at the moment.