Todays little offering

An overall clean up of the front panel and a little roughing out gets it basically back in to shape



A quick sort with the dolly and hammer gets the hole surround on the near side sorted



Again the same on the offside



A nice split on the nearside as a result of a previous impact





I opened it up a bit with a 1mm disc as the area was a bit stretched



This was then welded along with the holes from the spot welds for the upright supports



Viewed from behind



On the front panel was pressed the number 1 - I believe this is normal



A close up of the welded area



More to follow soon folks

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Keep up the good work Jon and keep the pictures coming.

It's all good information for the restoration of our '46 as that is only six months or so older than the one you have there.

Rod

Hi Rod , Hope you are well buddy .

Hopefully its all useful to someone other than me.

Jon

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For sure the pictures are a great welcome i am now busy with a august 1948.
 658.JPG You have insufficient rights to see the content.

Hi Nicolass ,
Is there any chance you could send me some pictures of your inner wings at the front - I have to adjust some slightly later ones and would appreciate a closer look to see what changes have taken place .

It looks like the profile on yours is the same as a later one ( over the beam ) but the angle is hard to tell .

Thanks Jon - [email protected]

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A little more on front panel .
Having got it basically straight I had to sort out all the cracks and damage

Cleaning up the front allowed me to attack it with the dolly and slapping file - Its pretty much there now




I am left with a number of cracks , mainly on the bends



Most not bad but need to be sorted



Starting at the bottom corner - cracked but still with the correct profile



The idea is to match the other side which is still very good



All matched up



Further up the panel there is another one



Welded and cleaned


Repair from below



Same from above

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Great work Jon :thumbup:

I can't wait to get started on mine, I've been clearing the garage today to make some room !

Kev - Make sure you do a build thread !!

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Some more done ......

Continuing with the front panel

The top of the side was also split - actually ever fold was split and required repair - this is the N/S after work
You will notice the remains of the tank support panel have been removed and the top straightened



A small split in the O/S at the top , again the remains of the tank support were removed



After repair



There was a chunk missing from the return lip on the O/S



It was cut back to give solid metal and held straight with grips and a piece of box



A piece was made and welded in - the bit that is seen


The bit that is not seen


I tried to get the thickness right as well


The last split near the bottom



All done



I have now got the front panel welded and fairly straight - it will be blasted and etched before being put in the pile of stuff to be fitted back on the car .

I fancy a change of scenery so will move around the back next .....

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I quite like being able to move around a vehicle when im working on it , so im off to the rear

Nice simple repair to the rear bumper hanger area

This is what I start with - after many pop riveted repairs

 

A bit of a clean up and you can see all the holes

 

One of the few areas where the car has been welded in the past

 

All the holes were cleaned with a drill bit , and on the surface , then dressed so they were flat

 

They could then be welded

 

And finally cleaned up

 

I then cut out the bumper hanger to allow correct fitment of the new bumper hanger

 

I spent some time getting the area the valance will attach to straight and clean

 

I want to keep the original profile of the inner wing when the new section goes in - I have come to the conclusion that this hole is correct for the car as it also appears on the other side - Im happy to be corrected on this though

 

To get the hanger in the right place I fitted one of the wings we have

 

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The hole in the rear quarters is just the same on my '46 so I guess you are right about it being for the rear light wire.

Rod

Thanks Rod

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Ive just realised how long it is since I last updated the thread - Sorry about that .

Plenty done but posts limited to 10 pictures on some sites so limited to that on each post

Continuing on with the rear end

The wing was in place to get correct fit for the bumper hanger - You can see its clipped in place and bolted up to get the exact position for the cut



Marked up whilst in position and then all taken apart again



Cut to shape and clamped in place



Tacked in place - each one cooled as we went and dressed as required



Not 100 % happy with the bottom edge



Tacks cleaned up



Better angle of the difference at bottom



The top is not 100 % either


Quick clean up and its all good


To get the base correct I put a 1mm cut back from the join

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More

Having got the lower edge level I welded it up



Die grinder to the rescue



You can see here ( just ) that the return is deeper on the old section than it is on the repair section
This will be sorted



The same method used - Section pie cut in



The rest of the bumper hanger welds done and cleaned up



Cleaned off the area where valance is welded on



This allows the rear valance to be offered up



The wings could then be offered up - These are NOS again but obviously later



Tacked in on right side - Left still a bit high



Just for shits and giggles I put the deck lid on - Love It !!!!!

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and a little more ....

2 of my cars looking on , very jealous, wondering whens its their turn !!!!
In case any one cares - 1964 microbus and Feb 1953 Ambulance , I also have the Ex Neil Evans Zwitter - PGY 93



Having got the left side of the valance at the correct height I tacked that side into place



This side is much worse and has had a reasonable hit in the past - more rust and its not straight at all



Making an outline so I know what can go and whats got to stay



Having got the metal that was beyond saving cut away I can mark the repair from inside , just like the other side



This is then clamped in place



Then tacked in place



At this point I wanted to stop at the back as there is alot of straightening to do from the crash damage - In a welding / fabrication sort of mood so Time to do The single largest fab job on the car - The front Inner wings .

As you may remember these were shot so a decision was made to replace them completely rather than have a patchwork of metal trying to save what was very damaged and rusty / thin metal

The decision is made easier when you have a set of NOS inner wings for a 51



There are a number of differences and I will try to sort them all



The most obvious being the tank support and the Jack holder - However there is a big difference in the profile of the section that goes over the beam - There is no tower pressing , no pressed strengthener- bumper hangers are different and an additional crease is behind where the front panel fits , No fuse box pressing , different bonnet support catch , different captive nuts - and probably a few more bits I will pick up along the way .



Yes I am about to cut them up !!!!!!

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Keep it coming I am enjoying this thread :thumbup:





Andy W

Thanks Andy

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Certainly some good information being thrown up here. I'll be having a look at my 47's front end sometime, though I think its all og.


I could't watch:omg:

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Have known this car and its owner who has been a good friend for many years. Glad it's finally happening

:d :d :d

Interesting thread and top work! its going to be hard seeing those panels cut up .I know how difficult they are to find but all in a good cause i suppose.

Mike.:thumbup: