Sorry to get off the build thread of the new beast but have thought about changing the EFI to carby ?Hi Lee. Yeah the silver one is noisy but it's main issues are over heating & tuning issues. True, it's regoed with the V8 but not engineered & air filter out the bonnet & cowl mounted gauges is a beacon for the wallopers.
It needs either a really good Delco/Kalmaker tuner to sus it or a Haltech ECU in place of the VN ECU & a complete re-tune. Trying to find a good tuner in Sydney is harder than you'd think. The place that originaly tuned the memcal half done the job & isn't really interested in finishing it.
More interested in doing GenIIIs I think. The technicoloured Torana's engine is only mild, higher comp, a bit of porting & an SV5000 spec cam. Will run it on the standard ECU/Memcal so she'll probably run a little lean, but I'm not going to be raping it, only the odd little skid when the moment seems right. Just want to be able to cruise it anywhere, anytime & yeah not attracting too much attention from Mr Plod will put my mind at ease. You know the story of my driver's licence taking a brief holiday
LH SL TORANA 173 TO EFI 5L TH700 BW 3.45 LSD
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_LH SLR 3300_
, Jun 27 2009 01:50 PM
370 replies to this topic
#26
_LJ355_
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Posted 26 July 2009 - 07:02 PM
#27
_LH SLR 3300_
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 26 July 2009 - 08:29 PM
I have to admit, can't argue with the simplicity of carburetors. Only problem for me with them is I seem to have the Midas touch, but instead of making them run better, every time I've tried to tune one, I made the car run worse. EFI once set up properly doesn't need to be tuned regularly like a hi-po carburetor engine does. That is the main appeal of EFI to me. If I could tune a carby engine well myself or knew someone who could that wasn't going to charge me $90+ per hour I would consider running a carburetor on the silver Torana.
#28
_nial8r_
_nial8r_
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Posted 27 July 2009 - 09:11 PM
yeah i know what ya mean there and carbi motors to get up and go too
#29
_LH SLR 3300_
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 27 July 2009 - 09:43 PM
Done right, EFI 5.0Ls can go as hard if not harder than a carbied 5.0L but in my view anyway, you can't beat the turn key reliability of EFI.I loved my 650 & 750 double pumper Holley four barrels back in the day, but having owned & driven a 5.0L VR ute as a daily driver for four years has sold me on EFI. Doesn't matter if it's minus 5 degrees in the morning or a 35+ degree summer day, it starts first go & i can drive off without a 20 minute warm up or coughing & spluttering up the street. With only basic bolt on mods these engines go really well too, & with the price of even complete EFI 5.0L cars more affordable for even budget builders, plus the relative ease of the conversion into older classics like Toranas, you can't go wrong.
#30
_LH SLR 3300_
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 01 August 2009 - 10:31 PM
Well I took the advice of some fellow forum members & aquired myself some graffiti remover discs & some wire wheels to fit my angle grinder. I started by paint stripping the bulk of the paint off then finished with the wire wheel & graffiti removers. Got more done today than I've been able to achieve in the last three weeks 
. Was going great until I went to grind off a MIG weld, forgot to put the safety guard back on the grinder, & ended up taking a chunk out of my index finger 
so at that point I finished for the day. Hopefully by the end of the weekend the engine bay will be back to metal.
Even got the wife to help out with the paint stripping.
. Was going great until I went to grind off a MIG weld, forgot to put the safety guard back on the grinder, & ended up taking a chunk out of my index finger so at that point I finished for the day. Hopefully by the end of the weekend the engine bay will be back to metal.Even got the wife to help out with the paint stripping.
#31
_billywest_
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Posted 01 August 2009 - 10:50 PM
hi lh slr 3300 how did you get your wife on the paint scrapper , my wife would of bashed me for asking her ,i think shes allergic to my toranacheers billywestWell I took the advice of some fellow forum members & aquired myself some graffiti remover discs & some wire wheels to fit my angle grinder. I started by paint stripping the bulk of the paint off then finished with the wire wheel & graffiti removers. Got more done today than I've been able to achieve in the last three weeks
Even got the wife to help out with the paint stripping.
#32
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 02 August 2009 - 09:23 PM
I guess I'm very lucky that I have a partner that shares my hobby. She is better than an apprentice, I don't have to ask for help, she offers & she knows what she's doing too. She's helped me fit engines & gearboxes to cars & even opertates the engine crane if needed. I'll credit my wife for alot of the work that has been & will be done on this car. She even chose the colour it will be painted.
#33
_nial8r_
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Posted 03 August 2009 - 07:40 AM
yep its always good to have an Apprentance that knows whats going on, nothing worse than haveing one that stands there looking dumb founded or stands there watching you struggle for 20min's before asking you if ya need a hand, im also glad my missus gets in and has a good go and dont mind getting dirty either, but have to admit i still dont trust her a real lot when it comes to lowering the trolly jack 
, hey matt i guess the surgical gloves come in handy for her to hey mate she obviously knows that paint stripper burns when ya get it on ya hands 
theres not many chicks that would get in and have a go thats for sure
, hey matt i guess the surgical gloves come in handy for her to hey mate she obviously knows that paint stripper burns when ya get it on ya hands theres not many chicks that would get in and have a go thats for sure
#34
_LH SLR 3300_
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 03 August 2009 - 10:17 AM
Yeah there are still some things I won't let her do. She's OK at blocking back primer so I'll be putting her to work there when the time comes . My mate with the Vortech blown SS came round last night & we were talking about wiring in the Torana. He's an electrical guru & we decided that instead of using the factory 10-12 circuit fuse block in the Torana, he's going to help me adapt a 16-20 circuit fuse block out of a VN-VR. This way it'll run all blade fuses instead of the glass ones & I won't have to over load the original circuit board to run all the additional circuits needed for the EFI, Fuel pump etc. Plus it'll be alot cheaper than using one of those painless wiring kits. Also instead of having relays here & there around the car, it'll have one relay block to power up EFI,ignition, fuel pumps & the H4 headlights etc. We're even going to intergrate the stereo wiring into the harness so if you look up under the dash you won't see spaghetti junction, it'll be all neatly wrapped & hidden where possible. We're also using a different conduit cover instead of electrical tape or that convoluted tubing, we're using this electrical wrap used in Euro cars like BMWs etc. It is less bulky than the convoluted stuff & wraps the harness tight. It also has a furry material type texture that is less prone to chaffing. The fuse/relay blocks be all neatly installed behind the driver's kick panel. Once the engine bay & dash are painted this will be the next stage so i'll keep you informed of my progress & try to post as many pics as I can.
. My mate with the Vortech blown SS came round last night & we were talking about wiring in the Torana. He's an electrical guru & we decided that instead of using the factory 10-12 circuit fuse block in the Torana, he's going to help me adapt a 16-20 circuit fuse block out of a VN-VR. This way it'll run all blade fuses instead of the glass ones & I won't have to over load the original circuit board to run all the additional circuits needed for the EFI, Fuel pump etc. Plus it'll be alot cheaper than using one of those painless wiring kits. Also instead of having relays here & there around the car, it'll have one relay block to power up EFI,ignition, fuel pumps & the H4 headlights etc. We're even going to intergrate the stereo wiring into the harness so if you look up under the dash you won't see spaghetti junction, it'll be all neatly wrapped & hidden where possible. We're also using a different conduit cover instead of electrical tape or that convoluted tubing, we're using this electrical wrap used in Euro cars like BMWs etc. It is less bulky than the convoluted stuff & wraps the harness tight. It also has a furry material type texture that is less prone to chaffing. The fuse/relay blocks be all neatly installed behind the driver's kick panel. Once the engine bay & dash are painted this will be the next stage so i'll keep you informed of my progress & try to post as many pics as I can.
#35
_nial8r_
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Posted 03 August 2009 - 10:34 AM
yeah i had already planned on ditching the old glass fuse block and using the one out of the commodore and if done right and i take my time i dont think it will be to hard but hey i still gotta move this bloody VN so i can make a start on the Torana again
but hey i still gotta move this bloody VN so i can make a start on the Torana again
#36
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 03 August 2009 - 12:12 PM
I know what u mean, I had the headache of stripping & getting rid of the blue Torana. I thought yeah it'll only take a couple of days. Three weeks later it was still sitting in my driveway & I couldn't start on my Technicolour Torana till it was gone. Finally making some progress now though, the engine bay is nearly all back to metal, just have the firewall to do & it's done. It's getting towed to work on friday so next saturday i'll be welding up all the excess holes etc, welding in the battery tray & back home by sunday. So hopefully next week i'll start prepping the bay for a coat of paint If you still have the VN SS side skirts etc let me know what you want for them, my mate is interested in them. How long before you can use your driveway & get rid of the VN shell?
If you still have the VN SS side skirts etc let me know what you want for them, my mate is interested in them. How long before you can use your driveway & get rid of the VN shell?
#37
_nial8r_
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Posted 03 August 2009 - 01:34 PM
i still have till wednesday till i can use the driveway, well drive on em with the cars but i can get out on my bike at least now i will PM you about the SS skirts as well as the front and rear spiolers too dont stress out it will be a offer you/he cant refuse ( mates rates -10% lol ) and just got a phone call from a mate, got in his 5.7ltr VU ute ( pissed ) and put it in to a tree and wrote it off so ill be going over this arvo to see what i can get of it for the VXSS lol
i will PM you about the SS skirts as well as the front and rear spiolers too dont stress out it will be a offer you/he cant refuse ( mates rates -10% lol ) and just got a phone call from a mate, got in his 5.7ltr VU ute ( pissed ) and put it in to a tree and wrote it off so ill be going over this arvo to see what i can get of it for the VXSS lol
#38
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 08 August 2009 - 07:52 PM
Finally making some real progress. Engine bay is all stripped back to steel & I've found no rust, only a few suspect repairs.
Fortunately for me, the worst of the suspect repairs were around the radiator support panel, chassis rail ends & engine bay skirts. At some stage in the car's life, it has had a reasonable hit on the front & had the radiator support panel replaced. I had already removed the battery tray & the panel Charcoal Charlie is mounted on, re-repaired the chassis rail ends & checked it all for alignment, now it was time to check the battery tray & Charcoal Charlie panel fittment.
Along with having to weld the replacement panels in the engine bay, there was a few other areas on the car that needed welding, such as excess holes here & there & a section that had been cut out of the dash frame around where the ashtray mounts (for god knows what reason!!??) had to be repaired. So a call to a towie mate had the car at work yesterday evening.
As I want the car to appear as original as possible, rather than MIG plug weld the battery tray etc in the engine bay, I'm using an inverter spot welder. Using this method, once hi-filled, rubbed & painted, I'm hoping it will be very hard to pick that the car has had repairs done here. First step was to clean both sides of the panels to be welded, a generous coating of zinc weld thru primer on the surfaces to be welded, a final alignment check, & vise clamp the panels in place.
Luckily, the spot welder I used had several pairs of interchangeable arms to reach all the hard to get areas. I spot welded over all the original spot welds on the replacement panels in keeping with my plan of making the repairs as undetectable as possible. I even tried to replicate the factory MIG welds where the battery tray panel joins to the top of the chassis rail.
With both panels welded, next stage was to repair the dash section around the ashtray mounting point. I had a replacement section I cut from the parts car to weld in, all I had to do was mark, cut & trim it to fit.
The repacement section all trimmed & sitting in place for final alignment check.
Once I cleaned the edges for welding, I started by tack welding all the corners, then every 25mm or so along the join.
Once tacked into place, I began welding the join. I started at one end, welding from one tack to the next, then went to the middle, then to the other end rather than welding from one end to the next. This way I limit distortion.
Once I finished welding, I lightly ground the welds back with an air powered grinder, then finished off with a small air sander & belt sander to get into the confined areas. I want this repair to be as undetectable as possible too even though it is mostly covered by the dash fascia.
Final task, sand the repair & surrounding area with P120 then P240 & a couple of coats of epoxy etch primer to seal the repair until i'm ready to paint.
The top of the dash was heavily surface rusted so I had to strip & sand it too, but as I only had limited use of the workshop, final prep & paint will come later. My main objective was to get any & all welding the car needed done, as I don't own a welder myself. The rest of the work will be done at home.
The rest of the day was spent welding excess holes in the engine bay & around the body.
The car will towed home either Monday or Tuesday, then the next stage will begin. Prepping & repainting the engine bay & inner wheel wells.
Fortunately for me, the worst of the suspect repairs were around the radiator support panel, chassis rail ends & engine bay skirts. At some stage in the car's life, it has had a reasonable hit on the front & had the radiator support panel replaced. I had already removed the battery tray & the panel Charcoal Charlie is mounted on, re-repaired the chassis rail ends & checked it all for alignment, now it was time to check the battery tray & Charcoal Charlie panel fittment.
Along with having to weld the replacement panels in the engine bay, there was a few other areas on the car that needed welding, such as excess holes here & there & a section that had been cut out of the dash frame around where the ashtray mounts (for god knows what reason!!??) had to be repaired. So a call to a towie mate had the car at work yesterday evening.
As I want the car to appear as original as possible, rather than MIG plug weld the battery tray etc in the engine bay, I'm using an inverter spot welder. Using this method, once hi-filled, rubbed & painted, I'm hoping it will be very hard to pick that the car has had repairs done here. First step was to clean both sides of the panels to be welded, a generous coating of zinc weld thru primer on the surfaces to be welded, a final alignment check, & vise clamp the panels in place.
Luckily, the spot welder I used had several pairs of interchangeable arms to reach all the hard to get areas. I spot welded over all the original spot welds on the replacement panels in keeping with my plan of making the repairs as undetectable as possible. I even tried to replicate the factory MIG welds where the battery tray panel joins to the top of the chassis rail.
With both panels welded, next stage was to repair the dash section around the ashtray mounting point. I had a replacement section I cut from the parts car to weld in, all I had to do was mark, cut & trim it to fit.
The repacement section all trimmed & sitting in place for final alignment check.
Once I cleaned the edges for welding, I started by tack welding all the corners, then every 25mm or so along the join.
Once tacked into place, I began welding the join. I started at one end, welding from one tack to the next, then went to the middle, then to the other end rather than welding from one end to the next. This way I limit distortion.
Once I finished welding, I lightly ground the welds back with an air powered grinder, then finished off with a small air sander & belt sander to get into the confined areas. I want this repair to be as undetectable as possible too even though it is mostly covered by the dash fascia.
Final task, sand the repair & surrounding area with P120 then P240 & a couple of coats of epoxy etch primer to seal the repair until i'm ready to paint.
The top of the dash was heavily surface rusted so I had to strip & sand it too, but as I only had limited use of the workshop, final prep & paint will come later. My main objective was to get any & all welding the car needed done, as I don't own a welder myself. The rest of the work will be done at home.
The rest of the day was spent welding excess holes in the engine bay & around the body.
The car will towed home either Monday or Tuesday, then the next stage will begin. Prepping & repainting the engine bay & inner wheel wells.
#39
_nial8r_
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Posted 09 August 2009 - 07:49 AM
job well done Matt and just for the record " there isnt anything wrong with your welding mate, Battery tray and canister tray went in perfect, but that dash support has got me nakkered what the hell would someone need to chop it up like that for ?? but that came up spot on too and all seems to be coming together very quick now, keep the pic's coming mate 
and just for the record " there isnt anything wrong with your welding mate, Battery tray and canister tray went in perfect, but that dash support has got me nakkered what the hell would someone need to chop it up like that for ?? but that came up spot on too and all seems to be coming together very quick now, keep the pic's coming mate
#41
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 09 August 2009 - 08:27 AM
Thanks for the kind words fellas Chris, how's your rig going? Is it back from the trimmer? I'm working my proverbial off to try & get this sh*tbox done. Told the Service Manager at work I planned to be driving this Torana come summer time & he just laughed at me. More reason to keep at it I think. Lee, my welding is OK, but not as neat as your's. I wish I had've taken pics of the silicon bronze welding I did. You'd love it Welded all the holes in the bay & body with it, no distortion. And you can file finish over them as they won't chew out your file blade. Still used the trusty MIG for the dash though, I haven't quite perfected butt joins with the silicon bronze welder. Thankfully, all welding the car needed is done.
Chris, how's your rig going? Is it back from the trimmer? I'm working my proverbial off to try & get this sh*tbox done. Told the Service Manager at work I planned to be driving this Torana come summer time & he just laughed at me. More reason to keep at it I think. Lee, my welding is OK, but not as neat as your's. I wish I had've taken pics of the silicon bronze welding I did. You'd love it Welded all the holes in the bay & body with it, no distortion. And you can file finish over them as they won't chew out your file blade. Still used the trusty MIG for the dash though, I haven't quite perfected butt joins with the silicon bronze welder. Thankfully, all welding the car needed is done.
#42
_BCR42Y_
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Posted 09 August 2009 - 08:50 AM
Matt, as above, excellent work! each time I log on I look forward to your updates!
#43
_LH SLR 3300_
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 09 August 2009 - 10:24 AM
Thanks Halil . That means alot to me as you have seen both cars & you know what i have to work with. I've got the trans tunnel i cut out of the blue LH here when you want it too. It was a shame I had to cut the battery & cannister trays out of the bronze Torana, they were genuine GMH panels, but looking at the pics you can see how poorly they were fitted & why I had to replace them.
While i've been working on the car after work & on weekends, I've been collecting parts to slowly fit to it as the work progresses. As the 5.0L I'm fitting is out of a VN I had to find an oil pan & pickup to suit the Torana. I bought a used one, but it was damaged & after spending the coin recoing the engine i wasn't confident in using it, so i found & bought a brand new oil pan & pickup for $200. He even threw in a new chrome dip stick. Bargain!
As i'm using the entire running gear out of the VN including the four pinion LSD Borg Warner diff & rear disc brakes, i felt i had to upgrade the front brakes to match. This also means the Torana will have Commodore stud pattern all round. Here are the new front brakes, so the Torana will match if not better the VN for braking.
The only thing is I haven't decided what rims to put on the car. I had my heart set on Simmons FR17s but even if they were still making them, my budget unfortunately won't allow for them. The VN has 17inch VT Clubsport rims on it so I was thinking of using them. Any suggestions? I also had heaps of parts sandblasted by a friend (thanks Gary!) including the bonnet hinges & catches.
I haven't decided what to do with these either. Zinc plate, chrome or paint them? I know chroming them will cost around $250 but as this car will be driven most every day rain or shine, I'm worried the chrome will eventually start to rust as I've seen on a few cars. Is zinc coating more expensive than chroming or around the same cost? Any suggestions?
. That means alot to me as you have seen both cars & you know what i have to work with. I've got the trans tunnel i cut out of the blue LH here when you want it too. It was a shame I had to cut the battery & cannister trays out of the bronze Torana, they were genuine GMH panels, but looking at the pics you can see how poorly they were fitted & why I had to replace them.While i've been working on the car after work & on weekends, I've been collecting parts to slowly fit to it as the work progresses. As the 5.0L I'm fitting is out of a VN I had to find an oil pan & pickup to suit the Torana. I bought a used one, but it was damaged & after spending the coin recoing the engine i wasn't confident in using it, so i found & bought a brand new oil pan & pickup for $200. He even threw in a new chrome dip stick. Bargain!
As i'm using the entire running gear out of the VN including the four pinion LSD Borg Warner diff & rear disc brakes, i felt i had to upgrade the front brakes to match. This also means the Torana will have Commodore stud pattern all round. Here are the new front brakes, so the Torana will match if not better the VN for braking.
The only thing is I haven't decided what rims to put on the car. I had my heart set on Simmons FR17s but even if they were still making them, my budget unfortunately won't allow for them. The VN has 17inch VT Clubsport rims on it so I was thinking of using them. Any suggestions? I also had heaps of parts sandblasted by a friend (thanks Gary!) including the bonnet hinges & catches.
I haven't decided what to do with these either. Zinc plate, chrome or paint them? I know chroming them will cost around $250 but as this car will be driven most every day rain or shine, I'm worried the chrome will eventually start to rust as I've seen on a few cars. Is zinc coating more expensive than chroming or around the same cost? Any suggestions?
#44
Heath
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Posted 09 August 2009 - 10:55 AM
Zinc is cheap as anything and looks fine. Especially if you polish them up a bit. Just zinc them
#45
_nial8r_
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Posted 09 August 2009 - 06:38 PM
i would love to see that Bronze welding and cant belive ya didnt get any pic's for me to see it 
nah its all good i might have to try Google and see how i go, them rotors look nice too and thats a good score on the sump and pic up too , ya know how i was looking for a sump and pic up my self well...................NOW I HAVE 3 FRIGGIN SUMPS AND 2 PIC UP'S !!! i swear i cant win lol but that includes the sump and pick up you gave me for a reference, so really i have 2 good sumps and 1 good pick up, also scored them tinted black tail lights i was tellin ya about but but forgot i was watching them engine mounts and brackets and they went for 66 clams arrhhh, but one good thing is that i moved a heaps of parts off the SS today so im this much closer (.......) to ripping the motor, box and diff out and making a start on my belovered Torana , hey while i think of it is there any chance you can take a pic of the fuse card that is under the flap that folds down under the column in the vn as i got rid off of my but need it cause i will be using the fuse panel for the Torana 
....... oh and now that i think of it i dont think them rotors will look any good on you rig but would look really nice on mine so you can post em my way when ya ready 
nah its all good i might have to try Google and see how i go, them rotors look nice too and thats a good score on the sump and pic up too , ya know how i was looking for a sump and pic up my self well...................NOW I HAVE 3 FRIGGIN SUMPS AND 2 PIC UP'S !!! i swear i cant win lol but that includes the sump and pick up you gave me for a reference, so really i have 2 good sumps and 1 good pick up, also scored them tinted black tail lights i was tellin ya about but but forgot i was watching them engine mounts and brackets and they went for 66 clams arrhhh, but one good thing is that i moved a heaps of parts off the SS today so im this much closer (.......) to ripping the motor, box and diff out and making a start on my belovered Torana , hey while i think of it is there any chance you can take a pic of the fuse card that is under the flap that folds down under the column in the vn as i got rid off of my but need it cause i will be using the fuse panel for the Torana ....... oh and now that i think of it i dont think them rotors will look any good on you rig but would look really nice on mine so you can post em my way when ya ready
#46
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 11 August 2009 - 09:28 PM
Now that work is progressing on my Torana & the engine bay will have a coat of paint on it very soon, I figured it was about time to start detailing the ancillaries that will be fitted once the paint has dried. One part that needed some attention was the heater box. It was in rather poor condition with a large crack near the fan motor & a hole that the previous owner had covered with duct tape.
it also needed a slight modification to give clearence for the fuel rail on the EFI 5.0L engine, so rather than replace it & make another ebay vendor rich off my paycheck, I decided to repair it. rather than use fibreglass, bog & pop rivets etc I wanted it to retain it's original strength & integrity, so I decided to plastic weld it. First part of the job was to determin what type of plastic it actually was as there are several different types. It had no markings to indicate what it was so I did a burn test. After sourcing the correct plastic filler rod, I was ready to go. Next step was, using a Dremel, I grooved out the crack.
Now this is the part where I couldn't weld & take pics as I needed one hand to apply the filler rod & the other to work the plastic welder. Here I'm laying the filler rod into the groove.
While I do this, I'm pointing the tip of the plastic welder to the point of contact between the filler rod & the heaterbox. As it reaches bonding temp, the filler rod starts to "lay" into the groove & bond with the plastic of the heaterbox. I continue until the groove is completely filled, then I trim off the end of the filler rod with a razor blade. This is how it looked once the weld was completed.
Here is the plastic welder in action.
Because whatever punctured the heaterbox also left an indent, I used the plastic welder to "soften" the damaged area so I could push it back into shape. I then followed the above procedure to repair it.
Once the plastic has cooled down, I use my trusty little air sander to buzz the top off the weld, then finish with a wizzer, starting with P80. Here's the repairs after a buzz with the P80.
Next stage was the mod needed for clearence around the fuel rail. First, I marked out were I had to cut with masking tape & a marker pen.
Once the redundant part was removed, I found a damaged fan guard made of the same plastic to use for the filler piece, made a cardboard template of the area to be filled & cut it out of the fan guard.
I actually had to weld the filler piece in two parts as the fan guard section I cut out was flat & the area to be filled had an angle up at roughly 45 degrees. I then followed the proceedure as above. Here is the welded finish in it's raw state.
And after sanding.
This whole procedure took around 1 1/2 hours, so after I finished I sat down & had a beer feeling pretty good about saving a part that might well have ended up in the rubbish. Next step is a coat of plastic primer, followed by a few coats of hi-fill, then a coat of 2K gloss black.
it also needed a slight modification to give clearence for the fuel rail on the EFI 5.0L engine, so rather than replace it & make another ebay vendor rich off my paycheck, I decided to repair it. rather than use fibreglass, bog & pop rivets etc I wanted it to retain it's original strength & integrity, so I decided to plastic weld it. First part of the job was to determin what type of plastic it actually was as there are several different types. It had no markings to indicate what it was so I did a burn test. After sourcing the correct plastic filler rod, I was ready to go. Next step was, using a Dremel, I grooved out the crack.
Now this is the part where I couldn't weld & take pics as I needed one hand to apply the filler rod & the other to work the plastic welder. Here I'm laying the filler rod into the groove.
While I do this, I'm pointing the tip of the plastic welder to the point of contact between the filler rod & the heaterbox. As it reaches bonding temp, the filler rod starts to "lay" into the groove & bond with the plastic of the heaterbox. I continue until the groove is completely filled, then I trim off the end of the filler rod with a razor blade. This is how it looked once the weld was completed.
Here is the plastic welder in action.
Because whatever punctured the heaterbox also left an indent, I used the plastic welder to "soften" the damaged area so I could push it back into shape. I then followed the above procedure to repair it.
Once the plastic has cooled down, I use my trusty little air sander to buzz the top off the weld, then finish with a wizzer, starting with P80. Here's the repairs after a buzz with the P80.
Next stage was the mod needed for clearence around the fuel rail. First, I marked out were I had to cut with masking tape & a marker pen.
Once the redundant part was removed, I found a damaged fan guard made of the same plastic to use for the filler piece, made a cardboard template of the area to be filled & cut it out of the fan guard.
I actually had to weld the filler piece in two parts as the fan guard section I cut out was flat & the area to be filled had an angle up at roughly 45 degrees. I then followed the proceedure as above. Here is the welded finish in it's raw state.
And after sanding.
This whole procedure took around 1 1/2 hours, so after I finished I sat down & had a beer feeling pretty good about saving a part that might well have ended up in the rubbish. Next step is a coat of plastic primer, followed by a few coats of hi-fill, then a coat of 2K gloss black.
#47
_BCR42Y_
_BCR42Y_
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Posted 12 August 2009 - 06:14 PM
Your welcome Matt, it sure has come a long way since I first saw it! Thanks again for cutting out the tunnel for me, I will have to organise a suitable time to pick it up from you. Haven't had a chance to do anything on my car, so it is not any rush, as long as it is not in your way.
Sure is a shame about the genuine parts being poorly fitted previously.
With regards to wheels, the Simmons would look great! and with the car being Commodore stud pattern all around you may be able to source some easier than torana or hq pattern. Either way you will have a bigger range of of wheels to choose from, if possible it might be an option to wait until the car is painted and rolling just so that you can see how different wheels look against the colour?
My bonnet hinges and catch were previously chromed and as you have noted, after a few years of use they are looking worse for wear, I want to get mine zinc plated so when you find a good place that does them, let me know.
Excellent job on the heater box, I noticed that even with my car only having a carb but with the VN heads, how close the passenger side sits to the heaterbox, would have been great having that clearance when I was installing the motor too!
Looking forward to the next update
Sure is a shame about the genuine parts being poorly fitted previously.
With regards to wheels, the Simmons would look great! and with the car being Commodore stud pattern all around you may be able to source some easier than torana or hq pattern. Either way you will have a bigger range of of wheels to choose from, if possible it might be an option to wait until the car is painted and rolling just so that you can see how different wheels look against the colour?
My bonnet hinges and catch were previously chromed and as you have noted, after a few years of use they are looking worse for wear, I want to get mine zinc plated so when you find a good place that does them, let me know.
Excellent job on the heater box, I noticed that even with my car only having a carb but with the VN heads, how close the passenger side sits to the heaterbox, would have been great having that clearance when I was installing the motor too!
Looking forward to the next update
Edited by BCR42Y, 12 August 2009 - 06:17 PM.
#48
_UNVSM8_
_UNVSM8_
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Posted 12 August 2009 - 07:24 PM
nice job on the heater box mate very neat.. similar to what i had to do to mine! where do you get the filler stuff from?
Ben
Ben
#49
_LH SLR 3300_
_LH SLR 3300_
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Posted 12 August 2009 - 09:15 PM
Thanks again Halil for the words of encouragement The trans tunnel is not in my way, so i'll keep it aside till you're ready to grab it. I was going to wait 'till the car was finished before choosing some wheels for it, but then I figured I will have to modify the guards for clearence for 17s, so it's probably better I do this before it's painted. Can anyone who has fitted 17X8 inch rims to an unflared LH/LX give me some pointers on where I might have to modify the guards? I'm glad you liked my heaterbox mod too, if you want a similar mod done to your's, let me know i'd be happy to do it for you. I probably won't need as much taken out as mine did.
UNVSM8, thanks for your comments. I have read your build thread & i must say you've done an excellent job I also remember reading about the mod you made to the heaterbox in your car. In answer to your question, I do a little plastic welding at work on headlights & so forth so I have a few different types of filler rod so that part was easy. If I couldn't find a matching filler rod, I would've cut the bit i removed from the heaterbox into strips & used that instead. Cheers Matt
The trans tunnel is not in my way, so i'll keep it aside till you're ready to grab it. I was going to wait 'till the car was finished before choosing some wheels for it, but then I figured I will have to modify the guards for clearence for 17s, so it's probably better I do this before it's painted. Can anyone who has fitted 17X8 inch rims to an unflared LH/LX give me some pointers on where I might have to modify the guards? I'm glad you liked my heaterbox mod too, if you want a similar mod done to your's, let me know i'd be happy to do it for you. I probably won't need as much taken out as mine did.UNVSM8, thanks for your comments. I have read your build thread & i must say you've done an excellent job
I also remember reading about the mod you made to the heaterbox in your car. In answer to your question, I do a little plastic welding at work on headlights & so forth so I have a few different types of filler rod so that part was easy. If I couldn't find a matching filler rod, I would've cut the bit i removed from the heaterbox into strips & used that instead. Cheers Matt
#50
gtrboyy
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Lotsa Posts!
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Posted 12 August 2009 - 11:43 PM
What colour are you painting the car?
I have a set of silver 15x7 B45 simmons on my vk that I'm thinking of selling if you're interested.
I have a set of silver 15x7 B45 simmons on my vk that I'm thinking of selling if you're interested.
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