With the body fully stripped, it was time to come to a
decision on how to proceed with the body work. After consulting a few friends
it was decided to go for thermal paint removal (pyrolysis). The complete body
shell will be put in a computer controlled oven, where it will be gradually
heated up to about 450ºC. At that temperature all paint, sealant and under body
coating should evaporate. With the paint removed the shell's rotten sections
and all seams will be shot blasted to get rid of all the rust. After which the
welding will be carried out. So today the body, together with some bigger
parts, was loaded onto the trailer and transported to a company near Eindhoven
for paint removal and shot blasting.
The shell should be ready for collection and welding
in two or three week's time. After which we can start in earnest with some
welding. But not yet sure how to proceed after the welding has been done. There
are two options I am considering right now for final body treatment;
• Low pressure shot blasting and coating with
an epoxy primer;
• Acid dipping and E-coating;
The last came as highly recommended to me, but I have
some reservations against using chemicals. Well I have a few weeks left before
I have to make up my mind! Also the time between body repairs and paint
preparations will be taken into account to determine how to proceed.
And to kill some time I have started sorting
through my spare parts. I thought that I only had a spare set of rear
suspension arms ready to fit. So I was pleasantly surprised to find out I have
an almost complete set of suspensions components powder coated and ready to
fit. With all the problems I have had with the DHC over the past three to four
years, I had completely forgotten about this. They were intended as
spares, but will come in handy now!
And on the subject of sorting through parts ice cream
boxes are very handy at storing small parts ...
Then I received a cloth sample from House
of Tartan recently to check colour and pattern. I want to use this on
the seats and as inserts on the door and rear bulkhead liners. As you can see
it is not what you call a perfect fit ...
But with the sample I was able to work out a pattern.
I find the original pattern a bit too thin. So I opted for a slightly
wider pattern, adding more colour to the interior. And I went for a traditional
square Tartan pattern as opposed to the slightly stretched pattern as used by
BL. Only to find out the sample was of a different weight weave, so with a
different thread count. But at least I now knew
that the original cloth pattern as used by BL was based on the Menzies Black
& Red Clan Tartan. To be continued ...
Then I had a first chat with the upholsterer, to see
what his opinion was on this cloth. His verdict; "Nice quality but a
bit thin. Might cause problems with applying the backing cloth. But that's my
problem" At least that problem will be solved with a heavier weave. Also
asked him if it would be possible to recover the parcel shelf in black vinyl.
"Yes it can be done, but will take a lot of time (= money) to do
properly ..." I am now looking for a new parcel shelf.
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