Steve's unexpected Series 3 rebuild.

Very cool. Can we get a look at your sheet metal bender please?

Tango91 said:

Very cool. Can we get a look at your sheet metal bender please?

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I'll try to remember to take a few photos at the weekend.

@Tango91 here you go. Just a lashed together thing I made with what I had in the garage a while ago. Works much better with the 0.8mm steel that i'm using at the moment than the 1.2mm that I was using before for the bulkhead. Even so it doesn't make the sharp folds that i'd like but they are good enough and can be improved after.

I recently took some stuff for blasting. I tend to have to do everything the cheap way which is generally also the hard way. It's so nice to just drop stuff off and have someone else do all the work.







I also took the heater fan that I showed you earlier. The guys at the blasting place actually cleaned, primed and painted this for me all in the same price. They're really good.

More slow progress with the dash.

Not finished yet or welded in but it's about the right shape at least.


This corner is going to be interesting to make. I don't think I can make it in one piece as it bends in different directions.

Now here's a great example of why this is all taking so long. This next fold is where the vinyl tucks into when you cover the dash. There is absolutely no need to shape it like this but I can't help myself and I had to try to make it like the original and match the existing other side. I didn't get it quite right as I didn't leave enough steel but the funny shape is correct.

I'm really going to have to go to sleep. Have you seen the time? Last bit for now. Steering is back on and I hope finished. I dread saying that because it will probably mean that when I put the oil in it will pee out everywhere and i'll have to take it all off again.

Nice work, better than new

I’m surprised nobody’s come up with a collapsible steering shaft for series’s yet, a direct line from your face to the chassis

Especially funny as the series 3 started the padding on the dash as 'crash protection'. In a crash you still get a steering column through your chest but at least you don't bump your knees on any nasty sharp edges.

Well I've been out tonight and filled the steering box with oil. Why I didn't do this to test it before refitting it I don't know. That would have been much more sensible. Anyway so far so good. No leaks discovered yet. I even put the steering wheel back on so I could turn it from lock to lock. I thought I might as well try to get it to leak if it's going to. Also having the wheel on enabled me to stand there rocking it side to side making brum brum noises like a big silly kid. Which was nice. I won't get chance to look at it until tomorrow night so I've left it with a load of rags underneath to catch whatever comes out. I just know that the bugger is going to leak.

And of course it did leak but only from the adjuster and locknut. I'm thinking Loctite thread sealer but that will mean no more adjustments or it will break the seal and it will leak again. Anyone got any clever ideas?

I use this on gaskets and more recently to seal a sump plug on alpha Romeo where the ally casing had cracked
Sets firm but not hard, never failed me yet, dowty washer may be worth a try too.
https://www.halfords.com/motoring/t...rs/loctite-si-5980-flange-sealant-599720.html

Thanks for that. That silicone might be the answer. I've often wondered what the proper name for those washers was. Now I know. Just made me think though i've got some puraflex 40 in the garage. I'll have to see if it can be used around oil. I have a feeling it can't.

Neat they are, I bought some really cheap from the local hydraulics shop for the little bolts that retain the cam sliders in the block

So in the end i've gone with Loctite 577 primarily because it's what I had. I've taken the adjuster out and caught the oil to reuse. Then i've syringed more out to get the level below the hole and tried to get everything clean enough for sealing. I watched the Steamwally video on youtube about refurbishing steering boxes and he says the adjuster only needs to be about finger tight so I experimented with turning the steering wheel while adjusting the screw. The manual says the torque at the wheel needs to be something like 10 - 14 in lbs that I had to convert to ft lbs and Nm before realising that I don't have a torque wrench that goes that low. In the end i've gone with what feels right but that's not easy when you don't really know what you're feeling for. I'm aiming to avoid any slack or wobble in the steering and because i've used the loctite i'm hoping to get it right first time as if I need to adjust it later i'll break the seal and probably start the leak off again. In my favour though Steamwally was saying that this adjuster is a last chance thing and if you have steering wobble you should be looking for problems starting at the wheels and working back from there. As all the track rod ends are new and the steering relay is refurbed and a bit stiff i'm hoping I get away with it.


Don't really know why i'm including more photos here as you all probably know what i'm talking about. The paint is chipping really badly on this cover so that's annoying me. I prepped and painted it the same way I always do but it seems really brittle and can't stand a little knock without lumps coming off. I want to just say stuff it who's going to know but I know i'll end up touching up the paint. I'll need the oil leak to stop the rusting from all the chipped paint. Oil can go back in at the weekend and then we'll know.

Great work Steve. Looking great.

Bobsticle said:

Great work Steve. Looking great.

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Thanks mate. As we say in Lincolnshire, I keep buggering on in when I can. We'll get there.

LincolnSteve said:

Thanks mate. As we say in Lincolnshire, I keep buggering on in when I can. We'll get there.

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It’s outstanding. Us amateurs appreciate having a bash buddy. It takes for ever ironing out issues and trying our hardest to think out each issue as it arises when a pro can do it by instinct.
keep up the good work, great thread.

The big test will be covering it. I’ve had a huge learning curve tatting with my upholstery. Modern vinyl bags like crazy and hides nothing. The adhesives are also a mine field and won’t substitute mechanical fixing in the slightest.
You’ll need to use a thin scrim foam first and make sure everything is glued stretched and ‘clipped’ round the edges or you’ll be doing it again in a year. Trust me, I know.

Yeah, it's going to be a test. Have you seen this.
I thought I might have a go at something similar with the foam. Not looking forward to it though.