Practically Classics Forum

After spending too much time in the inspection pit under
the car, I have been dealing with the consequences!!!
My neck and shoulders have been very stiff and painful.
Therefore it was a rest day for me, vegetating infront
of the tv with the laptop.

So online shopping!!
I have only bought one new radiator fan for the moment.
At £22 including tax and postage I can't complain.

The details are below.
* Push or Pull
* Size: 12"
* Thickness (Motor Height): 2.5"at the deepest point
* Air Flow Rate: >1130 CBM/Hr
* Speed: 2100 RPM
* Power: 12VDC, 80W



This will be fitted infront of the radiators as there will
not be space behind. The fans will overlap the bottom of
radiators by about an inch.
(Where the cables run under the condenser)



I will be fixing it to the metal framework and not with the
kit that comes with it for mounts that go through the
radiator fins!

I'm sitting having a cup of tea while checking my emails when
there is a man at the window waving his hand!
It's the postman trying to attract my attention, this guy didn't
want to get knocked over by the dogs and what he had wouldn't
have gone in the mailbox.

I bought a front motor mount inserts off dawm on neons.org.
So thank you dawm they are perfect.



So I'm just going to finish my cup of tea and see if it is either
going to rain or for the wind to blow the gray clouds away so
I can work on the car!

In between the showers I dropped the battery tray into
the engine bay and only used 2 of the three fixing
places, the third needs to be drilled.





I then thought it bes to put the battery into the tray
so that I can be sure it cans still be fitted with no
problems. The neon's wiring loom got in the way but it
went in. I will reroute most odf that wiring later.



Then I realised that I had forgotten the A/C pipe!!
Very close, so I will grind a notch in the tray and add
some rubber incase of vibration. But even without doing
the notch it still fits no problem.



The weather forecast for tomorrow so out comes the grinder
and the drill, then the paint brush.
What colour to paint it?

This was posted on other forums I'm posting this build on to.
As I couldn't access this forum for some reason.

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The first job of the day was to trim and drill the battery yray.
While I was doing this the post van made a call, the driver held a
parcel out with one hand as though it was nothing. I took it and
promptly lost my balance and fell forward when he let go!!
This the reason why, the parcel contained the New Wishbones/control
arms.



I popped these on the front seat and went back to grinding the battery
tray when another postman walked down the drive towards me.
Another parcel!!! I was prepared this time, but it was the 12" radiator fan!





Of course the fan is not up as far as it will be as it is only
hanging roughly in place.





I moved the metal step infront of the car and placed the bumper
reinforcement on the step and pushed it into place to check what
clearances there were and if the reinforcement needed trimming!





Plenty of room, no need to touch the reinforcement, perfect.

As the grinding and drilling were done, out came the wirebrush attachments!
Slam Panel, under where the radiators would sit, the rocker covers, and the
top of the radiator all got the treatment.



Then my usual appointment at the podiatrist for check my feet, all okay there.
A quick trip to the supermarket for the weekly shop. Unpacked that lost and
it's 5:20pm and it's dark by 6:20pm.

Out with the white spirits to degrease and clean the rocker cover and top of
the radiator support.

I gave the rocker cover a very thin coat of red hammerite, it will be sanded
and repainted a few times.

I thinned the green paint but not as much to give the top of the radiator
support it's first coat too.


The last job of the day was to give the battery tray a coat of paint,
this time silver.

No parcels today, so I can get a bit done!

As the gap between the A frame is a little wide so I have a little
room to move stuff around. I needed to make some large
washers/spacers.

It is just as well that I kept those bits of metal I cut out to make
the motor mount, as they just needed the central hole making
bigger.



I used the gasket paste I got yesterday and four bolts and the axle
adapter went in. This adapter takes the speed sensor.
I also bolted up the cross bracing that goes between the engine and
transmission.







I popped some boards back across the pit and then a jack under
the bell housing.
A few bolts and a fair bit of time later and some expletives.



Only to realise that the A frame needed to be moved to the right
of the car. So I had to redo the placing of the washers/spacers.





Then I came across the old head shield off the Voyager's old rear
engine/transmission mount. A little hammering and a little snip here
and there, then a pop rivet.





Wire and paint brushes come out tomorrow.
I did a quick measure between the base of the oil pans and the ground,
with the original neon springs still on it is 5 to 5.25 inches.
When I get the mk2 R/T neon springs on this should be increased by
over an inch possibly even by 2 inches.

Well I got the usual email from Photobucket

Every free account with Photobucket is allotted 10 GB of monthly
bandwidth and our records show that you have less than 3 GB of
bandwidth left to your account.

Oh and I managed to get another 12" fan from the same seller I got the
last one, and it's the same. So matching pair of fans I can get them
sorted and mounted before the bumper gets refitted.

It has just started raining and I was hoping to do the radiator brackets
tomorrow, well at least attempt to make the templates for them but not
in the wet!

As dad had a day off work and the rain came across in waves,
I was relegated to my little tool shed!
Unfortunately there was no space to stand or get the deck
chair out so I could sit down to do the work I needed to do,
so the first task was to have a little clear out!

Once there was space, out came the deck chair, and the wire
brushes. All those heat shields were dirty and had rust on
them, so I had the wire brushed then sand paper over the lot.
A quick wipe over with paper towels soaked with white spirits
to get and grease or remaining dirt off. They were then hung
from a wire coat hanger ready for a blast of high heat spray
paint.



Even if I do say so myself a vast improvement on what they were!

I had previously trimmed the alternator bracket when I was
making the Belt tennsioner setup, and it had been scrapped.
So the alternator bracket and it's spacers were wire brushed,
sanded, and then cleaned. Before a coat of silver hammerite was
applied.



When I was moving things around I put a little weight upon part
of the battery battery tray's rear support and bent it a little!
I will bend it back later but here it is fully painted and ready
for fitting and the fusebox holes to be drilled.







Dad doesn't know it yet but there will be a change around of
things on the drive tomorrow!
There are 2 broken washing machines which are waiting to be
collected by the scrapman sat infront of the garage, as well as
the trailer.

These will be moved so Christine can come off the inspection pit
and be moved infront of the garage. This must be done so I can
put jacks and axle stands under the car to sort the suspension
out, as well as start fitting the ancillaries back on the engine.

2 weeks tomorrow is Whitby Custom Car Show!!!!!!
Still so much to do, and so little time!!!!

I think I've figured out how I will be mounting the fans.
The angle iron that will be used will be painted along with
the slam panel seconds before pop riveting together.

This will act as a glue giving more strength to the join,
and as the paint will be wet on both bits, it will stop
water getting into the join and rotting the metal.



Now I need to think on the brackets holding the radiators
together!!

Well thats the idea for the radiator mounts thought out.
But the question is will it work?





Tell me what you lot think.

The car and trailer have been moved around so it is easier access
for me,

I decided to give the slam panel and other bit a first coat of paint.



Before I gave it the wire brush and sandpaper treatment then a clean
up and a lick of paint. This is the LPG Vaporiser bracket sitting under
the screen wash bottle.





The rocker covers were sanded and white spirit cleaned then a second
coat of paint. I only found out later in the day that I missed a bit!



Okay the coolant radiator mounting pin that needs to be threaded.



over an hour later and much swearing later, I had finally done it!!
The pin had to be worked on first with the grinder to thin the pin out,
then using the largest threading dye to get it started. Once it had
taken that one I worked on it with the next size down which I have an
ample supply of nuts to use on it! Rhe end results.



While the grinder was out, 4 bits of angle iron was cut all 7.5" long.
These bits of angle oron will be drilled tomorrow ready for marking up
the slam panel.
Also got parts of the adapter bracket made.



I dropped the a/c and coolant radiator in, and then bolted up the
battery tray.





A couple of bits of metal cut and shaped then put in place with the
oil cooler radiator. I still need to make a few bits for it's bracket!





just a quick shot before the cooling fans go on(hopefully tomorrow)



The only ones who got a quite day were the dogs!! Who didn't want to
be disturbed.