Connect sill repair part 1, 2 , 3 showing before repair

[metalworker0]

I didn't build that gizmo in he last post, because the guys in an engineering forum said it would not work with the thickness of the metal in the panels i was using.
will use another method .

Meanwhile I've been cutting out and folding the panels for the inner sill.

This panel has to be made in two paces as my metal folder only folds 21 inches, so i cut out two rectangular paces of 16 gauge steel, ..and folded the first fold on my metal folder on both.

[metalworker0]

The second fold cannot be done in this metal folder, so i had to come up with another idea (don't think of using a Black and Decker workmate for this as you will destroy the workmate.) ..I cut two paces of heavy gauge box section and drilled them so they would act like i clamp .

[metalworker0]

I should have used inch x inch solid , but this will do its job with extra clamps on it.

I then beat them over with a very heavy copper hammer

[metalworker0]

The folds turned out good - note my camera always makes strait lines look bent, these two will have swages added to them later ..and both will be welded together ..to make one 41 inch section of inner sill.

Making clamp folder 1 hour
Cutting out sheet metal and folding 4 hours (note 16 gauge 1.7mm cannot be cut with tin snips!)

[metalworker0]

The swages were put in today. note these swages must line up to the slots cut in the middle sill .

First i cut a slot ,...then hack-sawed across .

Then i made a former by filing out waste piece of metal ,,, used old hammer with rounded tip to beat it into the former.

[metalworker0]

The swages formed nicely.
Time 3 hours

..all i have to do is carefully weld the gaps up and grind and finish them and drill the spot weld holes

[metalworker0]

oh yes forgot

because the camber of the road , you don't want a flat bottomed inner passenger sill, it will have a permanent pool of water in there. so i altered it to 100 degrees instead of 90 degrees.

[Chug]

Nice work Mark, and a good alternative swage forming to your original plan

[metalworker0]

Welded up and , welds dressed, holes drilled, ready to go on ...just waiting for the weld thru primer to dry on the inside - not shown in pictures - panels were scuffed up to provide key for primer , then wiped with pre paint wipe (naphtha)

4 hours

Note: You must remove the burrs on the holes or it will stop the panels flange sitting and closing up flat without a gap.

They are going on as two separate pieces ..as the bit they join on to at the top is slightly curved.

[metalworker0]

In position ready to be tack welded,
Running out of gas, gauge is on zero...may just manage a few tacks. when the gusts of wind stop.
Nearest BOC depot is 15 miles away (Flint in Flintshire) ..next depot is 25 miles away.......Flint don't have it (Argoshield light cylinder Y)
They will not order it until Tuesday, I'm dependent on my brother to take me down there and pick it up .....may be Friday next week.

Anyway everything lines up well, I used a plasterer's derby to get that right.
will show you other jobs that I'm doing in the meantime.

[metalworker0]

Other jobs I'm doing .

One of the first things i noticed on this van was the rusty radiator support bracket ..so that was taken off de-rusted and primed..
(also in the picture below) Taken off at the same time were the power steering oil cooler pipe brackets.
Radiator is tied up with wire, whilst bracket is removed
Also removed - rear bumper , front bumper , front bumper strengthener .
Jobs ongoing spot sand blasting of chassis , leaf springs , removals of wing liners, sorting heat shield problems, de-rusting and painting of spare wheel mechanism.

To be done - sort out wiper pump.....running but not pumping.
hand break needs tweaking, replacement of rear bumper with a new one replace rear shocks.

Completed - rack arms , driver side sill, wiper washer switch taken apart on repaired.

[metalworker0]

well the under rad bracket s finished

[metalworker0]

when i first got the van back in December, the windscreen washers werent working .It was a faulty switch on the steering column ..you are supposed to replace the whole unit .....which would be very expensive ..i took it apart ..adjusted some springy copper strips inside ..and put it back together and it worked .
well so i thought ..the pump worked ,, but no water came out ..so cleansed the jets ..pipes etc .still no water ....problems with the motor or tank.

leave it until I've done the sills i thought .

Anyway ..still waiting on the gas , so i started that job - says in the Haynes ....remove wheel arch liner -- remove tank

Not so simple.

After removing the wheel liner, had problem with one of the fixings for the tank,
The captive plastic nut was turning around instead of the screw coming undone.
After half and hour of getting nowhere ..had to remove the wing, that wasn't so simple either, as to remove this ..the scuttle covers has to come off to get at one of the nuts (arrowed) ..also the one behind the door jam is an odd arrangement, that just grips on part of the wing ...only it would not let go ..i had to get a spanner down there with the wing half removed and loosen the nut.

[metalworker0]

The tank ..

The problem was an accumulation of a thick chemical sludge from the windscreen washer fluid additive - this was almost exactly like what you get in the drawer of the softener additive section on a washing machine.

The filter was is in the rubber bung that the pump pushes into ..this was caked up and you could not see through it ..was quite a job to clean as the stuff had "set" in there .

Pictures showing captive nut, tank , rubber pump bung adaptor , filter surface all after cleaning.

[metalworker0]

Intercooler - stuck in place

This had rusted bolts, managed to get one out ...one snapped and the other two had rounded heads and badly corroded - this needs to be easily removable ..for future cleaning .