Badly mig welded car/partsparts

[reb78]

I've just bought a project, and the work that has been done to it so far has been terrible. Patches either side of a rusty section so it can't be seen, sealant all over the place. Would be a much quicker job if I didn't have to spend a load of time removing someone else's poor work. And that's before we get onto the appalling shape of some of the repairs. There's nowhere to fix the front wing, because the floor and footwell side is completely the wrong shape.

From your username, it sounds like you would like my project - https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/pictures-of-old-or-rare-vehicles.102789/page-11 although that ones in a completely unrestored state so I wont have to fix other peoples bodges

 

[droopsnoot]

From your username, it sounds like you would like my project - https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/pictures-of-old-or-rare-vehicles.102789/page-11 although that ones in a completely unrestored state so I wont have to fix other peoples bodges

Yes indeed, and it's great that you have such a history with it. As I acquired this in largely-dismantled form, the photos I took when I got it aren't really worth posting. I did quite a long thread on another forum covering my previous rebuild of another of these, and I haven't been doing the same for this as there's only so much difference from the first. The chap I got it from stuck a few bits back on it to give an idea of it, this is one of his photos.

 

[reb78]

Yes indeed, and it's great that you have such a history with it. As I acquired this in largely-dismantled form, the photos I took when I got it aren't really worth posting. I did quite a long thread on another forum covering my previous rebuild of another of these, and I haven't been doing the same for this as there's only so much difference from the first. The chap I got it from stuck a few bits back on it to give an idea of it, this is one of his photos.

View attachment 249920

Nice! Where was your other thread? I would like to have a read? I am on the Vauxhall Viva Owners Club forum (and a club member) but couldn't really find others with their level of info.

 

[droopsnoot]

It was on the DSG forum. Here's a link, I believe it's in a public area. https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/droopsnootgroup/sportshatch-restoration-t3953.html

One of these days I will have to go through and replace all the Photobucket-hosted photos.

 

[stuvy]

I picked up some parts the other week from a classic car restoration place and saw this

The guys were all in there 50’s and had all the gear but obviously no idea

 

[hobby_machinist]

I can hear "Im welding my whole life so dont teach me how to weld"

 

[stuvy]

Thing is they will sell that car at £100k

it was a smart relatively new work shop not something in an old barn on a farm

 

[RWD3M]

I picked up some parts the other week from a classic car restoration place and saw this

The guys were all in there 50’s and had all the gear but obviously no idea

Of course we're all assuming they did it and that the car wasn't in for remedial works!

 

[stuvy]

Of course we're all assuming they did it and that the car wasn't in for remedial works!

I asked the chaps and they proudly told me what it will sell at, I enquired do you do all the work

the car has had new floor pans, inner sills and outer plus all 4 wing lips

it must be about 5k in panels and the ones they have made really didn’t look good

It was the only picture I managed to snap

 

[RWD3M]

I asked the chaps and they proudly told me what it will sell at, I enquired do you do all the work

the car has had new floor pans, inner sills and outer plus all 4 wing lips

it must be about 5k in panels and the ones they have made really didn’t look good

It was the only picture I managed to snap

That's shocking!

 

[graffian]

motorbike parts:
A mudguard, with really nice paint. My 3 year old nephew bounced on the seat and cracks appeared in the paint.
The guard had six mig welded patches, not sure if they were patches maybe just blobs of mig weld, blobbed till it
formed a patch. The photo doesn't do them justice they are about 3/8th of an inch thick,
I drilled holes around the bad patches, intending on sawing out the patch, pressing on the drill pushed the patches off.

 

[stuvy]

That's shocking!

Iv actually worked for a company and he asked me to paint over holes in the floor of a rally car with seam sealer rather than properly fix it

I refused but the apprentice jumped at the chance to use seam sealer for the first time

first pic should be of my torch underneath it

edit, I really should wait for the pictures to upload

 

[Nick DV]

Iv actually worked for a company and he asked me to paint over holes in the floor of a rally car with seam sealer rather than properly fix it

I refused but the apprentice jumped at the chance to use seam sealer for the first time

first pic should be of my torch underneath it

edit, I really should wait for the pictures to upload

A rally car and he wanted that done!!! Ahh, it's ok though, he's run the HT cable inside the car so that makes it safe and race ready

 

[RWD3M]

Iv actually worked for a company and he asked me to paint over holes in the floor of a rally car with seam sealer rather than properly fix it

I refused but the apprentice jumped at the chance to use seam sealer for the first time

first pic should be of my torch underneath it

There doesn't seem to be one but if there was, I'd insert a 'shakes head' emoji here!

 

[stuvy]

A rally car and he wanted that done!!! Ahh, it's ok though, he's run the HT cable inside the car so that makes it safe and race ready

There doesn't seem to be one but if there was, I'd insert a 'shakes head' emoji here!

this was a fully fledged business with 10 staff and over 150 cars to look after... cowboys

 

[bricol]

Iv actually worked for a company and he asked me to paint over holes in the floor of a rally car with seam sealer rather than properly fix it

I refused but the apprentice jumped at the chance to use seam sealer for the first time

first pic should be of my torch underneath it

edit, I really should wait for the pictures to upload

To be fair, they don't look to be rust holes, and all he wants to do is stop the notes getting wet . . .

 

[bigegg]

If we are on the subject of poor workmanship . . . . .

Many years ago, when I first started working for myself I had a '2 car workshop' on a small industrial estate. I was doing mechanical repairs and body repairs. (gas welding only!- not even heard of mig. Couldn't afford a Spot Welder yet.).

A chap from a nearby unit came in for some MOT work to be done. An Austin A30 with holes in what looked like a new sill. He was very upset that the sill had failed the MOT. He explained that the sill had been very rusty with lots of holes etc. and he had quite enjoyed spending a week of his holiday repairing it - only to have his work failed.

He explained his method of repair :-
Bang it well with a hammer to get all the loose rust off.
Fill the sill void with scrunched up wire netting.
Whip up up a strong sand and cement mix and force it fully into the sill void and smooth it to the sill profile.
When the cement was dry, smear body filler over the whole cement sill, sand down and paint.

"It looked as good as a brand new sill" he said.

"I just don't understand why it failed! Concrete posts and buildings have metal in them, - so that sill had to be stronger than the original" he reasoned!

The MOT examiner had been tapping the sills with a small hammer to test integrity. When he tested the "repaired" sill it obviously sounded like hitting a concrete floor and deserved further investigation - and heavy hammer blows!.

It was very difficult for me not to laugh at this repair. I managed to keep a straight face, quoted for and did a proper repair with new outer and inner sills. The car sailed through it's retest and he became a regular customer until I moved premises.

I had to dispose of two bucketful's of painted filler and cement.

Malc.

\I had a transit van where someone had done the same with the chassis rails: except using expanding foam, rather than concrete

 

[droopsnoot]

I picked up some parts the other week from a classic car restoration place and saw this

The guys were all in there 50’s and had all the gear but obviously no idea

I was at an event last year, and a local classic restoration company had three of the same car on display - one in "as found" condition, the centre one a "restored" painted bare shell with some parts going back on, and the third a completely rebuilt car, obviously to show off the quality of the work. There wasn't much going on at the show so I spent quite a bit of time looking around these cars, and came to the conclusion that the only one I'd want was the one they hadn't touched. At first, it just looked like they hadn't straightened the brake pipes out properly before fitting them, but then I started noticing other stuff. Looking through the holes in the chassis box section (which are supposed to be there) there was MIG wire that had run through the welds they'd done on the other side. Several plates over poor parts of the floor and bulkhead where the original metal clearly hadn't been cut out before the plate went on. I did try to have a chat with the guy manning the stand, but he kept avoiding me. I don't know if he'd picked up on how unimpressed I was, but I actually wanted to ask if they'd just slapped the paint on to be able to show the three stages and were actually intending to rectify it.

The view through the chassis: MIG wire and a crinkly brake pipe, and not repairing the edge on the side nearest the camera.

And how about this for a floor pan repair?

Paint had a lovely shine to it, though. Like I said, maybe they were going to strip, rectify and paint, but they'd already started fitting brake pipes to it.

 

[stuvy]

I was at an event last year, and a local classic restoration company had three of the same car on display - one in "as found" condition, the centre one a "restored" painted bare shell with some parts going back on, and the third a completely rebuilt car, obviously to show off the quality of the work. There wasn't much going on at the show so I spent quite a bit of time looking around these cars, and came to the conclusion that the only one I'd want was the one they hadn't touched. At first, it just looked like they hadn't straightened the brake pipes out properly before fitting them, but then I started noticing other stuff. Looking through the holes in the chassis box section (which are supposed to be there) there was MIG wire that had run through the welds they'd done on the other side. Several plates over poor parts of the floor and bulkhead where the original metal clearly hadn't been cut out before the plate went on. I did try to have a chat with the guy manning the stand, but he kept avoiding me. I don't know if he'd picked up on how unimpressed I was, but I actually wanted to ask if they'd just slapped the paint on to be able to show the three stages and were actually intending to rectify it.

The view through the chassis: MIG wire and a crinkly brake pipe, and not repairing the edge on the side nearest the camera.

View attachment 250075

And how about this for a floor pan repair?

View attachment 250076

Paint had a lovely shine to it, though. Like I said, maybe they were going to strip, rectify and paint, but they'd already started fitting brake pipes to it.

I went to race retro in February and there was a tr7 upside down on a spit with the underside looking awful cold welds, moving too fast and too many errors to say

 

[Nick DV]

this was a fully fledged business with 10 staff and over 150 cars to look after... cowboys

Perhaps they were real cowboys - horses don't need welding!