Stuff you have fixed today

[Wedg1e]

Not today but last Sunday: my mate with the Turbo Esprit finally got an MOT on it. While he was at the MOT place a water hose split so he had to drive it home carefully (without spooling the turbo up ). Pulled the carbs off to get at the offending hose, fixed it, put the carbs back on and was assembling the cast alloy inlet tracts when there was a 'dink' as he tightened a bolt and the casting, newly black-crackle powder-coated, cracked through the bolt hole.
So I preheated it in the oven, cleaned it up with a stainless brush, lit the TIG at about 30A - and a bloody great hole appeared. Looked as though there was porosity in the casting just alongside the through-hole. Only taken 39 years for it to give up.
Managed to get a puddle going, ran some rod in which filled the cavity and then bulged through into the bolt hole.
Let it cool, reshaped the area with a pencil air grinder and carbide burr, dropped a round file through the bolt hole and let it cool enough to handle.
Got the plumbing back together and then took the car round a private test track to er, bed in the brakes, officer.
First time I'd driven an Esprit in 14 years (my S3 wasn't a turbo), the go-kart handling is still hilarious - and you never get tired of hearing the boost whistle a couple of feet behind your head
Still, bit of a nerve-racking repair, there aren't exactly loads of these cars being broken for spares...

 

[Lewis_RX8]

Had to cut out some wiring in the freezer that runs along the hinge and bends , I guess due to copper work hardening every bend it gets more brittle and finally gave up and freezer screen was not working.

Simple job cut out broken wire then re solder and heatshrink (making sure wires are connected to the right colour) , Forget to put heatshrink on before soldering more than once




And installed along freezer

 

[Chillitt]

I must have done a good job welding up the van floor as it now fills up with water when it rains...

 

[bigegg]

I must have done a good job welding up the van floor as it now fills up with water when it rains...

Probably why it rusted in the first place?

25mm rubber cable grommets are *very" cheap from screwstation.

 

[Chillitt]

Probably why it rusted in the first place?

25mm rubber cable grommets are *very" cheap from screwstation.

Surely they would make it hold even more water?

 

[brightspark]

Surely they would make it hold even more water?

they would stick up about 5mm round the edges

 

[bigegg]

Surely they would make it hold even more water?

"Open" grommets.

 

[Chillitt]

"Open" grommets.

Oh, right. Yes, that would make more sense...

 

[Lewis_RX8]

"Open" grommets.

Smear some grease or wax along inside of cut sheet metal before putting groemt in, Let it drain while protecting the edges from rusting i imagine

 

[Arc Tourist]

Consider putting in a one way check valve for when you go fording a river.

 

[optima21]

if you didnt have carpets in your car (I don't) you could if a 7/8" plughole and plug for campers and motor homes to let the water out.

 

[qwakers]

or you could, y'know, fix it?

 

[MattF]

Tried the bobbin sander today, & realised that the rings were sitting slightly below the height of the bed, hence small pieces were snagging on the bed.



Needed to put something here to raise the height slightly.




So, a piece of craft foam cut from an A4 size sheet of the stuff later...

 

[Chillitt]

or you could, y'know, fix it?

What, in the rain, and the dark?

 

[Migmac]

My old head stalker could fix that in the dark. He sorted his mk2 escort van out with a drain hole, none of us knew it had a leak, odd!

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Not fixed but cleaned and serviced.

2 more boards to finish tomorrow and it's ready for use
Doesn't look bad for a 1986 desk.

 

[lchris21]

been working my way through this lot, or should I say lots of this lot.......this is the third pile like this!! degreasing, cleaning and de-rusting, identifying and cataloguing. Its been quite therapeutic. I rescued them from a scrappy who was clearing out an engineering shop in the summer, will be getting rid of most of them via ebay etc, might take a few years .......some weird and wonderful and unusual sizes, lots of UNF, BSW, BSF, BSP, BA, UNC etc if anyone's interested

 

[Brad93]

been working my way through this lot, or should I say lots of this lot.......this is the third pile like this!! degreasing, cleaning and de-rusting, identifying and cataloguing. Its been quite therapeutic. I rescued them from a scrappy who was clearing out an engineering shop in the summer, will be getting rid of most of them via ebay etc, might take a few years .......some weird and wonderful and unusual sizes, lots of UNF, BSW, BSF, BSP, BA, UNC etc if anyone's interested

View attachment 253995 View attachment 253996 View attachment 253997 View attachment 253998

Certainly might be able to fill in a few missing spaces. You say you’ve cataloged what you have? Do you have a list?

 

[lchris21]

Ive started working through...............there's hundreds of them!! Was going contact the mods about putting a general for sale advert up in the appropriate section? It'll be a nightmare to list and picture and sell them via the Bay I think?, so was going to knock 10% off whatever the cheapest is listed on there at the moment? Bigger discount for bulk....if you see what I mean? Best off asking me to root through what you are looking for via PM at the moment? Its going to take a while, and I can see if its made it through the process......... Im just into separating them into various thread forms and identifying the sizes at the moment..............suffice to say, there's no Chniesium in there

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Ive started working through.........

That'll keep you out of mischief for a while!