Gilfy Restoration: Starts here...

MK1minx · Posted: Sun Sep 04, 2011 2:20 pm Post subject:

Yeah I got a crane. picked an ancient chunky crane that a Jag enthusiast was selling for £40. That is the orange thing you can see around the work bench. It is a god send. I did my first engine change with an electric one that you hang from the rafters but I definately prefer the manual because you have more control.

DeadEye · Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2011 1:35 pm Post subject:

Used a tow rope as the strap and shackles we had were too big.

Around the chassis down legs that connect the cross member to the chassis rails and around the engine mounts to avoid the rope damaging the bonnet slam panel.

115bhp of pure power:

What's lurking under that padding?

Chassis leg doesn't look too bad. Notice the cunning use of two drill bits?

Why Vauxhall decided to use those wanky jubilee clips that either brake or just won't come off. Angle grinder was required for a couple of them.

DeadEye · Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2011 1:44 pm Post subject:

Anyone spot a suspiciously new looking weld?

mayfair · Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2011 1:26 pm Post subject:

no cant see i put down the beer & look again frown

DeadEye · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 11:34 am Post subject:

DeadEye · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 11:49 am Post subject:

Ok, been down to the unit most evenings.

This is where we find ourselves:

Oooh! This isn't as bad as I thought it would be, inner and outer are seem in ok condition:

This isn't too bad either, an arch kit would do here:

And this is where it starts going down hill...

This is a bit worse than remember. Has this thing been desolving in the unit over night:

I see no ships, but I do see the roof of the unit:

OH MY GOD!!! A bit that isn't brown!!!!!

Oh bollox, a bit that is:

Yep, that is the floor:

This is the offside rear by the fuel pump, I was convinced this was ok and that the inner arch was sound. Well it was until I took the body kit off.

DeadEye · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 12:13 pm Post subject:

SO, this is where I am at the moment.

I'm gonna put the cutting disk back on the grinder and start chopping anything that is brown back to nice clean metal and see where we are. Noting to lose apart from the time do to it.

My problem with the nearside quarter is that there is so much missing from the inside and at this stage, I don't know what it is supposed to look like.

So my thought was to buy a replacement bottom corner from Hadrian Panels, fit it as perfect as I can and see if this tells me what needs to be fabricated for the inside.

The rear bottom quarter is now my main concern.

What a great idea hiding a water bottle down there hey!?

The offside rear strut top can be replaced quite easily by the looks of it and if I want to pay for it I do have an entire off-side rear quarter sitting at opelcalssicparts in Germany.

The sills have what looks like an outer sill skin which needs to be ripped off but behind that looks ok. From inside the car, the inner sill (or what I think I now know is the chassis rail) LOOKS (and I emphasise LOOKS) ok.

Gilfy is REALLY putting up a fight! big grin

matt · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 1:24 pm Post subject:

Again not looking to bad and nothing a MK1 under resto hasn't show before.

It could be so much worse.

And yeah as you say great palce for a water bottle.

DeadEye · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 3:19 pm Post subject:

I'm collecting a Hadrian lower left rear corner on Monday to see what else need fabricating - I might need some pics of an original inner rear corner to see what it's supposed to look like!

mk1astramad · Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2011 1:30 pm Post subject:

this car is showing nothing worse than half the cars on here have already had,

its nowhere near as bad as you are thinking, christ, if u wanna see a ROTTEN shell, u wanna see my mates van...its a cheese grater at the mo, but will soon be sorted big grin

DeadEye · Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2011 3:00 pm Post subject:

I cut some of the lower rear quarter off today and the arch.

Most of the inner arch where it folds back in is still there so I've at least got a rough idea what it should look like.

Thanks for the encouragement guys, I do need it!

Kadettsr888 · Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2011 5:58 pm Post subject:

Great to see a gte being saved keep the pics and the good work up mate smile

DeadEye · Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2011 11:12 am Post subject:

Some more pics from Saturday

I cut the arch out small as I don't know how big the arch kit is yet. Managed to get to solid metal about 20mm from the edge of the inner arch so an inner arch panel from germany is in order. I've found them for 30 Euros.

Bit of rot - this is becuase of a bodge sill replacement I think you can still feel the original sill and they've put a sill skin over.

Tailgate drip rail showed some surface rust but by the time I got the knotted wire wheel on the case:

leaky window rubber that I should have just stanley knifed instead of breaking the glass

Yey, another non rusty bit. So far the off-side looks usable:

I also cut out some of the rear bottom quarter, from the pics on Hadrian panels, it looks like the replacement corner should cut all the rust.

mayfair · Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2011 3:28 pm Post subject:

you must be down in the shed most days & night did you get a welder yet ?

DeadEye · Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2011 3:52 pm Post subject:

Buying one today.

Probably a Clarke 135TE if anyone could comment on this?

A mate who is a welder for a living is coming down at the weekend to either agree to do the welding for me or to teach me.

He doesn't have a welder that goes low enough to do panels hence me buying one.