TR3-More Skim Coats of Filler Than Anticipated

Over the last few days I have applied 2 additional skim coats of filler to the two front and rear fenders. I had anticipated being completed by now but as with most things TR3 wise it is taking me longer. The fenders are starting to shape up well. I anticipate I will have them ready for another coat of primer tomorrow. The cowl is down to final sanding and one more light coat of filler. Lots of work done so far-some more to go...

I also took time out to fix the latches on one of my plastic tool boxes. Both latches were broken and I really didn't want it to go to the landfill so I bought new latches and spent about 3/4 of an hour installing them...now I am back in business.

Skim Coat of Filler Applied Cowl and Front Fenders

Body Work Prep: Yesterday I worked for 3-1/2 hours (for the most part enjoyable "in the zone" type of work-the time went very quickly) applying the skim coat of primer which resulted in getting the front fenders and cowl to the next level of body work "completeness" by spending about an hour on each of the panels. The cowl and right front fender required minimal application of filler but the left hand fender had more ripples etc that needed to be addressed. Today I plan to finish up the final finishing and reapply primer over the work areas. As I worked on the panels the question of how far do I take the body prep before I consider applying the finish coat occupied my think time... The issue of "fit for purpose" crops up in all my projects (automotive and otherwise) and I think it is a good question to ask oneself to keep things in perspective-especially when on a limited budget like I am. Short cuts in this area of body prep could be obvious when the car is reassembled but at the same time I am not sure I want to put in the extra hours that would be required to bring the panels to the next level of "perfection" when there is so much other work to do. My goal is to get the car on the road in May in the most time efficient manner with a minimal output of cash...It is a fine line to walk. I can easily see how the big bucks are spent on this area of car restoration and there is no denying that the body work is what people will notice. Fortunately the car is going to be painted white which covers up minor imperfections so I should end up with what I consider a "fit for purpose finish" for a minimal amount of cash outlay..

Project Planning update: I really want to get the car back on the road by the end of May 2011. In order to meet this deadline I determined last week that I will remove the body from the chassis to complete the rear body work (around the spare time cover) and also to allow me access to painting the underside of the floor boards verses having to lie under the car.. I will then roll the chassis outside the garage and finish the body work then move the body outside and start on the powder coated chassis reconstruction inside the garage (this will be my winter project)..It will be easier and more time efficient in the longer run to go this route although I am feel somewhat reluctant to take the '59 to another level of disassembly but after careful consideration I think it is the way things need to go. Also having the bare chassis will allow me better access to the components.

I also decided that next week I am going to start posting pictures of my progress...

Primer Applied

I managed to get a coat of primer on the dash and trunk areas on Tuesday afternoon so at least the metal is covered and I can move on. Time spent: 1 hour.

Today I have determined to tackle the skim coats of filler on the cowl, front and right rear fender as it is projected to be a warm autumn day and the work can be done outside. I also need to apply another coat of primer on the hood after taking care of some minor imperfections. If I can get all of this done I will be a happy man.

The '57 TR3 Rat Rod Project

The idea of constructing a Mazda powered Rat Rod is building momentum in my imagination but there are some realities that will need to be addressed.

First of all there is the issue of funds to finance the construction. Right now there is no money allocated for this to happen. The only way it could proceed (past the reconstruction possible with existing parts) would be to sell the '59 after it is put back together. My best estimate for an "economy build" would be in the $3000 range and that is primarily for the mechanical aspects and does not take into account a new roof and side curtains etc etc. Of course there is the potential to market the drive train etc which would put extra coffers into the pot. The financial side of the enterprise is a constraint for sure.

The second aspect is more complex. I am not sure I have the "energy" and enthusiasm needed to complete the build. It will be interesting to see if this changes once I get the '59 back together and experience some success. I have not been as focused on the '59 build process as I could be (should be) and as a result of my lack of attention the project hasn't moved along as quickly as it could. Examining the "whys" clearly shows me that the "root cause" is that I have chosen not to make working on the car a priority in the overall scheme of things. Being retired should open more of a door for me time wise and I think I should examine why I am not using my time more effectively? I find the process of working on the cars very relaxing for the most part but I am wresting with channeling my personal energies to get the work done. Too many distractions for sure...

A further complication is that for the past couple of years I have been contemplating a classic truck owner experience. Realistically I should only have one special interest car in the stable so decisions have to be made.... This desire may "trump" the rat rod build...

The contemplation continues...

More Sanding and Prep

Yesterday wasn't a stellar day in the garage as I didn't physically make it out there until later in the afternoon leaving little time to actually work on the TR before the dinner hour hit. Excuses are many. Other activities took longer than anticipated plus I got distracted by a visit to the library which wasn't planned but turned out to be an enjoyable foray. It was a glorious fall day and probably too nice to spend in the garage? (more justification?)

I did spent about an hour doing more sanding getting to the point that I am ready to apply the primer to the dash and trunk areas. It is going to be good to get the metal covered. I plan to do this today before I head out of town for a couple of days...

Master Plan/Just Do It/Master Cylinders and Primer Prep

Yesterday I wrestled a bit with the project management gods coming to the conclusion that the only way I am going to get the '59 reassembled is to make a commitment to myself t0 get out into the garage on a regular basis and do some work on the car-even if it is just small tasks that take a few minutes. Every step accomplished gets me closer to buttoning it up and driving . I need to get this car back together for a number of different reasons.....Part of this conclusion stems from my interest at looking at Kijjiji ads for classic cars...there are so many abandoned projects represented and I just don't want the Triumph to end up in the ranks of the unfinished...so it has to be heads down with a commitment to "just do it".... I have set a target date of July 1st for completed assembly with an intention of attending a British Car meet in mid July as my goals. I believe I have the skills to finish the job and fortunately I have a majority of the parts to do so so I am on my way.

With a new sense of focus I started wrenching on the '59 by removing the brake and clutch master cylinders. Both are rusted and seized which is disappointing as I understand they were rebuilt at one time but unfortunately time and the elements have taken their toll. I am presently soaking the plungers with penetrating oil so at least I can disassemble them to see the extent of the damage. Replacement master cylinders are reasonably priced. I am going to wait until I am ready for reassembling the brake system before I purchase them.

I spent about an hour "hand sanding" the dash area of the tub on the '59. The garage was warm, I had the radio playing and everything was right with the world as I removed the last remaining fragments of paint and smoothed out the areas that needed attention. Hopefully today I will finish up and apply a coat of primer. I will need to purchase some fine grit sandpaper and a dust mask today before I can proceed. Given the fine "fall" weather we are experiencing I am going to apply some skim coats of filler to the fenders and crowl areas today. I want to get this work done outside in the fresh air verses later on when I will be forced to do so inside the garage. Breathing the fumes in a confined space is not the best thing health wise.

Fenders and Such

Yesterday I spent a short period of time working on the 1957 (about 1-1/2 hours). I extracted the front fenders from my garden shed and lined them up for examination and evaluation. I think 2 of them should be sold and I am considering exactly how to do it...(Kijjiji perhaps). I also put the tub up on saw horses in the driveway and cleaned up the newly painted surfaces plus secured the car cover appropriately. I really need to focus on the '59 and get the work that needs to be done-done...hopefully today there will be not unexpected distractions...

Back to Garage/ '57 Tub Changes Location/Next Steps on the '59

Garage Clean Up: I spent about 5 hours on Thursday on further garage clean up. I actually moved the 1959 out of the garage so I would have more room to sort and clean up. It is starting to make sense to me around the importance of having "space" when undertaking a project of this nature. A single garage does not offer much of a contingency space wise. Clutter really impedes progress-no doubt about it. I figure I accomplished about 90% of what I wanted to do which is a really good start. Hopefully today I will get back out there and finish up. It certainly feels good to have things in their proper places and to get rid of some of the associated clutter that seems to accumulate in garages-especially mine.

Tub Move: I incorporated the assistance of my son and his friend Derek plus my daughter to move the '57 tub from the back driveway to the front driveway right outside the garage door. The four of us carried the tub for a hundred feet or so. I would not want to walk it around the block but the short distance was very manageable. I imagine it was a funny sight to behold. Today I am going to put the tub on sawhorses and start to assess my next steps. I also plan to match up which fenders I am going to use and then make a decision on the "sale" of surplus body panels. I need to generate some revenue to keep my projects going. I still have about $800 dollars in the TR fund thanks to my mother's generous gift a few months ago but I would like to top it up plus free up some room by getting rid of the parts.

Next steps on the '59: Hopefully today I am going to finish prepping the exposed panels and get some primer on the bare metal. This needs to be done asap as I started working on this back in August and I shouldn't wait any longer. I decided earlier in the week that I am going to finish up my identified bodywork ( I anticipate I have about 12 hours left) then make another attempt at getting the car started and letting it run for a while. A year ago when I attempted the last start up I didn't install the fuel pump fulcrum correctly so the fuel pump needs to be removed and refitted. Also I need to drain the oil and change out the filter prior to start up as the oil filter canister was leaking on the last start up. I have the adapter to change it out to a spin on filter which I believe will be an excellent enhancement. I also have decided to take the master brake and clutch cylinders off to determine if new rebuild kits will do the trick. They were rebuilt a few years back but are now seized due to non use. Knowledgeable Triumph folks are saying for reliability reasons I should go with new master cylinders but the cost is somewhat prohibitive. I will just have to see what comes up on the inspection. Once I finish these tasks I am going to move the car outside, cover it and start reassembling the powder coated frame.

Back to Creating Order in the Garage

Yesterday I came to the conclusion I can't continue to work on the TR's without spending some time in my garage creating some order( primarily so that I know where things are when I need them). I have a tendency to go "heads down" on tasks and end up with a pile of clutter to deal with that I subsequently ignore (rather than take time each day to address) until I become "boxed in" (physically and mentally) and unable to continue working. I have now reached that stage so it is time to regroup.

To start off I spent an hour or so going through my bodywork supplies trying to determine what is useful and what wasn't. My sandpaper tote (a recycled electric drill case) has broken clasps which make its' usefulness questionable. I contemplated throwing it out but quickly came to realization it was very fit for purpose size wise and that I could probably pick up some new clasps at Home Depot and fix it vrs throwing it into the landfill. So that is one of the tasks I am going to do today. I have also discarded some dated and defective spray paint cans. A trip to the dump will be in order as they will need to be disposed of as hazardous waste.

The other issue I am dealing with is "stuff" stored in the garage that is restricting my working space. I have ignored this intrusion over the summer months but now realize with the coming cold weather that I will need as much room as I can get to move around the garage with the door closed so the "useless" stored items will need to be addressed today.Bicycle storage is another issue as the bikes take up a fair amount of room hung from the ceiling. So I moved them out into my camper van for winter storage. Today I also need to install the casters I bought over a year ago to attach to my table saw so it is easy to move. The table saw also takes up a fair amount of room and can be moved to my storage shed until I need it again. Upon examination yesterday I realized about 25% of what is stored in my garage does not need to be there. Moving it out will free up a considerable amount of space.

Eastwood Chassis Black/Chassis Path Forward

Yesterday I restored the '57 tub back from lying on its' side (easy access for work) to upright sitting on blocks and generally cleaned up the back driveway from my rust removal and paint application antics. I also attended a local swap meet and bought a can of Eastwood's Chassis Black paint that I have heard good things about but have been reluctant to order in off the internet. I should have enough paint to coat the suspension parts when I reassemble the chassis. Yesterday I decided regardless of which body tub I use I should reassemble the powder coated chassis. It would be cleaner and more straight forward to upgrade generally. I also completed a mental check list of what parts I have already purchased for the job...so a good day generally with an incremental step being taken down the road to reassembly

More Rust Protection Completed on the '57

On Thursday I spent 5-1/2 hours doing prep work and painting the undercarriage of the '57 tub. I decided to use Rustoleum paint as the panels still had a majority of the original paint still intact with very little rust showing. I figured applying the Rustoleum would be more "fit for purpose" than going with POR-15.(which I would consider overkill)...the process took me longer than I originally anticipated due to the fact that there was a considerable of amount of prep work required to remove the dirt and oil that had accumulated.

By examining the floor boards I can make the assumption they have been replaced in the past 20 years or so?

I also found a very interesting website that shows a Mazda Miata conversion on a MGB. It gives me much of the background as to the mechanics of what is involved and I think, a good resource for information-the Internet is great for garnering information on almost any topic...

Today I am going to finish off the balance of the under car painting and make arrangements to move the tub closer to the garage door...

More Work on the 1957 TR3 Completed

Last Saturday I managed to get the engine bay POR-15 coated. The weather was very cooperative but unfortunately my personal schedule ( a dinner party for a good friend) impacted the "careful" application of the second coat at the "tacky" stage of set up on the initial coat. The second coat went on smoothly but there are a couple of blemishes that could have been avoided had I had more time. I had to remind myself it is an engine bay and most of the flaws will be covered or hidden anyway...

Today I tipped the body on its' side and cleaned off the dirt and built up oil and grease from the underside of the body. Using the garden hose, Scotch pads plus a environmentally appropriate degreaser the underside of the body looks pretty clean. Tomorrow I am going back with the rotary wire brush and some mineral spirits to take off the remaining scum. I hope to etch the surface with some fine grit sandpaper and coat it with a couple of coats of black enamel paint. The original paint is actually in pretty good shape which is encouraging to say the least (particularly given the age of the car-it looks like it was redone sometime along the way... I did not want to remove the existing finish and keeping in the spirit of a "rat rod" type vehicle build my approach should work out well...

More POR-15 Application

Another good work session on the '57 tub....I am now about 60% finished treating the surface rust and applying the POR-15 paint..Tomorrow I want to tackle the underside and firewall/battery box...small incremental steps for sure...but satisfying...

Weather Sensitive Tasks Take Priority

The autumn days are getting shorter and the nights cooler which means I really need to get outside and do whatever I can to move my TR3 projects forward particularly while the weather is warm enough to paint rather than having to apply it an enclosed garage during the winter.

I realized yesterday I really need to address the 1957 tub and get the rust eliminated or at least neutralized before I end with a perforated mess. I made my way out to the driveway and spent 5 hours in the sunshine cleaning and preparing the floor boards and trunk areas and applying some POR-15 products . I had taken an earlier look at the overall condition of the body to determine whether or not I could get away without sandblasting the tub and I came to the conclusion the most "cost effective" and "fit for purpose" approach was to go the Por-15 route. Most of the paint had been removed and all that was left was mainly surface rust (fairly severe in some places) so most of the benefit from sand blasting had already been achieved. The application metal prep and paint seemed to have gone well and I now have an expanse of gray color where rust used to reside.

I realize that if I want to move ahead with my "rat rod" Mazda Miata powered TR3 I need to make daily progress even if I just work for an hour or two. Working on the TR's is a great stress reliever and I need to do more of it vrs other pursuits...