Morris Minor Owners Club

This was never going to be a perfect showorthy job wherever it happened - And in my less than capable hands it's probably got a bit worse!

The edited for brevity and avoidance of libel version is thus:

The vehicle was destined to be a project at a day center. One thing led to another (as they tend to do, one thing seldom unleads to another, does it) and after a couple of years of indecision it was destined for a skip.

I hired a flatbed transit tipper (that was fun, never driven anything that big before, and never want to again!) and saved it whilst there was something left to save (it's amazing how much had either gone missing or been broken in the last few months...). I orignally set a target of 7 days to complete, but money, energy and weather were against that, as well at times as motivation.

But it still exists as something other than cheap Chinese imports, which has to be a good thing right? It's still a way off being finished, there's the brakes to fit, clutch to free off, some bodywork left to do, the back end to sort out and various other bits and pieces, but it's coming together bit by bit.

A lot of the welding and all the painting has been done by a friendly man who can - He did pretty well I think considering the materials I waved at him (a litre of 40% matt celly, some cheap thinners and a tub of high build primer)! I found out today the local Partco have 1l tins of zinc celly primer for a tenner, but too late now even though I would've used it if I'd known.

I don't have any pics of it arriving on the back of the transit, but here's a sort of before and currently after to make me feel maybe something has happened in the last two weeks!

And now (well, last night, a few more bits have gone on since)...

Looking good. You'll get there

Looks fine - but at this stage it wouldn't take long to pop the engine back out and free off that clutch!

You got that together in two weeks! that's incredible

bmcecosse wrote:Looks fine - but at this stage it wouldn't take long to pop the engine back out and free off that clutch!

It would take long enough... The engine towers are swines to line up when refitting. Though if getting it warm and trying it against the starter in gear doesn't do it, I suspect the engine will be popped back out - Again!

dp wrote:You got that together in two weeks! that's incredible

Incredibly slow Or at least, it feels that way!

I've had help of course, mainly on the welding and spraying, one thing that I'm terrible at and another that I've never done and with resources being so tight I couldn't afford to choose now to learn!

I've just made a start insuring it, it's the same premium as the 4 door I had with a 1275 lump in it (this has a plain 1098). Not sure if that means 4 doors are cheap even when modified, or pickups are a little pricey, but around £100 for 12 months fully comp is good for me either way

You should get it for less than that - RH do my Traveller for ~ £80 and that's unlimited mileage, roadside breakdown and recovery (if it can't be fixed) included!!

Never managed to get a P-U insured for under £100

I get all the goodies apart from unlimited mileage - But I've got more than enough cars for that to not be a major concern at the moment!

I might be able to get it cheaper shopping around, but Peter Best have been nothing but helpful and friendly when taking my money, plus I had an at fault shunt a couple of years ago that doesn't help. So while I might save a tenner at most elsewhere I'll stick with who I'm with

Progress today has been slow... Mainly because bits planned to go on (such as throttle cable) have vanished, like an old oak table...

Well - a tenner saved on insurance may just go some way to buying it a gallon of petrol so you can actually take it for a run! That's if you can find any petrol for sale !!

Nicely done.
Its good to see my old black bonnet and doors finding a new home!

This looked brilliant over the weekend. Half-matt paint really give it that 'commercial' look without being in the least bit rough or agricultural.

I should think it was virtually finished now, given the amount of work that was done over the weekend.
Bout time you dragged yourself away and posted another update.

dunketh wrote:Nicely done.
Its good to see my old black bonnet and doors finding a new home!

It's good to see them not in black anymore too! ;)

Although the doors have yet to be done - I'm reluctant to have a go myself as paint is in short supply and if I spray like I weld... And Mr Painty Man isn't around for a few days. Have to see how the mood takes me if I run out of spannerwork I guess.

This looked brilliant over the weekend. Half-matt paint really give it that 'commercial' look without being in the least bit rough or agricultural.

I thought the paint was quite grim when I opened the tin, but now it's on I actually quite like it. A beautiful deep gloss would have been great, but pricier to buy and you just know the first time the car sees teh road someone or something will damage it anyway.

I should think it was virtually finished now, given the amount of work that was done over the weekend.
Bout time you dragged yourself away and posted another update.

Would you believe I actually ran out of things to do on it yesterday? I got to the point where I needed the next parts order to arrive (due today, sometime) and the rear frame was being worked on so I couldn't do much back axle stuff. It's scary, it's starting to look like an actual vehicle, and really coming together. Next up is brakes, bonnet on and then some bodywork and trim and it's pretty much done!

Many congrats from me too - you're progressing well

Same from here - good work, fella