Thread: Series 2a - My First Restoration

Dunno where you are in Melbourne - I've had rads built by Campbellfield Radiators - for older cars , beaut work and priced right - 3 core HD for a Valiant was just under $700.
3 years on it still a ripper .
No connection ,just did a good job .

My quote was friom a guy in Clayton, and it is to match what i currently have.
I'm sure that mine is a 4 core, which can be replaced by an alloy core, quite cheaply if i remember correctly, at about $500 (?), but I'd prefer to have it as an original.

Most of the cheap ones you find about the traps are sourced out of the UK, are 3 row core and have a round top tank of the Series 3 design. Judges at display days may mark down this top tank as not original.

If you're pedantic about things like these you may want to re-core rather than replace.

Originally Posted by Rextheute

Dunno where you are in Melbourne - I've had rads built by Campbellfield Radiators - for older cars , beaut work and priced right - 3 core HD for a Valiant was just under $700.
3 years on it still a ripper .
No connection ,just did a good job .

Originally Posted by Chops

My quote was friom a guy in Clayton, and it is to match what i currently have.
I'm sure that mine is a 4 core, which can be replaced by an alloy core, quite cheaply if i remember correctly, at about $500 (?), but I'd prefer to have it as an original.

Thanks Rex and Chops, judging by the sounds of that $800 doesn't seem too bad. Although... its worth more than what I paid for the car in the first place!

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Most of the cheap ones you find about the traps are sourced out of the UK, are 3 row core and have a round top tank of the Series 3 design. Judges at display days may mark down this top tank as not original.

If you're pedantic about things like these you may want to re-core rather than replace.

Not too sure I'm pedantic about those things. I wasn't even thinking I'd ever enter this car into a comp. I doubt I'd go well at all. This is my first attempt at this so the workmanship wouldn't be up there. Plus I have metric bolts, parabolic springs, braided brake lines. Wouldn't I get penalised for all those things?

The weather was surprisingly good this weekend, so I managed to get a bit of painting done.
I stripped the internal sides of the wings as they were discoloured and stained. I first stripped them with a wire wheel, then went over it with wet dry sand paper. I then primed the sides and painted over it with a pressure pack paint. Once the colour coats dried, I applied a clear coat with a hardner to protect it. I have heard stories of clear coats discolouring when exposed to heat, so I will see how this goes. Once again I found tape and aluminium foil the best way to mask off surfaces.

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I have purposely left the external panels untouched. It is my intention to have everything under the hood to look 'near-new' along the with cockpit, whilst leaving the chipped paint externally to keep its character.

I also managed to do the seat box too. Same methodology as above. There is some aluminium corrosion present, however I have treated it and it will be situated under the floor panels.
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I also started polishing the headlight chrome rim. I just used a metal polish and it came up looking nice. The picture below is showing treated area vs worn condition.

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Once the headlight assemblies were put in the wings and the panels were dry, I was able to put in the front right wing! Starting to look like something you can drive.

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Thats all I could get done on the weekend.

Next, I will have to get the manifold studs out as they have corroded threads and with the new exhaust I can't tighten the nuts enough. Best option I've seen on the internet is an Oxy torch (which I don't have). Heat them up and then apply cold water straight away, then they can twist out. I have tried vice grips to twist and soaked the manifold studs in WD40 for weeks, but they aren't coming out. Is there another effective method that can be used here?

I was shown that tightening the nuts a tad first before trying to loosen works. Dont think wd40 is strong enough... have you tried diesel? I use diesel as my no1 lube and for many nut/bolts i have successfully removed them.

It's been a long time between posts as I've been away on holiday and had a break from working on the car. I've recently been getting back into it with a little more progress. I ended up biting the bullet and getting the radiator recored.It ended up costing $700, which was less than the original quote. They did a great job on it. I also had to take the manifold into the local mechanics, so they could use an oxy torch on the studs and install the new ones.
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When it came to installing the front grille panel and radiator the rubber spacers I had were very worn. In searching for an alternative, I came across these anti-vibration pads. I found them to be the correct height and all I had to do was drill a hole in them to allow the bolt to go through. It will be interesting to see how these wear over time - but at the moment they seem to be fit for purpose.
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Here is a quick before and after of how the engine bay is looking. It's come along way (further than I thought I could take it) hopefully its not too long before I can start driving it again!

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Next steps will be tub, doors, finalisation of the electrics and a new battery. Hopefully then I can try and turn it over.

Great work looking nice