[Mgs] A little progress, lots left to do

[Richard Lindsay]

Hello Friends,

Today I spent most of my ergs repairing the garage wall at my son's
house where his wife proved once again that the car and the wall
cannot occupy the same physical space.  Once back home, and rather
pooped, I worked on the TD a little.  Specifically, I stripped more
paint from the tub and sanded away a little rust.

The wooden timbers are generally very healthy on this car, with the
exception of the one timber below the driver's door.  The aft end of
it is rotted away.  Over on the passenger side, the tub metal is
rusted through at the running board and a bit below.  I have the
replacement timbers but haven't yet begun the replacements.  So far, I
am trying to repair everything possible on the tub, using the
installation on the frame to maintain the alignment.  Both doors close
beautifully and the latches engage fully and I want to keep it that
way.

Here's a picture of that rotted timber.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1224.JPG

Despite the wood debris laying below, the timber along the bottom of
the tub is in perfectly sound shape!  Therefore, the strength of the
tub is still there.

Most of the wood elsewhere in the car is sound, such as the plywood
behind the seats.  Here's how it looks.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1225.JPG

All of the screws holding these parts together are rusted into solid
chunks.  I won't disturb the two outer bits, other than sanding, but I
will drill out the screws holding the center panel over the
differential so it will be removable for fluid-servicing the diff.

While looking around in the cockpit, here are a couple of pictures
inside the tub.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1226.JPG

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1227.JPG

This metal in these hidden places will be lightly sanded and coated
with POR15, then just primered and painted.

Moving on around the tub, here's the A-pillar.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1228.JPG

Despite looking rather ugly, this area is really sound.  I'll tighten
the wood screws and clean this area up with a wire wheel in the drill.
 I'll reinforce any holes with the toothpicks and wood glue before
reinstalling the door latches.

Here's a look at the pedals.  The rubber draft excluder is perished
but I have a new one.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1229.JPG

Back on the right rear, here's a slightly out-of-focus look at the tub
where the little tack strip ends attach.  You can see that the screws
have split the wood.  I'll put strong wood glue into those cracks then
clamp the wood back together.  Same toothpick treatment in the screw
holes, if needed.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1232.JPG

Here's a look at the left rear side, where no work has been done.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1233.JPG

Here's a look at the point on the rear of the tub where one of the
tank straps and spare tire carrier attaches.  All metal damage is just
surface rust.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1234.JPG

And while on the rear end, here are two looks at the fuel tank filler.
 They will need a lot of cleaning and polishing.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1235.JPG

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1236.JPG

I still haven't gone to my storage area to get the gas can.  Into that
can, I'll drain the gallon or so of fuel from the tank.  I'll then
disconnect it and lift it away for repairs and refinishing.  BTW, its
really hard to find someone to take/recycle old gasoline!

Back in the garage today, I didn't feel like attacking rusty bolts so
I stripped paint instead.  I first removed the paint behind the door
on the passenger side, then did the same on the driver's side.  Here's
how the later looks.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1237.JPG

I have sanded the upper half of the panel, mostly to see how easily
the rust is removed.  The bad news is that its hard to remove.  The
good news is that it DOES come off leaving a nice surface for paint.
One could do the whole tub is one long, painful day.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1239.JPG

Most of the paint on the panel ahead of the door has been removed but
not yet sanded.  Same with the rest of the tub.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1238.JPG

The final two pictures for today are, first of all, of the lower left
edge of the dash top showing the leaded corner.  This side is pretty
messy, unlike the passenger side.  I'll sand and possibly fill this
area to make the surface smooth.  I suck at lead work.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1240.JPG

On the leaded corner at the rear end of the door opening, the lead
needs a little filing to reshape the joint.  Otherwise, it too will be
fine.

http://www.aubard.us/MGTD/HPIM1241.JPG

And that's it for today.

With best regards,

-rick