My Delta HF turbo ie Restoration

[Rob]

Then some filler to help the repairs blend in.

[frankxhv773t]

Commiserations on the hand. At least you didn't torch the car and the house. I keep a few old washing-up liquid squeeze bottles filled with water handy when welding. You can direct a concentrated jet of water on any little accidents including into tight spaces.

[DavidLaver]

Am working on a welding trolley design at the moment.  It will have a little fire extinguisher and a blanket on board but "water pistol" is a great idea.

[DavidLaver]

Any favorite brands of paint, filler, paper?

[Rob]

I use Isopon P38 easy sand filler & Isopon 182 zinc primer. I then use Carplan high build primer & for the top coat I use Fiat racing red from a spray / rattle can (which is a pretty good match). On areas where it needs a bit of extra protection (and are not visable) I use Hammerite bush on paint. Ideally I would like to get the bodywork resprayed professionally but my main aim is to get the shell & body panels completely rust free & all the oily bits mechanically sorted  .

[Rob]

And now for the top coat of paint  . Still loads to do but it feels like I'm getting there, slowly but surely  .

[Rob]

Next job was the tailgate. The original was so badly corroded that I pretty much folded it up & put it in the bin. The replacement was almost factory fresh by comparison & just needed attention to 4 small areas as shown in these pics.

[Rob]

A bit more welding.

[Rob]

All cleaned up, painted & looking much better  .

[frankxhv773t]

you don't show the patches seam welded. Do you just spot weld then fill and paint or is seam welding taken as read?

[Rob]

All the structural areas have been seam welded but repairs to body panels are spot welded which keeps the distortion to a minimum.

[frankxhv773t]

Thanks. That's useful to know.

[Rob]

I went to the LMC AGM today as it's been about 6 or 7 years since the last time I attended & had a most enjoyable afternoon  . Had a good chat with Rich Carr then had a good look round at all the Lancias with Ben. Weather was hot & sunny which always helps  . Got chatting to a fellow Delta fan Andy who has a HF turbo, Prisma & 1.3 LX (lucky fella!). Also had a little catch up with Brian Hinton & his 3 dogs. I was impressed with the quality of the cars on show but it did feel like the quantity was down since I last attended. It was great to see 2 stratos' though with one being a works safari & the other an exellent replica. My favourite Lancia of the day was a cracking Delta HF 4wd  . You don't see these models very often & this one was in amazing condition. The owner had owned it from new then sold it after 3 years, he regretted selling so much that his wife bought it (when she saw it for sale in a local garage) & gave to him as a present on his birthday! What a wife!

[Rob]

Here's a repair that I've done on the rear drivers side door a little while ago. It doesn't look to bad but still took quite a bit of time to make the repair inner & outer sections. Once I was happy with the shape it was time to get the MIG welder out.  

[Rob]

And a bit of filler & paint to finish.