keep calm and carry on

If you like British Classic Cars it is helpful to adopt this famous British mantra. The question on how to proceed with the MGB bodyshell still needs an answer. Even though a part of me wants to get Mildred finished up asap – I need to remind myself that I am not in a rush and just stay calm. In the next couple days, a professional will examine the car to help determine if and how the shell can be saved.

After a forum post, I also got two offers for replacement shells now. One is not too expensive and as far as I understood is also from a GHD5 from 1973. The rust on the pictures however looks even worse than on mine. It still might be the better option if it has less bad repairs. But it is quite a drive to check it out – something I might do next week.

The other shell is from a late 1979 LHD model – stripped down with the wire wheel in Eastern Europe. I haven’t seen it and still wait for pictures after the phone call. The caller said it only needs “minor welding” (hmm – the definition of minor can have quite a bit of range). Downsides: It is a quite expensive (incl delivery) rubber bumper model currently located in Eastern Europe. Frankly, this one is too sketchy for my taste.

I decided that regardless on if I will restore the shell – all other items should be brought into a good condition as well. If all goes according to plan – it will speed up assembly time later on. Alternatively, I could use a few items for my other MGB GT if needed. But as Maggie just passed the TÜV without any issues today – this won’t be anytime soon. If all else fails I might sell some parts – but this is just the last resort.

So: time to carry on with different tasks. Cleaning up both garages was top on my list. On Monday evening I pulled everything out in the yard and tried to get as much dust and dirty out as possible. Stripping a shell is a messy business. I completely understand why most people prefer to have the shell blasted (whether it is dry ice, sand or other media). But swinging the broom is a great workout 🙂

Using a bit of old wood, I had at hand I quickly wacked together some shelves that hang from the ceiling above the garage doors. Not pretty but it does the job. The exhaust system, dashboards, interior, chrome trim, windows and Britax sunroof were all wrapped up and found a good place up there. The only item I don’t have a good storage location for is the gearbox that needs to be refurbished. Clearly – this is a sign, as I just booked the Eurotunnel tickets to visit our son next month. Moss Europe in London is just 15 min away from our Hotel – what a coincidence….:)

This evening I used the last daylight to clean up the tailgate outside. Before I took the glass out, I inspected it closely and thought that it is quite good. Even after removing the glass and rubber – I had the impression that there is only a small rusty part down in the middle where the rubber ends meet. But the clear strip disc and wire-wheel revealed how difficult it is to really judge the substance of an old car. A few holes along the lower window edge and a fist-sized dent covered up by filler showed up. Later one will be a bit more tricky to repair without taking the tailgate apart. A new heritage tailgate is between 700GBP and 900€ (depending on where you buy it). This small repair will give me a good indication on how much welding will cost. If I get repair for less than half of the price of new tailgate incl 2K proxy primer (my guesstimate) – then I am more than happy with it.

Same applies to the front wings. The right wings look in quite good condition. It just needs a simple small repair on the lower rear edge The left wing has been welded before. I will get a rear lower repair panel for this. Maybe for both sides. (costs ~75GBP per side). The replacement is straight-forward and I can do the prep-work. The doors need new skins – and I already got new skins with the car. It was too late to use the flappy disc on the grinder around the edges tonight. Plan is to strip the entire inner door part and prime it before the new skins come on. Sandblasting might be too harsh for this – I think I am going to contact RTEC for this again…