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Questions and advice on '62 TR4 total rebuild


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Hi All,

 

I am currently in the early stages of a total rebuild of a 1962 Triumph TR4.

 

The car is in a deteriorated state, with all panels presently off the car, but tub still on rolling chassis. Engine, gearbox, chassis etc have matching numbers and all wings, bonnet and boot were replaced with original stanparts.

 

Would greatly appreciate if anyone could recommend any outlets for any of the following? Am based in Sussex but am open to suggestions nationwide

 

 

- spares

- chassis treatment

- soda blasting and priming

- chrome plating

- tub welding, floor panels, a/b posts et cetera

 

 

Any help would be much appreciated, pictures to follow!

 

Many thanks and best regards,

John

 

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John

 

Welcome to the Club and Forum - sounds like you have an exciting project so we will all look forward to seeing your photos!

 

I can help point you towards many suppliers etc and advise on how I have approached my own TR4 & 4A restorations - have sent you a PM ( personal message - see very top right hand side of page where there is an envelope and if you have a message, there will be a small red tag by it)

 

I travel down to Sussex quite regularly so more than happy to pop by on my travels if it suits - where exactly are you?

 

Cheers

 

Rich

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John

Welcome to the Forum. As a 12 year nut and bolt restoration of 1965 TR4 , with every panel dented or rusted , I hope I can past on a few do's and don'ts.

 

Be very clear about the " end game ". What are you expecting the finished article to do for you ?

Concourse car , everything as original. Eat your breakfast off it.

Every day car ( pure leisure enjoyment, TR Register Club Events , etc ) ... presentable looks with modern updates/ upgrades.

Rallying or Racing with all the compulsory upgrades / extra safety bits and pieces.

Everyday warrior.....leave the condition " as is " , warts and all , just so long as it is road legal.

 

Time scale .. are you wanting it finished asap or is the timescale longer / flexible ?

 

Who is going to do the bulk of the work.... you or a Triumph specialist.

You ... yes ? have you sufficient skills , welding , fabrication , panel beating , paint spraying , electrical wiring work, interior trimming with the relevant premises and equipment.

( I did as much as I could , some bits need expensive kit that is prohibitive cost wise for one off jobs . Chassis alignment was checked on a jig Rees Bros. Engine unleaded machine work TRGB. Gearbox and back axle overhauled by Hardy Engineering , Leatherhead. 2K paint by OSC Chessington. ). The rest was all down to me.

 

Take as much advice as you can from other Club members ( worth joining the Register and joining your local Group ) pick their brains.

If you are clear about your final objective / outcome , you won't waste money changing your mind and the "order of work " will become apparent.

 

Money... it will cost you , how much depends on your involvement , DIY or the professionals , new parts for everything or used parts refurbished by you.

 

Care... bear in mind that once the metalwork is stripped back to bare metal rusting will start forming very quickly thereafter , so get some protection on it

ponto. Once your car is stripped of panels , the storage space is several times more than a complete car. Photo everything , so you know how it goes back.

Bag and label (permanent ink ) nuts, bolts, fixings together in units in a suitable storage container , protecting delicate items. Electrical stuff , record what colour wire was fixed to which terminal. Note ... to replace later ... any broken items as you take them off. * Were you going to "update it " anyway with a better item ?

 

As I say to any would be restorer , you'll have a whole load of fun and learn an awful lot along the way. There is a lot of help / guidance here on the Forum you just have to ask.

 

My motto re decisions ... it's your car and your decision.. the only one who has to be happy with the outcome , is you. Plan well.

I've sent a private message.

Bob

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Hi John

 

Firstly I would say re-use outer wings etc where possible even if repairs needed.

 

Secondly, with regard to chromium plating, I would suggest London & Brighton Plating which is based in Portslade. They have done work for me and very satisfied. When/ if you visit you are 5 minutes or so away from Namrick in Portland Road, Hove where you can find every nut, bolt, washer and screw your will need for your rebuild. They also make up UNF/ UNC mixed packs which you will find handy.

 

Good luck with your mission !

 

Kevin

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Many thanks to all who have posted so quickly, I have messaged those who have contacted me directly.

 

As per Bob's message I am planning to fully restore the car to its original state, hoping to complete as much of the restoration as possible myself. Completion time is less of an issue, perhaps 2-3 years approx. for the full project.

 

Thank you Kevin for the plating recommendation, I shall be making inquiries.

 

Will be in touch with more definitive questions as I proceed, as mentioned pics of the car - past and present - to follow..

 

Best regards,

John

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John,

 

You will probably need a copy of "Original TR4/4A" by Bill Piggott.

It's a great reference book as well as an inspiration, as long as

you are not put off by so many photos of concours cars.

 

It's out of print (unless it has been re-printed) but they do come up

on eBay now and again.

 

AlanR

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Hi John,

As you will already have gathered there is a lot of good advice to be had from members of the forum. For what it's worth I will throw in a few thoughts based on my experience over the past four years:

 

1. Take loads of photos. They will be a huge help when it comes to putting it all back together. 2 or 3 years after you've stripped it down it will be really difficult to remember where that pipe or that cable went.

2. Get a Moss Parts catalogue. The drawings are really useful and its full of lots of good advice.

3. Bondaprimer is very good for protecting bare metal but epoxy primer is even better. I use Lechlar epoxy and it's superb.

4. I think it was someone on this forum who said if you are having a bad day with the car walk away and try again tomorrow. Excellent advice which I have followed on a couple of occasions; its amazing that if you come back to the problem the next day it is suddenly no longer a problem.

5. There are some excellent websites about TR4/4a restorations. My own two favourite ones are:

http://www.davestr4a.com

 

http://tr4a.weebly.com/stripdown-reference-pictures.html

 

These are fantastic sources of information and the people that go to all the trouble of creating them are real heroes.

6. Don't feel under time pressure. Whenever I'm asked when will it be finished I always say it will be finsihed when its finished. I am enjoying the whole restoration process and it's given me lots of enjoyment over the past 4 years.

 

Good Luck and enjoy.

 

Barry

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Hi John,

Welcome!

I rebuilt my car over 15 years ago - Fabulous fun :)

 

Photograph EVERYTHING before you dismantle it. Label parts, bag/ store them. Even if they're not going back on the car, they're a good reference.

 

There are good sources of info out there and these are handbuilt cars: How much you want to do depends on skills and how much you want to learn!

 

Enjoy!!!

 

Ade

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All above is true, I would just add: Be meticulous in labeling your photos of parts in situ and out of car and write the labels as if to a stranger -which you will be in a few years from now! On my first rebuild I did not and and found that I could not understand what I had written on some parts. I recognised my own handwriting but that was all. Also consider not throwing anything away - even if you intend to replace it - until you have the replacement in hand as it can be a puzzle trying to remember what it was you haven't got.Then of course you must label the replacement part, as there are likely to be delays between sourcing it and using it. Pace yourself with projects and clear stage objectives. That gives you victories as each is completed. Keep in mind that you are unlikely to be the first person to have repaired/replaced items and some PO's may not have been correct or done bodges which can throw you off or disappoint. Looking at other cars at shows or meets can be very helpful. Others have been there and will help enormously with a chat and advise. Finally be prepared to find you will need time away from the car, enthusiasm will die occasionally, but it does come back!

Good luck

Mike

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I second Mike’s comment about not throwing old parts away until the replacement is in hand. I would go further and say to keep the old part until the replacement has been successfully installed. Many of us have found that some replacement parts are not quite up to the standards of the old parts. You may be deep in reassembly years from now, and can’t figure out why that new part isn’t going in. The old part will help identify any tolerance/fitment issues.

 

Good luck,

 

Jim

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Hi John,

you have received some very good advice that will give you enough work to last a lifetime.

 

In those little moments when you are taking a breather have a read of my thread.

 

It is not serious (I have been told) and may keep you at it when you feel at your lowest https://www.tr-register.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/29641-tr4-rebuild/

 

Roger

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Just to add to all of the above and apologies if this has already been suggested and i've missed it buy a 100 or so zip lock bags from ebay quite cheap and you can then label the the bits as they come off then 'file' them in a box and then list on the front of the box what the contents are, it all seems a bit of a pain until you are trying to locate a part 12 months after having removed it .

 

On re assembly I found a white board useful to list 'to do' and 'to buy' items as well. and when you receive said 'bought items' you need to treat them like the 'removed' item prevoiusly mentioned otherwise they will get lost in the garage and you will end up buying them twice ....3 times only to find them 2 weeks after you first looked for them and have now re ordered, ........I've no idea how that occurred to me :ph34r:

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