TR4a Boot lid-repair or replace?

[rvwp]

Hi Guys,

Just started working on my boot lid and found some dodgy brazed in lower section covered by about 1/4 inch + filler!!.

I could repair with a repro lower skin section but thinking maybe replace the boot lid?

So, I'm looking for a possible replacement boot lid, either 4 or 4a, with or without support frame, no previous similar repairs, as a preferred option to fitting a repro panel which may or may not fit and end up still needing filler. Obviously all 50 year old boot lids will need some  remedial work which is fine.

Appreciate it if any body can help then PM me and we can take it from there.

Regards

Rich

[RogerH]

Hi Rich,

             you will be lucky to find a very good lid with no rust and if you do you will then be very poor.

'If' the inner rib on your lid is still in reasonable condition then it is not too difficult to cut the rusty skin away and let in a new section.

The Moss repair section is expensive and comes with the rib - haven;t a clue about its quality etc.

if you do let in a new skin section try and make it as thin as possible (top to bottom height) as it is a curved section and large repair sections will need a lot more filler than thinner sections.

 

Roger

 

 

 

 

 

[Fireman049]

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Edited April 15, 2020 by Fireman049

[stuart]

Unless you can find a Californian/Arizona imported panel then theyre all going to be as bad as each other so repair what you have if possible, like Roger says try not to lose the curve.

Stuart.

[rvwp]

Thanks all for the advise. Will repair the original boot., that is what I expected to have to do anyway.  Rich 

[Fireman049]

Hi Rich ~

If you lived nearer to me I'd gladly do the repairs for you.

Tom.

[JPD]

Hi Rich,

I went through the same thought process when I restored my 4A. My original boot lid was sort of ok, but had bad rust on the lower lip. I bought an original Stanpart repair panel (from Walter Petchey) to replace the lower section. When it actually came to it though, the guy who did my respray advised me to get a replacement boot lid as there were rust spots elsewhere too. I couldn't find an original so I bought a new one from Bastuck in Germany. This fitted really well, but the downside is that it is a thinner gauge steel than original.

 

I do still have the unused Stanpart repair section which I was planning to sell - you can DM me if you're interested in going down that route.

 

Jeff 

[Motorsport Mickey]

Jeff,

Check out your PMs sent message 2 hours ago

Mick Richards

[rvwp]

OK, nothing received so far, will check later. Off to Greece in the morning so will not be able to respond until after the 25th Sept. thanks Rich

[AlanT]

I've rebuilt three of these using beautiful repair panels made by a fellow forumite.

The problem is that the repair area has very little curvature and what there is is mostly just in one direction.

This makes the metal somewhat unstable and liable to warp when welded.  Without the inner tube support the whole thing goes wobbly.

I had mine clamped between two layers of steel strip but still got some ripples.  Fortunately I could dolly these out OK.

You could easily make a mess of this and finish up like the ocean waves.

[stuart]

14 hours ago, AlanT said:

I've rebuilt three of these using beautiful repair panels made by a fellow forumite.

The problem is that the repair area has very little curvature and what there is is mostly just in one direction.

This makes the metal somewhat unstable and liable to warp when welded.  Without the inner tube support the whole thing goes wobbly.

I had mine clamped between two layers of steel strip but still got some ripples.  Fortunately I could dolly these out OK.

You could easily make a mess of this and finish up like the ocean waves.

Which is when you come across ones like this where they have tried to filler their way out of trouble!

Stuart.

 

Edited September 12, 2019 by stuart

[Chilliman]

...Nice!

Must of been a full can of easy 1 & a plaster's trowel for that load.....

[stuart]

4 hours ago, Chilliman said:

...Nice!

Must of been a full can of easy 1 & a plaster's trowel for that load.....

It was deep enough to trip over! The boot lid weighed about the same as a 6 boot lid!

Stuart.

[AlanT]

And this was only spot-welded.  I think the original pressing left a lot of stress in these. 

[Jack]

I have an new, original, unused Spanpart TR5 Bootlid, part no. 813650, still in brown primer, but the paper labels have gone.

There is no damage but has a few light areas of surface rust.

Any clue as to what price I could sell it for ?  

I tried to attach 3 photos but this page "paperclip" does not work.

Thanks for advice

Jack

Wensum TR Group

Edited November 27, 2019 by Jack
Added 3 photos

[stuart]

19 minutes ago, Jack said:

I have an new, original, unused Spanpart TR5 Bootlid, part no. 813650, still in brown primer, but the paper labels have gone.

There is no damage but has a few light areas of surface rust.

Any clue as to what price I could sell it for ?  

I tried to attach 3 photos but this page "paperclip" does not work.

Thanks for advice

Jack

Wensum TR Group

Funnily enough I was just discussing TR5 bootlids with Jeff Marks from Moss, when I rebuilt his 5 12 yrs ago his bootlid had been badly repaired and was essentially flat across the back and I managed to get an absolutely mint ex Californian boot lid from Walter Petchey and at the time I paid £325 for that. So draw your own conclusions from that. Moss current price for a repro is £860 or so.

Stuart.

[RogerH]

Hi Jack,

if you are out to make a profit then why not go a little over the top and see what happens.

£860 for a repro - then go for £1000 or even more.

Most lids can be repaired and look very good externally. If somebody is desperate for a concourse lid then bingo you have a sale.

 

A couple pf interesting things with your pics.

I see that the ends of the internal rib is square cut. On many samples that I have seen these have an extended quarter round end piece to support the corners of the lid.

There appears to be a a great deal pf surface rust on the internal rib. I would consider cleaning and re-primer.

 

Roger

[Chilliman]

certainly more than the price written on it....

[ianc]

David Ferry has been bringing TRs back from the USA - worth contacting him to see whether he has a reasonable secondhand lid.  You can find him on this Forum.

Ian Cornish

[Tom Fremont]

If " like new " is the objective, a couple of thou would be less than the cost of a metal finish repair.

I've got one repair with waves on my driver, and when it goes in for a repaint it will be corrected but I won't want to know the cost specific to it.

My concourse car has a rust/damage free lid which I snagged back in the last century. 

The discriminating viewer will always scrutinize the boot lid - maybe it's a gender thing! As it happens, my favourite body panel on the Michelotti TR is the rear valence .

 

Cheers,

Tom

[PaulAnderson]

With the depth of filler shown on those photos Stuart, would the boot lock actually offer much security?.  If I recall, it's security is based around two pins on the boot handle slotting into the skin of the door.  If that skin is soft filler then a slight pressure on opening the boot will force the lock to spin and the boot to open even when locked with the key.  Or am I wrong?

Paul

[stuart]

40 minutes ago, PaulAnderson said:

With the depth of filler shown on those photos Stuart, would the boot lock actually offer much security?.  If I recall, it's security is based around two pins on the boot handle slotting into the skin of the door.  If that skin is soft filler then a slight pressure on opening the boot will force the lock to spin and the boot to open even when locked with the key.  Or am I wrong?

Paul

It locked OK as the filler was of the rock hard type!

Stuart.

[John Morrison]

Brand new boot lid on classifieds and open to an offer.

John.