Hello...Minis and MiGs..!

[Alan_H]

Hi all

I have just registered as I am in throes of buying a MiG welder to change a wing and a sill on the 1978 Mini 1000 that has been sat waiting on my drive for two years. My good lady is now demanding that it is back on the road soon as my eldest daughter is going to buy her Swift off of her when she passes her test.

Umm I also have an '85 Mini City E that is awaiting a Metro Turbo conversion. Now that one has been sat on the drive for a lot longer (!) That is going to need some serious welding attention.

Funnily enough my late Dad was a welder by trade for all of his working life. He used to weld impellers on fluid couplings that went on large ships. However, that was arc but he did teach me how to do that before he passed on. RIP.

I'm looking forward to learning, I have read all of the good advice on this excellent site and I hope to make some good friends through this.

Good to meet you all and take care

Alan

 

[irondarren]

welcome aboard , Have you decided what Mig welder your going to buy yet?, there are plenty of threads here, many with the pro's and cons of various machine.

 

[Alan_H]

Hello Darren!

I'm looking at a Clarke 135TE as I have a budget of £200 or so. I've posted in one of the other threads about it.

Incidentally for those of you who are that way inclined, the only rust on the 1978 Mini is one wing and a bit on one of the inner sills. Two reasons...

1) It was Ziebarted when new - wow what a preservative! All pre 1990 cars should have had it done.

2) Yes, it is a "Liddleoldlady" special. It's done 37,000 genuine miles in 30 years. When she died about five years ago it went to her niece who didn't know what to do with it, so she sold it to me for £100.

 

[irondarren]

Alan i answered about the clarke 135TE on the other thread, and £100 for a 1978 mini with 37,000 miles, your one lucky guy to find that. Old mini's are starting to become very collectable now, and hence worth good money in restored condition. Once you get it under way would be nice to see pics of how you get along

 

[piman]

Hello Alan,

good luck with the welding.

You certainly have a bargain but do watch out that the engine is OK. 'Little old ladies' (or men) are very hard on engines as they do not get driven enough and unless very frequent oil changes are done (unlikely) the engine suffers from acid caused by water being absorbed by the oil. Really not a problem as they are cheap to repair so you have a good buy.
I am not being negative but just highlighting the myth that very low mileage cars are a 'better' buy, at least mechanically.

Alec

 

[Alan_H]

Hi piman

That's a good point! I gave it a good service when I got it, flushed the engine out etc. But that probably explains the leaks from underneath the engine...oil seals eaten away by acid.

However, I am just replacing most of the brakes (just to be on the safe side) - master cylinder, wheel cylinders, flexible hoses, drums and shoes plus consumables like a new battery and I'm up to about £350 already. So maybe cheap to buy but...

Alan

 

[piman]

Hello Alan,

it should still work out to be a cheap car and suffer little or no depreciation. What you pay for it overall is probably what you would lose in the first year of even an 'econbox' bought new. And the bonus of being rather rare on the roads now.

Alec

 

[shiftyseamus]

Hi piman

That's a good point! I gave it a good service when I got it, flushed the engine out etc. But that probably explains the leaks from underneath the engine...oil seals eaten away by acid.



Alan

I've owned probably 100 minis over the years and they ALL leak oil!!! No matter if they've done 10k or 100k!!!!

Thats why the front subframes never rust!!!

Usually they leak from the gear selector, mini spares do a kit for this.

Seamus

 

[zardoz]

You say you have 200 for a clarke 135? A similar welder, very well thought of here is the clarke 160T for cheaper than that delivered to your door, from Weldequip. I do wonder what the difference between those 2 ranges is though. the 135 comes from the 'hobby range' the 1656 from the 'automotive/industrial range'

 

[Alan_H]

Usually they leak from the gear selector, mini spares do a kit for this.

Seamus

Thanks Seamus.

I am going to steam clean it under the bonnet so I can start to find out where the damn stuff is leaking from..!

Good tip on the gear selector, ta.

 

[Alan_H]

You say you have 200 for a clarke 135? A similar welder, very well thought of here is the clarke 160T for cheaper than that delivered to your door, from Weldequip. I do wonder what the difference between those 2 ranges is though. the 135 comes from the 'hobby range' the 1656 from the 'automotive/industrial range'

Excellent. I think weldequip will be getting a PM soon. Although my £200 might have to include an auto helmet from what I have read.

 

[irondarren]

Auto helmet is certainly a good idea for begginers, and for us pro's for that matter. just makes life easy

 

[shiftyseamus]

Hi, regarding mini oil leaks, its best not to think of them as leaks!!

Just think of the mini having a constant loss lubrication system!!!

Much easier than trying to fix the dammed things!!

Seamus

 

[Alan_H]

I'm thinking of fabricating (and practising my welding on) a roof mounted oil tank for this project. I think some sort of regulated drip feed into the filler cap should do the trick.

Can anybody recommend a suitable tank size/capacity and what sort of diameter pipe I will need to get an acceptable feed rate?