Traveller Reborn
Our own MkI traveller is given a full rebuild with the aim to complete
it for the Mini in the Park 2002 where it will be displayed along with
other minis in the Border City Mini Club stand.
Having been stored for some time, the first job was to gut it and get
it shotblasted to remove the main rust. It was then spitted allowing
us to work on it more easily. We cut away the areas needing most
attention (the floor, inner wings), which included fixing some rather
poorly done repair work - which seems to be a common problem. We found
some floor panels actually bolted together, with Dulux paint added to
hide some of the evidence.
Once the shell had been de-rusted, it was time to start the rebuild.
The floor has been almost completely replaced, and new inner wings
added. Getting hold of some parts is currently almost
impossible, with no signs yet that production will resume in the near
future.
New wings were added and other panel repairs were peformed to
assemble the shell for undercoating and respray. Excitement is
growing as the Traveller starts to take shape...Anne can hardly
contain herself!
Adding the undercoat to the completed floor shows Chippy's
skills in classic car restoration. The body has now gone for respray
and will be returned in ten days time for the reassembly. In the meantime
the work starts on renovating the subframes and engine, and cleaning up
the interior.
The next installment will show the reassembly of the Traveller
to its glory. Watch out for it at Mini in the Park, where it will
be on display along with a number of our other friend's and
customer's vehicles that we have had the honour to restore.
