Continuing on the interior.

This week I proceeded to continue where things were left off last week.

I used the old crusty, smelly interior panels as a template to cut out new ones from Masonite for the trunk (boot). The left side came out nice if I can brag a bit here.

As did the right panel. And the trunk floor panel was also painted. This top side is primed only and the underside is black. We decided to err on historic colors and go with a medium gray for the carpet as the original fabric was gray. The panels will also get painted gray as the originals were.

The new rear seat backing panel was cut out using the original as a template. Afterward, the side shown here on the new one (bottom) was painted black.

As I was cleaning up the cellar where all the parts are stored, I came across the  original headliner. The fabric is dirty but in great shape.

But the padding is just plain nasty!! It will obviously have to be replaced.

I also broke down and bought a DieHard 50452 (formerly 30052) battery. It fills up the void there nicely. Next come the cables.

I also tried two methods to clean the seats. The one on the left was cleaned with straight Simple Green, and the right one was done with the Mr. Clean Magic Erasers. The right one is much better, although it took much more elbow grease!!

I will continue on this week as progress is good and steady now.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Working on the interior.

I could not procrastinate any longer. It was time to start gathering the interior parts together to work on them.

I trimmed the rear shelf panel down to size. There was no need to start from scratch as I first thought. Now it fits nicely.

I set the original rear seat backing in place. Part of it (on the right of the picture) was ruined when it was removed from the parts car. I will need to make a new one out of masonite.

The fabric was removed from the original trunk (boot) panel so I could use it as a template to make the new one. The fabric was quite disgusting!!

 

I used 3/8” BP/TS 4 ply plywood as the new floor. The whole thing will be primed but only the bottom side will be painted (black) since carpeting will be applied on top.

Then I will have to drill it to re-apply these little hole thingies after I clean them up.

I put the back seat together to inspect it. The bottom cushion is dirty, yet overall it is in great condition…

…but the back needs a lot of work.

I will be continuing on the interior work this week. It is different and a nice change from the mechanical stuff I have been doing.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Interior assessment.

I decided to take the plunge and order a carpet set instead of fiddling with scrap pieces to make my own. It is more economical for me to do so. In the meantime as I wait, I need to see what else needs to be done on the interior components.

The trunk (boot) floor is terrible and un-restorable. Therefore, I will be getting some 3/8” plywood and fabricating a new one. I would like to finish it with black or red or gray carpet. We will make our decision later.

The rear shelf panel is just as bad, if not worse!! The fiberboard is no longer in one piece as it is crumbling. And the vinyl…well, it is beyond description!

I will either be getting some masonite to make a new one, or using this one and trimming it to size if it fits. I will be putting vinyl on it and painting it gray.

I also inspected the inner rear molded fiberboard panels. As the picture shows, they are rotten also! These are no longer made and finding replacements is impossible. I have to figure something out.

The front seats are not perfect but they are reusable. YEAY, some good news!!

The frame rails just need a quick sanding and painting. The adjuster works and here comes the obvious...but it needs lubricating.

I am going to try cleaning the grundgy vinyl with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to see if it does any good.

The dashboard is still not completed but I decided to move on for right now. Stalling only makes me bored and ornery!

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Accessory instrument panel (fascia) completed!!

Since school is out, I went to my friend Daryl’s house. He is the Tech Ed teacher at the high school workshop that I visit. He has a sheer and breaker at home and let me use them to complete the metal work.

I could not wait to come home to clean them then primer and paint them. After drying, I applied the walnut grained contact paper as I did with the dashboard.

I tried to pick a nicely grained section.

Then the holes were cut out and the paper was trimmed.

And at last, the gauges were installed. It only took a month…but it is finally done!! During final installation, I will do the finish trimming to it. This is what I had in mind all along!

I am going to retrieve my lower dash crash pad in the next couple weeks (long story). Once it is installed, I can get over this dashboard hurdle and move along. Now onto pondering the exhaust system dilemma and ordering a carpet set.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Back on the car yet again!

I can finally settle down and spend some quality time with Old Biddy now that a couple of my big summer projects have been finished.

The 1967 Tee Nee trailer is all refurbished…

…and for sale.

My small stone wall is complete. No more hauling rocks in 90 degree heat!

And, if you can believe it, I actually got the holes drilled in the sheet metal for the four gauge instrument panel. I had to do a little filing to dress it up.

But, all the gauges fit nicely and looked good during mock up.

I hope to finish the panel by the end of this week and then figure out where I am going to get the exhaust pipes bent. I also need to find out where to get the two mufflers.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Summer projects

I must admit that during these past couple of weeks I have been sidetracked onto another project. But, it ties in with working on Old Biddy as I will try to illustrate and explain.

Here is my 1967 Model 700 Tee Nee trailer, or what is left of it. I have been wanting to restore it for the past three years. I finally started to work on sanding, priming and painting the frame…

…so I can put these parts back on it. I will have it completed within the next two weeks so I could sell it and get it out of my yard. That money will go towards my exhaust system and carpet set.

. As I was outside grinding on the frame to de-rust it, I unearthed my exhaust system.

I have been looking all over for it and gave up hope that I scrapped it a couple years ago.

It “ain’t pretty”, but it is good enough to be used as a template.

I did get a chance to go to the high school shop last week and cut a couple more pieces of sheet metal for the secondary instrument panel. I also bought a 3 7/8" hole saw to cut out the tachometer hole. I am hoping to finally have this completed by the end of next week.

I also found my scrap of carpet, a nice Tartan Red piece (that is shaped like Indiana), which I will use as an example for when I order the new set after I sell the trailer.

And my vacuum gauge finally arrived from England last week!

It will be a busy summer for sure!! Until then "Happy Trail(er)s"!

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Finally back working on the car!!

Between a busy end of the school year and a quick weekend getaway, the car has taken a back seat on the priority list.

I needed to fabricate an instrument panel to accept the tachometer, oil pressure gauge, voltmeter, and vacuum gauge. A template was designed out of file stock. The smaller one is for an altimeter which will be installed in my 1976 MG Midget, "Joe".

The templates were brought to my friend’s high school workshop where I cut out the sheet metal…

…and then bent them. They came out nice If I do say so myself!

So I brought them up to John’s house where we could cut out the proper sized holes and fit the instruments in place.We set everything up and drilled away.

But it got ugly really quick. I did not take pictures of the ruined (and now scrap) panel. I can say it was a learning experience for both of us!!

So instead I decided to come home and install the fuel filler tube.

At least something was completed correctly this week!

This coming week I will have to go back to the high school workshop and make a couple more panels. The good thing is that I use metal from the scrap pile, so it is a type of recycling. School ends for me this week so I should be able to have much more progress and more frequent updates in a couple weeks.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy