Pootle and new door skins

[Pootle's Owner]

Hello again.
Moving away from rear spring and engine issues I need to focus a bit of attention on rust/rot/bodywork....
First bit to address is bottom of passenger door which is rotting out. I assume this is caused by a blocked drain hole since there is no rust on drivers door....
I think Martin has some new door pressings available?
No idea how to progress this but suspect it's not really a DIY job? - certainly my welding skills don't perhaps suit thin bodywork sticking....

 

[Panky]

This is the job I'll be doing shortly on Harvey. I'm just using Martin's door bottom repair panels, not the full skins, along with inner and outer door steps. It's very DIY doable if you take your time, I did Bonnies a few years back.

 

[Pootle's Owner]

Well, flushed with success on the rear springs and replacement PRV boosting oil pressure it was time to investigate the passenger door rot.... As can be seen above, the rot isn't that extensive though it is rather more than surface rust. Clearly water gets into the door panel, down to the bottom of the cavity and just rots it out. I took the angle grinder to it with a stiff wire brush to expose the holes and found that the worst damage is to the outer skin and the inner skin isn't that bad. As I don't have a replacement panel yet I decided on a temporary 'period' fix and bodged it with Isopon for now! It really is a bodge but once it was all primed and painted with BRGreen Tractol it really looks OK for now and it does protect things a little until I can get a panel from Martin and do a bit of MIG practicing! I'm not sure what the process will be for replacing the rotted out bit of the panel but assume I can cut out the rot, trim one of Martins panels to fill the gap and slowly weld in the patch?


Whilst on the bodywork problems, I really need to know what Pootle is painted with. She was restored in 2000 I think and had a full respray. Does anyone know what type of paint might have been used and is it possible to identify the type so that when I start painting bits it won't all wrinkle? If I go to a paintshop, will they be able to identify the paint type? Most of the bodywork is free of rust but she really does need quite a bit of fixing up around the real panelwork and the GRP roof is all crazing so that will need some glassfibre work.... and so the work goes on...

 

[Panky]

It's probably cellulose if it was painted that long ago. If it's 2 pack then it won't react whatever you paint on top but check with the paint shop first. I've had trouble with the cheap grey primer off ebay which seems to react with celly top coat in places so won't be using it again.
Good to hear the replacement pressure relief valve worked.

 

[S0updragon]

At some point someone put insulation in my doors and they rotted out in the middle as well as the bottom