Ground-up restoration - any advice?

[StuC]

Hi all

 

I've recently acquired a '96 Supersport (1600Kseries), and I'm going to drive it for a few months (whilst the Summer holds out, at least).

 

However, after that, it's going to given a major dose of tidying-up. The chassis is a bit rusty in parts, but there seems to be very little seriously wrong with it... it's just a bit "well used".

 

As far as I can tell, it's completely unmodified since it was originally built.

 

I've worked on cars & built kit cars in the past, so no great worries about taking it apart & putting it back together.

 

However, what I don't have, as far as Caterhams are concerned, is "the knowledge"... so I was hoping to get a few pointers in the right direction.

 

I don't have any docs with the car except the owner's manual (and the usual legal registration docs, of course!).

 

Can anyone recommend some good resources for info about planning / undertaking a restoration?

 

Is there a workshop manual / build manual / parts list available?

 

Any advice about OEM parts I might want to change/upgrade/modify during the re-build?

 

(the engine is staying as it is for now... that's a project for the future!)

 

Does anyone have a recommendation for the best people to see if I need specialist help with the chassis (grit blast, paint spray, corrosion treatments, etc.)?

 

Any other things I need to think about?

 

Sorry for such a long list of "numpty" questions... any advice gratefully received!

 

ATB

Stu

[Englishmaninwales]

Excellent first car. Loads of info here on Tech forum, search and ask. Arch motors for chassis/repanelling and restoration. TSK for paint. DVA power for K series engine. Road and Race for gearbox, diff and LSD. Freestyle Motorsport for suspension.

[peterg]

You could do a lot worse than read Angus's great rebuild thread here blime it was over 4 years ago now... how time flies

 

 

[StuC]

Hi chaps

 

Thanks for the advice... and what a magnificent vid & photos.

The car's a beaut as well... hope she's still running as good as she looks!

If I can do half as well as that, I'll be pleased as punch.

 

See you

Stu

 

p.s. I'm sticking with the clamshells too... my wife says she likes the way it looks.

[dalongbloke]

Hello Stu! Having a 96 car as well (albeit xflow). one needs to watch out for the less than perfect powder coating.. a huge problem in the mid nineties.

 

Last winter I wire brushed it all off and repainted with smooth hammerite. You'll be amazed at the condition of the A frame! Many others swear by POR 15 (from Frosts), though I am prepared to touch up annually.

 

Good luck with the resto.. and have fun! You will soon be answering tech questions!

 

Check out Hal... http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/dalongbloke

[Mick Day]

Build manual for a K series here. Might be for a later car but it's 90% there for your car.

 

Spend some time with your new found buddy Google & you'll find there's a lot of info out there & of course help on here.

 

I've had my car from new in 1994 & did a full rebuild in 2005/6. Took me 4 days to take it apart single-handed. Many months to reassemble. It does depend on what you want to do/upgrade.

 

The best bit of advice I can give is take your time & work out which supplier is going to do what. Keep a spreadsheet of what you've ordered, where parts have gone etc as it's easy to forget.

 

Start early as motorsport suppliers can be notoriously tardy when it comes to delivery dates, especially in the winter/spring when they service race teams before private customers.

[Mick Day]

Oh forgot to say the knowledge will be easy for someone with mechanical aptitude. These cars are just fancy Meccano kits with a few agricultural accessories. Nothing fancy tool wise either but watch out for the mix of metric/imperial fasteners.

[irrotational]

having wire-brushed the rear of the car and por15'd, I'd heartily recommend a dremmel or some such tool - i did it by hand and the curves/tubes make it fiddly work...

 

gloves and goggles etc a must - apparently por15 doesnt ever come off!

 

---

my mind is blank....

[jonboylaw]

Get a good set of Axle stands and preferably some metal chassis stands to put the chassis on when you start your rebuild. A can of good penetrating oil is essential and lots of white spirit for degreasing. Lots of lint free cloths and paper towels, comfy knee pads, good safety goggles and face mask. Try and get a load of Nitrile gloves and quality hand cleaner and moisturiser. Coppaslip and grease, good set of drill bits, quality rivet gun, proper sockets both Metric and Imperial, same with allen keys.

 

Enjoy yourself and take your time, lots of advice in the archives and a shout in tech talk usually gets some nuggets of information.

 

 

 

Jonathan

=========================

My Flickr Gallery

 

92 Supersprint, Ford LSD LA, RK AX Crossflow. Stealth model (Matt Black and Ali), rebuild completed.

 

[Shaun_E]

Take lots of photos of where stuff is mounted, where pipes and cables are routed, etc. - I took a lot but still managed to miss some stuff which made reassembly harder than it might have been. Label everything you take off the car - down to the last nut and bolt. Bag stuff up. Label wiring connections.

I used the build manual linked to above and it was 95% there for my 1997 car.

On reassembly, if it doesn't need threadlock then use coppaslip!

 

Once you are down to a bare chassis then take it to Arch for them to strip, replace any really rusty bits, zinc phosphate prime and then powder coat. They will repanel it for you too - it's not worth reusing the old panels. Get them to powder coat all the suspension bits while you are at it - I didn't and regret it. They can replace all the bushes for you too - again I wish I had done this.

I had all my panels powder coated on the inside - this is personal preference but makes it easier to keep clean and should reduce the likelyhood of corrosion where panel meets chassis tube.

Clean everything that you take off - I didn't and it made reassembly a messier job and it wasn't nice having to bolt dirty/rusty bits back onto a shiny chassis.

 

Things to replace:

Clutch release bearing - use the Burton one described in low flying a couple of months back. Possibly replace the clutch if you don't intend taking the engine out again for a while.

Front lower damper mount bolts - and put plenty of coppaslip on them.

Brake hoses - convert the rears to flexible hoses while you are at it (I wish I had!)

Get the propshaft serviced and balanced (I can recommend Propshaft Services in Bradford).

Scuttle fixing channels - they will be rusted to pieces anyway but get the ones with the captive nuts for the windscreen - makes windscreen removal and refitting a doddle.

 

Once you get the chassis back from Arch then use Dinitrol (or Waxoyl) between the inner and outer panels, especially the gaps between the footwells and the side skins. They will leave some of the rivets out to help with this if you ask them.

 

If I think of anything else I'll post it up.

 

Yellow SL #32 - member of Drowned Rat Racing

 

Edited by - Shaun_E on 19 Aug 2010 08:46:31

[Fishy Dave]

Hi Mick,

 

Thanks for the link to the build manual

 

David Smitheram, Wiltshire (South) Joint AR, 07718 368173.

Used to be a 1400, now 1600 supersport race car

[Mick Day]

You're welcome Dave. I downloaded that from Caterham's site many moons ago but it's been deleted & updated with the new models now.

 

It's good to know that the Yanks are good for something!

[StuC]

Hi everyone

 

I just can't thank you enough for the pointers, advice, build manuals, etc.

Superb!

I'm going to enjoy what remains of the summer and drive it around for a couple of months and then it's garage-bound !

As you say, the powder coating is shot underneath... and the trouble with duff powder coat is that, once it's got holes in, I reckon it accelerates the rusting process, by sucking in the moisture & never letting the metal dry out at all. Fortunately, it seems that there is nothing too structurally serious (famous last words?), but I've given it a cursory scrape and squirt of waxoyl just to get it through the next few months (more for peace of mind than anything else).

I'm going to spend the next few weeks accumulating all the necessary bits, consumables, etc., so if anyone thinks of any more good pointers, let me know... I'll have a look through the archives too.

I think I'll put all the info into a single document (with appropriate name-checks included of course!), and then stick it on the forum (or get someone more computer savvy than me to put it on the web somewhere useful).

 

The only thing I can offer in return is that, if you are looking for fasteners of any sort whatsoever, I can't speak highly enough of APEX on Slough Trading Estate (probably much too far away for some people... sorry if that's the case).

They can get anything you are ever likely to need (nuts, bolts, clips, high tensile, stainless, alloy, etc), and they will get the fasteners zinc-dipped if you need (good for suspension bolts, etc.).

 

Anyway... thanks once again for all your help !

 

All the best

Stu

 

Edited by - StuC on 19 Aug 2010 18:46:08

[Shaun_E]

I seem to spend half my time at Apex - they carry pretty much every bolt used on a 7.

 

Yellow SL #32 - member of Drowned Rat Racing