cameras ready prepare to flash

[s14brent]

trying to keep this to a minimum since it's not e30 related, but i think i'm confident enough to do the rust repair on the e30 now. (which in hindsight is laughable compared to the job i just had to do on the van). found some cancer under the giant front rubber mat thing. It wasn't so bad until i wire wheeled the paint away. the floor was 18ga but I replaced it with 16ga since that's all that they had at hardware stores near me. I wasn't going to drive across town to spend more money on a large sheet of 18. underside has 3m seam sealer over the welded area and 3 coats of 3m undercoat spray. Patch size was 23"x7". I might have a smaller area to do on the van near the driver seat rear mounting bolt, but I'll do that when I figure out if i'm putting in swivel bases or not LOL. but the e30 is going to be a breeze in comparison.

[jeenyus]

nice man! this looks fantastic!

[s14brent]

quarantine and boredom forced me to work on the e30!!

this has been bugging me for quite a while now. been putting it off for a year now.


not exactly the square patch I thought it'd be


CAD cutout


not bad! used 16ga sheet since I have quite a bit leftover from the piece I bought for the van.


this is where I left off. I need to pick up some seam sealer. (hoping local autozone has some or i'm going to have to order from amazon-not prime). Hoping I can wrap this up at the end of the week.


I used the 110v welder i was given for free. I wanted to try out .024 wire, I'm not sure if I'm a fan. I feel like .030 just works fine even on sheet.

Going through a box of parts I found an e39 ps line I accidentally purchased twice. I cut it up to use the 90 degree bend.



I also added 5mm spacers up front. turns out i was smacking my sway bar with my tire at full lock. I also took out the TMS rack limiters and threw on the SLR speed ones I had laying around. I wanted to just see if there was any difference. I have about 1/4" less so if anything it's nominal

[mike.bmw]

Nice rust repair (on both the van and the E30)!

[moatilliatta]

Great CAD work!

I like using poster board.

[ForcedFirebird]

Great CAD work!

I like using poster board.

Beer cartons work great. Just hard to cut a straight line after drinking them for the box. ;)

[ForcedFirebird]

I used the 110v welder i was given for free. I wanted to try out .024 wire, I'm not sure if I'm a fan. I feel like .030 just works fine even on sheet.

I use .030" on everything. In fact the MIG setting rarely even change much beyond one notch in the heat and two on wire speed. .020" is a pain as you seen. The heat needs to be really low and slow wire, even then it tends to bubble easily. I find using too much heat/wire and using technique to avoid burning through has better results than being too cold.

[zwill23]

I use .030" on everything. In fact the MIG setting rarely even change much beyond one notch in the heat and two on wire speed. .020" is a pain as you seen. The heat needs to be really low and slow wire, even then it tends to bubble easily. I find using too much heat/wire and using technique to avoid burning through has better results than being too cold.

Are you guys using gas or fluxcore? I'm getting ready to purchase a welder and have come to terms that using gas makes life much easier.

[ForcedFirebird]

Are you guys using gas or fluxcore? I'm getting ready to purchase a welder and have come to terms that using gas makes life much easier.

Usually gas, but have a 110v flux core for remote jobs. I have run miles of wire through my Hobart Handler 190 that I got about 10yr ago. Great machine for the price and Miller parts interchange (only had to replace the trigger connection since ownership). Most MIG's are dual purpose and can do both gas and shielded wire, just have to reverse polarity.

[zwill23]

Usually gas, but have a 110v flux core for remote jobs. I have run miles of wire through my Hobart Handler 190 that I got about 10yr ago. Great machine for the price and Miller parts interchange (only had to replace the trigger connection since ownership). Most MIG's are dual purpose and can do both gas and shielded wire, just have to reverse polarity.

Good to know on the hobart, I've been told to just get the millermatic 211 but the price is hard stomach. I've heard good things about the hobarts and they seem like great quality for the price point, and it's nice to know they live up to shop work too.

[s14brent]

Thanks guys! I have plans to build a weld-in roll bar later this month at a friends' shop that ties into the rear strut towers. I really don't know what i want to do interior wise for paint yet. I kind of don't care, but i do at the same time. The struggle.

I use .030" on everything. In fact the MIG setting rarely even change much beyond one notch in the heat and two on wire speed. .020" is a pain as you seen. The heat needs to be really low and slow wire, even then it tends to bubble easily. I find using too much heat/wire and using technique to avoid burning through has better results than being too cold.

actually wire speed had to be surprisingly fast for 16 gauge thickness+.024, heat was set pretty low. Finding the balance was rough for sure. .030 just seems brainless in comparison. I want to practice more on this 110v machine because I want to be able to bring it out remotely to help a few friends with some small jobs. I really wish i bought a welder a long time before I did. It's been so helpful with all the projects.

Are you guys using gas or fluxcore? I'm getting ready to purchase a welder and have come to terms that using gas makes life much easier.

i'm using gas - i strongly believe it makes your life easier indeed. side note: seems like gas is more expensive during quarantine, which sucks, i was looking for a 55-60cu tank to use for the 110 unit that i could take on small jobs, going to try to find a 2nd hand bottle on offerup but it might take a while. The 211 is a great machine, a buddy of mine has that model. Another friend has a hobart 140 and it's super reliable as well. I was looking into the 140 for a while until i was given this craftsman machine and i'm stubborn and trying to get it dialed in.

[zwill23]

Thanks guys! I have plans to build a weld-in roll bar later this month at a friends' shop that ties into the rear strut towers. I really don't know what i want to do interior wise for paint yet. I kind of don't care, but i do at the same time. The struggle.



actually wire speed had to be surprisingly fast for 16 gauge thickness+.024, heat was set pretty low. Finding the balance was rough for sure. .030 just seems brainless in comparison. I want to practice more on this 110v machine because I want to be able to bring it out remotely to help a few friends with some small jobs. I really wish i bought a welder a long time before I did. It's been so helpful with all the projects.



i'm using gas - i strongly believe it makes your life easier indeed. side note: seems like gas is more expensive during quarantine, which sucks, i was looking for a 55-60cu tank to use for the 110 unit that i could take on small jobs, going to try to find a 2nd hand bottle on offerup but it might take a while. The 211 is a great machine, a buddy of mine has that model. Another friend has a hobart 140 and it's super reliable as well. I was looking into the 140 for a while until i was given this craftsman machine and i'm stubborn and trying to get it dialed in.

Awesome, I appreciate the feedback. A new hobart 140 just popped up on market place for a solid discount so looks like my fate has been sold.

Good luck with the roll bar!

[s14brent]

3m seam sealer showed up this morning, here's after with first coat of 3m undercoat spray applied.



The SRS gas pedal bracket was installed with loctite and clear silicone under each plate.



The white paint is just for now. I'll end up getting a rattle can of bronzit beige metallic later down the road when things aren't so crazy out, I don't think I want to do a color change. It's such a bitch to do! Future roll bar will probably just get painted black.

Just super happy that rust spot is gone finally.

[moatilliatta]

BMW's never had the black rubbery undercoating. It was more of a rocker panel spray, Maybe rocker Schultz.

[ForcedFirebird]

BMW's never had the black rubbery undercoating. It was more of a rocker panel spray, Maybe rocker Schultz.

Definitely rubber under coating of some sort. I've built cages in a bunch of BMW's, and they all have nice little melted areas under the pads/plinths.