Robins 55 #1 Posted December 23, 2014 Four years ago exactly i restored all the bodywork on my mk5 Transit. Many probably wont see the point, but each to their own and i like my van, nothing modern even comes close to build quality, fuel economy, ease of maintenance or looks in my opinion. Every year before MOT i go under and Owatrol oil any surface rust and check everything over. This year i had a shock when i pocked a hole in the rear cross member, nothing big at first, but on starting the repair i realised it was going to be a big job. I ended up replacing the ends of the rear crossmember, both spring hangers, inner rear skirts, chassis outriggers and piece of floor. Heres a few photos for you to hopefully inspire someone. I dont like patches, they dont last, so i drilled all the spot welds out, made all the panels on my home made metal folder due to no panels being available to buy other than from Ford, and re welded as original. Original outer rear panel back on and ready for paint. 1 ranger reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
meadowfield 1,900 #2 Posted December 23, 2014 Wow, tidy work... Thought my dad and brother were the only ones that spent hours cutting half the tin work away and making new pieces! Hope it gets through the mot Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the showman 4,074 #3 Posted December 23, 2014 Hats off to ya, good bit of fabrication,you should be very pleased with the end results Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
slf-uk 914 #4 Posted December 23, 2014 Looking really good. I too love making up repair panels it is very satisfying. It would be good to know more about your home made metal folder Thanks Iain Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ian 2,417 #5 Posted December 23, 2014 Some very nice fabrication skills going on there Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
C-101plowerpower 548 #6 Posted December 23, 2014 really nice job! i wish i was that good with shaping metal Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stormin 4,458 #7 Posted December 23, 2014 It would be good to know more about your home made metal folder I second that. Good work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
neil 524 #8 Posted December 23, 2014 Yeah, loving the folding jig, Great work Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nigel 1,876 #9 Posted December 23, 2014 you must just love that van Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Robins 55 #10 Posted December 24, 2014 (edited) Thanks guys I enjoyed doing the work knowing it's done right, I do really love my Transit, owned for 15 years, i get attached to my vehicles Took about a week and a half and cost less than £50 including new steel, grinding discs, welding gas, ect. The only down side is i had those two weeks set aside to start building my garage, so that's been postponed yet again! I will start a new thread on the folder for those interested then heres a link to the folder thread for ease of future reference. http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1501-home-made-metal-folder/ Edited December 24, 2014 by Robins Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
