With some spare time on my hands at the weekend I thought I would have a look at how the rear bumber might be deseamed and cut out a 1" section

The problem is that the panels don't meet at the back at the tangent point of the panels.



As a result, when you grind the panels flush you get a 2-3 mm gap!!!

What's the secret? Do you have to weld a plate or filler rod at the rear of the panels?

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Regards,

Mike
"He who dies with the most toys wins."

lol

looks like a boob with a pointy nipple.

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Here am I sitting in my tin can far above the Moon
Planet Earth is blue and there's nothing I can do...



“A turbo: exhaust gasses go into the turbocharger and spin it, witchcraft happens and you go faster.” - Jeremy Clarkson

Bejessus! I'll get banned from the forum...

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Regards,

Mike
"He who dies with the most toys wins."

There are 3 panels in there, you forgot the boot floor.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

Yeah - but all that does is split the nipple in half. There are then two gaps.

Mearcat suggests dollying the panels together and then welding.

How does everybody else do them?

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Regards,

Mike
"He who dies with the most toys wins."

I would weld a L-shaped plate joining the floor to the outer panels all the way across the width of where you're deseaming as a matter of course. It won't have any strength there at all if you just try and fill it with weld.

You need to keep the structural integrity of your car, the seams of which were an integral part. Your changes need to be at least as strong as that.

<edit> I would also look at what's legally required in WA. In NZ, you'd need to get an engineer to certify it as as safe as stock. Unless you keep the car forever, you also need to consider the safety of subsequent owners or you may be liable in the case of a crash...

for the vertical seams you weld the gap on the inside first. I imagine that the same would apply for the bumper. Plus adding an angular piece like angusdog sujested is a good idea to go with it.

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Chuck Norris is the only person alive who can kick you in the back of the face!!
mooo, I'm a pig!

I remember a number of cars being deseemed in the early 90's and the technique used was to dolly them inwards.

That said, I have seen a number of Cooper 'S's that have been forever devalued as a result of deseeming - there is no going back once you start!

Well said.

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1966 Morris Mini Deluxe
.... 4 bicycles and 3 screaming kids.

please promise to keep the gutter seam.

mine is de-seamed (as a rule i don't like deseamed minis) but mine had the gutter left on it by the po and i've grown to like it.... however now the external door hinges look a little out of place to me.. but that's another story!

good luck

Mike, DO NOT cut all the seam off.
The seam must be cut off slightly proud, leaving enough metal to dolly in and weld together.

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Too many cars, and too little time.

yep theres a good how to on theminiforum.co.uk...

they leave a few mm proud, weld it up, then tap it all in, fill and paint.

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tim
68 Deluxe 1293, HIF44, megajolt/EDIS4, daihatsu alternator..

'a mini is for life, not just for christmas!'

Is this the one you're talking about? (It's the only How To type thread I found) :
http://www.theminiforum.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=93136

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-Alan
I blame my dad for my love of minis. I think I was conceived in the back seat of one
I also blame my Dad for me being 6' 1" - not really the optimum height for driving a Mini.

I would have thought that deseaming a mini would reduce the structural integrity a bit. Minis have very good torsional stiffness for their size and removing what is a flange is likely to reduce the stifness of the car.

You can argue that the strength is there with the new weld but if the flange isn't proud and providing a perpendicular axis of metal, my guess is the stiffness goes down.

It would be interesting to take a mini, test it, deseam it and test again.

You'd need a mechanical engineer to have the final word on this one... Anyone qualified care to wade in

My comment is that if you want a deseamed mini, go to the dark side and get a Bini. (Don't need a string of pro bini comments back - I'm having a joke )

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Cheers
Alec
1275LS - July 78 - XNFAD18Y/102918

I must admit that now I've had a structural look at the rear - deseaming must reduce the integrity somewhat.

The rear of the floor (which is holding up the rear subframe) depends on the rear bumper mount to hold it to the body. Obviously it also mounts at the sides and front but that rear section must have a big say in underside rigidity.

Decided to not go deseaming....

Now...I just have to put this 1" section back in

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Regards,

Mike
"He who dies with the most toys wins."