How To: C15a Wire-3 restoration

[Bob Carriere]

Hi Jordan

Once you have tried gas you may never go back. It makes you a better welder.... at least the welds will look better.....cleaner...less grinding.

Also try the "non stick" spray when you are welding a piece that will remain visible..... it keeps the little balls of slags from sticking to your work and speeds up the cleaning job.

Remember to start on a clean piec of steel... or clean it with a flap wheel....MIG is not good at welding on rusted metal.

The more you weld the better you will get.

For tight precision work.... use an automatic shading head piece. I also use a couple of 500 watts lights on a tripod to illuminate the work so it can be seen clearly for the start of your weld. To keep the ceiling lights from reflecting off the inside of your helmet I have pop rivetted a piece of leather about 12 in.x 12 to the upper baqck rim of the mask and it creates a shadow. That by itself allows me to start a clean bead or stiching exactly on the spot needed...... improves my delicate work tremendously. Nest try to simulate spot welding...real easy...... predrill the top piece....sandwich the two metal and weld inside the hole..... by playing with the heat setting and wire speed ( on practice pieces) you can almost eliminate any grinding.

Just watch your hydro bill go up...

Cheers

[Gordon Yeo]

Bob

It's only us old guys that can't see any more and need all the back lighting. Jordan is still a kiddy by comparison, he won't have that problem.

Jordan

Bob has sage advice on the auto darkening helmet. They are really great and might be a help with the new learning curve.

Gord

[Jordan Baker]

Thanks for all the tips/advice on the welding. Im just so happy that I can now do more of this stuff on my own without having to send it out.

Anyway got the engine pulled out along with more parts off of the frame. Im trying to get it down to a bare frame and other large components. The feed mill on the other side of town has offered to sandblast all the big stuff for me.

[Jordan Baker]

Frame all ready for sandblasting. Por15 paint ordered. Hopefully I will get the frame back this week and it will be painted.

Here are a couple of pictures of the frame being pulled out of the shop and then waiting on the driveway for pickup.

[Phil Waterman]

Hi Jordan

What ever you do DO NOT use Por 15 on clean smooth steel it will not stick in the long run, it will peal.

Reason I mention this is that your photos show major areas of the frame that look to have good paint which will mean areas of smooth steel.

When I restored my Pattern 12 some years ago I used Por 15 with their metal cleaner and metal etch. Everything is fine on rusted areas or areas which were uniformly roughened with sand blasting or grinding which Por 15 was applied.

But on areas that were smooth because of being new steel or areas where the paint had protected the steel. The Por 15 has pealed off. I discovered this recently when working on the Pattern 12 doing it's nose change. Now I have areas where the bare steel is exposed. In some areas this is nothing to repair in other it is going to be a real pain.

Yes I am still using Por 15 on projects but only in locations that when cleaned and ready for paint actually feel rough to the touch. Which really leaves a problem on finished surfaces like sheet metal, who do you blend areas from Por 15 to regular primer or PORs Tie Coat Primer.

Cheers Phil

[Bob Carriere]

Hi Jordan

Phil is right on new cold rolled sheet metal it willnot adhere properly.

The solution as he pointed out is to roughen the sheet metal surface with small grit sandblasting. The other solution is to use sheet metal with a satin (acid etched) coating from the factory.

I have repaired POR 15 by grinding with a flap disc at 140 grit..... etched....POR two coats and used the tie coat ( all by brush)....... over a year so far no deterioration and not noticable with the two coats of OD.

One question....... are you taking the frame off the axles or blasting the whole assembly as a total unit...?

Cheers

[Jordan Baker]

Thanks for the info and tips guys.

I was just over to see how the frame and cab floor came out from sandblasting. The Por15 should have no trouble at all sticking. The metal feels just like 100 grit sandpaper.

Bob, I left the axels on the frame for now. Once I get it back and painted I will be taking them apart and rebuilding them. I figured I could just do touch ups as needed by hand.

[JoãoBoscoBarbosa]

Hi Jordan, good morning.

In the moment, I restauration the C-15A and I need a information about the about cab sliding rear windows steel, can you help me?

I need a dimension, new pictures and other information for construction the parts in my truck, because my truck not have this part, see the pictures.

Very good your work.

[Jordan Baker]

João, I believe that information is already on the forum. Im not too sure where though, but I will see if I can search it for you.

My dash map light is all complete. I decided the paint the inside in white. Im not too sure if the orginals were but I figured it makes a bit of sense. I also created a new wire for it using new made period correct wiring. Now I am looking for a Map light switch plate. Does anyone know of a place I could get a reproduction made?

Ive also got one fuel tank relined with tank sealer from Mac's. I used this stuff for a fuel tank on my carrier and I was really happy with it. I washed the tank out with muratic acid letting it sit on each side for 5min. After this I dumped out the acid into a bucket then began flushing the tank with lots of water. I also half filled the tank and put in a box of baking soda. The more flushing. I then rinsed the tank with the fuel tank etch that Mac's sells. To do a final drying I put the tank on the BBQ to heat it up and remove all the moisture. Once the tank was dry and cooler I poured in the tank liner and began rolling the tank around to coat all the surfaces. I currently have the other tank soaking with a water/marine clean mixture (it still had old gas in it). I'll be leaving this to soak for a few days then I will repeat the steps. Once the insides are done I will be coating the outside in POR15. This should make the tanks last a lifetime.

[Bob Carriere]

Nice job Jordan.

what kind of switch are you looking for???\

On the rear window sliders... I believe that Phil Waterman made some for his trucks and it's documented on his site.

Cheers