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speed
03-05-2008, 17:27
does anyone have info on how /were to seam/stitch weld the chassis.

im in the prosses of stripping the interior and if its worth doing buy a low powerd welder and have a bash before i paint
MAXIBOY
04-05-2008, 11:22
not worth doing much on a road car. the welding is easy but stripping and cleaning every seam is not. renault also fitted a set of strengthening plates on the weakest sections so if your doing it i would suggest making these up as well.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e15/123maxiboy/43c4db35.jpg

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e15/123maxiboy/94038011.jpg
speed
04-05-2008, 20:46
its a road legal track day machine, i have to drive there etc,

were abouts do i need to weld then? were every panel joins?. they rally strenthening plates? what chassis prep did the cups undergo?

thanks
MAXIBOY
04-05-2008, 20:52
every seam in about one inch weld leave an inch.

don,t think the cups had any...

yeah they the rally car ones but they used exactly the same set up for tarmac but with stiffer rates larger brakes and larger tyres.
speed
04-05-2008, 21:06
i'll buy a welder and learn how to use it lol se how i get on,
speed
05-05-2008, 15:41
what about rivveting pannels together to save buying a welder, it will not be as strong but it has to help

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/speed_bucket/2008_05050001.jpg
northy
06-05-2008, 12:52
if you were riveting it i wouldnt bother in the first place.

Cups - only mods they had were the bungs in the floor removed. The roll cage gave as much strengthening as they needed.
speed
06-05-2008, 17:19
i was going to weld it but i dont have one, busses are held together with rivvets, thats what gave me the idea, a rivvet inbetween every spot weld must strenghten things up?
MAXIBOY
06-05-2008, 20:32
not worth the effort in my opinion :(
stew
09-05-2008, 19:53
id say not to bother.

a rollcage will give the extra stiffness required.

welding the seams will take a LOT of effort to clean the seam properly in the first place and then it requires someone competant to do the welding.

most home/diy welding is done with stick (arc mma) welding, which generates a lot of heat, and generally wont look very good. the best option would be using a mig welder with a heavy argonsheild gas. not very cheap!!

ohh and the next thing is u cant just pick up a welder and do it. ive been learning for around a year or so and do it regularly at work too and still would not regard myself as a GOOD welder! generally when you are learning in the first few weeks, 90% of the welds created will either break or are not joining the required metal.

definatley something to try your hand at by all means, but id recommend not learning by seam welding a chassis.
speed
09-05-2008, 20:19
ive done a bit on the floor pan and rear arch bit so i'll have t do otherside to match, it looks cool i was going to get a mig welder but in not goin to bother lot of pennys, i'll get some pics over weekend of my pikey rivvet effort lol
schakal
09-05-2008, 20:28
ive done a bit on the floor pan and rear arch bit so i'll have t do otherside to match, it looks cool i was going to get a mig welder but in not goin to bother lot of pennys, i'll get some pics over weekend of my pikey rivvet effort lol

use stainless steel rivets at least mate :D
speed
09-05-2008, 20:47
why? they are alloy so wont rust, and they will be painted when i do interior
schakal
09-05-2008, 20:56
why? they are alloy so wont rust, and they will be painted when i do interior

who says alloy wont corrode ??
google aluminium oxide FTW !! :lol:

on the other hand ,steel will be stronger
than ally any day matey
Lunner
10-05-2008, 09:34
I brought myself a MIG welder, only £120 or so on offer from machine mart, on i nice level practise piece its easy enough, but when you are trying to butt two plates up together and weld the gap its not the easiest, managed to get a half decent weld on my floor pan, which i'm happy with, esp now the filler is hiding it lol
AndyFielder
10-05-2008, 09:44
why? they are alloy so wont rust, and they will be painted when i do interior

who says alloy wont corrode ??
google aluminium oxide FTW !! :lol:

on the other hand ,steel will be stronger
than ally any day matey

Dissimilar metals corrode because they create a Potential Difference between them. This is why landrover doors corrode there aluminum for some reason and end up like emmentile in a short space of time, because they are in contact with steel hinges and chassis
stan
10-05-2008, 10:14
he's not wrong!

As said, i wouldnt bother seam welding the shell. On my race car ive welded in the cage, welded strenthening plates similar to the pics Maxi ha s put up, and tbh I think this is good as it will get. Once the cage is tied to thr pillars etc, any flex in seamed joints is going to be negligable.
speed
10-05-2008, 10:42
oh well, looks like ive fuked up then,
hear is my effort so far

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/speed_bucket/2008_05100003.jpg
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/speed_bucket/2008_05100002.jpg
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/speed_bucket/2008_05100001.jpg
i'll have to do other side to match