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Bulkhead woes


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Hi Folks,

Like so many defenders before, my bulkhead is giving up the ghost. The footwells are good and it's just the corners that are getting a bit too knackered for my liking to it's time to do the repairs. I haven't been in to have a proper poke around but it looks as though the bulkheads have an inner and an outer skin, is that right? In the engine bay everything look solid but inside the cabin is a different story. If i buy one of the standard repair corners, will it only replace the outer skin (the engine bay side) and will i just have to fabricate some panels for the cabin-side?

 

 

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Yes the bulkheads are a hollow 3D shape with inner and outer panels.

The standard corner repair panels, and the full vent flap repair panels only replace / patch the outer skin.

I am unaware of any commercially available "inner" sections.

I also have a couple of bulkheads here that need doing.

Edited by MR-HIPPO
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Coat every thing, then blast as much cavity wax in there as you can, I like bilt hambler(?) aerosols, Dynax 50, is good.

Landrover have the panel a quick breathe of primer, then an economic whiff of top coat.

 

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I can remember a good splat of waxoyl ejecting from the highlift jack holes on the front chassis legs on my old Lightweight.... made a right mess of the garage door and went with quite a 'thwump!'

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3 hours ago, FridgeFreezer said:

Don't wax it if you're due to weld it though - wax is quite flammable... :ph34r:

Fix it THEN wax it.

You  sure?  Maybe that's where I was going wrong.  . . . . .. 

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20 hours ago, FridgeFreezer said:

Don't wax it if you're due to weld it though - wax is quite flammable... :ph34r:

Fix it THEN wax it.

I get the logic here and i'll do everything i can to avoid setting my beloved Daisy on fire...however....how to get some rust prevention in between the outer and inner skins once i've completed the plating? Is there a trick to it or do i just go to town with some cavity wax?

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2 hours ago, paime said:

I get the logic here and i'll do everything i can to avoid setting my beloved Daisy on fire...however....how to get some rust prevention in between the outer and inner skins once i've completed the plating? Is there a trick to it or do i just go to town with some cavity wax?

If possible, i would remove it from the vehicle, hang it, put a load of warmed wax in, warm the metal work , (with hot air not a flame), let it run, drip, turn it, repeat multiple times at different angles.

Whilst I would avoid waxing before welding, the really flammable bit is what the wax is thinned with (white spirit often), once this has evaporated, it is a lot less flammable.

Edited by reb78
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1 hour ago, paime said:

..however....how to get some rust prevention in between the outer and inner skins once i've completed the plating? Is there a trick to it or do i just go to town with some cavity wax?

Cavity wax should be quite capable of creeping into the gaps - Dinitrol gets my vote, they do a few products that suit this.

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1 hour ago, FridgeFreezer said:

Cavity wax should be quite capable of creeping into the gaps - Dinitrol gets my vote, they do a few products that suit this.

I don't reckon it will do that well without a little help.

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8 hours ago, paime said:

I get the logic here and i'll do everything i can to avoid setting my beloved Daisy on fire...however....how to get some rust prevention in between the outer and inner skins once i've completed the plating? Is there a trick to it or do i just go to town with some cavity wax?

Stating the obvious here but it's important..... Always have a suitable fire extinguisher to hand when welding. I may have, ahem, caused a slight waxoyl fire in my chassis once when welding. Nothing a bit of CO2 didn't fix! 

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On 5/14/2019 at 3:23 PM, Gazzar said:

Coat every thing, then blast as much cavity wax in there as you can, I like bilt hambler(?) aerosols, Dynax 50, is good.

Landrover have the panel a quick breathe of primer, then an economic whiff of top coat.

 

Classic Land Rover with 'breaths' of this and 'whiffs' of that! I'm fairly rubbish when it comes to fabricating anything decent and my welding skills are, at best, below average. I'm loathed to go down the route of a new bulkhead because it'll cost several thousands to do though. I'm going to get hunting on the internet and see if there are any companies selling internal panels. Seems odd that nobody does it (potential business idea for someone maybe?) as this is the spot where all defenders will likely rust.

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But, if the truck can be off the road for a bit, then strip as much as you can first.

Be prepared to remove the screen, if the rot goes that far, and the wing. It all makes the quality of the repair much easier and better. 

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It's funny how snow seems to arrive whenever an urgent job needs doing!

My exhaust decided to part company with it's mountings over the weekend so she'll be off the road for a while anyways. Looks like i've got a long road ahead!

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