Technical info
Before any project starts, before any disassembly begins, we inspect the main systems and components of a vehicle. A vehicle inspection report is initiated detailing the functioning and completeness of all systems on the vehicle. The results are documented and from this basis, the restoration or repairs begin.
The process of disassembly begins by removing every fastener, trim piece and component - leaving no nut or bolt unturned. Every single part is labeled and its condition is documented in a written report. Small parts are packed in plastic bags with identifying descriptions. Careful inspection is made of all moving and wearable components such as bushings and seals.
Every car has an individual folder on our computers. Pictures of damage or failed components and data are recorded daily. After disassembly, our report is compared to the initial plan for the vehicles restoration. An inspection report is sent to the customer in order to discuss any changes in the initial plan of repairs. Recommendations are made but it is always up to the customer to decide if any additional work will be done.
Bodywork
We utilize a special jig for collision repair and frame straightening. It allows us to restore a uni-bodied car to original factory specifications. This assures you that panels will fit correctly and steering and handling of the vehicle will be accurate and as originally manufactured.
All exterior panels are brought back to bare metal with paint stripping if needed. All paint and underseal are removed from the underside, luggage compartment, door apertures, engine bay and interior of the car. This process takes the whole shell back to clean steel and removes all corrosion. That shows where the repairs are needed.
Some projects however donât require completly bare metal body, or require only partially. There is no point to remove everything from the panels if they are solid and without any sign of rust.
All bare metal parts are then treated with an epoxy resin primer, which affords best known protection against rust. This specific primer makes a non sinking coat very important for bare metal. Additional advantage is that epoxy is very adhesive to both - metal and any other material used later.
The process of replacing any corroded areas then begins using bought new panels or even handmade in our workshop if market availability is none. All body panels or repair sections made in our place are produced to the highest possible standards from original gauge steel. All weldings are solid and discreete, we always perform straight body with very smooth surfaces even if repaired. You will never find common patches of metal welded over rust and covered by tons of filler in our workshop.
All bare metal closed profiles and under floor where it is needed are covered with special primer based on alkyd styrene resin as very durable antirust coat.
The chassis with all the panels on is then fitted togheder with special attention to gaps. We will push, pull, cut, slice and weld to achieve perfect gaps on the body.
Repaired areas are lead loaded as option, especially where the body is under usual constuction stess during the drive.
Paint
The paint cabin
External surfaces are filled with few different filler types, the shape is checked many times again during that work. The body is treated with seam sealer and underside of the body is undercoated with stone underseal protection. The rest of the shell is then treated with a two pack acrylic primer. The body preparation before itâs painted is art in its self. The paint is just a final touch in the process, so we always point out that itâs very easy to paint the body, at least by someone who knows how to do it, when the shape of the body is perfectly prepared.
We prepare and paint the cars with ICI support, including old color charts for Autocolor paint. All materials supplied are top range of the market with prooved and well known worldwide quality. At least three coats of acrylic two pack paint are sprayed by hand to ensure a perfectly smooth finish. Sometimes the doors, bonnet and boot lid are sprayed separately to ensure complete coverage and protection, but on some special kind of paint and tint (some of pearl or metallic colors) we used to spray the internal areas first, and later the complete car body with all elements on to ensure the proper continous linear structure of the coats along the chassis.
We are able to offer nitro based paint also, which involve also different type of other materials used, but we always suggest acrylic base as much more durable and without bad points of nitro.
We always give comlete external two day hand polishing to the body including lower areas to be sure of deep color look and no sign of orange peel.
Mechanical
If we rebuild the engine, first we starting with cleaning with compressed water to remove all surface dirt. All accessories are disassembled to a bare block where it goes through a series of chemical washes to remove all grease, paint and carbon deposits. The water jackets are cleaned inside to remove all internal corrosion, ensuring that there are no future problems. At this point the cylinder block, crankshaft, conrods etc. are all inspected before the various machining processes are carried out. Every tolerance and dimension is checked and machined to achieve a tolerence dimension.
The crankshaft assembly, pistons, conrods, flywheel and pressure plate are dynamically balanced to ensure a perfectly smooth running engine. The cylinder head is first pressure tested and checked for dimensional accuracy.
Balanced flywheel and crankshaft
If there is a need during head work we can exhange valves, valve guides and other parts. After all machining work, tolerances are again checked for dimensional accuracy before another comprehensive cleaning process takes place. Only when all components are clinically clean the assembly of the engine begins.
Engine
The majority of parts fitted during assembly of the engine are new. It is only by fitting new parts throughout that we are able to ensure the quality and performance.
Engine is always tested and tuned on specialized engine stand during 2 days test.
The gearbox and rear axle are stripped and rebuilt to the same exacting standards if there is a need.
Steering box restoration
Gearbox "before and after"
Differential rebuilding
New block studs
Head restoration with skimming
Parts
First work we give to the parts is cleaning. Sometimes it means just disassembling some elements like rear lamps to clean it and the look received after is more than good. Deep cleaning sometimes discover also bad points of the components, not visible before.
Components of the steering and suspension systems as well as some other parts ars sand blasted, zinc plated and where appropriate powder coated or catoforese. Same is to screws, nuts, pads or other small metal elements, which if possible we always try to keep original but plated. Another parts treated this way may be: radiator, fuel tank, wheel rims, door hinges and a lot of supports, stands, plates, etc. etc.
View before
After sandblasting
Catoforese coated
The entire braking system we used to stripp, blast, re-paint or plate and rebuild. Metal pipe connections we reproduce in non corroding copper materials (also for clutch hydraulics), we are able to reproduce the flexible hoses if not available on the market. We rebuild pressure pumping units and callipers with new pistons and seals.
Inox parts when existing are prepared and polished, re-chroming from the other hand is much more complicated. The parts have to be first copper plated (sometimes few layers â itâs the copper plating that dramatically extends the life of chrome parts), followed by the nickel and finally chrome plate, with the polishing between steps. We can offer straightening of inox bend elements.
There is also a lot of small repair works, difficult to name or list. All working parts or systems are checked if possible before assembling for functionality and repaired or replaced if needed. Complete disassembling of the car if the best moment for the replacement of the parts. We always keep the attention to describe all parts broken, with malfunction or out of any tolerance. Additionally we sometime advise to replace the components that are still up to general tolerance, but will have to be replaced soon when the access and such replacement work will be very difficult or impossible without disassembling main components of the car again.
We are able to glue broken glass windows or polish scratched or mat glass. We reproduce mirror shapes too.
We do repairs on electrical components like switches, gauges, electric wiper motor, engine starter, electric fans and alternator or dynamo.
For perfect cooling we do interior clean of radiator or change of core radiator with paint with factory radiator paint.
Restored radiator...
...and the same one before
Interior
Interior may be retrimmed completly from floor to roof with wide range of quality materials.
Seats and side or door panels are not only recovered with new vinyl or genuine leather. The previous step is to rebuild internal consturction and shape. The seat metal construction may be repaired or even reproduced with plating or coating. The foam shape of the seat may be reproduced also if needed. The rocovering is a final touch and we can support with very large choice of materials and colors.
The carpets we may reproduce with specific car cabin or boot fitted elements with best edge refinishing. We stretch the roof headliners also, recover or reproduce all the shelves and different panels if possible. The same is for the dashboards which we may recover with leather or original vinyl layer if possible.
Where appropriate the woodwork is reveneered and lacquered with a durable transparent layer or original resin based coat. We restore not only the straight panels but also profiled ones, togheder with steering wheels, lever knobs, etc.
The instruments and dash fittings are refurbished and rebuilt, re-chromed as required and where possible.
Assembling
When body is ready and parts arrive to be assembled there is a time for assembling. Again with markers on parts, also when it comes to simple screws and nuts, we install everything on it's place.
We always equip assembling place with all the parts ready. Install should not take weeks, so everything must be already prepared. It's time only for small repairs and modifications if needed or order of only few parts if their malfunction was undiscovered untill this moment.
Aparts from installing the works may be only to some systems that have to fit the body, so not possible to prepare perfectly before (ex. underfloor metal brake hoses profiling).
The other main work done during assembling is the car's electrical system. It may include full new wiring. Conversion to negative earth can be made if needed. All relays, fuses, solenoids, etc. are renewed throughout. All new exterior light bulbs are used. Sometime modern fusible links are fitted to protect against short circuit problems to critical components. We are able also to fit any additional electric components on request.
After assembly of the car has been completed we carry out a comprehensive road testing programme. We are able to do it even for not registered or not insured car on the non public road. When the engine and other mechanical components have run in, even if setting to the mechanics was done before, each car is finally tuned and set up on the road, allowing us to present the owner with accurate brake horse power and torque figures.
