LOLA T70 scratch build...

PREKOTE SURFACE PRE TREATMENT | UNDERCOAT FOR ALLOYS & COMPOSITES

Marcos I did research on this for my tub.
Paint will not stick to alloy was the outcome.

Hence the phosphate coatings then the paint will adhere to that.
I used this and am very happy.
I have only primed at this point it is Dulux super ufi etch.
I have to say it is very tough, it gets used as a bench at times and no marks.

I have not painted top coat yet so I have no advice in that area.

I did look at aero paints but I decided against it as it was not practical for me.

Jim
 

Randy V

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Marcus
Please check all pics of Historic T70 Tubs !!!
No one is coated ...............................:laugh:

Those tubs were not meant to be around for more than a couple of years or a good season's worth of racing either.. Witness the fact that most GT40 tubs were compromised by rust, some nearly totally destroyed by it.
 
Gt40 tubs and T70 tubs are not built on same material !!!

Gt40 tubs where done completly in pressed , welded steel and of course in internal areas where water and humidity was in for years it was a real disaster to watch when opening those panels years after
So yes priming and painting was more than necessary !!

T70 where done in aluminium folded panels ( just watch at the superb work Marcus is doing and suspension or engine are hold onto steel rinforces but....
those parts are "open" welded partsriveted to the aluminium panels ;they are cooper and nickel plated before to be bonded and riveted .
So wo worry at all about any corrosion !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I raced and owned Lola cars for years in the 70's ( a lot of races under strong rain !!!) and I can tell you that nowadays have watched those cars ( now historic cars :drunk:) and can tell you that those tubs are still in perfect condition ... then more because the actual owners polish them gloss like mirrors( to be sure to win sorts of Amelia Concourt de beautée LOL :laugh:)

So to me a T70 tub is to be let bare .....................:drunk:

Marcus apologise if hacking a little your thread with this "coat subject" and keep on your so good work :thumbsup:
 

Randy V

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Mic - Just curious on how many original T70 tubs you've seen that were steel space-frame with riveted ally panels?
I'd coat them to help keep control of the dissimilar metals corrosion problem.
 
T70 are not steel space frame ?????

They are classic LOLA aluminium tubs with steel (nickel plated or grey coated ) sub parts
 
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Mic - Just curious on how many original T70 tubs you've seen that were steel space-frame with riveted ally panels?
I'd coat them to help keep control of the dissimilar metals corrosion problem.

Randy, you did not read Mics answer correctly. He did not say they were steel space framed, only engine, some suspension and roll cage mounting points are steel. Mic has huge experience, far beyond what most of you on here realise.

However, there are some tubs with reinforcing in them, and something that Mic has not mentioned, nor anyone else, is that the tubs did not so much corrode, but became loose through rivet/hole movement and my advice would be to use mild sealant on stress bearing surfaces to add strength. I also strongly advise the etch priming of all non accessible panels, as I doubt the cars being built up on these pages will ever get used in so much anger that oily protective residues ever build up on the chassis as they did in period. Remember that race cars were/are worked on so much that corrosion would have never been a problem anyway.

Any T70 Mk3B built to anywhere near an original specification is going to be nigh on impossible to enjoy on the open road anyway. With solidly mounted engine and gearbox, fully rod ended suspension, very small cockpit, etc, etc, five minutes in one will leave you somewhat shell shocked.
A T70 is a very different animal to the GT40, even though they were penned by the same author !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Thanks Graham for your comment ; apologise Randy sometimes my rought Englisch capacites are not enought when it's time to give long tecnical explanations
 
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these are pics of LOLA tubs as I have seen everywhere in career ;

there where on the 75's race alumium tubs complitly coated ;
The MATRA tubs .....
They where built like aerospace aluminum parts ;
panels where trimmed and drilled as usal , then before final assembling and bonding ,riveting all panels where coated ( primed is more the term ) with an classic orange "Phosphate coating"

Yes you are right , Graham , about after sometime use ( say one or 2 seson) those aluminium tubs where changing concerning strength due to loosen rivets lines , this why we improved with manufacturer of those special structural bonding stuff and we found
a "pink" 3M bond product giving so good results that for 40 years after I was still using into carbon fibers tubs to hold aluminium suspension inserts !!!!
 

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Randy V

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The only original chassis I've ever seen close up was that of SL73-126 which was owned by a good friend of mine for many years. When I saw the tub it was completely stripped of all running gear, suspension, etc. It had been damaged in an incident and I was rather amazed that there was no more structural support than the ally panels, many riveted together and some welding as I recall. I don't recall any adhesives that were used on the tub, but that was roughly 40 years ago... There was no corrosion on the chassis that I recall, but as was said earlier here, there was lots of oil mist and spillage that kept things that way.

Still, I would use some sort of protection to keep corrosion at bay.
 
Front anti-roll bar.

To my biggest surprise, it fitted nicely...:shocked2:
 

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Thank you Mike, as for the parts, it´s a mix of sourcing original parts (e.g.oil tank, bodywork, brake bells, calipers, cockpit) and having them reproduced (e.g. wheels, suspension, gearbox) as well as making them yourself (chassis).
 
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PREKOTE SURFACE PRE TREATMENT | UNDERCOAT FOR ALLOYS & COMPOSITES

Marcos I did research on this for my tub.
Paint will not stick to alloy was the outcome.

Hence the phosphate coatings then the paint will adhere to that.
I used this and am very happy.
I have only primed at this point it is Dulux super ufi etch.
I have to say it is very tough, it gets used as a bench at times and no marks.

I have not painted top coat yet so I have no advice in that area.

I did look at aero paints but I decided against it as it was not practical for me.

Jim

Jim, many thanks, checking this option as well.

At the same time I´m also toying around with Michel´s suggestion.
 
Marcus,

I assume you are only going to build one of these in your life?

Are all the current rivet holes already drilled final size or under size?

Originality be damned here with respect to coatings / rivets :drunk: It would be a shame after all these years of work, to not at a minimum, use a structural epoxy on ALL your rivet lines and buck/pull each rivet wet. This simple step would go a long way to preventing "working" or "smoking" rivets and joints in the future.

Just an old Aircraft Mechanics opinion:thumbsup:
 
Scott,

thank you, you´re actually addressing a topic that´s been on my mind for quite a while now.

The chassis will be bonded along the rivet lines, that much is certain.

Just not sure if the riveting is to be done while the epoxy is still in the process of drying. Is that what you´re suggesting?
Would make sense to me.
 
Scott,

thank you, you´re actually addressing a topic that´s been on my mind for quite a while now.

The chassis will be bonded along the rivet lines, that much is certain.

Just not sure if the riveting is to be done while the epoxy is still in the process of drying. Is that what you´re suggesting?
Would make sense to me.


Yes Marcus.

I'd etch all the mating surfaces first (no paint on the rivet line) then use a structural epoxy and rivet wet. It's a bit messy but anything worth it is difficult :idea:

We use "Hysol 9309" at the aircraft hangar for general purpose applications like yours. It's not that expensive in bulk.
 
Scott,

thank you, you´re actually addressing a topic that´s been on my mind for quite a while now.

The chassis will be bonded along the rivet lines, that much is certain.

Just not sure if the riveting is to be done while the epoxy is still in the process of drying. Is that what you´re suggesting?
Would make sense to me.

Marcus
when doing your riveting you will have to mix just enought bond to do one panel by one panel ; anyway these epoxy bonding are slow and normally cure within 12 o 24 hours , so plenty of time to rivet !!!
Another point is to get avery accurate partner to do the riveting !!!! :thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
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