Hi, I'm Ben and I have been restoring classic cars professionally for over 20 years, I'm sharing what I've learnt in that time on my channel to help others who would like to know. The main focus is fabrication but I did paint cars for a good decade and learnt a lot in that field too. Before going into the car restoration trade I trained as a mechanical engineer, this allows me to make tools for my job but as a hobby I design, build and fly experimental aircraft. This is covered on my other channel
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Good and informative video.. very neat. Your mate from the pub looks like a very nice bloke :) i laughed hard to that one.......
😆👍 thanks very much for feedback, I like it when I can give somebody a laugh. Cheers
Salut Ben, Si seulement les véhicules qui sortent d'usine pouvaient être traités de cette façon... Pas de doutes cette Alfa Romeo sera bien mieux finie qu'elle ne le fut par le constructeur. Bravissimo!
Hi and thanks, in the 70s the factory finished cars weren't very well protected, a lot of people blamed the quality of the steel but I think the protection was mainly to blame. My parents triumph stag had a bare metal respray at 5 years old, going rusty that soon from new. Things have changed a lot since then.
So good with genius humour
Hilarious. Thanks for more excellent content and some very useful tips. Cheers!
@@davidcroft659 Thanks very much 😊
Enjoyable video Ben. I don't think you'll have any problems with the Raptor. There are plenty of professionals out there that swear by it so I think it is probably pretty good. Gravitex is the other product of choice for many, I've yet to try either.
Thanks for that Bob, I don't recall seeing anyone online doing a stonechip test with these products, have you seen anything like that ? I think you could do it quite simply by dropping small stones into a segmented flywheel, that will accelerate the stones to the same velocity for a fair comparative test. One thing I do like about the raptor is that it's the same colour all the way through, so a minor stone chip wouldn't necessarily be noticeable. Adhesion is the second thing I'm interested in and that could be tested by flexing the sample. Not particularly interested in the rust prevention side of things because that's all about the preparation in my opinion.
@@bensclassicbodywork No, can't say I have. That would be a good one for somebody to take on. It's always a balance with the underbody protection isn't it. Too hard versus too soft versus adhesion. Am I correct in thinking that Raptor was developed as a truck bed-liner? If so, that should tick a few boxes.
@@bobfrankish8883 yes that's correct, you can add abrasives to the mix to increase the slip resistance. There is no rubber used in Raptor though, it's a polyurethane paint so it's resistance to stone chips I would imagine isn't as good as the factory Underseal used on new vehicles. I haven't researched what factory's are using actually, I should do. I did try sprayable sealant once, the name was Kent. Looked good but I wasn't impressed with its durability. Also the gun used could not be taken apart or cleaned, you had to be using the stuff all the time and keep the gun full of sealant. It was slow to harden and even after a few months it was still weak, you could almost remove it with your finger nail, it did look factory but was no good otherwise.
Excellent video, the understated humour works very well.
Thanks very much 😊
Now i know why my paint didn't come out as well. I don't use a helicopter to commute to my shed. I assumed a hovercraft would be enough. Thanks for the tip 👍
😆👍 it's all about how you arrive to the Workshop, a little known fact. 😄 What hover craft have you got ?
Great video as always Ben, especially enjoy the funny bits.
Appreciate that, thank you 😊
Great job Ben! Interesting technique for the seam sealing of the fender to inner fender, looks a fair bit better than what I managed...
Thank you, applying sealant is the most important thing, doesn't have to be neat. Preventing water getting between the joint is by far the priority. You did good 👍
Hey Ben, I think your content is amazing, informative and funny. I really enjoy it. I posted a link to your channel on the AlfaBB bulletin board. I hope you get some guys over there and hopefully you can interact with the group. It’s a big group of Alfa focused guys, I know they will be very impressed with your work. More of us viewers should spread the word so we get more great content.
@@Geneb2470 wow, thanks so much, what a lovely comment and I really appreciate you sharing a link, I will definitely have a look at the forum. 😊👍
@@Geneb2470 Just found your post on the forum, very kind of you and the subscribers and views have gone up as a result. The forum looks massive, great resource of Information. Thanks again Ben
Wish I could timelapse my life whilst working on my god forsaken bathroom. Enjoyable video as always, thanks 👌
I bet, I really dislike household diy stuff like that, I complained about sanding filler but I would actually much rather do that than a bathroom. 😬
Nice work 👌
Thanks 👍
Turned out really well congratulations 👌
Thanks, I'm pleased. 😊
Looking good 👍
Thank you 😊
The car will be better than factory for sure, Ben. A lot of work, rewards when complete. The jigsaw building of the body from alfa is complicated in to replace a part you need to cut other parts out,but they are a buietiful car. Your work is stunning great videos.
Thanks so much for the kind comment, completely agree the way the car is built makes it's more difficult than a lot of other cars. Getting the floors in was a right puzzle, as was the jacking points. As you say a beautiful car though.
Sexy Legs❤
😆👍
Very much enjoying your videos... would love to know more about what is in your de-rusting tank and what you use in that spray bottle to stop the parts flash rusting just after?
Thanks, the immersion rust remover is deox C mixed 19 parts to 1 with water. The spray is atom mac, both products are from a uk company called Bilt Hamber.
I have a 1975 Spider that I will be restoring.
What state is it in?
WRONG
@@VaclavVanoucek oooh, my first negative comment. Care to elaborate on what is wrong ?
@bensclassicbodywork In fact, nothing sorry, I was watching the video in my work at first and I didn't hear some stuff you said. My bad
@@VaclavVanoucek 🙂 no worries. 👍
Great tools and machines!
@@lukegregory9849 Tools make such a difference but you don't necessarily realise until you have them.
Ah nice work. Memories of cab step and b pillar bottom repairs on mine...
@@mrc7478 👍 Fond memories no doubt. 😉
Very interesting, I'm currently weighing up how to approach toning down a resonance on our E30s exhaust. I had no idea flexis could be the solution. I was thinking softer mounts but you may have just saved me that wild goose chase. 😆 Cheers!
@@SPANNERRASH Hi, well it certainly worked for me, if your exhaust is vibrating like mine then I think it could sort it. I like E30's used to have a 325i sport, sold it just before the prices rocketed. Enjoyed the car but it needed some money spending on it. You have a big channel, congrats. 👍
Nice work. I'm wondering if the addition of a small concealed weight to the exhaust would have also changed it's resonant frequency? These are the types of question that keep me awake at 3:30 in the morning. I'm also staring into the abyss when it comes to my Rover GTi project.
@@TK42138 Yes I believe that could have worked too. I did briefly try wrapping some lead around the silencer to change the weight but it wasn't enough of a change frequency change. You can get exhaust resonators which interfere with the sound waves but I'm not sure if that would do the same thing. With an exposed exhaust system aesthetics play a part too. Nice to hear you have thoughts like this at 3.30am in the morning too! 😆 Ah the staring into the abyss 😆👍
Hi Ben great job.😮. I love your videos and I am really impressed. Could you tell how you deal with rust in pores? Sometimes it's not possible to grind all the rust off. Do you use something like Brunox Epoxy first and then go further with EP primer like MIPA EP 100 20? Thanks for your answer. Greetings from Austria Fabio
Hi and thanks for the message. The only way to deal with rust in pores is to remove it. This means media blasting or removal with acid products. I use a Gel rust remover demonstrated in this video kzread.info/dash/bejne/io5-mdayoreZktY.html or blasting until the rust doesn't return. kzread.info/dash/bejne/eKqWz5anaLbViag.html There isn't a paint in the world that can hold back rust, it has to be removed. Epoxy primers are good as are zinc primers but they only prolong the inevitable.
thats really nice work
@@The_Artist_Formerly_Known_as thank you 😊
Great video Ben, interesting fix to that problem.
@@user-ge8dv1ik9c thank you 😊
Love the channel and the content keep it coming 👍🏼
@@6wheels646 Really appreciate that comment, the video is doing poor at the moment so needed that. Cheers 🙂
@@bensclassicbodywork so a friend of mine has a YT channel, also working on his project, and he was asking for some feedback on his videos. My response? Screw what people think. As long as YOU are having a good time making the videos, then you will keep enjoying it, and the people that enjoy the content will be here with you. As soon as you start making the videos in some sort of specific way to appease the masses, you’re no longer doing it for you. The video part of your job I can only assume is a hobby, so enjoy the hobby!
@@bensclassicbodyworkI’ve just had a quick look again over all of your video titles. Most of them include “rust”, “repair”, “classic”, “bodywork”, “welding”, “restoration”. All things that get picked up and recommended by KZread to people with those sorts of interests…. Guess what this doesn’t include! It’s not that it wasn’t a good video, you just didn’t please the robot gods of popular buzz words.
@@6wheels646 Thanks very much for the kind feedback and you're absolutely right it should all be about making the videos you want to make and the numbers don't matter. I think KZread are good at making you take notice with how popular your video is, all the analytics you could possibly imagine and I'm a bit obsessed with watching that stuff. When a video does worse than you are used to I find it hard to not think negatively about it but you are absolutely right I shouldn't think that way. I think some People who post on KZread have achieved this state of mind, I need to work on it so that I'm not bothered either, it's the only way you can keep making videos long term. I also agree on the titles and this one being different, the oil burning stove did really bad for the first few days, but it went on to do very well indeed. The excitement of a video doing that well is quite addictive, trying to recreate that excitement is perhaps a recipe for disappointment. Thanks again Ben
Worth knowing. Thanks, Ben.
@@alastairwatson3201 👍
I could do a whole video on staring into the abyss. Best wishes.
😂😂👌👌
Interesting, I have several cars with a, seemingly, unnecessary Flexi, this is probably why then. Thanks for posting.
It certainly could be the reason, I'll have to look more closely at car exhausts and see If I can spot other examples then.👍👍
please, can this stove work with diesel oil instead of used oil
@@adelabdel-azim5261 I'm pretty confident it would do yes, same with heating oil.
Can't wait to see paint on this!
@@jameshamm7167 Me too, always nice to see it in top coat, I'm still finishing off the filler work but it's not far off now. I will leave the car for a month or two in high build primer to let the paint shrink, then it's going to be final sanded and sprayed, I'm not spraying it myself as my facility's aren't up to scratch for top coats. I need to get the underneath in Upol raptor and get it back on its wheels soon. The axles are all powder coated and ready for assembly.
How can one justify the cost of this restoration
@@liambyrne591 The love of the car or you keep it long enough so that it's value increases with time.
This brand had a special talent for building cars that corrode majorly. They deserve an award.
They certainly did and do have that reputation. I do think the majority of it is well built though, sills are very strong . Unlike a Morris minor convertible where you jack up the car and the doors open by themselves. 😆
you have made the classic mistake of confusing MAXIMUM disk speed with working speed
Hi, How have I confused working speed with maximum disc speed ? The working speed will be slower making the situation even worse.
Yes I like to see more like this video
Thanks for the feedback 👍
That part should of been returned. Thats shithouse
yes, it is a terrible part, next time I will be making my own. Don't think there is an alternative. I don't understand how company's can sell such bad parts
The helicopter bit was so funny in when i first saw it. „I built this pipe bender … to build a helicopter. Yeah. There it is“ 😂
😁👍
En regardant l’ensemble des vidéos consacrées à cette restauration, l’on ne peut que reconnaître que vous mêlez professionnalisme et art. Vous être un gardien du patrimoine automobile. 🙏
Thank you very much for the kind comment. It's really appreciated 😊
A lot of very useful information. Thanks for sharing 👍👌
Pleasure 👍
Hi Ben. Good to see you do it nearly like me, you can actualy messuring your skils In the layer og bodyfiller you use, when you are down to 3 layer you ar a proff, in the beginning i was on 5 to 6 and a lot of sanding. Thank for a another good video. Cheers Peter
Thanks Peter 👍👍
Hi how did you remove the old rail, just drill out the spot welds?
Yes, it was mainly spot welds but there were two small beads of weld on the top at either end of the rail. I had to use a 9" disc cutter to reach the small beads of weld. They are only about 1/2" long but looked factory to me.
Great video. I've been scratching my head about inner A panels for a while for my pickup. Very little on this that I can find on you tube. This helped.
Just another note, I also adore the mk1 cortina, lotus in particular, my friend had a 2 door mk1 gt in bright red, with twin sidedraught Webber's, beautiful car, amazing sound 👍
Totally agree, I did a fair bit of work on a Mk1 Lotus Cortina, Only drove it out the shed but I could tell I liked the feel of it from just that.
Bda engine, great sound, terrific engine, and must agree about the stag engine sound. How can anybody convert a classic car to electric, no enthusiast or petrol head would, absolute sacrilege.
Yes, I don't understand what the appeal would be with an electric motor conversion but company's are busy changing classics to electric. Big mistake if you ask me.
hi Ben.. can you please share your english wheel build?
Hi, I didn't film the build but I will do a video all about it if that helps.
@@bensclassicbodywork that would be great. Or if you can share sketches would be great too. I like that you made it modular, to use the frame for shrinking and stretching. I was thinking that too, maybe also add a planishing hammer module. Would love to see your designs. Thanks. Ps. I admire the restoration quality. I have 3 rusty alfas to restore myself...
@@searover83 Unfortunately I didn't keep any sketches happy to measure anything in particular that you need. I've recently made the transition from shrinker stretcher to english wheel quicker by adding T section sliders and friction thumb locks. A planishing hammer option is a great idea, that would be a pretty simple addition providing there is space. Good chance there is. Happy to email some photos/ details as a video might take me some time to make. [email protected] I can tell you I used 11mm thick steel for the frame cnc plasma cut to shape. The screw thread for the english wheel is 7/8" unf.
Ben thank you for all the tutorials. They have been great for me, a novice trying to restore an RS2000 4X4 mark 6 Please have a look and if you can please give me some suggestions.
I have watched a couple videos, looks good. Will message with anything that springs to mind. 👍👍
Over the years, i developed a habit where as I add the coats of filler, since it's closer to the shape, i go finer in grits. Usually, start with 80 , 120 on second, and finish off with 180 plus 240 all over and in with the HB primer. Use to use 1k glaze putty for pin holes. That was a horrible thing to use. Top work the sir 👏 👌
Nothing wrong with that if it worked for you 👍. As you know the finer the grit the less effective it is at cutting, 80 and 120 are pretty course and effective at shaping. Likewise we don't want deep scratches for the paint to shrink into later when it comes to finishing.
Perfect job and advice Ben. There is an incorrect stigma regarding filler that has been passed on to bodywork novices by so-called professionals that really ought to know better. I am sure everyone who has a serious interest in cars knows of Chip Foose. He turns out cars that stun the world they are so good. Every car he does is skimmed all over in filler and then blocked to within a mm of its' life. I think it's worth mentioning though, that show cars and daily drivers are a different breed entirely. There is a quite common restoration technique of filling completely across the door gaps, then blocking across from the door to the adjacent panel. This gives a laser-straight finish when you sight down the car, and also lets you get the door gaps absolutely perfect. The problem is that the door edge has maybe 1 to 2mm of filler on it which makes it very weak when it comes to withstanding the slight knocks of people getting in and out. I guess a happy medium has to be struck sometimes.
Totally agree, I tried the fill and block right across the doors but don't think I'll do that again. Like you say it's weak on the edge, ok if you lead that area but not polyester filler. All it takes is someone shutting the door with the seatbelt in the shut and it will leave a large chip. Like you say fine for a show car but not for a car that's going to be used a lot. Slight curve towards the door gaps looks original to me. Defends what you like the look of I suppose. I watched chip foose on tv and Boyd coddington. I've seen Charlie from American hot rod using lead around the door gaps. It's a lot of work to do.
impressive quality work. Can you share your english wheel design, and the shrinker attachment please?
I plan to do a video on it, I think that will be the best way to show how I've done it. Would that be of help, or do you need dimensions ?
@@bensclassicbodywork yes please!!! All of the above!;)