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Post by rt26tiara on Jan 26, 2009 21:57:16 GMT -8
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Oz_Stout
Toyota Enthusiast
I Really Need Hubcaps For My Stout
Posts: 270
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Post by Oz_Stout on Jan 27, 2009 14:53:01 GMT -8
I said it over on the Aussie forum and I will say it again here......... This car is beautiful and is now my favourite Toyota in Australia. I really hope you keep us posted on the progress.
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Post by toyotageek on Jan 27, 2009 21:43:29 GMT -8
John, thanks for posting pix of your wagon! I love the Tiaras, and especially the wagons! Can't wait to see & read more about it. If you have more Toyotas at home, post them up to the forum too!  __________________________________________________ Oz, I think you need one of these!  |
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Oz_Stout
Toyota Enthusiast
I Really Need Hubcaps For My Stout
Posts: 270
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Post by Oz_Stout on Jan 28, 2009 3:43:33 GMT -8
Oz, I think you need one of these! Yes yes I was telling my fiance that just today ;D Big problem is that I don't think I would be able to find one if I did decide I had to have one. Other big problem is that I want too much stuff. Darn near bought a '55 Mercedes on the weekend. Still considering it, but thinking..... must buy house.... must buy house!!!  |
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Post by rt26tiara on Jan 29, 2009 3:33:18 GMT -8
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Post by toyotageek on Jan 29, 2009 11:50:15 GMT -8
 Double WOW! I really like the green Corona hatchback! We never had those in the States. The Corona pickup isn't bad either. It looks like you had your own private little Toyota club for a while there. Sorry to hear you had to sell them all. Hope you'll be able to keep the Tiara and share some stories with us.
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Post by rt26tiara on Jan 30, 2009 14:27:48 GMT -8
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Post by rt26tiara on Jan 30, 2009 15:14:14 GMT -8
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Post by rt26tiara on Jan 30, 2009 15:20:00 GMT -8
P.S
I can get these ball joints new in Australia and post them over if you wan't. I can even do the modification to the lower ball joints before I send them off if that makes life easier. Let me know if I can help out.
John
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Post by toyotageek on Jan 30, 2009 20:04:14 GMT -8
I can't recall what the H's were after, but I forwarded the info to them.
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Post by rt26tiara on May 6, 2009 14:49:54 GMT -8
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Post by rt26tiara on May 6, 2009 15:06:42 GMT -8
Hi, Here's some pictures of some of the chrome work and upholstery I've just had done. John    |
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Post by toyotageek on May 7, 2009 8:10:38 GMT -8
That chrome work and uphoulstery look NICE! ;D Can't wait to see it all installed.
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Post by rt26tiara on Jun 16, 2009 14:40:46 GMT -8
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Post by toyotageek on Jun 17, 2009 10:33:42 GMT -8
Cool!  So, you mean to tell us you are actually fabricating the parts yourself?! Very interesting! Perhaps you could explain in laymans terms what you're doing or have done. I have absolutely no experience in anything like this, but i can make some educated guesses... So, you had to make the formers/dollies from scratch? How'd you do that? And then you use them as trmplates to craft the actual pieces? Can you briefly explain the process?  |
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Post by rt26tiara on Jun 17, 2009 12:58:33 GMT -8
I haven't done anything like this before either. I just worked out what I thought would work, spent a lot of money engineering it, and took a chance.
The dollies are laser cut from 10mm plate and curved slightly more than the original guards. The outer guard dollies have a 10mm section welded on one side that follows the contour of the original wheel arch lip.
The main thing was to make sure that all dimensions are the same as the original guard because this is what I form the blank flat 1mm sheet over.
The dollies for the inner guards are also made from 10mm plate and curved the same as the outer guard dollies. I use another piece of 10mm plate to help fashion the raised section on these pieces.
The 1mm blanks that I use are laser cut.
This little project has cost me alot of time and money, but if I can find a couple of other Tiara owners that want to purchase these parts off me, I should be able to make back some of the money I have outlayed.
I have already produced a rust repair set for the Tiara Wagon/Ute tailgate and have sold one of these to another Tiara owner.
As you can imagine, I don't expect to have people lining up to get these parts.
I am now making Tiara wagon/ute lower door rust repairs. Again, the main reason I am making them is because I need them for my own wagon, but if there are any other Tiara owners that want them and can help me cover production costs that would be great.
John
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Post by toyotageek on Jun 18, 2009 19:12:31 GMT -8
Thanks for the explanation John! Hope you don't mind if I ask a few more questions... Since everything seems to be laser cut, I assume you have a shop do all that? If so, what did you have to provide them with - paper templates or the original parts? I'm just really curious as to all the steps required to do something like this. My next question is, how do you actually form the blank over the dollies? Is it hammered or machine pressed? Any pictures (video) of the process? Finally, going slightly off topic... I've got to thank you for answering my questions. Sometimes I wonder how much interest there is in this ol' TORC forum because there always seems to be a lack of response from members. While this thread has a fair number of views, there aren't really many replies. I bring this up because I saw that you posted a similar thread over on the Old Japanese Car forum, and you generated a lot more interest from the European guys than from the American guys. I'm not sure what that says about Toyota enthusiasts in different countries, but it is interesting to note (at least for me). My generalized impression is that Americans tend to be more interested in modified or performance aspects of early Toyotas, whereas Europeans seem to appreciate originality more... |
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Post by rt26tiara on Jun 18, 2009 23:05:41 GMT -8
It's all hammered out by hand.
For the bulk of the work I use a cheap small soft face mallet. This is the type with interchangeable plastic faces. I round the corners of the faces on the grinder so I am striking the metal with a rounded plastic face rather than a corner. I also have one of those cheap panel beating kits and use a hammer from that to sharpen up and define corners where I need to. It's not a simple job and I am learning as I go.
I have just discovered that the inside curve (that runs around the front lower corner of the door) on the front guards was not correct, because the curve on the dollies is not quite right. As a result the inside guard and the outside guard don't line up properly. I had to spend a few hours today hammering out the inside curves I had put in the outer guards and then using the Dollie for the inside panel to form the curve on the outside panel. Using the same Dollie for the inside and outside means that the curve will be the same and the panels should line up. These are quite good reproductions but I'm starting to shy away from the idea of making these available to others. The reason being that they are not perfect and will take a bit of tweaking with to make work. If people were expecting a simple job that was going to line up 100% straight away, they would be disappointed. I don't have any photo's or movie. If I make another set down the track I will try to document it a bit, but at the moment I'm just trying to get it to work.
The next thing I have to do is decide how I am going to attach the rust repairs to the original guards. welding would be the obvious choice but heat and distortion are a problem. Also do you try and butt weld to get a tidy job (probably beyond my ability) or do you lap weld because it will be easier. If I lap weld then it has the chance of rusting out at the overlap.
I'm leaning towards lapping the panels and silver soldering them, that way the lap will be filled with silver solder and heat and distortion won't be such a problem. If anyone has some advice on this I'd be happy to hear from you. Because the join on the inner guards is not as long I will just weld them together.
John
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Post by toyotageek on Jun 19, 2009 6:51:31 GMT -8
I have to give props to people that are willing to take on something new! I wish I had the time and patience to attempt something like that! I don't know anything about welding, but you might check out this restoration of a Crown posted over on the JNC forum - the guy is from Malta. I'm not sure about his expertese, but I think he had to weld two fender halves together, and it looks like it was butt welded. You might also want to check with our own cman who is doing a very thourough restoration on his Corona. BTW - were you ever able to track down that other Tiara wagon (Rachel's Tiara)? |
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Post by rt26tiara on Jun 19, 2009 13:41:55 GMT -8
Thanks for the info.
Funny you should ask about Rachel's wagon. I have just recently tracked down her parents in Far North Queensland. I haven't talked to Rachel directly, as she is somewhere over seas, but her mother tells me that the wagon is under their house with a tarp over it. The engine is in need of repair or replacement.
I have had an add in a local trading magazine, asking for Tiara's or Tiara parts. I've been running the ad for around 6 months and have not had a reply until a couple of days ago when I was contacted by a bloke who told me he has a wagon and a sedan that he was going to restore but has changed his mind. The cars are stored at his friends property and he is trying to organise a time that I can go and look at them. I don't know what sort of condition they are in or how much he wants for them but I am in a dry climate and cars tend to last pretty well in these parts. Even if the wagon is a total write off, it would be good to have for spare glass etc. I only know of a hand full of wagons anywhere.
John
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Post by toyotageek on Jun 21, 2009 7:43:40 GMT -8
Good deal! ;D Definately keep us (ME!) posted on the Tiara situation Down Under! I just may have to interview you for a short story... |
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Post by rt26tiara on Jul 4, 2009 21:09:31 GMT -8
I have just given my guards(fenders) and rust repair sections to a friend of mine who is experienced in welding on repair sections. He uses a technique called hammer welding. This is a process where he butt welds the rust repair onto the guard, only welding small sections (about 20mm or so) at a time. He then puts a dolly on one side and hammers the weld on the other. As the weld cools it shrinks and tends to distort the panel. By hammering the weld, the weld is flattened out and stretched as it cools, this prevents distortion and makes for a nice flat weld. I will post some pictures of the new sections welded onto the guards when they are done.
John
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Post by rt26tiara on Sept 9, 2009 20:50:14 GMT -8
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FinToy
Toyota Fan
Dear Lord, please give me more patience. NOW!
Posts: 148
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Post by FinToy on Sept 10, 2009 22:41:44 GMT -8
How can I have missed this great topic! Really nice work, dude! I feel like amateur when looking at your work...
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Post by rt26tiara on Nov 22, 2009 19:47:33 GMT -8
Here's some pictures of the gaurds in place for final adjustments before prep and paint. I was also fortunate enough to find another wagon that I got panel sections off to use on my wagon (in the photo's the panel sections on my wagon have been removed in preparation for the replacment panels from the donar car). My wagon had had a crash repair in the past and a lack of replacment panels meant that alot of body filler was used. Now that I have replacment panels I am doing the job right. John.    |
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Post by rt26tiara on Nov 25, 2009 22:50:11 GMT -8
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Post by toyotageek on Nov 28, 2009 7:53:53 GMT -8
Alright John! The panels look great! Nice to see this project moving along. Keep up the good work, and keep us posted as to the progress! |
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Post by rt26tiara on Apr 1, 2011 21:10:04 GMT -8
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Post by rt26tiara on Apr 17, 2011 15:28:51 GMT -8
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Post by rt26tiara on May 5, 2011 15:06:03 GMT -8
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Double WOW! 
