1987 300D (Bodhi) rolling restoration - Page 2 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

vstech · #16 07-05-2016, 05:10 AM

Ok, the welding you have done up top shows signs of too cool and too rapid a feed. Ya want the welds to bridge the joint, and the feed needs to JUST keep up with the "flame" before you tackle the next repair, practice on the spare frame.
Smooth beads are important here with this repair. A LOT of pressure on the cup.
I'd also recommend fabricating a reinforcement to cover the weld after you grind it smooth.

Dee8go · #17 07-05-2016, 09:27 AM

I am starting to wonder if there is any original metal in Bodhi . . . It seems like you've replaced so many parts that you must have a nearly new car. I admire you persistence!

BodhiBenz1987 · #18 07-05-2016, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vstech

Ok, the welding you have done up top shows signs of too cool and too rapid a feed. Ya want the welds to bridge the joint, and the feed needs to JUST keep up with the "flame" before you tackle the next repair, practice on the spare frame.
Smooth beads are important here with this repair. A LOT of pressure on the cup.
I'd also recommend fabricating a reinforcement to cover the weld after you grind it smooth.

Thanks for the feedback ... I was concerned before that maybe I was too "ropey" on the last ones. So, I should turn up the voltage and turn down the feed? I will definitely be doing some practice since I haven't MIG welded in a while and need to figure out settings on this thickness anyway.
Or ... do you think maybe I should try to TIG this? I was going to buy the torch and pedal anyway but I'm thinking this area will just be too dirty to get good TIG welds (can't really clean the back well). I'm maybe a little better at TIG but have not done butt welds yet.

BodhiBenz1987 · #19 07-05-2016, 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dee8go

I am starting to wonder if there is any original metal in Bodhi . . . It seems like you've replaced so many parts that you must have a nearly new car. I admire you persistence!

The funny thing is it's such a nice-looking car (as you've seen) and I don't think anyway would guess it's a rust bucket. I wish I'd known everything I know now 10 years ago and I could have stopped a lot of this stuff before it became so bad!

BodhiBenz1987 · #20 07-24-2016, 01:13 AM

I finally welded in the patch on the passenger side where the spring perch will go. I need to touch it up and then add the perch itself. I think overall my welds are better (flatter) though there are still some points it is too ropey. I will grind those down to try again. I did buy a borescope camera for my phone which is a fun tool. I could see the penetration on the back looked very thorough.
I did a lot of practice on those plug welds (which from what I can tell need to hold the bulk of the force) on my scrap pieces and tested my practice plugs by trying to break them apart with a chisel and shop press (which a friend pointed out was not very smart safety-wise so I won't do it again!), and they held.

I did some at the top after I took this but need to fix a couple spots where I left too much of a gap. It is plug welded to the frame on the inside there so it's pretty sturdy but I want to close up any stress risers.

Close-up shows they are pretty flat ... some of the bulgy spots are where I ran one stitch over the other.

From the back:

pj67coll · #21 07-24-2016, 10:53 PM

Impressive, most impressive...

Would I be right in assuming that these spring perches are the same part as used in the W210? And that the only reason they don't fail as much on the W124 is they were properly welded on this series to begin with compared with the ludicrous tack welding of the W210?

- Peter.

BodhiBenz1987 · #22 07-25-2016, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj67coll

Impressive, most impressive...

Would I be right in assuming that these spring perches are the same part as used in the W210? And that the only reason they don't fail as much on the W124 is they were properly welded on this series to begin with compared with the ludicrous tack welding of the W210?

- Peter.

It is a slightly different cup but similar design. I welded on the cup itself tonight and did my best to duplicate the factory welds. I don't have time to put up a lot of pictures but here's one so you get the idea. It was originally spot welded in the areas you see my (kind of ugly) plug welds. There were also two little beads at the bottom like mine (one on the left looks weird, I ground it and went back over because it didn't really fuse to the bottom piece like I wanted). There was also a small weld bead on the outer side of each leg which I tried to duplicate ... the original welds were just a nice little worm and mine are kind of bigger but I think they do the job.
So, the factory design is nine spot welds and four conventional welds. I believe on the W210 it's just eight spot welds. However, it's not usually the welds that fail, is it? But the metal? That might be the key on the W124's less frequent failure ... there is more metal involved in the "leg" and also a different angle. It may also simply have been coated better. But I'm guessing a lot of them have some rust, but just never reach the point of blowing off because there's so much more to rust through before that happens.

Not a great picture, but this is my weld on the side in about the same spot as the factory weld. The gold stuff is weld-through primer made with copper.

I'm pretty happy with most of my welds on this job though it was frustrating because there were times with the same settings in one area would end up bulgy and in others perfect. I do a lot of practice on scraps but with jobs like this there is always some variance on the go (and tough positions), and for that I just need experience. I do feel confident that these are strong enough to hold the spring (probably stronger than the metal around them) ... but I'm nervous how they will hold up over time with vibration and such. I hope I did a good job, I certainly tried to take my time and be careful. I spent forever lining up the cup to get it the right height and angle! Now I get to do it all again on the other side, albeit with less of the back panel to worry about.

pj67coll · #23 03-23-2017, 09:09 AM

Any update on this Bodhi? I'm curious to know how it's worked out?

- Peter.

Diseasel300 · #24 03-23-2017, 11:30 AM

I consider myself extremely fortunate to live in an area where just about nothing rusts - ever. I have zero experience welding on cars (though I have a lot of experience welding), and I admire the talent and persistence of the folks dedicating the time and effort to their cars to keep them in good, safe operating condition.

BodhiBenz1987 · #25 04-23-2017, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj67coll

Any update on this Bodhi? I'm curious to know how it's worked out?

- Peter.

I sort of forgot about my own thread so I'm just seeing this now, sorry. I will add some photos soon. Unfortunately I'm nowhere near done. I kind of took a break over the winter because I just got overwhelmed, and had to work on my Jeep and other issues.
So far I have finished the whole front end. Both spring perches are new and I did the frame rail metal similar to the side I already posted. I put the whole suspension back in and was pleased that the spring perches didn't blow off when the springs went in.

Looks like it sits evenly, aside from the expected need for an alignment, so at this point that much seems to be a success. Of course driving it a while will tell. I feel pretty confident they will hold up as I was really careful with my welds and getting good penetration, as well as finishing (seam sealer, coating).
I also patched four rusted-out areas of the wheel well and put all that stuff back in the engine compartment.
And I redyed the interior which was a mixed result, but I'll post more on that later. It was an ordeal, I had to do it three times with some batch-matching drama. It looks great now but I don't think it bonded right, so I'm probably going to end up with a "peeling paint" interior which is worse than a faded one! But I figure for as long as it lasts, it'll look amazing. And whenever it goes downhill, well, I'll take it all out and start all over again.
Now I'm working on the rest, and there's a lot left. I bought rocker panels from MB, which I originally didn't know where available, so I'm going to replace the full rockers on each side. I have the rust area cut out but need to remove the entire rest of the rocker which will be about 200 spot welds to drill out at least. Before I do that I will patch the couple small areas of the floor that need it ... I want the floors to be fully intact before I remove the outer rockers and bottom of A, B, C pillars (which you have to do to get the rocker off/on). Then I have to do two spots in the back wheel well. I also need to get someone to cut out the rear glass for me and set it aside because there is rust under a small area of that I need to fix.
The one thing I think I'll save for later is one rusted subframe perch. I had previously "repaired" it with POR products and it's pretty solid. My reasoning for not doing it at the same time as everything else: Having redone so much on the front, I want to leave the rear untouched until I confirm the front rides OK. Otherwise if the car has a handling issue, it will be hard to narrow down whether I made a mistake in the front or rear. I'm torn though because I'd rather do that welding with the interior out and everything off. So we'll see.
When I get all that done I will paint the car. I may regret attempting that but honestly right now there are several patched areas that I've attempted in the past, and some different "shades" of white. The driver's side was repainted in 2012 and looks great, although there was some rust around the quarter window that looks like it wasn't fully addressed (seal was never removed). So I hate to undo that paint job, but if I don't paint the whole thing, I'll have blending issues because I'm not that good a painter.
The other things I'm considering is trying to fix the A/C but I have no idea where to start. It hasn't worked in 15+ years and I know it had a leak and a bad compressor. The compressor I can do whenever but if the evap is the leak source (I have no idea if it is), now is the time to do it. Everything is stripped out of the car but the dash, which I can take out somewhat easily at this point. So maybe I should replace the evap now? I don't know. I'll probably do all the pods either way.
That's about it. I had originally hoped to have this car done by Aug 2016.

Now I'm just in way over my head and I really, really miss having it. But I don't want to rush it, slap it back together and not do the full job. Now I'm hoping to have it done by this August. I have tickets to see Coldplay in Toronto then and I'd love to drive my 300D up there. It's one of my favorite drives and it would be a nice nostalgic combination since my car and Coldplay have been two constants for me in the last couple decades. It's hard to see the end of this project ... I'm still taking things off the car, so putting it back together seems far off.

It's kinda hard to get motivated when it doesn't feel like I have any chance of completing it when I want to. I think for someone else this is not that big deal of a job, but for me every single part of it is a learning experience and challenge.

BodhiBenz1987 · #26 05-27-2017, 09:00 PM

Starting in on the rocker panels and just thought I'd share the horror show I'm dealing with (photo attached). I filled one hole in the front floorboard, the most significant rust on the floors ... there are two spots in the back below the rear seats that need to be done, and one under the driver's frame rail that's mainly just around that exhaust shield bracket ... pain to reach. I also has the rear windshield cut out and found two areas of rust that will have to be cut out (they could be treated as is but I want them gone).
Needless to say, discouraging right now. I'm not giving up.

pj67coll · #27 05-28-2017, 11:14 AM

Thank's for the updates. I know it seems like a horror story but you are so far into it now, with so much accomplished that I'd say you are probably past the half way point.

Don't lose heart even if it becomes apparent that you wont' make the Toronto trip. In the end you'll have a truly remarkable vehicle that will be with you for decades more. And I think your musings about the AC are correct. Now is the time to pull everything out of there and fix the entire system.

I'm sorry if I missed it but have you even said what happened to your 240D? Do you still have it?

- Peter.

BodhiBenz1987 · #28 06-07-2017, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj67coll

Thank's for the updates. I know it seems like a horror story but you are so far into it now, with so much accomplished that I'd say you are probably past the half way point.

Don't lose heart even if it becomes apparent that you wont' make the Toronto trip. In the end you'll have a truly remarkable vehicle that will be with you for decades more. And I think your musings about the AC are correct. Now is the time to pull everything out of there and fix the entire system.

I'm sorry if I missed it but have you even said what happened to your 240D? Do you still have it?

- Peter.

Thanks for the encouragement, Peter. I'm hoping there will be a point where I just get into a groove and things start falling into place. I think once I get the wheel well and rocker sorted out on one side, it will be a big step ... because then doing it on the other won't feel as daunting. Right now I'm trying to find the correct sheet metal replacement for the area the subframe mounts to. It looks like the mount replacements are NLA so I may have to do a lot of gruntwork getting them off a parts car. But, I'll see if the Classic Center can help me out, I sent them an email.

I do still have the 240D, I actually just got it up and moving for the first time in two years! It sat in the back of the garage waiting its turn for rust repair but I decided to just do a quick patch of the one area I thought wasn't safe and drive it as is, on sunny days. It started and ran perfectly after all that sitting, but the clutch went to the floor. It ended up needing a slave cylinder and hose, easy fix. I did have to get a windshield put in it to pass registration (the reason I let it sit so long, didn't want to spend the money but finally decided to). Other than that it's driving well and good work transportation, so I could give my dad his S320 back (I miss the 140 already though). I'm not sure what I'll do with the 240 once the 300 is back in use, but I'm hoping at that point maybe rust repair won't seem like such a big deal, and I'll start fixing it bit by bit too. It's much worse than the 300D but everything I see looks like I can fix it.

Diseasel300 · #29 06-07-2017, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BodhiBenz1987

I'm hoping there will be a point where I just get into a groove and things start falling into place. I think once I get the wheel well and rocker sorted out on one side, it will be a big step ... because then doing it on the other won't feel as daunting. Right now I'm trying to find the correct sheet metal replacement for the area the subframe mounts to. It looks like the mount replacements are NLA so I may have to do a lot of gruntwork getting them off a parts car.

The biggest challenge I had with getting the SDL back on the road was the sheer number of things that had to be done. I had a hard time getting any one thing taken care of and didn't really have a direction to go.

What really helped me out was setting out a plan with a prioritized list of what needed to be done and in what order. As I went through, I crossed things off. It seems like a small thing to do and perhaps a waste of time to someone else, but it did help me and gave me a sense of accomplishment. Towards the end, I started getting a momentum and challenging myself to cross extra things off the list ahead of schedule. That's when it starts to become fun.

Now that I have the car back on the road, I've been using it in daily-driver duty for the last few weeks and it's been very rewarding.

jake12tech · #30 06-08-2017, 05:13 PM

A lot of effort putting this car back together. I appreciate it. I built my own control arm mount for both sides on my 92 300d. I wasn't paying the price of the dealer or classic center when I know I can build something better. I also had to weld the wheel wells.. I got SUPER lucky the rockers weren't rotted. I cleaned up the surface rust and POR-15'd them and slapped the rocker cover back on them.

Also, don't worry about your welds being pretty.. As long as they're penetrating and strong that's all that matters. If you grind it down, you will never know how ugly they were. But your welds are great for a beginner/intermediate welder. Pretty welds come with time, but don't worry about that now as long they stick good and don't burn through.