Building and maintenance tips
Building tips;
- Assembling the body panels be sure to use plenty of glue, wipe off excess whilst glue is still wet. We use Titebond II waterproof wood glue which is easy to work with and gives a very strong bond.
- Clamp glued joints overnight to ensure no movement while setting.
- Fitting front wing caps - we bed the caps onto the body using an adhesive such as Pink Grip or an all purpose adhesive. Be sure to apply plenty on the underside for extra support. Press the caps in to bed into the adhesive, wipe off excess. Once set use wood or car body filler (we use Ronseal Wood Filler) to fill remaining gaps, this is easy to sand and smooth off afterwards to prepare for painting.
- Once the body is built and before painting - dry fit all front and rear axles, brake assembly, motor(s) and motor mountings, tailgate and bonnet. After the body is painted you are just putting bolts through holes rather than marking out and drilling into a newly painted body.
- Buy a decent wire terminal crimping tool to ensure all wiring connections are solid, example below;
- Painting - seal all cut edges of panels to prevent water ingress - apply several costs of sealer and or primer to machined cut edges.
- Underside of floor panel and inside wheel arches - we apply Schultz black waxy stone chip coating for extra waterproofing on the underside of the body.
- Use 2K or 2 pack paint system if you can get it - tougher finish and goes off quicker than other paints.