Definately! Who do we have to speak to about displaying our cars in the e30zone section?beardymat wrote:a sport section sounds good,lets show them alpina snobs that we can be exclusive too, lol
89 325i sport resto (work begins at last)
Moderator: martauto
im lovin this thread top work fella
Yes a sport section is deff needed, these cars are iconic enough to deserve it.
Sports rule!! Doeasn't have to be an Alpina/Hartge/M3 does it- a proper sport is still an awesome car to own and drive. Have been watching your progress dude, big hats off to you. I admire people with the skill and patience to do a car properly, greatly looking forward to seeing the end result- top work 
I thought the guy wekding my car was good...... (bad joke) not a patch on you. I have to say if mine turns out half as good as that I would be very chuffed. Keep up the good work mate, time and patience.
"We aint here for a long time, we're here for a good time."
"Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive."
"Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive."
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dom-1984-320i
- E30 Zone Camper
- Posts: 1246
- Joined: Tue May 16, 2006 11:00 pm
- Location: Sunny Essex
Good work mate, keep it up your doing a top job!
M20B25 actually 
Mat ,
Your work is awsome. Beats my birdshit welding anyday!!
What are you using to cut out the rusty bits?? plasma cutter or grinder / dremel??
lee
Your work is awsome. Beats my birdshit welding anyday!!
What are you using to cut out the rusty bits?? plasma cutter or grinder / dremel??
lee
1989 SCHWARZ 320i SE , 4 DOOR!!!!
You say the magic's gone,Well i'm not a magician
You say the spark's gone
Well get an electrician..........
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beardymat
- E30 Zone Squatter
- Posts: 1979
- Joined: Tue Jun 14, 2005 11:00 pm
- Location: sheffield, city of steel, and rust apparently
hi guys
thanks once again for the positive comments, especially pigoenpete err pacerpete lol.
got the last of the welding done this weekend so here come some pics.been asked a few times about equipment used and how i went about the inner arches so ill go into a little more detail. im surprised to hear how many bodyshops want to replace the whole rear quater panel to gain access to the inners but this will just create problems down the line as the seams you open up will be prone to rust.just ask temple8e30 about the car he just scrapped which had at some stage had a quarter panel replaced.the job itself had been done well but all the seams had rusted quite badly to the point where the rear panel had become detatched from the quarter panel
what im getting at is if it aint broke, dont fix it
right then here goes
the bulk of the inner arch was cut out with an air saw or sabre saw as its sometimes refered to.a bit like an air powered hacksaw.goes through steel like a knife through butter
then the remaining metal was removed by grinding down the spotwelds using a belt sander.you could drill out the welds from the inside of the boot and behind the rear seat but you still need to deal with the welds which arent easily accessable and since i wanted to spot weld as much as possible i chose to do things this way
the new inner arch was prepared for fitting.the seams were cleaned back to bare metal and the studs added to screw the dirt shield and petrol lock solenoid to.dont know why these studs dont come fitted as they all need them
an arch repair panel was used for replacing the arch lip and the inch or so of metal below the bumper and under the side pod.the panel used was from a company called hadrian which is the better of the aftermarket panel companys much in the same way peugeot is the better of the french car companys lol.
the shape of these arches is only similar to the original which is one of the reasons why i only used a small section of it.
the arch was cut down roughly to size and then fitted to the car underlapping the original quarter panel.i then used the airsaw again to cut along the line of overlap to give a butt joint.
the arch was then tack welded esuring that the two parts sit flush with each other.this will ensure that when you grind down the weld it will take minimum of filler to get it smooth.fill in the gaps using tack welds until it is completely welded.take your time and keep it cool to avoid distortion.
the inner arch was then welded to the inner inner arch
i waited until i had welded on the outer arch to make sure i didnt have to make any adjustments to the fit.where i couldnt get with the spot welder i used mig welds between the two panels.the outer arch was then welded to the inner using mig plug welds along the arch lip.
last but not least came the humungous holes in the inner inner arch, at £150 a side i decided that a couple of patches was the way forward.i cut out the rusty metal and used the pieces as templates to make repair pieces. i then had to add the stud on the inside and bracket to hold the filler neck under the arch.
now all i have to do is sort the small imperfections and dings in the panels and she will be ready for paint.i dont paint myself so i will be entrusting that to a lad i have worked alongside and who i am sure will make an excellent job.i will continue with the photos as things progress.
i have to stress that things will continue to improve after the car hits the road.lots of mechanical refurb/improvement and retrim to come as funds allow.
2.8 build will begin with photo`s as soon as i can source a crank
thanks once again for the positive comments, especially pigoenpete err pacerpete lol.
got the last of the welding done this weekend so here come some pics.been asked a few times about equipment used and how i went about the inner arches so ill go into a little more detail. im surprised to hear how many bodyshops want to replace the whole rear quater panel to gain access to the inners but this will just create problems down the line as the seams you open up will be prone to rust.just ask temple8e30 about the car he just scrapped which had at some stage had a quarter panel replaced.the job itself had been done well but all the seams had rusted quite badly to the point where the rear panel had become detatched from the quarter panel
what im getting at is if it aint broke, dont fix it
right then here goes
the bulk of the inner arch was cut out with an air saw or sabre saw as its sometimes refered to.a bit like an air powered hacksaw.goes through steel like a knife through butter
then the remaining metal was removed by grinding down the spotwelds using a belt sander.you could drill out the welds from the inside of the boot and behind the rear seat but you still need to deal with the welds which arent easily accessable and since i wanted to spot weld as much as possible i chose to do things this way
the new inner arch was prepared for fitting.the seams were cleaned back to bare metal and the studs added to screw the dirt shield and petrol lock solenoid to.dont know why these studs dont come fitted as they all need them
an arch repair panel was used for replacing the arch lip and the inch or so of metal below the bumper and under the side pod.the panel used was from a company called hadrian which is the better of the aftermarket panel companys much in the same way peugeot is the better of the french car companys lol.
the shape of these arches is only similar to the original which is one of the reasons why i only used a small section of it.
the arch was cut down roughly to size and then fitted to the car underlapping the original quarter panel.i then used the airsaw again to cut along the line of overlap to give a butt joint.
the arch was then tack welded esuring that the two parts sit flush with each other.this will ensure that when you grind down the weld it will take minimum of filler to get it smooth.fill in the gaps using tack welds until it is completely welded.take your time and keep it cool to avoid distortion.
the inner arch was then welded to the inner inner arch
i waited until i had welded on the outer arch to make sure i didnt have to make any adjustments to the fit.where i couldnt get with the spot welder i used mig welds between the two panels.the outer arch was then welded to the inner using mig plug welds along the arch lip.last but not least came the humungous holes in the inner inner arch, at £150 a side i decided that a couple of patches was the way forward.i cut out the rusty metal and used the pieces as templates to make repair pieces. i then had to add the stud on the inside and bracket to hold the filler neck under the arch.
now all i have to do is sort the small imperfections and dings in the panels and she will be ready for paint.i dont paint myself so i will be entrusting that to a lad i have worked alongside and who i am sure will make an excellent job.i will continue with the photos as things progress.
i have to stress that things will continue to improve after the car hits the road.lots of mechanical refurb/improvement and retrim to come as funds allow.
2.8 build will begin with photo`s as soon as i can source a crank
No longer self employed but still available for welding duties.
Excelent work fella, cant wait to see it done!
Fantastic work there Matt, look forward to seeing it at Gaydon 
Yeah I agree with CiLK_WuRM wouldn't it be great!!!
Keep it coming Matt....
wouldn't it be great!!! Keep it coming Matt....
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Simon13
- The longest resto in the world !
- Posts: 22697
- Joined: Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:00 pm
- Location: Camberley, Surrey don't u know
Why do you so far away!
Matt i had the pina out the garage on sunday and was looking for rust in the boot and found those 2 holes in the same place as yours, they all rust there!
Looking good mate very good!
Matt i had the pina out the garage on sunday and was looking for rust in the boot and found those 2 holes in the same place as yours, they all rust there!
Looking good mate very good!
Sorry got to say I am gagging for an update on this project, love restoration pictures, people actually getting there hands dirty and doing a GOOD job. In my opinion better than the credit card mob, keep up the good good work fella.
(enough smoke blowing me thinks)
(enough smoke blowing me thinks)
"We aint here for a long time, we're here for a good time."
"Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive."
"Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive."
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bmwe30mtech
- Engaged to the E30 Zone
- Posts: 5288
- Joined: Thu Feb 03, 2005 11:00 pm
Im always checking this thread for more pictures .
.1988 M3 EvoII, Macau Blue/EvoII trim
1989 325i Sport M Tech II, Diamond Black/Black leather
1989 325i Sport M Tech II, Diamond Black/Black leather
Now your just teasing with one pic of yours paul!
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beardymat
- E30 Zone Squatter
- Posts: 1979
- Joined: Tue Jun 14, 2005 11:00 pm
- Location: sheffield, city of steel, and rust apparently
hi chaps
should be getting some more photos up soon.
ive finished with the welding and got all the small bits of filler sorted and plenty of sealer under the arches etc. just waiting for the painter to make a start on the prep work with me.
ive also ordered all the bits n bobs to put it back together including 5 new tyres (toyo proxes).once the shells painted it will go up on axle stands so i can send the wheels off for refurb whilst the rest of the bits get painted.
pics soon folks i promise
should be getting some more photos up soon.
ive finished with the welding and got all the small bits of filler sorted and plenty of sealer under the arches etc. just waiting for the painter to make a start on the prep work with me.
ive also ordered all the bits n bobs to put it back together including 5 new tyres (toyo proxes).once the shells painted it will go up on axle stands so i can send the wheels off for refurb whilst the rest of the bits get painted.
pics soon folks i promise
No longer self employed but still available for welding duties.
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beardymat
- E30 Zone Squatter
- Posts: 1979
- Joined: Tue Jun 14, 2005 11:00 pm
- Location: sheffield, city of steel, and rust apparently
a few more pics at last. had to wait a while for my painter to get on the car so its not as far on as i would like but never mind.i got the car fully stripped and we were hoping to get it primed on friday night so we could paint it on saturday but delays meant we only got it primed
car in the primer booth ready for priming.didnt get a photo in primer but ill get some this week.went in today to apply stoneguard to the arch lips and under arches so it has time to dry properly before painting.
had to strip the bonnet back to bare metal as it had had a repair which had crazed so the only option was to get out the nitromors
looking forward to putting it all back together, got a stack load of new parts ready to go on along with some freshly powder coated bits.going to be powder coating more bits when the car is on the road
heres a couple of pics of my painters new project car.he`s gonna run it a while and then we`re going to convert it to short wheelbase like the ones built by audi.should make an interesting project
car in the primer booth ready for priming.didnt get a photo in primer but ill get some this week.went in today to apply stoneguard to the arch lips and under arches so it has time to dry properly before painting.
had to strip the bonnet back to bare metal as it had had a repair which had crazed so the only option was to get out the nitromors
looking forward to putting it all back together, got a stack load of new parts ready to go on along with some freshly powder coated bits.going to be powder coating more bits when the car is on the road
heres a couple of pics of my painters new project car.he`s gonna run it a while and then we`re going to convert it to short wheelbase like the ones built by audi.should make an interesting project
No longer self employed but still available for welding duties.