TR2/3/3A "On Frame" restoration?

OK,

I've read all kind of posts from over the years on how to stabilize your body with or without the doors on, so when you pull it from the chassis it doesn't get all twisted etc.

But my '62 3B sills (inner and outer) and floors are all pretty solid, no holes and just some pretty light surface rust that I can handle with some serious wire brushing and POR or equivalent from Eastwood. The under chassis itself is grungy with 50+ years of accumulated oil and caked on dirt, but thankfully no major rust. I've gone over it tapping it with a ball peen hammer listening for that soft sickening soft "thunk" noise. I get a solid steel "clang" or "ping" every 3 or 4 inches along the chassis members, even the rear spring mounts and outriggers.

Body panels (Fenders, doors and front valance) all need some love, but aren't horrible either. Of course that opinion may change when I pull them and see the horrors hidden behind. The rears (of course) have more "Bondo" on the bottom corners than I want. But I think they're all salvageable.

In short, I'm thinking of doing the work with the body "in situ", one fender etc. at a time and using Waxoyl, POR or similar from Eastwood to seal and stabilize any rust I find, including in the frame. Also replacing all the old "pointed" bolts with stainless kits from Macy's with new cage nuts spot welded on as I go, since I'll have the fenders off and easy to work on.

That way I can focus on the suspension, putting in a new brake system, the new wiring harness and the steering box (adjustable), which desperately needs a total rebuild. Might farm that out to Macy's?

Last part will be doing the engine, but this is my 4th engine rebuild, so that's the "easy" part for me. Just have to decide how much tweaking I want to do with it, e.g. cam, lifters, head shaving, etc. And of course putting in the new clutch, throwout and plate with my OD tranny and eventually fitting the hardtop to it.

What, if anything, am I potentially overlooking or not realizing by doing it this way?

I just haven't seen much in the way of others doing it this way, everybody, even the restoration books, all talk about 1 or 2 piece frame off. So I'm figuring I must have overlooked something or there's some awful pitfall I'll run into?

Paranoid? Sure, but in my defense, I've been driving a TR since I bought this one out of Calumet auto wreckers yard in 1968.

Don

Seems like a perfectly reasonable way to restore a TR that does not have extreme problems.

Certainly simplifies the preservation of panel fit which it seems can be a challenge once the body has been off.

My Tr4 was in very much the same state. Solid, but ugly, with the usual minor rust issues in the lower fenders. I didn't pull the body off of the frame either. The end result is a pretty driver, not a show car. Just what I was looking for. It really depends on what you are going to do with it. If you want to win shows with it, you probably should do a frame off.

No real interest in shows, other than attending them so I can see what others are doing and to make myself feel bad and inadequate as an owner.

My goal is a clean, fun road car and to keep it on the road, reliable enough for the occasional road trip when the spirit moves me, so it will eventually become a burden on my children and grandchildren, long after I'm gone.

DonP said:

No real interest in shows, other than attending them so I can see what others are doing and to make myself feel bad and inadequate as an owner...

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If you want to feel like you've got the best car at the show... just let some kids sit in it:

I'm doing my tr2 the same way that you are describing! Body on frame, until it's sound enough to be removed. I'm going towards a nice daily driver, even though I'm doing a frame off. Depending on how much rust/rot your dealing with should be the answer for you. I've got lots of rust/rot so I can keep the line until I lift the body off it will go out to the media blaster for mass cleaning as well as the frame. If I had a better example,I'd be doing it all on frame as it would be faster. And I'm not looking for a 100point show car, I want to daily drive it.
As for the repair side, it's a little hard dealing with the floor pans, but not too bad, haven't yet tried the sills, once I get some more solid metal welded in ill tackle the sills. Piece by piece it goes together, it's just a slow going.

I replaced my outer sills over 12 years ago, with some I made in a friends sheet metal shop with industrial sized metal brakes and heavier steel. I was pleasantly surprised to find the inner sills still in good shape. But I power wire brushed everything in sight and Waxoyled the heck out of everything before putting the outers on.

I've heard that drilling out all those spot welds on the floor pans is a tedious job, but not too tough technically, just messy. But it's the only way to do it. Saw one guy try to just cut out the rusty bottom of the floor pan and "fit" the new one in place. He wound up twisting the new pan trying to force fit it in and had to buy 2 new ones to do it right.

Good luck.

DonP said:

I've heard that drilling out all those spot welds on the floor pans is a tedious job, but not too tough technically, just messy.

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Or, do like I did on my TR2. Just park it in the back yard for 35 years until the floor completely rusts away!

They make special drill bits for this purpose. However, I have never had one and have just used the best bit that I have on hand. I figured that it would be toast when done. Really not that tedious a job.
Charley