Worried about starting a project...

Hi, well I'm quite seriously looking at mk1 golfs at the moment, hoping to grab a bargain off ebay for about 100 quid or so.

Obviously it won't be my road car as for this price it's going to have its faults! So it'll need reconnditioning.

I have no real body work experience and only a small amount of engine experience. I think a monthly amount of money I'd be willing to pay on parts will be about 200 quid. Obviously I'd do all the work myself as I'd love the chance for the hands on experience.

I will only have two days a week to work on it and for all these reasons I'm abit worried about starting a project!

So I have a general idea of the tools I'll need.

What advice would you give to a young lad about to start something that will probably overwhelm him? Also what tools should I need?

I've got all the basics, only two parts I can think of that I need is a torque wrench and welding equipment.

Thanks for your time and I'm sure this is going to be the place to come to when I start getting my problems!

Hi and Welcome John,

I was pretty much in the same situation when I brought mine last year.. once you've got your welding gear it's just a matter of getting stuck in!

any advise you need there's plenty of people here that can help!

the only area I found a little tricky was replacing the area around the filler neck

Where should I look for a welding kit? Never touched welding before and have no clue where to start heh.

Thanks for the support!

No problem!

I always heard that a MIG welder WITH gas is the best for beginners and I found mine really easy (MOT guy was really impressed!).. got mine from a local tool shop in Reading,Berkshire but places like Machine Mart and halfords do them.. even macro now! 8O

and a welding mask that clamps to your head is a good investment too in my opinion.. there's a good little MIG Welding book I brought from halfords for a few pounds that really helped.

You've just got to get stuck in with it, I ve done all the work on my mk1, apart from paint, even most of the the fillerwork, which the sprayshop were impressed with, electrics, engine, inside, as much as a can really.

I brought a 130 amp, turbo fan (so you dont have to let it cool down all the time, MIG welder, and although i learnt it in my job, it's quite easy, espsecialy as most of the welds are to be ground down, and fillered over. Just make sure theres some sort of hope of finshing it LOL!  :roll: , i've had that feeling a few times!

Get some welding clamps, (like the "mole grips" you get with different types for clamping joints.

Get a few tips, This is what the wire runs through at the top of the torch, these need replacing, if the torch dose not feel as good as it did with the brand new tip, It provides a good arc.

I used both masks, but the one i used the most was the one you hold in frt of your face, as it quicker to use, and easyier if under the car.

you wout need a lot of heat (low), and if a small gas bottle is used about 4 to 5 and a half turns used, always test on a scrap piece of metal, and always ensure a good earth connection, to bare metal.

Be careful not to burn out the metal not to much heat, and if the weld looks empty, or like it's poped, you need more gas, your see what i mean.

hope that will help you, now go and get your mk1, and bring it back to life!! :mrgreen:

within reason could a numpty learn to weld then? and how much you looking to get everything you need to get started?

i have always stuck to the theory why buy a rotten car in first place (unless its free and for parts) but then i cant weld or spray just dont mind changing engines and parts. realistically for 100 quid you aint gonna get much and you are gonna have to learn some new 'stuff' to get on with the jobs required. always seem to get a lot more motivation when its running and tested. be a laugh though mate, get yourself a haynes they seem to help and a mk2 whilst you get it on the road :wink: like they say you gotta get stuck in only way to learn owt,
good luck,
paul

I'd seriously look at taking a short evening class on welding at your local technical college. If you know nothing about it like I did its a great way to get a good grounding in the basics and see how it should be done.

Not only will you learn MIG, but gas welding too, and often the courses are part of the college that does car resto / repair courses so you can get lots of useful advice and often access to ramps, airtools and pro spraying booths etc for free.

My 10 evening course only cost about ?180, but was money well spent. I don't have a MIG setup yet, but when I do I'll be good to go. You can of course learn the whole thing from scratch yourself, and whichever route you take you just need to practice, practice, practice.

I tried the handheld masks, the ordinary head mounted flip down one and also the "auto tinting" ones. I have to say, that although the auto tinting ones cost a lot more, they make things soooo much easier and leave both hands free.

I think spending your first month's money on a welding / resto course would be a good investment.

I think you will struggle to find any salveagable Mk1 for 100 quid to be honest, especially on ebay, where generally imho bargains are few and far between - great for sellers, not so great for buyers!

I think if you choose a complete basket case it may overwhelm you and end up putting you off the whole idea of a resto.

At the basket end of the market I think there is very little cost difference between a base model Mk1 or a late model GTi. The parts and panel costs are likley to be similar so I'd advise going for a GTi as your starting point. It will be worth more (probably) when restored and has a bit more performance.

Good luck,

Chris

Well i've got a mk2 as a daily driver and it's brill, my girlfriend is looking to buy me the welding equipment. I'll be getting the rest of the equipment over christmas time hopefully.

I'm in no rush for the project to get done so one area at a time such as engine, suspension, body, electrics etc.

My problem is space, I've got two garages but from other people's projects their garages look huge! Think I'll have to refurbish individual panels rather then getting the whole car done in one go!

Thanks for the support everyone I'm really excited, like a little kid waiting for christmas!

Good idea with the short course, think I might be able to get it for free being under 19 or something silly like that. That would be a good starting point!

I don't plan on having to tax, mot or insure the car so running it to the college and back wouldn't work for me unfortunately but it'd be a great place to learn the skills!

Yeah I think I'll be lucky to get a golf for under a 100 quid but I'll aim low and might get lucky, got my daily driver for just 150 quid and it's perfect mechanically and in the body, just not a GTI which is why it was so cheap!

Thanks for the ideas chris, going to research courses in my area now!

Oh just though I could bring panels to the college to work on! This sounds like  a plan is about to launch!

No probs   .

The other thing I would mention is that where I did my welding course there were a few guys on the course restoring Landys of various vintages. One of them was quite happy to offer the use of one of his Landys and his trailer for the cost of petrol and a few beer tokens  :wink:

I am sure on most welding / resto courses someone will have access to a trailer and be able to help out with moving your car for a similar arrangement.

For a full strip down resto the only thing I would say is it makes your life ten times easier if you have a decent sized garage to use. One of the reasons I have put off more major work on my Mk1 is my garage is tiny - barely enough room for the car in there which makes working on it a bit of a pain.

Chris

With abit of luck one might be availible at the course I choose!

I think when I start the full strip down I will wheel it in and out of the garage for as long as I keep the wheels on it, heh. After that it's going to be getting a small tent to go over it to keep it dry!

John, Found this on ebay. Same guy also has a couple of Caddy's for sale. Anu good for you??


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VW-GOLF-MK1-RABBIT-GOLF-3-DOOR-1100cc_W0QQitemZ4571430816QQcategoryZ9889QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

LOL - just PM'd him the same link! HAHAHAHAHA  :mrgreen:

I found him yesterday looking for Caddy's, though the two he has are shot…

i've just enrolled on 2 courses at the college I work at….

Vehicle Restoration - 2 hours on thursday evenings for 11 weeks

Vehicle Bodywork Polishing - 2 hours on tuesdays for 3 weeks

The courses are free for me as I work at the college :mrgreen:
They're not that expensive though normally, ?83 and ?14 respectively.

I've restored a mini in the past, so I have a fair bit of self taught knowledge anyway but I'm sure the course will teach me a few things.

Good luck with getting a sound project, you'll be MUCH better off to get the most solid car you can for the money, I'd shop around a bit first especially if you're not in a hurry to get started. Bodywork is a real chaw and the most time consuming part of any project.

Cheers,

Ross

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/83-VOLKSWAGEN-VW-GOLF-1-8-GTI-LHASA-GREEN-MK1_W0QQitemZ4572509848QQcategoryZ9873QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Here's another - Lhasa Green Gti this time at just ?41 and no reserve.
The guy seems to have been very honest about it's condition too…

AL.

Couple of great looking cars there, unfortunately need to wait a month before I start shopping to get abit of money together first but thanks for the help, it's great! Would talk more but got to run!

At first I thought you had no chance with a ?100 budget. But, looking around ebay, etc I think you could be fine. Obviously, a ?100 car will probably not have MoT or tax but if you're okay with mechanical and other tasks, should be achievable. Although recent to the Golf, the parts supply is good and things seem affordable, compared to other cars I've had in the past.

My advice would be to keep checking the Volkswagens section of ebay with "Golf Mk1" as your search criteria, and don't forget to also check the classics section, some people put theirs into that section.

I notice the people in the classic section know how to price their GTI and expect alot for their car, I'm hopefully going to find someone who doesn't know the true valuve of their car  :twisted: Without trying to be too mean, heh, just helps to know what you're selling!

I'm looking at this car at the moment, hopefully get the guy to give it to me for free because it's a pile of junk! Rusted through, missing wheel nuts crap paint job etc etc!


With abit of luck I can get it cheap if not free! He's looking for 200 for it at the moment which it just is NOT worth!