How to work on old nuggets

If you've watched MOOG's new build series (EPISODE 1 | EPISODE 2 | EPISODE 3 ) then you'll be aware he's neck-deep into making his brand new 1979 Toyota Hilux ready for road duties. It's been someone's work truck for a few decades so it needs plenty of love but, as anyone used to working on classic cars knows, this can often come with its own sparkling stitch-ups. 

I've got a long history working on old nuggets (you can watch the MCM video on my '64 Pontiac HERE) so here are some tips I've learned when working on old junk.

TAKE PHOTOS

Even when you know the car you're hurling spanners at, take some photos of what you're working on so you have a visual reference in case a previous owner (or shop) has modified the car and left you facing a sparkling stitch-up (like the rear brakes on MOOG's Hilux.

Removing parts from the car as a complete system, where possible, is also a great way to not lose track of all the springs, clips, pins and other silly things old cars are made up from. When doing this, however, make sure you have access to a quality vice that's securely mounted, as you may find some of these bolts are difficult to undo, which leads me to...

STOCK UP ON QUALITY WORKSHOP SPRAYS

Cleaning decades of schmutz off the car and using penetrating sprays is par for the course with old cars.  As cars are used over decades the fasteners holding them together will bind up with dirt, grot, and sometimes rust, so you'll need to carve through all that grease and grime, firstly, and then use a penetrating spray to help cleanly undo these parts. 

If you go in blind, you run the risk of snapping off and stripping the thread out of bolts and nuts, which can set you back days. Once you remove the fasteners you should also consider using taps and dies to chase as many threads on the car as possible - cleaning these up will make the car impossibly easier to put back together and work on in the future as you massively reduce the risk of cross-threaded or stripped bolts and nuts.

 DON'T BE SCARED TO USE SCIENCE

Fire near cars is bad. But sometimes we need the power of heat to undo stubborn fasteners. To remove the Pitman arm on MOOG's Hilux I had to use a combination of heat from a butane torch to shrink Pitman Arm, along with spraying the splined neck of the steering boxitself with CRC Freeze Spray (CLICK HERE). The theory is that cold will contract metal and heat expands it, and this can work on all sorts of fasteners. 

If you do this you should definitely give the threaded sections a good clean with degreaser and a wire brush (or tap/die), just to make sure there's no damage left behind. 

HOT WASH IS THE WAY

If you're used to working on late-model cars it's unlikely you're ready for how dirty old cars are. In fact, there's a whole additional step involving cleaning up parts before you reinstall them (or swap them out), which you should do.

Regular aerosol degreasers are OK at cleaning up really grimey old parts, but nothing beats a warm degreaser in a bath for proper grease-busting power. Talk to your local chemical supplier to find out what is a good washing degreaser that isn't going to strip the fingerprints off your hands (some can do this, even when wearing gloves), and grab some stiff-bristle brushes, a large tub, and PPE, then get to washing all the parts, bolts and nuts you remove so they're ready to be reinstalled all nice and fresh.  

WORK WITH FRIENDS

Having a friend on hand to assist you is a key to working on old cars. Sometimes you can tap them in when you've used up all your brain or arm muscle, but they can also offer alternative insights into how something may come apart or go back together. 

Mostly, it's important to have someone to rage with about the stitch-ups you encounter, or to sympathise when you smash your knuckles into cold steel undoing a stupid bolt. Frustration shared is frustration halved.