Roy's 1971 Scout 800B

               

Restoration Progress

 

December 11, 2009

Boy! Time sure has a way of passing quickly. Another year has passed with no significant work done on the Comanche. I've just been picking at it and can't seem to get motivated to do anything major. I did remount the driver's side door to check the windshield frame alignment. It's close but will need some tweeking. I also removed the old exhaust piping. Next, I need to weld patches in the driver's side floor and then I'm going to lift the body off the frame and store it outside so I'll have garage space to work on the frame.

 

October 5, 2008

After a year's hiatus to focus on my 1970 Scout 800A SR-2, I have resumed work on the Comanche. She's back in the garage to finish the tear down. The engine has been pulled and the body will be next after re-mounting the doors to check the windshield frame alignment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

February 24, 2007

I put the top back on to see how the window frame lines up. With the top in place and bolted to the top of the windshield frame, there is some tweaking that will need to be done to get the front A-pillars to line up properly. Now I'll have to put a set of doors together with the vent windows in place and hang them so I can make sure the frame is sitting at the correct angle. Lots more work than I figured.

I continue to pick at things as I get time in the garage. I've begun to remove parts of the engine compartment such as the radiator, AC condenser and compressor.

 

Click here for more restoration photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 27, 2007

I finished cleaning up the replacement windshield frame and the mounting surface on the

Comanche's cowl/firewall to get them ready for welding. Then I mocked up the frame to see

how it will fit. I still need to get the top on so I can correctly position the angle of the windshield

frame before I weld it on permanently.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 14, 2007

I was able to spend the entire weekend (aside from raking up the last of this winter's fallen leaves) working on the Scout! I repainted the steering column and replaced the turn signal switch with a new reproduction unit from Shee-Mar. I also took apart, cleaned and lubed both vacuum wiper motors.

Then on Sunday, I made a concerted effort to get the old windshield frame off the truck. I used my sawzall to cut off the top part of the frame and made a cut the full width of the frame on top of the firewall. This made it easier to get to the remaining spot welds that needed to be drilled out. After a couple of hours of drilling and air chiseling, the old frame was off.

I cleaned up the drilled out spot welds and did a test fit with the new windshield frame. It's going to require some manipulation and body work to get it to fit properly but I can use my '67 800 parts Scout as a reference. I might also need to put the vent windows back in the doors and hang them so I can properly fit the windshield frame to them. I can foresee this taking a few more weekends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 6, 2007

The last couple of months have been spent removing parts and tagging them for identification. All of the interior has been gutted

and the top removed. I cut out a couple of the worst rust pits in the driver's side floor panel. The next thing to work on is getting the

bent windshield frame out.

 

November 25, 2006

I pulled up the underlayment in the bed revealing a nearly pristine floor.

Just a couple of minor rust areas that can easily be wire brushed and

treated with rust inhibitor.

 

November 11, 2006

I cut out the rust-through areas on the driver's side floor panel using a combination of an air drive cut-off tool, sabre saw and air chisel. I may decide to cut out more areas of severe pitting as well.

                         Floor panel before cutting                                                                             Floor panel after cutting

 

November 1, 2006

I  pulled out the gas tanks which looked to be in excellent condition. The outsides appear to have been painted and show only a few spots of surface rust. I will acid wash and coat the insides though. The tank cavities in the body are also very clean. There's not even any dirt packed in the body cavity next to the tanks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 22, 2006

I  removed the front floor mat and underlayment and found some more rust on the driver's side floor. There are a couple of silver dollar sized holes. The rest of the floor has some pitting but is pretty solid otherwise. I plan to just cut back to solid metal and weld in some patches. So even though this would be considered "rust free" in the upper midwest, there's always some rust to be found, even in the dry desert southwest. I also removed the bolts from the transmission tunnel cover. I'm leaving the cover in place for now so that I will still have the use of the shifter. I removed the rest of the gas tank bolts that hadn't already been removed or broken off. Next time, I'll pull the tanks and inspect them for cleaning.

 

October 15, 2006

I continued to gut the Comanche by removing the heater and air conditioner. I got brave enough to pull up the floor mat and underlayment on the passenger side and found Mr. Rust. There is a small area of rot in the corner where the floor, kick panel and toe board meet. I should be able to cut this section out of my parts Scout and do the repair. The rest of the floor is showing the start of "rust acne" but no rust through. I'll probably be spending quite a bit of time on body repair with this project. Hopefully, I'll become proficient enough to do a good job.

The engine fires up easily and idles smoothly. Acceleration is rough so the carb probably needs a rebuild. I'm going to try that before committing to a full engine overhaul.

October 14, 2006

I pulled off more of the front sheet metal including the front cowl and fenders. There is some slight damage to the driver's side inner fender from the roll-over. No rust so far and most bolts have come out fairly easily. All nuts, bolts and screws are being labeled in bags for identification during reassembly.

October 7, 2006

I moved the Scout into the new garage and started the tear-down. I removed the spare tire carrier and tow hitch from the rear and took off both doors. I removed the hinges and drove out the hinge pins. Three of 4 came out rather easily. The fourth one needed a little PB'laster and some coaxing.