Replacement Arches & Decals ??

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martinc
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Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by martinc » Wed May 04, 2016 10:06 am

Hi all ,

I will shortly be sorting out the degrading arches on my bongo and giving her a full respray while im at it so shes ready to rock fo rthe summer months of long trips and camping ( I can't WAIT )

However im aftre a little help as to which way i should carry out the work ? Do i but replacement arches or try and rescue the orignal ones ? and secondly where would i be best to find repacement decals either standard ones or different designs ( Animal ect )

Any advice would be gratefully received .

P.S i will be uploading some pictures later on today .

Cheers

[img]C:\Users\cheesmanm297\Desktop\bongo\bongo.jpg[/img]
[img]C:\Users\cheesmanm297\Desktop\bongo\bongo2.jpg[/img]
[img]C:\Users\cheesmanm297\Desktop\bongo\bongo3.jpg[/img]
Martin
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cmm303
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by cmm303 » Wed May 04, 2016 12:54 pm

Picture links not working for me. (Looks like you've tried linking to your PC's own hard drive. They need to be uploaded to something like photobucket ... or with this new site it may be possible to upload them directly into the forum.)

Patching arches does not last long. Definitely cut them out and replace before full respray. Mercedes Sprinter arches are popular as they have a very similar shape. The diameter of the arch is very slightly smaller so some cut them vertically at the top, allowing the arch to be "stretched" with a little extra metal welded in. Some don't bother! Me, I didn't know any better until after the bodyshop had completed the job!

Decals. Try Andy at bongodecals.com. Discount to Fury members. Details on the databases and downloads page
Chris with BertieB
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Northern Bongolow
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by Northern Bongolow » Wed May 04, 2016 7:49 pm

mine didnt look tooooooooo bad. this may show you how bad they actually were when i got into em.
i used gen mazda second hand ones off a scrapper. cheap as chips and they look right when fitted.

http://igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/view ... ow#p655512
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cmm303
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by cmm303 » Wed May 04, 2016 8:06 pm

Some of us just pay someone :lol:

The rear of the white arch isn't flush with the grey bumper. It needed a "friend" to point it out :)
Image
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sotal
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by sotal » Wed May 04, 2016 8:28 pm

If you take the cupholder/pocket things out from next to the rear bench - you can look in at the back of the arches. If they are rotted through you will see there. If that is the case filling will only be very temporary.
martinc
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by martinc » Wed May 04, 2016 10:52 pm

Sorry for the pics not uploading , hopefully you can view them now [-o<

[URL=http://s1330.photobucket.com/user/ ... .jpg[/img][/url]

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Thanks all for the help so far , im going to check via the inside cubby hole to see just how bad they are !!
Martin
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by vitus992 » Fri May 06, 2016 11:03 am

Hi

Im new to the whole Bongo world. I purchased one knowing it had a pretty bad arch (simular to the worst of your two). I don't want it laid up for this summer so I attacked it with a flap wheel and as ever it is a lot worse than it looks. I coated as much of the remaining rust underneath the arch with K-Rust, then fibre glass paste and over the top of that filler. Mine is two tone paint so I masked off that whole lower panel and primered, now just waiting ot a couple of rattle cans to complete the job
I know full well the rust will return with vengance but wanted a tidy wing to see me through out first summer and as soon as it starts blistering again I will get the arch completely cut out and replaced.
In my experience any rust you see multiply that by at least 3 times to get the true extent of the damage under the paint.

Good luck with your repairs.
martinc
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by martinc » Fri May 06, 2016 3:41 pm

Hi all,

Thanks for the replies so far , i have had a good look from the inside at the arches and they dont seem soooo bad .
so fingers crossed that it wont be as bad as i first thought , however im well aware of how rust spreads and can seem alot more than first appears .

so to that end im going to cut out all the rust and re-weld new panels ect ect so it should last for a few more year.

im just interested if you guys have any tips or do's or dont's before i undertake this mammoth task .

Thanks again guys . :wink:
Martin
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by Northern Bongolow » Fri May 06, 2016 6:35 pm

for what they may be worth heres a few little pointers.
check the area behind the back wheels, the splash zone that supports the mudflaps, they disappear altogether. then in the same area the bottom edge of the rear air vents also can disappear. you can see mine in the link above,

when the arch lets in water it goes forward and down into the end of the sills, then gets all the way along and rots em out from the inside, or towards the rear vents, while the arch is cut off, blank off the end of the cill after treating the best you can any rust rot in the sill, then any water getting into the sill/arch later is kept local, i put some extra grommets in to aid treatment at a later stage.

if you cut off the arch watch out for a strip of sound damping foam stuck forever on the inside of the panel, if you weld in the new panel/arch you may set it on fire, even a small hotspot may cause panel distortion and make it bloody hard work later. :oops: :oops: .
martinc
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by martinc » Fri May 06, 2016 7:23 pm

Northern Bongolow wrote:for what they may be worth heres a few little pointers.
check the area behind the back wheels, the splash zone that supports the mudflaps, they disappear altogether. then in the same area the bottom edge of the rear air vents also can disappear. you can see mine in the link above,

when the arch lets in water it goes forward and down into the end of the sills, then gets all the way along and rots em out from the inside, or towards the rear vents, while the arch is cut off, blank off the end of the cill after treating the best you can any rust rot in the sill, then any water getting into the sill/arch later is kept local, i put some extra grommets in to aid treatment at a later stage.

if you cut off the arch watch out for a strip of sound damping foam stuck forever on the inside of the panel, if you weld in the new panel/arch you may set it on fire, even a small hotspot may cause panel distortion and make it bloody hard work later. :oops: :oops: .
Thanks i will be having a go this weekend i think , and giving it a proper going over . but its sounds like theres alot of work involved . :(
Martin
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by Northern Bongolow » Fri May 06, 2016 7:35 pm

its not that bad really. good luck mate.
martinc
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by martinc » Sun May 08, 2016 10:05 pm

hopefully it goes smoothly !

but where is the best place to get some replacement arches to weld in instead of grinding away rust ?

cheers
Martin
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cmm303
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by cmm303 » Mon May 09, 2016 9:04 pm

martinc wrote:hopefully it goes smoothly !

but where is the best place to get some replacement arches to weld in instead of grinding away rust ?

cheers
got my sprinter arches from member called Kloonsy
Chris with BertieB
'96 White unconverted AFT 2.5L Diesel 4WD
martinc
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Posts: 60
Joined: Wed Jun 17, 2015 11:49 am

Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by martinc » Mon May 09, 2016 10:26 pm

cmm303 wrote:
martinc wrote:hopefully it goes smoothly !

but where is the best place to get some replacement arches to weld in instead of grinding away rust ?

cheers
got my sprinter arches from member called Kloonsy
ahhh ok , do you know if he/she is still active .

thanks
Martin
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cmm303
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Re: Replacement Arches & Decals ??

Post by cmm303 » Mon May 09, 2016 10:48 pm

martinc wrote:
cmm303 wrote:
martinc wrote:hopefully it goes smoothly !

but where is the best place to get some replacement arches to weld in instead of grinding away rust ?

cheers
got my sprinter arches from member called Kloonsy
ahhh ok , do you know if he/she is still active .

thanks
last logged in on 7th May according to his profile so should pick up a PM
Chris with BertieB
'96 White unconverted AFT 2.5L Diesel 4WD
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