Mini Radford De Ville comes back to life

[Dr.Mabo]

From personal experience in a competitive accident I suggest you make sure the Fixings points are very strong and secure. Might need to reinforce the floor anchorage points. Sadly the 1969s Mini steel is not strong enough without extra support.

I will defenately reinforce the fixing points. And the hand made seams are strong enaugh too.

is that a 5 speed gear knob and does it have a 5 speed box or is that just a teaser

The 22G1128 has just the regular four gears.


Coming back to the next step in seatbelt restauration.
The static belts were a great way to get to grips with the subject. However, it is also more challenging to completely overhaul automatic belts. To do this, of course, you have to look at the automatic mechanism in order to understand how it works and to be able to recognize and correct damage. The old Britax automatic rollers have an exciting technology. They have to be installed exactly horizontal in order to be unrolled. A solid steel ball lies in a very shallow bowl. If the ball is moved out of its lowest position, e.g. through acceleration, deceleration or an inclined position, it lifts a thin sheet metal plate which blocks a cogwheel on the outside. This immediately locks the belt. Only when the ball rolls back to the center and thus to the lowest point is the gear wheel released again.

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[Dr.Mabo]

The retractor spring is located on the opposite side of the housing. It is essential to secure this before dismantling so that it retains its tension, and only release it last. I did this with thin wire. The assembly of the other parts is self-explanatory and quite simple in terms of technology. Careful and deliberate work is of course particularly important here, as you only have one attempt in case of…..

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With new belt material, clean seams, freshly painted housings, fresh chrome and new stickers, it looks really smart again.

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[morris-miner]

Another extremely well thought out and executed restoration by the Doc.
I’ll be following this with great interest, as I expect we all will.

[Fanfaniracing]

Einfach nur fantastisch!

[Peter Laidler]

Question for you Herr Doktor...... Page 2, photo 3. What is the name of the sewing gadget that you show on that photo. I have often needed such a 'needle' for sewing nylon webbing.

The buckle shown on that photo with the chipped surface is coated in a nylon coating process called RILSANISATION, developed by ATO Chemicals (part of ELF petrochem). A nylon powder is electrostatically sprayed over a primed surface (with RILPRIM primer...) and baked. The powder melts on and sticks like 5hit to a blanket.

Best seen in use on mos busses and train handles and hold rails. That's because ATOChem at Thatcham did them all! And my Commando frame and all parts of my MGB GT V8 and Cooper S, big and small, ... including that grey colour

[Ronnie]

Question for you Herr Doktor...... Page 2, photo 3. What is the name of the sewing gadget that you show on that photo. I have often needed such a 'needle' for sewing nylon webbing.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404399000188 ... R-Tdk8rxYw
You can also get them at Tandy (laetherwork) or chandlers / sail makers.

[Peter Laidler]

Thanks Ronnie. Now I can set about making those leather and latex rubber outfits. Not for me of course you understand.....

[Ronnie]

Thanks Ronnie. Now I can set about making those leather and latex rubber outfits. Not for me of course you understand.....

You just need a sharp razor blade as well to do your eye slot's.

[Exminiman]

Thanks Ronnie. Now I can set about making those leather and latex rubber outfits. Not for me of course you understand.....

You just need a sharp razor blade as well to do your eye slot's.

Maybe Newton Commercial will make you one Pete, could be a new line for them

[Peter Laidler]

Chuckling to himself...........I can see that this bit of the thread will run for a while Ronnie and Miniman

[Dr.Mabo]

Thanks Ronnie. Now I can set about making those leather and latex rubber outfits. Not for me of course you understand.....

Nice to see that you have found a way to satisfy your fetish

To come back to topic, there are two versions of the Britax automatic seat belts. Before the version with the aluminum housing was available, the housing was made of sheet metal. Here you can see how the ball and the sheet metal plate work.

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[Dr.Mabo]

From an economic point of view, overhauling the belts is not really recommended. I had been under the impression that if I did several belts at once, it would be cheaper, but unfortunately that was a mistake. The chrome plating of all the small parts messed up my bill. I've now learned that chrome-plating large parts is easier and cheaper overall than lots of small parts. In the end, each individual part cost €25. Each buckle consists of two parts, plus the counterpart and the fittings. This results in chrome-plating costs of €250 for a pair of static belts and €200 for automatic belts. Then there is the original purchase of the belts, the belt material, the stickers plus the time invested. Next time I'll look for a galvanizing shop abroad. But for the time being, I've got my Britax belts covered.

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The restoration will now continue with other parts.

[Alex]

I'll have to see how many photos I've got of my doors and motors when I rebuilt the mechanisms.
The Pipers had been removed by the previous owner, and generic electric window motors used instead. They weren't done very well so I realigned and rewired everything. Steve B approved when he saw it at Goodwood, and looking at recent phots of the car (after it had been fully restored again) my wiring is still visible.
The doorlock mechanisms as fitted are utter cack - unreliable and fragile.
I'm looking forward to seeing the Doc M upgrades.

[hanlminiman]

Sorry Alex but I must disagree as I think the original door opening mechanisms were well thought out and engineered to allow the electric windows to operate. Mine have worked well for almost 60 years with regular servicing of the Piper motors.

[Ronnie]

Superb work as always Doc looking forwards to future updates.

[Dr.Mabo]

As you may remember from the first pictures, the doors are missing on my Radford. So I don't have anything to refurbish, but am looking for the parts I need. I was able to find a pair of old used kickplates that perfectly match the classy Radford spirit. But what could be so special about kickplates? The original English kickplates are made of plated aluminum, don't tolerate much mechanical stress and can't really be refurbished, only replaced.

The Innocenti MK1 Minis also had these kickplates, but they were made of stainless steel. This can not only be brought back into shape, but also polished.

The kickplates pictured here are from an 60s Inno MK1 and are scratched, dirty and have a few dings and dents due to their age. One kickplate has already been cleaned, while the other is still untouched.

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On the right is the stainless steel 60s kickplate cleaned, freed from dents and properly polished. Next to it an aluminum kickplate with normal signs of wear from a 62 MK1. I think the result is quite suitable for the Radford.

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[richardACS]

The retractor spring is located on the opposite side of the housing. It is essential to secure this before dismantling so that it retains its tension, and only release it last. I did this with thin wire. The assembly of the other parts is self-explanatory and quite simple in terms of technology. Careful and deliberate work is of course particularly important here, as you only have one attempt in case of…..


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With new belt material, clean seams, freshly painted housings, fresh chrome and new stickers, it looks really smart again.


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I too have a set of these that I wish to refurbish and therefore interested to learn how you managed to remove the twist rivet that holds the two plastic side covers - I tried to drill them out with a cobalt drill but noting doing. Were your plastic covers in good shape? it seems as though these would be good candidates for 3 d printing! did you replace the ball which I think is 1" dia. What did you use for the tension band? looks like a simple rubber band but is it? Thx in advance

[InnoCooperExport]

Great work as ever Doc! It was a pleasure to meet you and your Broadspeed at IMM at the weekend, I'm sure this build will end up just as impressive!

[Peter Laidler]

Here's a question for you Herr Doktor Mabo. Looking at the door kick plates, have ou ever considered having aluminium parts stripped and re-anodised.

Probably wouldn't apply to the dented kick plates, but other parts.....?

[Dr.Mabo]

Looking at the door kick plates, have you ever considered having aluminium parts stripped and re-anodised.
Probably wouldn't apply to the dented kick plates, but other parts.....?

Hi Peter, not at all. For financial reasons, I have always opted to replace worn anodized aluminum parts.


Now I'm approaching completely new territory - refurbishing old leather. The interior, which is around 55 years old, has of course suffered a lot over the years. At first glance, the seats make a pretty good impression. The most important thing, however, is that they are still there. On closer inspection, the situation is rather sobering. So the question arises as to what to do. Have them reupholstered or try to make them look nice again yourself? As has no doubt already become clear, I'm a fan of doing things myself and preserving the old. Of course, this also applies to the interior.

However, the right-hand front seat presents numerous challenges. Apart from heavy soiling, the leather is totally hardened and brittle. The same applies to the upholstery straps, which are supposed to have a feathery effect, but have hardened in their maximum stretched position.

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In addition, a seam on the seat has ripped open and the rear side pocket has worked its way through the fine Colonel leather on the backrest. To make matters worse, a moderately talented contemporary has stapled the resulting hole to the wood of the backrest.

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But as we all know; you grow with your tasks. In comparison, refurbishing the dull and rusty chrome fittings is almost a walk in the park.

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