Ford Escort MK1 Restoration Project, Fitting and Gapping the Boot Lid

On this episode we fit the boot lid and work the edges into place, then demonstrate how to sort poor fit and gap.
Throughout the project we will build tools to help us along the way, the custom tools we build, we will upload our how-to videos
👉🏻 Subscribe to our channel ✅: / @davesgarageuk
📽️ Check out our recent Videos: / @davesgarageuk
🛠️By the way: Ade (a.k.a Adrian) also has a KZbin channel where him and his wife are converting a minibus to an off-grid camper: / @sammyadeadventures
#FordEscortMK1Restoration #DavesGarage #SammyAdeAdventures

[@thomasmcglinchey2024]

The way this man is going on he will probably try and make the paint himself. Someone send this man 2 gallons of paint

[@superloopy24v]

🤣

[@martinblack5021]

Brilliant! 😂. I’m waiting him for to melt rubber and make his own tyres!!

[@DavesGarageuk]

🤣🤣 that's an interesting idea 😉

[@davidrix804]

Hi Dave,I was told by a panel beater that to use a pound coin to get gaps perfect🙏🙏🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@DavesGarageuk]

@@davidrix804 ok on modern stuff, bit narrow for the escort

[@nastygollumses]

By the way - I second that comment that someone should supply Dave with Paint 👍🏼

[@DavesGarageuk]

I third it 🤣

[@davidrix804]

Hi Dave I was told by a panel beater to use a pound coin to get gaps perfect🙏🙏🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@micktuck5377]

Fantastic job Dave absolutely perfect gaps very well done. Don’t rush yourself now it’s getting closer to the nice part of the build, we what more videos! 😂

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thanks Mick. It's all to easy to rush it at this point.

[@andyday1981]

Another job well done Dave. Lines look spot on

[@KTMKeith]

Brilliant 👍

[@alanchurchill7305]

Lovely to see it progressing,not exactly the method I would have used personally,but if this way works for you Dave then brill,it's going to be stunning when finished.

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thanks, Alan. I'm curious now, how would you have done it, you have more experience than I do

[@alanchurchill7305]

@@DavesGarageuk hi Dave,I would have blocked both wings out,thus avoiding any distortion on the lid,the amount of gap you wanted to create was minimal,so that's the way I would have done it,.At the end of the day Dave,it's what works for you ,you are doing a brilliant job.

[@halvardollikainen3999]

Good to see that you are still cracking on with the escort. I have no doubt that you are eager to see it finished, but so are all of us subscribers too. I know that I don’t just speak for myself now, but I really enjoy what you do. Keep at it, as long as it gives you pleasure in life 😊.

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thank you pal

[@bigsquatchsasfoot1964]

You never cease to amaze me with your attention to detail Dave I was thinking that looks ok ! but it never it was only ok ish so when you’d worked your magic it was so obvious in its appearance just how necessary that job was to do it properly..nice job mate 👍

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thank you 😊

[@nastygollumses]

Great help on how to achieve boot gaps - thank you. About to finally fit rear scuttle but watched this first to see if I needed to do anything beforehand to help with gaps - answered my questions. Keep up the good work mate 👍🏼🍻

[@DavesGarageuk]

Glad it helped

[@DavesGarageuk]

The only thing you'll need to keep in mind is the screen aperture is correct, otherwise you'll be struggling to fit the glass later

[@adriankennelly1338]

Your patience is an inspiration. Love the videos . Keep up the good work 👍

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thanks 👍

[@hohocc1349]

A white car always tends to look neat and tidy, and any car can wear it well. Hadn't thought about the gaps showing though, very good point. Looking great Dave, thanks for the video.

[@meknownothing]

Hi Dave another great video. Just wondered are you a welder or just a self confessed diy bodger. Lol great work will look good when finished

[@DavesGarageuk]

Definitely in the diy bodger grouping 😉

[@markpadley890]

Hello Dave - discovered your channel last November - I continue to really enjoy the content and the methodical way you work - keep going!

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thanks Mark, I appreciate your comment 😊

[@marty3469]

That's something i never consider doing , end result came up better than factory. 👍

[@stevehalverson4315]

Always a pleasure watching the progress, them two gaps down the middle of the car need deleting !!!!!! THE SOUTH AFRICAN STRIPES ! 😜 nice one Dave

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thanks Steve 😊 full stripes ahead

[@stevehalverson4315]

@@DavesGarageuk 😂

[@martingibbs9277]

A lot of work again but a good end result and another step closer to paint 👍

[@rickwilliams1505]

Brilliant how you got them gaps spot on . Cringed a bit when you were adjusting the boot lid , number of times I have caught my head on the boot catch on the mark 1 is unbelievable 👍

[@DavesGarageuk]

🤣 they are "designed" for maximum damage.

[@charlesmott8863]

Better than OEM, good work, interesting to watch

[@stevey9110]

wow a risky job dave, but great result in the end, well done.

[@grahamsmith3536]

The old girl looks like she’s had a few colour changes Dave

[@DavesGarageuk]

Ha, just a few, I think the poor old things had a tough life

[@Bigtbuilder]

Hi Dave, I wonder if you have tried brazing the panel joints? That was our favoured method in the seventies when MIG was not readily available

[@DavesGarageuk]

I haven't, still learning the brazing stuff, don't think I'd try that on a facing panel. Could try it on bit of scrap though.

[@Bigtbuilder]

Excellently done Davey boyo

[@superloopy24v]

Only half way through the video when writing this but was a bit concerned for your new boot rubber that remained in place whilst you were welding. Hope it didn't get any burnt holes in it. That is serious commitment to the perfection of panel gaps to take that amount of material off and weld the layers of the boot lid edges back together.

[@DavesGarageuk]

Don't lose sleep 🤣 the nice new rubber was removed.

[@madmax2506]

wow ! tricky tricky job. great result, really well done. 👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@philtucker1224]

Super Dave! 👍

[@Stephen.C.]

I would be worried I would file all the way through the double skin.

[@Midnightmotorssheberight]

Your an artist for sure👍

[@pamdemic6334]

Job well done Dave.

[@billywhizz98]

Perfect lines Dave

[@tho4747]

Im so impressed with This channel. You are a very good car restaurer sir.

[@DavesGarageuk]

Thank you 😊

[@garytroman5657]

Love this series...

[@jeffboyce1954]

nice job dave fantastic job love the channel

[@DavesGarageuk]

Awesome, thank you!

[@clivelambourne8377]

Hi again. Dave. Are you still using. The fluxed core wire ? Is so. Can you tell me how it is. Works. Well or not. I was thinking. Of trying it. Thanks. Clive

[@DavesGarageuk]

Hi Clive, I've gone back to normal wire. The flux core works very well, for my welder anyways, the only thing I didn't like about it was the gunk it left behind. But the weld was fine

[@extremeways2930]

Where do you think the original factory gaps went Dave?

[@DavesGarageuk]

The original factory gaps were terrible straight from Ford.

[@lynjames4306]

Im Afraid Dave i would have Pulled it back into Shape welding the boot lid has now Destroyed the sealer inside the joins which will unfortunately Rust 😢

[@DavesGarageuk]

Time will tell

[@RobertMorton-bg8cl]

Nice work Dave, more great tips. Can I ask, did you do a video on the Flitch plates when you were doing the inner wings?

[@DavesGarageuk]

Had to search for it 🤣 I couldn't remember. Try kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4a4qXd-aMplmposi=yXJCqIjsgjKPZTvy

[@jamesward5721]

Nice one as always, Dave, Yet another RS2000 in here for work - sills, blah blah. Getting quite sick of them tbh. They're starting to bore me witless. Another "class" of vehicle I'm getting sick of is 2010-2012 Transits. For whatever reason, Ford made those year models especially crap regarding the steel used - think we currently have 6 booked in for repairs, all same year models and I had one in today for the usual crap - chassis rusted out over the bump-stops, sills gone both sides, Test failed. Every bloomin one is the exact same, we charge the exact same for each one - 800 quid - (I.E cheap) yet still some owners act like we just quoted them 20k. The response from me is also always the exact same when they do that - go forth & multiply, Pal. Lovely lines on that lid after you fettled them - doubt I would have the patience. I'm usually just fixing the stuff that is corroded to nothing - the frilly bits. Despise that welder you're using btw - I may have said this before. Hugely not a fan. Have one out there that looks brand new despite being 5 years old - mainly as it got right on my wick straight out of the box. I chucked it onto a shelf.

[@jamesward5721]

Another reason to despise 2010-2012 Transits is just getting the job started - you have to remove the rear wheels. Simple, right? Nope - chances are (quite high as it happens) 1 or 2 studs will spin out when you go try remove the wheels. The steel in the studs is as crap as the body steel - if they get any way overtightened by the tyre lads, they refuse to open, the whole stud will spin in the hub. "Solution" is to use a 3/4" air-wrench to spin them faster than they can slip - which not everyone can do. I pity anyone trying to remove them using a tyre iron or manual 1/2" ratchet. Fords - they're always a personality test. Got patience? Let's see.... :-)

[@DavesGarageuk]

Hi James, yeah, you've mentioned before you're not a fan of the RTec welder. Personally, I love it.

[@jamesward5721]

@@DavesGarageuk Great "Practical Tip" btw for when you are running loads of spot welds (plug welds IRL as ain't anyone got a spot welder that reaches) and butt welding panels (sill is a prime example of when this is great) is to have 2 welders running so you don't have to keep changing wire/tips blah blah - my "best case" set-up is to have the Hitbox running 0.8 wire for the butt/seam welds while having the Parkside running 1mm flux core. That way I can grab the 0.8mm to do the neat & tidy stuff on the butt joints (factory metal to repair panel) but also have a torch close to hand that can burn in factory looking "spot welds" in 4 pulses on the layered seams - the Lidl machine running 1mm does that every time even when there are 3 layers - most Fords run 3 layer lower & upper sill seams - the only way you can get a proper weld on them 3 layers is to have extreme heat & huge penetration - 1mm flux core does that every time totally repeatably off a 16 amp machine. . If you were running anything else, you'd never get the penetration or else you'd be there forever on each spotweld. There are times when the absolutely crazy instant heat off 1mm flux-core works in your favour - replicasting ford 3 layer seams is one.

[@jamesward5721]

Another real good use of the uber-hot 1mm wire is re-flowing stuff you painstakingly welded using 0.8 - if your weld seam is looking a bit bird-shytey because you were welding tinfoil, you can run over it again with the 1mm - the gaps filled so now the run will take the heat - using 1mm to re-flow the weld will burn everything nice & flat - plus it will eliminate every pin-hole. Just saying like. Nobody reads this anyway.

[@davidrix804]

👏👏👏👏👍👍👍👍🍺🍺🍺🍺

[@matthewpayne42]

When do you think your car is going to be ready for paint.?

[@DavesGarageuk]

Hi Mathew, it's all too easy to start rushing at this point. It looks a lot closer to paint than it really is. it's still a fair bit of work left yet.... watch this space 😉