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-   -   CJ's Build (https://madabout-kitcars.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3151)

Paul D 15th April 2012 13:51

Chris,

We bonded our shell onto the framework over Easter weekend. (I actually bought the resin for Easter 2011 - but that's another story!)

We also cut large vertical slots in the back, progressively dropping the tail to get it to 'look right', and ended up packing them back up a lot much as you have in your photo's.

The key thing I feel is to get the fibreglass sill to at least curve in level with, or preferably below, the chassis rails both sides. This is difficult on the front drivers side.

Like you, we cut off the bottom 'foot' of the moulding beside the master cylinders in order to drop the side down a bit, but left the centre moulding as made.

Using two ratchet straps, one across the winscreen area and one at the rear of the cockpit we pulled it all into shape for bonding. The drivers side front was touch and go, but with a bit of metal trimming we did get it just down level with the side of the chassis frame. Passenger side was no problem.

I will try and post some pictures later on.

Paul D.

Mister Towed 15th April 2012 14:17

Ahh, it's not just me that's got a problem with the driver's side of the shell not covering the outrigger then... :icon_sad:

davecymru 15th April 2012 14:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mister Towed (Post 29403)
Ahh, it's not just me that's got a problem with the driver's side of the shell not covering the outrigger then... :icon_sad:

Nope, mines like that and it all looks fine on the road! I know others who have picked up on that during the shell positioning have cut the bulkhead part down so that it sits flat. But TBH mine is all on the road with the front edge of the body not lipping under the chasis rails and it all looks fine! Well.... to me it does :)

Mister Towed 15th April 2012 14:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by davecymru (Post 29406)
Nope, mines like that and it all looks fine on the road! I know others who have picked up on that during the shell positioning have cut the bulkhead part down so that it sits flat. But TBH mine is all on the road with the front edge of the body not lipping under the chasis rails and it all looks fine! Well.... to me it does :)

Yes, that's exactly the issue with mine - the bulkhead is cut level, the chassis is straight and level, I put a spirit level across the cockpit and that's level but the driver's side of the shell doesn't cover the outrigger with the body on. You've got to look pretty hard to spot it though.

http://i1186.photobucket.com/albums/...ion/001-15.jpg

I'm going to do some more measuring just to be sure before finally fitting the body, and I might just extend the bottom edge of the body down so it wraps under the outrigger the same as the nearside one does.

GazDavies 15th April 2012 15:02

I had the same issues with my build. In the end I decided to leave it as it is rather than modify anything to drop it. Like you, I made sure that the cockpit was level, which it was so after painting the chassis black it was hardly noticable even when looking for it.

cbjroms 15th April 2012 18:00

3 Attachment(s)
Agreed, the drivers side on mine only just comes down level with the bottom of the chassis rail. Think mine is a bit lower than Towed because I removed the web from the shell that sits on the bulkhead outboard of the hydraulic master cylinders.

Attachment 605

I have also found, like tltone, that the front edge of sill on the passenger side sits 50mm further forward than same edge on the driver's side. So like him I am planning a bit of 'cutting & shutting'.

Attachment 606

Attachment 607

Chris

mulberry 15th April 2012 18:22

mister towed .......thats one big smile you have...love the grey and orange strips tooo....

Mister Towed 15th April 2012 19:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulberry (Post 29419)
mister towed .......thats one big smile you have...love the grey and orange strips tooo....

The smile's because that was the first time I'd got the body on. You should've seen the smile I had on my face when Phil J took me out for a run in his finished Triumph 2500 engined Spyder! :biggrin:

As for the grey with orange hoops look, I think it really works...

Paul D 15th April 2012 21:14

Body bonding alignment.
 
Hi Chris,

Have taken some pic's to show the alignment we have ended up with. Not saying it's right, but it was the best we could get without major surgery. I think I am happy with it, see how it compares with yours.

Rear body blocked in place - now bonded as seen.

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3324.jpg

Passenger side front sill end.

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3312.jpg

Drivers side front sill end.

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...d/DSCF3309.jpg

Drivers side rear sill end.

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3319.jpg

Passengers side rear sill end.

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3318.jpg


http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3311.jpg

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3310.jpg

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3320.jpg

http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/...e/DSCF3322.jpg

Hope this might give others some ideas, even if it is just to say where we have gone horribly wrong.

Good luck with your bonding,

Paul D.

Mister Towed 15th April 2012 21:27

Looks pretty good to me from here.

Are your cockpit edges level side to side? I shouldn't think it would notice if they weren't, but have you checked with a spirit level?

Paul D 15th April 2012 22:28

I must confess we did not take any real notice of the relative heights of the cockpit sides, just the sills. I was keen to try and make sure the metal chassis was hidden both sides by the fibreglass. Did consider slicing along the length of the drivers side about three inches up and stretching it downwards toward the front & then glassing in the split, but was happy with the results of our "fettling" (fnaar!).

Having just put a long level across the cockpit I am surprised to find that the Drivers side is higher than the passengers by 1 to 2 cm - according to where you measure. I went across in front of the steering wheel, centre, and rear just in front of the headrest hump.

It doesn't seem logical that the drivers side is the one we have really pulled down as much as we can to get the bonnet swage lines level with the chassis both sides, and yet it is still higher.

Not to worry though, as soon as the driver gets in it will look level! Unless I lose some weight that is...

Mister Towed 15th April 2012 22:40

On mine, when I measured up to the level where I've cut the screen frame off the bulkhead it's 20mm lower on the driver's side despite having cut through the same bolt-hole on both sides. The shell still doesn't cover the end of the side-rail though. I quite like the idea of splitting the shell, lowering the edge and glassing in the gap though, sounds like a plan...

cbjroms 16th April 2012 09:00

I had planned to split the shell to lower it beyond the side rail. But on my shell, the passenger side sill has much more of a curve on it than the driver's side. So I am now thinking that I will extend the driver's side sill by adding more of a curve.

Chris

Straight Sixer 16th April 2012 09:25

I remember a kit car manufacturer that I spoke to years ago who was building Ford cortina based kits. He Had contacted Fords about the accuracy of the diagonal measurement he had between shock absorber mountings which were 3/8" out and Fords said that was miles better than a MK2 cortina, so our donors probably vary by the same if not more.

These Sammios will look fine and no admirer is going to start running a tape measure over them.

I think you guys are doing a fantastic job, great inspiration for us novices starting out. :eusa_clap:


Len.

lancelot link 17th April 2012 16:57

I kinda mirror what Len , Straight sixer , says above.....

When I first started these cars , it was to build one for myself and try and recoup/justify my expenditure by building a couple to sell....at that point I didn't think it would be much more than that. After no. 1 sold and was re-sold giving me credit for the build , interest increased to a level where we decided we needed to straighten out and soften that first attempt.....I still didn't think they would go to the level they have.
The car was designed to be a cheap body swap option for people wanting to bring the whole 1950's Special thing into the modern day....

They are priced as such.

I never thought people would embrace the concept to the stage where some VERY nice examples are being built. You kind of hope it will happen , but don't expect it...

The result of people building them on a higher level , than I originally thought would happen is that the cars aren't symmetrical and do need a little tweaking if being built to a good standard....

If its any consolation , they are a LOT better than the body I started with !!

A famous Hot Rod builder was picked up on a symmetry issue on one of his cars a few years back and his response was something like '' Don't worry about it - you can't see both sides at once !''

We have reworked the body on the Cordite , so it is our best yet ...dearest too !! But still leagues ahead of the competition !!

cbjroms 17th April 2012 17:16

Gary,

I think that the tweaking is half the fun of building a Sammio and is actually a feature of many, far more expensive kit cars. It is just a case of builders appreciating that this sort of engineering is never going to be mm perfect and totally symmetrical. It is actually part of the satisfaction of building to decide what matters, what doesn't and what a particular builder is happy to live with or put the effort into changing.

The fantastic thing about this forum is that builders are so willing to share their experiences and advice. This not only increases the sense of enjoyment that you can get from building a Sammio (you can never get stuck) but also the potential for innovation.

Chris

Straight Sixer 17th April 2012 21:46

Agreed, again and again. Best bunch out there for helping out and passing on valuable tips.

It's the only way to make sure that every Sammio is EXACTLY DIFFERENT!

Len.

tlrtone 18th April 2012 08:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by cbjroms (Post 29499)
Gary,

I think that the tweaking is half the fun of building a Sammio and is actually a feature of many, far more expensive kit cars. It is just a case of builders appreciating that this sort of engineering is never going to be mm perfect and totally symmetrical. It is actually part of the satisfaction of building to decide what matters, what doesn't and what a particular builder is happy to live with or put the effort into changing.

The fantastic thing about this forum is that builders are so willing to share their experiences and advice. This not only increases the sense of enjoyment that you can get from building a Sammio (you can never get stuck) but also the potential for innovation.

Chris


I agree Chris, and as you are only down the road in Romsey, you are more than welcome to stop by mine or if you need a hand let me know and I can pop up :icon_biggrin:

cbjroms 24th April 2012 21:36

2 Attachment(s)
Just finished adjusting the bodyshell so that the two sides are roughly in the same position at the front of the bulhead and also to give a bit more 'fold under' at the front of the driver's side sill.

Attachment 616

Attachment 615

Tomorrow's task is to build a frame for the petrol tank behind the diff - just got to find some 25mm box section first though!

Chris

cbjroms 14th October 2012 16:27

4 Attachment(s)
Not made much progress over the summer for one reason or another. But had a good day in the garage today.

I have decided to stick with the existing Herald radiator and spent a few hours making-up a suitable mounting arrangement which I have tack welded in place.

Attachment 706
Attachment 705

Whilst admiring my handywork I thought back to Mr T's thread and remembered that he had lowered his radiator to prevent it fouling the bonnet. I have concentrated in getting my radiator in the same place as it would be on the Herald. So will it foul the bonnet? Cannot recall any of the other build threads talking about the Herald radiator?

Whilst under the car, I noticed the the gaitors on both track-rod ends had split as shown in the following photos:
Attachment 704
Attachment 707
Can this be anything other than faulty parts?

Chris


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