[Mick O'Malley]

After what seemed an interminable fight with my camera, which would suddenly no longer communicate with my PC through its supplied cable, I uploaded my latest pictures using an SD card reader. Hooray!

Anyway, the day before yesterday, before my mentally exhausting camera battle (I'm no sort of techie, a telephone, to me, is made of Bakelite and sits on the hall stand) I wandered down to the cave, wheeled the partially clothed skeleton most of the way out of the cave and took off the rear body moulding. Offering up my 6mm tap to the old rivet holes revealed perfect compatibility, so I set to cutting the threads at all ten attachment points, the six side ones needing the wheels taking off. Thinking forward to the time when permanent attachment of the moulding would be necessary, and noticing the pristine 7mm tap in my set, which also has a 1mm pitch (the 6mm has seen a great deal of action over the years and looks due for replacement), I thought maybe I'd open the holes out further for greater peace of mind. A quick Ebay search revealed that 7mm screws and washers must be made (judging by the horrendous prices), not of the advertised stainless steel, but of Platinum plated Unobtanium, so that idea was swiftly abandoned.



Popping the rear body back on I then fitted the newly purchased reflective triangles, screwing them to bespoke lengths of batten though the rear lamp cluster holes. Approaching dusk decided the camera to employ flash, nicely demonstrating the efficacy of the rear end gubbins - not that I'll be towing at night!



Since then I've purchased a Spitfire centre rear deck filler cap, its fittings, and a short length of the necessary 2" pipe which will be welded into the top of the Cortina fuel tank, bridging the gap, the old filler being chopped off and a blanking plate welded in its place.

Regards, Mick