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Go Back   Madabout Kitcars Forum > Mad Build Area > Sammio Builds and discussions

Sammio Builds and discussions Sammio bodied car builds and specials

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  #1561  
Old 23rd January 2015, 22:08
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Congratulations on the successful name change, but, given the headaches the bonnet has given you, and to keep with the WWII aircraft theme, wouldn't Triumph Focke have been more appropriate?
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  #1562  
Old 24th January 2015, 16:35
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Mr T - Thanks.

Whilst not having to trailer the car to an old style inspection is certainly cheaper for me.
Those inspection photos were always a real progress land mark in earlier Sammio builds.

Finally, I completely forgot to consider names of WWII planes from the "opposition".
Although another military expression might have worked, how does a "SNAFU 1500" sound?

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Another V5C Update:
I didn't notice these "Special Notes" yesterday, but thought I would mention it today, as they are on Page 1 of the new V5C.



This is an official confirmation that the car started out as something else (i.e. a Spitfire).

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Slowly Shaping Up - Part 1:
It was back to sanding and shaping again this morning as I tackled the bonnet nose opening.

There is still a bit of filler fine tuning to do, but this has turned out much better than I was expecting.



It took a bit more filler to smooth out the edge along the lower valance.



But the vertical face on the inside of the grille lip is miles better.



However, no sooner had I finished sanding one batch of filler, but it was time to mix up the next one.

I made some cardboard templates for the front indicators and covered their backs with parcel tape.



Then I made a "donut" of filler around the holes in the bonnet.



Before pressing the cardboard into place and smoothing the edges a bit.





This will be enough to give me a solid base to get the final shape from.

I used up some of the remaining filler to skim some of the low spots along the nose opening edge.



Note:
You can just see where I propped up the bonnet at the back, so the indicator templates would be closer to the "on the road" angle.

The rest of the filler was added to the side of the nose.



As this was not quite straight enough when compared to the other side.



Then it was simply a case of waiting for the filler to set hard enough for me to start sanding it back.

End of Part 1...
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  #1563  
Old 24th January 2015, 16:37
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Slowly Shaping Up - Part 2:
In the afternoon I sanded down the area around the indicator template.



Then pushed it out from behind and clearly I need to add a bit of filler bring this up to a level surface all around.



Then I removed any filler in front of the original hole in the bonnet & marked up where the bottom edge of the indicator was.



After a bit more sanding to soften the bottom edge, I had a pretty good fit.



I also finished off the sanding of the grille opening edges & gave a rough sand to the extra filler on the side of the nose.
( As I will add a skim of normal filler to this for what I hope will be the final shape. )

All this work has left the bonnet looking very sorry for itself.



I wanted to double check these indicator positions on my computer screen before doing any more filler work.

So I gave the front of the bonnet a dusting of etch primer to make it easier to see where I was.



I think the indicators mounts have ended up OK and will only required a small bit of filler "fine tuning".

Note:
I really like the way the grille opening edge has turned out, now I can see it in one colour.

I also came across this photo of the front view of a Miglia Speedster on Thurcroft Flyer's build thread the other day.



As I have often said, the Speedster is clearly a big improvement on the original Cordite.



But even if my bonnet still isn't perfect after all this work, it too is clearly a big improvement on the original.

Until next time, take care, Paul.
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  #1564  
Old 24th January 2015, 20:51
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Looking good Paul, a covering of primer does make a difference and congratulations on the V5 that will be a big load off your mind.
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  #1565  
Old 25th January 2015, 16:44
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Swifty - Cheers, knowing the V5C is now sorted has been a HUGE relief.

Also the coat of primer gives me hope that the car should look great when finally painted.
As it is easy to get caught up in the detail of all the repair work and miss the bigger picture.

Scottie - If you don't mind, I'll reply here to your post on the DVLA thread...
I certainly took the long & winding road to a new V5C, but I really like the fact I now have a "one off" name.
As I will have a "one off" look too, or at least I will have when I've blended the rear of the bonnet to match the new scuttle.

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Lights... Filler... Action...
I mixed up a small batch of fibreglass filler to fill in gaps in the front faces of the indicator mounts.





I also filled in the headlight adjustment holes for the driver's side headlight.



Just in case there is any confusion, the bonnet is upside down.

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Yesterday I had a brief look at my two headlight assemblies (one assembled + one in bits) while waiting for the filler to set.

As I wanted to work out if I could get the headlight "straight" on the driver's side if the adjustment holes were at an angle.

The headlight lens has markings showing which way is up.



The issue for me is that I upgraded the headlight to include a built in side light.



Which, in turn, required a hole to be cut in the headlight mounting bowl.



The hole was cut with the adjustment holes at 9 & 12 O'clock when the mounting bowl is fixed to the main headlight shell.
( Although it is not easy to see in this photo. )



So, rather than re-work the hole in the headlight bowl, I will simply re-drill new adjustment holes in the correct position.

I also had a look how the new headlight outer rim retaining clips I'd bought is meant to work.



Which means I needed to drill a hole in one of my second hand rims that doesn't have a hole in it.





The hole was straight forward, but the countersinking took a bit of carefully hammering.

It seems like a very long time ago that I bought two new rubber headlight seals.

But today I cut out three holes in each of these for the main fixing screws.



I had also bought a set of replacement fixings for the headlights.



So hopefully everything will be "good to go" when I finally get the chance to fix the headlights in place.

Although I may need to do some work to ensure the faces on the wing where the headlights go are pointing in the same, forward, direction.

Finally, as far as headlights are concerned, I gave both outer headlight rims a coat of etch primer after roughing up the blue paint.



As these rims will eventually be painted BRG to match the bodywork, but for now grey is better than blue.

End of Part 1...
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  #1566  
Old 25th January 2015, 16:46
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Part 2:
Initially I made a paper template that matched both the inside & outside circles of the front indicator.



I was going to use this to check the basic symmetry of the mounts with the centre of the bonnet hole.

Although in the end, after an initial rough sanding down, I just put the indicators back in and marked around them instead.

I just need to build up the mounting area above the indicators a little bit.





I did mention the bonnet was upside down, didn't I?

Then I made the mistake of mixing up too much normal body filler and adding too much hardener to compensate for the cold.

So as quickly as I could work, I built up the areas around the indicator mounts & the side of the bonnet nose.

These were the two area I wanted to cover, but I then tackled some of the blemishes on the lower valance & grille opening edge.

By now the filler was already setting, which left everything looking like a complete mess.





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My last session of the day was spent sanding everything back down before I packed up.

At least the surfaces are a lot smoother than they look.





Finally, with the bonnet the right way up, here are the indicators shown side by side.
( Driver / Passenger )



It would have been easier to compare them if I had put some more etch primer on, but it was getting too cold & damp outside.

But I'm happy with them, especially as I am not even trying to achieve a perfect mirror image.
( And given the differences between the contours of the two wings, that is just as well! )

Until next time, take care, Paul.
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  #1567  
Old 26th January 2015, 16:03
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Just Passing Through...
Only had time to give yesterday's work a quick coat of primer.







There is still a couple of areas I need to come back to and a load of pin holes.

But that will be something I will deal with during the prepping for paint stage.

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After leaving that to dry for a bit, I did one final mock up with the indicators in place.



Which confirms my build theory that even if it isn't perfect, it is better than what I started with.

Until next time, take care, Paul.
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  #1568  
Old 26th January 2015, 17:43
Thurcroft flyer Thurcroft flyer is offline
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looks really good Paul well done
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  #1569  
Old 26th January 2015, 20:14
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Keep going Paul, looks superb. The first thing I do when I get home is look to see if you have posted. What's next on the list?. Top Work chap.
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  #1570  
Old 27th January 2015, 08:01
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That's some transformation, well done.
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  #1571  
Old 27th January 2015, 12:49
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Thurcroft Flyer - Thanks, are there any update/news from your own build?
As it was flying along last year, which I re-read when I took a copy of your bonnet photo.

ufo17 - Cheers, next on the list is re-enforcing the lower valance (see below).

Mr T Thanks, I found the work you did on your dash a great example of what can be achieved.
Because your "After" photo looked so good compared to the "cut & shut" "Before" photo.





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Restricted Play Time:
There was a bit of leg pulling recently on Scottie's build thread about making progress in the Winter.

So I went back and checked what I have managed to achieve since Christmas:
- Finished the hinges to give me a fully tilting bonnet
- Started the re-profiling and extension work at the rear edge of the bonnet
- Repositioned and reattached the driver' wing to the rest of the bonnet
- Sorted out mounting points for the front indicators
- Re-profiled the edge around the grille opening in the bonnet nose

I must confess that even I have been amazed at just how much I've managed to achieve in a month.

However, great progress on the car often means poor progress in other areas and this is no exception.

So I will be on restricted car duties for a little while until I can catch up with other stuff.

But that is OK, as I have to balance the car with my family and there isn't a real finish date target.
( As I just have to accept that it will take as long as it needs, but will be done eventually. )

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So today I limited myself to a single small task, beefing up parts of the lower valance edge.
( As it is already quite thick / stiff where the original section was reattached & the bottom edge extended. )

I started by cleaning up the surfaces.





Before I put a number of layers of fibreglass matting in place.





I will come back and tidy the matting currently overhanging the lower edge another day.

My "something is better than nothing" philosophy means that is still another small step in the right direction.

Well, I'd better go and do some other stuff.

So until next time, take care, Paul.
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  #1572  
Old 27th January 2015, 14:13
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Paul, do you use a paintbrush to put the resin on?
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  #1573  
Old 27th January 2015, 14:33
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Gary - Short answer = Yes.

But I'm just heading out of the door, so have a look at this post...

http://www.madabout-kitcars.com/foru...postcount=1132

Let me know if you have any more questions and I reply properly later on.

Cheers, Paul.
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  #1574  
Old 27th January 2015, 19:48
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Good question Gary, thanks for the repost Paul I'm just about to start doing some mods to my kit most not seen but never fibreglassed before. Watched far to many youtube video that eventually it all has been quite contradictory.

Your car is coming on well and impressive you have done so much outside.

Best of luck , Ian
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  #1575  
Old 27th January 2015, 20:55
Thurcroft flyer Thurcroft flyer is offline
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thanks for the enquiry regarding my own build, but I have had to put it on the back burner over the last few months, other things have taken priority, keep up the great work as my only involvement is watching you guys on here put me to shame. hoping to re start sometime next week, but the question is where.i will have to pull my finger out to make it on the road this summer??????
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  #1576  
Old 28th January 2015, 16:20
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Gary & Ian - Good luck with your fibreglass work.

Based on my experience as a complete novice, my top tips for starting out would be:

Only mix up a very small batch of resin (100ml) to begin with.
I was all "fingers & thumbs" at first & the resin was setting in the pot before I finished applying it.

Apply the resin to the matting before putting it where you need it.
I lay out the matting on some newspaper and brush in the resin there.

Again if you are just starting out, apply the resin to both sides of the matting before putting it on.
After it is in place, use your brush / roller to ensure the matting is full of resin & firmly stuck.

Even now, if I have lots of fiddly matting shapes to play with I do it in small stages.
In fact, I never mix more than 300ml at a time, even if I have big sections of matting to apply.
I find this avoids a stressful "race against time" to get everything done.

And remember, if it all goes horribly wrong, you can simply grind it off & start again.

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Thurcroft Flyer - There is no shame in having better priorities than car building.
I lost time on my build when reading 'Harry Potter' to my children, but would never trade that time.

As for where to start, pick a small / simple job, even if it isn't a major issue.
If you haven't done it already, even just cutting out the holes for the headlight & grille would work.
This really makes a difference to the way the car looks, which in turn helps motivation.

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Wind Chill:
I was happy to be doing other stuff this morning as the rain was lashing down outside.

I did get another limited effort on the car in the afternoon, but the wind was biting!

I trimmed back any fibreglass matting that extended beyond the bottom edge.





Then I carried the bonnet to the front drive as the wind tried to blow me (& it) into next door's garden.



Notice my rather fetching hinge protectors that stop the waterproof cover getting ripped.



I then drilled out the hinge pivot holes from M10 to M12 so I could fit my new beefy bolts.



I think it might be worth adding a splt pin / lock wire to make sure the nyloc nut does not work loose.

Then I attached the bonnet back to the hinges and checked the chassis clearance with the bonnet up.





I am really pleased to see that my "wavy line" approach has worked a treat.

In fact, I am really happy with all the improvements I've made to the bonnet.

These photos were taken on the 11th of January.





And these were taken today.





Even if this doesn't amount to a lot of new work, seeing the bonnet tilt still makes me smile.



Then everything was put back under the covers.

Until next time, take care, Paul.
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  #1577  
Old 1st February 2015, 14:08
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February Already?
I decided to mark the first day of the month with at least a token effort on the car.

The next round of work relating to the bonnet & body shell will be a logistical nightmare.
As everything has to be removed from the chassis for the final small jobs before bonding the body on.
Given the weather and the space required to do this, I am not sure how I will tackle it.

So I decided to switch my attention to the "smallish" job of building a "ring" plate for the petrol cap.

I started off trying to match the position of the petrol tank feed on the body shell.



But the more I tried to measure, the less confident I got about the position.

So I decided to drill a pilot hole and use a skewer to find my way around.



After drilling a few more holes and joining them up, I was slowly getting there.



At this point I trying to check the hole against the rubber ring seal on the inside & dropped it.

No problem, I'll just lift off the boot access panel as that will give me easy access to find it again....

... easy access...

... easy access...

Aaaaarrrrggghhhh!!!



Yes, I'd spent ages grazing my knuckles trying to work from the cockpit side of the tank.

I could barely feel my fingers anyway and clearly my brain was not working properly either.

So working from the easy access side, I slipped the filler hose over the petrol tank feed.
( Note: I did straighten it up properly after this photo was taken. )



I need to go back and have another look at the Spitfire set up, but I might need a longer hose.

But the key point is that the petrol tank is at a slight angle.

Which means I shouldn't have been aiming "straight down" when making the hole.

So dropping the seal really worked in my favour as now I could mark the hole properly.



As you can see, this is further back that where I was originally aiming for.



The plan is to fit the rubber ring to some sheet metal, which will be bonded/riveted to the body shell.

So the hole in the body shell needs to be big enough for the rubber ring to drop into.

Which means that I can cut out the big circle in the photo above and have no problems.
( Although I will cut it out smaller than marked and then file it to the required shape. )

A small bowl provided the template for the metal ring.



I then cut this out of metal and marked the centre point.



Unfortunately, my few remaining metal jigsaw blades were not up to the task.

So I had to use my angle grinder to roughly cut it out & then grinder the final shape.

When I looked at the petrol cap "hole" from my 2nd hand body shell, it was a bit oval shaped.



So I used my torch to mark out a circle and checked the rubber ring was a good fit.



This allowed me to mark up the metal plate.



But I need to get some fresh jigsaw blades before I can cut out the middle circle.

That was where I've left it for today, as I am still behind in other stuff.

So until next time, take care, Paul.

PS
We have only had the lightest dusting of snow around here so far.

So here are two photos from a kit car company in Massachusetts, after they had snow ploughed their car park.




Last edited by Paul L; 1st February 2015 at 16:13.. Reason: Typo
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  #1578  
Old 2nd February 2015, 13:42
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Another Flying Visit...
Still haven't got time to play with the car at the moment, but did find an old photo of my donor Spitfire's fuel hose.



Which does confirm my current set up is not long enough.



So I've ordered a new length of fuel hose that will fully bridge the gap from tank to body shell.

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It was good to see Simon (DonnySoutherner) post this photo of his Cordite yesterday.



This is same original "MkI" body shell that I started with, not the improved "MkII" version that Mac & Swifty have.

So this really brings home just how much I have altered my car to reach the stage I am currently at.

And I still have to attach the bottom sections of the bonnet to the sides of the body shell.

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Until next time, take care, Paul.
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  #1579  
Old 3rd February 2015, 07:46
zèbre69 zèbre69 is offline
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Very nice job Paul !


Thank you for showing me the job that I have to do on my bonnet. I didn't know what to do and now i've got the solution thanks to you.

Why everyone is obliged to modify the bonnet, why the bonnet 's mold is so bad done ? I thinck that he mold have to be modified to provide other builters to do all this work, are you agree ?

Few picture of my bonnet : incredible to buy a kit with a bonnet so bad done, due to the mold's quality !

The up part


the down part




Sorry for my level in english !

Best regards from France !
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  #1580  
Old 3rd February 2015, 08:46
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Zebre69 - Merci Sebastien.

No need to say sorry for your English, it is much better than my French.

Have you seen the work Viatron & Swifty have done on their bonnets?
As I picked up a lot of my ideas from their work, so it might help you too.

I think the original Sammio Spyder was the best kit overall.
But modifying it to fit other cars doesn't seem to have worked as well.

It is good to know that you are still working on your car.
It would be nice to see an update your build thread & some photos.

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Spoke Too Soon...
I should have know better than to tempt fate by mentioning the lack of snow around here.





I know it is still not much compared to other areas, but still enough to stop any significant work getting done outside today.

Although I might be able to spend a bit of time inside the Summer House later on.

Cheers, Paul.
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