It has been suggested to me by Paul L that I start a new thread about the build of my Fiorano T48 which uses a Triumph Spitfire as a donor. I would like to point out from the start that this is my first kit car build and that I will doubtless be making mistakes along the way. If those of you, who really have seen it, done it and got the T shirt for building a kit car, spot any mistakes, can pre-empt them or generally would like to offer advice, please chip in as your advice will be greatly appreciated - as long as you don't mind me doing it my way if I feel it suits me better.
To cut a long story short, I had given up riding my Ducati 916 ( I'm 65 with a few creaks and squeeks) and was looking for something to replace it with. I originally thought of a Lotus 7 look-alike as I lusted after one of those as a youth, but then I thought better of it as I'd just look like another sad old bloke trying to relive the past. (On a motorbike nobody can see how old you are so you can get away with it much more easily and I can still "make progress" when the mood takes me!) I trawled the internet looking for something which was a bit more "50's" in appearance and came across the Fiorano T 48 and a Jaguar D Type replica which both seemed to fit the bill.
I finally chose the T48 because it seemed to be much more simple to build and I didn't need any of the bodywork from the donor vehicle. I struck a deal with Chic Doig, the Triumph Specialist up here in Scotland, to buy a triumph Spitfire 1500 less the bodywork. This was a good deal for both of us as he still had a good body tub to sell and I didn't have to remove it and then have the problem, for me, of storing the body tub and then finding someone who wanted one. Win,win! Hopefully, I have managed to attach some photos of most of what I bought.
(To be continued)