Another Cordite Is Born ...

[phil9]

great news that is well done

[DaveP]

Looking good Paul. I really wish you all speed in getting it on the road. Looks like you deserve it !

Dave

[Paul L]

Pops, Lancelot, Mr T, Roadster, Swifty, Micky, Rene, Froggyman, Phil & Dave - Thanks gentlemen.

As regular readers, you all know this build has been a bit of a roller coaster ride (to say the least).

But there is no denying that a significant milestone has now been reached.

Looking back on the "driving" photos I posted yesterday:

2012 - Happy - Because everything was progressing well and at that stage I had absolutely no idea what lay ahead.

2016 - Happy - Because I do know what lies ahead and that is the last few jobs to finally get this car on the road.

And yes, I fully intend to keep driving the car back and forth across the driveway in the months to come.

Partly to make sure the clutch doesn't seize and partly just because I can!

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Extra Photos:
John @ JY Classics sent me the photo he took after delivering the car.



Note:
I was still in my working clothes at this point, before "dressing up" for my first drive.

I also had a play with my "proper" camera to see how the black & white setting worked.



Anyway, we've just got back from a weekend away celebrating a friend's birthday.

So the next update will see the return of me working on the car again.

Until then, take care, Paul.

[Roadster]

So whats the next job - rear lights?
Whats needed for MOT?

[Paul L]

Roadster - I'm still working on the full list of jobs needed for an MOT.

But the next thing I intend to tackle is the last of the majors modification work.

Although, as these jobs are interconnected, I will have to make sure I get the sequence right:
- Reshape front arches
- Extend side of body shell
- Improve bonnet/scuttle shape & fit

There is still a bit of "tidying up" to do on the underside of the front half of the car.
( The rear of the car is all finished underneath. )

My "To Do" list includes quite a few "small" jobs like these:
- Rear brake light switch, heater switch, de-bug front wiring loom, etc.

Then there is a stack of parts that need to be fitted:
- Rear lights, mirrors, Brookland screens, seats, seat belts, etc.

I am sure some of these jobs will take longer than others.

But as long as I keep ticking them off, I will get there in the end.

Which will still leave final body work, paint, ally interior, etc, to be done after I am on the road.

Cheers, Paul.

[davecymru]

I dunno, i stop checking the forum for a few days and you go and nearly have the car finished, typical!

I reckon that if you take a long weekend you'll have that list of MOT jobs (ignoring reshaping the wheel arch) all done and dusted and be on the road for June!

[Paul L]

Dave - Cheers.

But let's not get carried away here, I need to take one small step at a time and see what happens.

Although the good news is that many MOT parts will simply bolt into place as the prep. work has already been done.

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Not Quite A Start:
This evening, I tried to work out the best way to tackle reshaping the front wheel arch.

I turned the wheels to check the current clearance.



Then remeasured the gap between the top of the tyre and the wheel arch.



It was now sitting at 4.5 inches, compared to 3.5 inches when the car was parked on the road on Saturday.



Initially, I thought that I could stick a spacer under the tyre to lift it up a bit, but that didn't work.

Unfortunately, when I removed the spacer & lowered the car back to the ground, the gap had somehow grown to 5.5 inches.



I really, really, hate my sloping driveway!

Anyway, after rolling the car back and forth a bit, it eventually settled back down at 4.5 inches.

Looking at the photos above, the drive is clearly tipping the entire body shell to the side.

Which might explain why I made a bit of a mess of the rear arch on the driver's side.
( Which is much lower than the passenger side. )

So I spent a long time trying to work out what I needed to do to get this right.

I think it will end up looking something like this.



But I will have another close look at this tomorrow before I start chopping things about.

So until next time, take care, Paul.

[Roadster]

paul put the spacer under the template instead of lift the car

[Paul L]

Roadster - I actually raised the template for the rear arch on the driver's side & still got it wrong.

And looking back at my build photos, that arch was on the same slope on my driveway as the front passenger one is now.
( Since I turned the car around to face the hedge. )

So I might try jacking up the driver's side of the car to see if it lowers the passenger side back down to "road level".

Although the key thing I need to keep reminding myself is the reason I am doing this work in the first place…

The front arches do not need to be perfect, they just needs to be an improvement on what I started with.

My main objective must be to get the car up to an acceptable MOT standard, not to have it finished to perfection.

Cheers, Paul.

[froggyman]

Hi Paul, can you turn the car 90 degrees in the drive way so the car is facing down the slope or up to see how the front wheels sit in the arches. Just an idea as it may sit better then.

[lancelot link]

Can you not jack the car up on the lower side until its level and put some blocks under one side , so the car is sitting with one side on the drive and the other side atop some wooden blocks / scaffold planks etc... ?

The workshop I am in has a slope in part of it , I work my measurements from the chassis and not the floor if I have to do anything in that area ..

[Marc F]

Yep, I would make up some blocks that are level to provide a true datum point for the wheels to rest on. Or if you prefer to work "wheels off" then make them in suitable places for axle stand to stand on.

Make them out of weather proof ply and laminate them to the required thickness for each corner, using a spirit level to get a level plying field

[Paul L]

Froggyman, Gary & Marc - Thanks for all the suggestions chaps.

Unfortunately, I have made several attempts to create a level playing field on my driveway over the years and they have all failed.

Thankfully, I have found a workable solution...

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Here we go again!
I did try jacking up the driver's side of the car, but it didn't help.

Instead I ended up with a, rare for me, KISS solution.



As, completely by chance, this block of wood lifts the template to the correct spot under the arch.

So I decided to take a deep breath and just get on with it...



First to go was the "lip" along the both edge of the bonnet.





This should hopefully allow me to get a better join from the rear of the side extension panel.

Then it was time to really get stuck in.





Note:
The bottom end of the bonnet is not actually where the final cut will be, I just needed to split it "somewhere" to help the rebuilding process.

The bulk of this arch is too big, but the leading edge is too small, so this section needed to be trimmed some more.



Then the sections cut away needed to be chopped into small sections so they would follow the curve of the template (ish).



Then it was time to try and put it all back together, but the weather turned against me before I could finish.



Still, at least I have made a start.





Despite all the practise I have had at this, this looks like it is going to be quite a challenge to get right.

Until next time, take care, Paul.

[Paul L]

A Nervous Wait:

I know I have said it numerous times before, but my sloping driveway really does play tricks on me.

Yesterday, I was confident that I could use the top of the wheel arch as my datum point for positioning the template.

As the original gap I measured was from there to the tyre & I know the gap from the top of the template to the tyre.

Therefore, by logical mathematics, the difference between the two must be where the template should sit.

Yet this morning I've already spend some time going back over the photos questioning myself "Does it look right?".

Thankfully, part of the problem is the fact I've put the "jigsaw puzzle" back together in a different order.

The pieces I've selected for the top of the arch are the longest sections, with the best fit, not the bits that were there before.

This has created a different sized gap above the pieces compared to the previous gap below the arch.

So no wonder I am going around in circles.

Not sure when I will get the chance to finish rebuilding the arch, as today's forecast does not look good.

But I will keep the faith & put it back together as best I can, knowing it will definitely be an improvement.

Cheers, Paul.

[reneanglia]

Why don't you just level the car with some blocks?
This way you make it yourself difficult.........
Sorry Paul but you make a small problem big this way.....

[lancelot link]

Also , take measurements from the chassis or another symmetrical point like a suspension tower or similar , if you need to measure something upright on the outskirts of the car , ie. arch height comparisons , use a length of wood or steel or similar clamp it to the bottom of the chassis protruding out the side of the car through the wheel arch area , take a vertical measurement , then transfer to the same position on the other side and repeat ..with the front jacked up , wheels off , you should be able to find a position both sides to do that ..as long as your chassis is true and the wood is clamped or strapped at the same angle both sides ..ideally 90 degrees to the side of the chassis rail , which is easy to check ..the measurements should be reasonably accurate ...whatever angle your car is at , the chassis/body relationship will be constant.

[Paul L]

Rene - I know I have often made things more difficult for myself during this build.

BUT…

I really have tried lots of variations on this…

Blocks under the chassis:



Blocks under the wheels:





Blocks at an angle:



Axles stands under the chassis & blocks supporting the bonnet:



Axle stands & blocks:



But every time I try to get the car level, gravity wins and I lose.

( As all four wheels sit at different heights, as the driveway slopes both left to right & front to back. )

This was the scene after one "collapse" and that was just the weight of the rolling chassis.



In summary - If I could, I would, but I can't, so I won't.

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Gary - I should have done something like you have suggest right from the start, but, unfortunately, I didn't.

So these days it is a much better idea if I simply keep straight edges and measuring devices well away from the car.

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While digging out the photos above, I came across "Vanessa" again.



The key point for me to remember is that Andy is enjoying his car, not worrying about his front wheel arch.

Hopefully it will be a bit drier tomorrow night and I can make a bit more progress.

Until then, take care, Paul.

[fwingo]

I agree that you should "crack on with it" as you can always go back latter to improve aspects of your car after using it for a while. I am amazed at your dedication to doing this in such a small sloping space outside where it seems to rain every day! You're getting to the proverbial 94% done with only an 59% left to see to but you'll soon be driving it. ;-)

[Paul L]

Fwingo - Cheers.

Whilst the weather limits when I can work on the car, the sloping drive really limits how I work on the car.

Thankfully, re-profiling the front wheel arches should be the last of my long list of Frankenstein Hillbilly modifications.

Whilst there will always be parts of the build I am not 100% happy with, they shouldn't stop me getting an MOT.

Then, unless a wheel arch actually rubs against a tyre, I will ignore the fact I have not been able to build a perfectly symmetrical car.

The truth is, the car gets such a great reaction these days, it is clear that most people either don't notice the "faults", or simply don't care.

Finally, these days, even just the thought of finally getting this car on the road after this epic build/battle makes me smile.

Take care, Paul.

[Roadster]

https://www.facebook.com/roberto.nac...0547657724828/

Paul this will inspire you