Davecymru's Spyder - Running report.

[davecymru]

Seeing as the sun is out i thought I'd use the Spyder for the commute today

And even more exciting (at least for me!) i decided to do the 'normal' commute with the 30miles of Motorway in the middle. Although i will be taking the scenic way home across the Mendips and down Cheddar Gorge to end

Now that I'm more comfortable with the car, i cruised at normal motorway speeds and only two times did i have moments of blind panic due to unusual noise/shaking. But those were both due to changes in road surface or "other stuff" and i guess that one side effect of Sammio building/driving is that you really are very aware of every noise and rattle !


I've also decided to adopt the Jaguar XK Enthusiasts Club parking method today!
This was partly on purpose and partly as i was so on edge when i arrived and so many people were staring out of the windows i just wanted to park and run



I now have a constantly updating weather forecast displaying on my 2nd monitor and i've briefed people that i may be off early if "rain stops play"

[garyh]

I see you're parking with the big knobs...

[Nike55]

Remembered your comment i.r.o. bonnet pins when downloading from a folder the other week.

Unfortunately I couldn't find the owner of the 250 GTO replica in order to place something of scale on the bonnet, but the leather straps might help. The pins do look a little delicate.

Interesting to note the 'rest' the catch sits in when 'at rest', not sure about the Phillips screws though (or the leather strap fitting) and they seemed to be starting to rust.

250-Pins-Newark-16062012.jpg

[davecymru]

Cheers matey, much appreciated!

That is the same leather strap as i've got on the sides of my bonnet so it's a good reference.

What I'm thinking at the moment is that when i take the bonnet off in the winter (after the Exeter show) to check the engine, i'll do the bonnet mods at the same time as i need to add some bracing to the bonnet and also do some reworking of the bulkhead, and then add some of these when it goes back together.

Until then i have bought a leather punch and added additional holes to the two straps and it's now much more secure.

It's quite funny that the only place on the car where the filler is noticeably cracking/sinking is the final bit across the top of the bulkhead where i rushed it right at the end and in the middle of winter! ho humm.... but it'll do for now

[Nike55]

Glad the photo helped.

I actually made a 'bonnet pin' out of modelling clay and it should be quite easy to cast in aluminium - perhaps using the lost wax method. I was going to have a go ... but I'm not sure I'm going down the Italian car route yet.

I suppose the cracking / sinking (and air bubbles) goes with the territory with f/glass cars..

[davecymru]

Ok, so I took the plunge and i've decided to do some paint corrections ready for Exeter and the end of year Bath & West classic show as i've been a bit self conscious!¬

As some of you know, not long after I'd got the car on the road i had left some tools on top of the engine when the wind caught it and slammed it shut leaving a large spider crack in my shiny bulge!

Plus where I'd rushed the final corrections to the scuttle there were some sink lines and some bubbles (i know, i know, never rush things!)

So i've taken the plunge (and lost a nice sunny driving weekend!) now taken a dremel to the cracks and chased them out completely, v'd them and filled with fiberglass filler, and i've just finished the 2nd round of filling/sanding/filling/sanding before i prime.

Hopefully the paint will be here this week and i'll be back on the road next weekend but i think this only goes to show that in the long run rushing any stage of prep/paint never pays off!

[tlrtone]

Looks good dave, I vowed I would run my around for a full year before I repaint it.

I am getting a few little bubbles here and there, and a few cracks and stress fractures, but that is just part of the car "settling down". - as you know!

Luckily I chose a very forgiving colour for mine, so the imperfections are not massively noticable until you are on top of it - literally!

Anyway, since I have built mine as a homage to the 50's, I am replicating the poor paint finishes of the time! (ie not too shiny on most cars - top marques excepted of course!)

Hats off to you though Dave, missing out on this fine sunday driving

[MoriniMan]

Originally Posted by Nike55

I actually made a 'bonnet pin' out of modelling clay and it should be quite easy to cast in aluminium - perhaps using the lost wax method. I was going to have a go ... but I'm not sure I'm going down the Italian car route yet.

I'm not sure Aluminium would be strong enough. Bronze would be a better choice and chromes very well.

My approach would be to fabricate and weld one out of Stainless. I'd need something better for bending rod that i have at the moment though.

[Nike55]

'I'm not sure Aluminium would be strong enough. Bronze would be a better choice and chromes very well.'

You are right, I just guessed it was aluminium, being a racing car, but thinking of the metallurgy it is unlikely. Also I am unaware of the strength of the spring and the forces acting upon the tang or the hook of the latch.

I wasn't following this up as I'm not going 'Italian' but the latch in question reminded me of a vintage coat hook (and there is a web site). It may be possible that a mild steel coat hook could be heated and bent or cut and welded...

[frankenstang57]

[QUOTE=davecymru;32200]/QUOTE]

Haha, looks my Herald parked at work next to all of the diesel pick-up trucks, SUV's and Mustangs...

[Mister Towed]

Good luck with the respray DC, but don't forget to get loads of overspray on tyres, brakes, electrics, unfathomable light switches, dangerously bad welds etc etc...

[davecymru]

Repairs are done and I've also slightly altered the bulkhead bonnet shut and i'll be adding thicker D strip in order to get a snugger fit.

Primer is about to be flatted and the first few top coats will go on tonight



It is interesting to note that despite all of the masking I've already got some slight over spray on the wing mirrors, which cheered me up no end

[garyh]

You'd never sell it with overspray! Anyway have you found the spraying easier this time around?

[Mister Towed]

Hooray for overspray! A fine British tradition.

[davecymru]

The external pressure regulator/water trap makes for a much nicer finish right out of the gun, but the filling/sanding prep is still time consuming and tedious.

[garyh]

Any pics yet? Or are you doing other mods?

[davecymru]

Sorry guys, it is nearly done. The Red is on and i'm just cutting and polishing it in to the existing paint. Unfortunatley my father passed away on Friday so things are up in the air atm. Although i am getting in more garage time when i am home just to "get away from it"!

With that in mind i took the Spyder out for a blast the other night with the paint "as is", as i just needed to escape for a while and i've found that i've now got a sticky throttle cable. (where's the screaming in terror smilie?)

ho humm, another "originial" part that i should have replaced during the build that was waiting for this winters engine rebuild that i'll have to do early!

[garyh]

Sorry to hear that, Dave.

[Mister Towed]

Sorry to hear about your father, Dave.

[Paul L]

Sorry to hear about your father Dave.

Sometimes it does help to keep "busy" rather that sit around.

Take care, Paul.