Tony's Build Thread....

[Psycho pops]

Hi Whats that header box off?
I really like the look of that !
Pops

[Mister Towed]

Originally Posted by Psycho pops

Hi Whats that header box off?
I really like the look of that !
Pops

Isn't that the standard 1600 Vitesse radiator and header tank?

It really does suit the car.

Looking very nice by the way Tony, loving your adaptation of the standard heater. Mine was just a huge blob of orange concretion or I might have used it myself.

[tlrtone]

Header is off the standard Vitesse 1600 as mr t says. It was painted black but I polished it as i think it looks better. I just hope it fits under the bonnet otherwise I will need a Norfolk scoop!

[tlrtone]

Originally Posted by Mister Towed

loving your adaptation of the standard heater.

You get very creative on a budget!!

I am lucky having a very nice orginal donor in the 1964 Vitesse 1600, as it has all the period fittings like the header tank, and brass drain valves etc. The radiator sitting a bit lower looks very factory now and I am lucky that all the original hoses fit!

Just bonded the body on, and decided fibreglasssing is not one of my strong points! It's on and it's strong, but will need tidying up when it is all set.

I had some major issues aligning the body, so had to do some drastic cutting to make it fit and look okay. I had one side further forward than the other by about 50mm, so I resorted to cutting and shutting the body! Pics to follow later...

[Mister Towed]

Ooh, I hope it sets straight or you'll have a terrible time tying to align the bonnet.

[tlrtone]

I will have to sort out the bonnet when I come to it. I want to get it right at this stage, and I will play around with the bonnet when I get to that stage.

The problem I had was that the passenger side was about 50mm forward and nearly touched on the front wheel, whereas the drivers side was further back. It looked odd and misaligned and so I wanted to get it right.

[tlrtone]

You can see where I started to cut and in the end I made several cuts and then pinned it all back together to get it aligned..





This picture shows that either side is now the right distance and even the windscreen mounting is looking aligned.










I did do plenty of measuring and checking before I cut and I think where the side piece was bonded together, it was just put slightly forward. No big deal, just a day of pondering, cutting, and sticking back together.

I am expecting some adjustment of the bonnet now, but, hey, that's the fun of these cars!!

[tlrtone]

The good news is that I am now not far off getting it registered.....

Gary, how long does it take to get an appointment at Nuffield?

Do I need the side panels in? I am aiming to do them this week, so will be ready just after Easter I reckon, or I can do it this week if they are not needed for the inspection

[lancelot link]

Will need to book it this week to get the following Wednesday....bank holiday doesn't help...as soon as you can get it booked the better....I will call you tomorrow.
We can use my trailer to get her down there.....

no interior wood panels needed , just body secured.

Did two last week ....the GT6 and Daves Vitesse he has just started ...Daves had no interior panelling and it was fine...

[tlrtone]

Thanks Gary. It is ready now then so the sooner the better.

Thanks a million

[Charman.tech]

Originally Posted by lancelot link

Will need to book it this week to get the following Wednesday....bank holiday doesn't help...as soon as you can get it booked the better....I will call you tomorrow.
We can use my trailer to get her down there.....

no interior wood panels needed , just body secured.

Did two last week ....the GT6 and Daves Vitesse he has just started ...Daves had no interior panelling and it was fine...

Gary

Does the engine and gear box need to be on place for the inspection?

[tlrtone]

Originally Posted by Charman.tech

Gary

Does the engine and gear box need to be on place for the inspection?

I think so as they check the engine number, which also needs to be on the form

[Mister Towed]

Gosh, your body problems would have seen me stomping back to the 'factory' to demand a new one. Your shell was either a 'Friday afternoon' job or your chassis and bulkhead were out of true due to historic crash damage. You did measure your wheel base and check your chassis was straight before chopping up your bodyshell, didn't you?

[tlrtone]

Originally Posted by Mister Towed

Gosh, your body problems would have seen me stomping back to the 'factory' to demand a new one. Your shell was either a 'Friday afternoon' job or your chassis and bulkhead were out of true due to historic crash damage. You did measure your wheel base and check your chassis was straight before chopping up your bodyshell, didn't you?

I did check everything twice, thrice and err, four times.. It took me a while to figure out what to do , (at least three cups of coffee) but actually once I got started on my plan, it was relatively straight forward.

The chassis had not been in a smash and I did play around with the alignment of the bulkhead first, but it was definitely the body that needed adjusting to fit my frame/chassis combo.

Dave (turnkey build Dave) popped over in the afternoon yesterday to say hello in the Sammio currently up for sale, which was great as it has given me even more enthusiasm to crack on and get mine ready for the summer!

The thing to remember is that the kits for these cars are a third of the price of most kits and we are building on a 40+ year old chassis, and not a jig welded space frame, so there will inevitably be adjustments on every car. I am not quite going to the extent of Charmen.Tech, but do want it to look right and fit together the best I can.

I am really enjoying the build as I was expecting quite a few challenges, and having had a trial fit of the bonnet last night, it should clear my nice shiny header tank and radiator! So that should be easier, once I have had my inspection

[Mister Towed]

I'm glad your chassis is straight, you're making great progress and it's all looking very nice indeed. I'm somewhat jealous of your early Vitesse donor - two weeks after I bought mine a very early dateless reg 1600 Vitesse sold on ebay for the same price I paid for my 2 litre and I sometimes wish I'd held out for that. Still, I'll have to console myself with the extra power and torque and maybe buy a dateless reg as my final finishing accessory.

Keep Calm and Carry On Sammioing.

[tlrtone]

All dry this morning and looking quite good now I reckon. Some tidying up and filler work to do, but all is coming together nicely. I have taken a slightly different approach to the front scuttle area as I wanted a cleaner, more factory look, so I have cut back alot of the fibreglass that was on the body. I left a bit in teh centre as I am going to put the "Vitesse 6" and "overdrive" script badges on there..







This is a picture of the floor pans bonded onto the body...

[tlrtone]

By the way, if you are going to pu tin a dropped battery tray, then you need one of these...




It is a drain hole! The tray WILL fill up with water, so best have somewhere for it to go!

[tlrtone]

And last but not least, I managed to tinker with the exhaust and modified the standard vitesse stainless steel one by cutting and straightening the centre pipe, and moving the mounting bracket.

Looks ok I think!

[tlrtone]

While I am at it, this is the radiator mounted and piped in.. All the original hoses fitted so I don't have to go and get some more!! How lucky was that!



It didn't end up too low, although I will probably make up a metal cover for it at the bottom, or even graft on a lower oval fibreglass bit similar to the Cobra. Not sure yet, I will decide when I come to fit the bonnet!

[Mister Towed]

That's all looking very slick. Great progress Tony.