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This is a read-only archive of the old Madabout Kitcars forum. New posts and replies are no longer possible, but every thread is still here to browse and read.

New Cordite Build, with a twist....

4 Dec 2014, 12:26pm
Master Cylinder Reservoirs all piped up, I was going to change the hoses that came with them as they were way to long but by a happy accident I actually think that putting a loop in them adds to the aesthetic (ooh err get her!)



The rubbers have arrived for the bottom radiator mounts needed the lip removing on one side, 2 minute job





And fitted to the Rad:


And the parade of the shiny stuff continues!


Also popped into my local fastener supplier this morning and picked up a mixed bag of 100 stainless domed nuts for £5!

Retro fitted some to the battery cover with high strength thread lock



And used them when fitting the header tank, again with threadlock


Just going to strip the steering out now and tidy up and re weld then fit roll pins and paint before refitting for hopefully the last time!

TTFN
Mac
4 Dec 2014, 4:08pm
It all looks really good quality stuff Mac, enough to make me ashamed to look under my bonnet!!
4 Dec 2014, 4:20pm
Scottie its all far too good bearing in mind that as soon as its finished it'll be sold but for reasons discussed earlier in my build thread I started off to make a no expense spared car I'm so far down that route now that I'm loath to go cheap and spoil the end result, I'm sure I wouldn't feel so philosophical if I actually sat down with the bank statement and a calculator!
4 Dec 2014, 4:31pm
So nearly done for the day. No pics but had a worrying wobble at the wheel, solved removing the cowling and drifting in a spare column bush I luckily had right at the top of the outer tube. its all back together now though and I'm glad I did it as there is no movement in the column at all now. Don't know why its suddenly appeared but I think that with all the in and out of the inner shaft whilst sorting the steering linkage I have somehow moved the one at the top down just enough to introduce some slack. The one I have just put in isn't going anywhere as I have used PU adhesive.

Cleaned up and re-welded the steering shaft then cross pinned it with 3mm roll pins:



Made a bottom hose out of some blue silicon I already had lying around, not to everyone's taste I'm sure but its close ish to the body colour and matches the plug leads. Its a 90 and a piece of straight joined using a piece of tight fitting Ali tube and some more PU adhesive.



More in a minute
Mac
4 Dec 2014, 4:46pm
To save me removing the state cover does anyone know which of these 2 ports is which?


Fuel pipe that was temporarily going straight to the carb is now routed with stainless rubber lined P-Clips and attached to the Filter Regulator.


Small port on the Header tank is now hooked up to the rad and the wires from the fake mil spec are now covered in the fake braiding that arrived today



Wiring is run and p-clipped as far as the front bumper, and before anyone asks its not rust on the chassis the bloody thing is fully galvanised! its just a built of fibreglass and bodywork dust first job when she's running steering and braking will be a trip to the jet was round the corner!



Lighting loom routed through the tower and p-clipped safely out of the way of the steering rack.



Lighting loom stopped for now as I have run out off the stainless rubber lined P-Clips so have had to order some on a next day delivery grrrrrrr shipping was almost as much as the clips!

TTFN
Mac
4 Dec 2014, 7:42pm
Mac - Here is a photo of how my donor was set up.



Hope that helps, Paul. :)

PS
Everything is looking very good. :cool:
4 Dec 2014, 8:00pm
Paul,
Spot on, ill be blocking of the left hand port then :-)

Just before I left I remembered that in the recent workshop clearance I found a brand new vintage cut-off switch so I have mounted it next to the battery as an additional security feature, even nicer it still had the original label on!





TTFN
Mac
5 Dec 2014, 6:58pm
Final assembly of the steering after a like of paint, quite exhausting so took a nap:



But woke up just in time to put the steering wheel back in :-)




Getting to the final linkage....




brake lines run


All plumbed up and steering in for the last time:



Good news is that by the days end we have final fit of steering...tick
Brakes both front and rear...tick

Then remembered I had forgotten to order some stainless braided hose ends for the clutch...bugger no driving around the car park...arse!

TTFN
Mac
5 Dec 2014, 7:17pm
Are you still upside down in the cockpit, stuck under the steering wheel?
5 Dec 2014, 7:44pm
Mister Towed wrote:
Are you still upside down in the cockpit, stuck under the steering wheel?


Naa, he phoned me about 1/2 an hour ago so he must have got out :happy:
5 Dec 2014, 9:03pm
I think this will be the highest spec Sammio/Ribble ever! - complete with waffle maker ;-)

Joking aside it is looking fantastic - no chance of shipping it out to Sri Lanka with you?
6 Dec 2014, 12:20pm
Baz,
Thank for the complement, I hope your right! there's no way its going to SL as import duty would be 100% !!
Its up for sale, sure you couldn't be tempted :-)

Mac
6 Dec 2014, 12:42pm
And on that note lets have some feedback on Values...
I know what I would like for it but am also aware that with the recent history, Sammio (Crap Quality) Ribble (bust and lots of broken promises) the value are bound to be a bit variable. From what I can gather turn keys from Ribble were crossing to the continent for between 8k and 14k but most ended up getting a partial refund or had to be returned for reworking.
I know what it owes me and its a fair chunk but that said if I knew I was going to sell I would never have built it to the standard I have so am expecting to probably end up out of pocket, and if I included labour ...... wel lets not go there! Guess someone is going to benefit when its sold and im guessing it will be the buyer not me!

So come on gents what would you value it at from what you have seen so far?
Just a reminder of what the buyer will be getting:

Practically rust free MKIII Spitfire chassis that has been blasted, hot dip galvanised and epoxy primered and top coated.
Original triumph 1300 engine but totally rebuilt by Bradbury Engineering, a known triumph specialist. New pistons, fast road came, all new bearings, new oil pump. Brand new Old Stock Triumph 1500 head for the slightly larger valves. Bottom end has been dynamically balanced. Running a brand new Weber DCOE45 with Weber supplied new manifold.
Manifold back stainless sports twin box exhaust.
All new Spax adjustable shocks.
All braking components are new including callipers. Rear is running Alifin Drums.
Nodiz Pro electronic ignition.
Swing spring conversion with 1" lowering block.
Reconditioned Gearbox and Diff, done by Roger Bayliss transmissions who have done my race gearboxes for the last 10years.
Recon rear driveshaft's.
All new trunnions bushes and suspension bolts.
New steering rack.
Uprated larger front ARB
Lots of new engine bay goodies.
Custom New gauges imported from the US.
Brand new lighting all round.
Bed linered interior.
2k urethane paint in French Blue
Soon to be sporting a dark blue leather interior.
New vintage look 3 point harnesses.
Brand new pair of brooklands screens.
Brand new Langys 12 circuit wiring loom.
New floor mounted pedal box.
Soon to be sporting a new Ali rocker cover panted to match the body.
Brand new 14" 4.5 X14 Wire wheels with brand new tyres all round.
Very nice brand new Ali and wood steering wheel.
All column switch gear has been replaced with new.
New Dynamotor Alternator inside a dynamo casing
Brand New high torque starter motor.
And loads more.

Come on then what do you think
1. I should ask realistically
2. What you would like to think its worth?

Mac
6 Dec 2014, 12:43pm
Thanks for your concern Towed I did get out although I wont pretend it was graceful!

Mac

Mister Towed wrote:
Are you still upside down in the cockpit, stuck under the steering wheel?
6 Dec 2014, 3:00pm
Mac - Love the photos with your feet hanging out. :icon_smile:

As for the price, unfortunately I have no idea. :rolleyes:

I think most people would agree this is a top end build by someone who know what they are doing. :cool:

I think you would need to sell it in Europe to get the vast sums the red Milgia Speedster went for.

There are only a few Cordite/Navigators actually on the road, so maybe the Spitfire donor is worth more than a Herald one?

Obviously I would like to see your car set a nice, high bench mark, as mine will clearly be worth less than yours! :icon_wink:

So if you are prepared to wait for a sale, then stick a high price on it and see what happens.

Or maybe take it to a show / event when the warm sunshine has returned.
( Can't remember when you are planning to head overseas. )

Good luck, Paul. :)
6 Dec 2014, 3:26pm
Paul,
I have doubts that the Red Miglia actually made what is claimed but anywhere near that would leave me very happy! and very very surprised!

Mac
6 Dec 2014, 4:37pm
well this is turning in to best bit of the day for me waiting for pic's ....its a great car one of if not the best...... but for some reason in the uk people like to knock the good old triumph ....nice car mate what is it a triumph u say ...o they say ...in the usa they love'em ......there right there are good cars...... europe were i be looking i think you get the big money i think its a 30k motor .....top job
6 Dec 2014, 4:51pm
Viatron wrote:
Thanks for your concern Towed I did get out although I wont pretend it was graceful!

Mac


Been there, done that, got trapped in the footwell, which is why I raised the issue. :eusa_doh:

As for valuing your car, I personally think most of the Sammio's taken to market so far have been undersold by a fair margin.

Like art works, one of these cars is worth precisely what someone is prepared to pay for it. When you've finished your car, take a step back and look at what you've actually created - these cars are simply stunning and way beyond what most people expect they can afford to own.

Advertise it as a cheap car, explain the troubled past of the previous owners of the marque in the ad and wonder at the lack of interest and derisory (if any) offers you receive. That's how many of them have been sold so far.

My advice would be to write up a hugely positive advert, pitching it as a very real (and far better looking) alternative to a Caterham 7 and priced to compete in that market, say £15-20k.

Put the ad in 'Octane' (and any other posh car enthusiast mags there might be), plus an ebay classified with a link to some decent you-tube footage of it howling round a track.

If it hasn't sold after a month or so then reconsider, but my expectation is that it will attract some serious offers if advertised appropriately.

Good luck whatever you decide to do.
7 Dec 2014, 8:39am
Hey Mac, I know this is a kit car forum, and that is what most of us are building, but I think we all know the difference between a hastily-built "kit car" built by an amateur, and a bespoke hand-built one-off classic "relica" built by a professional!

Like Towed says, it will have to be advertised carefully in the right way, and in the right place, with a stress on the "hand built" "bespoke" and "quality" areas.

One idea may be to put in in a classic car auction with a good reserve, at least that way, you would get an idea of what value the auctioneer would put on it, and also what value the classic buyers consider it has, after all they are the people with the sort of cash to spend on some thing like that.

Also, if it were in the company of other original exotic machines, it may just get carried along on the wave?
7 Dec 2014, 10:45am
Quick update, hoping to get on and get the last coats of paint on today, spent most of yesterday cleaning the workshop so the dust is down to a minimum. swept the workshop 4 times until I was happy!
Although I had wet sanded the rear I hadn't got round to the sides, did the passenger side which only took about an hours then did a close up inspection and stoppered and small imperfection, welcome back the leopard look!


Fitted the second fake milspec:




Off to sand then paint, pics later.....hopefully
7 Dec 2014, 11:48am
just finished sanding back the leaopard spots and wet sanding the drivers side so am just waiting for it all to dry off. a quick shot showing the result of water in the air line when applying the last coat, lots of tiny pin holes. Each to his own but I dealt with it thus:
Wet sanded back with 600 wet until all the blisters were either gone or open.
Clean thoroughly using paint prep then blast them all to get rid of any dust or contaminants.
Left to dry for an hour and repeat the cleaning and air blasting.
Dried thoroughly with hot air gun on low from about 18" to 24"
Apply stopper and leave overnight.
Sand back and this is what you get, which looks awful but is in fact baby bum smooth.


I did consider going all the way to primer but spoke to a mate of mine in the trade who reckoned that as I'm still laying on at least 3 more coats this should be fine.

Passenger side done and ready for a final wipe down and paint.



Drivers side flatted and now drying, stopper in about an hour.


In the mean while im going to start wet sanding the bonnet again, I know I said it was done but have decided to refit and then spray the last coat all over to ensure there is no colour match issue between the bonnet and tub.

TTFN
Mac
7 Dec 2014, 3:07pm
Well that's pretty much it for prep, all the stopper is flatted back /off and its masked up










And this took longer to sand than the bloody bonnet!



Right cup of coffee and a fag then paint mixing....stay tuned!

TTFN

Mac
7 Dec 2014, 3:15pm
Viatron wrote:
Baz,
Thank for the complement, I hope your right! there's no way its going to SL as import duty would be 100% !!
Its up for sale, sure you couldn't be tempted :-)

Mac


Mate, I would love to own this car however the truth of the matter is that I could not afford it. This deserves to make top money, sadly out of my league.

One day I will build myself one of these cars whether it be Sammio/Ribble, Tribute or whatever, one day....
7 Dec 2014, 3:44pm
Cheers Baz, you never know make me an offer.....

So after talking to my painter mate I have this time slightly over thinned the paint and so far its looking good! Coat 1










Much reduced orange peel and a reasonable shine straight from the gun. You have to work a bit harder to avoid runs, none so far that I can see :-) about 20 to 30 minutes and the next coat will go down, aiming for a minimum of 3 and if I can get 4 I think that'll be it....

Back in a bit

Mac
7 Dec 2014, 4:22pm
2nd coat on and the first....and hopefully last run!

The way its going on im eering towards 3 rather than 4 coats but lets wait and see. Coat three is decanted and ready for catalyst so another 20 minutes or so till coat 3. I'm going to knock back the catalyst a touch in coat 3 to let it flow a little bit more as coat 1 was touch dry in a little over 20 minutes without even leaving a finger print!

Back in a bit
Mac