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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!
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!
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.
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!
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!
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 :-)
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?
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
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.
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.
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?
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!
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.
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....
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....
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!