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internal frame is in and gives an insight in to how the Cordite one will be at the rear ( front section will be bonded into the bodies )....rear axle tie rods are bolted through new outrigger
body is secured.
bonnet has been lengthened and arch re-location is next.
Internals were already done but Mike pasted and glassed the outside as well for strength.
Steel hinge bar has been glassed and sikko'd into the nose , extra layup under bonnet to hide scars and some ply 'inner wings' added to brace the extra long bonnet.
Dash mounted and sikko'd in place as well as glassed.
front bulkhead fully glassed in place also.....
I started prepping some lowered floorpans for it as well....
tomorrow should see the bonnet mounted and then we can start creating the new arches and longer chin ( good game , good game ! ) as well as hopefully getting some internals sorted.
The stretching involved , cutting the bonnet in two , then fixing the rear in place against the bulkhead , positioning the front after that ...this left the 4'' gap...At this stage things get crude and a bit Dr. Frankenstein , you need to join the two halfs together...we use fibreglass and steel splints , there is still one attached in the picture but it was done using about 5 in total , all bolted through nice and strong....its a bit fiddly , 2 man job.
The gaps between the splints are filled by glueing and screwing flat sheet ( can be hard board , formica , anything really thats got one side smooth) - face down and any gaps taped up...it looks a mess but basically you need to create a ledge to glass against.
flip the bonnet over , wax the ledge/filler pieces , add a couple of coats of PVA release for good measure and then lay your glass up...couple of layers will be good to start.
When its dry , unbolt/unscrew/unstick your patches and you are left with the scar as shown. If you use a material thats not smooth , it could stick , but even if it does , hardboard can be sanded off , if necessary...the pva should prevent this but theres never any guarantees !
You can then add extra material to the underside to help blend the scar into the existing bonnet and the top side can be filled and sanded as per any external repair....
A similar process will be used to create the new arches.
You can 'splint' any part of the body , but more complex areas ie. rear quarters will require lots of them to avoid movement....always put two fixings through at least one side of the splint as well.....a splint screwed just once on each end can pivot putting things out of line - a second screw in one of the ends will prevent that ....sounds obvious but needed saying.
I might be down on Saturday with a wad of cash. Depends on what happens on Wednesday with the house buying.
i assume with the amount of work you are doing there will be a long enough lead time for me to get the chassis and engine up to scratch before the body arrives. It looks like your workshop is getting crowded.
I might be down on Saturday with a wad of cash. Depends on what happens on Wednesday with the house buying.
i assume with the amount of work you are doing there will be a long enough lead time for me to get the chassis and engine up to scratch before the body arrives. It looks like your workshop is getting crowded.
MIGHT SEE YOU SATURDAY THEN !!
It will need to be early to mid morning , about midday at latest as I have an airport run to do after that.....
Lead time is currently 2-3 weeks for a kit ....we deal with them slightly differently to the longer term stuff....we can delay it for you , no problem.
I have 2 G46 kit packages to do at present anyway.....
Yes , workshop is rammed .....difficult to know which way to turn most days - trying to get everything moving on a bit constantly....could do with extra help but just can't justify the extra expense right now ....getting Dave on board as a 'build agent' has helped...
Gary - I will do what works best for you with regarding the timing. I have a son of a friend of a friend helping me with some of the oily bits. I am paying him with trips in the TVR with the roof down and the throttle up. I thought and early morning blast down to Poole to see what he is helping me with would be fun.
Andy runs a bodyshop in Cardiff and is still playing with colour choices but I think it will be a shade of blue , just not certain which one yet.....I know he was looking at some of the old Jag colours today...
When I get a chance , we will roll it outside and redo the original pictures.
Andy plans to run triple webers on the 2.5 lump....combine that with the 84'' wheelbase and it should be interesting !!
Gary, was the bonnet stretch necessary or just a cosmetic choice? I'd think that the general dimensions from the bulkhead forward would be quite similar between the GT6/Spitfire and the Herald/Vitesse. This would mean that the standard 'italian' bonnet would fit either...
That wouldn't be the Andy that I bought my donor from would it?
Yes mate .....same one.
CBJROMS bought his from him as well and the Vitesse on the getting started page top pic was from him also....... he has just sold a rolling chassis for a Vitesse to another guy who is meant to be getting in touch soon as well....
Gary, was the bonnet stretch necessary or just a cosmetic choice? I'd think that the general dimensions from the bulkhead forward would be quite similar between the GT6/Spitfire and the Herald/Vitesse. This would mean that the standard 'italian' bonnet would fit either...
Baz from Brussels
Baz , yes it was necessary ....the different front crossmember changes the length ...it curves forward quite a lot , throwing the grille forward...this is why the front arches needed their front edge moving back a bit.
We are thinking about using a Lancia style bonnet in its modified format as an option on the Cordite....it will need a little blister or scoop to deal with the front carb on the Spit based ones in the same way as the Spit engined Spyder does ...but the GT6 , stromberg version will clear ok...
I have done a Spit based car before with the German bonnet but I can't remember how I got it all to fit !!
hi gary looking good... if you man is going to us triple webers he is best to use triumph tune manfolds as they slop forward...front one is 1 1/2 in lower then back one... have a look at pic of barry's car on is forum ..they take up a lot of room i will send u so pic's to your web sit as have in a game with pic.s on this f0rum cheers phil kings lynn.
have email you some pic's nice job of bonnet but going to be tight with bonnet ribs i look forward to see how it tunes out our bonnet fit with no cuting but i think i just got luck'e keep up the good work .
Baz , yes it was necessary ....the different front crossmember changes the length ...it curves forward quite a lot , throwing the grille forward...this is why the front arches needed their front edge moving back a bit.
We are thinking about using a Lancia style bonnet in its modified format as an option on the Cordite....it will need a little blister or scoop to deal with the front carb on the Spit based ones in the same way as the Spit engined Spyder does ...but the GT6 , stromberg version will clear ok...
I have done a Spit based car before with the German bonnet but I can't remember how I got it all to fit !!
of course! I momentarily forgot that the front of the chassis is considerably different...
