Things to do before the body goes on!

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StewbieC
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Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by StewbieC »

It's been a bit quiet on here lately!
This weekend I'm looking at doing some work on the engine bay. Looking forward, I wanted to check if there are any jobs worth doing before the body goes back on. I'm already looking at fitting the pedal box, glassing on the side vents, fitting the battery tray, fitting the reservoirs but are there any other bits and bobs worth doing from your experience?
Before you ask, Engine and Gearbox are fitted, that's why I'm asking :wink:
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Roger King
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by Roger King »

If the engine and box are already in, it may be worth making up the aluminium panels for the engine bay as this will be very difficult with the engine in the way. I used plain lining wallpaper to make the patterns, and cut out from 18G ally sheet. Fix through the fibreglass with visible pop rivets, as this will be more 'authentic'. I would do the front wheelarches and the inner wings forward into the nose. I also did the side floors of the engine compartment (beneath the battery tray and the pedal box on the other side).
Other things easier with the body off:
Welding brackets for exhaust system, if modifying at all
Welding female/female brake pipe connectors for remote bleeding of inboard Jag calipers
Pipe runs, obviously, presume you've done this
If I think of anything else, I'll post it after you've done the job, just to inject a little tension into your life.
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clive
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by clive »

I can't remember if you have done it or not, but there is a vane on the back underside of the T5 gearbox that tends to rub on the chassis. It is easier to grind it down before fitting the body, as is the end of the clutch fork, but I think you have already done that.
Cheers, Clive.

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Roger King
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by Roger King »

clive wrote:... that tends to rub on the chassis.
For which, read: shares physical space with the chassis to the tune of around ½-¾", IIRC. Get out the big angle grinder - you know you want to.
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StewbieC
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by StewbieC »

Hi Gents,

Thanks for the advice. I made up the templates a couple of weeks ago using Asda smart price lining paper. I cut them at the weekend. I was also toying with the idea of fitting the whole exhaust before the body went back on. That's still up in the air. As to the T5 Box, If you are refering to the web underneath the box with the 3 holes. Mine clears the chassis with the standard T5 mounts from Real Steel, I've even got the propshaft fitted. I will double check at the weekend. Maybe the chassis has been modified slightly to resolve this. :o
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by Roger King »

StewbieC wrote:Hi Gents,

Thanks for the advice. I made up the templates a couple of weeks ago using Asda smart price lining paper. I cut them at the weekend. I was also toying with the idea of fitting the whole exhaust before the body went back on. That's still up in the air. As to the T5 Box, If you are refering to the web underneath the box with the 3 holes. Mine clears the chassis with the standard T5 mounts from Real Steel, I've even got the propshaft fitted. I will double check at the weekend. Maybe the chassis has been modified slightly to resolve this. :o
I'd be surprised, but you may be right. The web in question runs the length of the gearbox, and needs notching to clear. Make sure you have plenty of clearance, as the mounts will settle and it will move under strain.
I can't honestly remember if it matters or not, but you may want to check how you will mount your seats before the exhaust goes on.
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by Colin Newbold »

I say, ding dong!! Blimey Stuart, at this rate you'll be finished before me (well, Martin anyway)!

If you want to confuse the hell out of people later in life, you want to be smoothing the first 3-4 ins of grp lay-up inside the curve of the wheel arches (I'm assuming you have rolled edges?). Easily done: turn the body shell upside down so its much easier to work on (or alternatively raise it up in the air where you can get under the arches) and then use sandpaper to eliminate all the valleys and peaks of the grp strands, finishing off with 1200 grit wet & dry. Then apply some sort of gloss paint to get a lovely smooth finish so that when joe public sticks their fingers underneath your wheel arches to see if its really aluminium (which I guarantee many will do), you will leave them perplexed.

I also coated all the inner wheel arches with a rubberised paint (not the first 3-4 inches you understand!) to minimise the chance of small stones hitting the underneath of the grp so hard that they might cause a crack in the gel coat above - but that's probably overkill. Probably be a lot more effective to do that on the Kirkham!

The other thing you could consider is fitting heat proof material (silver side out) under the floor to deflect heat from the exhausts and also around the inside of the transmission tunnel. I eventually covered the sides of the footboxes with this too - although not the most elegant of solutions.

I would also counsel you to think carefully about how to fit your seats/seat runners before body goes on - this can be a tricky undertaking beacuse of where the bolts tend to end up - usually bang on the chassis rails, and because they're inside of the seat base and therefore hidden from view, this 'what you might think is a simple little job' can take hours and hours. I'd welcome feedback from others on how they did this. Eventually, I created an ally plate and fitted the seat to that and then fitted the ally plate to the floor where I could see both sides of the bolt outside the seat squab.

Thanks for your build stories Stuart, they really are good. Good luck and carry on!

Colin
Last edited by Colin Newbold on Wed Feb 17, 2010 10:55 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by Roger King »

OCD wrote:... when joe public sticks their fingers underneath your wheel arches to see if its really aluminium (which I guarantee many will do), you will leave them perplexed.
Nah, Colin - they'll push on it to see if it dents!!
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by StewbieC »

Cheers for the comments guys!
Richard has got the next two episodes to post when he's vetted my "Brummay Spake" (to see if the lesser people of these Isles can understand it!) 8)
I hope my drivel doesn't bore you all too much! Don't worry I've already got a "Credits" on the go, for all of you fine gents that have assisted along the way.

I'm thinking of fixing a couple of mouse traps under the wheel arches, that'll leave the general public perplexed! Or maybe that's an idea for the Kirkham?

Still a long way to go! My better half has gone to look at a house today. I think I'll have to "get a man in" to sort that one out! (That's the potential DIY chores before Roger replies!)

Cheers again guys!
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Re: Things to do before the body goes on!

Post by Cotton Mouth »

With regards to the inside of the wheel arches, I'm proposing to leave mine rough with plenty of GRP fibers left protruding. The reason is that I know how damnably painful they are when they stick into you and I would want any member of the public who has the temerity to run his fingers under my wheel arches to spend the rest of the day in pain.
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