DVD3500 Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Short version: I have pictures uploaded here: https://slotcarp.wordpress.com/spitfire-stripped/ Password Stripped with capital S (sorry about the linking... I can upload pictures next time...) What you don´t see is the gaping hole in the A post that was covered by fiberglass, the 6 inch/10 cm of rust and holes all around the bottom curtain , rockers, sills, and trunk/boot. When body parts started to flex and when we started scraping the weld seams and discovered that rust had started to actually push the panels apart my body shop acquaintance told me to get a new body.... No amount of work could save this... I have not given up yet. Chassis and hood/bonnet are still good so if I can find a decent body it may actually save me time and money in the end. If someone knows someone in Western Europe let me know. I have a contact in Belgium and have asked in my Spitfire club. Otherwise moral support would help me feel better. 🙂 Cheers... Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobPearce Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 I think your body shop acquaintance is being a wimp. I've restored worse than that! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Hutchings Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Certainly a fair bit of work but for someone who’s used to working with classics I think this sort of rust/rot would be quite common. Great that the chassis is still good. Is your body shop acquaintance someone who’s used to working on moderns? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted June 14, 2021 Author Share Posted June 14, 2021 The pictures were taken a few weeks ago and I haven't had time to make new ones (rolling the car in and out is a 2 person job and I am usually alone). Since then the holes in the floor have grown as I stomped around the car. The pillars on the windshield frame can have a screwdriver stuck through every 4-5 inches. Rocking the frame makes the walls in the footwell flex. You can almost pull the outer rocker/sill off with your bare hands. The floor is starting to give way and the captive nuts are gone on the driver's side. Every weld seam has rust in it and is starting to burst. The bodge on the A pillar was the stab in the heart for me. Covering that with fiberglass (the hole is about 1 inch in diameter) is down right dangerous. Since I can't do body work myself (No space, no equipment, no knowledge and likely no talent) my goal was to have the car rebuilt so that it would likely never rust again. While you could grind the rust away , treat it and repaint there is a high chance it would come back again. German MOT (TÜV) does not allow any rust to be visible on the body of the car. Decent panels would cost me several thousand easily and they likely won't fit right so if I can find a decent tub that needs little to no work it is likely an easier/cheaper endeavor . He pretty much only works on older cars. A TR6 was in his shop recently. A doorskin here costs between 600 and 800€. He repaired it for half that so I don't really question expertise or cost of labor. Having said that, I am more than happy to house someone who wants to come over and do all the work for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Sharp Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 It sounds like restoring this car is a step too far for you . Finding a much better one may be the cheaper and better solution. Keep your options open as there may be a resto project out there that has had all the welding and panel work and is in need of paint finishing . Advertise widely and see what comes along . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Hutchings Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Ok yes it does sounds like a mass of work, and not ideal circumstances for you to do it in. 14 minutes ago, DVD3500 said: if I can find a decent tub that needs little to no work it is likely an easier/cheaper endeavor Yes agreed, and you'll still have some fun building everything back into it, making the car your own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted June 14, 2021 Author Share Posted June 14, 2021 The highlight of the day so far is a neighbor told me there is a scrap metal place that gave him 30€ for a metal pot so the body must be worth hundreds!!! Granted the pot was mostly copper... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 http://sideways-technologies.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/7107-chriss-mkiv-basket-case-restored-to-glory/#comments You want to see rusty…… try this…. I accept it would have not been an economic repair using a pro body shop, and in fact we did spend a bit of time looking for a better tub. However, while the tubs we looked at may have had smaller holes, they still had plenty of them. So we opted to stick with what we had - which had the big advantage of being almost entirely original and not full of previous dodgy repairs. Hurricane conversion? T6? Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted June 14, 2021 Author Share Posted June 14, 2021 OMG! I am very jealous of people who can pull that off and have the time and resources.. Not sure I get the Hurricane and T6 comments... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrapman Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Nick is suggesting you buy a Vincent Hurricane convertible fibreglass body, or a T6 GT6 look-a-like body. You either need to pay a visit to the UK when restrictions allow and buy lots of panels a lot cheaper, and smuggle them back home, or bring the tub to the UK for repair I guess. Ought to be able to get a US tub imported if not?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Vincent is no more so it's the Caburn Hurricane apparently http://www.caburn.uk/Contents/CaburnEngineering/Hurricane/ Not sure how real this is...... Not sure whether it's possible to buy T6 stuff at present or quite who owns what. USA tub might also be an option. Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted June 15, 2021 Author Share Posted June 15, 2021 I have been in love with the MKIV/1400 body style for over 30 years so I don't think that will change. 🙂 I will keep searching... I do plan on visiting Ol' Blighty again at some point. 2018 and 2019 I was in Gaydon for teh "Slotfest" for Scalextric and slot cares.... Really wish the last Spitfire were not on a plinth 30 feet in the air... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted July 12, 2021 Author Share Posted July 12, 2021 Small update: Found an abandoned project car in Belgium. Californian car complete except for the interior. Probably the car that I should have bought in the first place as it has the gearbox, brake system and stronger doors that I wanted BUT I only found the seller through contacts that I got by buying the first car. Plan is to use the best/preferred parts from both cars. With any luck I will have it stripped and ready for rebuild in September (maybe sooner if the the weather holds up)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted December 21, 2023 Author Share Posted December 21, 2023 I have been keeping quiet about my project because frankly there wasn’t much to report on. The car left in October 2021 and since then has been at a workshop in Stuttgart. The car was acid dipped, galvanized, primered and some body damage came to light. By this point the guy who runs the shop (is essentially a one-man shop) had other projects that he thought he would get done quickly (a ’63 Beetle that came in for rocker panel/sill work and ended up being a body off restoration). Plus he is known in the area for allowing other people to do their work on their cars there. Once I was there a guy was swapping out the gearbox on a BMW 3 series for a better one… The original plan was to send everything off to Poland and then build it back up. One of the local Spitfire drivers who is a master mechanic and helps build protypes for a star car manufacturer in Stuttgart pointed out how much Spitfire bodies flex (even with strengthening) and since the car obviously had had a few dings maybe we should make sure everything fits since banging and welding into a freshly painted body would be somewhat annoying… putting it mildly. We will have the chassis and the underbody painted in the final color (Cobalt Blue) but leave the other panels until it all fits up nicely. I know many cringe at the effort of getting panel gaps to fit but this guy hung the doors back on after the dip and they are already nearly perfect. As idle hands are the devil’s work he is having all the suspension components powder coated and I will put them together on the bench so that when the body is ready for the first test fit we can just bolt them on to get the whole thing rolling. Then the rest of the car will get the final coat(s) of paint and I asked to have them put in the windshield/windscreen as I don’t have the skill for that. Then she will come home and I can do the rest! Only minor hiccup I see is the guy I had lined up to do my diff (convert it to 3.63, put an aluminum casing on it and overhaul it in general) says he can’t get the shims to do it. I tried to convince him but so far no joy. There is a company that will do it for about 1000€ but I was hoping to not have to go that route… Open to offers! 😄 While I wait for the powder coated parts I am reading up on best practices for fitting the bushes. I got my Dad’s tap and die set and will chase the threads with that. Feels good to have them in my hand again after almost 25 years. I have some upgraded parts from the US and am tempted to put lightweight hubs on the front but the Finance Dept. might not approve that! 😄 So with any luck, sometime in the Spring she will come home and I can report back as I stumble through such tasks as: Rebuilding and upgrading (relays!) the wiring loom from scratch Upgrading the heater motor and wiring Trying to find a way to mount a third brake light without it looking crap Making a custom dashboard (see comment about new powertrain) Rebuilding the top/hood frame (luckily I have two, one original and one refurbished in parts) Reupholstering the seats/installing the interior (to a point… we are resto-modding the powertrain so may leave some of that to the very end) Re-installing the windows (I have hands smaller than some former president’s so I don’t mind. 😊) Etc etc etc… Watch this space! To all who celebrate something this time of year: Happy Holidays and wishing you all a great new Gregorian new Year! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy Dawes Posted December 21, 2023 Share Posted December 21, 2023 2 hours ago, DVD3500 said: I have been keeping quiet about my project because frankly there wasn’t much to report on. The car left in October 2021 and since then has been at a workshop in Stuttgart. The car was acid dipped, galvanized, primered and some body damage came to light. By this point the guy who runs the shop (is essentially a one-man shop) had other projects that he thought he would get done quickly (a ’63 Beetle that came in for rocker panel/sill work and ended up being a body off restoration). Plus he is known in the area for allowing other people to do their work on their cars there. Once I was there a guy was swapping out the gearbox on a BMW 3 series for a better one… The original plan was to send everything off to Poland and then build it back up. One of the local Spitfire drivers who is a master mechanic and helps build protypes for a star car manufacturer in Stuttgart pointed out how much Spitfire bodies flex (even with strengthening) and since the car obviously had had a few dings maybe we should make sure everything fits since banging and welding into a freshly painted body would be somewhat annoying… putting it mildly. We will have the chassis and the underbody painted in the final color (Cobalt Blue) but leave the other panels until it all fits up nicely. I know many cringe at the effort of getting panel gaps to fit but this guy hung the doors back on after the dip and they are already nearly perfect. As idle hands are the devil’s work he is having all the suspension components powder coated and I will put them together on the bench so that when the body is ready for the first test fit we can just bolt them on to get the whole thing rolling. Then the rest of the car will get the final coat(s) of paint and I asked to have them put in the windshield/windscreen as I don’t have the skill for that. Then she will come home and I can do the rest! Only minor hiccup I see is the guy I had lined up to do my diff (convert it to 3.63, put an aluminum casing on it and overhaul it in general) says he can’t get the shims to do it. I tried to convince him but so far no joy. There is a company that will do it for about 1000€ but I was hoping to not have to go that route… Open to offers! 😄 While I wait for the powder coated parts I am reading up on best practices for fitting the bushes. I got my Dad’s tap and die set and will chase the threads with that. Feels good to have them in my hand again after almost 25 years. I have some upgraded parts from the US and am tempted to put lightweight hubs on the front but the Finance Dept. might not approve that! 😄 So with any luck, sometime in the Spring she will come home and I can report back as I stumble through such tasks as: Rebuilding and upgrading (relays!) the wiring loom from scratch Upgrading the heater motor and wiring Trying to find a way to mount a third brake light without it looking crap Making a custom dashboard (see comment about new powertrain) Rebuilding the top/hood frame (luckily I have two, one original and one refurbished in parts) Reupholstering the seats/installing the interior (to a point… we are resto-modding the powertrain so may leave some of that to the very end) Re-installing the windows (I have hands smaller than some former president’s so I don’t mind. 😊) Etc etc etc… Watch this space! To all who celebrate something this time of year: Happy Holidays and wishing you all a great new Gregorian new Year! 👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Bancroft Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 UK Diff Rebuilders: 1. Mike Papworth: Nuneaton, Warwickshire 2. Canley Classics: Dave Pearson. Near Nuneaton, Warwickshire 3. 2Spec Transmissions: Solihull, Warwickshire 4. Hardy Engineering: Leatherhead, Surrey Top 3 are Triumph specialists and very familiar with small chassis diffs. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DGF Posted December 26, 2023 Share Posted December 26, 2023 Here are some pictures of the one I’m Doing, I’ve owned it for years but only started doing it the last 2 years, pretty much every panel will have been replaced or repaired my welding skills have greatly improved 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobPearce Posted December 27, 2023 Share Posted December 27, 2023 That's what I got before. 😛 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted January 2 Author Share Posted January 2 On 22/12/2023 at 11:06, Tim Bancroft said: UK Diff Rebuilders: 1. Mike Papworth: Nuneaton, Warwickshire 2. Canley Classics: Dave Pearson. Near Nuneaton, Warwickshire 3. 2Spec Transmissions: Solihull, Warwickshire 4. Hardy Engineering: Leatherhead, Surrey Top 3 are Triumph specialists and very familiar with small chassis diffs. Cheers. I used to get to Gaydon from time to time. If the diffs weren't so darn heavy I would have no prob shipping them. There is a place a few hours away (Bastuck) that also do the aluminum casings. They will guarantee the work... Will cost north of 1000€ ... when you consider I paid about 2000 € for each car that kinda hurts.... 😄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrapman Posted January 5 Share Posted January 5 I seem to remember Tony Lindsey-dean used to ship lots of his stuff to a contact in Germany. Might be worth giving him a call for a quick (?????) chat, see if he can help you out. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVD3500 Posted January 8 Author Share Posted January 8 On 05/01/2024 at 09:07, thescrapman said: I seem to remember Tony Lindsey-dean used to ship lots of his stuff to a contact in Germany. Might be worth giving him a call for a quick (?????) chat, see if he can help you out. Thanks. What's his shop called? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy Dawes Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 He’s a club member search on the forum under members he is just Tony Lindsey on the website hooe he can help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrapman Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 On 08/01/2024 at 13:30, DVD3500 said: Thanks. What's his shop called? I have sent you a PM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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