Barrona

Changing the subject slightly,,,,,  When building the chassis back up I was slightly bothered by how the brake line passed across the top of the bulk  head from the master cylinder and thought it would look much neater coming down in a straight parallel line with the clutch feed? To achieve this I have re-positioned the t-piece to the right hand side in order to meet it, as per the image. I am aware that the pipes will need to be away from the inner arch as the bonnet shuts but cannot think of any other issues this would cause. Anybody else tried this or have any thoughts?

sill measurement

The culprit gap

front right nose out of position

Thanks for all your replies, I feel slightly more reassured now that I have not created a complete mess.  I must have just dropped very lucky with the nearside after market sill because that one lines up perfectly to the bonnet with no adjustments. Whilst scratching my head, taking photographs and measuring things over and over again this afternoon I discovered two important things. One of the front tyres was a different profile to the other three which although made no difference to the sill gap it caused me all sorts of issues when measuring things as it was causing the car to sit an inch lower on the front corner. The second thing I discovered was when I placed a long straight edge bar across the front bottom edge of the bonnet assembly. This revealed that the right hand 'nose panel' was a few degrees out. (I assume the result of a previous collision in the cars chequered history?) Although this was only a small amount and not obvious to the naked eye it had the effect of pushing the front outer edge of the wing up by around 10mm which amplified the problem with the gap between the sill. I'm confident a carefully placed ratchet strap may tease it back into alignment but i'm going to sleep on the matter before rushing in. I've also managed to purchase a 6mm thick x 40mm wide steel bar this evening which fits perfectly on top of the sill without messing up the body lines. Once welded and filled I think the gap problem should be fixed? Thanks again

Both sills, door skins and wings came from a reputable dealer but none of the panels were O.E. The wings measure the same from the bonnet. I've tried undoing the bonnet support tube in case it was bent but it made no difference. I'm sure the problem is with the sill or more to the point my fitting of it? will try add an image but the blog states its too big??

Hi I'm 12 months into the restoration of a Mk2 Spitfire and thought I was just about ready for paint until I sat the bonnet assembly back onto the chassis. I then discovered a 12mm gap between the right hand wing and horizontal sill edge? Clearly something has gone slightly wrong! All the other gaps around the doors, bonnet and bulk head are okay. I've fitted complete floors and sills to the car. I have also replaced the door skins. (in hindsight I should have aligned the original door to the sill) At first I thought I may have fit the outer sill a tad too low however maintaining the bottom door gap seems to prevent raising it? I have measured from the top of the sill with the bulk and found it to be around 4mm lower than the other side. (which coincidently fits perfect) I'm considering welding a (packing plate) onto the top of the sill to close up the gap. Has anybody had this issue and is my intended solution a viable fix please?