Sunday 22 January 2012

Front End

Getting panels ready for final welding is a tedious business and I thought I would have the two front wings, nose cone panel etc all zipped up in a weekend. It was not to be this weekend.

A lot of time was consumed in removing paint at strategic places from the panels to be welded, so that the weld would penetrate. This in itself took all day Saturday, and even then I gave up on the idea of spot-welding the inner arch to the outer arch via the lower lip as removing the paint on the inside edge of the lower lip of the outer wheel arch using a grinder is impossible. I will drill and plug weld it instead.

The new front wings are original BL and have a label on them saying that they are "photosomething" treated. Is this why the black factory coating will not come off with Nitromors or even Napalm?


Anyway, today I fitted the new old stock passenger door and tried to get it to line up. Shims in, shims out, shake them all about then get cross. It didn't really line up at all. When I got it just the way I wanted it, the new front wing would not line up either. I had to drill out the gutter spot welds in order to allow some flex in the top fitting, then try again. I'll keep trying.


As you can see, I have a bit of a job on my hands (which are now minus the top of my off-side little finger) as I have to align everything from both door fits forward. This allows an awful lot of potential progressive errors, meaning that the bonnet might not fit correctly.

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2 comments:

  1. Garry23 January 2012 at 22:23

    Yep, it's a pain, isn't it? I've got that job coming up soon, once I get my inner wings and arches painted. Not looking forward to it, I've tried a few test fits and so far nothing is lining up well!
    Good luck!

    Garry

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  2. John24 January 2012 at 20:40

    Hi Gary

    It is a real pain for sure. I think maybe I took off too many panels at once, what with the inner and outer front wings and the nose. On the other hand it does give me lots of adjustment points.

    I really want the front f the car finished as it will be such a boost to have actually finished something. Next stop will be removing the awful patching to the near-side rear floor & bulkhead. Then I am stumped, as I have to fix the rear wings. I have two new replacements but I don't know if I have the courage to fit them whole - perhaps it is better to chop them up into repair sections. I'll worry about that later.

    I enjoy your blog very much as it gives me some inspiration!

    All the best

    John

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