DVD3500

Cheers Chris... lots of interesting ideas. To be honest, even if the fix does come back after a few years it's not the end of the world. Heck, I am as old as the car I already have things that will NEVER be fixed... 😄

Someone here in Germany mentioned 2K metal filler..? Not sure what that is..

I admit I did what I call a "social media search" which is I did a single search and when the answer didn`t appear on the first page I decided to ask the question. 😄 Seriously I did a search and didn`t find anything... The headlamp cowls on my MKIV/1500 hood/bonnet have smallish cracks and a small chunk broken out. Finding better replacements has been tough. They are usually no better than what I already have or someone has managed to strip the bolts/threads making for fun with a helicoil which on pot metal is nigh on impossible. I used to build model cars so I am familiar with fine filler but have never worked on pot metal. I have heard of people using solder to fill cracks. Not sure what I will do for the chunk missing. I don`t have pictures handy as the car is 60 miles away but I can get them if necessary. Thankful for any ideas!

They claimed it was because it was a federal hood/bonnet but I am not aware of any differences in the hinges etc. ... More likely the welding was not not as straight as it could be and/or something else was twisted...

Pretty good show on restoring a Spitfire... Not sure about hoods/bonnets not rusting much though... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AppkpUXuaVs&t=1372s

Gosh thanks for all this! Very very useful and helpful!

I put it four non return valves from an aquarium set. One before and after the pump and one in each hose to the jets. Seems to work... might be over kill...

So simply measuring inner and outer diameters suffices? Resistance etc is the same?

I am breaking my project down into "modules" i,.e suspension, body, motor/transmission etc and one big aspect is more or less restoring/upgrading the wire loom i.e. electrics. I presume it was done according to some British standard. I actually have 2 looms from the two cars I bought (`72 European and `76 Federal) plus a guy gave my a European MKIV loom of unknown model year so I have lots to check. However, should I need to replace a wire/cable I would want to get as close to original as possible (or even slightly larger...) I did several searches but all I could find was the European standard: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IEC_60228 But I am not sure what standard was used on our cars so no clue what the equivalents are. (I do have the Lucas chart for the standard of what colors are used for what on a typical loom) Just buying a new loom doesn`t make sense because the car will have multiple upgrades such as relays for headlights, upgraded heater, possibly subtle DLRs/fog lights etc... Engine mgmt will also be nonstandard... Cheers and have a great day!

BTW they arrive safe and sound and now the parts are back from the power coaters so I can finally start the rebuild!

My son's school sent an e-mail round just as the Christmas break was ending pointing out that one of the reasons cited for driving the kids to school was "safety". The email claimed (and I admit I have not followed up on this) that the number of injuries within a kilometer of schools has dramatically increased since the trend of driving kids to school has taken off i.e. late 90's. There was a spike in the late 2000's as cars got bigger and heavier. I doubt you can see a 2nd grader from inside a G-Wagen.... My daughter had to walk clear across town to her after school care. We followed at a distance or a while and sometimes would also spy on her during our lunch breaks. The rules laid down were: Obey all traffic rules and NEVER walk alone. There were never any problems...

Thanks! The process of making a resin copy is largely non-destructive but I would want to remove the lights/horns and stickers... I keep getting told to use 3D scanning and printing but I do not have the talent or time to do it... My local slot car club does 1/24 and 1/25 scale racing and Triumphs are sorely under represented...

Oh I would love to make a mould of that and turn it into a slot car! How rare are they and how hard to get??

Thanks both! I have a distant cousin on the wife's side that lives near London which could be an option... In general shipping to from the ex-EU country doesn't cost more these days. It just takes longer and requires more hassle with larger items. I now have two 3.89 diffs and the innards of a 3.63. Given the car will have more horsepower and torque than original I went with a 1500 gearbox from Jigsaw Racing (which arrived on 23 Dec 2020). Somehow I didn't twig and get the diff at the same time (with the higher ratio)... There is a place a few hours away I could take the lot (Bastuck) and they have the aluminum casings as well. It will likely run north of 1000€ and have a 3 year guarantee. They claim they can do 3.27 as well but given the scarcity of those I doubt it plus I am worried about the carrier thinness so often mentioned... I realized after having the suspension parts at the sandblaster/coaters I still have the seats that need stripping! I hope to get them to him before he treats the other parts!

I introduced my self almost 4 years ago... here is my first update...: 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!