Pete Lewis Posted November 12, 2014 Report Share Posted November 12, 2014 John, think its time you had a medal for this work ...brilliant gets my vote Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 12, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2014 John, think its time you had a medal for this work ...brilliant gets my vote Pete Pete, thank you. That's a really kind thing to say and you have no idea how far a bit of encouragement goes. I'm on to the last bit of bodywork now and it is getting exciting. It has been a long journey but the end is in sight. Once the wing is finished I've got the supporting frame to make for the bonnet which will put us on the home straight. Learning from the experience gained on the left hand wing I made the decision to form the return separately rather than tapping the return after the wing was finished. This is what I have done on the main wing and for the life of me, I can't understand why I didn't do it on this one as well. The big advantage is in folding a far crisper bend can be achieved. The following pictures 9for anyone who might be interested) show the return being formed using a shrinker/stretcher and pinned in place on the B post. The final picture is the penultimate panel nearly ready for trimming. The last piece needed to complete the wing is what one could call the sill extension. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 14, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Since my previous offering, I have made the sill extension piece and welded it to the bit in the picture above. All is now ready to weld to the main wing panel just leaving the B post return to add to finish it. progress! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeilF Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 John, You say it is exciting - it is enough to rock your socks off. Brilliant. Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 14, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 John, You say it is exciting - it is enough to rock your socks off. Brilliant. Neil Very kind of you Neil, thank you. I've been working on this project now for nearly three years and although it has been at times a difficult journey I've loved every minute of it. Along the way I've made a lot of new friends and have been bowled over by the generosity of people only too willing to offer helpful advice and even parts in some cases. Although there is still a lot of work to do to complete the car, the end is in sight which I do find really exciting because although I enjoy the build I simply cannot wait to get the car on the road. I am very hopeful of having an entry accepted for the Coupe Florio in Brittany at the end of August next year so that is my target. It sounds a long way away but I and many others know that it's the finishing that takes a huge amount of time. So, we'll see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mishmosh Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 will you make it to donington? this is a star car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 will you make it to donington? this is a star car. I really do hope so. All is progressing very well and on course for completion in the Spring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 The driver's side rear wing is very nearly finished with just the B post return to weld on and the return to be formed around the wheel arch. I hoping this will be done tomorrow and then I'll be moving on to the bonnet; exciting times! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 Today went to plan and the wing is now finished. I hope the pictures tell the story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 The completion of the driver's side rear wing was a real milestone for me, as this is the final piece of bodywork that I shall have to make for the car. I'm now ready to tackle the bonnet and the steel supporting frame. The Jigsaw Racing rollcage arrived yesterday but other than unwrap it I have not yet offered it up. So things are still progressing well and with a number of very exciting events planned for the car during next year plenty to aim for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 22, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2014 The frame to support the bonnet is going to be fabricated mainly from 5/8" round steel tube. I can bend this easily and it will be plenty strong enough to do the job. Deciding where to place the hinges will be an interesting problem. The bonnet has to open sufficiently but not hit the road. I've been looking at the range of Aerocatches rather than try to fit the standard Spitfire ones. I've been playing with shapes for the radiator grille and when I'm a bit closer to making a decision I'll pop a picture up and see what you think. I'm trying to build the car as light as possible and am appalled by the weight of a fully built up door compared with just a bare shell. The bulk of the weight has to be in the glass and the winding mechanism. I could shed a significant amount of weight by going for Lexan windows. Something to think about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve C Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Hi John Still following your "adventures in aluminium" project with great interest! Lexan is an interesting idea, although I think it is probably OK in a race car, but less satisfactory in a road car where it would scratch quite quickly in any set-up where it is sliding against a seal. Sliding windows like an early Mini are another option, but the overlap looks like a vertical glazing bar, and you have put a lot of effort into making this car look beautiful. Have you considered the Lotus Elite option? (the original gorgeous monocoque glass fibre one, not the wedge-shaped horror..) On those the side windows unclipped and went into neat pockets in the seat backs, saving the weight of all the door gubbins (typical Chapman).There would be nothing stopping you using Lexan in that set-up either. Just thoughts... Regards Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Hi John Still following your "adventures in aluminium" project with great interest! Lexan is an interesting idea, although I think it is probably OK in a race car, but less satisfactory in a road car where it would scratch quite quickly in any set-up where it is sliding against a seal. Sliding windows like an early Mini are another option, but the overlap looks like a vertical glazing bar, and you have put a lot of effort into making this car look beautiful. Have you considered the Lotus Elite option? (the original gorgeous monocoque glass fibre one, not the wedge-shaped horror..) On those the side windows unclipped and went into neat pockets in the seat backs, saving the weight of all the door gubbins (typical Chapman).There would be nothing stopping you using Lexan in that set-up either. Just thoughts... Regards Steve A window that can be unclipped is an excellent idea Steve. I've had a look on the net and I cannot find sufficient detail of the Elite arrangement. From a distance it looks like a normal window with opening quarter light. If anyone can offer any detail pictures I'd be very grateful. Thank you. Today I started forming the aperture for the radiator air intake. I made six possible shapes as templates and finally decided on the one in the picture below. I then cut this out of half inch ply. I've nearly finished forming a frame out of 5/8" round tube that will sit inside the bonnet and around which the aluminium will be dressed. It was one of those tricky jobs that took much longer than expected. But with just the trimming and welding to be done the worst is over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 Today went really well and saw the completion of the tubular frame for the air intake aperture. I have also made a good start on a simple buck to firmly hold the two halves of the bonnet in place and to locate the positions of the bonnet supporting frame. The buck is being made from half inch marine ply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve C Posted November 27, 2014 Report Share Posted November 27, 2014 Hi John See around 5:40 onwards here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weGSN_OZDbs Neat or what? and of course, in a narrow cockpit, Chapman not only saved weight but created elbow room! The nose aperture looks perfect, and the way you have rolled it over is so right. Just like a D-Type! Best wishes Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 Hi John See around 5:40 onwards here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weGSN_OZDbs Neat or what? and of course, in a narrow cockpit, Chapman not only saved weight but created elbow room! The nose aperture looks perfect, and the way you have rolled it over is so right. Just like a D-Type! Best wishes Steve Thank you very much for the link Steve. How neat is that? Certainly food for thought there. No a whole lot of progress to show although I've spent a large amount of time just looking and adjusting. I have however managed to cut out the centre station for the buck which nicely supports the bonnet in this area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted November 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2014 Ensuring that the tubular steel hoop that will form the air intake aperture is central and horizontal is absolutely crucial so I'm spend a fair bit of effort not to fall at this particular fence. The station buck is my friend here and providing I can notch the stations in the right places all should be well. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted December 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2014 Not much apparent progress from the last offering but I've spent a huge amount of time measuring, measuring again and consolidating before finally committing and tack welding the air intake aperture hoop in place. It's position is vital and it also forms an integral part of the hinging bonnet supporting frame so it is an imprtant piece to get right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted December 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 8, 2014 Since my last offering, I have had to completely revise the position of the bonnet and also the air intake aperture hoop; so a bit of a step back. But it really is vital to make sure I'm happy at this stage because there will be no going back after this. It has to be right now. So, what have I done? Well I've moved the bonnet back towards the scuttle by one inch and have raised it at the front by a whopping 48mm. This allows the curves of the wings to flow nicely into the door area and to me, it looks just right. I have also lost some excess shape by cutting out and welding up. So I have been busy and hopefully, productive. The bonnet will hinge off the underside of the main chassis rails using custom made items. It will be important to get these in the optimum position so that the bonnet opens sufficiently for adequate access to the engine bay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted December 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 9, 2014 I've finished the bonnet hinges and tacked the clevises to the chassis rails. The horizontal tubes will be welded to the air intake aperture and the sweep simulates the amount that bonnet can be opened before hitting the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted December 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2014 The bonnet will be supported and reinforced by a tubular steel frame which I am in the course of making. A couple of picture attached. I am using Triumph bonnet catches and have now mounted the various fittings onto the shell. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that the bonnet reinforcing corners which incorporate the rubber cones are available as a Heritage repair panel and these will help enormously. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted December 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 28, 2014 The bonnet supporting frame is now made and tacked together. It hinges open and allows sufficient access to the engine bay. The hinge pins can easily be removed allowing quick removal of the bonnet if needed. The Spitfire catches pick up on the standard fixings so work nicely as they should. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted December 30, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2014 I've decided not to fully weld the bonnet supporting frame at the moment because it can be easily altered if need be once the two bonnet halves are welded together. So I'm leaving it there for the moment and turning my attention to the cooling system. As with my GT6, I'm using a MK2 Golf GTI radiator which I bought new for an amazingly good price of £26.00 delivered. I bought the shroud complete with electric fan off Ebay a year or two ago for the GT6 but there was insufficient room to fit it. Not so this time; it fits in easily. The radiator itself has two spigots on the bottom and I made up two mounting brackets fitted with grommets to suit. Further location of the radiator will be provided by the ducting. I've made a start on the ducting by cutting out some card which I always find very enjoyable. Once I'm happy with it I'll transpose it onto aluminium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted January 7, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 A big advantage of having the bonnet frame without the bonnet is that it is easy to see how much clearance is available; in this case the ducting for the radiator. The assembly uses 25 x 25 x 1.5mm extruded angle with 1mm thick pure aluminium sheet for the panelling. It is as light as I can make it while still retaining rigidity. Hopefully it will do its job and ensure a good airflow through the radiator. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bonnett Posted January 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 The air intake frame has a horizontal bar with the Triumph badge fitted in the centre. The bar itself started off as a piece of flat 1.2mm thick stainless steel 32mm wide. It's been folded into a Vee and polished. I made the backing plate for the badge also out of stainless steel which is welded on. The bar is now in place and the bage offered up. I'm rather pleased with it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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