Trunnion 74

Thanks Tony.

Well it's taken me 10 days but i've finally completed the engine bay paint removal. Have had a go at removing the underseal using a wire brush, doable but will need going over to prep for Raptor coat And some original paintwork. Going to have a break from sanding and move on to some front end repairs. Roland

I beleive it was Mikeech that used the long box and solvent method. Details are in here, solmwhere. Roland

Have already spoken to my paint guy about the underside and we are going the Raptor route tinted with body colour.

Hi Pete, Thanks for the encouragement although it does seem progress is somewhat pedestrian at times. The paint will be done by a guy called Anthony at Rust Republic just outside Nottingham. It will be a joint effort, but it'll be mainly him. The original colour was Cirrus White which judging by what's left under the wheel arches appears to be a crisp, clean white? So that's what it will be again. Roland

Hi Pete A guy called Anthony at Rust Republic , Just outside Nottingham. I've known him for years it'll be a joint effort, but mainly him . The original colour for the car is listed a Cirrus White, which going by what's underneath the wheel arches, appears to be a crisp, clean white? so that is what it will be. Roland

Day 5 O/S inner wheel arch done Day 6 N/S inner arch and air intake started. Do I detect light at the end of the engine bay tunnel?? Onwards!

Day 4 O/S wing finished and N/S done. Started on the engine bay, seems to only have 4 layers of paint. But by God are they hard to get off!! We have come to the conclusion that years of engine bay heat may have baked the paint on.

Lol, It is! Not sure where it went but it will need to be re-built. Roland

Bodywork day 2 Sanding the front panel came across a skim of filler all the way across. They went to a lot of trouble to get it smooth considering a lot of it is hidden behind the bumper. Almost there. Day 3 wing almost sanded. It's hard work getting 11 layers off!

Will do Dave

Well It's been a while (12 months to be exact!) but I'M BACK! An update on why I've been away so long. Well I was all set to start work on the body this time last year when the pandemic hit. In one way I was fortunate that I kept working as I was classed as a key worker, working for the Argos of the DiY world SF. The last year has been mental with that and the movement restrictions in place and the car being 30mls away meant no time to play. But now things are easing so I have been able to get down to the workshop this week and make a start. Tackled my first panel yesterday. First was a test to see what to expect paint layer wise. As you can see from the picture there are 11 layers 1=Top coat white, 2= grey primer, 3=Top coat, 4=primer, 5=top coat, 6=primer, 7=yellow primer and 8=grey primer. Layers 9,10,and 11 are different, when sanded the don't give a feather edge like the rest of the layers. My thinking is that these are the original factory coating. Not sure if this is the gelcoat as I don't know if they used gel coat originally. But when you get down to layer 9 all the cracks in the paint are gone and all is smooth, so that's the layer I am taking it down to. My guess is that the red bits of the car will have another primer and top coat layer. Number 12 is the fibreglass matrix. This is the result of my first day on bodywork, nearly all of it done by hand! I'm hoping I'll get quicker at it. The plan now is to do a panel and, for variety, repair any as I go. Now I need to put the hours in! Roland

Dave, Would it be possible to use/stick/bond a Neodymium magnet like these https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/20-x-Rare-Magnet-Round-Disc-Magnets-Earth-Neodymium-Craft-10-1mm-N50-Grade/401007675068?epid=1163699350&hash=item5d5deb86bc:g:ONsAAOSwZuFdiJ7o to the existing plug? That way you would not have to buy a new one just a thought. Roland

Do you have a link? Don't worry I've found them