Well there we are! I made it to the Rally. OK, a few jobs still to do. I didn't get the front wheels painted. Not enough clearance on the rear mudguards (although ajusting the rear shocks may help) but will try and work through the list as time allows. I thought I better post a picture of what it looked like when it arrived.

So near..........

Apart from the masking tape leaving its mark on the stripes all worked OK. Paint seems soft even after a few days.Rear wheels have been powder coated and having their 'new old stock' 4.00 x 15 tyres put on. I may remove the front tyres and powder coat these if time permits.

A bit of bloom and orange peel but nothing that a good T-Cut won't sort out!

Nothing like a bit of a deadline to get things moving. I am going to try and get it finished for Woodcote Rally http://www.woodcoterally.org.uk/  13th 14th July.
Original red flash lines and yellow nose masked out and painted today. Colours were matched to the original so don't blame me for them!

Light at the end of the tunnel! Just too expensive for period headlamps, so have fitted these modern ones. They had been painted black so the intention was to paint the bowls to match the body (green) but after removing the black paint decided to leave them chrome, albeit a little scratched....

A little bit of metal bashing today and now have most of the floor and transmission tunnel made. Still have a bit of work to do on the passenger side to stop feet touching the exhaust! Will also need to get some sort of front bulkhead or it may be a bit draughty at the dizzy speeds it may reach!
Headlamp brackets next and then the wiring.......

Lots of bits done today. Chopped out and re-made the steering column support as I didn't have enough room for the clutch foot. Modified the accelerator pedal, made the rear bulkhead so I have something to rest my back on and filled and primed the front mudguards. These are now just about ready for paint. Rear mudguard brackets all finished and now being powder coated with the rear mudguards being shaped and filled. Not going to go too over the top with preparation as they need to show a few battle scars to look as if they are originals.....

Not too much progress over the last couple of weeks, but found a spare hour today to make up the brackets and mudguard stays. A bracket has been welded to the brake hub which the stays will bolt to. certainly not over-engineered, using 8mm tube for the stays but so little weight so should be fine.

Two pieces of thin plywood cut to the right radius with polystyrene bonded between them forms the mould. The polystyrene was then scraped out to form the 'hollow' and then covered with filler to allow it to be sanded smooth. Packing tape has been used rather than paint to save time. All that is needed is to wax the tape

 First one, three more to go! Will need trimming down in width and length, plus a little sanding but glad to say it released from the mould with out destroying it.

......And the cardboard templates. Drivers side done, now the passenger side.......

About time I had a floor to sit on so have brazed up a lightweight frame from thin angle to add support. The floor will be made from fibreglass sheet and over-clad with thin aluminium. Cardboard templates will be the next job.

I have had no luck finding suitable mudguards with the correct radius for the 15" wheels, so have made up a mould. With the narrow tyres I think close fitting ones will look more the part, with the front ones mounted to the hubs to turn with the wheels.

Another milestone reached!
Air in the tyres, petrol in the tank, a piece of chipboard resting across the chassis to sit on and we are away! The first drive up and down the driveway to the amusement of the neighbours, and to my amazement I could lock the wheels (well the front ones at least) with modest pressure on the brake pedal. A bit of a shock to find reverse where first has been for the last 30 years of driving, but all three forward gears could be selected.















OK OK So it has been a while since I have posted, but over the last few months a few more jobs have been done. A prop-shaft was sourced from a later Ruby with 'proper' UJ's. This was cut down and rebuilt with new joints at a cost of £7.00 each. Not bad, my sort of price. The handbrake (lever from a mini) has been cabled up with a 'closed loop' arrangement which runs around a couple of pulleys mounted on the axle casing, seems to work fine. There was no way that the battery was going to fit in the rear as intended, so is now placed in the passenger side. Perhaps a few months behind target but any progress is good progress I keep telling myself............

After much messing about with hoses and water, I couldn't get a reliable water circulation. There was a 'high' point in one of the hoses to the pump (intake) which would air lock and then stop the flow. Knowing the seals in the pump were iffy to say the least I decided to pull it to bits. Oh dear, not a pretty sight! Faced with the option of buying a reconditioned pump at well over £100 I decided to see if there was an alternative. An electric one was a possibility, but again, about £150.00. Trawling the Internet for Hillman Imp parts I came across http://www.corley-conversions.co.uk/  A phone call on Saturday morning resulted in the answers I wanted to hear, 'Yes we have a rebuild kit and you are welcome to collect it anytime today'. Armed with the bits of my pump I took a drive and met Ben Boult who gave them the once over and all the tips on rebuilding it. Thanks Ben!
By late Saturday afternoon the pump was refitted in a different position to avoid air locks. Now circulating fine, and seems to keep it's cool, although I think there is a need for a larger capacity header tank which I will plumb into the top hose.

I reconnected the Alternator (which didn't seem to work when I tried it a couple of months back) and after a few seconds of the warning lamp flickering it went off and gave an output. Perhaps worth the tenner after all!
Thought I would include a video of the engine running. A shame the camera started to slip...........

Engine runs

No picture I’m afraid, but an update on engine progress. First runs a few weeks back proved the Aquaplane head did a good job of filling the bores up with water, so that has been set aside for a skim and re-fit at a later date. As it also seemed to be running hot, I thought it better to get it running right with the cast head. With no expansion tank in the cooling system, it was also too keen on blowing water out of the vent. For some reason it seemed to be running lean, so the jets were adjusted down, but no great improvement

An electric cooling fan and a Landover expansion tank grafted on, it was time to have another play with the carbs. Everything was checked, jets centred, the air slide dropping correctly but it was still not running too well. It seemed to have a nice high speed tick-over with the choke on even though the butterflies were fully closed. Just pondering where it could be drawing its breath from I put a spanner on the manifold to block bolts..............and yes, fancy not checking them when I fitted the carbs! Now running much better.  Will have a go at setting up the mixture with a colour-tune widget at the weekend. I don’t think the neighbours are so keen on hearing the exhaust note late evening as I am!

I seem to remember several weeks back thinking I would have the pedal box finished by the end of the week, well I did get it done by the end of the week but not the one I started it in! All thoughts of using a mini pedal box in 'Mini' configuration diminished when I offered it in position. Way to high. Sooooo Cut it to bits, turn it upside down, reverse the pedals, cut them, weld them, fit Landrover master cylinders, add an accelerator pedal and there we have it! Sounds so easy doesn't it? Not sure why it took so long then......
Radiator mounting & pump brackets  all completed. A new bracket has been made for the clutch slave cylinder so can get on with plumbing up the the clutch and brakes now.

 Just a reminder what the original pedals looked liked. Good job I only paid a tenner for them!

Milestone reached!
Saturday the 6th August saw the engine burst into life. Only a quick few second burst due to no cooling system.
Ordered a new classic mini radiator which fits well on it's side. A top bracket and some plumbing needed now.

With the water pump in one hand and a £10 second hand alternator from a Fiat in the other, all possible positions were tried to see where they could fit, but they just wouldn't! After a lot of head scratching I found that the shaft running through the water pump was the same diameter & length both sides. Fitting the pulley on the 'other end' sorted it. The pump is marked 'Chrysler' but no idea what model it is from. Any one know? Need to find a suitable radiator next. Most likely one to fit is that of a Fiat Cinquecento. Not sure what they would have fitted in the 1950's?
Awaiting delivery of a new distributor cap and a few small odds and ends............

Couldn't afford a nice  alloy tank so had to opt for this one. Probably made for an industrial application rather than automotive, but at £20 it will do. Won't even have to modify the filler neck! Some reclaimed box section steel came in useful for making the rear frame for the fuel tank and battery tray. It also gives the option for fitting telescopic shock absorbers rather than the A7 friction disc type. (might be one of those jobs sometime in the future that will never actually happen).

Another few little jobs completed. I got hold of an old steering wheel centre, so with a little bit of lathe work and a piece of aluminium hooked out of a skip have the 'mota-lita' wheel fitted. Have started tack welding up a box section steel frame which will support the steering column, gear lever & handbrake. The gear lever has a nice 'short coupled' feel! Awaiting delivery of a five gallon petrol tank so the rear box section frame can be made up. This will support the tank & battery. Pedal box is also progressing, so may have that finished by the end of the week......maybe...
Oh, and had to cut the bottom of the dash out for the gear linkage. A good job as I wasn't happy with the modern switch panel that I fitted anyway!

And plenty of room for the water pump and alternator..... battery may have to go in the back though.

At last, now looking like a car again. Engine in place & body back on. The main reason for putting the body on was to set the steering column at the right angle. Having placed a bit of chipboard across the chassis rails so I could sit in and make a engine noises I found just how much of a tight fit it all is! The steering column is going to have to be moved towards the centre slightly to give a bit more legroom. The body will be left in place while I fit hand brake, gear lever, pedals etc.

Not a lot of room at all!