313 replies to this topic

[Ben_O]

Only a slight update today.

 

I did get plenty done but have been so busy flitting between other things all day (helping remove an engine from an MGB and solving a leaking sunroof on an old K11 Micra) that I neglected to take many photos.

 

I prepped the new bonnet

 

 

 

And painted it

 

 

 

Then I refitted the wheels to the Midget and put it on the floor for the first time

 

 

 

 

The reason for this was so I could push it next door onto the MOT ramp for some fettling of the underside 

 

Once on the ramp (which was a mission due to massive tow out on both front wheels) I fitted the prop shaft, finished fitting the handbrake cable to it's mount on the back of the tunnel, Fitted the electric fuel pump and plumbed that in and fitted the 3rd exhaust hanger.

 

Whilst up in the air, I set the front Toe so it rolls straight instead of limping like a drunk 

 

The undercarriage is now complete bar waxoil and tomorrow, the bonnet and bootlid will be fitted and i can concentrate on the interior.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[Ben_O]

More done today.

 

I started by flatting back the paint on the bonnet.

 

 

And then machine polished it with just the sponge for now. Ill fine polish it with the waffle pad when it's on the car

 

 

Then I fitted it to the car

 

 

 

Next up was the bootlid which I fitted to the car first before flatting it as it wouldn't stay put very well on the trestle

 

 

Next up, flatting

 

 

Then polish and reassemble

 

 

It does need a lot more polishing but my machine polisher packed up before I could finish it and I can't pick up the replacement until Monday.

 

So instead, I carried on with the interior

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's getting there

 

[JDImini]

Paintwork is looking great and liking the new look black carpets and seats

[JDImini]

Hi Ben forgot to ask before but please can you take off those dodgy spot lights

 

looking forward to seeing it with the roll bar on 

[Ben_O]

Hi Ben forgot to ask before but please can you take off those dodgy spot lights

 

looking forward to seeing it with the roll bar on 

I'm glad you said that.

 

Only thing is there will be 2 holes left behind in the bumper.

 

However, there is some small damage to the bumper anyway and new ones are cheap and easy to change should you decide to in the future.

 

Roll bar and interior will be in tomorrow and then Tuesday, the doors and roof will get painted.

 

There isn't much more after that.

 

Cheers

Ben

[Ben_O]

I'm slightly annoyed. My memory card has corrupted so I could only save a couple of today's photos.

 

The first thing I did was finish the prep on the doors and get those into primer

 

 

 

 

And then whilst those were baking off, I fitted the roll cage.

It looks great but the photos have gone so ill re take them in the morning.

 

I also did some more of the trimming.

I have a photo of some of the carpet fitted and some trial fitted

 

 

I did take a photo of the finished fit but that too has gone.

 

I finished fitting up the bonnet installing the pin and rubber buffers as well as the prop bar

 

 

When the car came in, the bonnet could only be released by pulling a cable from under the front of the car but everything needed to make the internal release work was there so I re-installed that and got that all working correctly.

 

And I also removed the spot lights

 

 

The rest of the day was spent on the seats.

They came with universal type runners which needed modifying slightly with spacers as once bolted to the seats, there wasn't enough clearance to lift the slide adjuster high enough to disengage the runner locks.

 

Once fitted to the seat, it was a case of marking out where the runners would need to bolt but this threw up another problem. The position of the new mounting holes in the floor clashed with the reinforcing channel which is spot welded to the underside of the floor.

I wasn't keen to modify that in any way so to make the runners fit the floor and the seat fit in the car without hitting the roll cage, handbrake lever and whilst still being able to move the seat back and forth, I positioned the seat at a very slight angle which not only makes it actually work, it is far more comfortable, fits within the roll cage and sits nice and in line with the inner sill and B post.

 

I did have to modify the runners by making up plates to shift one of the mounting points over by 40mm to avoid the channel underneath but it really worked out well.

 

I did have photos but they have all gone.

Luckily, I haven't refitted the seat yet so ill re-take them all tomorrow.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[Ben_O]

edit: The roll cage is just visible in one of the photos 

[Ben_O]

So here are the photos I re took of the fitted cage and the modified seat runner that went missing yesterday

 

 

 

The passenger seat was then bolted in for the final time

 

 

 

Next, I trimmed the drivers side of the car with carpet, vinyl and all of the associated cover boards. I was then able to screw down the throttle pedal to the floor.

 

I then re-did the whole process with the drivers seat including modifying the runner which is also now fitted

 

 

Unfortunately, the harnesses are unsuitable for the Midget so I will have to look into an alternative. I would say the best bet will be the type that secure to the roll cage behind the seat.

 

 

 

I then fitted a new seal to the bottom of the windscreen frame and had another go at fitting it to the car.

 

 

I have the side bolts fitted now and the rubber seal is in place as best I can get it. I decided to leave it over night which should cause the seal to form to the correct shape and then I can finish straightening out the rubber and fully bolt the screen down in the morning.

 

 

Ill have to wait until I have fitted the doors before I can finalise the position as the rake will need adjusting to suit the fly screen window frames.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[JDImini]

Hi Ben 

 

seats and roll bar look good. What's the problem with the harnesses? 

 

Darren

[JDImini]

When do you think the midget will be ready?

[Ben_O]

Hi Ben 

 

seats and roll bar look good. What's the problem with the harnesses? 

 

Darren

They are for saloon cars so the mounting point for the shoulder straps would be the centre lap belt points under the back seat.

 

I'm looking at options and ill be in touch when I have found something suitable.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

Edited by Ben_O, 20 September 2017 - 06:55 AM.

[Ben_O]

When do you think the midget will be ready?

By the end of this week, I hope to have the doors on and fitted up, the roof painted and the interior finished completely.

 

There are some very small parts that I need to finish it but I am holding off ordering them until it is otherwise complete so that I can order anything else at the same time.

 

Essentially, it should be complete this week, then once it is running and driving, I can do things like adjusting brakes and setting up the steering and suspension and then an MOT.

Then it will need flatting and polishing.

 

I should be able to give you a completion date by the end of the week.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[Ben_O]

So I have finished the prep on the doors now.

This involved applying a guide coat and then block flatting the primer.

 

Once I was happy with it, I turned the doors over, flatted the primer on the frames and then applied sealer into the folded edge of the skin

 

 

Then it was into the booth for paint.

 

Here are the finished doors which will be fitted tomorrow

 

 

Unfortunately, overnight, the screen frame rubber had slipped off on one end after me leaving it to take the correct form of the scuttle so I had to remove the screen again to push the rubber back on.

 

Now it is ok and has almost formed correctly so I can now tighten the screen down in the morning.

 

 

I then spent the afternoon repairing the hard top roof which was covered heavily in chips and other random scrapes and damage.

 

Once I was happy, I masked off the headliner with paper and primed it

 

 

 

This will be painted in the morning and then I believe that will be the last of the paintwork.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

[JDImini]

 

When do you think the midget will be ready?

By the end of this week, I hope to have the doors on and fitted up, the roof painted and the interior finished completely.

 

There are some very small parts that I need to finish it but I am holding off ordering them until it is otherwise complete so that I can order anything else at the same time.

 

Essentially, it should be complete this week, then once it is running and driving, I can do things like adjusting brakes and setting up the steering and suspension and then an MOT.

Then it will need flatting and polishing.

 

I should be able to give you a completion date by the end of the week.

 

Cheers

 

Ben

 

Hi Ben

 

That'll be great

 

Thanks

Darren

[JDImini]

Hi Ben

 

The hard top looks great even in primer!

 

No idea that a screen rubber could be such a pain, must be made out o f the same stuff they use for shopping trolley wheels as they seem to have a mind of their own as well