[quote="Old-Nail"]

"A similar tale can be told of my using the same various used nuts and bolts that I threw in a box when dismantling the car to rebuild it again, it seems like a logical thing to do but it isn't - buy new! The time saved from rummaging for a suitable used nut, bolt, and washer will move things along a lot lot faster."

I used to have huge tins of every conceivable steel fixing – bolts,nuts,washers,screws etc all bare or plated – accumulated over several decades of various restorations. A yachtsman friend commented that no one would ever dream of using anything but stainless on a boat so why on a car ? So I binned the lot and replaced them with stainless steel and he remarked that in twenty years time I would be thanking him. How right he was! I restored my Landi back in the early 90’s and recently needed to replace several parts. All the nuts unscrewed as if they had been fitted yesterday, not to mention they continue to look as new.
During the ongoing restoration of my D*lly every steel fixing for which there is a stainless equivalent has been replaced. My suppliers prices are only marginally more than plain steel. I may not be around in twenty years but I may have saved someone from using penetrating oil, angle grinders and endless plasters over skinned knuckles!

Well yes, that's one advantage that I hadn't even considered as the future belongs to someone else. In my short term view this resto' would have been finished a lot sooner had I been able to simply pick up three or four of the correct size bolts immediately and go right ahead and fit the waiting part .

What actually happened is that the metal box containing all the fastenings that I removed had to be sifted through time and again to find the correct bits. Then it would be "Right, I've found two but I need three, and that one has paint on it so I'll have to clean it up before I can use it...etc.." What a faff! Not to mention the number of times I've cut the end of my finger while pushing through the various sharp objects thrown in the box!

I finally got wise/fed up and bought boxes of new bolts, set screws and washers, and new nylock nuts too, saving the old ones in a box comes in handy, but I would definitely not rely on that method for putting it all back together again.

It's probably just me but I have a mind that wanders constantly. It's never still, so if I'm distracted even momentarily I'll be off doing something more interesting instead. While I work I think about other things, I ponder the strangest questions that occur to me. For example the other day I saw a woodpecker for the first time ever, and they really do go with a bang against the tree trunk too, so that left me wondering for the rest of the day why Woodpeckers don't get headaches? What mechanism prevents that?

I was then asked to write a check for something that cost forty quid, and I wondered what would happen if I wrote "Forty quid only" on the cheque? Everyone in Britain would be familiar with that term, so I wonder if they'd cash it? So you see the few moments spent rummaging for nuts bolts and washers breaks my concentration for just long enough that my mind is off at a tangent, wondering about everything from the power of auto suggestion to the problems of lubricating the rotor bearings in a jet engine.

It's no wonder nowt gets done!

Got a headache just thinking about this

Aspirin contains salicylates; natural salicylates occur naturally in trees, shrubs, and fruit. Their pain relieving properties have been known for centuries. North American natives used them for headache, fever, and lumbago. Europeans made a tea from the bark of white willow to relieve pain. Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine made a powder to treat pain.

If you see your Woodpecker pecking at a Willow tree, it is seeking to relieve itself of its headache........

After being within sight of the finishing line since the last bank holiday weekend when the side repeater in the front wing crumbled to dust and dashed my chances of getting the car on the road, I can finally report that my new light unit arrived this morning and was duly fitted.

With the wing replaced I still have some issues with the front indicators, probably another bad earth (although I've done my best to make them good) and the rear fog light isn't working yet, but other than that the car is finished. I'll play around with the wiring over what's left of the weekend then book it in for a new MOT sometime next week. Phew! About time.



The car has turned out pretty much as I'd hoped, and I'm certainly pleased with the end result. The colour chosen really suits the retro feel that I was aiming for, and at a glance it could be mistaken for a 1966 model instead of a 1986.

It has also been a great experience to rebuild a car like this, and I have learned a lot. I had previously been the sort of guy that takes his car to the local specialist to have done whatever needed doing, and I justified that by reasoning that I just couldn't face the hassle of all that mauling around when I could just pay someone else to do it. What I didn't realise is that some of the 'mauling around' is instructive, and can also be great fun.

Take for example the new skill of respraying that I have learned during this project, which will no doubt come in handy on other future projects. As will the better understanding of a vehicles mechanical functions that I have picked up purely from doing this one. Budget wise I haven't really counted that closely, but I reckon it's come in around the 2k mark that I've spent, plus the value of the original car at the beginning so £2,400 all in would be a ballpark figure for what the car owes me.

Given that I was told to expect 'at least' two grand just for the respray had I not done it myself, then I reckon getting the car rebuilt including so many brand new parts such as rear brake shoes and cylinders, stainless rear pipes, new suspension eyes and dampers, new full clutch, headlamps, bumpers, roof, exhaust, etc. etc. then I've not done too badly. The finish isn't up to that of a 6k pro restoration of course, but neither is it £3,500 worse.



The interior looks quite good now and feels brighter, with most of the trim being painted in light grey. The rebuilt seats are also comfortable and sit me slightly higher than they did previously. The old seats were so sagging and worn that the driver tended to sit lop-sidedly which after a large distance became irritating and hurt the lower back. Still to do is to make two thin seat cushions similar to those used on sun chairs, which when fitted will prevent undo wear on the existing covers.

I don't know if it's due to the new seat height, or the shortened headlamp bar that I have fitted but I can now see the back of both headlamps clearly from the drivers seat, and if they had the old style 'tell tales' on them those would now be visible to the driver.



The small touches like the dash mounted flashing indicator and high beam warning lights, the Quillery steering wheel, and the AZAM door hinge covers seemed like a bit of a faff at times, but now they all gell together to add a nice feel to the interior.



I've yet to drive it on the road of course, but the amount of effort that I placed on soundproofing seems to have paid off too. I've not put the under-bonnet soundproofing back in yet which also makes a huge difference, but even so just driving it up and down the drive seems to confirm that all is quiet, rattle and squeak free.



I had hoped to get the car roadworthy by Easter time in order to have a decent shake down period before we take off for Scotland in July, and then for France in September, but with July only a little more than a couple of weeks away the first proper 'maiden voyage' will be one of 300+ miles each way. Ohh -er! maybe I should put an RAC badge on the other side panel to hedge my bets!



So that's it. Seems a shame to finish really but I've got lots of driving to do now, I have had no modern car since the end of May so from this point forth the old 'Bluebamboo' will be my daily driver come rain or shine. Come to think of it, it's no longer a blue Bamboo either, but whatever it's become now - I like it!

Amazing! she sure is a beaut.

Absolutely stunning This has been one of the best threads on the forum over the past few months..

Will it be at Houghton Tower show then? Can't wait to see it

Really lovely job.....

I reckon the dash is a masterpiece, so much cooler than standard black.

Love the reg. too.....

Congrats.

Well done Mr.Old-Nail, looking forward to seeing the car at a camp/show.