Vixen bonnet repair - day 7.
I found out something very importatnt today. Unfortunately, I didn't find it out until the day after I needed to know it. More of that in a minute, but first, you'll be desperate to know how we got on with the trial fitting of the bonnet.
The first step is to run masking tape along the edges of the body, to protect the paint. Then we tape narrow stips of plywood to that to create
the correct bonnet gap.
Then we put a couple of layers of dust sheet over the engine and radiator so that there are no sharp corners to dig into the underside
of the bonnet.
Then Dave and Eric move the bonnet into place, and we check all the gaps, including along the back, under the windscreen scuttle. This needs a
couple of goes, while I go undrneath to check the fit of the hinge frame. Lift off - adjust frame - replace a couple of times before it seems to be
right. Then I mark the inside of the bonnet with a pencil, to show ehere the frame has to be mounted.
This also requires some "off-the-car" discussion and deliberation! We also bend the wee tabs slightly to maximise the contact area with the bonnet,
to try to eliminate and "stress points".
We then have a wee rest and cakes prepared by my glamorous Technical Director, for nearly as long as we spent doing the job.
They depart, and I tidy up a bit and then decide to visit the paint shop to confirm a date for painting. This is where I receive 3 bits of information:
1. Although he said that he would only need around 2 weeks notice, he now says he has no available time until June;
2. Eric has just been in before me and has taken the last available slot for June; and
3. It's not a good idea to use knifing stopper for pinholes in glassfibre because it doesn't set properly. Too late, I've covered the car in the
bloody stuff. It's not the end of ther world, as it goes brittle when it's baked, and he'll be able to remove it when he dries out the glassfibre
before painting. He suggests that I leave it alone for him to deal with (which I suspect is his way of saying "don't make it even feckin' worse you
thick bastard".)
I book it in for the first week in July...
Anyway - home again after a consolation sausage roll, and I decide to start to fix this hinge frame in place. I'm going to stick it in place with
glassfibre filler (again to spread loads and to fill in any gaps between the metal frame and the bonnet shell). This shows stage 1 complete!
Now I plan to leave that to dry for a day or two, before I glassfibe the frame in properly.
That's another 2 hours today, bringing the total to 25 hours.
