Finally! After many nights of pounding, copious applications of sanding, elbow grease and POR-15, as well as my humble attempts at welding, the "under the nosecone" section of the Estate was finished today. It's a terrific feeling to be putting the car back together instead of deconstructing. Now, on to the side panels just below and to the outsides of the center portion. I'll have to temporarily position the nosecone, lower valence and grille to get the spacing right for the paper patterns.No, the welding is nothing pretty, but it is strong. I wanted to make sure that if the car was ever in an accident again, the front would hold up at least as well as it did when it was new. I'll be carrying my wife and daughter with me and I can't imagine more precious cargo.
You can see from this closeup shot that I actually ended up replacing the entire corner of the piece. What you can't see is that both the front and side edges are formed under to create a flange for other parts to weld to. The front flange was OK...the side flange didn't exist...so I measured the other side carefully (assuming IT was right...) and tried my best to match up with it. We'll see how the nosecone fits. Just laying it up there this afternoon it looked pretty good, but once I clamp things into place I'll know for sure. That's it for this installment; more soon I hope!
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3 comments:
Nice work Jamie. Being another advocate of the school of 'make it strong if not pretty' then I can appreciate the sentiment. However, your comment about precious cargo is pertinent. Did you see Channel Five's Fifth Gear telly prog last night? They run a newish Renault Modus into an older Volvo estate (tank). Conventional wisdom states that the vehicle with weight advantage will be safer - even the Euro NCAP people think this. Not so in this test - the energy dispersal system used by the Modus proved a clear winner. The Volvo was decimated up to the driver's hips. As a driver of a PI saloon (regularly with my 3-year old in the back) it's a sobering thought that the age and design of your car may well be a huge liability, despite the condition of the car. I had already considered this but kinda buried it, as we all do! Of course we don't set out to be involved in accidents do we? This all underlines your commitment to making strong repairs, and for all classic car drivers to ensure that we're not running around in jallopies, and making excuses just because they're old.
Hi Jamie,
I know it's taken longer than you thought but you're getting there. There's no rush. Take your time and make sure you're comfortable with your work like you've been doing. I know how glad you are just to be putting the car back together.
Regarding the safety aspect, like Ken said, our cars are old and deficient in some areas. However, the size issue isn't always an assurance of safety. Recent NTSB reports have confirmed a disproportionate number of fatalities involving larger SUVs. I guess there's no surprise there. Per the Volvo and BMW commercials, the first step in safety is to have a car that can avoid the accidents.
Keep us posted!
Doug
IF you ever think of selling, please contact me, Jamie Kitman, Automobile Magazine, ilcommodor@aol.com
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