04/05/02
It's surprising how long the last 'little' things take. First of
all I tried fitting the new steering shaft from RHE. Waste of time
that was !, after struggling to remove the old one, I found the
new one is too long and wouldn't fit. I would have to move the drivers
side end foot panel back about 2".
Time to start carpeting, It seems I have cocked up when buying
my carpet, there is not enough, so I decided to use the RHE supplied
black carpet, which there seems to be plenty. First cut carpeted
the inside of the boot, using Evo stick contact adhesive, hmmmm
smells nice. Having done the inside of the boot, it was time to
cover the top panels. I used the navy blue leather cloth I purchased,
(which there seems to be enough of his time). The spray on adhesive
supplied with the kit gets everywhere ! and to make matters worse
I sprayed the wrong side of one section Duh..
Still the finished job doesn't look too bad.
I spent the rest of the day removing all the self tappers and replacing
with rivets. My wrist has not ached this much since I was sixteen.
05/05/02
Now to start on the carpeting the back panel, there are a lot of
holes to fill in first. I used some thin aluminium and lots of silicon
sealer. It is very awkward to cover the back panel and the back
cross bar, but I managed to do it with one section of carpet. I
folded the sides over the side roll tube, (the bit near the elbow),
then trapped it under the half moon section with a bit of edge trim.
05/05/02
Sealed all around the footwells and made a false floor to bring
my tiny size eights closer to the pedals. I also panelled in the
side tubes beside the seats. Got ready to carpet and realised my
little daughter has lost the keys to my nice new boot lid!. Feeling
really depressed now, so stopped for the day.
11/05/02
Found the boot keys!, in one of my daughters welly boots..
Finally fitted finished fitting the carpets, seemed to take ages.
I have fitted an edge guard to the carpet where the raised floor
finishes, to stop carpet wear when getting in and out.
Now to work on the interior. Tunnel top first, I used the spry
adhesive from the kit to spray the vinyl cloth and foam, but used
contact adhesive around the edges of the vynl cloth. Then pressing
down on the tunnel back to compress the foam, I pulled the edges
around and stuck down. This gave a nice tight finish.
I used the same method for the dashboard, as you can see I have
left the dial cut outs as supplied in the kit, doesn't look to bad.
The dashboard and the tunnel top are secured in place with industrial
strength Velcro, (top tip DON'T use too much, otherwise you will
never get the damn things apart again!).
Fitted an nice chrome ring and gear stick gaiter.
12/05/02
Fitted an expansion bottle for the radiator, (came from a Nissan
of some sort).
Fitted wing mirrors and wiper arms/blades.
Removed the plastic coating
WOW what a difference.
Now ready for MOT.
19/05/02
Not much to report this weekend, (has a day off Saturday), just
tidying up ready for SVA. The side trims are almost finished, I
just padded and covered the tube supplied by RHE, ie a plastic pipe
cut into two.
All the wiring behind the dash has been covered with spir-wrap
and the Gas Stut fitted for holding the bonnet up. It works very
well and fits in the middle of the bonnet, with the bottom fixed
to the front of the firewall, (with a little strengthening).
I have also purchased some exhaust heat wrap for the 4-into-1 pipes,
as things seem to be a little hot around the pipes and I am concerned
about the clutch cable.
Also tidied up the loom running down the each side of the chassis,
I also greased up the steering rack to help with the self centering.
I also fitted some sticky back foam along the top edge of the side
panels , (the mating surface with the bonnet), to form a nice seal
when closed shut.
MOT Monday afternoon, after that , next weekend I will finish of
the interior trim, cover all sharp edges, check nylocks etc, then
post the last pictures before SVA.
20/05/02
MOT was booked for 1:15, got in the 2B to go, (already running
late), turned the key and, click,click, flat battery !, b*****ks.
This had happened twice before, once when in the Donor and about
a week ago in the 2B. I assumed a duff battery, so rang up MOT centre
and postponed the MOT until 3:30. Shot off to Halfords, took out
a second mortgage and bought another battery.
Fitted new battery and off we set.. I still cannot get used to
the noise, but an enormous grin factor, the ride is firm but very
precise , acceleration feels fantastic and the ride position good.
Self centring not quick as it should be, will have to continue looking
at that one.
Arrived with time to spare and was beckoned straight into the test
centre. They had never seen a 2B before and had only heard of the
Tigers. One of the testers jumped straight away to drive it onto
the ramps, then tested the wipers, washers, lights etc and found
the nearside side light wasn't working, hmmmm wonder how that happened,
apparently there wasn't even a bulb in there. Also noticed the steering
rack bolts were slightly loose, ooops.
Checked the light alignment and suggested they set them for me
on the re-test.
Up on the ramps and a good look underneath passed okay, brakes
stupendous and that was it. I spend the next 15 mins or explaining
about the 2B and how it was built.
Booked in for a free re-test Fri. Oh dear means I have another
legal drive out for the afternoon. All in all a lovely afternoon
with my first proper test drive, just have to go and lick all the
flies out of my hair..
They commented on the build quality, but still put dusty foot marks
all over the inside !
24/05/02
MOT re-test today, passed no problem, (just replaced the bulb I
removed). Nice blast to the test station, then on to the nearest
tyre place to get the tracking setup. Then onto another garage to
fill up with petrol, (no leaks).
Everything ran fine and turned a few heads on the way, especially
when changing down and flooring the pedal :. Self-centering seems
to be getting better, it is superb in reverse !.
25/05/02
Covered all the swept wing edges with edge trim, and all the suspension
nuts with SVA compatible covers.
Made up a gear stick gaiter, looks crap but will do for SVA and
until I can
find something else. I made up a better bracket for fixing the
air-flow meter. Removed the screen pillars and painted silver, replaced
the fixing bolts with chrome button head.
Also fitted the SVA compatible, Mountney Wheel cover. There seems
to be lots and lots of possible SVA sharp edges to cover,(better
get some more silicone).
26/05/02
Started off the day by replacing the self tappers in the nose cone
with rivets, (something I had forgotten to do). Put edge trim around
the nose cone and covered the screw heads on the screen pillars
and gear stick surround.
Jacked the 2B up and climbed underneath to check all nuts were
either lock nuts or nylocs.
I have decided that the side mirrors are not high enough on the
side pillars, so I have moved them to the top radius of the bonnet,
seem to be a lot better now.
I will check round everything each evening but otherwise I am just
waiting now for SVA on thursday.
UPDATE
See SVA report, passed first Time. Then
shot down to Exeter and got the Tax and number plate over the counter.
I am now on the road and enjoying every minute of it..
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