Thanks Chuck, can't wait to get the metalwork completed, another milestone nearly passed .

 

Got the last door skin completed. in primer and back on the car, it now has all the doors, the bonnet and the boot back on .

Yippee !!!

 

Great job, Jon! I know you are pleased to get that behind you.
Lin

 

I got around to painting the scuttle ventilation box and lid, the inside of the petrol filler and filler door now in final paint and filler door fitted.

Went to fit the water deflector plate and realized I had got the wrong size square nuts and screws !! So correct fittings now ordered, so the scuttle vent lid will have to wait til they arrive.

Getting the inside of the boot into finished paint, and the inside of the boot lid so I can feed the wires into the boot and get these routed through and the speaker box installed so I can sort out the wiring etc. for that too.

 

Sounds like you are making great progress!

 

Thanks Chuck and Lin.
Getting there all too slowly, I will post some more pics shortly, got a coat of clear on the inside of the boot lid last night, and the basecoat inside the boot, will need to check for any missed bits in the boot later as it is one of the most awkward areas to spray.

 

Been a little hectic and not got too much done, inside the boot is all done, and the boot lid in place, need to finish the speaker box and get that installed.

Got the water deflector inside the scuttle fitted now with the correct square nuts and machine screws.

I need to refit the door catches and do a final fit on the door gaps.

Then final body prep and it will be ready for paint ! I will get the rear axle on and also the front suspension so I can modify the steering shaft to the power steering.

I will follow up with the pics when I get a chance, the nights are dark, and we have some cold weather at the moment (before you guys in Canada comment it ain't nearly as cold as you get it, it's probably tropical by comparison!) and a new dog too so not been able to do as much as I would like.

 

Glad you are still making progress. The colder weather does slow things down a bit.

 

I started stripping the rear leaf springs to re-paint them, does anyone know a source for the rubber buttons part No C12859, I can't seem to find anywhere that sells them so far.

I may make up some Teflon buttons to replace the rubber, there are some available for some of the MG's but again can't find a source for them for the Jag.

Any assistance appreciated

 

I don’t know of a source. That is about the only rubber part on the car that was still somewhat pliable and I felt ok re using them.

 

They are still slightly pliable, but one is completely flattened, and one is missing, so would replace the lot if I can find them.

 

Well managed to sort out the spring buffers, got a suggestion from another restorer who said to use hot melt glue to form the pads, I used a hard formula glue, and it formed the pads easily, they just provide a slip point for spring flex, so will give them a go.

3 coats of epoxy paint, 1 red oxide and 2 coats of black.

Had a bit of fun with the rear spring eye bushes, I got the old ones out with a little heat and pushed them out with the vice. Then had a hard time pressing in the new poly bushes, when I did get them in they looked like a large lady in too tight a corset !!!
I then realized that the old bushes I originally had were metlastic, and had a metal sleeve on them which was left in the spring ! So I had to press the bushes back out, cut out the sleeves which were rusted in, clean the eyes out and press the bushes back in, at least they fit now !
I am waiting for some stainless tube to arrive, the sleeves and blots for the spring retaining clamps were rusted solid, so I had to cut them off, the parts are not available, so I will make some more from the tube when it arrives, the clamp is on the spring to give clearance for the tube when I fit it.

Also cleaned blasted and painted the Torque arms, and fitted new poly bushes in preparation for re-fitting the rear axle to the car.

Here are also a couple of shots of the boot area in final paint, excuse the dust, this has got in there whilst doing some prep work on the outside of the boot lid.

 

Those springs look like new. Very nice progress!

 

Thanks Chuck, seems a little slow at the moment, but pushing forward.

 

Stainless tube arrived today, so cut the sleeves for the leaf springs and got them installed, should last a few more years.

The refurb of the springs has restored the spring height to the original spec. so I am quite pleased with the effort required.

 

Looks nice, Jon. I did wonder about the spring spec, but didn’t say anything knowing that you would tend to it. I could not reuse my original springs (without taking them to a spring shop and having them “resprung”) so I “sprung” (sorry) for new ones. Always rewarding to refurb the old stuff and reuse.
Best for the New Year.
Lin

 

Thanks Lin, you too.

Funnily there was a load of info about rebuilding leaf springs on the MG forums, the buttons wearing seems to be the biggest culprit for the spring sag, as they space the ends of the springs slightly they affect the overall height.

You can get slightly larger buttons for the MG that raise the ride height, only by about 1/2", but that gave me the info I needed.

 

Well I dragged the car out of the workshop into another barn, I will finish off some bits of the bodywork in this barn including sorting the panel gaps, and it will be ready for final priming and paint whoopeee !

Got to make a bit of a show on the woodwork, now I have some room in the workshop, I have to re-veneer 4 pieces, both the 2 rear hockey sticks and both pieces that go above the front windows, I guess the damp over the years affected these pieces worse than the others. Pics to follow.

I also need to clear the car out, it has turned into storage for those "bits I'm working on" !!

 

Hey Jon,
That is the way to start a new year!
Lin

 

I enjoyed the woodwork. It is satisfying to fix a piece and doesn’t take too long. Look forward to seeing your progress.