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Sorry about the lack of updates, but there hasn't been anything to update.

I stopped.

Today however I restarted, bit more welding, bit more grp work. The long awaited temporary body on job has to wait another week before I can start work on the diff positioning. No photo's of the work today. However after looking at the rear wheel arches of Hydraulic1's car in his gallery I thought I would have try to get the fine lines closer to those in the pictures I saw. I also took the opportunity to get rid of some air bubbles and stuff, so while its not a major leap forward, its a steady eddie approach. I will take the camera out there tomorrow and photo all the weekends work. Considering I was out there 6 hours today.

I just stumbled on this site, and as some of you know; I just love these. There is no other sound that can compare to this sound, and I can even forgive the singing, it just seems so right. Powrf, nostalgia, sheesh. http://www.spitfiresite.com/photos/video/2008/02/white-cliffs-od-dover.html I could play that over and over and over again. MkV's, MkIX's MkX1V's, MkXVI's and a contra rotating MK21, in their various guises as clipped clapped and cropped, may even be a baby one in amongst that lot. But together, the sound of those Merlins and Gryphons is just, just, (wanders off to the garage).............

I have a load of hassle to get through for the last four weeks, but I/we are over the worst of it now I think. It has left us/me no tme for the garage whatsoever. However with the house all to myself today I spent four hours in there, ignored the telephones and got back to basics.

The body is now only 1 and a 1/2 inches from sitting down at the rear. There is a problem now however. I have to cut out more bodywork and do more GRP ing I got some of my calculations to close to the mark and with a ropey old car body it means that its more than a tight fit in places. So the angle grinder was back in action again and the garage once again looks like a winters wonderland. I am hoping that by tomorrow the body will be sitting down fully on the chassis and work on the Diff mounting can begin.

As part of getting the body to fit today, I had no choice but to remove the sills along the entire length of the car on both sides. So now that brings the use of the sill mold a lot closer.

Anyway that will do for now.

More soon and with pictures.

Its been busy, but in other directions for weeks now. I am hoping to get back to Mantula rebuilding sometime this week. I got a solicitor to see tomorrow but after that I am trying to get back to normal and the hour a day I promised myself.

More soon.

Stay tuned.

Shortened the diff cradle. Got the first set of measurements for two of the axis that the diff will lie in. Just got to get the car back down to correct road running height so I can get the centre lines from passenger to drivers side sorted, then the diff can be offered up.

Now it seems I got all day Thursday Friday Saturday, Sunday and Monday all to myself. Its an opportunity not to be wasted I guess. Pictures soon.

I think, my right foot might stop me long before the aerodynamics kick in.

At the moment though it's the body. It's fighting all the way to the chassis. Every last bloody millimetre it's causing grief. Currently it needs to go forward about 2 millimetres on the passenger side. No more than 4 mm on the driver's side. It has to sit down along the top parcel shelf rail by about 3mm max. Do you think it will go? Not a hope. Even an inspirational phone call to Mr Chivers, as he is the only guy I know that worked at the factory, that I still have a phone number for. After that phone conversation he told me all that I knew I had to do. So now the angle grinder comes out and there is more cutting to do.

So getting to 200 mph is definitely a challenge.

As of yesterday I found out why the yanks sell flywheels for £60.00 and the Brits sell um for £300.00 and that is because they are 'longer' or thicker, as what we try to do is use the engine with a none standard gearbox, the input shaft does not reach the standard flywheel.

My concern over cranking the engine was kicked into touch, as I could wear the camshaft out by doing so. So blocking up all the open oil ways and filling the engine with oil for now, seems to be the best solution.

(I have been concerned about leaving the engine standing for long periods without running it and having it seize.

So its still months and months of grinding and rubbing down. Its certainly character building that's for sure.

More soon.