Picture time!

 Time to post some pictures, first some useful ones. In the previous post I said I wanted to move from the bracket idea to the rose joint. This is what I'm aiming for now;

Now it does create a potential weakness in the roll bar strut, but it gives me more flexibility in the mounting. As long as I can get the rose joint securely screwed into the end of the support tube then I think it'll work (more on that later). 

Oh, one more picture from the same set;

Using string to find the route of the tube is a brilliant idea, it means that the hole starts small enough to make corrections before the bigger hole is cut. I'll be doing the same for mine. 

Now on to the show. Malvern as a showground certainly has it's advantages, not least of all it's location;

Nothing like blue skies and great scenery to really start the day off well!! 

First was the ANC Replicar, something I've seen multiple times and often turn to for inspiration. This time it was the finishing of the lower bodywork that caught my eye;

I probably won't copy it directly because I'm hoping mine will be boxed in, but it's good to see a strip of rivets used for a secure mounting.

The next photo was an idea for how to trim the boot;

This is just a fibreglass mould but it gives a nice usable finish to the boot space. I'll look at that probably after IVA?

Next was a method of boxing in the wheels. With the bodywork as it is, there is no protection at all from road debris (even a bog standard seven has wheel arches whereas I don't). This car is an example of how I'm planning to sort the arches;

Next, a bit more trim. This time behind the seats. I like the idea of plain aluminium that I'm working with at the moment, but in case it does there is always carpet. This is a pair of replicars, one with plain panels and the other with carpet;

It also shows examples of rear view mirrors (side and centre) which I will no doubt be following.

Next came this beautiful machine. It's an old version of the Healey (and it's a 100 rather than a 3000), and really gave me lots of ideas for how things will look in the end. I had a great chat with the owner who clearly had a lot of enthusiasm for his car. 

At this point I realised that I didn't have the measurements for the indicator or tail lights. While I can reuse the donor headlights, I don't have anything close to the other lights. I'll add that to the shopping list for Newark!

The one thing we did talk about was the number of sharp protrusions and corners that may have been ok at SVA (when he had it tested) but work with IVA. This car doesn't even have head restraints, and the spikes for the roof would never get past an IVA. But as with most kit cars, getting through IVA is one thing, the modifications afterwards are what makes it more like the finished product. 

He also mentioned a second one at the independent stand, and considering I didn't know these replicas existed I had to go look for it. The search didn't disappoint;

 This one had a bit more money thrown at it and you could tell, although I'll be happy if my car ends up even reasonably close to either of them. There was lots of little details on this one, like the chrome surrounds for the roll hoop. Of course the RAC badges and the rail is a nice touch, again for post-IVA.

Purely by coincidence, the next car I found was a Sebring in the same colour scheme, which made an interesting comparison;

I do like the Sebring cars, although just looking at this price tag shows they're in a different price range to what I'm dealing with. If they were still around I'd be looking at 25K to put one together. 

On the same independent stand there was another example of a car with a hinged bonnet and deflectors for road debris;

I don't recall the type of car, but as well as the flat plate deflectors under the bonnet there was also a very tidy exhaust install. The flexible joint out to the side mounted exhaust was well thought out, and the side mounted silencer looked really nice. No sign of a cat thought, which considering it was clearly an MX5 engine was quite surprising. Maybe the donor was just old enough to not need one?

The bonnet hinge here had some nice touches, like a metal wire to the engine to stop it swinging too far forward, as well as the foam tape on the body for it to sit on when closed.