Manky Monkey
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« Reply #555 on: July 12, 2009, 12:39:22 AM » |
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Last week Taz & I nipped down to MachineMart in Southampton & used a VAT free voucher given to us by Lunatic to buy a Clarkes engine stand. This will make working on the Charger engine far easier & safer.
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On the last freedom moped out of Nowhere City.
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BikerGran
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Gran Turismo
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« Reply #556 on: July 12, 2009, 07:53:51 AM » |
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What a fantastic place that workshop is - they could charge visitors for admission, it's better than a museum!
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You don't stop havin fun because you get old - you get old if you stop havin fun!
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #557 on: July 12, 2009, 08:02:11 AM » |
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 And they're quite happy for us to just wander around it all. They're used to customers with open cheque books who don't bat an eyelid at spending thousands & thousands of pounds restoring their cars, (who said there's a recession!), so we're pathetically grateful to them for taking on our scruffy old car & letting us pay bit by bit as the work progresses. JC Restorations are one of the top names in the country for this kind of work & the guys there really know what they're doing. After nearly a year of looking for someone to help us, they were the only company willing to take on our heap car. Everyone else took one look & advised us to cut our losses & scrap it. So yeah, we like 'em. 
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On the last freedom moped out of Nowhere City.
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voodoo
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« Reply #558 on: July 12, 2009, 09:13:36 AM » |
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I used to have one of thoses when i was into building rods...excellent piece of kit....Voodoo...
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Custom Paint Spraying...
English by Birth..Biker by choice....
Growing old is inevitable...Growing up is optional....
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #559 on: July 28, 2009, 04:36:07 PM » |
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Taz & I nipped back over to JC Restorations this morning to pay them some more pennies, (we're paying as we go, rather than getting a huge, frightening bill at the end of the job). The main body shell's due back from the shotblasters next week, but a few of the panels have already come back. Blasted & zinc coated. The doors are fine, except for a tiny patch of pin holes around an inch square on the back edge of one. That can be easily cut out & plated we're told. Bootlid also looks fine except for a similar small patch along one of the crimped edges. No big problem. Front valance, (the panel under the front bumper), is rust free but needs beating back into shape in a couple of places. May be cheaper to buy a new one than pay 40 quid an hour to have it repaired.
We're now waiting for the body shell before drawing up our final shopping list of parts to order from the States. We definitely need the driver's side door jamb, (B pillar), the channels that run down either side of the trunk lid & the rear cross member, (a fairly lightweight panel that runs across under the boot floor).
Depending on the condition of the body when it comes back we may also need a roof skin, (far cheaper than you'd think for such a big panel), & the rear light panel. We picked up a second-hand hood, (bonnet), as our original one was knackered, but it's got a big hole cut in it for an air cleaner. It's also bowed slightly from front to back. The hole's off-set to one side & we weren't keen on running with it open, so had planned to have Madron fabricate a fibreglass cowl induction scoop for it -one of those long, low profile ones that extend from the bonnet front, right up to the screen with the opening at the back edge. Taz would really rather have a standard bonnet though, especially after sitting in Stroker Blue's Road Runner at the weekend & not being able to see over his bonnet scoop. Again, not actually as pricey as you'd think -just over 100 quid, so maybe we'll replace it with fresh steel. We'll see. That'll mean Taz's Charger will leave John's workshops with a straightened & repaired chassis & literally an entire new body.
A hell of a lot more than we'd originally planned, but ain't that always the way. We're so glad we took the plunge & went to JC's for the work though. They've been fantastic & done an amazing job. If we'd tried to tackle it ourselves, we'd have given up & sold it for scrap long ago.
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« Last Edit: July 28, 2009, 04:37:57 PM by Manky Monkey »
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #560 on: July 28, 2009, 04:40:14 PM » |
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Taz's collection of new panels is slowly spilling out of the corner of the store room.
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #561 on: July 28, 2009, 04:41:28 PM » |
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Huge 50s Caddy sedan.
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #562 on: July 28, 2009, 04:44:23 PM » |
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Roadrunner I think, another Charger, 50s Cadillac, maybe a Ford behind it, modern BMW & 60s Mustang in the forground.
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #563 on: July 28, 2009, 04:52:08 PM » |
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This Cadillac Eldorado is absolutely stunning. It's fresh back from the upholsterers & was due to be handed over to the owner today. It was red when it arrived at the workshops -4 years ago. Restoration work showed it was originally this pale metallic green. The owner hates green cars but as soon as he saw the test panel they painted in it, agreed no other colour would do. John performed the paintjob himself & it's flawless. £9.000 worth of chrome alone. Every single part has been completely rebuilt, with the underside as immaculate as the top. How much for this level of perfection? 86 thousand quid.
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #564 on: July 28, 2009, 04:55:26 PM » |
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It's absolutely enormous. Runs a completely rebuilt 393ci motor -only slightly bigger than Taz's Charger but in a car that weighs 3 tons -a ton more than her Dodge.
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #565 on: July 28, 2009, 05:02:26 PM » |
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Even the steering wheel's been cut up & repaired by the JC guys. Some beautiful details & clever gadgets. The gizzmo in the corner of the dashboard is a sensor that automatically dips the headlights if you're on full beam & another car comes towards you. BMW & Mercedes are only just fitting those to their cars now. This was built over 50 years ago. The huge trunk lid has a soft touch lock -try to slam it shut & it stops short of fully closing, then gently pulls itself shut like the drawers in modern kitchen units. It has electric windows all round, but tiny little winding handles to wind the quarter lights open -all very advanced considering just how old this car is.
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #566 on: July 28, 2009, 05:05:53 PM » |
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I love the 4 exhausts exiting through the corners of the rear bumper. The Caddy's heading to Spain now, but next year the owner's taking a year off work to tour America in it. Jealous? Ever so slightly.  |
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #567 on: July 28, 2009, 05:07:18 PM » |
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By complete contrast, as we left we spotted this Y reg Reliant in the farmers yard next door.
-yes, we're chasing it up.
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poprodder
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« Reply #568 on: July 28, 2009, 05:21:39 PM » |
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how much!!!  Tazet's 69 Dodge Charger. |
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Manky Monkey
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« Reply #569 on: July 28, 2009, 05:42:09 PM » |
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Go back through the last few pages of this thread & you'll see a white Charger with orangey brown interior - 90 thousand quid. Also a lemon yellow Charger in similar immaculate condition. That one was supposed to be at the Mopar Nationals at Santa Pod at the weekend, (Taz was there. Her photos online soon). The owner apparently decided not to take it -if you'd spent that much money on a car, would you wrap it up in cotton wool & never drive it to protect your investment, or drive the hell out of it to get your moneys worth from it? The latter for us. And no, we're not even in the same city, let alone the same ballpark as those guys.  |
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