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Bonnet Set Up, Part III, Trimming the Bonnet The seam between the aft end of the bonnet and the body needs to be straight and even. Two steps were needed. First, the matting surface on the body was sanded down to an even depth, approximately 3/16 inch. There is a lot of material here so...

Bonnet Set Up, Part II, Top Mating Surface The next project was the top mating surface, both of which were badly distorted. We decided to lower the nose a bit to improve the stance of the Jag, as referenced in previous posts...

Bonnet Set Up, Part I, Lower Mating Surface More than five years ago work started on the front clip. Fiberglass panels for the box supporting the hinge connections were fabricated in place of aluminum panels glued in place. At that time the wheel openings were evaluated to check fit and tire...

Seats, Part XI With all the foregoing preparation done, we were finally able to complete the welding of the seat frame, again using the jig to assure good alignment. Even with a jig the welding caused some slight distortion requiring that the forward tubes be reamed again to assure the...

Seats, Part X The aluminum seat section that sets next to the parking brake required special attention. A notch was cut to provide clearance for the brake handle which meant the fold had to be cut out. This obviously weakens it requiring that a reinforcement be added. An angle was made, ¾...

Seats, Part IX Foam cushions will be placed over the frame, so flat supports are needed. These were cut from 20 gauge aluminum and folded to fit snugly over the frame. Plans were drawn and the parts cut, mostly with a hand shear. The goal was to cut and fold the pieces as precisely as possible...

Seats, Part VIII The rear seat frame does not use a spring-loaded rod but rather a fixed rod with a 3/8” pin that will slide into the 3/8” wide and three-eighths-inch-deep groove on the supporting block. Accessing a spring-loaded pin on the rear of the seat would not be practical once the...

No, but it is on my list.

Seats, Part VI A reliable method of locking the seat frame in place was needed. A spring-loaded inside rod with a 3/8” diameter tip that can snap into the forward blocks was designed and fabricated. This is starting to get complicated. The inner diameter of the 7/8 inch tube was .745 inches...

Another good option. Thanks.

Excellent suggestion. Thanks.

Seats Part V Once the eight support blocks were milled, the front blocks were located and installed. To assure that the corner supports were exactly located, the welding jig was set in the car and used as a guide to place the forward support blocks. Once the locations were defined, the...

Thanks Brian This has turned into a monumental project taking far more time than building an airplane kit. So much design, fabrication, and do overs. The RCR GT40 was a bit like a paint by number kit: the parts were there, the design was established, you knew what it would look like when it...

Seats Part IV With a frame fabricated in a preliminary manner, the next challenge was determining how to support it. The height needed to be adjustable. Complicating the matter is the ten-degree vertical angle on the inside surface below the door and the three-degree inward taper of the...

Seats, Part III The seat bottom is proving to be much more challenging than the seat back. Since Ryan is taller the ability to adjust the height of the seat was needed. We started by marking a pattern on a section of plywood to confirm dimensions and determine an appropriate height for each of...

Seats, Part II Securing the four panels that support the seat back required drilling and tapping for four quarter inch screws on the inner connection points. That was straightforward. The outside screws, however, are attached to the door jambs on the door side and the vertical tunnel on the...

Seats, Part I I do not like to post details on a project until able to confirm that it works. But construction of the seats will be a long-term project so I am going out on a limb and posting progress long before the seats will be finished. What is posted may change as this process unfolds...

Hey Randy, not a problem. All good information!

Dave: The tools I use are fairly basic. Thin aluminum for small pieces (like the hinge covers) is mostly cut with a small Eastwood combination shear / bender tool. The removable multiple bending blades permits creating some double folds, although that is of limited value. It does make nice...

Doors, Part XII The doors have been a seemingly never-ending project, but are finally nearing the end. The forward door jambs were the last major detail. The forward door jambs are cosmetic, covering the hinge mechanism. They needed to be easily removable so the hinges could be adjusted. Hours...