Restoration of 26/0086 unit 3067

[Mazzini]

Superb job on the seats (and the rest of the car come to that).

A few hundred years ago you'd have been burnt at the stake for raising the dead

[rodlittle]

I thought it was only witches that got burnt, wizards were OK cf Merlin etc
rod

[RedS4]

I thought it was only witches that got burnt, wizards were OK cf Merlin etc
rod

It was a chauvanistic world back then....

[rodlittle]

Time to finish the door trims now, Ive been unable (surprise surprise) to find anyone that is willing or able to make the folded metal section that finishes off the door edge and holds the felt against the outside of the window. I dont like the look of the type26 register alternative as it doesnt appear to be fixed except at one end so I shall have to make my own.
Browsing in B&Q ( like home hardware but bigger) I found 2 ally sections that should do the job. a 6mmx 6mm channel and a piece of angle.

The channel fits over the edge of the door

And the angle covers the edge and holds the felt

Put together you can see the section which is pretty close to what I need

A few cut outs for the felt clips and were ready to fix them together

I was going to weld them but the TIG gas was getting a bit low and since Ive had an argument with BOC I may not be able to get a refill so I figured I could epoxy them together instead

So heres the finished parts all polished and with the felt clipped on

and heres what it looks like fitted to the door

[rodlittle]

Put the windscreen in next, I was expecting to be able to use the original but when I dragged it out of hibernation I found that it had a great big groove worn across the passenger side where someone had let the windscreen wipers run without a blade so the arm wore its way into the glass, plus it was starting to delaminate at the edges so I swallowed hard and bought a new one.
Rubber in first which was probably the most difficult part as it wouldnt stay in place till I taped it as I went round.

Then the glass went in pretty easily

I didnt have the special tool for putting the bright trim strip into the rubber but I had a picture of one so it was easy to make one up out of some stainless welding rod and an old file handle.
job done!

[rodlittle]

The pad on the centre console was pretty bad so that needed renewing, this is what the original looked like when stripped down

the hardboard was all warped and the covering was split.
I cant replicate the welded lines on the original but a line of stitching should look similar This is what it looks like made from leathercloth stitched onto foam with a calico backing

Staple the pad to the new plywood backing and it looks ok

Sometime in the past the console has been painted black, I cant get that paint off so I will have to spray it grey again on top.
this is how it looks for now.

[dpo#4]

Dear rodlittle,

Nice work in all phases. I was especially intrigued by your door/window trim strips. Been giving that some thought, and your solution is elegant.And if you were thinking of welding those , you've got talent. Thanks for the posts! - Ray

[abstamaria]

Great work, Rodlittle. Thank yup fpr posting.

Andy

[rodlittle]

Time now for the flooring, Made paper patterns out of thick lining paper from homebase

Then cut out the felt pieces for the back and the tunnel

And stuck it to the back and the tunnel with evostick

Made up some filler strips out of ply to fill the corrugations in the floor (thanks Gary)

Then fitted the felt to the floors

No idea if its supposed to go like this under the seats but the only drawings I have dont show it well, Im sure someone will tell me its wrong but this is how it is now

[rodlittle]

I saw someone paid ?166 for an early shape gear knob on ebay the other day, I think they had more money than sense, I made mine for nothing from a piece of rosewood I happened to have and the badge off a newer knob

I reckon it looks original.

good enough for me anyway

[rodlittle]

Next job is the rubber flooring. I found a firm in Lancashire that does a rubber matting with what they call orange peel finish, its the closest to toad skin I can find, they dont do it in grey unfortunately so my flooring is black.
The trim strip around the top of the rubber on the back was missing so I had to make one of those, Turned out to be one of the most awkward things Ive had to make.
Anyway I found some ally strip of what looks about the right shape

Made a wooden former to bend it round

Did one end at a time

So far so good, its correct in profile but the ends need to be bent down relative to the back as they are not at right angles. This required a lot of hammering and cursing, eventually I got it near enough to fit

After that fitting the rest of the floor was easy peasy.

[rodlittle]

Now the matting is finished we need some seats. I have to admit that I bought the seat covers, as there was no way I could replicate the weld lines on the covers except by stitching and that would not look right, so I bought the covers as a kit from Susan Miller (they are actually made by Newton Commercial but for some reason they are cheaper from Susan)
Just followed the instructions that came with them, the instructions are not always clear to a non trimmer, they were obviously written by someone who knew exactly how to do the job so some things werent explained too well but I got there in the end.

They certainly look good

[rodlittle]

Getting near to driveable now, heres its new number plate

And here it is outside driven for the first time in 30 years.

So I took it to the Goodwood revival on Saturday

OK its not finished, 90% done and 90% still to do but at least I can drive it

[dougweall]

Rod,
Like many others on here I have followed your thread, well done, you should be proud of your efforts.
I bet moving your Elan for the first time in 30 years was the best feeling in the world after all the hard work.
I know when I got my Elan going after it's long hibernation I was over the moon.

I class my Elan as an ongoing restoration, always something to do, enjoy

Doug

[rodlittle]

Ah well lots of snags to be fixed

Dynamo not charging, easy one, one of the brush springs is broken.
Clutch is horrid I know now that both the master and slave cylinders are the wrong sizes, both were 3/4" whereas they should have been Master 5/8" and slave 7/8" serves me right for not checking before I installed them. replacements are now fitted in the correct sizes but I havent driven it again cos its so wet.
Handbrake needs adjusting, again my fault, I forgot it and left it on for a short while, enough to put it out of adjustment anyway.
All brake calipers need the pistons removing and cleaning, its been such a long time ( 12 years at least)since I refurbished them that theyve got sticky again.
Rh turn indicator doesnt cancel.
Air box on carbs hits the bodywork.
Theres still a small hole in the rad which I need to solder up.
The rear crank bearing is weeping slightly, hoping that might get better as again its a long time since I did the engine and its probably dried out in the meantime( its a rope type)
Fuel tank weeping round the gauge sender. fixed that, the supplied screws were just too small to tighten it up properly, they stripped the threads so Ive retapped them all bigger.
Still no hood of course and the tonneau I made isnt finished either.

Other than that its great fun to drive and amazingly a previous owner from 43 years ago left me a note at the revival when he saw it in the car park, small world
rod