some more thoughts. plus my first list.

after a lovely day at work, i went up to my grandparents tonight (it's really just my grandmothers now but it somehow isn't right saying that) for dinner with my family and parents. an interesting night. saw some more stuff that i hadn't seen before. aka pictures and things from WW1 that had been my grandmothers aunts and had come to her. there used to be more (most of which i had seen) but she donated it to the AWM. a good place for it really as the people weren't family, just friends of "the aunts". one of them ended up high up in the army in WW2 (and lead 1st div against the japanese at milne bay in PNG). his brother who also sent pics and postcards transfered to the english army between the wars and ended up as some sort of aide to edward the 6th post ww2?

some of the remaining stuff was really interesting, one postcard of a guy in a tent in Palistine i think with his rifle as one of the tent poles and all his gear was fascinating. plus the postcard from one of the guys above sent from london as he was recuperating after being wounded in 1917.

there was also a portrait of someone else and the tag off his gear "wounded officers luggage". i couldn't imagine what would happen now if the government went to war on a scale like ww1 or ww2. i just don't think anyone would volunteer, certainly not enmass. we are way too soft for our own good. i doubt i could hack it. plus we all think that we are far more important than the rest of the society around us. how many people can you think of that wold willingly put thier life on the line with a strong possibility of loosing it today. it would be someone elses job.

while up there i went up to the back shed and had a poke about my 63 ragtop. it has been up there since 2000, sitting, waiting. harry came up with me and he LOVED it. he was in the drivers seat, i put the roof back, he was playing with the steering wheel and the pedals (yes he's huge for his age) etc. he wound down the window and stuck his head out, he was standing with his head out the ragtop. he loves climbing in my volvo but this was a whole new level of excitement. he was calling it "herbie". it was so good to watch him enjoyong it so much. i so need to get moving on this car. even marnie came up and said that i needed to get moving on it... i'm sure it would be all good until i tried to spend some money......... 

again no camera. i did take some pics on my phone but don't know if/where the cord is to download them.

i had always thought that the spare wheel was original to the car, but it turns out it has a 1-62 date on it and is a different green to mine. oh well. i guess that leaves the pass door as possibly the only orig bit on the car. even then it has rust in the bottom.

when i started writing this blog i thought that it would just end up a gaint todo list or something similar. so far i don't think there is even one list in it.... so here is one.

BODY WORK NEEDED ON THE RAGTOP SHELL.

nose. remove front vanance nad straighten sides. poss replace front skin if availably... maybe clip whole nose at fueltank to remove the worst affected areas.

if not replacing fix mount holes for window washer tank nest to brake header tank.

if not replacing replace weld nut in bumper mount.

remove and replace bonnet seal retaining strip. repair mount surface as required.

A pillars. redo patches at back of front wheelwells to look like og metal. check bottom skins of A pillar, replace if needed.

above brake pedals. does this need doing/redoing? does the bottom plate need replacing?

fix dents in front of door hinges on drivers side (poss pass side as well)

fix small dent in ridge below windscreen on dash.

straighten strap that holds glovebox.

straighten all the clamp clips behind drivers door.

fix and stregnthen around cracks on swege line behing doors both sides.

remove and replace carpet clamp strip.

check B pillars and repair if needed

check sills from front to back. what need doing to them?

check rear 1/4 bottoms.

remove old patches at end of heater channel and replace with stock tooking patches.

undo stich welding down sides of rear firewall, crimp closed (lots of cleco's?) and spot/plug weld  once properly positioned.

check all weldnust as i go and replace as nesseccary.

fix dent above RLguard mount.

straighten or replace mount strip for engine bay to engine seal.

check and replace if needed engine lid seal retaining strip.

remove nad replace if needed rear bumper mounts. (needs at least the LHS one done.

straighten rear valance of just remove and replace with NOS one.

shrink out ripple on roof behind ragtop on drivers side (from memory)

add extra spot welds around window openings, poss stitch weld other seams for added stregnth/reduced body flex.

i'm sure i have missed half of what needs doing. all in all it is ok for a 46yo car... at least it isn't a UK car.