BSA 3 wheeler rebuild carried over from introduction section

When I was apprenticed my foreman / workshop manager was well aware that to get things right took time - a long time - you could well be on a profiling job for several weeks especially on the larger cars which were fitted with very large panels - think of a mid 30' Packard or worse still a 50's Bentley or Rolls saloon and you literally had acres of panel work to deal with. Filler applied & worked all looks the same with the exception of how well its worked - run your hand over it and it could be profiled to perfection or hold more furrows, hollows & dips than a field ploughed by a blindfolded farmer on a steam powered tractor.  

What the workshop manager liked was some indication of progress in your work - what was complete / what wasn't - the pencil lines simply indicate that the profiles are complete on that panel - it also demonstrated progress to any visitor / client to the workshop - The workshop manger also advocated that this method worked in a different prospective in the respect that your sanding back / profiling of a vehicle for weeks on end - a dull repetitive, mind numbing task that seemed endless - by shading completed panels out it targeted the individual mindset to maintain momentum - probably even targeting completing a panel / area by a set time / date - its stuck with me and I've always worked like this on the larger profiling jobs for the last 40 + years  

Profiles advanced on the offside rear side panel / rear wing 



Along with the offside bulkhead prior the removal of the door 



Then back to the rear of the car 



Boot lid is now added to the list of completed panel profiles 





Primer applied to the wire beaded edges & wing apron lapped joint of the offside front wing 



Now the car once complete will be used in fair weather - it currently does not have any hood / wet weather gear so that virtually guarantees the point - that's not to say that these could be added at a later stage - but its not a car that you would utilise to do the supermarket run on a wet October day - none the less get water trapped behind this rolled flanged edge just from simply washing the car and you are doing nothing but storing up rust migration issues 



Seam sealer gunned into the flange edge prevents any water ingress and the problem is resolved 



Likewise with the flange edge where the apron meets the wing 



Along with the upper side - more later 

Profiling works continue to advance around the car 



Offside front wing is on its way 



Along with the bonnet side valance for the offside 



And offside door



Bonnet has been removed 



And reduced to individual panels in preparation of being profiled 

Whats your take on the coloured raptor type coatings Chris? Sèem to make sense to me and my simple noggin!

Stone chip is ok to protect the metal but looks awful once the paint finish starts to gets beaten off it.

Ahhhhh.....i see.

1st world problems but at half past midnight last night it was 32° on our patio....i reckon it was at least 34° in the bedroom.... phew!!

She is going to be a stunner Chris. Any inside info on final colour/s?

Bonnet sides now well under way 



Sid paid a visit to check on the detail 



Nearside bonnet side completed 



Just the raised swage detail to complete before the wing can be removed 



Which happened fairly swiftly 



Which in turn allowed access to profile the lower apron areas 



That's the profiles complete on the offside front wing 



Along with the offside bonnet side panel 



With the bottom edge of the bonnet being of wire bead construction these were primed - then seam sealer applied 



Likewise with the offside front wing 



And the bodyside joint between the wing & wing apron 



Upper panels for the bonnet have been prepped 



And I managed to get one side skimmed before deciding that I sweated enough for one day 



More tomorrow 

Why dry builds prior to paint are so important 



Left as it was the lock escutcheon would have fouled / damaged the paint when lifted  



30 seconds of profiling sorted it 



Remainder of the panels being fitted for the final checks to take place prior to paint 



Its been way too hot in the workshop of recent days and although the temperature is falling its still very much melting temperature in the workshop - so this arrived 



Placed next to the filtered fresh air intake for the workshop it soon brought the temperatures to a more comfortable working condition 



Front wings & bonnet fitted 



Everything checked for fitting tolerances / clearances



Once done the car came back apart 

 

And was carefully masked up after being thoroughly cleaned of all filler dust 



The paint I'm using sticks to everything - hence on detailed cars with a separate chassis absolutely everything needs to be masked up that you don't want overspray on

 

Loose panels were placed to the panel stands 



Placing to stands like this allows for flange edges / both side of the panels to be painted at the same time 



And even with 2 stands I don't have room to hang every panel and paint it in the one batch 



Hence I'll have to prime it in 2 batches 



I have a small pile of other panels to do regardless - so it will be a busy morning tomorrow 



But virtually all ready to go first thing tomorrow