1975 MGB GTV8 Special

Roof skin on initial trail fitting - ok on the offside 



Still adrift on the problem nearside - but lets not panic yet 



Ok on the rear 



A good look all round soon reveals the problem 



With the top of the new bulkhead panel / windscreen pillars preventing the roof skin from sitting into the roof gutter 



One of the golden rules of undertaking major / structural panel works is to never throw away / remove from site the removed / damaged sections



Spotted the difference yet ? with exception of the welded nut for the sun visor (Which I'll replace with a rivinut) 



Some 20 mm difference in height between the old & new panels in this one area on each side 


 
Soon resolved by cutting down & flanging over to replicate the original panel 



Both sides modified 



Roof skin refitted & clamped up 



And a much better fit achieved still some tweaks to make yet through  



Self tapping screws used to retain the panels in some areas to allow the clamps to removed & the roof skin fitted - However, A word of caution 



A few minutes spent with a bit of heat shrink tube over the exposed ends of the screws 



Saves pain, blood and possibly a trip to A&E - I've witnessed ripped skin from arms, punctured heads & deeply gouged knuckles before today   More updates soon 

Soooo much better, it definitely validates the decision to sort and get it 'right'.

Very happy indeed, and from the conversation with Chris last night, the end result will have a couple of tweaks that will make it literally better than factory

So while Chris is getting stuck into metalwork and transforming the shell once again (hopefully for the last time for his sake and mine!), I thought I'd get going on a few of the items still on my to-do list.

One of the big ones is the wiring, especially with all the additions I'm intending to make.

Not really being the most confident when it comes to electrickery, the only real way for me to get my head around this is to lay it out and work through logically. Which while in theory I have the room to do, it isn't the most practical approach as would take up a fair amount of floor space. The alternative option is therefore to go vertical, so I started with building a frame and attaching a slightly modified dashboard


I then started to unravel the looms ready to position bits


...which is about as far as I got before being distracted by something else.

The next step will be to add the various components and split the loom, including where it passes through the bulkhead so the dashboard and all related components can be easily disconnected which will hopefully save a lot of pain in the long run. As such I'll need to go shopping for some quick release connectors that are easy to undo in a confined space. My current thinking is something similar to what the motorsport fraternity use:


The car has two looms to begin with, one for engine bay and dash, the other for the rear section of the car, fuel pump, rear lights etc. so these will also need to be split where appropriate.

Fun times... I think. More soon.

That's really useful - thanks

I took the opportunity to add some relays - easy to do and much safer.

1. One each high and low beams
2. Horns (one per individual horn)
3. After letting the smoke out of the harness I now run the brown wire separate from the rest of the harness.

Mine still looks rubbish BTW

IIRC big brown is the only one constantly live unfused - big purple (the other biggie) has its amperage greatly reduced with the aforementioned relay

Thank You for the images of the rear outside of the car.
As You guessed right I would be grateful if You could send me pictures of the inside (juncture of boot floor side panel with inner wing, rear valance and panel under rear light)
I'll send some images of my car for You to see the current situation.
The previous owner has, I suspect, partially cut off the rear valance twice and left a lot of messes.
Thank You in advance!

grumpynorthener - That was exactly what I wanted to have a look at! Thank You very much!

A constant theme of mine on another (USA located LBC forum) is to remind people just how badly these cars really were when new. Fun to drive, easy to work on, lovely to look at etc. etc. but my Midget which was essentially rust free when I got it must have had Stevie Wonder welding it together. The tolerances are measured in inches, the finesse with hammer strikes. These were put together by a union guy called Kev with a cigarette dangling from his lips as he leaned over the engine.

All 60's/ 70's cars of almost all manufacturers were equally poorly built - designed to last 2-5 years (60,000 miles) - not 50 - 60 years. I suspect their sloppy construction is a part of why they are easy and simple to work on and why they run when everything is 'close enough' as opposed to (for instance) Mercedes. (note the difference between the tolerances of German rifles and tanks vs. American and British - part of why the Allies won)

We forget just how revolutionary Japanese cars - Honda! - were in terms of fit finish and tolerances.

I think I have posted this before - East German  not British - though given the socio-economic conditions of England at the time, not likely that far off.