C8A HUW: body dimensional data needed

[Jerry Hill]

Yesterday I successfully pulled out the B post on the passenger's side, drilling at the point of contact right through the B post. On the rear door side the hole had to be opened up to 2.5 cm to get a nut and socket on the ring bolt and tighten it up. A cargo pull was attached to the A post bulkhead and the ring bolt then steadily pulled until all was lined up as it should be. The rear door shut is perfect. I'll have a go at the driver's side before the w/e, when I'll post some pics.

Pics today show the bonnet and frame completed ready for re-assembly, the passenger wing section with a replacement piece of zintec 2mm sheet ready for fitting. Likewise on the driver's side, which also has the headlight panel straightened out along with the straightened framework tacked ready for the next stage. The next pic shows the centre section of the front panel with the two verticals cut out. After some head scratching we decided the originals are too badly mangled to recover, so we pressed replacement 2mm zintec sheets to the same profile and over the coming weeks we will rework them to match the originals. The same can be said for the bottom section shown on the final pic, we cut off and straightened out the carrier that attaches the front panel to the chassis front cross member.

When we have remade these parts we'll drive the truck sans front panel about five drafty miles to the workshop for the first trial fitting/alignment checks of the various components that make up the front panel and make sure they align to the bulkhead before tacking them and welding up to complete the front panel.

Then there's the doors to be seen to and paint. Some way to go yet.

Jerry