Bodywork

		NG TF Kit Car Build
		by Peter Bambrook



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Bodywork
		Body Tub
		I hired a transit style van and drove down to Hampshire to collect the body tub. It was just a little long and I had to drive back to the midlands with the back doors partly open wondering if all the part would still be there when I got home. On closer inspection of the parts at home I was a little disappointed with the quality. The tub had been in the barn at Findhorn for at least 6 months and had various knocks and chips to the gel coat. There was also crazing of the rear valance. All things that could be repaired but shouldn't have been there. The body also didn't sit neatly on the chassis. The chassis angle at the front was steeper than the body, and had very little longitudinal movement. I therefore had to use more rubber packing strips in places to get the tub to sit firmly on the chassis in order to fasten it to the chassis. The next job was to cut all the various holes in the body tub according to the build manual for heater box, pedal box, steering column etc. I chose to leave the holes for the fusebox as everything seemed a little tight in that area. I cut the slot for the handbrake and lever and the handbrake to the cable. The gearbox hole was cut according to the manual and although tricky to measure it lined up nicely. The cowl was a very important item to fix correctly. It provided alignment for the bonnet tops and side panels. It could be moved in 3 planes and was only fitted by sandwiching the fibreglass cowl between the two sets of radiator mounts. It took me hours to be sure of the alignment of the side panels and to keep the cowl square. I still don't understand why it was so difficult be eventually found a suitable position. This meant that the side panels and bonnet panels would need a little trimming to get the shut lines and panel gaps rights.
		Bonnets and Side Panels
		The hinge was cut to length and the relevant P pieces cut out. My hinge was actually Stainless Steel even though all of the documentation indicated it would be brass. As my dad had his own engineering business I got some help drilling the holes for the screws to ensure that they looked straight. He also made some stainless buttons for each end of the hinge. These are a requirement for the SVA test and I am very pleased with them. The side panels needed some trimming at the bottom to clear the cross member and make a neater fit. Also the lip at the rear was too short to allow a screw to attached to the bottom of the body tub, so I made a plate and fastened it to the panel with one screw and the body with another. The picture on the right is looking up at the bottom rear of the offside side panel. The bonnet catches were then fitted with M4 stainless bolts. At the moment I think these may be a little tight so they may need to adjustment later.
		Wings and Valance
		The valance was fitted without problems. The holes were predrilled in the valance and the centres transferred to the body tub. These were drilled with a pilot hole and attached using the hex screws even though they were a little awkward in places. The rear wings were fitted using measurements in the build manual followed by the front wings. There was no indication as to the angle that they attach to the side panels. I didn't want them so high that the wheels were too low and equally I didn't want the wheels touching if full lock was selected whilst the suspension was under any load. I think they are about right now. The rear wheels look a little lost in the arch but the whole car seems a little high. I am hoping that after a bit of use the suspension will settle down and they will look better
		Woven Mesh Grill
		This for some reason proved very difficult to get Findhorn Cars to deliver. It was part of the "Body Pack" bought in May but took over 4 months to get it delivered. I understand that the supplier changed in the meantime because the quality of these was questionable, such as flaking chrome. The grill supplied to me is Stainless Steel and whilst not having the higher polish of a chrome unit, it seems well made and will last much longer. As I was not in any desperate need to fit the grill it was worth waiting for the better unit. As there is no method for mounting the grill in the build manual a little thought was needed. I decided to make six fibreglass plinths in the cowl around the opening. I drilled each one and tapped to take an M6 stainless steel bolt. The heads were cut off the bolts to create studs. I filled each hole with resin and screwed in the studs. The grill was then fitted and held in place with M6 stainless nyloc nuts and washers. There was one in each corner and one in the middle of each horizontal. This all helped to hold the grill tight against the cowl.