Guest 270offy Posted October 23, 2013 Share Posted October 23, 2013 Here are a couple of shots of my "Speedster" project, a Lagonda LG45, one of 175, getting a new lightweight body.These cars won at LeMans in their day with W.O.Bentley, yea that one, as head of engineering.This is destined to be a streetable race car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 (edited) Wow...that's some history lesson! That is some excellent craftsmanship going into that body. Are you working over a wood or metal frame for the panels? Edited October 24, 2013 by whtbaron (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 The framing is .060 1"x1" mild steel with the skin riveted to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Very professional looking work. Have you got blueprints or drawings of the original design, or simply trying to make it "look" right from pictures of the original car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulrhd29nz Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 That is some very nice work you have going on there. Thanks for posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Those wheels remind me of the early Ferrari's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 The design is my own, as I am not interested in building a replica. This is to be a custom body "of the period" following the tradition of having a factory provide the running chassis and sending it out to a coach builder for a bespoke body. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 You've done your homework well... that top view makes it look especially slippery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidAU Posted October 27, 2013 Share Posted October 27, 2013 Great looking project.I would like to do something similar so am very interested in knowing what type of rivets are you using. Is the skin pop riveted to the frame or do the rivets go right through the frame and be hammered over or how do you do it? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 The rivets are conventional solid rivets made of aluminum that are hammered over. I am using round head style for the look, but you can use flush head rivets like those used in the aviation field. Once the skin is riveted to the frame the entire structure becomes very strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Hudson33 Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Great looking car, Very interested in the design and method of building. Maybe my next project will be in similar fashion.Hope to keep in touch as you progress.Fred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 LOVE the car and the body contour matching rear fender treatment! Very nice work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 You mentioned that it's to be a lightweight body, and that you are using aluminum rivets... is the skin aluminum as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Yes,3003 aluminum skin, 1100 alloy rivets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Will the rivets remain exposed after you are done, or will they be ground flat and smoothed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 The round head rivets will be exposed. It makes it more difficult to do the painting with the rivets and louvers, but I think it is worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 You'll want to talk to a good paint rep about prep and primers for that aluminum too, not all primers adhere well to it. Of course the other option is to just polish the whole car, but that could take some upkeep... You're keeping me motivated to get my shop finished before winter... keep us drooling! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 I always wash the entire surface with a phosphoric acid solution and then immediately use a cold anodizing process.This was the last project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 That is sweet... I see you are an old pro at this. Very reminiscent of the Delage paint scheme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 Just found this thread, as was browsing through the "Speedsters" part of the forum, as I'm interested in building/restoring one as a future project. Your previous build is one awesome looking car, and the current one is looking very nice too. The exposed rivets will give it a very cool look.Thanks for sharing.Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 WOW, great looking project. Any update pictures? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tentenths Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 If you havent already done so. Source and fit a prewar Alvis gearbox. Also look at opening out the outlet manifold with a decent exhaust sytem and fitting larger SU carbs after having the head gass flowed. It makes a huge difference. You also can go for a steel crank and rods and then probably have a cowl fitted to vent the front brakes. We campaigned one for years and had a lot of fun and it couldnt half go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Word of warning... riveting aluminum to mild steel can result in corrosion problems down the road. I have seen it on early Land Rovers with aluminum panels over steel framing. From a distance it looked good, but all the panels were hanging loose where the edges had corroded away. Rover used strips of cloth as insulation but in this case it did not help.What I am saying is, 10 or 20 years from now your car could be coming apart at the seams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I was wondering about that too, seems to me it's similar to the electrolysis issues they had with combining household wiring that was both aluminum and copper. Then again he doesn't have our winter salt issues so if it's kept inside those issues could be decades down the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 The corrosion problem is highly overrated particularly on a car that is not going to be left outdoors all of its life. Land Rovers were poor examples because they were essentially farm vehicles subjected to the worst treatment one could heap on a car. Proper painting of the framework and a garage make all the difference! This is not a daily beater to be ridden and put away wet. I have restored race cars built this way that were 80 years old and showed no signs of electrolysis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) Those strips of cloth between the aluminum and steel on the Land Rovers made excellent wicks to insure the contact areas were always wet thus insuring corrosion. Edited March 28, 2014 by 270offy (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Update photos showing sequence of fabrication of rear fenders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 More updates, fabricating the front fenders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Update Headers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 270offy Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Update / body nearly complete before rivets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulrhd29nz Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Can I come and live in your shop? Can I ?....... Please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Some very nice work going on there, and yes, it looks like a great shop too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruffsup Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 Some of you may not be aware that Lee Duran the creator of this magnificent special Lagonda special was killed racing his MG PA special at Lime Rock , Conn. Labor Day races. Sad news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dwight Romberger Posted December 20, 2014 Share Posted December 20, 2014 Thanks for posting Barry. I didn't know. I was looking forward to seeing future posts from him finishing the Lagonda.http://www.theday.com/article/20140831/NWS01/140839990/1070/NWSelection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whtbaron Posted December 21, 2014 Share Posted December 21, 2014 Sad news indeed.... he had a special talent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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