And my wish came true!

Yes! Thankfully the nearside one was much much easier. Thanks again to Ed Ward getting parts through rapidly I was able to tackle the nearside wishbone that had me quaking for a few days after the previous experience.

Again the shaft carrier is wire locked once bolted on correctly.

I decided to take a more subtle approach of finding out where the problem areas were going to be before greasing up the small parts. The tricky bit was the front pivot shaft support in the chassis. But as well as using the ratchet strapping to help pull the diff where I wanted it I also had the trolley jack applying some lift from underneath to get the path as easy as possible.

Once I knew I had a better aligned run I then greased up all the washers etc and fitted the shaft.

Front brakes

Should be one of the simpler tasks after the rear brakes and fulcrum pins.

Before the callipers go on I need to finalise the work on the hubs. This consists of trial installing again but this time setting the correct end float as per Haynes manual, and checking the disc run out (tolerances as it turns). A warped disc can be wobbly, inconsistent and dangerous so best to check before fitting.

Once happy all ok, it's off with the hub again - and this time to help with a small issue that these jag half shafts have with the inner bearing it's time for a bit of loctite.

I haven't gone mad with it but it should be enough to prevent the bearing inner ring from spinning on the stub axle and causing it to wear unnecessarily.

Then follow procedure to set end float again and fit the locking cap and split pin.

Finally grease gun time and on with the cap.

Front brake callipers bolt straight onto the uprights but require the steering arm to be part of the assembly. AK supply this part as the Jaguar arm is not needed.

Three bolts on either side and they are done. Again need torquing and lock wiring but I'm not doing that until I've got the steering track rod ends fitted and all the steering alignment, toe in etc correctly set up in case I need to pop them off again.

However the pads, pins and anti rattle clips can go on now. Again some copper grease on the rear and side contact points on the pad making sure none gets on the pad face else it's new pads time.

Near side above, offside below.

Wishing for an easy wishbone

Chance would be a fine thing.

Frustrating times. Spent an hour trying to get one wishbone pivot arm through the carrier, various washers seals rings and what have you.

Downed tools with one thrust washer to go which seemed patently not to fit. Double checked the instructions to see if it should be a deliberate omission. The picture says yes but other evidence definitely no.

A call to Trigger at AK revealed definitely all parts needed from original Jag config and just to keep trying wiggling Etc as it's supposed to be a tight fit.

Eventually at the expense of one pivot arm (stripped thread) I have one side done... I forgot to photo before trial fitting the hub and drive shaft too so here's photos of the whole thing.

I hope the other side is a bit easier.

First pass on camber shows about 1 1/2 degrees so need some more shims for this side. Not ordering anymore until I check the other side too.

Rear drive and suspension pt 2

So having attached the diff unit I thought I might as well have a go at fitting callipers whilst it was there. Ok, so now I know why it's suggested to prefit callipers and therefore discs etc prior to putting the diff in. 

I did one side once, of course the disc needs shims adjusting to run centrally between the calliper pads so it's off with the calliper, off with the disc, shim and retry.

As the spanner access is limited I decided to remove the diff and work on it free of chassis restrictions. With my handy trolley and jack it's an easy job to pop off again but with higher support this time.

After much shimming and on and offing I'm happy to say this bit is done.

Time to get back on chassis to start on the wishbone fitting.

I'm pleased to say the handbrakes seem quite effective too at first 'hand' test. Very little effort produces excellent hold pressure on the discs. I need to swap out  bleed valves (I have double inserted as dust cover) and am considering making a remote bleed setup for the rear brakes given the space restrictions.

Final job before addressing the wishbones themselves is the wishbone pivot shaft carriers.

These need fitting with shims and lock wiring in.

Rear drive and suspension

The beauty of the Jaguar IRS (that's independent rear suspension, not inland revenue service) is that it's a self supporting unit. The very same is its Achilles heel. Mine is the old XJ6 type meaning inboard brakes (lower unsprung weight) but they are tricky to work on even when the unit isn't attached to the car!

So before I started too far down the line I wanted to see what the access was like and also how I would get this 50kg item up and under the bracket it fits under.

My engine trolley is going to come into its own here. I filled up the diff with 1.5litres of smelly diff lubricant. I've read too many stories where people building have left that job till later and then forgotten... it's much harder when the body is on! Once oil is in I rotated the unit fully through all axes to coat every surface (to prevent rusting internal surfaces whilst sat unused whilst car is finished) and then thought about the attachment.

Mine is  a 3.058 final drive ratio making it a little high on starting line ratio however as I'm running the auto 6 speed I'm not too worried about it as the final revs / speed combination are perfect for cruising. Having done the maths on a 2.88 for comparison (the lowest possible in a Jag of this era) there's not much in it (0.178 difference between the two ratios) so this is mainly a first gear thing which is specific to the the transmission.

So to how to lift and attach the bolts?

Brainwave. Don't lift it up (having balanced it precariously on trolley jack to have it roll off once and dent the garage floor even whilst I was holding it on the trolley jack I wasn't planning on trying that option) - lower the chassis down to it!

On blocks on the trolley I can wheel under the mounting position and then lowered the tail end of chassis to meet the diff, pop in the 4 bolts and then raise entire lot back up onto axle stands. Easy!

Very happy with that. 

Front Suspension

At last, something to bolt other things to. 

I am going to start on front suspension first as I am waiting to get my diff back.

Predictably I got the top wishbones the wrong way round to start with. Chamfered on needs to be at the front of the car not rear - although I did this deliberately to start with as early reckoning looked like I was going to end up with 9 degrees of caster angle - the bit that makes the wheels self straighten.

This above is the wrong way.

The large adjustable spanner is incidental to the scene - not used on this operation. 

Everything is trial fit at this point. Lots of washers and other similar items to bulk up the threaded bolt length so that the locking bit of the nylock isn't engaged on the thread until I'm ready to finally tighten.

Waiting for a few more shims for camber.

Ask specific -.25 degree camber and because I have power steering up to 8 degrees caster.

All very close from standard manual items 3 caster shims are enough.

Hubs will go on properly when I'm happy with caster and camber.

Kitted up!

What a great day - this is what arrived at 8.15 this morning.

 

The garage floor is awash with parts. 

 

Not that part of the garage floor. The other side. Can't move for bits. 

Thank you to all the helpers that helped with lifting and moving this morning. John, Alex, Richard, Andrew, Tony and of course AK delivery man always happy and smiling Noel - it wasn't as straightforward as planned but we got there without any mishap.

 

Let the building begin!

 

D Day is imminent

D Day is of course Delivery day.

Yes, tomorrow it all becomes a lot more real. Body and Chassis plus some brackets, roll hoops and of course my engine (which I have missed lurking in the garage) are delivered. Oh yes, and my very shiny underslung exhausts too.

These had to be custom made to fit my setup.

So, a couple more photos from Jon of the exhaust header (one of them) and also as they were putting the under body lengths together.

 

 

So above are new headers custom made, plus hi flow sports catalytic converter. My old ones were too tricky to fit. The good news is by ditching the old manifolds and cats I probably gain about 15-20 hp back as it's well documented how restrictive those two items are on the engine's performance in the US.

 

Not to mention the sound will be vastly improved too.

 



Above left we have the 2 1/2" or 3" I can't remember - pipes going to back silencer boxes. Above right the full length from headers underneath with crossover pipe halfway which is supposed to have a beneficial affect on exhaust gas flow (I think it's the venturi effect coming into play that helps each side suck gas from each other depending on the cycle of the pistons firing... alternate side scavenging or something) this could be complete nonsense of course - I'm not an exhaust expert.

 

 

Ok. Further research says a cross over pipe balances the exhaust pulses and improves exhaust gas scavenging making the engine more efficient.

 

And improves the sound. Excellent. I'm all for that

 

 

 

Finally a shot of the side of the house where Mrs B. has been busy clearing the bushes that were taking over.

The fibreglass bodyshell will be resting here for a while. The plan is to move the rails around once the body arrives - will ask Noel for his views on where best for starters and then we'll drop it on, adjust and then chock the read end to stop any sagging. Rear end will be at the pallet end giving a good solid platform for support.

 

I will then rig up a tarpaulin tent with a few poles and washing line. This should keep the tarpaulin off the body allowing it to breath, reduces risk of contact condensation and makes a lovely home for the millions of spiders that seem to live in our garden, house, garage, car door mirrors, letter box etc. You name it, they live in it.

 

The garage is clear. Strong men are booked. Cakes / biscuits / flapjack various have been made to feed said men.

 

Bring on tomorrow...



A little bit of flare?

Terrible pun but what do you expect? So whilst I'm waiting for things to happen and parts to arrive I'm looking for things to do. Luckily in their build manual AK give the lengths of all the brake pipe sections required. 

Having been kindly lent a professional flaring machine (£92 vs the £16-22 eBay job) I thought it was time to tackle a subject that I had been a bit wary of.
 

One machine with 3/16 pipe die loaded. The key here is follow the instructions. Rigorously.

Use a pipe cutter to cut 90 degree length. I cut all mine an inch or so long deliberately so if I muffed up a flare I could easily redo. 

Deburr the inside of the cut. An 8 mm drill bit is good for this and then file a 45 degree chamfer with a flat file around the outside edge of the cut. See photos below.

Then depending on whether it's a double flare (female funnel shaped) or single bubble or male flare required, start flaring.

Using the correct die and the pipe inserted to the correct place, I used a bit of red rubber grease to help with lubrication (it's compatible with brake fluid) and then pull the handle!

Part formed as an example of how the dies work.

And a finished male end. Clearly remember to put all the pipe fittings on before flaring the other end. I had a couple of close calls with that.

And a female double flare. They en up looking not perfect to the eye but however doing a little test of fitting a joint and tightening down you can see how the soft copper deforms to make the appropriate tight seal so not too worried about this at the moment. All will be tested thoroughly before going on the public highways.

I should point out that my pipe is BS marked and this is approved to pass the IVA test.

Just need somewhere to store this lot so I don't damage them before putting on car.