Bonnet Side Vent

Today I did one of the winter projects I had planed, fitting the side vent into the bonnet.
As this is a bit of a nail biting job I had to get it right first time no room what so ever for mistakes on this job!


The area where the vent is going to go is masked with masking tape and the vent marked out

With the bonnet removed from the car two pilot holes are drilled at each end of the marked area.

Then using a hole saw I cut the two end radius's-

before cutting the rest of the vent hole out with a pair of tin snips and then grinding the edges to shape, this was finished of with a hand file.

The vent trim and grill bolted in place.

The finished job. Should help get rid of some of the heat from the engine, specially in the summer time.

Thames Valley Mince Pie Run Out

Today we had the TVH mince pie run out which is becoming an annual event on the calendar for this area of the club.

Once again Alan had been busy sorting out a route for us and getting us into the country houses and the Police training college at Bramshill.

We all met up at a local car park in Hook before setting off. In all there were seven Robin Hoods and along for the run was Becky & Tasha, they came on the event as chief photographer and support car in the tin top.

Also along for the run making it a family day out for us was my sister, nephew & sister's partner in their Jago Jeep on its first run out since they had picked it up a month or so ago.

Our first stop off point was at Tynley Hall just outside of Hook where we all lined up for a photo shoot, then it was on to Warbrook House for more photos followed by a drive around the lanes to the Police training college.

After a look around the grounds it was was time for a spot of lunch at the Bluebeckers / The Leather Bottle at Mattingley.

All in all a fun day out. Many thanks to all involved in sorting it all out for us.

Shift Lights

The shift lights have been in the car for sometime but were fitted under the dashboard and out of line of sight.
So I made a pod for the shift light unit out of the back panel of an old alarm clock ( typical Hoody fashion lol) and covered it in the same vinyl material as the scuttle panel.
Extended the wiring loom for the unit from under the dash to the top and mounted the whole thing to the scuttle.
Here is a short video of it all working. Sorry its a bit out of focus as it was done on a mobile phone.

The Last Classic car day at the Bull inn Stanford Dingley

Having decided not to go up to the kit car show at Donington after a chat with Martin.

We made the most of the good weather and took our cars along to the classic car day that the Bull inn just outside of Reading.

This was the last time the landlord of the Bull would be holding this event due to the pub closing down. I wont go into the why & wherefores but it's sad to see this event end.

Around about 120 classic cars turn up on the day and put on a great display to say goodbye.

The only hope is who ever take the Bull inn on keeps the classic car Saturday going.

White Waltham Airfield

The Thames Valley area went to the White Waltham Airfield member day with funds being raised are for the Thames Valley Air Ambulance.

We met up at 11am on the A4 just outside of Reading and then convoyed to the airfield.

Once we where all parked up in place, we set off for a look around.

The guy flying the R/C plane put on a fab display of hand eye coordination pulling off some stunts and tricks that could not be done in a real plane!!

The main air display was also very good with some very nice looking Vintage Aircraft taking part.

All in all a great day out.

Windscreen Scuttle Trim

This job is one that I have been putting off for sometime " Don't ask me why as I don't know lol"
I have had all the kit to do it for over a year!
The first step was to remove the centre mirror, wiper blades and arms then cut out the old PU sealant from under the front of the windscreen.
Next the windscreen itself was removed very carefully making sure it was not knocked or dropped.


With the screen out of the way the old press studs were removed from the scuttle by drilling out the old 1/8th pop rivets. The scuttle was then cleaned.
Next a thin sheet of foam was cut to the shape of the scuttle and glued into place. This is just cut short of the rear edge of the screen.

The top vinyl cut to shape and tucked under the scuttle and the rubber dash trim put back in place. the vinyl is cut over size beyond the front line of the windscreen.

The windscreen refitted back to its pillars. This will hold the vinyl down at the front.
The windscreen masked up ready for new PU adhesive sealant to be applied. This will have to be left to stand for an hour or so to set. It should not shrink and stay permanently flexible.
The centre mirror refitted along with the side screens and wipers.
The finished job.

Thames Valley Area in Complete Kit Car

Click to Enlarge

Back at the end of June the TVH area had a Homecall to Mat to help him with his Robin Hood Exmo.

On the day we were joined by Complete Kit Cars magazines editor Ian Stent to watch the days events unfold.

In the September issue is Ians full report and photos of the day.

Uxbridge Autoshow 07 15/07/07

The Uxbridge Autoshow is one of our regular shows and is run by the Rotary Club of Uxbridge.

Always a great event on our TVH Calendar.

The only thing that was going to put the dampers on it (sorry!! lol) was the weather!!! Once again the Met office was up to its normal tricks of one minute its going to be a dry day the next we were in for heavy rain which never turned up apart from one odd shower.

This year we had three gazebos set up with bbq and a gas camping stove to cook our lunch on and make tea.

There were loads of club stands with all makes and models as well as the trade stands and auto jumble to look at and spend the hard earned readies on parts.

All in all a great day out.

TVH Club Meeting 11th July 07

Photos by JP.

The good weather made a great turn out of cars at the TVH July meeting 9 Robin Hoods and 1 Westfield.
Normal discussions on all things Robin Hood kit cars and making plans for the Uxbridge Auto show this coming weekend, looking forward to it, lets hope the weather holds out.