I have from experience to agree with the comments over clearance needs. For instance you have not yet added the fuel tank contents 5 1/2 galls + tank say 70 Lbs, spare wheel say 50 Lbs, a few tools, jack, spare water and oil, two bodies, hood perhaps, tonneau cover, both seats, luggage space lining, lights, etc etc.

There is also a significant sideways component to the axle and tyre/wheel. Hard cornering will move the tyre possibly a couple of inches sideways if you take into account body lean.

I hate to be a doom-monger but the rear body looks a bit tight in all dimensions to me. I built a Cambridge bodied special and started with 120mm clearance blocks above the tyres when I set up the cycle type Cambridge wings. On big spring deflections even with one up the tyres now graze the wing supports. The springs settled and the poor road surfaces encountered these days make the springs work hard. I have had to move the wing stays once already and a second move is on the cards

I also had to move my wing supports up.

On yours is there scope to raise the whole body?

David

Ooooooh...now they tell me!

I can pack the springs up with angled wedges (I think that will work, won't it?) and maybe a Panhard rod will locate it sideways. I had assumed that the flat springs would have keep sideways movement right down.
What about "Nobby" type spring assistance between axle and chassis extensions/Bumpstops?

Location: Cardiff

I suspect there is very little true sideways movement of the axle because it's constrained by the pin joint with the springs. However as the car rolls there is a considerable angle between the wheel and the body so the top of the wheel rubs on the inside of the wing.
My car, a 1929 saloon, is at the other end of the spectrum and the wheels rub, but of course it rolls a lot more than a special would.
Occasionally the wheels occasionally hit the top of the wings in the bottom of deep dips, not bumps though. That's about 6" of spring travel
However RK saloons have no bump stops. I don't think the body would be strong enough to withstand the shocks!

Location: Melrose, Roxburghshire

It may be easier to have the rear springs reset to provide more camber. I think if you fit rubber bump stops they will be acting as your suspension and the ride will not be pleasant!
With more camber on the rear springs the rear end may look a little high, I would give the front spring more camber to level things up. Altering the front spring is a doddle!
My experience is that with our roads Austin 7's that sit a bit higher are much nicer to drive and ironically, on a cross country journey on back roads, the car with the better ride height will be quicker than the low 'sports' model.
It is also embarrassing if you take a lady for a ride and the wheels scrape on the wheel arches!

Quote..."it is also embarrassing if you take a lady for a ride and the wheels scrape on the wheel arches!"

I like it!


Progress today. I measured another flat spring and there is 3x as much spring outside the cahssis rail as there is inside (53cm Vs 18cm) so I carved 2 oak wedges to be 18cm long and 2cm tapering to zero to try and give an extra 2 inches at the wheel. It seems to have worked although the hardest parts were to firstly drill a hole to get at the top of the big spring bolt and then to align the hole after the work was done (Simon. I wish I had found your photo website sooner!).
Mk2 will have a slot cut down the wedge so it can slip in without having to fully withdraw the big bolt. One side done and it sits about 1 3/4 inches higher.

One more question, if I may. What is the 'packing' mentioned in the various books? I never found any in the boxes of bits that this car was assembled from. Is it a flat piece between the spring and the flat plate at the bottom of the chassis rail?

Location: Cardiff

I've just stood on the cockpit floor and jumped a few times. It didn't hit the bumpstop so I might be alright. A second look underneath revealed that the chassis extensions are only about 1/4 inch further in from the tyres than the wheelarches so Herbert must have designed the |Ruby chassis to cope with such little clearance? Time will tell

Location: Cardiff

Back on the ground and bounced about a bit. It has settled at 5 inches on these old flattened springs.

Location: Cardiff

That looks much better! You should be okay if you have bump stops fitted and you keep the rear shock absorbers tightened.
For spring packing pieces, I have used pieces of oak and for thinner packing strips of plastic. Some people use bits of old spring leaf but I have never done so.

Rob hope I did not open a can of worms with the comment re the wheels being snug, the gap now looks similar to that of nippy images on the internet.

The reason I raised it is embarrassingly my wheels catch, front on full lock, rear on big bumps to top of arch and bump on one side of road they catch side of rear of car.

The options I have to fix mine are raise front wings up higher (to much work at the mo), improve the fixing of the rear of the body as it flexes (this may be a quick and easy fix), move the rear wheel arches in by half and inch (possible but may make a mess). Or drive in a straight line on flat roads..

Location: Dorset

I think there is much less chance of the tyre rubbing against the side of the wheel arch with a light open tourer body. Saloons which are much more top heavy tend to roll more on corners.
If the tyres do rub it may be possible to pinch a bit more clearance by fitting a spacer between the brake drum and the wheel, alternatively a tyre with a smaller section may be available.
I would ensure that there are no protruding bolt or screw heads on the inside face of the wheel arch so if the tyre should rub, the sidewall will not be damaged. Common sense really but I have seen tyres shredded by contact with bolts on the underside of wing stays etc.

Hi Malcolm fully understand your comments and is not as bad as it sounds all bolts an screws free of wheel, 250 miles in the car a tyres show no sign of wear to the tyre where rubbing but needs fixing. The frustrating part is I can not replicate the tyre rubbing on the body with a jack to fully understand at what point it is doing it. So car parked an the wheel just looks a bit close but clear hence the comment to Rob re his body.

Location: Dorset

I like the idea of the oak wedges and agree it "looks right" as it sits now.

David

It is common practice for Frazer Nash and GN cars to have wedges between the chassis rails and the quarter elliptic springs, at the front end they also can be used to alter the caster angle.

Thanks, everyone. No worries about opening 'Cans' since this is why I post stuff on here...the useful suggestions, gentle 'prods' and wise suggestions from those who, collectively, must have several centuries' worth of A7 experience.

Yes, the plywood inner skin to the arches has had all of the wood screws countersunk and none of them are in a position to cut a tyre wall. There is a few mm of ali wing beading to get through before the plywood gets touched but it will take quite a bit of deflection to get that far. I'll keep an eye on it.

For the archives, I have flat springs of 5(?) leaves and there is just enough space to get a 2cm wedge under the fore end of the spring with the tape goind down to zero as it emerges near the axle end. I slotted the wood so that it slipped in from the fore end and passed round the big bolt. I might try to get some cut from steel or hard ali. Looking on the internet I also spotted that some cars have an oval reinforcement below the big plate below the spring, presumably to take some of the load on the fore end of the spring? Mine doesn't have them. Should I add some? I'm guessing they are 1" x 2" and were originally riveted on?


Got home from Larnaca, Cyprus at about 2AM and am back out to Ibiza in a couple of hours. Totally knackered!

Location: Cardiff

Made the first door today. I was inspired, by the bolt on my Lee Enfield, to fabricate a latch mechanism whereby the frame tube has a sprung shaft inside that can be pulled back to open the door. Works quite well. I need to zinc plate the hinge brackets and then skin the door with a larger skin that overlaps the other panels to keep the wind out.
Next week will hopefully be "Windscreen Week".

Location: Cardiff

Ingenious!!! As well as a good mechanism I like that you're making it your own.

Simon. Could you let me know where you bought that "P" shaped rubber seal from that goes between the bonnet and scuttle? I just bought some seal that I thought would be like yours but it is more like a flattened "Z" shape and thus not very crisp in the corners. Also, if anyone else knows where I can get some in the UK...

Thanks

Rob


PS Local Plumber suggested I try a local supplier of sealants. They had a waterproof bonding sealer in standard shape tubes that came out silver to match certain shower units. I'll try to get the name of it for anyone who wants an unobtrusive seal on an Ali bodied car.

Location: Cardiff

Woolies trim do lots of rubber mouldings

http://www.woolies-trim.co.uk/c-322-rubber-extrusion.aspx

Location: Ripon

Rob, I got my bonnet rubber from David Cochrane from memory.

http://www.a7c.co.uk/

Simon

Location: Auckland

Thanks, guys.

Simon (and others), which model would have been fitted with that seal? I ordered for a 'Box' bonnet and the seal is similar but much more...relaxed...in all the profile, if that makes sense.

Location: Cardiff

I found that the rubber extrusion
http://www.woolies-trim.co.uk/p-1761-rubber-extrusion.aspx
was a good fit and looks the part. I think a lot depends on the depth of the step you form between the surface of the scuttle and the rebate into which the bonnet edge sits

Location: Ripon

That seal looks like MG T-type, which I think is what I've been sent. Soooo, the hunt continues for the type Simon has.

Anyway, door one all drilled off for rivetting and door 2 ready for the skin to be cut for it.

Location: Cardiff

Headlights last night. I didn't even need a chisel to take the bottom pressing out, just my fingers.



A little bashing of a sheet of steel, some welding and a bit of rubbing over with a sander...

Location: Cardiff

Lights are on (...but there's nobody home???)



I'm assuming they are Ruby lights? One had the bottom pressing set for a horizontal mounting surface whilst the other seemed to have a bit of a lean on it until I moved the pressing round a few degrees. I still need glass so I may have a go with Polycarbonate and perhaps lightly gritblast the inside face. Any thoughts on that?
I also have some of the Honda light units but the bulbs are 12V. The bulbs come stuck in some plastic caps so I don't know how easy it will be to get 6V versions working.

Location: Cardiff

Rob - I've never come across any Ruby headlamps that weren't brass, but perhaps there were some. As far as I know, the Ruby had a separate park lamp on the mudwing, yours obviously are like the earlier type with park globe inside the reflector.It will be interesting to see what the experts say about your steel ones, although it's only academic when you're building a special. Every photo you put up shows what a great job you've done - keep it up. Cheers, Bill in Oz