There are E Types and Our Types

Lot 183 A 1972 Jaguar E-Type Series III V12 coupé, £32,000 - 35,000

























Lot 186 A 1933 Lagonda 16/80 four door pillar-less saloon, £28,000 - 32,000, also in the sale

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One of the motor industries icon, a Jaguar E Type coupe, is included in the Charterhouse auction of classic cars on Sunday 13th February held at The Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet.


Please click on the logo to go to the Bristol Classic Car Show Events Web Site, where you will be able to buy tickets to the show and catalogues to gain entry to the auction



“We have sold many E Types over the years, but this one is a little more special than most, having covered just over 4,000 miles since new. It is a Somerset registered car, having been bought by a Commander at Yeovilton in 1972. I can only assume that the Commander served abroad for some time which could explain the lack of use of such an iconic motor car. “Commented Matthew Whitney”. When the Commander sold the car, it remained locally and the purchaser then passed the car onto his son. At this point, the car had about 3,000 miles put on it and was then laid up in a barn until the Charterhouse vendor went to buy a tractor but spotted the car and bought it instead!”

The car has subsequently undergone a total nut and bolt restoration, and a change in colour from maroon to metallic ice blue which is still a Jaguar colour. As the car has been dry stored for most of its life, it was very straight forward to dismantle the car, with only two bolts shearing in the process. The car was then rebuilt rather than restored even having a complete new cream leather interior. This E Type is now presented in a better than new condition and is so clean you could eat your dinner off it! Not unsurprisingly, the cost of parts alone came to over £27,000 and combined with 6 months of labour to be added on top, it is estimated at £32,000-35,000. This “new” E Type is ready to celebrate 50th anniversary of the E Type and will no doubt give the new owner miles of smiles.

Charterhouse is now accepting entries for their busy programme of auctions including classic cars and automobilia on Sunday 13th February followed by silver, jewellery and watches with a special section of wine port and spirits on Friday 25th February.

For advice or to arrange a free home visit, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of the Charterhouse Classic Car Department or Sarah Parsons at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3BS, 01935 812277 or via email
mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

Forthcoming Sale Previous Sale Sale Preview

Tel: (01935) 812277

For further information regarding this article, please contact Richard Bromell, Partner

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More Progress

I am still cranking away at the '62 Oldsmobile. It feels like grunt work when I think of the entire process; never ending with no finish in site. When I recount details of what I've accomplished, though, it becomes a satisfying progress sheet. (That is the main reason for writing a boring blog about fiddling with old cars!)

The other benefit of these labors is I am learning. Learning real-time, even at the risk of doing it "wrong." I like to call tearing into a car the "school of hard knocks"...literal hard knocks! I am learning, tuning, even kind of perfecting, if I dare say, this craft. It actually does improve with time, too.

Next chance I get, I'll brush some toxic slime on an area not yet stripped and start massaging sheet metal as I wait for the slime to do its job. And I will do so with patience, knowing I am making progress on the car and my skills at the same time.



Speaking of toxic slime, I've managed to remove the paint and filler from almost all of the driver side. I use Aircraft Stripper, and it works good.


I am beginning to bump metal here on a spot at the edge of the hood. It is harder than I thought, yet already very rewarding. I'm finally learning to do it correctly. I also am learning to stop when I've reached a good point, instead of bumping too much and making things worse.


This above picture is a happy one. I have just finished stripping all paint and primer from this lower portion of the passenger fender and it is smooth! Clean! No dents or rust! This is what we hope to find everywhere, but never do.


Here I have just masked the trim holes and door edges to protect from stripper seeping into places I don't want it. It is VERY powerful stuff (and dangerous, too) so I keep it from getting anywhere other than the major outside areas. At the rear 1/3 of the door's center is a spot I've bumped back into place. This area was bent inward right along the trim line, and required careful hammer-off-dolly to bring the steel back to proper contour. It is not perfect, but an exciting improvement!


Just a full shot of the hood, stripping and light bumping of small, shallow dents being completed. Now I have small surface rust spots to remove and final sanding. Then it will be ready for spot filler (if it actually needs any) and primer.


This above shot is a close up of the passenger door area that was banged inward. It came out better than I expected.


This last picture shows an area that began as a frustrating find. I was simply removing what appeared to be light filler when resorted to using my propane torch to soften and remove a deep chunk of Bondo in both areas. The car had been banged here, and the previous bodyman had used a slide hammer to attempt to pull it out. The screw holes where the slide hammer attaches were still there, only filled with the Bondo. And the dents hadn't been pulled much at all. There was still a depth of about 3/8" at the deepest point of these dents that the plastic filler had been used to cover. (Why even use the slide hammer if one isn't going to pull the dent out much at all?)

Anyway, I ended up pulling the panel out farther with my slide hammer and welding up the holes. The bottom area I bumped extensively with the hammer and dolly, but was still too warped and stretched for me to leave. So I cut the spot out, remade an inside wheel well lip (patch) and welded in a new piece. Whew!

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Star Car Vanden Plas

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A 1959 Austin A105 Vanden Plas is one of the star cars at the Charterhouse auction of classic cars on Sunday 13th February held at The Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet.

“The name Vanden Plas has always been synonymous with great motor cars, having coach built cars for Rolls Royce, Bentley and other leading manufacturers.” Commented Matthew Whitney. “However, the involvement of Vanden Plas in the A105 is historically important as it was the first time a mass produced Austin was upgraded by Vanden Plas. The car would leave the Austin factory and be delivered to the Vanden Plas coachworks at Kingsbury, London, where the cars would receive leather upholstery, cloth headlining and walnut trim.”

This rare classic car, just one of only 500 made, with only 5 believed remaining running on the road, has been owned by the Somerset vendor since 1968. Fitted with a 3 litre straight six engine coupled to a floor change four speed gearbox with overdrive, it would be propelled from 0-60 mph a fraction over 15 seconds when new!

Charterhouse is now accepting entries for their busy programme of auctions in Sherborne including classic cars and automobilia in February followed by silver, jewellery and watches with a special section of wine port and spirits a couple of weeks later.

To arrange a free home visit, please contact Matthew Whitney or Sarah Parsons at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3BS, 01935 812277 or via email sp@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

A rare sight on the roads, an Austin A105 Vanden Plas £8,000-12,000
3000cc engine
Luxury Vanden Plas interior
Quick Links

Forthcoming Sale Previous Sale Sale Preview

Tel: (01935) 812277

For further information regarding this article, please contact Richard Bromell, Partner

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More Olds!

I am back at the '62 Oldsmobile, this time finishing the last rust areas and a leaded area that started bubbling. The passenger rear corner had bulges in the lead applied to cover the overlap seams where the rear corner piece meets the 1/4 panel. The factory did this the same way after spot welding the panels together. This particular area was redone when a new entire 1/4 panel was attached sometime early in the car's life. The liberal use of lead indicates this to me.

The body man attached this area of panels with brazing and sheet metal screws, with welding elsewhere. Then the seams were covered with lots of lead. I would never have messed with this area, but here is where the lead was bubbling. After removing lead from the seams I found pockets where something didn't get along with the lead and steel living together. I wonder if it was a sort of oxidation, impurities in the lead, or the steel base not being totally prepared.

So I began to remove all of the lead with careful heating, pushing soft blobs away and wiping the wet lead with a rag. The lead used seemed extensive; I also didn't want to put lead back onto a not-so-perfect seam full of crevices and overlap, being afraid that no matter how clean I get it, there would likely be remaining impurity issues. I didn't want the bulges to reappear after I finish this car. So I decided to remove the overlap areas entirely, and weld new sheet metal patches level with the outer area.


Forming little pieces was not difficult, as I had a nice pattern to follow. The curves were very easy since the patches were so small, only requiring using my hand and pliers to shape them. The main reason I made one small patch (and attached it) at a time was to keep the overall shape of this panel in line. This helped me avoid moving the middle panel out of alignment with the shape it needed to follow.


This is the only time I needed any other tool than my hand held pliers. I just needed a little bend on the brake.


Second to last piece being fitted for trimming.


Careful grinding, filing and a little picking with the body hammer left the pieces pretty smooth. Now I can use a little bit of filler and the area can be fully cleaned/scuffed for adhesion. No lead needed, either.


Not too bad!


Here's an area under the pass. door where I needed to make a new patch. The brake, stretcher and hammer-on-anvil were used for this little patch. Welds still look nasty, just waiting to be carefully ground smooth.

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Woodward Fab Bead Roller Modification

I've been wanting to try a bead roller. Ever since I began setting up the construction of my '30 Model A coupe I have wanted to be able to form floor panels and body patches that would use beads, grooves and flanges. Problem is, I don't want to spend $1,000 or more for a decent roller and set of dies. But through online searching I've found actually good information on the cheapo bead rollers from Harbor Freight and others. There is just one catch...they need major stiffening side to side and up and down.

The picture below is the one I decided to go with. It is from Woodward Fab, and comes with 6 sets of dies. It is made of solid steel plate, just shy of 1/2" thick, and has an 18" throat. It feels better than the Harbor Freight one, being a thicker plate (HF one is 3/8") and having grease fittings. It is also identical to the Eastwood economy model, likely from the same Chinese factory. Plus, the Woodward Fab tools in general have a good reputation, especially compared to HF.
The above picture isn't my attempt at advertising- I was just too lazy to remove the "super low price" artwork.
So I pulled my Woodward Fab bead roller out of the box, installed it on the vise, assembled it and gave it a try. The dies do their job, and it stays fairly lined up, but the frame plate has tons of flex! And most noticeable was side to side flexing. Now the plans to reinforce (and make it look pretty) begin...



The picture above shows one of the patterns I made for cutting the bottom plate. The green line is where the purchased frame plate would meet the added curved reinforcing plate that this pattern produces. I formed this and a top pattern (after lots of sketching) on Masonite with my little jigsaw, and then aligned the patterns to some 1/2" plate and plasma-cut the pieces.



Here is a picture showing the top plate and bottom plate welded to the Woodward Fab frame. I tried to give it an industrial look, like a tool in a vocational shop that has form-following-function (or maybe the other way around...) with an earlier appearance. You can see the welds are ground down and the paint from the original piece is ground off.


After using scrap from my generous boss Matt (Owner of the company I work for) and a '28 Ford torque tube, I came up with this neat stand assembly. It has an almost antique industrial look, but also spartan. It is still going to be top heavy, so I will bolt it to the floor.


Above shows another view, this of the backside. The 2"x2" square tube is actually the major reinforcement; it does more work than the vertical pieces I meshed with the original plate. This idea was copied from the very cool ideas I found online. The vertical round tube is scrap pieces I cut and lined up for holders of the dies not being used. I like the curvy-shaped plate I added to the pedestal tubing. It calms my fears of weak spots, and looks good too!



Here it is bolted to the floor. I used those female thread anchors that stay level in the concrete, so I can easily remove the bolts and move the assembly out of the way. The paint is the last drops of DuPont Variprime leftovers I had, given to me for free by an old neighbor. It is a 2-part etching primer, and I didn't want to see it go to waste. Plus, now I have something paint can bite to.





These two pictures show the assembled bead roller and the extra dies sitting on their holders.



This above pictures shows the first experiments with scraps from Creer Sheet Metal. This bead roller is going to be wonderful for floor pans, body reinforcements, and even patch panels. I see lots of possibilities!



This last pic shows the completed project including the wheel I made to operate it with. The crank it came with is not nearly as usable. I made this wheel from the foot rest of a broken bar stool, and the spokes/mounting assembly from channel scrap I scrounged from a spiral staircase I helped remove. It works with no noticed flex and cost was very low, unless you count my time and tools. But I wanted to build it...!

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You can be sure of Shell

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To kick start the New Year, Charterhouse will be selling a large Shell collection in their Classic Car, Motorcycle and Automobilia auction on Sunday 13th February at The Footman James Restoration Show.

Consigned from a Somerset fuel suppliers, the collection has been amassed over the last 50 years and includes many enamel signs, petrol pump globes, prints, advertising and related items estimated to sell for several thousands of pounds.

“It is a comprehensive collection, the likes of which rarely come to the market.” Commented Matthew Whitney. “It’s quite amazing to think that they have been in only one family ownership for the past several decades and will now go to only their second owner.”

Also entered in this sale is a 1973 Ford Escort Mexico Historic Group 2 rally car from a Cornish client. This has been fully rebuilt from a bare shell with receipts of over £60,000 and if offered for auction at a fraction of the re-build cost. This will be a turn key solution for any budding competitor in historic rallying and would enable them to compete immediately without having to go through the expense of having to source and rebuild a similar car. 

For further information regarding this auction, or for advice on how to enter a vehicle or automobilia, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of Department, at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3BS, 01935 812277
or via email mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

Captions:
A Shell Cars For Hire enamel sign
A Ford Escort Mexico Historic Group 2 Rally Car £25,000-28,000
Quick Links

Forthcoming Sale Previous Sale Sale Preview

Tel: (01935) 812277

For further information regarding this article, please contact Richard Bromell, Partner

Read more »

'62 Olds: More Updates

Here's a little peek at more progress. I finished replacing the driver side infected lower 1/4 area, and started experimenting with paint stripper on the driver fender and door. As long as I put it on thick, keep it moist and wait at least 45 minutes, it works well. This time I've decided to slow down, focusing on one part of the project at a time.

The pics below show what is done so far.

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'62 Olds Updates...

I made the first repair piece for the '62 Olds. This one worked better than expected, especially with the crease that fades away to flat. Test fits required multiple trimming, twisting, hammering and shrinking. And it finally reached this stage! The pictures below show the final shape, fit and attaching of the piece.
The last picture shows where welds were ground. I am frustrated with the weld area sucking in so much... I am thinking I didn't give consistent cool down times in between welds. Other than that, it is now part of the car and fitting good.

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1962 Oldsmobile Dyanmic 88

Timing has finally allowed me to get my hands wet again... well, dirty at least. The recent changes have put my old car religion on hiatus for months now, but this past Saturday I was able to sneak out.

I have been wanting to paint the '62 Olds. It is a neat car, a sort of "gentleman's sleeper". It has 68,000 original miles, runs perfect and came with the optional 330 horse 394. It also has only one (although ugly) repaint since new.


So at the dangerous risk of sidetracking, I moved the Olds in and started removing trim. I quickly realized that the rear seats, door panels and driver hood hinge had to be removed in order to remove the side trim! So the hood had to come off, too. The only other option listed in the '62 chassis shop manual was to unbolt the fenders and move them out enough to reach the nuts inside that attach to the trim clips. Wouldn't that mean removing the hood anyway?


Above shows the repaint that has bubbled and flaked off over the years. I will have to carefully remove all paint, even where it is not bubbling, because it is not worth the risk to leave it. I just don't know the process that was used, and I want to seal the metal with a good epoxy.


First on the list: address the small rust areas. Here's the lower 1/4 wheel well just behind the driver rear wheel.


And above shows the front of the same wheel well. A little picking with a big screwdriver quickly showed this rotten spot.


So the stripping begins. I start with the flap disc on a 4 1/2" grinder, mainly just at the areas where rust shows as the paint is removed.


I then go to the pneumatic 6" DA sander (I think I used 220 grit) cleaning away paint, primer and tiny debris without thinning and warping the metal. I just need to expose clean bare metal leaving room enough for the patches.


As always, I discover pits and pinholes throughout the length of the bottom. I began to mark the lines where I will cut the eroded sheet metal.


Here's how it looks on the inner fender panel.


And here is the pile of dirt and rust that piles up in that crevice. Anytime water leaks down from the gas filler door, or the trunk lid not perfectly sealing, it draws junk with it and eats away at these inner pockets. And this rust is nothing...! The Olds received relatively low exposure to the elements and salty roads.


Front of wheel well is marked for cutting and pattern.


Bad piece is off and becomes a pattern for making the repair panel.


Here is the pattern. I now get to cut, bend, hammer and weld some sheet metal to become the donor piece. the top will be tricky because it has a slight peak that follows the body trim line and fades to flat towards the bottom. I think I will bend a second crease on a slight angle, and then hammer the panel back to flat as I work down. I will then need to pie cut the flat front in order to "shrink" so that the inner 90 deg. bend can curve from down to going forward, as the pattern shows.


Here it is on jack stands, getting off to a good start. I will get those patches made and show how they work out.

The Model A coupe is not abandoned, I just needed a change of pace!

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