Mr Whippy
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| posted on 24/10/20 at 04:32 PM |
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Build log of a second hand Robin Hood 2b for IVA
I thought I’d do a build log so others might get a better idea of what these cars are like and the problems to look out for.
This car was bought as a kit back in Dec 2005 from GBS by a Mr Burges and cost a total of £3500. On top of that the full weather gear which has still
never been fitted cost around £700. He then bought a 1992 Sierra 1.6 as the donor, which is where all the mechanics are from. Amazingly the donor
mileage was only 13500 miles which sounded far too good to be true but I have confirmed this to be accurate through MOT records and checking out the
mechanics, inside of the gearbox & engine which are all in pristine condition. Even the carb inside & out looks like its off the shelf. It has
an N type 5 speed and drums at the back.
I bought the car in June for £2200 this year from what seems to have been forth owner of this build who speaking to him just felt it really needed
dismantled and done properly and initially looking over it, I came to the same conclusion. General appearance was tatty and very very poorly executed.
The wiring although working was an utter mess and bodywork fit badly done but the potential for a great car was there. Adding up all the stuff I was
getting it was still a bargain.
Once home I got to work removing the body panels by simply slicing off the rivets with a chisel to get down to the basic frame. It was while doing
this I realised how heavy all the stainless panels were and decided early on to make new ones from aluminium that being only a third the weight. The
one piece scuttle/bonnet/nose cone were so heavy I had to get help to lift it off! which is crazy for a 7 type car. I then went about welding up all
the old rivet holes for fitting the new panels quickly everything was sorted and painted.
Getting down to the rear bulkhead I discovered one of the previous owners had a fetish for expanded can foam and had used that to try to seal up open
areas in the bodywork, then covering that in black mastic. Oh boy…. Not only that in the process he’d effectively glued the rear suspension to the
body and completely buried the bolts so I had to dig them out. After several nights I’d removed it I had filled a whole black bin bag with the foam
and black goo!
Although the chassis is really well made, with beautiful welds and is very accurate (I’ve now found out it is predominantly stainless). The design of
the bodywork on the other hand is so half-baked it seems laughable. The rear bulkhead was so horrendous and badly designed at first I thought the
owner had just made it all up but then found out he'd actually done it as per the build manual! In fact I'd honestly say ALL the panels on
this car are a dreadful design and are just going to be scrapped, the whole lot will be done differently and properly. So far I can see me keeping
only the nose cone, front wings and rear wing outer or in other words just the GRP parts which personally I think are quite thin compared to other
makes.
So first impressions, yeah what a lemon... but I'm hugely keen on finishing this car and after stripping it back, I think it could be fantastic
if I build it light and simple just the way I want it 
I'll post some pictures as I go shortly, cheers.
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harmchar
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| posted on 25/10/20 at 12:45 PM |
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Looking forward to updates. Was the 2b put forward for IVA or have you decided to modify all the wrongs to get it through IVA. Hope what you find
under the panels doesn't end up a horror story.
How does the 2b chassis measure up compared to a Haynes Roadster? Will you be able to buy Haynes or Locost panels that fit without too much
butchering. I also bought a project that was sold as "almost ready for IVA" only to find out that I've stripped it back so far, I
might as well have scratch built. At least all the parts are there.
Good luck.
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Johnmor
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| posted on 25/10/20 at 07:15 PM |
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Hi
Its always a gamble buying a part built kit, but sounds as if you will get things the way you want them
I purchased the current Viento from a chap who had it in his garage for around 15 years and didn't do too much over that time, although he did
collect a large amount of the essential parts
Hindsight is always an advantage and having built a viento before I could see that the requirements of the IVA test hadn't really sunk in,
However he did a great job with the stainless panels (your right they're heavy) but decided to line the inside of the tunnel prior to any
fitting of gearbox etc so as the LT77 needs all its space and then some , I had to remove them , swap for 2mm aluminium and place the outside of the
tunnel.
These are minor issues and most previous owners do things with the best intentions but there is no substitute for experience and we all learn from
past mistakes ( I hope)
Good luck with the project I sure it will be an enjoyable experience
John
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simon2b
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| posted on 27/3/21 at 05:35 PM |
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Glad to see another 2b being built. I started mine in 2016 ish but then my back knackered. eventually started working on it again and have just
started uploading some of the progress on this site.
Your not wrong with the way they are explained to be built from the factory though lol. I watched the videos on you tube and decided to just do it my
way lol. The rear bulkhead is terrible, just sort of gets squished in is the only way i can explain it.
on my build there are areas in pics were i mounted things as per videos then thought was terrible so redone them myself but not got pics of that yet.
At moment that is mainly st/column mount and brake assembly which is now welded or plated etc which i will take pics of soon.
looking forward to seeing your progress too.
sie
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