This week we reached the final stage of the build at Winchfield. The SJ went into final paint.

This is a long post so scroll on down!!

In order to do this the main panels had to be finally fitted. In this procss it was noticed that the front cross members did not fit properly into the new wings. Again this was due to the poor manufacturing quality of the wings.

As you can see the alignment is poor.

When checking the panel alignment, Winchfield Engineering noticed a slight dent in the sill that we had not seen, On our model of SJ this part is normally covered by a black rubber strip so it seems likely that the sill had gently contacted something and got bent but it was hidden behind the rubber,

Therefore they had to pull the dent out and remove it.

A lot of progress this week so there are lots of pictures to look at.

This is the week the panels really get fitted. Up to now it has been trial fitting, alignment and then tacking to hold them in position. Now we are on to "final fit".

First, at the rear, the fuel filler is fitted. This has to be braised into position rather than traditional welding. This is the same as they do in the factory.

As mentioned in the previous post for James' SJ, things are starting to go back together. Having bolted down the body it is time to add the doors and tailgate back on to align all the panels and weld them back in place.

After all the filling, sanding and priming, the first step is to ensure all the threads are cleaned out so that the bolts can be run in and out smoothly.

The doors and inner wing threads were cleaned

Just a quick update.

Whilst seemlingly small this is an important milestone. Having painted the doors, tailgate and window frame parts separately. The time has come to join the body back to the chassis.

Early in the build the body was separated from the chassis to facilitate access to the corroded areas, although the previous pictures show the body apparently on the chassis, it was only loosely fitted and some of you may have noticed the apparent "lean" that that generated.

The time has arrived to weld the wings back onto the car and an important part of this is ensuring that the panels all line up, any panel gaps are even and all the shut lines line up. 

Therefore the body needs bolting back onto the chassis so the panel alignment can be accurate.