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Learning how to build Lotus Seven replicas...together!
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PostPosted: June 9, 2014, 7:48 pm 
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Hi, I'm new to the forum.

This is going to be kind of reverse build log... I built my car over the past couple of years, but never wrote about the build. So, I have more time now and decided to 'post-document' what I did.

As a kid I saw the British show 'The Prisoner'. I focused right in on the car... I loved that car. I have always wanted to have that car. So, a couple of years ago I decided to build a car that was relatively similar to the Prisoner car. I know, many of you have done the same...

The car is based on a Miata engine, trans and rear end. I will write about the rear end in some future post. To summarize, I did it the hard way :D. Now I will try to post a couple of pictures that show the completed car. Then I will do some posts that talk about anything that might be a bit unusual at a future time.

Attachment:
IMAG0240.jpg

Attachment:
IMAG0241.jpg


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PostPosted: June 9, 2014, 9:02 pm 
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Is it just the angle of the pic or the color scheme, but the front looks bigger than the rear.

I love the colors and look of what interior I can see. It looks like you did a bang up job.

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Last edited by carguy123 on June 9, 2014, 9:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: June 9, 2014, 9:07 pm 
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Looks like a Haynes nose cone. Sharp lookin' ride, though. Congrats!

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PostPosted: June 9, 2014, 9:26 pm 
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:cheers:
Looks like a very well done car!

Thanks for taking the time to start a thread. It's always an inspiration when we see completed cars.

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PostPosted: June 9, 2014, 10:22 pm 
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Here are a couple of pictures of the interior, and one of the engine.

Attachment:
2012 007 S.jpg

Attachment:
2012 013 S.jpg

Attachment:
2012 016 S.jpg


Yes, it is a Haynes nose. The Miata engine was tall for the car. I didn't want to do cutouts or add fairings to get around the the tallness. So I bought the Haynes nose, cut it horizontally and then added about 1.5 inches to it. Making it even taller! Here is a picture that shows the added material.
Attachment:
IMAG0015 S.jpg


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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 12:10 pm 
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I was a fan of The Prisoner too. I like your car, it looks very period correct and I like the clamshell fenders. I had to add 2" to my fiberglass to clear the Miata engine as you did.

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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 12:37 pm 
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If you'd have asked me I'd have said I wouldn't like the steel wheels, but you know what? I do like them! They fit the look very nicely.

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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 1:25 pm 
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carguy123 wrote:
If you'd have asked me I'd have said I wouldn't like the steel wheels, but you know what? I do like them! They fit the look very nicely.


I ran steelies with the small hub caps and trim rings on my FrankenSprite. It was a good look.

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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 2:46 pm 
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I wanted my seats to look like that, but the piping scared me. The steelies do look good, although slightly VWish.


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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 9:09 pm 
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Joined: May 20, 2014, 8:42 am
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Location: Southern Ontario
Gorgeous car! I really like how simple and clean it looks.
There was anothe r thread on registering a car in Georgia- I bet if he would have had steelies he would have got it registered as he had requested.
I look forward to hearing more about yur build.
Doug


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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 9:53 pm 
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I will try to write something about my build every day or so for awhile to cover the things that might be a bit unusual (at least to my eye).

There were a couple of mentions of the wheels. My thoughts in this build were to keep it as inexpensive as was reasonable (to me) and yet build a car that looked nice and certainly was safe. The Prisoner wheels were steelies. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the early Miatas had a basic steel wheel as standard. I had some difficulty locating 5 of them, but did eventually find them. I then fashioned a means of mounting the moon hubcaps to the wheels. The Lotus insignia are just JB welded to the hubcaps. I was fairly pleased with the result, although the hubcaps do stand out a bit more than I would like... But, everything is a compromise..

I think I will talk a little about the steering. I de-powered the rack and then shortened is as described in other posts on the forum. Then I modified the stock steering column to work pretty well in the car. I was able to use the stock column from U-joint on up. I welded the hex hub from a steering wheel quick release to the end of the steering shaft. Here is a picture that shows the column as modified and mounted.
Attachment:
013012 057 S.jpg

By having the steering shaft point slightly outboard from the wheel to the U-joint, I was able to just clear the exhaust manifold. This view from the front shows that alignment. I used DOM tubing to lengthen the steering shaft in this area.
Attachment:
Build 0411 013 S.JPG

This next picture shows my forward mount and you get a good view of the U-joint.
Attachment:
Build 0411 020 S.JPG

This picture shows the rearward mount.
Attachment:
Build 0411 021 S.JPG

And, finally, a picture during final assembly after painting.
Attachment:
120601 027 S.jpg

This has been pretty brief. I really don't want to bore anyone. If you want more detail. just ask.


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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 10:10 pm 
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Joined: August 4, 2008, 12:16 am
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Location: West Virginia
Very nice car, Kevin! Your attention to deal is incredible. Looking forward to more.

SamM

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PostPosted: June 10, 2014, 10:14 pm 
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One more important thing I forgot to mention. A really nice feature of this setup is that it maintains the crash compression function that the Miata upper steering column has.


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PostPosted: June 11, 2014, 12:04 am 
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Kevin Young wrote:
This has been pretty brief. I really don't want to bore anyone.


Not boring at all, appreciate you taking time to share anything.

Lovely classic build without any pretentiousness, well done.


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PostPosted: June 11, 2014, 12:24 pm 
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Location: worcester county, Massachsetts
I had a duplicate of that wood-rim Grant Steering wheel in a '67 Malibu. recognize the Speedway Motors Hex-drive steering QD (Ive got the splined version on my build). the purple and gold coloring is unmistakeable ;-)

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