Summer progress July 2018

A little more progress on the Jag.  I finished building the back-yard deck last week (see photo below) so can now turn more attention to car projects.  The engine to the 1927 Model T is coming together nicely and should be done in another week.  I will then set that project aside and turn to the Jag.  I recently ordered a complete new rubber kit to replace all exterior rubber seals and a front-end rebuild kit plus new wheels and tires.  My plan to disassemble and re-chrome the original wheels would not work as no matter how carefully I tried I could not get the spokes out without breaking them, they were just too rusty.  The only solution is new wheels.  They should arrive this week and I will take some pictures. 

With the wheels off I will pressure wash the bottom of the car so I can start working on undercarriage.  I was able to complete the disassembly, cleaning, lubricating, and painting of the speedo and tach as shown below.  I am also setting up a home-zinc-plating system to re-plate many of the fasteners and small parts that were plated but have become corroded.  I will report later on how that is working. 

I will finish the dash board to final restored condition as all the gauges, levers, and switches need refurbishing anyway to be put in operating condition.  But I'm not sure what to do with the rest of the interior, especially the seats.  It would be nice to preserve the original interior at least for a while, but the seats cannot be left undone.  More on that later.

It is an exciting project.  I have waited 50 years to own one of these and so far the project is delivering all the satisfaction (and some of the frustration) that I thought it would.

 Model T engine nearing completion

 Finished deck in back yard - a 12-month project

Finished tach and speedo for Jaguar dashboard.  Clock is away being repaired.