61 ELN: THE CHASSIS
Part One: Separation, Body & Chassis
61 ELN: THE CHASSIS Part One: Separation, Body & Chassis |
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It will be recalled that body and chassis were held in storage pending time and space to proceed with the project. Well in early December 2000, Ray and I spent a day with 61ELN getting her ready for separation of body from chassis: the first step in Phase 2 - restoration of the chassis.
We had previously removed the outer wings, doors, bonnet, seats, bumpers and anything else readily detachable. We next removed inner front wings, horns (three off, one switchable of course) and front frame thus completing the removal of all bodywork forward of the engine bulkhead. We then removed the brake and clutch pedal stems, and then the universal joint from between the steering column and the steering box (the rubber elements within are almost completely perished). The bolts securing the body to the chassis down each side were then removed: one horizontally through the chassis pillar into the bulkhead, four vertically up between the chassis and rails under the body, and one vertically down into the chassis above the rear suspension, accessible through covered holes between the rear seats and the boot/trunk (these are easily missed!). With just two exceptions the bolts came out with ease. We then confirmed that the body was loose on the chassis.
During Spring 2001 I purchased a second garden shed into which most of the junk from my garage has now been transferred, along with the completed engine. Thus there were now no further obstacles to getting on with the chassis restoration, once I had got it to my house that is.
Unlike many preceding weekends, the 24 June 2001 promised good weather and therefore we decided to go for it. The first action was to winch 61ELN out of the garage, slew her round then back alongside the garage where the body lift would take place.
Progressively we raised the body from the chassis using two trolley jacks, building blocks and timber beams. The body parted cleanly with the exception of two disconnections that we had omitted: the fuel tap linkage and electrical connection to the ride height adjustment motor on the rear suspension.
On the rear end we used two builder's trestles to support the body.
Ray 'through the keyhole'
We then draw the chassis forward directly onto a four-wheeled trailer. By equal parts of luck and judgement, the rear end of the chassis just squeezed under the timber beam supporting the front of the body. Anyone else attempting this procedure should note that the very highest point on the chassis that must be cleared is the top of the mounting for the rear shock absorbers. The whole process took under three hours and went very smoothly. Hereon was very different however.
What we then had was a very heavy body about two feet six inches above ground, supported in a less than ideal manner above particularly uneven ground. Further, we had used virtually all our resources in terms of blocks and timber to get and keep the body in the air.
Necessity dictated that we work underneath the body to affix a timber frame with castors to the chassis mounting points. There were a couple of critical moments in this process, suffice to say that I have vowed not to repeat this exercise without a properly-equipped garage. Our material shortage then meant that raising our trolley jacks high enough to facilitate lowering of the body was at best tricky. After an interminable four hours we finally had the body safely on the ground. Key lesson learnt here: you can never have a large enough quantity and selection of materials on hand when attempting such a process. Three trolley jacks rather than two would have also made the process much easier.
After an interminable four hours we finally had the body safely on the ground. We then winched it back into the garage where she will stay until the chassis restoration is completed.
We then towed the chassis back to my house on a 17ft trailer using my 2.0ltr Mondeo: it was very much a case of 'the tail wagging the dog' for most of the journey.
After the event someone in the MB300 Adenauer Group (predominantly Americans) said something along the lines of "All you need are three/four strong men, and you can lift the body from the chassis...easy"? Well I've seen typical Americans on WWF, and perhaps they can, but for us English this was a heavy exercise...and I mean heavy!