"Le Belgique" ST build.

[stretch]

think it will look better on it's wheels Richard.! At least you do not have all these time consuming small repairs to do on your S.
I think i underestimated the time these repairs take. Then again, so do the pro's so can't be too hard on myself.

Big panels ahead so should make better progress.!!!

Best Regards
Dave

[DustyM]

Some nice metalwork there Dave

[stretch]

Thanks for the nice comments chaps.

Looking for a front wing mounted Behr 69- 71 oil cooler if anyone has one in there stash. ?

Dave

[stretch]

Time for an update.

After putting the car on the Celette in December i found it very hard to motivate myself to work on the shell in the cold. I had enough of that nonsense when i was a builder.! With a provisional date with the paintshop agreed for late summer, it was time to get back to the metalwork on the shell.

First area to complete was the base of the B-post that wraps around onto the inner sill on the offside. Plugweld the jacking reinforcement and a temporary fit of the kidney bowl. This will require modification and final welding once the oil lines are
in position. That's that side buttoned up.





Attention then moved over to the nearside where there was some dreaded tinworm that would need some attention directly behind the B post latch panel on the rear quarter. A section of new metal was fabricated and the dreaded tinworm removed.

With repeat repairs to the base of the innner wing i was able to replicate the final welding of the inner sill, jacking reinforcement plate and the kidney bowl. That buttons up this side.










The final structual jobs remaining is the front suspension pan, front chassis legs and the tank support. I shall attend to this area next. In the meantime my attention will turn to a little work on the doors. I have de-skinned them and had them blasted and primed in preperation for new aluminium skins. One door carcass will require a few minor repairs before i can bond and rivet the skins to the shells. The skins are really good quality and a very nice fit. Made in England too !!

I am looking forward to getting some outer panels back on the car and these doors will be the gapping tool for everything else.







That's about it on the shell, although i have been working behind the scenes with the engine. The 2.2S case has just about had all it's machining works completed. I think they are pretty much the same mods that are done on most magnesium cases.

Line bored, decks flycut. Oil bypass mod. Time certed, boatailed and piston squirters installed. Heads have also been machined for twin plug sparking and are with the head magician as we speak.

On the advice of a very well known UK based 911 racer, i took his advice and decided to use a Tuthill cam as it is on cam from the off all the way up the rev range. Upon asking Tuthills for the grind/ profile and timing info, i was kindly told that it was a secret ingredient. I am sure it will perform.

The only other outstanding issue on the build was the colour. One or two period colour photo's that exist on the web indicated that it was signal Yellow. To be honest i was a little dissapointed as i much prefer the light Yellow colour. With paint appointment approaching at a rapid pace i decide to send the original 1970-71 Le mans pilote an email with a picture of both yellow colours. I was delighted when he replied to confirm the car was painted light Yellow.

His reply included 2 photo's of confirmation. Nice guy and very helpful. Merci Beaucoup Monsieur Braillard.

"
Dear Mr O’Connor,

Sorry to reply so late but my secretary, who is better in English than me, was on vacation !
Concerning the colour of the car, in your previous mail, the first photo is too light, the second too yellow. I’m enclosing some photos with the exact colour. The 3rd one is from Mulsanne where I’m in front of Luigi Chinetti Jr’s Daytona who never managed to overtake me during my first relay.( We were leading the GT).
In the Tour de Belgique, it was Yves Duprez driving and the colours were white with fluo red Texaco and I had driven it the year before with the same colours.
I hope my photos will help you to find the right colour !

Best regards,

Willy Braillard "





Dave.

[DustyM]

Great update, shame you weren't around last weekend would have loved to drop in for a nose.

[MarkIII]

Hi Dave

Looking forward to seeing your car at some point, must arrange to call round for a coffee.

Who did you decide to go with for your engine work

Mark

[Darren65]

Forget about colour, big question is.....

.....are you going to go with upside down bonnet latches!

[Darren65]

Great progress btw

[stretch]

No upside down latches for me ! Mark, you are welcome anytime. PM sent.

[stretch]

A small update :
Apologies in advance for the heavy picture content, i like to keep a record of the build.
The last structual part of the shell that required major measured work on the Celette jig was the front suspension pan and the adjoining chassis legs and tank support panel. I decided to buy the correct chassis side members from Porsche rather than join several pieces of metal together as there is lot's of shape in these rusted sections. Once these were trial fitted in place i could remove and weld the suspension pan in it's correct position.

I decided to buy the Restoration design suspension pan and tank support kit. There is a fair bit of fettling and backdating to be done but i was fairly happy with the fit.












Whilst working up front i installed the strut brace tube. The very first strut brace tubes fitted to the early, R, ST race cars are a very simple tube with no bracing legs that are usually found on later ST and RSR cars. A measurement from a few factory cars gave me the the correct tube diameter .









As mentioned on my last update, my original door shells were beyond economical repair. One of the replacement shells required extensive repair to the base before the skins could be fitted. Not the best panel i have ever had in my hand...!











A few more parts required some work before the panel fitting stage. This included the backdating of the Porsche supplied 964 outer sill panels. I decided to slice and dolly out the indentations rather than plate over the top.










A little preparation was then required for the fitment of the original "thru the sill " oil lines that are unique to S cars from 69-71. The first generation 2.3 ST 911/20 - 21 engines were fitted with the standard Behr engine cooler and one front wing cooler so this was something i had to tackle. Before panel fitting could commence i would need to install the correct factory captive nuts to the front inner wing as these are the mounting points which hold the oil cooler and protective shield in it's correct location. A bit tight, but it is essential this is right before paint is applied. Cooler and shield fitted ok with good clearance .










Whilst carrying out these works alone, a man has a lot of thinking time.

With panel fitting and paint only weeks away i started to think ahead to the decal livery that i wish to put on the car. Most of the decals are fairly well known and are readily available to buy. The one decal that had me stumped for several weeks was the " VIP " logo. An internet search of this didn't really turn up much until i was tipped of by an elderley fella that it was a petrol company from back in the day. This started to make a little sense as most of the young drivers for the Gaban race team worked for petrol companies. Yves Dypres had already confirmed his company Texaco had supplied sponorship for his drive in the Tour de Belgique, and Monsieur Braillard worked for Fina who sponsored the car in 1971 for it's entry at Le Mans and the entire group 4 season.





VIP fuel distributed by the Isherwood company 1965






The other decal was the "D'ieteran" logo seen across the top of the bonnet.

This was one i was familiar with as they are one of the oldest Porsche/ VW importers and literally across the road from the Gaban garage in Brussels. I was interested to know what was supplied for sponsorship, Parts ? The car ? An email to the company drew a blank. An email to Monsieur Braillard only added to the mystery.
Question : What was the link. ? Mr Braillard replied as follows:

"If there was a d’Ieteren logo, white letters on black background, it is because this Porsche importer had given a new body to the Gaban garage. The mechanical parts 68 and 69 were rebuild on this new body."

Was the original car a factory ST built on an S.? Probably not. Is the Gaban car another Privateer ST built on a T shell...??

My dinner's ready.!


Dave

[inaglasshouse]

Hi Dave,
Long time no update, but worth waiting for! I admire the craftsmanship there. Thanks for posting the photos.

With panel fitting and paint only weeks away

Are you using some dodgy back street paint shop for the authentic "it's a race car, just splosh it on" look?
Cheers, Richard.

[MT]

Nice work Dave - don't forget to weld up those 'penny' holes in the outer sills as well if you're not using sill trims!
Coming along well.

[Darren65]

.....for the authentic "it's a race car, just splosh it on" look?

.....it's the only way to paint a race car!

Turning into a first class thread Mr O'Connor, the history lessons certainly add to the entertainment.

Highly impressive metalwork too!

[yoda]

Very nice ..... you're pretty good at this!

[stretch]

Thanks for the nice comments. Richard, roller and tray.! What do you expect from a plasterer.

Mick, spotted that after i turned off the welder. Must be an over 50's thing. You know the feeling. I will get my penny jar out....