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DASH & BURN

January 23, 2019

 I've been spending more time on #0777 lately after a few months of ignoring her completely. My intention today was to pull the instrument panel out and ship it off to Craig Seabrook at the Whitworth Shop for refurb. The further I got into it though, the more bodged work I discovered hidden behind the panel. The wiring is atrocious. Crappy crimp splices, mismatched wiring in gauge and color, wires to nowhere, and systems like the low fuel warning lamp and a number of lamps not even being connected. It's a wonder the car didn't burn to ground by now.

 Hell, it took me until today when I removed the Slow Running Cable from the dash to realize the damn thing wasn't even connected to anything. Go figure. 

Sooo... I decided to remove the entire facia & instrument assembly and send to the Whitworth Shop for refurbishment. It will take a lot longer and cost a fair amount more money, but at least then it will be done right. 

Orrr... I could try to do it myself, but the panel seems so bodged up, that I hesitate to take that on. Besides, I don't have woodworking tools, machines, etc., nor do I have the expertise, especially when it comes to veneer. 

I'm not even sure the instrument panel I have is a TC panel. First off, it's painted bronze, and there is a shaved post on the back where somebody obviously modified it to fit. I'm not sure when all this was done; however, I know the turn signals were put in by a "professional mechanic" in South Carolina a number of years when owned by a gentleman prior to the gentleman I bought #0777 from. This so-called "professional" did a real slap-dash job of it, but I don't think he is responsible for the bodged wiring behind the dash. That, I have to attribute to the shop that supposedly restored the car in the U.K. sometime in the '80s, and supposedly before it came stateside for the first time. Of course, I have no documentation of that, only word of mouth passed down by the two previous owners. 

It might be tough to get #0777 ready in time for the spring driving season. I may have to rely on Cissy (TD/C21325) for that, assuming she is back together by then. That may be assuming too much.


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