Collection D-day !

[Guest mickmellors]

This is the info for collectors that I mentioned in a previous message and was written with the Standard 2B kits in mind rather than the new Superspec but most of it is still relevant - if anyone can add to it from their own experiences or update it with newer info please feel free - - - I will update it with Super spec info when someone tells me the differences etc

 

I offer this posting in the hopes of helping those among you that are soon to collect your kits.

 

This will be old hat to everyone on the Community Site that has already collected their kit but it is intended in good faith for the benefit of those of you eagerly looking forward to collecting yours.

 

For those who are awaiting collection day I strongly urge you to spend half an hour or so to read and make mental note of all the following. For everyone else - read on only if you have nothing left to do on your car !

 

I dont claim this info to be a 100 percent accurate list but it is hopefully a fairly comprehensive guide to what you will be faced with on arrival at Robin Hood Sports Cars factory and will hopefully highlight to you that your choice of transport is rather critical to getting your kit and all the passengers you arrived with back home safely. You dont really want to have to leave the wife at the factory just so you can put the nosecone on the passenger seat - do you ?

 

HMMMM !

 

Because space for all your kit bits is going to be at a premium, even with a big van, I would recommend that you only bring one strong assistant with you unless the extra helpers have separate transport.

 

Particularly note the length of side panels and the general size of

bonnet and behind the seats panels.

 

I am producing my own panels for my 2B from etched, patterned and coloured stainless steel (planned 3 years before the latest factory gold finish panels) normally used for fancy architectural features and I have produced a full set of drawings of each and every panel on AutoCAD and have taken the following sizes from the drawings as a guideline to hopefully help in your selection of transport if you should choose to (or have to) deviate from the recommended Luton type van.

 

Some cars are rated for 75kg Maximum evenly distributed load on an approved type roof rack but most are only rated for 50kg and cornering stability can become a problem if you have a heavy right foot round the twisty bits and at islands.

 

If you do have to put the chassis on a roof rack, make sure it is tied on well enough to restrain the chassis in the event of an emergency stop braking situation. The car in front of you will be more interested in looking at your chassis in the rear view mirror than looking what is in fromnt of him. If he reacts suddenly you may have to as well.

Check your straps and ropes are still tight very thoroughly after the first 2 or 3 miles and again every 10 miles or so - it only takes a few seconds and you dont need much imagination to think what could happen if the chassis slid off the roof rack at speed.

 

The floor panel is pre-fitted to the chassis - leave it where it is but make sure to check all the securing tabs are fully wrapped around chassis tubes - especially if it is going on roof rack.

 

Here is a list of the overall sizes of the panels you will have to accommodate in (or on ?!) your chosen means of transport.

 

rear 1 @ 1982 x 641

sides 2 @ 2210 x 467 preformed

bonnet 2 halves @ 1515 x 807 preformed - very difficult to accommodate safely

seat back 1 @ 1254 x 777

tunnel top 1 @ 1236 x 224

rear wing 2 @ 1500 x 302

nose infill 2 @ 462 x 405

stoneguard 2 @ 378 x 240

dash 1 @ 1218 x 359

 

others : 1 @ 412 x 343

1 @ 784 x 304

1 @ 818 x 304

1 @ 790 x 297

1 @ 420 x 238

2 @ 228 x 139

2 @ 280 x 170

2 @ 383 x 316

1 @ 338 x 225

1 @ 434 x 136

2 @ 518 x 100

2 @ 610 x 304

 

In addition to all the panels and the chassis, there is an absolute multitude of stuff in bags and boxes that has to go somewhere safe as well.

 

Fibreglass panels need careful looking after - Nosecone, wing edges and front wings (cycle wings are easy enough but a pair of full wings take up an amazing chunk of space in a van let alone a car) need to be looked after to avoid scratches - you can polish scratches out but it is much easier to avoid them.

 

The nose is an awkward shape to put down safely on anything other than a soft surface.

 

You get a box full of toys that is about 18 inch square by a bit more in height which contains things like indicators, lights, grille and all the little fiddly things,and, oh yes - almost forgot - those special front indicator mounts !

 

You get a bag of assorted fasteners which you can check off against the list if you

really want to, but it will take a good half hour to check and you will almost

certainly find some very minor discrepancy which will take a further 10 minutes

to sort out and then when you get into your build you will almost certainly throw most of the

lower quality fasteners away in favour of nice shiny stainless ones from the shows

next year (by the way, never tell the wife that a tiny pretty little polished head M10 bolt cost

you a quid - they simply dont have the comprehension that male Hoodies have ! ),

So I would personally recommend you to simply throw the whole bag into your car/van/trailer and use the half hour or more that this has saved to take additional care to make sure your panels are not going to scratch each other in transit, especially if you have gone for the gold coloured option - I dread to think of the tears if you scratch that stuff !

 

You get a radiator that is getting on for 2 foot square, steering rack about 4 foot long,

exhaust about 5 feet long, springs etc etc etc.If you have shelled out for the

all singing all dancing extras pack you will also have to accommodate 2 very

large boxes containing the seats (2 boxes together are about the size of a

treasure chest ! ) then a set of 4 (or 5 ) wheels and tyres would completely fill even the

largest saloon boot (and a good few estates).

 

Assuming that most people have the stainless panel option make a mental note that ALL EDGES ARE VICIOUSLY SHARP on one side from the cutting process and will easily gash fingers or upholstery with the slightest hint of slip or slide. You are given ONE pair of gloves with your kit, assuming you have an assistant or two make sure they take gloves with them and make sure you wear them.

 

The panels will also scratch each other if not 100 percent secure and are able to slide one over the other. You can polish slight scratches out of stainless but it is hard work and never quite matches the surrounding area - best to avoid by padding and securing well.

 

Empty out the airing cupboard of all towels, teatowels, sheets, blankets etc and take them all with you. You still wont have enough - I even ended up using my jumper to separate the cycle wings.

 

If you hear the slightest little rattle during your journey home - STOP and sort it straight away - the rattle is probably coming from your future pride and joy doing itself irreparable harm before you even start building.

 

When I collected my kit 2 1/2 years ago I borrowed a very large box trailer that the chassis sat fully into and the panels (mild steel - see above) were carefully packed in and secured. The fibre glass bits occupied the rear seat of the car and rear foot

wells and all the smaller steel panels went flat in the boot first of all with radiator and other boxes and bags on top to hold them steady.

 

We got home, approx 30 miles, without any problems.

 

The weather was particularly kind to us on the day which of course cannot be relied upon, especially in Winter/Spring, so it would be prudent to take a change of clothing and a towel just in case you get soaked - driving home soaked to the skin is not the most pleasant way to begin your experience of building a Robin Hood !

 

A large flask of coffee and a packet of biscuits or two is an absolute must and proves to be good bait for attracting help from fellow collectors when it comes to moving the big bits!

 

At the very best you will be there for about 2 hours, and at the worst, most of the day, take some sandwiches - lots!

 

Get chatting with the people loading up next to you and exchange assistance lifting the heavy stuff and perhaps you will find they live in the next street. You are almost certain to bump into them again at Club Events in future

 

I hope the collection day experience goes well for you and look forward to seeing your cars on the RHOCaR club stand at the big shows - particularly at Stafford, Detling, Stoneleigh, Newark, Harrogate and Donington when I will have the caravan and awning set up on the RHOCaR Club Area for light hospitality and dont forget the Saturday evening BBQ for any and all who wish to stay overnight - bring beer, seat and meat - and most of all, some friendly banter !

 

Please make the effort to come and introduce yourselves, we get inundated with interested people wanting to know about our cars and it is always a pleasure to chew the fat with a fellow Hoodie or two.

 

Dont wait until you finish the car to join the Owners Club (RHOCaR - Robin Hood Owners Club and Register ) - just £15 a year puts you in contact with all the help you need - as does this Community Site - the Robin Hood Owners Club And Register website is at www.rhocar.org and details of how to join are on the site. We hold monthly meetings all over the country and you can find details of the Area Secretaries on the web site under the Contacts button at the left hand side.

 

All the best - If you need any further help or advice you can e-mail me direct at - mick@rhocar.org

 

Mick Mellors - Derby

RHOCaR Events and Promotions Secretary

[Joel]

There's a motorway services (Tibshelf) between junc 28 & 29 on the M1. Very handy for food/drink/toilet before and after kit collection, especially if you've had a long journey - there's no toilets at RHSC HQ!

[Guest Dredd]

Nomis has a collection of SuperSpec in September, October 'till mine is due. I have asked him to give the SP on what awaits us on collection day.

[Guest nomis]

I've hired a trailer and am assuming the rear of my saloon (back seats down) will be enough (I've asked RH for their view).

 

The SuperSpec details say stuff like seats/panels etc are fitted for ease of transport, the Website gives an extensive list of what is attached to the chassis and what isn't.

 

Thanks Mick for your advice, I shall certainly be taking heed.

 

I'll give you the lowdown end next month.

[Guest Bobby]

Well

 

I wouldn't worry if i was you, I managed to fit the whole thing onto my dad's Micra!!!

 

The Frame and major body panels on the roof and the rest packed into the back of the car.

 

Gone it all home in one piece too...

 

Bobs

[Guest mickmellors]

I cannot begin to imagine the carnage if your chassis had come off the roof rack ! !

 

Anything is possible - its a matter of what is sensible.

 

In my teens I used to tow a canoe 2 miles to the river on a trailer behind my push bike before I was old enough to have a car. It seemed safe at the time but with a wiser head on my shoulders I now have different ideas.

 

In my experience the majority of family cars are designed to have a roof rack load of 50 kg evenly distributed. Some go to 75 kg. The all up weight of chassis and panels exceeds this to the point of making the car potentially dangerously unstable when steering as you would around a roundabout for example.

 

The very fact that Bobby chooses to add the comment that it all got home safely hints that there was at least an element of doubt. Imagine being the car following just as a side panel flies off or worse still the whole lot comes off.

 

NEVER ECONOMISE ON SAFETY - hire a van and do it right.

Find out the costs and include for it in your budget from the very start.

[Guest Dredd]

D-Day, or C day is 25th October! Now I really do need to get to the bank!

[Guest nomis]

Collected me SuperSpec Saturday past. Very pleased.

Hired Trailer worked well, watch out for ruts in the M25 & M1 initiating fishtailing - I'd never noticed them before.

 

Fair amount of stuff but managed OK in Saloon - Only real issue were a few steel plates with Sharp edges and Fibre Glass for luggage rack area.. Blankets and careful packing resolved.

 

Spent three hours, partly as on my own (not recommended) and partly chatting to Richard & Team. A few items to be sent on and some interesting design issues on the Turbo due to location of Intercooler.

 

2 * 3 hour videos of Richard. Going to spend some time now indexing Vid's & putting together a Build plan.

 

If anyone would like better resolution pictures, E-mail me and I'll send by 'Reply'.

[Guest j0ngreen]

I didn't collect mine from RHE.

 

But from a private buyer, I hired a 7.5 ton truck with a tail lift.

 

The seller had already stripped the donor and had stuff all over his garage, house and sheds. We used delivery crates from tesco, together with the plastic storage tubs you buy from B&Q etc. Blankets and buckets to get the stuff into the lorry. The tailift was fantastic, saves lifting the engine and gearbox 4ft.

 

With the chassis, panels, 8 wheels (4 donor), seats, engine, screen and all the donor bits that I will need, it all just sat on the floor of the truck with no space at all. Perfect fit!!!

 

Hired the truck from Intack in Blackburn, Lancs. Hired on a Saturday you can return the thing up until 8pm and they are open Sunday so you don't have to leave the thing outside your house all weekend. And we even got a refund because we had only had it 4 hours. (Including Travelling)

 

All with minimal back ache, Magic.