Serious Decisions

                                         Burlington Diary. May 2006

Tues.02.05.06. By the time I reached the workshop Colin and Chris had been busy in the garage locking horns. Their main concern was how the wings, nose cone and bonnet should finally come together. Colin is very methodical in his approach justifiably demanding that every aspect should be ‘textbook’. As twisted as the body tub has grown to be Colin can always see a solution to balancing these deficiencies against the potential natural beauty inherent in the lines of the car. But these somewhat ethical decisions are now consuming too much time as a result we are fast approaching the ‘crossroads’ deadline to either to strive for perfection or to accept a realistic compromise.

It appeared that not much genuine progress had been made throughout the day but even if, yet again, more questions than answers have been raised then, in retrospect, we should all feel reasonably satisfied. The working day was stumbling to its’ inevitable conclusion when Colin stood back determined to reiterate his thorny recommendations by outlining a comprehensive programme of work, which would then develop into our forth coming tasks. Nearby, but plainly visible, a purple tide began to rise, first from his neck, creeping slowly, but relentlessly, utterly engulfing his face. Chris was feeling the strain of the day. This was real blood pressure. He understood precisely what this meant, yet his mind was in denial. Most of what we had ‘signed off’ the previous week must ultimately be re-worked to a much more exacting standard. This was Colin’s assessment of the way forward. We badly needed a pint.

We left Colin at Westmead vacuuming tete dust, tidying away various spanners, screwdrivers, ratchets, sockets, wrenches, discarded 80’s, 150’s, 1200’s, rounded and flat rasps, hammers, clamps, old nuts and bolts, gathering past drawings of intended modifications, attempting to build shelves and cupboards using the poor timber that I had bought earlier, mending the 5 foot fluorescent tube that has never been lit, constructing a ‘spit’ to rotate the car, fixing an engine hoist to the ceiling using pram wheels, old bike chains and, finally, wiring an extractor fan to remove any impurities in the air. Chris will no doubt return from the Oak to find that his garage has been transformed into a proper workshop. My arse.

The Oak was subdued after the Bank Holiday weekend, comfortably claiming many casualties. Chris was beginning to relax after the days’ disappointments, turnarounds but especially the noticeable lack of progress. The problems appear to be multiplying instead of being resolved, but this is what is to be expected if we truly want to produce a very special vehicle. Meanwhile, the seemingly wonderful parts that I had acquired at the Stoneleigh Show were being scrutinised by Chris and Jo. After thorough analysis it was concluded that I, in fact, had bought quality gear but for the wrong vehicle. The sheer weight of the wing lights would knock 20mph off the overall speed, they could also, if required, illuminate Blackpool, the front flashers were the size of saucers and very orange, the rear stop lights did not include the genuine mounting brackets, the dashboard mirror, de-mister vents were too wide for the scuttle top, the Aston filler cap, as cheap and good as it was, needed the most important component, the connecting mechanism. I had, however, successfully bought two enamelled ‘union jack’ badges and two Triumph, rubber, pedal protectors.

We had, as usual, been amused by the events of the day but also, as much as we did not want to show it, we were disheartened.