- remove all external mouldings/accessories/badges etc ready for bodywork to commence
- remove the front seat to investigate adjustments required to fit Damian's impressive 6'5 frame comfortably!
Working at a steady pace, the boys managed to remove a good number of parts with the use of the newly purchased "Imperial" spanners and sockets, until Damian discovered that the one spanner size that wasn't in the kit (11/16") was required... After nearly destroying the nut with a slipping shifter, the decision was made to take a road trip to the shops to purchase a spanner of the right size... Super Cheap Auto had spanners that could be purchased individually for around $12, but ever on the lookout for a bargain, Scottie suggested checking Bunnings for a kit of spanners that would do the trick!
At Bunnings, it would seem that individual spanners were a bit light on the ground, however for $16 or so there was a kit that included a set of Imperial and Metric spanners, including the elusive 11/16" spanner! After some shennanigans at the checkout (there were two kits on the shelf, each missing a single spanner, so Damian suggested removing the matching spanner from one kit to match the missing spanner in the other kit - but honestly, it was like he was speaking Swahili!!) Still, once armed with the kit, the boys headed back to Damian's place, where the recalcitrant nut was removed with the correctly sized 11/16" spanner!
After lunch, the rest of the external trim was removed, including wipers, door handles, locks etc etc. The only trim not removed were the front and rear window trims - these will be left to the window removal dude (who will be used to remove and refit the windscreen and rear window - these things break easily for the untrained!!)
Goal One - CHECK!!
Looks a bit lonely now without the magnificent chrome grill etc
The red in the middle is the bucket of parts inside the boot!
Driver's side view
Passenger side view
The next part of the day was spent removing the internal items of Booger Mobile - namely the front seat (the back seat was already out, but sitting inside the car). While lying under Booger Mobile, Scottie made a discovery that was to be the cause of much celebration... Although the XM Falcon did not come standard with seat belts, and indeed, you don't need them to get registration, the boys will actually be fitting seat belts (for safety, ignoring the fact that it is an esCarpade requirement). In order to do this, you need seat belt mounting points of suitable strength to hold the belt in the event of an accident... For a vehicle without seatbelts, this usually entails adding the seatbelts following the Queensland Transport guidelines and getting a machinery modification plate - however Booger Mobile has factory fitted seatbelt MOUNTING POINTS!! Even if Damian and Scottie put seatbelts in, because the mounting points are factory fitted, no modification plate is required!!
The front seat was successfully removed (Goal Two - CHECK!!), and what was left of the carpet removed for closer inspection of the floor pan... Reasonable condition - some repairs necessary, but all in all, not a complete disaster, and SEAT BELT MOUNTING POINTS INCLUDED!!!
It will be a bit quiet on the blog for a while, as the boys have come as far as they can without Damian's shed being completed (the concreter is meant to be coming this week to box up and pour the concrete), but you can rest assured that the project is gaining momentum every week!
Perhaps we could then organise some form of trivia evening or fundraising in the mean time? I thought of something else the other day, but of course, I didn't write it down because I was busy, and now I've spent four event filled days trying to remember what the hell it was... Dam bloody brain...
ReplyDelete