Help required!! Do you have any Superblower images

[Superarnie]

Hi there SB7019,
   I received some images from you today, thanks very much indeed. The brake detail is just what I was after!! Your car still looks immaculate and I wondered if you ever drove it!!
   
   I am deliberating at the moment which way to go with the interior. I can fully appreciate why you went the way you did with your dash panel and I am very tempted to do the same. However,I have now finally received all the unique Superblower fibreglass panels for the Superblower dash from John Owen. These panels are fixed or mounted to a mark 4 dash panel which sits behind the Superblower panels and in turn this mounts to the car's chassis. Unfortunately John can't supply me with the mark 4 backing panel or any design drawings to enable me to have one made. He has suggested I contact Steve Gray at Brooklands. I believe the person who used to make the Superblower dashboards at AC now works for Mr Gray, so the specialism is there to do the job.
   
   Having said that, I am deliberating scrapping the Superblower dash idea and opting instead for more of a mark 3(427sc)kind of 'ish'interior look. My car, like your own, was a different build spec compared to the more standard Superblowers (if there is such a thing) in that mine was requested to be built with the 427sc rear offside (in the UK) Le Mans fuel filler location. A special fuel tank was made to facilitate this change. So there is already some draw to finish the car in the style of a mark 3, as the body detail is (kind of) made in that style. Also, the car will be paint finished to a scheme which was sympathetic to the 60's era. I think the deciding factor, as with most things, will be over the cost of having the mark 4 panel made and the remainder of the Superblower panels trimmed and fitted. I believe the dashboards were notoriously fiddily and difficult to produce, compared to going down the mark 3 route which I suspect, due to the abundance of Cobra replica manufacturers in the UK, may be a cheaper option. Any advice?

[SB7019]

Gary.
   
   I'm obviously biased, but would go the Mk3 route -especially as your car is already heading in that direction. Another benefit is that the speedo and tacho are in front of you rather than in the middle.   The SC's have a different dial layout to mine.  If you go the Superblower route can you get the right type of steering wheel to go with it?  Not sure how it would look with a Moto Lita woodrim.  I also went for a plain door trim which you should be able to see in the pictures.  The Superblowers and MkIVs have a much more fussy door trim which I presume would also be more expensive to reproduce if you do not already have them.  Ditto for items like the leather trim round the edge of the cockpit at front and rear and the need for headrests or not.
   I sometimes wish I had had gone for the rear offside filler but was worried about the ability to brim the tank.  I also wanted to maximise the boot space which has proved invaluable - especially on foreign trips.    As it was they adapted the central filler to take the big Aston filler and left the standard tank in place.
   Has yours also gone for the twin tube bumper mounts rather than the single telescopics?
   
   I will e mail a picture of the dashboard on the assembly bench in the factory.  Will also send a picture of the AC pedals that were fitted.  This also shows the worn carpets which prove that it has actually been driven!  It's now done around 10,000 very enjoyable miles.

[Superarnie]

Hi SB7019,
   
   Yes like yourself, I have the twin tube mounting for the front and rear bumpers as opposed to the low impact/shock absorbant single mounts- again this is a feature or the mark 3's and 4's and is another reason to support going for the older style dash and interior trim.
   
   With regards to the steering wheel, the one in the Superblowers was made by a company called RAID. They are still manufacturing the wheels and obtaining one for my car isn't a problem.
   
   I have received your pictures of the dash panel and pedals- just because the carpet appears to be a little worn isn't wholly proof of driving use. I suspect that wear has been caused through aggressive vacuuming or leaning on a frequent basis in that area as you've polished the pedals and rear of dash mounted dials!!!
   
   In any case your car looks superb.
   Thanks once aain for the images you have sent, I appreciate the trouble you have gone to.
   
   Regards
   Gary

[SB7019]

You've discovered my secret.  Would send a picture of the rear of the dials but they are so shiny they come out massively over exposed!

[Ian Rogers]

quote:Originally posted by Superarnie
   
Hi Ian,
   
   I certainly do remember you and the kind help and advice you gave me. I hope you and yours are in good health. I would have kept in touch but my home computer was sent away with a fault to be repaired and came back with a new hard drive. Consequently I lost all my valuable contacts!!
   My car has progressed considerably since I last made contact with you, in that I now have most of the parts that I need to complete the build. In the early part of next year it will be going off to be painted and then the assemby can begin in earnest. I have tried to obtain the brake packs from John Owen in Malta, but for one reason or another they don't use AP Racing anymore for their brake systems. I am therefore trying to find out through other Superblower/CRS/Mark 4 owners,the part numbers for these various components. Can you help? Also I am after images of the Superblower, particularly of the Superblower interior and engine bay mounted components to ensure that when I complete the build the parts are located correctly. It sounds like your photographic record could be invaluable to me and I would greatly appreciate access to it if possible. As mentioned above I have compiled a comprehensive list of all the parts I have obtained so far, that may be of value to you or any other owner of these cars. If I can help with a parts query please let me know.
   Kindest regards
   Gary
   

[Ian Rogers]

Hi Gary
   
   Good to hear from you Gary and apart from yours truly suffering from the 'male cold'.....all is well. The Superblower continues to go like the clappers and is proving far more capable than I am!
   
   Spirit Automotive (ex Uniclip) who look after Cobra GPG 4C (amongst other exotic machines that can spied belting around Goodwood at the Revival) look after my car these days and do a top job. My mechanical knowledge is rather limited so I take my hat off to you with your project
   
   I have read with interest all the comments re interior/dash etc. I do know the whereabouts of the original trimmer at AC. I watched one day as he put my door trims together. A real art! As for the dash......beauty is in the eye of the beholder ...but personally I think the SB dash works well.
   
   Sadly I cannot find a way of attching the build files to this missive so I will try and send by Outlook Express
   
   Bon chance
   
   Kind regards
   
   Ian
   
   
   
   

quote:Originally posted by Superarnie
   
Hi Ian,
   
   I certainly do remember you and the kind help and advice you gave me. I hope you and yours are in good health. I would have kept in touch but my home computer was sent away with a fault to be repaired and came back with a new hard drive. Consequently I lost all my valuable contacts!!
   My car has progressed considerably since I last made contact with you, in that I now have most of the parts that I need to complete the build. In the early part of next year it will be going off to be painted and then the assemby can begin in earnest. I have tried to obtain the brake packs from John Owen in Malta, but for one reason or another they don't use AP Racing anymore for their brake systems. I am therefore trying to find out through other Superblower/CRS/Mark 4 owners,the part numbers for these various components. Can you help? Also I am after images of the Superblower, particularly of the Superblower interior and engine bay mounted components to ensure that when I complete the build the parts are located correctly. It sounds like your photographic record could be invaluable to me and I would greatly appreciate access to it if possible. As mentioned above I have compiled a comprehensive list of all the parts I have obtained so far, that may be of value to you or any other owner of these cars. If I can help with a parts query please let me know.
   Kindest regards
   Gary
   

[Superarnie]

May I personally thank Ian Rogers, SB7019 (Peter) and Jim Bottini for all the images you have sent through to me over the last week or so and for the time and effort you have put in to obtaining them for me. They will be of enormous value to me in completing the build. Thanks also for the kind offer from AK1234. I have a number of AC Superblower flyers/brouchers and combining these with the images I've received from the aforementioned, I've probably now got enough, but thanks very much anyway. What a great club!! It seems that everyone is pulling in the same direction, all with a united passion to pass and share information for the good of the club. As I've mentioned in previous threads, I have an ever growing and developing parts catalogue, that may be of value to all mark 4's, CRS and Superblower owners. If I can help anyone in sourcing parts info, please drop me a line. I'm hoping when my car is completed, (at which point the catalogue will be completed), I will make it available to all members. In the mean time, any odd bits of info you need, let me know.