Vignettes

Period Design Detail

The little details. Finish and minutiae.

Trying our hardest to get the job right is one of the most important aspects of our work. Often we are working from two or three grainy pictures taken decades ago, with an unknown camera and lens.

Therefore, anything we can do to improve the information available helps us to complete the required task more effectively.

The pictures below give specific examples of how our method of working is an example of best practice when considering items of historical interest.

 

Bugatti Type 35 seat base

Bugatti Type 35 seat base: After studying all the available paper works we finally found the correct manner of fitting the seat to the wooden base by going to Prescott, Gloucestershire and studying the pictures held in The Bugatti Trust archive.

 

Early Bugatti Type 35 wheel

The iconic Bugatti Type 35 wheel is often found today in a highly polished state and as years go by, it is likely that the polished version will be deemed "original". However, this would be incorrect! By interviewing a gentleman who has known the model all his life, and at his insistence, examining an original wheel, it transpires that the finish is a lot cruder and is in fact a simple semi-finished casting, similar in appearance to the wheel above.

 

Original DB4 chassis schematic

Taken from original Aston Martin literature and kept within our own archive, the above picture shows a bare Aston Martin DB4 chassis. This is invaluable contemporary information that will assist in creating a CAD (Computer Aided Design) for manufacture version.

 

1920's luncheon and tea case pictured with chested trunk designs

Typical of the essential but obscure information contained within our archive is this picture showing the style of chested trunks and a luncheon and tea case typical in the mid 1920's. This is a prime example of how we are prepared for taking on even the most obscure reverse engineering or design task.

 

 

Success Through Collaboration

Computer Generated Solex MH35 carburettor - Plate tinted red

A testament to the thoroughness with which we conduct our research.

Having finished recreating a Solex MH35 carburettor - used on a 1924 Bugatti Type 35 Grand Prix car - from a pile of parts, with permission from The Bugatti Trust we placed pictures of same on a well known Bugatti enthusiasts' website for critique.

Literally within two hours we were contacted by a French owner of a Bugatti Type 35 who stated that we had missed out a plate on top of the carburettor. This had not been included in the parts we had been supplied with, but it did appear in a couple of grainy pictures we had been given. Nobody we had asked knew whether the plate had ever been included with a carburettor set supplied to Bugatti. The decision had been made to leave it off for want of better information.

Original Pictures from c1924 - Plate shown tinted red

The ever-helpful French Bugatti owner went down to his Type 35 very late in the evening, partly dismantled the carburettor, photographed and dimensioned it and sent back an e-mail with all the information that evening.

Original Solex plate removed from a Bugatti Type 35 somewhere in France!

This is the kind of event that gives us a real "glow" about what we do. Co-operative, targeted research coupled with an open-minded exploration of other people's views yielded a small but useful increase in the knowledge base of the Bugatti Type 35.

The Bugatti Type 35 project contains many examples of this kind of co-operation.

 

 

Reverse Engineering with Minimal Information

We have faithfully re-created whole bodies having been given zero dimensions to work from and then having to go out and find some aspect of the design which we can place a dimension to.

This may be something nice and easy (for us) like a tyre size or something obscure like using our knowledge and realising that a rear light cluster came from another car of the period, using our contacts to borrow said part, measuring it and building the car up from this starting point.

An example of this process is a Bosch Magneto from the mid 1920's that we re-created. The item consisted of over 90 separate parts and all we initially had to go on - 18 months later more information came to light when we were lent a Bosch magneto to inspect - was a plan showing only one profile as opposed to the three or four a full plan gives, written in German and containing only a handful of dimensions.

Part of the Bosch Magneto Plan

Bosch Magneto Being Re-created in Solidworks

 

 

Examples from our archive

A brief sample of the eclectic nature of our reference library is shown below. It contains over 10,000 items and is being added to on a regular basis to ensure that we can offer our clients a comprehensive knowledge base.

Our automotive book collection is extensive and includes many rare volumes covering everything from turn of the last century bodywork through to 1970's supercars and numerous other areas of interest.

 

Part of an original Aston Martin DB MKIII plan. We believe in using as much information from the time a vehicle was created as possible since this is the only way to ensure a faithful restoration or recreation.

 

Contemporary car magazines are an invaluable source of information regarding how a vehicle was when new. In addition we have a complete collection of Supercar Classics magazine, a magazine widely accepted as the most authoritative classic car magazine ever printed.

 

Taken from an original Ford Escort RS 1600 and Mexico brochure, this picture is a prime example of how our archive helps the recreation process as it gives:

  • An insight into the method of wing construction.
  • Colour information.
  • Detail on important details such as stripe design and placement.
  • Information on areas of the vehicle normally hidden by trim and body architecture.

 

This is an example of the many cut-out drawings we have at our disposal. An early Land Rover Range Rover gives up secrets such as under body structure, placement of assemblies such as engine, radiator and key surface data.

 

Porsche 356B technical data from 1963. Please note body profiles and dashboard information

Austin 12 and 14 technical data from 1939. Please note outrigger detail on chassis

 

We have over 220 examples of the Motor Trader series of publications as well as many other technical series. A testament to our tenacity in that although often found in poor condition due to typically being kept in garages throughout their life we have recorded them all digitally for future use. Running for 4 - 8 pages they offer a wealth of information on their chosen vehicle.

Often the information they possess is beyond the remit of our contracted task, but nonetheless as part of our service we pass it on to our clients to assist them in recreating their cherished vehicle.

As the pictures show they give a wealth of body data including, for older vehicles, out-rigger detail that is often difficult to find when recreating a vehicle.

 

Out of place? No. The likelihood of us needing information on the Ford Fiesta Avon Cabriolet is, we admit, unlikely, but the point is most of our archive consists of specialist items of information.

This is a case of turning information of little use in isolation, into an incredibly important part of our business as the vastness of the archive makes it an important resource.