Alan and Jessica's 1969 FHC E-Type  1/8/2000 to 1/6/2001 Note : Click on the icons to change the nearest picture.

Click on the below links to see the restoration in progress 1/11/2002 to present 1/4/2002 to 1/11/2002 1/6/2001 to 1/4/2002 1/8/2000 to 1/6/2001 1/6/1999 to 1/8/2000

Stripping and the Car Jig

The next thing I did was to continue remove everything from the car that was held in place by bolts, screws or in my case rust. I bag and tagged all items, including bolts, screws, etc so I would know where they came from, and when its time to put the car back together I would know where everything goes. I found that gallon zip lock bags worked well for most parts, and there sandwich bag size is great for smaller items. I also included an index card with the name/location of the part in each bag. At the same time I was inquiring on the Jag Lovers site for information on welding jigs. I replaced too many floors in the past with the car sipping on the ground. It's hard enough to do it right without molten metal falling on you from above, so this time I was going to make life easy on myself. I received several replies and I visited a fellow "E" typer to look at his jig. Since I have somewhat of an engineering background, so designing and building one wasn't going to be too difficult. I combined all suggestions and my own ideas, and here's the result . I have the ability to rotate the car 360 degrees, raise or lower it to a desirable working height, or turn it any way that works best for the job at hand .

Jig details

These shots show details of the welding jig. I designed the frame using AutoCad software. First I drew the car, then I created the frame around it. Because I use AutoCad I could change the drawing repeatedly, and test the jig out to see if I could rotate the car and lift it up and down as needed. There are three main components to the jig; The "Uprights", one at either end, and the "Body Support". This is the piece that bolts to the car and slides up and down on the upright's . Both of these pieces are made up with 2 X 2 box section, with the exception of tubing that allows the body support to move freely up and down on the uprights. The upright are bolted together using 3" channel irons running between them. I use channel for it's strength and rigidity. The body support piece bolts onto the car at two places. On the front to where the engine frame normally is connected, and in the rear where the rear-end connects . I also incorporated a brake mechanizing to lock the body support in any position on the uprights, and in another in any rotational position . The wenches for raising and lowering the car are small boat wenches for hauling a boat onto a trailer. The cable and other hardware is readily available at most hardware stores. More pictures and dimension are available to anyone wishing to build a jig. The only thing I ask is I get half the profits if you patent and/or sell it! 

Do to popular demand I'm putting a copy of the jig drawing on-line for other Jaguar fans to use. All I ask is that you sent me an e-mail and let me know that you downloaded it. Cheers......Alan

Click here for a pdf of the drawing

Rotted floors and other panels

There is one thing you can be sure of in an older Jaguar, especially if it spent any quality time in the New England climate, is that some or all in my case of the lower sheet metal will need to be replaced. This first shot is the passenger compartment as it sat in Douglas MA, but the next two show how badly rusted the lower panels were when I remover the carpets. This is a shot of the drivers and passenger side floors and firewall. I actually shoved my foot through the passenger floor accidentally while trying to move the car around in the garage before I took the wheels off. Brings new meaning to the "Flintstones" type of motor car!. I found the quickest way to remove the rotted floors, rocker panels and various other parts was with a reciprocating saw (saws-all). 6" and 4" metal blades seem to work the best (wood blade might actually work on rust, but I didn't try) . Longer blades tend to get caught up or bent because the tip hit something you can't see. Be prepared to go through a few blades! This is not a 1 or 10 blade job. I now get frequent flyer miles at my local hardware store. Also if your going to cut out floors and rockets your must brace the door opening so the body won't move around after you removed what little support it had. On a FHC all you need to do is insert a piece of 1 X 1 box section with a few pieces of 1/4" flat welded to either end into the door opening first, and then cut out the rocker/floors. Also its a good idea to do one side at a time, this way you have something to check your work against.