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It’s now December, the temperatures have dropped through the floor and working in the garage requires at least 4 layers of clothes to avoid getting hypothermia! The list that I mentioned last month has continued to grow so I’ve decided its about time I started knocking things off it. Now, if you own shares in Merlin Motorsport I am probably the reason that their stock rose in December. First on the list was to fix the problems that we had at Brands, I’ve decided to replace all the spherical bearings on the car not just the one that failed. This way I know that everything is new from the off so I won’t be worrying about old items failing on me while out on track. Merlin were able to match the bearings and supply me with 8 new shiny ones, I won’t mention the total cost because I feel faint everything I do. The wheel bearings had also shown signs of wear at Brands so with some research on the internet and a lot of help from my local motorfactor I was able to locate the exact wheel bearing for a very reasonable price. Fitting the spherical bearings was a breeze which makes a pleasant change, I also discovered another worn one on the rear suspension so my decision of replacing all of them was paying off. Luckily I had purchased a hydraulic press for doing the Elise wheel bearings some time ago and this came in very handy when doing the bearings on the Radical. But like every other job I’ve done on the Radical it required at least one visit to the tool shop, on the flip side I think I have enough tools now to start my own shop. The fronts had been the issue at Brands so imagine my surprise when I released the driveshafts on the rear to discover two badly worn bearings. In fact one was so bad the hub practically fell out of the old bearing when I released the drive shaft CV joint. With these bits done I turned my attention to the dashboard. The Radical has one of these "all in one" type dash boards that are very trick but going around Brands I was having problems reading it. It also doesn’t have a traditional rev counter, just a handful of lights which I am not a great fan of. So back I go to Merlin to buy some proper dials and I set about creating a new dash. I need a new backing sheet to mount all the dials and switches on and a quick search on Ebay found me a nice piece of carbon fibre sheet. Because space was limited I had to be careful where I put the dials, but with a couple of templates made up I set about cutting the carbon sheet to house the dials. With some small modifications I had the dials mounted and fitted into the car, even my wiring skills worked as all the dials lit up with I switched the ignition on, phew! I am finally starting to think I am making progress on that list and car is starting to come together. About halfway through December I get a phone call from a friend that owns a bodyshop letting me know that he has spare time just before Christmas to do the Radical. I spend a day stripping all the body work and get it transported over to the bodyshop for its new paint. With the just the bare chassis left it is a lot easier to work on and I was able to do a lot more of the little jobs that needed doing. Such as moving the transponder to the near-side of the car, moving the seat up a notch, installing a new set of harnesses and getting the fire extinguisher out and sent off to be refilled. One of the last major jobs that I wanted to do was to replace the oil cooler lines. The OEM ones are held on to the unions with nothing more than jubilee clips, not great considering the pressure they have to hold. After getting them off the car I set about trying to find ends that will fit, problem being that the engine end uses banjo connectors but a non-standard size. After a lot of phone calls and a troll around the stands at the Autosport show it starts to be come clear why they were jubilee clipped on and don’t have proper screw fittings because no one does then. In a last resort attempt I take them over to Merlin to see if they can help. Another good move because they can, we reuse the current banjos but this time they are swaged onto the oil lines, result I now have a set of lines I can trust. In the mean time I get a phone call letting me know the body work is ready for collection. I make arrangements to collect it and Justin gives me a hand fitting it back on the chassis, first impression it is was very black however once on the car the red roll bar and yellow splitters help break it up. With the stickers I think it will look smart and a bit different from all the brightly colour Radicals out there. We are into January now and the provisional race calendar has just been released. The first race is on the 25th March so not a lot of time left. I take a day off work and travel up to the Autosport show with the intention of buying a new helmet, suit, boots etc ready for the new season. More expense but I don’t mind spending this as it might save my life on day. The trip was successful and I managed to get everything I wanted with a bit of discount as well which was nice. The following weekend we are back in the garage, new oil cooler lines are fitted. New brake discs and pads and fluid changed. I think I can see light at the end of this list. In fact the only items to do are fitting new dampers, fit fire extinguisher and get the suspension setup. I have a trackday at Silverstone on the 10th February so I am looking forward to seeing how the car feels after all the improvements I’ve done on it since Brands back in November. Out of the garage I am getting the admin stuff organised. I’ve got my "Go Racing" pack from the MSA and booked my ARDS test at Combe and even passed my medical. I’ve also joined the new Castle Combe Racing Club and entered the first race. Its all getting very exciting now and I’m looking forward to March. However there is also a part of me that is a bit nervous at the prospect of being on a track with another 30 odd cars all fighting for the same bit of tarmac, I didn’t have that problem at Colerne! So all being well next month we’ll be ready for the first race of the season.
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