I still haven't had the chassis painted yet because I'm waiting for the opportunity to borrow the work van, but I did spend the best part of £300 on what was essentially a box of nuts and bolts for it when it does arrive.

Also, I've got both front arms ready to be painted and today I'll do the rears and maybe the axle tubes too.

I need a pair of spring cans for it (with the springs and rods).

Oh, and if you're the person who last did the kingpins on the car I took the arms off (green drummer, SLX 875R), may you spend a foul eternity with Beelzebub in his fiery pit being forced to teabag a Bunsen burner.

Some shitty quality photos.

Aren't steering racks lovely things to work on? I cleaned everything up so it looks like new and this evening the nipper and I put all of the ball pins, cups and spring etc back together in the garage this evening, greasing it all up as we went. It's nice to be able to actually repair and service something for a change as everything on my BASTARD fiat is throwaway and non serviceable. Everything on the Megane is potentially repairable but requires such convoluted dissasembly I tend to just leave it broken. Generally I just throw knackered 2cv bits on the pile and find a less fucked part. There's something pleasant about repairing something instead.

At last I got my chassis back from the shotblasters yesterday, they've done a real whizzo job on it too. I threw two litres of black paint on it last night and if I can pinch the van from work it'll be safely ticked in my garage by this evening. I also painted the front arms and the front axle. Hopefully my daughter and I can while away the afternoon assembling the rack and bolting it to the chassis.

My ecas order turned up on Thursday which is jolly exciting, a whole set of shiny new brake pipes and fuel pipe to get the ball rolling and a load of new nuts and bolts.

I'm having a couple of weeks off work at the end of the month which should allow me to get some progress made. I'm rather enjoying working with the nipper too, I'm heavily against all the nonsense toys and crap marketed at girls her age (over sexualised dolls, make up and so on giving girls no self worth except through vanity and body image) so it's really rewarding to see her excited at having assembled something mechanical or see how something has been made and why.

Great stuff....enjoying this!

You legend Russ!
Now would is the perfect time to channel it, shorten the springs, turn the front arms and teach her how to make something truly unique

I've been a twat and cocked up what I ordered, only got four axle bolts so can't actually fit the rack. Never mind, it's all back together and the front arms are on too.

Couple more snaps.

If your desperate ive got some spare axel bolts i can try and find