OK so I better say a few words

[old willy]

Hello all!
I have been creeping around here for awhile, gathering lots of information and really felt like I had noting to contribute till now. After wanting and thinking about having one of these great cars for 30 plus years, a couple of false starts...it is finally happening, perhaps not the easiest way but in my world nothing seems to come too easy. A nice body has taken up residence in my shop and now I just need everything else There will be many questions along the way, I will start a thread when I get to the cutting metal stage but for now it's gathering parts and trying to balance the budget This is an amazing place for us to gather and share ideas and I hope someday to make it out to some of the events and meet you good people in person. So a little about me........

[old willy]

OK,
So I am a sort of middle aged guy now living in central Ontario, Canada....OK.....hmmmmm, not enough I guess.
Wife, dog, 2 cats, grown children, job, mortgage the usual...

I fell in lust with the shape of the Cobra at a fairly early age, 10 or so....

At the time I did not really know much abut the various types I just though they were cool, As I got a bit older and attended some car show I came to understand the differences, Sometime in the mid 80's I was at a big show in Toronto, Speed-o-rama or the Auto Show or something and there was a display that had a couple of Cobras one was a 289 with the Ontario plate "COBRA" might have been the early days of LMC?

I still have a picture of it, I think it was the first time I really understood what the small block car looked like, very classic, narrow body, wire wheels, leather... hmmm, very nice, almost elegant.......Oh there I go again dreaming about little sport cars again......

I spent a lot of my 20's building and racing dragsters in southern Ontario and the north eastern USA, lots of fun and great memories, I was fairly involved with the vintage VW crowd in the late 90's and early 2000's but always had a Cobra somewhere in the back of my brain. Just biding my time I guess... I was in talks to buy a Johnex slabside body about 2000 or so ( wow, has it been that long ) but life takes strange turns sometimes lets just say..... and it did not happen.

I was excited when FFR announced the FIA kit, and a Canadian version too ( yes its a big problem here) wich was close but still not quite what I was looking for. Also being that I don't want to be taking out loans for my toys the up front cost is fairly steep.
And then it happened, I was looking for something related and an add popped up on kijiji...

I had recently promised myself " no more new projects" Ha! like that ever works....... but I was good....I waited a couple of weeks and it did not go away, I contacted the seller....he had some stuff to deal with about picking it up somewhere etc., will get back to me.....I did not hear back from him for a couple of weeks, I thought it was gone..... then, yes he was going to send me more pictures....Oh dam it even looks right price is really good too ....I talked to my wife ( always a good idea ) so time to get at it, I guess...a beautiful day on the road to Quebec and back and.........
THERE IS A SLABSIDE BODY IN MY SHOP !!

So now perhaps I will have something to add to the group, I will need help along the way please, there is much to do, I will add my knowledge where I can but be warned I am a slow typist and I like to say stupid things so feel free to call me out on them

So I guess that's it for now, here we go, pay your money, take the ride!

[1795]

Hope that this project is everything you were looking for. Plenty of good advice and knowledge here. Good luck and post some pictures as the build progresses.

Jim

[Ron61]

Welcome to the site and I hope that everything works out well for you. There are several Canadians on the various sites and I am sure that you can also get some good information from them about how to register and anything else you need to know in Canada.

Ron

[Sawdust]

old willy
I am located about 1 1/2 hours north of Toronto. Where are you? Tell us more about your ride. Who is the manufacturer, what's your plan for the engine, trans?

There are 6 or 7 Cobras up here where I am. If you ever need any help just PM me. Welcome to the madness!

Stu.

[xb-60]

Congratulations, and welcome to the forum.
Tell us more....who made the body, and did a chassis come in the deal?

Cheers,
Glen

[Gaz64]

Fabulous introduction, old willy.

Welcome aboard.

Gary

[olddog]

There is a London, Ohio Cobra show every year. Every year a Club of Canadian Cobras shows up. A dozen or so come. We love having them down. You may want to try connecting with some of them, if your in their neck of the woods. You also may want to come to the show. I'm thinking 150 to 250 Cobras depending on the year. Quite a few vendors will be there too. You should consider coming. This is all Cobras with a few Daytonas, and a GT40 or two, maybe a new GT now and then.

[old willy]

Hey all,
Thanks for the warm welcome, I am sure the collective wisdom here is going to help with this project.
I will be staring a thread shortly because I already need help identifying this body so some picture are in order. There is no chassis yet but I am picking up part of it on Saturday ( I hope ) and another major piece next week ( more hope) got to take the deals when you find them some times.

To narrow it down a bit more for you monsieur Sawdust I am in the lovely ( an still snow covered ) Muskoka region, and I am glad to hear there are others close by.
Sounds like quite a ride you have there hope I can see it when the sun is shining sometime.

More to follow, lots to learn.......

[twobjshelbys]

No matter how it is represented, don't buy anything, from this guy Ryan that claims to be resurrecting the Classic Roadsters. He's a con man and a crook. I only give you this warning since you might be tempted since he is in Canada too.

[Sawdust]

old willy
I sent you a PM

[old willy]

Hey,
Thanks for the heads up about Classic Roadsters, there have been more than a few shysters in the market. I almost bout some stuff from a long gone company called Cobra International, he got shut down for fraud I seem to recall.....Got to be careful.

[old willy]

Well my parts pile is growing faster than I thought it would
I keep telling my wife you need to take the deals when they appear because when you need to find the piece it will cost a bunch more or just won't be found.
So far there is a mostly stripped out MGB in the yard that I need for some front end bits and perhaps a couple of other bits, but really someone else had already stripped most good parts out of it. But it went for the price of scrap metal so here it is.
Yesterday I went and removed a complete IRS from a mid 90's Cougar and the seller threw in the aluminum center section from a Lincoln mk8, way to cheap to pass up.
Anyone have any thoughts on using the alloy center section? Not building a high horsepower car so perhaps??
Next will be a good donor engine and trans then.....well you know...everything else.......

When I get ready to put saw to metal I will start a proper thread till then I might just update here

[ktall]

Hi All, Just joined the Club as I just purchased a Cobra. It's a bit of a mystery car as the seller got it as part of a multi-vehicle purchase, so he just flipped this cobra quickly. It runs great, and very fast, but I've been digging for info to identify the kit mfgr. The best I can conclude is it's a Classic Roadsters LTD (the rear end is wide, corvette diff, and no lip on the rear finders). If this sounds right, then my next problem is locating some assembly manuals... it runs great but has some light/electrical problems. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

[Alfa02]

@ ktall, if you post under Classic Roadster forum here, you may get a better idea, of what you have. Pictures would be best, if you can post them. Or you can PM any of the member's (Me also) as I know Classic Roadster pretty well, after a 3-year build to finish mine. You are on the best site, as we have many Classic Roadster owners here, in fact I wouldn't have been able to finish mine, without this Club's help, (Parts, info, etc.) Hopefully this will help, to see what you have. ( CR have a 94.5" wheelbase) so first thing to ck. Cheers Tom, or to the AZ. Boys (TommyRot)

[ktall]

Thanks! I found the CRII forum and posted some pics. Appreciate your help! - KT

[ktall]

Hi Again. Sorry to bother you with an administrative issue, but I took your advice and tried to post pics on the CR forum. However, it's not allowing me to start a new thread (tried 3 times over the past wk). For a split second it flashes a message that the Moderator must approve the thread, so who is that person, and how can I contact them? ugh

Thanks! - KT

[Gaz64]

Originally Posted by ktall

Hi Again. Sorry to bother you with an administrative issue, but I took your advice and tried to post pics on the CR forum. However, it's not allowing me to start a new thread (tried 3 times over the past wk). For a split second it flashes a message that the Moderator must approve the thread, so who is that person, and how can I contact them? ugh

Thanks! - KT

That would be because you are new member with a low post count.
Once you have exceeded a certain post count, it becomes automatic.
Until then, a moderator checks your post before it gets displayed for others to see.
It is the way of the forum learning to trust members, and to help keep the scammers at bay.

[ktall]

Ah, Thanks Gary! I'll just keep posting my way into "acceptance" :-)

[Alfa02]

While your waiting ktall, if you like PM me, with your email, and I can send you pictures of my car during it's build, pretty easy to see if it's a Classic Roadster. Curved Dash, hood latches of the back of the fire wall, all white wiring harness (Numbered wires) The Corvette diff, has me wondering as all CR (I've seen), have a Ford 8.8 or 9 solid axle rear end, but this could be changed to a IRS.