Managing Director – Bridge Classic Cars
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]A huge thank you to Mike at Shine Supply UK for producing this fantastic video from our 1975 Maserati Merak photoshoot at Butley Priory. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_video
We took a trip down Faversham with the Bentley in tow so whilst the sun’s out we thought it’s only right to take her out for a
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]First stop of the day was to collect the car from Mike down at Shine Supply UK. It has been with him for a couple of
The arches have been painted up and fitted and the final piece to the jigsaw is to fit in the rubber strips between the body
Rather than replacing original parts unnecessarily we have spent some time cleaning up the original heat shield and refitted. It now looks as good as
The rear axle is now fully rebuilt and Pete and John have secured it safely into position, back on top the car ready for her
Our Bentley Special is currently in our workshops have a clean over due to the recent works. As we haven’t many pictures of her inside
Back at the end of last year we had our 1968 Jaguar E-Type Series 1.5 in the workshops to inspect a brake binding issue. She’s
With the existing Bentley steering wheel being just that little bit too big to comfortably fit your legs in we decided to re-manufacture a 15″
We are now on the final stages of building up the axle of our 1996 Jaguar XJR Supercharged. It has taken us a little longer
Lots of areas of our 1971 Ford Capri have suffered from corrosion so Trevor and the team are working hard to fabricate some of the
Having stripped our 1944 Ford GPW Willys head Peter has discovered a valve that is stuck open. Parts have been ordered in from Sweden and
The bonnet has been primed and ready for the final paint. All panels now prepped and painted John and Tommy have been fitting up the
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]One of our good friends Hugh Cormack from Buckie in Bonny Scotland has just landed himself an absolute gem. A Mk8 Hillman Minx deluxe. Not
Off to China our samples go as we work alongside our 1971 Jaguar E-Type Roadster’s customer in decided the final colours for the hood, leather
The majority of our chroming work has already been carried out by Tony and the guys at Wyatt Polishing in Thetford but having found a couple
The doors were open all weekend at Bridge Classic Cars as Asa started work on fitting up the sports-pack wheel arch kit to our 1971
All repair and preparation work has now been completed on our 1960 Jensen 541S bonnet. Next step will be to spray the bonnet in pearl
Trevor is now getting his teeth into the body preparation of our 1971 Fords Capri.
Having blasted the exterior of our 1960 Jensen fuel tank ready for paint it revealed a couple of tiny pin holes that go unnoticed to
Kim has been working with us this afternoon on our 1960 Jensen 541S to fit up the brand new black parcel shelf. With the parcel
We’ve removed the front and rear seats in preparation for the colour feed treatment. The seats will be cleaned up and carefully fed with new
The gloss black wheels arches are finally back on the car, having been stripped back, repair, prepared and re-painted.
We picked a great day for our first indoor photo shoot (forgetting our 4am 1966 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 shoot as that was done in
John’s continuing to progress very well on ‘Project Prototype’ as he fits up the Jensen 541S dashboard. The top has now been re-covered, the newly
In preparation for the return of our Amphicar body shell from the paint shop, we have started to go through the parts to decide whether
To convert the wiper motor from left hand drive to right hand drive we’ve called in the assistance of our good friends and world renowned
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Today, we are in the highlands of Scotland on a trip to see a 1981 Alfa Romeo Spider. We are in the stunning setting of
With the underside almost complete Pete has sealed up the arches before building back up the suspension components.
With only the rocker box cover a different colour, the Amphicar engine is actually one of the simplest engines to paint as it is all
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]A huge thank you to Mike at Shine Supply UK for producing this fantastic video from our 1975 Maserati Merak photoshoot at Butley Priory.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7335OFgzhjY”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]And then we have a full walk round of the car on location.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zubwYW_Ek0″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
We took a trip down Faversham with the Bentley in tow so whilst the sun’s out we thought it’s only right to take her out for a little photo opportunity.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]First stop of the day was to collect the car from Mike down at Shine Supply UK. It has been with him for a couple of days now getting polished and detailed in preparation for the final photo-shoot.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” images=”17790,17791,17792,17793,17794,17795,17796,17797,17798″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The location for one of our most eagerly anticipated shoots is the beautiful setting of Butley Priory near Woodbridge, Suffolk.
We were originally introduced to Frances and Emma from Butley Priory by Sophie at Word In Woodbridge.
And we are so glad we were as the setting is truly stunning.
In addition to renting the house as a holiday getaway, Butley Priory also provides venue hire for a whole range of events and occasions. The house is an inspirational location for Yoga, Pilates and Beauty retreats, having hosted many already! The Great Hall offers a fantastic space for art/music/training courses, business meetings, poetry or song writing ‘lock ins’, birthday parties, corporate events and dinners, as well as wakes and christenings.
And of course the house is also available to rent for photographic shoots and filming, just email or call us on 01394 450 046 them for a quote.
We couldn’t have asked for a better day, especially when the weather was so poor yesterday we feared the worst but we needn’t have worried.
A huge thank you, as always to Jason from Sugar & Spice Photography, we can’t wait to see the real photos! But for now, here’s some Craig made earlier…[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” images=”17799,17800,17801,17802,17803,17804,17805,17806,17807,17808″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
The arches have been painted up and fitted and the final piece to the jigsaw is to fit in the rubber strips between the body and the arches.
Rather than replacing original parts unnecessarily we have spent some time cleaning up the original heat shield and refitted. It now looks as good as new.
The rear axle is now fully rebuilt and Pete and John have secured it safely into position, back on top the car ready for her to be put back onto her wheels.
Our Bentley Special is currently in our workshops have a clean over due to the recent works. As we haven’t many pictures of her inside our workshops now was the perfect opportunity to take a few.
Back at the end of last year we had our 1968 Jaguar E-Type Series 1.5 in the workshops to inspect a brake binding issue. She’s now returned to have some touch up work carried out to the exterior paintwork.
The rear end will be painted and the engine bay around the bulkhead will be tidied.
With the existing Bentley steering wheel being just that little bit too big to comfortably fit your legs in we decided to re-manufacture a 15″ steering wheel. Trickier than it sounds when we are having to use the original bezel.
With the steering wheel complete and in position we then had the tough task of finding a cover. Having searched the internet high and low for a 100% genuine leather steering wheel cover we were losing hope as we were unable to find something that fitted the look and style of our Bentley.
We then stumbled across KR Classics, specialists in the finest leather steering wheel covers and they were able to help.
So Asa has been busy this morning hand stitching the cover to close up around the wheel.
We are now on the final stages of building up the axle of our 1996 Jaguar XJR Supercharged. It has taken us a little longer than expected due to parts coming in from Jaguar but now we have them Pete has been able to crack on with the project.
We are hoping within the next few days we’ll have the car back in and fitted up ready for body preparation and paint.
Lots of areas of our 1971 Ford Capri have suffered from corrosion so Trevor and the team are working hard to fabricate some of the components required to correct the areas worst affected.
Having stripped our 1944 Ford GPW Willys head Peter has discovered a valve that is stuck open.
Parts have been ordered in from Sweden and once they arrive we can start working on getting her back on the road.
The bonnet has been primed and ready for the final paint.
All panels now prepped and painted John and Tommy have been fitting up the sills and bonnet ready for transportation back to the Bridge HQ.
We are now on to the final phase which is the full fit up before we can officially sign off the car and let her go back to her owner ready for the summer shows.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]One of our good friends Hugh Cormack from Buckie in Bonny Scotland has just landed himself an absolute gem.
A Mk8 Hillman Minx deluxe.
Not just any old Hillman Minx but a TV start to boot.
“Call the Midwife” Christmas special 2014 and several other episodes “Rock and Chips” the Prequel to Only Fools and Horses The film, “Sixty Six” as a back ground car “Endeavour” TV series “Father Brown” latest series “The Hour” a BBC series about the fifties The film, “Once upon a time in London” released in 2018. The car was used in a post office hold up.
The car now is destined for many shows in the beautiful Morayshire countryside. And Hugh is always available for Autographs.
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Off to China our samples go as we work alongside our 1971 Jaguar E-Type Roadster’s customer in decided the final colours for the hood, leather and vinyl.
The majority of our chroming work has already been carried out by Tony and the guys at Wyatt Polishing in Thetford but having found a couple of extras on both the Jensen 541S and Jaguar V12 E-Type it’s another trip over to get these started.
The doors were open all weekend at Bridge Classic Cars as Asa started work on fitting up the sports-pack wheel arch kit to our 1971 Mini.
He made fantastic progress on the fit and managed to complete the task over the weekend. The arches are now in our paint shop and we should be expecting them back some time very soon.
All repair and preparation work has now been completed on our 1960 Jensen 541S bonnet. Next step will be to spray the bonnet in pearl grey to match the bodywork before returning it back to our workshops for re-fit.
Trevor is now getting his teeth into the body preparation of our 1971 Fords Capri.
Having blasted the exterior of our 1960 Jensen fuel tank ready for paint it revealed a couple of tiny pin holes that go unnoticed to the eye but a pressure test reveals that something is not quite right. These holes need correcting prior to paint.
We have called upon the skills of our colleagues at Sheldrake & Wells, Ipswich to repair the original tank. A brand new tank is available but for a slightly lesser price we can strip and completely overhaul the existing fuel tank. The treatment required is very specialist and needs to be carried out by a company who knows how to complete the works properly because once repaired and coated both internally and externally this treatment will come with a long guarantee.
It may be easier to purchase a new tank but more often than not it’s best to keep original.
We are expecting to see the tank returned to us in 2 weeks time so I will update you with more pictures of it looking shiny and new.
Kim has been working with us this afternoon on our 1960 Jensen 541S to fit up the brand new black parcel shelf.
With the parcel shelf fixed down and in position we can now refit the rear window and trim.
We’ve removed the front and rear seats in preparation for the colour feed treatment.
The seats will be cleaned up and carefully fed with new colour before being imprinted with the leather pattern. This process is a fantastic way to freshen up the look of the interior without having to strip and re-cover.
The gloss black wheels arches are finally back on the car, having been stripped back, repair, prepared and re-painted.
We picked a great day for our first indoor photo shoot (forgetting our 4am 1966 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 shoot as that was done in our workshops), it was pretty nippy but at least it was dry.
Our shoot took place early morning inside the newly built barn within the Suffolk Plant Centre complex in Pettistree.
William allowed us access into his building whilst it was empty so we had lots of space to play around to get some great shots.
As always, the main images will soon be arriving from Jason at Sugar and Spice Photography but for now I (Craig) took some ‘behind the scenes’ images for you to see.
John’s continuing to progress very well on ‘Project Prototype’ as he fits up the Jensen 541S dashboard. The top has now been re-covered, the newly refurbished dials are now back in to position and the interior mirror is securely fitted up.
In preparation for the return of our Amphicar body shell from the paint shop, we have started to go through the parts to decide whether to renew, replace or refurbish existing components.
We have put together a selection of parts that require a clean and paint. This will keep Pete busy on the project whilst we wait for the return of the car.
To convert the wiper motor from left hand drive to right hand drive we’ve called in the assistance of our good friends and world renowned Jaguar specialists SNG Barratt. They’ll look to refurbishj the unit as well as carrying out the conversion.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Today, we are in the highlands of Scotland on a trip to see a 1981 Alfa Romeo Spider.
We are in the stunning setting of the Tigh An Eilean Hotel where we believe the car has been dry stored for over 15 years.
It is very difficult to see at this stage the extent of work that will be required, certainly to the underneath, but once out of the garage we’ll be able to get a better idea.
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With the underside almost complete Pete has sealed up the arches before building back up the suspension components.
With only the rocker box cover a different colour, the Amphicar engine is actually one of the simplest engines to paint as it is all black.
Before removing the engine from the car we had it all up and running as it should.
Pete has since been busy stripping it off it’s loose components before cleaning and painting the bulk of the engine ready to be built back up again.
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