Tools and such

One of the things to consider when building a clubman is the tools you will require. One of the main attractions to me of the Birkin was that it didn't strictly require any fabrication to finish it, keeping the number and complexity of tools down. The basic idea is that you should be able to finish the job using the tools common to everyday use - screwdrivers, rubber mallet, socket set etc.

The build manuals that come with the Birkin have, at the start of each section, a listing of the components and tools required to complete each one. That's fine, but being the sort of person I am, I preferred to know what tools I'd need up front, so I pulled all of this information out into a spreadsheet, sorted it, removed all the duplicates, and came up with a list of stuff. Basically, you need the following:

• metric socket set
• allen keys
• drill bits (for drilling metal, but really only soft aluminium), and of course a drill
• rivet gun (for the press-studs on for the tonneau and roof)
• torque wrench (ranging from 5 - 150Nm)
• screwdrivers
• silicone, grease, locktite, masking tape, drop sheets, pencil.....

So nothing there that looks too atypical, apart form the torque wrenches and I'm going to borrow those off Frank anyway. There are, however, a few tools to make life easier that've been made up. These aren't strictly necessary, however they can make life simpler.

So it's back to The Hanger to find out what we have and what we're missing. I may buy some things like the spanners and sockets, screwdrivers etc just because I need them anyway. I have, for example, a new bed that needs a screwdriver or two to put together.