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Wheel Well Templates

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motofiaccone

motofiaccone

Senior Member
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Hi Gents:

Whilst my car is upside down, I think it will be easier to round out my rear wheel wheels. I'd like the profile to be as stock as possible, and dislike the look of my square wheel well car.

I know there are many ways to do this, but I'm looking for someone willing to trace the wheel well profile onto a piece of cardboard, masonite, posterboard or whatever. Any help is apprciated. Of course, I'll gladly cover any associated material and shipping cost.

--Thanks, Chris
 
Hey Chris, Alan here again. I could trace my round arches for you, but would it not be better to find a local car to make a copy. You could also look in the local ads for a RWA car and maybe they would let you take a trace.
 
Chris, you have two choices, either the plain side like the Bugeye or the later RWA Midget style with the slight flare. Both are about the same radius but there is a slight difference I believe. I'd be glad to make the template, but I've widened my rear flares a bit so the radius would be slightly different than original. Of course you'll have the inner fender panel to work with as well. British Motor Heritage is now stamping RWA fenders and inners as well, have you considered getting the correct RWA sheet metal? It wouldn't be cheap I'm sure, but at least it would be the correct profile.
 
I am not absolutely positive on this, but from all the line drawings I have on the Bugeye, in particular, it appears to be a true circle. If so, you could just measure the diameter and make a template with a compass stick or the like.
 
Hi gents:

Thanks for the reply. Honestly, I don't see many RWA spridgets here in Dallas. In fact, I very rarely see any spridget on the road. A bugeye wheel arch would be best because that is the profile I'm shooting for. But any trace will do.

Bill: I'm not going to give it a flare; it will be flat. Since the car is upside down, it will be easier to to do the inner panel work now. So that's why I'm looking for a template. Thank you for your kind offer for the template, but since you've widened the fenders, I think I'll stick with a stock size.

The reason I need a template is because I want to get the profile right. I could do it myself, but then I would have to flip the car over and estimate the weight on the rear axle, then draw the line, cut, etc...then flip it over. So it would be really cool if a kind member of this forum could do a RWA template for me--marking where the bottom of the car is located.

As always, guys, any help is really appreciated. Having a template would really save me a ton of time.

--Thanks, Chris
 
Chris,
Your need, therefore the question of a template started me thinking about the comment of British Leyland at the time they made the change to the rear arch for the short time. They made it to match the front.
So a question to the owners of RWA cars is, if you made a template of the back would it fit the front? Barring any differences in the rolled lip at the back as compared to the front. I wonder how close they really made them match diameter and height wise? It would be very interested to know.
Saying that I have a couple of NOS full quarter panels for the RWA cars (safely buried) I could look at to confirm. The MKI rear arches are different than the later RWA cars in a couple of ways; one is the rear bottom edge of the MKI coming to a point and not radiused as the later cars. The rounded shape of the body as compared to the later cars would be the other. Cool request good for some fact-finding.
dug
 
I never made a template and compared, but I think the front and rear of my RWA were very close to each other. The major difference being at the very bottom of the wheel openings. On the front for clearance the line ran straight down from the widest point and rounded off in the rear. On the rear openings the front edge actually wrapped around a bit and continued the curve past the widest point. At the rear edge they were very much like the front.
 
Or, you could split the difference and raise the square wheel opening as I did on my Sprite back in '77.

Sprite77e.jpg
 
I like the air intake on the front fender
 
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