I have a local source of the steel here in Seattle, together with a very good laser cutting firm. I plan to prepare a machine-readable drawing of the firewall and have a pair of sheets cut. Then it will be a simple matter to assemble with new ply.
Laser cutting is most cost-effective when used for quantity production, because it spreads the cost of the drawings and general preparation. This got me thinking that all of the Minor firewalls from 1928 to 1934 are the same basic shape, but differ in the positions of the holes for the various attachments. Some holes are in the same place on all of them such as the bolt holes for the triangular supports, but each production year, changes were made in the position of the various accessories, etc.
So what I am seeking is examples of a firewall from every season so that I can adapt the baseline drawing to be able to cut pairs of sheets for any Minor. So I am asking to beg, steal or borrow your old firewall so that the drawings can be developed. I only need one steel sheet and these could be rolled up and posted at little cost, but I am happy to cover the cost anyway. Id there are modifications and additional holes, don't worry because with a little research, I can determine which holes are original and which are not. The Register will then be able to offer pairs of new firewall sheets to the exact original specification, including the small squares of steel sheet soldered on the underside of the two feet.
Please get in touch if you are able to help.
