No reflection on the famed broadsheet, I'm referring to the grit, stones, horseshite and other unpleasant stuff that fles off the front wheels and sandblasts the rear muddies....and fills the seats with grit given half a chance.

On my original Twin-cam Caterham I switched from cycle wings to clams, but I'd seen a car with massive star cracks in the clams from stone impact, so I double skinned mine with a layer of bubblewrap in between the GRP layers. Never had a problem after that, but the clams didn't stop the flying stuff by any means.

On the SV I made a huge set of flaps for the cycle wings, they came nearly down to the ground, and were very effective.



After the repaint I decided they looked a bit odd with the white wings so trimmed them down.....probably a mistake!



I'm going to use the stainless steel rear mudguard protectors as a template to cut some plain black rubber sheet, as this should be an undamageable material for repelling flying boulders....cheap, too, and nice and black. I'll use the beading trim and black rivets.

Surely those CF protectors must get trashed pretty quickly? My stainless ones are badly chewed up in only 20,000 miles.

My front mudflaps are only 2 inches off the ground

The stainless protectors are still getting covered with dents, but for some reason it doesn't worry me, it's like patina on an antique.

Mine are definitely patinated.....but as the rest of the car is so fresh and unblemished I thought I'd try repolishing the SS panels....total waste of time, even on a biggish machine.

I'd read somewhere about some sage using simple rubber sheet and been struck by the sense of this, and it'd go even better with the car's new robe.
Even my giant locking overcentre catches for the bonnet are nickel plated, not chrome, and I didn't want the muck collecters to be the shiniest things on the car.

I used the wrap around CF effect protectors from Millwood when the car was new, and they did a good job, but in the end were pitted and marked like the rest of the car. When I advertised it, I described the paint as "too many stone chips to count"
Like Duncan, I came to realise there was no point in worrying about the scars of use, and regarded it all as patina, even recognising this scratch occured in Crois, that one at Croft, the other at Goodwood. I saw the car a few months after selling it, all resprayed and looking very tarty. I felt quite saddened that the character endowed by years of fun had been wiped away in pursuit of prettyness. However, each to their own.

I agree, use and abuse it a few war wounds make interesting stories.
Better than ( its taken me 3 days of polishing to get it to look like this, and I nearly didn't come when I saw the weather forecast)
But I must confess I polished mine yesterday because it was raining, now all ready for the next race

Chris.

Yes, I polished mine too, used lots of WD40 on the front suspension and other spindley bits, just gave up worrying about the paint. The paint job was poor from new, and very easy to damage. I gaffer taped the edges of the tonneau (have I spelt that right?) when trailering to Oulton Park from Hampshire in the pi##ing rain, in the hope the car wouldn't be too full of water in the morning, but when I peeled it off it took chunks of paint with it. I disguised the damage with vinyl wrap and it looked quite good.

Well poor old SV was beyond merely tatty, the paint was a disaster zone. I had to take her all to bits, so used the opportunity to repaint the suspension after a week in 10° spirit vinegar to de-rust it properly.

In the end I realised I couldn't use rivets to hold my special rubber stone rebounders on, as it rucked them up too much, so I got a load of black plastic scrivets. They are perfect....it looks really as if it was meant to be!

I think I may well make some new floor sweeping rubber mudflaps though. Touching-up pearl white never works.

Talking about 'patina'....





and my favourite pic from the Circuit des Rempartes 2011...a lineup of Brescia Bugattis.



I mat a guy here last week who has a 1922 Bresia, 16 valve 4 cylinder, and a 1928 Typo 35 with the unblown straight 8. The patina on the 35 has to be seen to be believed! He was very disparaging about over restored Bugatti "Chrismas trees".....