Pictures from the Heritage Archives

A further picture from our archives, this time we are looking at a picture taken in 1954. It is Friday the 23rd of July and judging by the blurred figures work is proceeding at a pace, except for the foreman who has a build up of chassis ready for inspection.

The chain crane appears again as the main method of hoisting heavy items, time consuming but effective. The chassis is for the Sapphire 346 car which was launched at Earls Court in 1952 and having now been production line assembled for nearly two years I expect the 'checklist' is well memorised. One can only wonder if steering, wheel bearings and suspension settings are near the end of that list.

Note the stacks of chassis, also there are piles of exhaust tubes and pre assembled steering wheel, column and box units among the many parts required.

With regular improvements, as a result of owner feedback, a little over 7,650 Sapphire 346 Mk I and Mk II cars were made, making this Armstrong Siddeley Motors most produced model.

The finished article!