RobPearce
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Everything posted by RobPearce
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I've painted propshafts in the past and not had any trouble. Sure, theoretically, if you don't spread the paint perfectly evenly then it will affect the balance. In reality, though, the mass of the paint is so trivial compared to the mass of the propshaft that you're never going to make a noticeable difference. If you're concerned, mount the prop on something that will spin it at a few tens of RPM, then paint it with a spray can. The spinning will ensure you apply an even coat. ;)
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My Mk1 2L Vitesse does have the badge, but that's because it's got a 1600 bonnet (and actually it's all 1600 badging). Admittedly it's a very early 2L but I'm pretty sure all this is the result of inaccurate restoration rather than factory mix-up. I'm not sure on the wing badges but Mk1 2L should have a "2L" badge on the grill.
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I had a weird one that brought my GT6 to a stop some years back. Ran fine at light load, died completely on throttle. When I pulled onto the hard shoulder it stalled and wouldn't restart. Turned out the little wire inside the dizzy (that connects the breakers to the coil) was broken. With vacuum advance on, the rotation of the base plate re-made the connection and all was fine. Take away the vacuum and the wire opened up!
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You stated that your current tyres are "195/60/13". The 195 is the width (in mm), the 13 is the wheel diameter (inches), and the 60 is the profile (height as a percentage of width). Like Tim, I would say 175/70/13 if it were a Rotoflex car. If you're still on the Mk1 suspension I'd be tempted to go narrower - it won't grip quite as well but it'll slide much more forgivingly.
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I'm not sure how helpful it is, really. If you jack up the bottom of the vertical link, you can undo the UJ flange bolts and the shocker bolts, then if you lower the jack there's no tension left on the spring eye. If you happen to have a lifter anyway (perhaps because you also own a Rotoflex car) then by all means use it, but for a swing axle setup it's most definitely not worth any investment.
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Cleanliness, cleanliness, cleanliness! Don't use anything abrasive on the inside (slightly less critical on Strombergs than on SUs) Make sure all the threaded bits are clean and free to do up / undo before reassembling. This is particularly important if they're the late type that you set with an allen key down the dashpot. Other than that, it's quite an easy task.
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If you're thinking of painting more than just a bit of touch-up, try AutoPaints in Brighton (they do mail order)
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I was told by a trader at Stoneleigh a few years back that the scroll can't be changed for the later type seal. Stupidly, I believed him. I'm actually quite sure that the seal from a later gearbox, together with its top-hat housing that sits in the back of the bellhousing, can simply be fitted in place of the scroll. The input shaft is, I believe, the same, but even if it's not the worst you'd need is an appropriately sized alternate seal.
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The factory didn't fit spacers until later, but that doesn't mean the suppliers of remanufactured parts aren't shipping 1500 type fuel pumps in boxes marked for a Mk3 :(
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I believe some versions of the pump are supposed to be fitted with a spacer plate, which would go at least some way to alleviating the issue. I've done a rebuild of a Vitesse (glass bowl) pump in the past, and it wasn't too hard. I'm not entirely sure on the Mk3 Spitfire as mine has a 1500 engine and a fuel pump from a 13/60 Herald...
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Nick_Jones wrote: Seats with flip from early Toledo 2 door? They do look like Toledo seats. Not sure how they're fitted, though - the Toledo seats in Tessa are swapped, so that those release buttons are on the inside, to properly clear the tunnel. And yes, I also think that's a lot of money for anything other than a perfect, concours-winning car.
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I would think you will need: - a short length of brake pipe, male ends, from the slave cylinder (bleed) to somewhere accessible - a female-to-female union (which may be tricky and you may need to use a 3-way) fitted to that pipe and mounted - a bleed nipple in the other end of that union
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thescrapman wrote: It seemed that the 5th gear was an afterthought, and you have to dig and stir for ages until you find it, usually accompanied by crunching and grinding. I never had any trouble with 5th on my old TR7. The box was clunky at all times, but not much worse than the 2500s and Stag, except that the LT77 seems worse when cold.
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He'd only just bought the car and wasn't sure whether it was just always smelly. In fairness, at any sort of speed, most of the smell gets blown away :P
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My brother's first car (Mk2 Spitfire) had a similar problem with the mechanical pump. The rubber hose that links the pipe from the pump to the T-piece between the carbs had slipped. He'd driven most of the way from Colchester to Oxford like that, using a whole tank of fuel, and when we opened the bonnet it was spraying petrol all over the place. Enough of it was bridging the half inch gap and hitting the pipe to keep the car running.
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892 wrote:Rob, An air driven cooling fan or blower can not power the car electrics. It could, if driven with enough air, but that's rather beside the point. We're not talking about air-driven, we're talking about how long it keeps spinning once it stops being spun electrically and becomes a generator. That's not very long, but it's a LOT more than the "milliseconds" you said. However, this has all been a side-track from the main thread, which is about much more persistent running, hence my earlier comment that it's most likely a wiring fault.
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892 wrote: Hi John, I am familiar with the right hand rule. Not actually particularly relevant - the macroscopic consequence is what's needed. 892 wrote: An air driven dynamo would be able to power a car electrics for milliseconds, maybe. No, it would act as a generator for as long as it spins - way more than milliseconds. We're not concerned with inductance, we're concerned with mechanical operation of a generator. 892 wrote: But when the fan, blower, whatever is switched off by the ignition its no longer in circuit so can do nothing? Wrong again. If the fan (heater blower) is still turned on at its switch, and is powered from the ignition-switched circuit (for convenience, so as not to drain the battery while parked) then turning off the ignition explicitly leaves that motor in the circuit that matters. 892 wrote: I can light an LED light with a potato, but it will have no power to run a car or truck for that matter. Nobody mentioned potatoes. Straw man.
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The carpet and underlay will distort the runners and seize them up. The soultion is the move the runners off the floor a bit - using the "packers under front and rear" that the manual refers to. There should be (but often isn't) a half inch thick washer at each corner.
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JohnD wrote: But how can you tell if the engine is running normally or "running on"? It only runs normally when the ignition switch is on :) :P The "continuing to run because of the fan acting as a generator" is a somwhere-in-between case. The engine is actually running normally, because there's an electrical supply to the coil to allow it to. You can tell the difference between that and the more usual "running on" (self-ignition due to hot spots) by the sound of the engine. Continued running due to electrical weirdness sounds almost exactly like normal idling. Proper running on is rough, lumpy, low speed and generally horrid.
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I have 175/70 13 on mine (with slightly unusual alloys) and they work fine. For a Mk3 I'd probably recommend that size. On swing axle cars I prefer the original 155/80 13 for the more progressive loss of traction.
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1337 wrote:I have heard that electric cooling fans can act a a dynamo and produce enough current to maintain the engine running. haven't really thought it through carefully, though The factory issued a note to their dealer network at one point to say that they had found the cabin heater fan could do this - causing a brief run-on while it spun down.
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I suppose it's feasible that current through that bulb could keep the engine running. However, if that is the case then the light will be really rather bright while doing so - it's a 2W bulb so needs 160mA compared to the 3A or so that the ignition circuit consumes. Unless you have an ignition relay fitted (which some modern cars do but I've never seen it as a recommended mod.) I'd suspect a dodgy switch or a miswiring, or some damaged insulation somewhere.
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When the pin fell out of Spike's gearbox (Toledo, same as Spitfire) at 50mph, I concluded that something with a bit of a head would be less likely to go the same way. I used a 5/16 UNF by 3" bolt, but that's very close to the same diameter as an M8 one.
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Yes, the one in your photos is a late and/or emission controlled type. The original 13/60 fitting was an early type.
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Hi John, I think Pete answered the thermo CV questions pretty fully :) I would say, having a Mk3 GT6 (late type Strombergs) and a Mk1 Vitesse (early type) in my garage, I'd leave it alone if it works but consider putting it back to original if you have one spare. I've rebuilt both types and, while there's very little difference in their performance when working, the earlier ones do seem a lot less hassle. Cheers, Rob
