heraldcoupe

I'm in the middle of overhauling the suspension on my RBRR Herald, 20 years in the garden havings taken it's toll.

I found the same thing, no damper mountings available from Polybush. I've fitted standard bushes at the front, but I may mould some for the back if I get the time. I was surprised to find they're not available though, I don't know why,

Cheers,
Bill.

This symptom can be down to the master cylinder's internal spring breaking. When solid, the clutch would be disengaged if this is the case,

Cheers,
Bill.

Reversed seals is a very common problem, the root of it comes from some incorrect diagrams in official literature. I've seen them done this way on recon units from major Triumph suppliers, about 50% of those I work on seem to have the seals reversed.

While it's not an ideal situation, as Dogsbody47uk says, it's something which can be lived with as long as we know about it. Grease doesn't exit into the drum when in use, it's only during the greasing operation. I suppose grease could exude if the bearing overheated, in which case you'll have plenty of other stuff to worry about at the same time.

Cheers,
Bill.

The rims are different to those on modern wheels, they are however NOT designed for tubed tyres.

All Heralds and Vitesses were fitted with tubeless tyres from the start of production. Your situation is quite common though, many tyre fitters have no knowledge of older wheel designs and make an incorrect assumption. The fitter is wrong, but good luck in convincing him of that, try another tyre supplier in the hope thay have more experienced staff,

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from flimsyboat

Thanks for the reply, I'm actually after the chassis mounts that the radiator bolts onto

These mounts were fitted to all 13/60s, even though they were not required on that model, that should open up your options a little in terms of donors.

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from paulfosh

will try pic latter , yes PCD way out my diff and box have the square flange been told wrong for my car? paul

No, this would be correct for a Vitesse 6. The round flange with larger PCD would be correct for the Vitesse 2L, but not the 1600.

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from Jonny-Jimbo

Avoid the cheap ebay tat ones - they won't last.

Absolutely right. I need to get a set for my RBRR car, I've not decided which of the two acceptable options to run with yet.

The reports I've read on the cheap ones match the exact failure modes I'd expect of corners being cut in the curing process, rapid deformation and degradation of the polyurethane material,

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from John Bonnett

Having found a Spitfire tower and compared it with a GT6 one the easy way to check is the size of the engine mount bolt holes. 1/2 inch clearance for GT6 and 3/8 inch for Spitfire.

I wouldn't rely on that, the relative heights of the mountings are what's really relevant,

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from npanne

Early Herald's used a different part number (303590) - although I'm not sure what the difference was

The Mk1 Herald parts have no provision for engine mounting, hence they're not handed - very easy to spot these.

The Spitfire turrets allow the engine to sit lower, rather than the other way around. All others share the same design, though there are slight detail differences according to year.
The difference is obvious with both available to compare, but descriptions can be a bit woolly without a picture. Essentially the opening for the steering column has the engine mount's horizontal brace at the very top in most cases, however this is about 1/2" lower with the Spitfire, with daylight visible above,

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from John Bonnett

Woolies offer a number of glass seals. Does anyone know if they have a suitable profile because their trims do fit the rubber.

None of the mainstream manufacturers offered anything close when I commissioned the Mk1-3 hardtop seals. The GT6 tailgate glass seal is similar (but not the same) as the hardtop profile, so I went pretty thoroughly through what was already in production for anything worth trialling, before paying to have new tooling made. A contact test fitted on of the hardtop seals into a GT6 tailgate but he wasn't happy with the result; I never saw the assembled item so I can't give specifics of the issue.

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from chunky63

I have a new chrome trim from Rimmers which I haven't fitted yet as I need to buy the correct tool. Sounds like it might not fit as well as I hoped 🙁

There's not tool required, even with those which DO fit snugly, just gentle hand pressure to push it into the slot.

Cheers,
Bill.

The column switch was always a more reliable setup, the gearknob mounted switch was a cost reduction exercise allowing parts tould be commonised across the BL range.

I 've always preferred the column mounted switch, it's use feels far more natural. I also dislike electric shocks and smoke in the cabin, so it's a winner all ways,

Cheers,
Bill.

The factory always used sealant between rubber & metals and between rubber an glass.

The recently available GT6 tailgate window seals have an oversize slot for the chromed trim. Fitting it is easy, however the trim doesn't fit tightly enough and it comes out again rather easily; I'm not aware of the manufacturer having addressed this. The same problem was apparent with similarly shaped Herald and Dolomite front screen seals, however this problem was corrected some years ago,

Cheers,
Bill.

I'll take a guess that the shaft is a reproduction, rather than an original.

This was a problem in the early 1990s, I had a rebuilt shaft supplied and the yoke started to move within a few months of fitting. There was a creaking in the axle as it rotated, I found red dust exuding from the join between the shaft and it's yoke, Some others started coming to light around the same time. My Herald was in daily use so the fault became apparent quite quickly, I've seen them turn up sporadically on less frequently used cars for the past 20 years.

The joint will have fretted and worn by the time play is evident, rendering the shaft and yoke scrap. My own interpretation is that the parts were out of tolerance in the first instance; they should be an interference fit, the pin shouldn't be under any great stress in a correctly made shaft,

Cheers,
Bill.

The 948 & 1200 have a steel grille with two bright anodised aluminium inserts. The 12/50 has a two-piece grille made of two bright anodised aluminium halves.

Anodising is a very hard finish, it needs to be removed before polishing, then the surface re-anodised. Stripping is easy enough using caustic soda (carefully). Bright anodising is theoretically easy enough with simple equipment, little more than sulphuric acid and a power source, however the fumes generated are very corrosive. It's not a process to be attempted in the same environment as anything you treasure.

Cheers,
Bill.

The mechanical revcounters are notorious for their inaccuracy. Try and hook up an electronic tacho to see how the readings compare.

Cheers,
Bill.

Can you post a pic of the catch on the back face of the door, and another of the striker in place on the B-post?

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from Chunky020

Is it possible to straighten a warped door?, the door in question has previously had a patch welded in along the lower skin by the previous owner this has kicked the bottom of the door out a 1/2", reskining not an option as the car is a BOND GT and although uses Herald/Vitesse door frames has unique door skins that are no longer available

As already stated, the 4-clinder Bind doors were standard Herald pressings.
The 2L Bond's doors used the Herlad/Vitesse shell, with a bespoke doorskin. These remain listed in the catalogue of Radford panels as part numbers TH79 & TH80

http://www.radfordpanel.co.uk/herald.htm

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from john136070

Thanks for the replies. The seal is original but the clips are new so probably not compatible. I have made a tool but it requires far more "pull" than the picture would imply. I like the idea of the string will reduce the amount of swearing.
I assume that the two edges are put together then the clip pulled over them both, is that right?
John  

Yes that's right. You've done well to find original seals, they've been obsolete for about 30 years.
There should be no problem with the clips, the usual problem is suppliers selling the original clips which don't fit the modern seals.

Make sure the clips line up with the narrowed slots in the seal and they should pull into place with a firm pull. You'll need to apply plenty of downward pressure on the seal to stop it riding up as the clip's pulled into place.

Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from john136070

Thanks for the replies. The seal is original but the clips are new so probably not compatible. I have made a tool but it requires far more "pull" than the picture would imply. I like the idea of the string will reduce the amount of swearing.
I assume that the two edges are put together then the clip pulled over them both, is that right?
John  

Yes that's right. You've done well to find original seals, they've been obsolete for about 30 years.
There should be no problem with the clips, the usual problem is suppliers selling the original clips which don't fit the modern seals.

Make sure the clips line up with the narrowed slots in the seal and they should pull into place with a firm pull. You'll need to apply plenty of downward pressure on the seal to stop it riding up as the clip's pulled into place.

Cheers,
Bill.

All currently available outer door weatherstrips are aftermarket of one style or another. These need to be matched to clips of the right thickness, the original clip design is too narrow for most of the current types.
Post a photograph of the weatherstrip and clip to establish which types you have,

Cheers,
Bill.

All currently available outer door weatherstrips are aftermarket of one style or another. These need to be matched to clips of the right thickness, the original clip design is too narrow for most of the current types.
Post a photograph of the weatherstrip and clip to establish which types you have,

Cheers,
Bill.

My first thought is to wonder why you have positive camber. 948s aren't noted for sitting high, at least not with their original springs. A new rear spring can intorduce the condition, but in many cases it's a symptom if seized trunnion bushes preventing the back end from settling properly, or badly set rear wheel tracking can cause the car to ride up when going in one direction or the other.

Cheers,
Bill.

I've found R6 degrading and cracking within six months. It may be an issue of manufacturing quality rather than the R6 specification, but I've had no similar problems when using R9.
My hoses came from two different sources so I won't pretend it's a direct comparison, either way I am left with a large quantity of R6 which I won't risk using.
Cheers,
Bill.

Quoted from mazfg

Hmmm....what should I do Bill?

I'd be inclined to salvage the metalwork from the original and experiment with a bit of Polyurethane resin. Easier said than done I know, but options are limited,

Cheers,
Bill.