Bainzy
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Everything posted by Bainzy
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I used VR1 last oil change based on loads of recommendations on this forum, and whilst it held good oil pressure, on an engine that leaked a little bit, it ended up leaking a lot more. On Easter Weekend I did quite a lot of driving in the car (1000 miles), and found to my horror that the oil level had dropped below the minimum when I'd got home - despite being filled up to a smidge over maximum when setting off at the start of the weekend. I guess it's an endorsement in some sense for the oil, that the engine didn't blow up doing 80mph for several hours with less than minimum oil in the sump. Fortunately the oil cooler will have helped too, as reducing oil capacity will have increased the oil's propensity to overheat. I might try it again some day but not on an engine that has a bit of a leak.
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Jens, that (first repair you mention) wouldn't pass an MOT in the UK. Any repairs to structural panels would have to be seam welded unless the entire panel is replaced in the same manner it was originally made.
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I think some of the fabricatio and welding work you've done so far is really impressive Louis and arguably more difficult, I'm not sure why you think that. You'd be leaving the body on the chassis to do the work so could still wheel the car on and off the drive. The skill in putting new outer sills is more in alignment and patience, not so much the welding. The welding should be really easy because you can use plug welds if replacing the whole panel, which are easier than the seam weld you've been doing. If the door gaps were fine before you took the car apart, couldn't you just tack weld some cheap steel box section to preserve the door gaps? That plus bolting your hardtop to it would make it much more stable, and the hardtop should act as a good jig to keep things aligned. Alternatively, your local club may also have door gap adjusters for hire, or have someone local who has them?
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Hopefully this makes it a bit clearer as to what I'm saying. Sorry Louis but I think you've definitely hit a point now where the car needs a pair of OE outer sills to be done properly. I understand you're on a tight budget but you eventually risk hitting a point where it becomes a false economy. I know I certainly wouldn't want to be driving a car with distorted sills, or worse, weakened sills. The car derives a huge amount of it's structural rigidity from them and as anyone who's driven a rust free and correctly welded Spitfire, even then the bodywork isn't particularly rigid. I'm going to be a bit blunt here but I would rather have to wait longer to save up £140 for new sills and do the job properly, than to drive around for the next 5 years in a death trap.
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Original sills had 6 or 7 tack welds along the joint that attaches to the flat lower A-post panel. Definitely weren't seam welded there. Where your sill has been bondoed along the middle ledge in the second pic isn't an original location for the sill to be joined. They've probably cut through an original sill, joddled it and added a new half- outer sill panel to fit over it. The original sill was one piece from the seam the door seal sits over, all the way to the bottom seam where it joins the floor at the bottom. Considering the sills are structural, that's a complete and utter bodge. A few tack welds there are not enough to provide the necessary rigidity, and unless you're able to seam weld the entire length of this without making it look a mess (unlikely because it's a right angle), you really need to be whipping that off and putting a new outer sill on.
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If you can get the gearstick in the correct position, I suspect you'd have a lot of interest? Otherwise I can't personally see it getting enough numbers to make it economically viable...
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I strongly suspect the problem is with the fact the parts aren't OE pressings and therefore not made to the correct dimensions, I doubt it's the job you've done of fitting it. As far as I know, pattern sills will always be wrong in some respect, perfect ones don't exist. Some are too short lengthways, some are too shallow, some have incorrect curvature around the lower front door edge. Pretty sure nobody has ever bought one and said "the fit was excellent and looks perfect" without having to do serious metal surgery on them. Even the OE sills supposedly don't quite fit the same (toolings wear over time producing slight variations in pressings) but at least with them you have a fighting chance of getting it right. I have a Rover made RH outer sill sat in the loft and when I compare it to the pattern ones on my car it's way better and I haven't even fitted it to the car yet. If it's going to bother you, as much of a pain as it will be I'd recommend at least getting hold of some OE outer sills and measure them up, with a view to replacing them if the dimensions are different in the areas you mention. So much better and cheaper to fix it now than to fix it later when its gnawed away at you for a year! Plus, shit sill and door gaps can easily make £1000 difference in a car's value, which makes the extra £20 a side for an OE outer sill look comparatively cheap!
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It's something you see a lot on Spitfires. What type of sills did you use? Were they Heritage/OE/Rover outer sills on both sides, or was one of them a pattern sill? How do the wings measure up on the bonnet? Are they equal?
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Gt6s wrote: In total agreement with that statement, full engine management modernises an old Triumph engine. Don't rule it out. +1. I'm not sure I'd want much more power/torque than my EFI 1500 engine has, it already leaves most normal modern cars behind given the car's good power/weight ratio.
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Looking at the amount of rust on the inside of that sill (the bits that you can see, nevermind those you can't), I would be inclined to replace it with a new Heritage one. It's another £67 and a bit more time but you'll end up with a better looking job and the knowledge it'll be properly sorted.
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When I had carbs I used to use one of these mounted to the inner rear wing with an exhaust bobbin: http://www.webcon.co.uk/shopexd.asp?id=48 Couldn't hear it whatsoever during operation, and still can't now that it's being used as a feeder pump for my high pressure EFI pump.
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Have you actually taken the door card off yet? The rods do have a tendency to pop out on stiff or badly fitting doors, it could just be that.
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Unfortunately I'm not sure as I've never actually had it happen! I'm sure there's been threads about it here though, hopefully someone else will chime in.
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Seized rear trunnion?
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Could you just ditch the servo? New Triumph type tandem master cylinders are about £50 on ebay which would let you keep the dual brakes. All the servo does is make the pedal softer to push, it doesn't actually increase braking effectiveness. It adds complexity and things to go wrong, and adds extra weight to the car. Having recently rebuilt my rear brakes and front brakes, all with new standard parts apart from Mintex pads, I can't fathom at all why people would want a servo. The brake pedal on mine starts to work immediately after pressing, and it hardly takes any pressure at all to get the car to slow down and stop. I'm not sure I'd want to feel less resistance on it as the feedback from the pedal enhances the driving feel, but then again that's just my preference.
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If "everyone ends up denting the sheet metal pan", surely you don't want an alloy one, given that it'd probably crack on a heavy impact? Not sure I get their logic there. What's your reasons for fitting it? Cooling? Baffles? Rigidity? I've just picked up a 4 cylinder one to do some sump modifications of my own. Definitely going to baffle it as surge is a persistent problem in the car, and will probably also add a boss for an oil temp sensor.
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Sounds like either the master or slave cylinder (or both!) needs rebuilding....
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I think Marcus has used dishwasher tablets with success?
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Looks pretty shagged to me - you need to attack it with vinegar or a sharp implement to be sure. New alloy ones are £65 at the moment at SC parts for the 6 cylinder, I got my Dad one for his TR6.
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I have thought about it, but haven't seen one yet that looks original and has just as nice an interior as the steel variant. Plus I'm convinced most of the saving in weight with them is from the glass, not the panel.... Other ideas include remaking the 1500 centre armrest in aluminium as the metal underneath it is steel - minimal saving though. Going for ducted brakes instead of putting heavy unsprung GT6 (or worse, Princess, Capri) front disc components on.
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Re: the water flushing, you can get specific products designed to flush the system, might be worth a go? Haven't tried one myself. Chassis repairs might be worth doing now whilst the welder is out in anger...
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I don't understand why people fret so much about engine temperature, especially with a gauge that has no markings! "--- way on the gauge" doesn't really mean anything, because every gauge and sender reads differently. Two Triumphs might both run at 82c, but one may have a gauge that reads 1/4, the other 3/4 full. I have this funny picture in my head of people spending hundreds on cooling system upgrades because the engine temperature climbs from 82c to 85c, yet they shit themselves because the swing of the temp needle makes this look really dramatic. Seriously though, stability in temperature is probably more important for a carbureted car than the actual temperature itself, but remember that engines need to run hot to run efficiently. If your engine temperatures vary a lot, then that might be a problem as it can be hard to keep it in tune, but as long as it's got at least an 82c (88c even better) thermostat in that works properly, and stays around the same temp, it's fine.
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Does anyone know if the perspex rear windows in any of the fibreglass hardtops for the later Spitfires would fit inside a steel hardtop? Thinking about ways to keep weight down a bit since glass is heavy, and it wouldn't be that straightforward to DIY one as it's not a perfectly flat piece of glass. I plan on making the quarterlights and door drop glass out of polycarbonate, which shouldn't be too hard as they're flat panes.
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Sorry to say this but I think grinding the slave cylinder is a bodge. If there's wear in the system, it needs to be sorted by replacement parts. Last week I took out the gearbox as the clutch bite was starting to get nearer to the floor, and had difficult engaging first like yourself. I found all manner of horrors inside the bellhousing. The pushrod had an elongated hole where it is in the release arm, and the excess slack there had in turn worn down the pivot pin going through it. The end of the pushrod was slightly shorter than an original one too. The release bearing carrier bushes were sticking, the release bearing was completely trashed, and the release arm was also missing a bushing that went inside the bellhousing to hold the pivot pin for it. I replaced all the relevant parts with originals from Mick Dolphin, and renewed the seals on the slave and master. The result is a clutch pedal that feels like it's from a brand new car, and a lovely takeup of drive. A lot of stiffness I (incorrectly) associated with the gearbox is totally gone. Furthermore, I know that this will last well for years to come, and not accelerate wear in other components.
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^ agreed, it's like sitting in a WWI biplane taking one on the M1! Cruise control, now that's an idea. I do quite a lot of motorway driving in mine so it might be worth investigating. Should in theory be really easy to do with the Megasquirt if they wrote a code for it, though the developers are really reluctant to do anything road car related unless it's idiot proof. What system did you have in mind Nick?