4 Sep 2015, 8:34am
Its cheap enough WCA, how's the manifold problem throttle body-fitting going?
Scottie on the road
4 Sep 2015, 8:36am
What can I say scimjim. you've said it all!
4 Sep 2015, 8:40am
Almost there Scottie :-)
Luckily the 100 year experiment concludes in 2018:...
Think that's a fairly accurate run-down of what will happen.
Luckily the 100 year experiment concludes in 2018:...
Think that's a fairly accurate run-down of what will happen.
Our local "2 books for £5" shop had "Empire of the Clouds: When Britain's Aircraft Ruled the World" by James Hamilton-Paterson the other day.
Exhilarating flying scenarios and depressing comments about the decline.
4 Sep 2015, 9:57am
Manifold will continue as soon as I escape work and get some new hose + clips.
I am learning a lot as I go along. BMW pipe water from the cooling system through the throttle body to stop it freezing for example.
I am learning a lot as I go along. BMW pipe water from the cooling system through the throttle body to stop it freezing for example.
4 Sep 2015, 2:43pm
Believe it or not so did Triumph forty odd years ago, the hot water goes through the inlet manifold on my car!
Keeps the fuel mixed and airborne so I'm told..........
Keeps the fuel mixed and airborne so I'm told..........
11 Sep 2015, 3:03pm
Friday
Well, Scottie is still not "back on the road" but at least a lot closer to it.
This car has been , and still is, fighting me every inch of the way to completion.
This morning, I adjusted the tappets, and attempted to bolt the exhaust manifold back on, easy job? Not so, as the studs on the the outside edges were too long, and the ones in the centre were too short.
I had done all the stud assembley on the bench as one would for ease, but obviously screwed up the sizings.
To take them out and change them round with the head back on the block, was not so easy as the bench way!
The stud extractor would not fit in the confined space, so it was the two-nut method, which stripped one of the stud threads, so it was back to the engineering board for that one.
I re-tapped a bolt to fit in place of the stud, and got round it that way.
I managed to fit the exhaust and inlet manifolds on, and got all the nuts/washer etc back on too, but the two hidden ones underneath were a different story, basically, with the half inch socket set, I just could not do it,
which was infuriating as I had obviously taken the bloody thing apart.
I went out and bought a 3/8 socket set, (I cannot believe I have gone so far mechanically through life without one) and with that, it was a lot easier to do.
The tasks I have done today, do not look much, and are really not much,
but have taken up most of the day, involving an incredible amount of effort and fiddling about.
At this rate of progress, WCA will certainly be back on the road before me
complete with his bionic leg.
Get the other one done Nick and you can sell the car!
Here is the stunning picture of a WHOLE days work:
[IMG]
[/IMG]
Well, Scottie is still not "back on the road" but at least a lot closer to it.
This car has been , and still is, fighting me every inch of the way to completion.
This morning, I adjusted the tappets, and attempted to bolt the exhaust manifold back on, easy job? Not so, as the studs on the the outside edges were too long, and the ones in the centre were too short.
I had done all the stud assembley on the bench as one would for ease, but obviously screwed up the sizings.
To take them out and change them round with the head back on the block, was not so easy as the bench way!
The stud extractor would not fit in the confined space, so it was the two-nut method, which stripped one of the stud threads, so it was back to the engineering board for that one.
I re-tapped a bolt to fit in place of the stud, and got round it that way.
I managed to fit the exhaust and inlet manifolds on, and got all the nuts/washer etc back on too, but the two hidden ones underneath were a different story, basically, with the half inch socket set, I just could not do it,
which was infuriating as I had obviously taken the bloody thing apart.
I went out and bought a 3/8 socket set, (I cannot believe I have gone so far mechanically through life without one) and with that, it was a lot easier to do.
The tasks I have done today, do not look much, and are really not much,
but have taken up most of the day, involving an incredible amount of effort and fiddling about.
At this rate of progress, WCA will certainly be back on the road before me
complete with his bionic leg.
Get the other one done Nick and you can sell the car!
Here is the stunning picture of a WHOLE days work:
[IMG]
[/IMG]
11 Sep 2015, 3:08pm
At least you did, something...
11 Sep 2015, 6:37pm
Keep at it Scottie
You will forget all the frustration when your blasting down the country lanes.
I always like when a really expensive car owner is craning his neck to look at my little self built car. Its priceless
You will forget all the frustration when your blasting down the country lanes.
I always like when a really expensive car owner is craning his neck to look at my little self built car. Its priceless
11 Sep 2015, 6:50pm
Scottie - I hope the rest of the jobs are less stressful.
Good luck, Paul.
Good luck, Paul.
12 Sep 2015, 8:41am
You are making progress, I am sat around being f*cking useless. I still have the old and new manifolds sat on the work bench and no 22mm hose to connect the new one with.
I was assured that the hose would be in stock last Thursday but have no way of getting there to collect it and even if I do I still can't stand well enough to work on the car.
You jobs may be frustrating but not as frustrating as watching them sat there waiting to be done and unable to do anything
I was assured that the hose would be in stock last Thursday but have no way of getting there to collect it and even if I do I still can't stand well enough to work on the car.
You jobs may be frustrating but not as frustrating as watching them sat there waiting to be done and unable to do anything
12 Sep 2015, 9:57am
I know how you feel I need a stepped hole cutter too install three grommets for my wiring and it won't arrive until Tuesday! all stopped until then.
17 Sep 2015, 6:56pm
Thursday
Well, I stand by my earlier assertion that the car is continuing
to resist any attempt at re-build and completion, and has to be dragged, kicking and screaming onward.
I am not complaining, but just telling it how it is.
Today I intended to re-fit the water-pump housing and the thermostat, which meant I could replace the fan belt, and get the car closer to being finished. Again, that would appear to be a simple quick job, not so.
I had fitted a new water pump to the pump housing on the bench, as it was easier that way. This again was a mistake, as when I came to fit the housing to the cylinder head, one bolt would not go in, as the water pump was in the way, so it had to come off to get it in, I was lucky that the new gasket stayed in one piece, and could be re-used with a bit Of loctite gasket jam.
I then realised that I had lost one of the bolts somehow, so it was a trip to the nut and bolt shop to replace it, which all took time.
On re-fitting the thermostat, one bolt stripped the thread in the cast housing, so I had to resolve that one. I did it by tapping the hole out to 8mm, and then it dawned on me that the nut and bolt shop was now closed! So such a simple job will not now be finished today, and it gets worse!
Once the water pump housing was in place, It became obvious that the pipe
Attached to it, should have been bolted onto the far left exhaust manifold stud. But it was not, so the nut had to come back off, only to find out that the pipe, complete with its bracket and hole was somehow 2 or 3 mm to short to fit on the stud, and being made of steel and not elastic, this was a bit of a problem, and it was at this point I decided I’d had enough for one day, yelled out “f***ing bollox” “ and went inside the house.
To end on a positive note, I have now got the water pump, its housing and the fan belt back on the car, and am closer still to completion. :-)
Well, I stand by my earlier assertion that the car is continuing
to resist any attempt at re-build and completion, and has to be dragged, kicking and screaming onward.
I am not complaining, but just telling it how it is.
Today I intended to re-fit the water-pump housing and the thermostat, which meant I could replace the fan belt, and get the car closer to being finished. Again, that would appear to be a simple quick job, not so.
I had fitted a new water pump to the pump housing on the bench, as it was easier that way. This again was a mistake, as when I came to fit the housing to the cylinder head, one bolt would not go in, as the water pump was in the way, so it had to come off to get it in, I was lucky that the new gasket stayed in one piece, and could be re-used with a bit Of loctite gasket jam.
I then realised that I had lost one of the bolts somehow, so it was a trip to the nut and bolt shop to replace it, which all took time.
On re-fitting the thermostat, one bolt stripped the thread in the cast housing, so I had to resolve that one. I did it by tapping the hole out to 8mm, and then it dawned on me that the nut and bolt shop was now closed! So such a simple job will not now be finished today, and it gets worse!
Once the water pump housing was in place, It became obvious that the pipe
Attached to it, should have been bolted onto the far left exhaust manifold stud. But it was not, so the nut had to come back off, only to find out that the pipe, complete with its bracket and hole was somehow 2 or 3 mm to short to fit on the stud, and being made of steel and not elastic, this was a bit of a problem, and it was at this point I decided I’d had enough for one day, yelled out “f***ing bollox” “ and went inside the house.
To end on a positive note, I have now got the water pump, its housing and the fan belt back on the car, and am closer still to completion. :-)
17 Sep 2015, 9:00pm
The trials and tribulations of kit car ownership keep up the good work you'll get there in the end.
18 Sep 2015, 2:27pm
Friday
The saga drags on.......................
My idea of tapping out the stripped thread in the thermostat housing to an
8mm size, did not work, the bolt wobbled about like a stick in a bucket,
"Poo sticks" he exclaimed somewhat ruffled.
My backup plan was to go one stage bigger and tap it out to 10mm, so to that end, I had purchased two drill bits, one 8.5mm and one 9mm, plus the two bolts 8mm and 10mm. So far so good, but then sods law came into play big-time and it was obvious the the 10mm route would not work at ,as the bolt head was too large to fit in the housing without fouling.
Apart from getting another water pump housing and starting again, the only other option was to heli-coil the damaged hole.
So I wanted an 8mm heli coil repair kit, and they were all over the internet like measles, at about 10 pounds or so, but I wanted mine NOW so I went into town and bought one.
It cost thirty quid, which was bad enough, but when you add the thirteen quid I had already spent on the drill bits etc, that one little stripped thread had now cost me over £43 !!!
Mind you, the kit contained enough coils to repair another 14 threads,
( which I will NEVER ever use)
But I didn't really care about that, as now I have cured that small problem and can move on with the rest of it.
This time I did take some pictures as I know a lot of people enjoy the pics,
especially those poor people that cannot read, so here they are,
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG
The saga drags on.......................
My idea of tapping out the stripped thread in the thermostat housing to an
8mm size, did not work, the bolt wobbled about like a stick in a bucket,
"Poo sticks" he exclaimed somewhat ruffled.
My backup plan was to go one stage bigger and tap it out to 10mm, so to that end, I had purchased two drill bits, one 8.5mm and one 9mm, plus the two bolts 8mm and 10mm. So far so good, but then sods law came into play big-time and it was obvious the the 10mm route would not work at ,as the bolt head was too large to fit in the housing without fouling.
Apart from getting another water pump housing and starting again, the only other option was to heli-coil the damaged hole.
So I wanted an 8mm heli coil repair kit, and they were all over the internet like measles, at about 10 pounds or so, but I wanted mine NOW so I went into town and bought one.
It cost thirty quid, which was bad enough, but when you add the thirteen quid I had already spent on the drill bits etc, that one little stripped thread had now cost me over £43 !!!
Mind you, the kit contained enough coils to repair another 14 threads,
( which I will NEVER ever use)
But I didn't really care about that, as now I have cured that small problem and can move on with the rest of it.
This time I did take some pictures as I know a lot of people enjoy the pics,
especially those poor people that cannot read, so here they are,
[IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG
18 Sep 2015, 8:27pm
Nice work Scottie and your mans toys collection is getting bigger by the day, as they say you can never have too many tools.
Keep plugin away and the beast will be back on the road.
Keep plugin away and the beast will be back on the road.
19 Sep 2015, 8:18pm
It drags on yet again, today I put some new hoses and expensive clips on, and the left carb, then the right carb, and the very last bolt in place stripped the thread in the inlet housing, I have become so used to this sort of shitty thing happening, so it did not surprise me at all.
The right carb came back off, and I reckoned to use my "new" 8mm heli-kit to sort it out.
The space was too restricted to get the drill machine in there, and my special right-angled one, which was designed for such things was still too big. For f**ks- sakes, does it never end??
It wouldn't beat me though, in the end, I used my half-inch drive air rachet with the drill bit in a small stud extractor, to drill out the damaged hole, then tapped the thread using a quarter inch rachet with another little attachment on the end.
The heli-coil went straight in, and that was the end game for the day, as I had no 8mm bolt! But its just a matter of time.......
The right carb came back off, and I reckoned to use my "new" 8mm heli-kit to sort it out.
The space was too restricted to get the drill machine in there, and my special right-angled one, which was designed for such things was still too big. For f**ks- sakes, does it never end??
It wouldn't beat me though, in the end, I used my half-inch drive air rachet with the drill bit in a small stud extractor, to drill out the damaged hole, then tapped the thread using a quarter inch rachet with another little attachment on the end.
The heli-coil went straight in, and that was the end game for the day, as I had no 8mm bolt! But its just a matter of time.......
20 Sep 2015, 5:15am
Scottie - I must confess that if I had to face all your recent problems, I would need professional help to fix them. 
So fair play for overcoming every challenge your car build has set you.
Good luck, Paul.
So fair play for overcoming every challenge your car build has set you.
Good luck, Paul.
20 Sep 2015, 6:21am
Keep plugging away Scottie. I have a number of stripped threads/broken studs on my engine/manifold/generator support/etc. - just bear in mind how old the donor cars are - and it's just a case of fixing things as best you can as they wear out. To quote Yoda, '...impossible is nothing.' Now get on with it. 
20 Sep 2015, 6:40am
There cant be many more threads to strip.
I know its been fighting you but the end is in sight
I know its been fighting you but the end is in sight
20 Sep 2015, 8:43am
Thanks for the support fellahs!
Yes you are right Mr T, each time it goes wrong, I usually think
"well it is 45 years old and getting a bit worn in places"
Its also nearer to being finished, and that is what matters.
Yes you are right Mr T, each time it goes wrong, I usually think
"well it is 45 years old and getting a bit worn in places"
Its also nearer to being finished, and that is what matters.
20 Sep 2015, 9:59pm
titfer - haven't heard that in years 
nearly there Scottie
nearly there Scottie
21 Sep 2015, 10:18am
Paul, you would not want any help to put a heli-coil in, the kit contains everything you need, just drill the hole, tap it, and insert the coil, job done. Its really easy-provided there is access.........
21 Sep 2015, 8:57pm
Scottie I know it may be to late but for the future if you have a hard to get to place that needs a hole tapping out then these are an excellent tool and i i've quoted before a man can never have too many tools.
Its called a ratchet tap wrench available in standard and long reach. The chuck is adjustable to suit various size taps with forward and reverse ratchet.
Keep plugin away matey it's the joys of owning an old classic motor. Looking forward to seeing more on the road shots of your beast.
Its called a ratchet tap wrench available in standard and long reach. The chuck is adjustable to suit various size taps with forward and reverse ratchet.
Keep plugin away matey it's the joys of owning an old classic motor. Looking forward to seeing more on the road shots of your beast.
21 Sep 2015, 9:06pm
Thanks for that tip Swifty, I'll definitely get the short-reach one!!
Didn't know they existed.
A man certainly cannot have too many toys!
Didn't know they existed.
A man certainly cannot have too many toys!
1 Oct 2015, 6:37pm
Thursday-on the road day!
I am finally now “back on the road!
During the last couple of good weather days, I have worked on the car hoping to get it finally finished and back on the road.
It did start fairly easily, which pleased me, but would not rev up.
It seemed like fuel starvation, so I stripped and cleaned the float chambers which I should have done before, but as it ran so well then, I didn’t.
The amount of crud in those chambers was enough to plant potatoes in I’m sure. Anyway that cured the no-rev bit.
It sounds a wee bit tappety, and the carbs need tuning and certainly need the mixture enriching, and probably re-timing too, but that will be another day.
I was able to drive it on the road and go shopping in it which was pleasing.
I took some pictures of it parked up while out.
I have done a lot of research into why the Triumph 1500 engine has a fairly bad reputation, and it seems that due to it having only three main bearings,
(British Leylands fault) if it is revved highly for long periods (hours),
then the oil can get hot enough to have the viscosity break down with catastrophic results, ie. A totally wrecked engine.
An oil cooler is not really the answer, although by all accounts on race cars it is essential, but the best recommendation for a long-life engine in a road car was using a really good premium oil.
I settled on Valvolene 20/50, which was recommended by a lot of experts, then I found an absolute gem of an oil that in this country at least, very little seems to be known about, it is called “Penrite racing 20 oil “
It claims that due to the chemical make-up, no matter how hot it gets, or how hard the engine is thrashed, it is impossible to lose its viscosity.
Wow! That is some sort of claim, and exactly what I want in my cars.
I found a supplier, and it was a bit pricy at £62 per gallon (5 litres to you Rene) after a bit more searching I found another company that sold it for £45 a gallon. I ordered a case of four gallons yesterday around 3 pm,
And it arrived at my door this morning at just after 9am.
Service like that is hard to beat!
This oil will go in all my vehicles, and hopefully, I shall not worry if I happen to cane the engines once in a while. I already use active 8, which has saved me one engine already when all the oil leaked out and I ran the car for two days not realising. (It did bugger the turbo though, which I had to have re-built)
If anyone is interested, the company that sent me the oil is called
“Classic oils” on 01296 488 927 I have no personal connection with them ,
but felt moved enough to order 4 gallons at £190 including post.
I took Swifty’s advice, and bought two short reach rachet taps, and have posted a picture of them, thanks Swifty!
Some pics:
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
[IMG][URL=http://s928.photobucket.com/user/scottie_22/media
/latest%20up%20lods/Rich_zpsatgob4go.jpg.html]
[/URL][/IMG]
[IMG]
[/IMG]
I am finally now “back on the road!
During the last couple of good weather days, I have worked on the car hoping to get it finally finished and back on the road.
It did start fairly easily, which pleased me, but would not rev up.
It seemed like fuel starvation, so I stripped and cleaned the float chambers which I should have done before, but as it ran so well then, I didn’t.
The amount of crud in those chambers was enough to plant potatoes in I’m sure. Anyway that cured the no-rev bit.
It sounds a wee bit tappety, and the carbs need tuning and certainly need the mixture enriching, and probably re-timing too, but that will be another day.
I was able to drive it on the road and go shopping in it which was pleasing.
I took some pictures of it parked up while out.
I have done a lot of research into why the Triumph 1500 engine has a fairly bad reputation, and it seems that due to it having only three main bearings,
(British Leylands fault) if it is revved highly for long periods (hours),
then the oil can get hot enough to have the viscosity break down with catastrophic results, ie. A totally wrecked engine.
An oil cooler is not really the answer, although by all accounts on race cars it is essential, but the best recommendation for a long-life engine in a road car was using a really good premium oil.
I settled on Valvolene 20/50, which was recommended by a lot of experts, then I found an absolute gem of an oil that in this country at least, very little seems to be known about, it is called “Penrite racing 20 oil “
It claims that due to the chemical make-up, no matter how hot it gets, or how hard the engine is thrashed, it is impossible to lose its viscosity.
Wow! That is some sort of claim, and exactly what I want in my cars.
I found a supplier, and it was a bit pricy at £62 per gallon (5 litres to you Rene) after a bit more searching I found another company that sold it for £45 a gallon. I ordered a case of four gallons yesterday around 3 pm,
And it arrived at my door this morning at just after 9am.
Service like that is hard to beat!
This oil will go in all my vehicles, and hopefully, I shall not worry if I happen to cane the engines once in a while. I already use active 8, which has saved me one engine already when all the oil leaked out and I ran the car for two days not realising. (It did bugger the turbo though, which I had to have re-built)
If anyone is interested, the company that sent me the oil is called
“Classic oils” on 01296 488 927 I have no personal connection with them ,
but felt moved enough to order 4 gallons at £190 including post.
I took Swifty’s advice, and bought two short reach rachet taps, and have posted a picture of them, thanks Swifty!
Some pics:
[IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG][URL=http://s928.photobucket.com/user/scottie_22/media
/latest%20up%20lods/Rich_zpsatgob4go.jpg.html]
[/URL][/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG]