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Nick Jones

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Posts posted by Nick Jones

  1. Started first time when tested this afternoon. Fairly long wind-up required but still a marked improvement. Choke needed putting about half way in within seconds of fire-up.

    I’m calling it a win.

    I’m probably spoiled by the Vitesse which always starts on the third compression stroke whether stood for 3 minutes or 3 months. EFI is likely cheating though.

  2. 21 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said:

    the brass push and twist knob allows more or less choke its a summer /winter adjustment as when you reset it it allows more or restricts the choke fast idle cam and the starter valve max travel .


    F482376F-5D3F-49FF-9706-31BFFD490743.jpeg.3248b64637f06f7968d11daeb63ff895.jpeg

    Discovered this yesterday. Don’t remember ever noticing it before.
     

    93FA072F-5937-431A-9295-E13F05D15878.jpeg.c5b1994cfcdd6aa9f5f3798d381978f6.jpeg

    Pic shows the winter setting. Mine was on the summer setting……

    Probably all I needed to do was change this, but of course I’d taken everything to bits before worked out what it actually did. 
    This did at least serve to prove that I have the right disc for the twin set-up with two sets of dosing holes, the holes were clear and the disc was fitted the right way up.

    45873786-8189-45CA-9F33-91F0F088F0BE.jpeg.6d76f85042c2cfb36cdc079af6dea25b.jpeg

    Also that the gasket is not one that I have in stock…..

     

  3. I'm just about to investigate this on mine also.  It doesn't like to start from stone cold and the colder the weather, the less it likes it.  It does always start eventually, but takes alot of winding up. I believe that although it does get some choke/extra fuel, it doesn't get enough.  It's takes alot of extra fuel to get a quick start when cold. I'm going to be checking out the cold start disc, making sure all the holes are clear and that the disc is installed the right way up (see Buckeye info).

    Something else to bear in mind is that with CD carbs (Strombergs and SUs) you are supposed to stay off the throttle until the engine fires.  Opening the throttle while cranking causes the carb piston to rise a little, reduces vacuum and weakens the mix.

  4. The oval hole steel wheels come in three* different widths.

     

    4.5J are the common ones as they were the factory-fit on MkIV Spitfires, most 1500 spitfires and most GT6 Mk3.  Also fitted on the Dolomite SE model - possibly different offset.

    5J are much less common as they were only factory fit on late 1500 Spitfire (not sure from what year or whether standard/optional extra).  Work well on all models.

    5.5J are possibly slightly more common than 5J, but care is needed.  They are available in at least two different offsets as, as well as being so-called "optional extras" on Spitfires and GT6s (anyone know whether that is fact or myth?), they were also used on Formula Fords.  This means that some of the ones out there have too much poke (stick out too far) for comfortable use on Spitfires and GT6s.  Or rather, they work beautifully on the narrow-track rears of the rotoflex GT6s and short-shaft Spitfires, but cause arch rubbing issues at the front with 175/70 tyres.  Also worth noting that the 5.5" wheels, being very sought-after, tend to have had long hard lives and are frequently dinked, bent, distorted or damaged/worn at the fixing holes - inspect carefully!

    *(6.0J Possibly a complete myth, but I have heard claims several times over the years that these do exist in small numbers.  Never seen any other than ones that have been banded.  More likely the result of miss-measurement of 5.5s?)

    As for tyre choice; 175/70 is a bit big for 4.5". 5" is better, 5.5 or 6" ideal.

    Pics show Spitfire and GT6 with narrow track rear end fitted with 5.5J rear wheels (larger offset version I think) and 5J fronts.  All with 175/70 tyres.  They have 4.5J fitted with 155 tyre as "space-saver" spare.

    IMG_4714s.jpg.7667c35afc5c31a04a824c20a3348e6d.jpg

    GT6June202s.JPG.08ff3aa7aaae619175d761d50d6c5817.JPG

    Nick

  5. What sort of voltage is the charging system putting out? 

    Old Lucas alternators (and dynamo/regulators) sometimes put out rather high voltages and/or spikes. This tends to kill modern electronics quite quickly, though points systems usually cope unless it spike high enough to pop the condenser.

    Coming from a different angle, EI systems put higher voltages into the HT systems making “leaks” from places like the rotor arm, cap and HT leads more likely.

    If the fuel is murky are there any slimy biological masses in the tank that might be wandering around and randomly blocking the outlet?

  6. On 23/02/2023 at 09:21, Ian Foster said:

    Bruce

    Nick Jones will be along any minute to explain how easy it isn't!

    Ian

    Fixed that for you......

    Kevin has already linked to my thread on Sideways, which covers the process of getting an MX5 NA gearbox into my Mk3 GT6; a substantially similar process to putting one in a Vitesse.  I have also previously put a Toyota W58 5 speed in my Vitesse - but that was 20 years ago when they were cheap.  That was easier, though still tricky enough.

    Bottom line - it can be done.  I've done a couple of thousand miles in my GT6 with box now and it works fine.  It's really not very easy to do though. You could make it a bit easier by not re-inventing the selector mechanism and modifying the tunnel cover instead, but that isn't actually the hardest part.  I didn't spend much money but I did spend many, many hours of my time.  As others have commented, there are several easier ways to lower your cruising rpm.

    As for the Vitesse Transmissions conversion, yes, maybe one day.  I've had various conversations with them and they do say they are working on a conversion kit for the Vitesse/GT6 but I was never able to extract an availability date from the them.  Even that would be a fairly heavy duty DIY install though, as you'll either have to pull the engine to get it in or chop a big chunk of the tunnel out.  No other way.  Won't be cheap either.

    • Like 1
  7. On 19/10/2022 at 22:28, Johnc said:

    I have spoken to Newmans ref the cam and it’s a toss up between the PH1 or PH2- the car has an SU HIF44 carb on a dolly inlet manifold and a stainless extractor exhaust manifold straight piped to an R1 box.

    I’d chose the PH1 with that inlet setup. No 13/60 experience, but on a TR6 with EFI (rather different I realise) it idles like a clock at 600 rpm and pulls hard from 1000 rpm. It’s mild timing (less duration that a mk3 Spit cam) with a bit more lift and will be very tractable. You will loose a bit of bottom end with the PH2.

  8. 4 hours ago, Wagger said:

    I have also been considering fitting a Mazda 5 speed conversion as it is lighter.

    You have a source for an MX-5 gearbox conversion for a GT6?

    I know Vitesse Transmissions was working on one, but were struggling a bit.  Maybe they’ve cracked it now but will be £3k+

    As far as I know I have the only GT6 with MX5 gearbox attached to a Triumph 6 in existence. Getting it in there was a bit of a mission.

    Nick

  9. On 18/09/2022 at 11:49, ahebron said:

    I think the most practical fix is a t shirt plate similar to the TR6 one in front of the diff on the underside of the chassis

    Good luck finding a T-shirt plate position that allows you a propshaft and exhaust. Also note the the FEA analysis didn’t rate a single T-shirt plate as a worthwhile addition.  A double (top and bottom of the main rails) T-shirt does better, but is utterly impractical.

    Nick

  10. On 19/09/2022 at 18:38, clive said:

    Chris Jones did a proper thesis of the vitesse chassis. The article was the sept 2020 CT magazine. 

    Nick (his dad) has carried some chassis mods accordingly. 

    Adrian’s link is to Chris’s full dissertation. Well found - we didn’t know it was there!

    My mk2-ish CV was the test victim. I’ve got some fairly scary video clips.

    Bit more here

    https://sideways-technologies.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/5220-nicks-vitesse/page/5/#comments

    bottom of that page and the next couple.

    At “some point” I may add a H-frame, which will mean adding some structure to the bulkhead to pick up on.

    Nick

     

  11. If the sticking returns, a little graphite powder (sold as lock lubricant) in the bendix mechanism works wonders.

    My GT6 starter was persistently troublesome after repeated cleaning. A little graphite transformed it.

    Nick

  12. The SN832 do have a pretty soft sidewall.  Tread is pretty soft too. They are outstanding in the wet. Bit wriggly and skippy in the dry when really pressing on (track, not Road!!) but that resolved when half worn.

    Great budget tyre. I’m determined to wear mine out before they go old & hard 😀

  13. 5 hours ago, Pete Lewis said:

    for normal driving i feel those spacers need removing any work will need the Toe checking after any twiddling 

    Why? Depends what the camber actually is!

    Given that positive camber has never been the best news for cornering grip and that tyre technology has moved on a bit since the factory set those figures, I would suggest that for normal road use you want 0.25 - 0.5 degrees negative camber. Bit more negative if you like to throw it around.

    For caster, go with the factory settings  (3-4 deg iirc) and toe at 1-3mm toe in measured at the tyre tread. Parallel setting sharpens the turn-in a little but wears the inside edges of the tyres a bit quicker and can make it a bit wriggly under heavy braking.

    Don't be afraid to experiment a little. Tyre pressures make a big difference too and the original Triumph specs are odd….

    Nick

    • Like 1
  14. On 27/06/2022 at 13:25, Wagger said:

    Not sure of the journal sizes wrt the 1500 and the 2500 engines,

    Exactly the same. They use the same bearing shells and even the same connecting rods.

     

    On 27/06/2022 at 13:25, Wagger said:

    I would suggest that a sorted 1850 Dolly engine is better than a 1500

    Certainly perform better, but more ways, and more complicated ways to go wrong if you weren’t lucky enough to get a good one.  I liked my 1850 Dolly (purchased as an MoT failure for £75 for its OD gearbox, but as it required only one small welded patch and a pair of wiper blades I decided not to break it). I did nearly 20,000 miles in the year I had it, mostly at motorway speeds, and it was reliable. Engine pulled well to about 4.5k before becoming incredibly coarse and vibratory, so I tended not to rev it!

    Sold it to my brother who got a further high mileage year out of it, at which point things went a bit awry with it eating a gearbox, water pump and a head gasket in quick succession, followed by another suspected head gasket, which turned out to be a crack in one of the bores.

    I did build a new engine for it (family warranty never expires 🙄), which was much sweeter and freer revving, hastening the end of the next gearbox…. It died of tin-worm in the end….

    Nick

  15. 18 hours ago, Colin Lindsay said:

    but that engine was supposed to be very good?

    The 1850….? Very good? 😀

    Other than the common and persistent HGF issues encouraged and complicated by angled head studs, water pump seal and drive problems (very unusual design), timing chain issues and generally being a rather large heavy lump of too modest output…….

    Returning to the OP, I’m not entirely sure why the 1500 seems to give the most bearing problems. It’s generally blamed on the long stroke, though the 2500, which uses the same rods, is even longer. 
     

    My own experiences with the 1500 (in a Herald on Spitfire gearing) was indeed that they did wear out /blow up rather easily, though I eventually cured that by fitting an oil cooler.  Suspect it may be that the block and crank are a bit to flexible, though there are enough powerful, high revving and reliable 1500s out there to demonstrate that they can be made to work.

    Nick

  16. 15 hours ago, NonMember said:

    Modern cars open the air bypass valve or throttle by quite some significant way when you put the autobox in D. And the idle speed still drops. If you have a classic auto and set the neutral idle to where you would on a manual then it WILL stall when you put it in drive. As Pete says, bump the idle up a little.

    What Rob and Pete say.

    It is true that cams used in old school autos have characteristics biased to low end torque and this does mean that they produce more torque at idle and are thus better able to handle the load from engaging drive without excessive rev drop/stalling.

    There are ways around this. The simplest is to add ignition timing advance. They can take a lot of advance at idle. The limiting factors are that: a) you need to modify the distributor advance curve so this doesn’t carry through to excessive advance further up the rev range. b) there’s comes a point where you can’t start the engine as it try’s to run backwards….

    Extra air valves are another route. Plenty of possibilities on older FI cars from 80s and 90s that could be triggered from a micro switch on the linkage.

    Nick

  17. 1 hour ago, Woody2000 said:

    spoke to a old school rolling toad place and he said straight away to change the cam back to standard

    Based on what? It’s been messed with so parts are mis-matched, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it can’t be made to run well without delving into the bowels of the engine. Are you saying it didn’t originally have SUs? What was the Colin Lewis reference in your first post?

    Worth doing a bit of research up front or you might do major work unnecessarily.

    Nick

    ps. Whereabouts are you?

  18. Cranks are NOT different between auto and manual.

    Highly unlikely the block has bearings in the cam way. None did from the factory and to fit them involved line-boring the block so rarely done without good reason.

    taking the head and chain case off to change the cam will be less aggro than a manual gearbox conversion. Unless mk1 as cam needs to be withdrawn through the nose cone……

    What actual cam is fitted now? Could be that carburettors and distributor need recalibrating to get the best from it?

    Nick

  19. 3 hours ago, trigolf said:

    So - have I bought the wrong pads ?

    Technically yes….. but I’m not sure it’s possible to get the right ones for the earlier calipers. Certainly all the sets I’ve had (3x Mintex 1144 and 1x Ferodo DS2500) for the 16Ps on my Vitesse have needed modifications. I just drill out the holes for the bigger pins and relieve the backing plate a little on the inner pad. Works just fine.

    Just bought another set for my GT6 but it has M16 calipers so hopefully they’ll just fit…..

    Nick

  20. 11 hours ago, Pete Lewis said:

    we have had guys on here in the past fitted bronze guides only to find they seize 

    I’ve done two heads now with bronze guides and seals. No seized or sticking valves yet. One has done about 60k….. I’ve also put seals on standard CI guides and they haven’t seized either, though to be fair they were that baggy that seizure would have been amazing…..

    Always nice to find simple (cheap!) causes for what you feared was a complex (expensive) problem 🙂

    Nick

  21. 2 hours ago, Sandy Gibson said:

    I had the engine running with the cover off but didn’t see any water coming up.

    They don't all go through - it depends on the casting.  If it was doing it I think you would have seen it running with the cover off.

    Worth running some more - it can take a while to get the last of the air out.  If there are enough combustion gases escaping into the coolant to blow lots of visible bubbles you can usually smell it as exhaust.

    Could the milkiness of the oil be lots of fine air bubbles rather than water mixing?

     

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