Colin Lindsay

Water slide transfers currently available, I think Paddocks have them. I never saw stick-on versions, but they would be handy. I cleaned a few horribly faded cowlings with everything from toothpaste to T-Cut a while back, some of them responded amazingly well even to just body polish but most faded back again within a few weeks. I ended up blasting and repainting the early metal cowls, which at least keep a good shiny black finish. I think out of all the cowlings used, the overdrive version is the only one still available new.

The 1200 Estate has been getting all the attention this week, although the 13/60 petrol cap did decide to stay locked on and wouldn't budge earlier. Yes, it's that time of year again, the grass needs cut, the rain stopped for a morning, and the lawnmower had no fuel. Let's steal some from the Herald. Herald of course wasn't having any of it - or giving any of it - so the cap refused to budge. I tried a few manoeuvres and contortions to no avail, eventually having to overtighten the cap so that it popped off in the wrong direction. Nothing appears damaged, it went back on again and locks as it should. Just one of those days when it doesn't want to play. I'm getting to that dramatic moment where the interior of the 1200 Estate is finished - not to a high standard in places, I must admit, as the wheelarch covers are woefully full of wrinkles and the seats really need recovering, but I did fix the front seat problem by swapping the seats over on the bases and they now seat almost perfectly on the rails. I had forgotten the amount of legroom there is in anything other than the convertible, and can actually get my legs under the steering wheel. I finished the carpet fitting and attached the long trim under the dashboard, which really does make a difference. I'm waiting on gasket material for the C-posts; I got a pad of 1.25mm rubber but despite being perfect in all other respects it's too thin, so am waiting for two more of 2mm and 3mm to see which is best. One major outstanding job was the finishing of the passenger door. It was stripped out completely for reskinning and painting many years ago, and never properly rebuilt. I don't like working on door interiors, it's painful and at the time of typing am wearing a latex glove on one hand to keep the plasters on and the blood off the keys while my wrist looks like a failed suicide attempt. I removed everything from the door - it's much easier to fit the two top trims with no glass at all. I was pleasantly surprised that I got the clips in place and the trims fitted as well as I've ever done it, first time. The glass went back in - had to remove the door stiffener which I had left in place - then the quarterlight assembly which was loosely tightened. One big problem which became apparent soon after was that I had rebuilt the glass with restored runners, new rubber seal, and a new plastic water shield in heavy plastic. Unfortunately I had attached the plastic sheeting to the inside, not the outside, so the winding mechanism couldn't reach the runners. I had to cut two horizontal slots with a scalpel and hope that it wouldn't foul the mechanism, but happily it doesn't. Next job was finding a rear glass channel; I had two in a dark corner of the garage but both badly worn. Many years ago I bought channel rubber material, and have enough left for about four doors, just in case. First step is to clean all of the old material plus sealant out of the channel, then position the new channel in the metal outer. It needs to be fed into place, carefully and with loads of patience as it will fight the whole time and try to spring out again. Once actually squeezed into place it does stay put, though. Working down the entire length, it does eventually all squeeze in and stay in place. I then left it overnight to conform to shape before removing again and this time using glue. Leaving it to settle means it doesn't fight as hard when glued down so is less messy. Once the glue has gone off slightly the rubber can be finally positioned, I have tried a suitably sized Allen key before now but then found that the rectangular bar from a house door handle is the perfect width and profile to fit into the channel and be pressed fully inwards with a vice. Left to dry, it fitted first time and the glass was tensioned with the wire strip around the two channels before all was tightened up. The wire strip clips to the door frame with a metal clip and this has very sharp edges, which I found out soon enough right across the side of my hand and quite deep. After suitable bandaging, the door was more or less finished bar the remote door lock lever, which has lost its' circlip and which said circlip is currently NLA. I know I have at least one, but where... but that's the door complete otherwise. I even refitted new grommets to cover the screw heads. Last job on the interior, bar the door seals and carpet edge strips, will be to fit this nice period radio console and radio. It's been in my garage many years, so I'll mess about with it over the next few days and get it fitted before the roof goes on and I lose the freedom of standing up in the interior. I actually have both fitting instructions and fitting kit, which is rare for me, so all being well it will be a simple job. After that roof, glass, rear hatch, chrome trims... and startup. Which I'm dreading. I think if I attach the battery and it goes bang, I'll happily sigh:" Told you so!" and leave it for another ten years.

Hi Roger; I haven't yet experimented with circlips, that's for the future... I'll take it to my local Hardware emporium later in the week, they're used to me trial-fitting odd bits but I'm wary of fitting something metric that may spring off due to being too tight or fall off due to being to loose, and of course once the door trim card is back on. If you wish to part with two originals I'll also be very happy!

I know I have at least one of these in the garage, found it the other day and put it away safely. And have forgotten where. I also know I stole one from the red 1200 for the white 13/60, so need at least two. All the major suppliers are listing it as NCA or NLA but before I head off to the local Hardware tomorrow for the modern metric equivalent is anyone selling them at all?

No, it's an interference fit (If that's the correct term) as the cone of the axle progressively widens into the vertical link, and when fitted there's a slight gap visible round the rear edge - see photos - so the torque tells you it's seated, but the first one I ever did back in the 1990s seemed to be seated until a good friend spotted that there was room to go still, and told me to redo it, and I promptly stripped the threads on the nut trying to torque it to the correct place by force alone. After that I always gave it a bit of assistance before tightening. I also have a 'new' one on my shelf since the 1990s that drops out if no nut is used. I wonder are there manufacturing 'tolerances' too for new axles, which may not be an absolute perfect fit and require fettling? In any case I just dislike drawing it fully home on the threads alone, me being me I'll break it.

My current Z3 is my first BMW, and dating from 1998 doesn't suffer from the same problems that more modern versions do eg loads of electronics and sensors. Sadly there's not the same network of parts suppliers that Triumphs have, so spare parts usually involve going straight to BMW and paying over the odds even for small parts such as nuts and bolts - even provided you can identify the spare part required as firstly there are dozens of variations of any model (front springs differ depending on engine configuration and car spec, for example) and secondly there are no exploded diagrams as on some of our more helpful Triumph suppliers' sites, nor any 'home maintenance' manuals, even the Haynes manual applies to many models and not just the Z3. We really are spoiled with our cars for both good suppliers and good home-maintenance manuals by the dozen. The BMW on-line forums are the same as any marque; sneer at the 1.8, slightly less at the 1.9 (who on EARTH wants a four pot??? WHY???) and you're no-one unless you have a replacement body-part of a 6-pot with suitable enhancements. I've already been told that my 1.9 at 1897cc is actually a 1.8 and has the wrong exhaust, but thankfully this has been corrected by those who really know.

Pull up a chair instead. Each to his own... but I've found this to be a more and more recurring view amongst drivers: why buy something old rattly and uncomfortable when you can buy and drive a more modern car which is more relaxing and enjoyable, especially over long journeys? Drive whichever gives you pleasure. I enjoy working on all mine, ranging from 1960 to 2015, but which one I drive on any particular day depends on my mood. And the weather.

They can be a very tight fit in the housing and no amount of tightening the nyloc will pull them right in; you may just end up stripping threads. Use the old-school physics method of freezing the stub axle and heating the upright, contract one and expand the other, and be sure they're fully seated before tightening and certainly before rebuilding and using.

As long as those washers are not necessary spacers, to clear any obstruction at the rear of the gearbox, then I'd trial-fit it first. The rubber mounting should be as vertical as possible with no stress. If you can fit the gearbox and support the rear at a height that will match the fully fitted position, then trial-fit the plate and rear mounting to see how it looks. You'll have some movement with the slots, but the rear mount can be reversed to take up any gap or to fit more vertical as required.

True, I was working from memory and had forgotten that!! Apologies to fungus.

Thread drift here we go... HP are terrible, the printer I have repeatedly refuses to find the wifi despite being four feet from it. When I asked HP why the software they supplied, and the online fault finder, didn't work it was "because my 2017 Mac was too old". The printer is the same age or slightly older. DPD Parcel delivery... we have a depot 200 yards away, but when I called in recently they don't do pickups from there, only their office about 18 miles away. I drove over and staff there told me they don't do pickups manually at reception any more, just order online and the van will pick it up. I drove home, went through the procedure online, and eventually a human who came on to replace the bot told me they don't collect anywhere in Northern Ireland at all. It seems even the local staff don't know that. Some of the online 'bots'.... 'what can we help you with today?', then they go through a dozen questions, then tell me 'expert' advice will cost me money so get ready to pay if I want to go any further. My stock reply is now: "Nothing, at the price you charge" although with DPD it's now: "Can you stop your drivers from dumping their breakfast and coffee containers on the road as they drive out of the depot?" James Paddock score very highly with me, they'll phone up on receipt of an online order just to confirm it's the correct part as sometimes it's 1200, sometimes 13/60 and ofttimes another car for someone else completely. That's good customer service.

Your bottom pic makes sense, spire clips and setscrews on the top two and a bolt through the lower with the stay bracket sandwiched between the body clip and the tank itself.

Neglecting to drain the compressor and turning the bluetooth speaker off every day are my two biggest failings. If a unit on standby uses a few pounds per year this thing has run for about four years without out ever being turned off, just the iPod is stopped and it goes to sleep by itself.

And yet the advice is NOT to oil the cables, but use grease... anyway that's our homework for the next while, find out what the screw in the angledrive actually does. I've asked Speedograph of Richfield if they know.

The other option is to either get a long thin arm with a long thin hand with long thin fingers - or anything that resembles same - up behind the glovebox to the top and press the latch downwards from behind; hopefully it will move downwards enough to open. A long thin screwdriver or homemade metal lever manoeuvered up behind may be able to reach the catch where it sits between the metal sides and depress it. (Or bend the metal bracket upwards) OR: open the lock with a screwdriver to break the tumblers, then replace the lock. You may be able to get a replacement lock with the same key.

I've been trying to contact QuickfitSBS re two sets of Herald seatbelts using the e-mail on their website - it returns to me as 'undeliverable'. They still send me a newsletter FROM that e-mail and with the same e-mail address listed for contact but I can't reach them. If I phone I need to have the whole order written out first and the webpage open in front of me and then talk the person on the other end through it ie "webbing 17 with bracket AP7 on the tunnel end, AP8 on the top and a single-screw bracket that MIGHT be AP11 on the other end, plated NOT chromed, etc etc" whereas I can explain it all in an e-mail, as they're sometimes not standard factory fittings, and send photos if necessary. (I would almost rather drive 50 miles to talk to someone face to face than use phones, some mornings I need to be psyched up for phone calls, but in the early 1990s I called in with a company restoring Reliant Scimitars on the mainland, their ad said: "Call in, the kettle is always on." It wasn't. I got some very dirty looks for mentioning coffee.)

That took a bit of finding... almost two coffees! I found this post on a USA Triumph forum: "Well folks. After speaking to Peninsula Imports on this Moss angle drive, they dont know what the set screw is for. Then, consulting the tech support at Moss, they dont know either. They did advise not to put any lube (oil drop) into it. Simple snug up the set screw and install. The spindle and drive seemed to operate well once the set screw was snugged up." And this one-liner on a different forum: "The small screw is a grub screw that keeps the internals in place." That one is probably the one I remember from way back given that it also refers to 'internals'. I think it fits into a groove, so that once removed you can pull the workings out, which does require some force. I'm NOT going to dismantle mine to check, (have loads of components in bits from previous attempts to see how they work!) but the setscrew / groove assembly may allow a small degree of movement of the gears and thereby avoid wear or damage in use as the entire unit flexes on the mountings.

The small screw lets the internals fall out... so don't remove it! Here's a few original tips from Smiths:

Thread drift alert - apologies John - but if you ever watch the ads for the 'Million Pound House' Omaze draw on TV, they give away the house, plus usually a 4x4, plus furniture etc... THEN the small print states that a minimum of £100,000 goes to the advertised charity. So: they must make enough to cover outlay, advertising etc and it would seem to substantially outweigh the end donation to the charity. I didn't win the TR7 for £1 at Doune many years ago, so gave up on draws.

Excellent - thanks for the update!! I (think) I have an early rack from a MK1 chassis in the garage loft, must just compare it with the later versions for curiosity's sake. Hopefully I haven't already used it on a later chassis and not realised... I think the early racks are 3.6 turns lock to lock as opposed to the later 3.7.

As Pete says just unscrew the pipe on top of the tank and see what condition it's in. Be aware that there may - only may - be a rubber grommet around the pipe at the threaded union, there would have been one originally but many have disappeared over time so if disturbed you can get a smell of fuel from the tank when refitted. You can always seal it using a fuel-resistant sealer, but that means you can't use the reserve facility. I remember a few members having Spitfire tank conversions - the argument seemingly being that they were safer than Herald tanks - but this means cutting the rear deck and having the filler cap on top. I'm not happy with my 13/60 tank, the sender sealing ring at the rear seemed unwilling to stay in place when I refurbished it a while back, and while I've fitted it according to instructions and rotate-jammed it in place I'm worried about the sender jumping out if the car hits a bump. Wouldn't happen with the screw-in type! Anyone tried the new tanks?

Different vertical links for early and late models, but the early ones used the same upright for drum or disc brakes. I think the actual steering arm is the same size in both. I can't find any difference in steering racks, the track certainly differed between 48 and 49 inches but none of the manuals I have make any reference to different sizes, procedures or fitting - I'm wondering is this new rack has been built up using the spec from another model, and no-one has informed the vendor / manufacturer? It wouldn't be the first component manufactured incorrectly but no-one ever told the maker, and oftimes they're glad to be told so they can correct their assembly.

Not to mention when it freezes into solid ice whilst draining, so stops hissing... just until the cat goes over to explore then it goes bang again with an almighty hiss and the poor cat leaps up to the roof. I must admit to forgetting to drain the compressor for a few days or so, and the water build-up is amazing. (Just ran out and drained it after this morning's work!)

T D Fitchett sell rear overriders on eBay, I presume pressed on the original tooling, £75 each £9 postage "never been fitted, OE part". There's also a company called 'Chromeworld' selling what I presume are rechromed versions, but the wording of the ad "Real nice" puts me off. I think my boot carpet was Newtown Commercial so yes £75 +. Another option for the boot mat is to buy one of the large luggage-area rubber mats, about £15, and trim to size, but obviously not carpet. That eBay handle looks correct, Herald versions are very plain with no embossing or other embellishment, such as the Morris Minor has, but that one is the same shape as three of mine.

A little bit of info on spring types and rates per model: