Colin Lindsay

Need a bigger lens... or a macro function, this weather. Anyway: I got bored hanging about upside down in the interior so went back to the engine bay for a marathon session. Nothing on TV on Monday night! All hoses now replaced and shiny new hose clips; distributor refitted with Accuspark electronic ignition, inlet manifold refitted, new gasket and O-ring sealed in place with Loctite MR5922 sealant, bypass tube replaced with new O-rings (I remembered it!), and the thermostat housing helicoiled and refitted. Next step: carbs.Then I'll go back to the electrics after a short break, feeling refreshed and ready to go. I hope.

Here in Northern Ireland we've been disposing of the stuff for years. No problem!

It will unscrew eventually, just be careful not to shear it but as the guys say it's well worth removing and cleaning the area in behind.

http://www.mgaguru.com/mgtech/engine/be100.htm Possibly originally one of the Austin / MG derivatives? The gearbox may well be a later add-on and unconnected to the original car, unless it's been a block from a similar brand that has been reconditioned for a Triumph.

Me too; extend fully, grease, then slide right through and do the same for the other side. Plenty of grease too, not enough to explode the gaiters but enough to get into the important bits inside the rack.

Have you ever noticed how similar some brands of spray adhesive are to engine degreaser? I have. Want to know how I noticed?

Used to use that, but it made me sad... Fairy Liquid used to be the stuff for yellow rubber but full of salt so eats paintwork. Turtlewax have a good gel for it: 'Black in a Flash', I've done a search online and it seems to have changed packaging recently but works well.

Back to the restoration thread again? It's rare for a thermostat to be absolutely air / water tight; it's not like an engine valve. Once it opens there's a greater flow but even when closed a trickle escapes through.

My reading of the above is that tyres which were spotted in use on a track day were then fitted to a citycar for every day use.... but then I've not read all the bits in between.

My father did that on a 1962 Hillman Minx, although in this case it was in the engine bay and when it had worked up enough centrifugal force flew up rather than down and put an enormous dent in the bonnet.

Graham might object. Not having much success so far, even the Staple Shop only has 4mm, and if you do a Bing search there are some really stupid suggestions to other people looking for the same. (Quote: why can't u just use thicker cards?).

A layer of air under the thermostat will delay opening, so the small hole is really just to get any residual air out without affecting the operation, and the jiggle pin keeps it clear of blockages. Re oil: Comma Oil is good, and cheaper than some, but check Tescos, which can often be a source of surprisingly cheap Castrol GTX.

I'd guess that it probably had them when new. They were an optional extra in early cars before becoming standard in 1962, so I'd hardly see anyone in 1965 asking for a non-bumpered Herald as that would make it look dated instead of brand new. The front and rear valences that they fit over rust out, or get damaged, and replacements are usually supplied without the bumpers, so that the owner can add them or leave off as required. These days unless you want full originality, it's your choice whether to fit them or not.

I had Lumax spots on the 948, sold the car and kept the spots! They'll go on my 1200. Eventually.

All depends on whether you want period, or late period.... 60s ones can be pricey but 70s versions are more common, usually because they're plastic rather than chrome. I presume you want round rather than rectangular? (BTW for anyone in that particular area, the Micklegate Antiques shop in York, beside Micklegate Newsagents, had a lovely set of rectangular spots, boxed and new, last time I was there in early November. He was closed as I passed so couldn't check price.)

You could probably keep the cap in place with a couple of heavy-duty cable ties; they'll stop it moving or lifting but obviously will require cutting off when you obtain the correct clips...

You're a star, Tony, go to the top of the class. Sadly that posting means they're not hen's teeth and worth £££££££s. Ah well, back to the grind.

Happened to my other half; even though she was parked and 40 miles away at the time! A car hit the rear of another car, which was pushed across the road and hit an oncoming car who tried to swerve out of the way and hit her parked car. It was as you say a nightmare to sort out, made worse by the fact that her renewal was heavily loaded due to this impending claim, and even when it was sorted we were still out over £800 through no fault of our own.

Should be good for concours, then.. Chris, if your gauge is about a third along, that's correct and where I like mine to be. Half is slightly hotter than I'd prefer and anything above half gets me worried. They don't call them worry gauges for nothing.

That's as close as I've seen so far. Sadly all my searches are spoiled by results for modern Minis, or else wildly alternative wheels and trims, not originals. "Why do you want to fit those boring things, I've got Carlos Fandango Super Wide Wheels" etc yawn yawn. 💤 My sister-in-law had a brown Clubman, I don't remember ever working on the wheels but did replace her car radio, with the result that the first time she switched it on, the car ground to a halt on the road. Oops....

Terrible stuff once it starts to go but there's no real alternative; I've not read of anyone trying to plastic coat it or rebuild the original covering. Many owners just remove it all and paint the bare metal underneath. Some day I'll experiment with different alternative coatings to see what looks good, but for the moment it's Magnolia Hammerite as a fairly close match to the original.

Are you sure it's not off-set? It's not usually by much, but makes a difference to the fit of the key. I had to nip out to the garage and grab a spare, possibly from a 6 cylinder so there may be a difference, but even with a very crude measurement it looked to be slightly under 2mm off-set. It is possible, and very easily too, to get the distributor 180 degrees out, even if you think it isn't. I trust yours is flush with the mounting? Top pic shows full mesh, lower pic shows 180 degrees out and so won't drop in properly to the drive. Try a 180 degree rotation of the rotor arm with the clamp fully released and then see if it drops down any further. Good or new O rings on the distributor can require a little bit of pressure before it drops fully into place; lubricate with a bit of engine oil to make things easier.

Yep solder cracks, crimps get moisture, it's like Brexit, some are for, some against, so I'll just got for both. The heat of the solder will drive the moisture out of the crimp. Belt and braces. It also looks quite pretty when it drips onto rubber mats and makes a lovely silver splash, like a shiny snowflake...

Is it large enough to cover all my... eventualities?

I've just found that out of the total of 14 about six have a BL logo on the underside of the cap. I'm assuming the wheelnuts held on some kind of centre plastic trim, as in the Dolomite, and then the cap went over the nut, but am no further on so far.