johny

One thrust always gets a much harder life being the one that resists the action of the clutch and I bet thats the custom one...

No expert but think youre going to struggle on this one as the shell, unlike the chassis, doesnt really have any accurate reference points. Normally the body is fitted to the chassis, after that has been confirmed to be within tolerance, and then adjusted to get the various gaps correct....

I wonder if the old filters were really restricted so making the mixture rich and that now youve replaced them its running much weaker so needs more choke? If this is the case you need to reset the carb mixtures to be correct for the new filters...

Its coming together! Deep breaths and plenty of meditation prior to starting the methodical, planned surgical procedure😁

The pistons go right to the top of their travel Paul as not doing so could make the car driveable but not able to develop full power?

No, although good figures they dont give any indication of the condition of the components Ive listed that have an effect on oil loss... However one thing at a time so the power loss, which I dont think is related to oil consumption, is the first thing to sort out👍

Oil can only go one way (other than leaks of course) and thats burnt in cylinder due to out of spec rings, bores or valve guides. It should show as blue smoke but may only be visible to someone following you who should note exactly when and how it appears ie puffs, continuous etc. As suggested a full compression test will also be useful....

carb float levels all ok and working properly?

Got to be fuel related surely? Cant think of anything on ignition that would be affected purely by hills...

Wow they could have made a better job of the arrangement for heat transfer from coil to block then!

yes the centre of the steering wheel should push in to operate the horn. The whole assembly is just a push fit so get your finger nails in that joint and pull it off. Inside there should be a 'pencil' like spring loaded contact that fits through an interior hole in the steering wheel boss to rub against a track to make the circuit...

Certainly there have been problems reported with Accuspark type units (apart from being connected the wrong way round as sometimes happens) but you have to remember that some product issues do actually get resolved and then of course its very difficult to get rid of the reputation once gained! As I say I do think you need to carry a replacement for whichever type you fit so my idea is to have the most convenient....

I wonder if getting the absolute weakest mixture that will still allow the engine to run satisfactorily even makes much difference to fuel economy because perhaps theres a drop in power which you have to make up for by opening the throttle more anyway...

yes in my experience the car lets you know when youve adjusted the carbs too lean as it bogs down. I know that in theory you can do damage to an engine running too weak but think thats only likely to happen with air leaks and if purely jet setting youre going to know about it...

The horn is normally controlled by a centre push in the middle of the steering wheel via a sliding contact to a purple and black wire which on some models operates a relay and others the horns directly...

Garages love to suggest changing stuff as it generates income, plain and simple! Ignition is generally not a problem on our cars and even points work well enough so the only reason for changing to electronic is to save the maintenance involved not, despite what people might say, more power, economy, smoothness or any other excuse. The disadvantage of electronic systems is that if they fail (and they all will at some point) youre stuck by the side of the road changing the unit and trying to reset the timing. For this reason I have Accuspark fitted and keep a cheap spare unit (just sensor from ebay 11 pounds delivered) in the car which I can change over in 5 mins using the small allen screws without affecting the timing....

Dont know if they make looms for every possible configuration but anyway probably too late to change to change it now. As Matt says there should be another brown wire by the starter solenoid that goes to an inline fuse where it changes to purple and supplies the horn relay. However if as stated the horn relay should be external then its wires are missing as well so have to find where they are (inside?) and mount the relay there plus carry out the additional wiring mod I previously suggested...

I still have a slight noise when rotating the wheels by hand but its not noticeable when driving and the drums certainly dont get heated....

well the coil is easily sorted as it just needs the small spade lug with hole in it to bolt to the terminal and take the white cable connection. Then the starter solenoid looks to already have the required spade on the incoming main terminal (or if not would need another bolting to it) but the missing brown wire is more problematic. As you say this should supply the horn relay via an inline fuse but doesnt seem to be present in the new loom and quite possibly is replaced by a purple wire from the fuse box to the horn relay as per later models. To keep your wiring as close as possible to standard while using the easiest solution perhaps it would be best to feed this horn relay purple wire through an inlne fuse using a new brown wire from the incoming terminal of the main light switch? This would be easy to do under the dash and keeps things pretty close to original....

You definitely got the shoes as close as possible to the drums? Mine almost rub as the drums are never going to be perfectly round...

Obviously once the covers off but before undoing anything else look for marks on the sprockets and backplate as they might be present and indicating an error. If they are then correct the error and finally check the timing by an alternative method... I suspect the components will all be in good condition (however inspect everything closely) but apart from the gasket and seal the chain tensioner is the item that wears fastest and as new ones are pretty cheap you might want to have one spare.

Yes having time to do the job is important as any pressure is likely to make things more difficult and/or go wrong. I would use your garage, doing it step by step and consulting on here about any doubts or confirmation that might be required...

Any advance (pun intended) in this intriguing case?

Glad youve justified my laziness in not replacing the old spring washers with new ones Pete😁

You need a short screwdriver and use it upside down, pretty much blind, to undo the two screws in the roof of the glove box👍