chrishawley

Ah yes, a photo does does not necessarily give the full picture. tubes: where the bolts on the brackets go through the chassis. The hole on the outer face and hole on the inner face has a little tube running between - fixed in place. Such that as the bracket is tightened up the inner face of the chassis does not just 'crush'. But could only be an issue if repairs had been made in this area - which they haven't - which is good.

As above, but just to ask: On the upper pin of the damper have you got the correct dome cap under the nut? It helps the bush to keep its shape. Also, although the nut (or originally two plain nuts, locked) holds the assembly together it doesn't need to be particularyly tight. Relaxing the nut a bit may reduce 'muffin-ness' but that necessitates removing the unit from the car and using the compressor again. Picking up on Mathew's point; I'm not quite fully convinced that all is ok with the rear wishbone bracket. From the 'photo it does look like it's not sitting square and the eye of the arm is not sitting centrally in the wings of the bracket. The eyes don't necessarily sit dead central in the brackets but the 'photo seems to suggest that the eye is tight up at the rear. Was remedial welding required in the ares of either of the brackets? And were the crush tubes inside the chassis rail present and correct?

Going back to the top of this thread: The answer is 5/8 UNF which is 18 tpi. Here's a photo of a Dolomite 1500 where there (original) connector is 3/8UNF (18 tpi, I checked) on both the engine side and the filter side. Anything that's (in this context) 16 tpi has to be 3/4 UNF (16 tpi in UNC would be comparatively tiny). For questionable situations I suppose one could say 'if in doubt....measure'. i've never had reason to think about this before. On the strength a pervious posting in 2016 I bough a job lot of NOS Unipart GFE442s which will (lierally!) be a lifetimes supply.

It’s a long, looonngg, time since I owned a MkI so please treat any comments below as ‘thoughts’ rather than opinions. For sure, the green light in the dash is (meant to be) the direction indicator warning light. It should pick up its feed from the third terminal of the flasher unit (the wire colour of which is unspecified on the wiring diagram). But PO has made it a common connection to the whites on the back of the ignition switch. But does what is now an ignition-switched twelve volt feed terminate to earth at the bulb or does it have a forward feed to something? For example; if PO has done an alternator conversion has he used this as the alternator charge light? I’m a bit bamboozled by the modern relay. It’s a switchover relay with terminals 87 and 87a. As far as I can see from the photo it only has three wires going to it. For an SOR to function it would have five connections usually. Or could just have four if it were just being used as a make-break relay. But if only three I don’t see what it can be doing other than just being a passive conductor of current. If abused, it could well be faulty by now. There would be sooo much to be said for removing that relay. But an added complication is then that the relay currently has purple wires connected to it. But AFAIK there were no purple wires on these looms other than PY to the horns. So that leaves a question about what has been modded. (Although the captive wires on the column switches often had colours that did not correspond to the colours of the wire to which there were connected). How about the fuse box? On the bottom fuse I can see two red wires which would be the feed out to front and rear side lights. But I can’t see anything going in on the other side of the fuse, in particular an RedGreen coming from the master light switch. Is it floating free somewhere? Lastly, as already mentioned, the voltage stabiliser. Some electronic VSs will burn out if not earthed. For the time being this could be removed just to exclude one more factor. Simply connect the two green cables to the green/light green one to bypass it. The effect will be that fuel can temp gauges will tend to read high but a new one can be popped in at any stage when the more major problems are sorted. But, like I say, ‘thoughts, not opinions.

Little black boxes on the wiring diag. are bullet connectors. A 'fat' recentangle is double connector (two in, two out all common) and skinny recentangle is a single bullet connector. BCs are, of course, very common failure point. Having the correct interconnections between master light switch and column has been mentioned above. But perhaps worth highlighting that the column switch recieves +ve power in twofold manner: once via the master switch and once via a fused connection commoned off the back of the ignition switch unfused live (brown). Maybe worth checking the condition of the column switch. Can become quite corroded internally and not infrequently the soldered connections on the back are either broken or hanging on by a gnats, giving variable behaviour.

Following from a previous thread: It just so happens I've been given some Mini front shocks so thought I might give them a try on them back of the GT6 which currently has bracket conversion but with standard 'Spitfire' shocks. First: Could I get a reality check on some dimensions? Would I be right in thinking that a 'standard' shock has a closed-open range of (approx) 255 to 320mm? The Mini shocks I've got measure 215 to 325mm. So on that basis it's an inch and a half extra travel on upward deflection but no change where downward deflection is concerned. Have I got that right? Second: The bushes in the eyes of Mini shocks are 3/8 inch. And the GT6 requires 1/2 inch. I can always get bespoke bush turned up if need be, but I wondered if there's a nifty or off the peg method to save me the effort. Any ideas? (The only non-standard feature on my rear is 3/4 inch lowering block which corrects the height to about what it should be (about 610 mm ground to lip of wheel arch). But it's a new rebuild so I'm expecting some settling over time. )

Just to embellish Clive's answer a bit: If all has gone well then 95%, say, of the shine shoud be evident at the compounding stage leaving a polish with only a little work to do: a single application just to brighten the finish. Similarly; the more any defects (nibs, orange peel, fisheyes, scracthing etc) are corrected at the wet'n'dry stage the less work the compound has to do. An ideal situation is where the flatting stage has yeilded a defect free, even, satin, finsh and then a single going over with compound will suffice. The 'dose' of G3 or G3 is probably about half to one teaspoon per sq foot (ish) Do let us know how you get on.

I like Autoglym SRP: It's really a final polish but does have a very fine cutting action as well. But it's a big jump from 1500 or even 2000 grit wet'n'dry to a final polish. So to get a fair finish in a realistic amount of time an intermediate mopping step with G6 or G3 would be a usual thing to do. So, yup, G3 after the wet'n'dry. -------- -------- I'm mindful though that the final finishing of paint is a whole art in itself and every operator (pro and amateur alike) has 'what works for them' according to requirements, resources, budget etc etc. A mate of mine is an automotive painter knocking out several jobs a day and his standard process is: 1200 wet'n'dry by hand > G6 by mop > 3M Finesse by mop > Any wax by hand I'd be interested ot know what other processes members use.

Possibly 'Best Buy' would be 1kg of G3 at £15 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/113803020298?epid=1228449864&hash=item1a7f30480a:g:A1YAAOSw5ZRdEK2M G3 is a somewhat finer grade than G6 but still pukkah stuff. 1kg will do a whole car. Beware cheapies claiming 'quantum nanotechnology infused with sustainable gravitational waves...etc' - likely to be false economy.

Yup. Wood much too severe. I use: • flats (not tips) of fingers for for general, light, correction • foam block for faster work on wider areas (upcycled from an old foam kneeling pad cut to handy shapes/sizes) • water-soaked cork block for ocassional 'severe' situations (e.g nibs. runs, sags)

There is so, sooo, much that could be said on this topic and a wide range of practices according to experience and operator preferences. But to tackle a just a few points: Electric polishers ('mops') are pretty much a standard requirement for getting a bright finish when refinishing. But an essential feature is that the tool must be powerful enough not to stall on the worked surface or burning results. A professional Rupes polisher is £300 - £500 and a £27 tool may not perform up to this level. While 1200, 1500, 2000 (etc) grit abrasive discs can be used (with a suitable soft interface pad) on a mop, this is precarious without considerble experience. Safer to stick with hand flatting and not risk sanding through to primer (or basecoat, if applicable). Avoidance of scoring marks when flatting involves: absolute cleanliness, cicular motion, constantly soaking-wet paper and rinsing the paper in a bucket of very soapy water every thirty seconds. Having flatted to the desired degree then comes mopping. First step is a flat, hard, foam pad with a fairly severe-cutting compund. The advertising blurb for the polisher you've chosen rather sidesteps the fact that a litre of cutting compound will cost about as much as the tool. Farecla G6 is a widely accepted standard. Starting tips for cutting include: liberal application of compound to the work (not the pad), working on limited areas at a time (e.g 1 sq foot), mop head to be continually rewetted by dunking in fresh clean water then spinning off and consistent moderate pressure into the work. The finish can then be titivated using a fine grade compound (such as Farecla G10 or 3M Finesse but more ££s) on a soft mop; but quite often the finish with G6 wil be nice enough to proceed directy to hand finishing with one's favorite wax polish. 2-pack cuts and polishes best while still soft (e.g. 24 - 48 hours after application). Older, fully hardened, paint is more challenging and harder work.

The door strap is really important. If it lets go (as it's on the very cusp of doing) a freely swinging door can result in a lot of secondary damage (as well as being unsafe). It's been subject to prior bodgery: There's evidence of prior use of a welder and there is recent paint on the edges of the ripped metal (i.e it's received paint with the failure already evident). Close inspection of the photo show not only rust crawling up behind the upper hinge plate but also a crack extending down behind the lower plate (again with paint in the crack). All repairable - but intricate and time consuming and potentially £££s if not DIY. But before embarking on repairs I'd have a serious look at the front seam (door skin lip to door frame). It looks markedly decayed, but has been painted nonetheless. It may be that more general repair is needed or to source a door in better condition (do you have a paint code or paint name for the current colour of the car?) On an easier note: Have you sorted the oil leak? If not, have you excluded a leak from crankshaft seal on the timing chain cover? Usually evident after a hot run and a teardrop may be visble, as the car cools, which may either drip to the ground or track around the sump gasket.

I had a comparable situation this week: Square-head plug with the 7/16th square rounded off to something indeterminate. Although super-tight, the real problem was gaining a purchase. Cutting a long story short; I got lucky with a 12mm (bi-hex) ring end of a combination spanner. With a couple of stout hammer blows it was possible to drive the 12mm ring right to the base of what remained of the square head. A steel tube slid over the spanner then provided the degree of leverage required. Partly luck here: had the plug been any less mullered the 12mm ring wouldn't have gone on at all; had it been any more mullered then it'd been too loose a fit. Poss worth a try if the only other alternative is having to remove the sump.

Comparing 185/60 r13 (say) 155/80/ r13 that's about a 5% reduction in rolling radius; so what was for example 4000rpm will now be 4200. The body of the car would be lowered by about half an inch in relation to the ground. But if the underlying concern is something unstable about the rear suspension there may be matters to consider other than tyres. For example if 'twitch' at the rear takes the form of 'bunnyhopping' or 'sidestepping' then examination of the toe-in would be warranted. Which would be either a DIY job or a laser alignment jod depending on one's resources, skills, wallet and opinion.

Ditto all of the above.

I've had both at one time or another. The FG one had the virtue of being cheap and kept the car on the road against a limited budget. But that was the only virtue. The worst aspect of FG bonnet was that, lacking the heft and relative rigidity of the steel one, it was prone to flex and lift at speed. Sure, this could apply equally well to a steel bonnet if fitted poorly, but FG was particularly problematic. The general fit was not too bad at all, but the appearance was not nice: The FG always looked like what it was - the economy option. For example; in order to have louvres for the scuttle air intake and for the bonnet latches it's DIY fretwork which leaves coarse cut egdes. And perhaps to take into account the greater challenges in painting fibreglass as compare to steel. For example; cracks in the gelcoat or inadvertently sanding through the gelcoat requiring significant expertise to correct.

Just wondering which aspects of the procedure you need extra information on. If one takes sections 3.122 to 3.126 in conjunction with 4.121 to 4.126 (of the 512947 op.s manual) are those sufficiently comprehensive? Or am I missing what's missing?

Did that include direct observation of the fuel level in the float chamber? i.e float chamber reomved for inspection? I'd be guessing that an uppermost cause of non-start after work on fuel lines is an obstructed needle valve in the carb due to general detritus or rubber shards. Easy diagnosis but does involve removal of carb and partial disassembly. If carb has not been apart in years then a new float chamber gasket will be needed on reassembly. Does throttle air valve fall with a nice click on to the bridge? If not, and the top cover has been removed recently and all is clean, slacken the four retaininng screws and gradually and sequentially retighten, repeatedly checking for free fall of the valve.

I'm not totally 100% sure of this but: If it's the standard chassis bracket adapters you have then that's a common fitment to the GT6 Mk3 roto. And that in turn has a standard shock that is common fitment to Spitfire. And that is commonly listed as GDA4011; generic versions are available around £40 pair. A smaller supplier like Quiller Triumph may be more helpful than the big names (Rimmers, Moss) in sorting out what's right. Tel: 01825 873551 Email: quillertriumph@gmail.com I've got 'generics' on the back of my GT6 and they're fine for day-to-day driving conditions.

Probably new screen, if poss. Micky mouse products (i.e virtually anything on amanzon/ebay) are pointless. A serious product like 3M glass polish can revive 'tired' glass but at £40 per litre plus more ££s for pads/arbors etc it's not a cheap option. Also slow, tedious and messy work. I've managed to improve the appearance of some otherwise irrepplaceable glass using 3M. But if scratches are 'finger nail depth' it's a lost cause. It's possible to soften the edges of such scratches but full removal is not to be expected. I've not had it happen but: the glass gets VERY hot when polishing and fracture is a possibility.

Just wondering if you've made any progress with your problems? Given you've gone from occassional misfire to (presumably) permanent non-fire on one cylinder an inference would be that one plug was 'on the edge' already and any other minor factor has taken it over (or under?) the edge. Given that #2 already has unsolved issues that does seem a likely candidate. For myself, as a diagnostic, I'd replace all four plugs with brand new ones before pursuing other matters. Either a favourable or unfavourable result will indicate whether the plugs, per se, are the diagnosis. If plug #2 is fouling, going one grade hotter on the plugs would be possible, at least temporarily, while sorting things out. That would be Champion N12Y or NGK BP5ES as per Spitfire 1500. As an aside; worth a check that any replacement HT leads/distributor cap make a firm connection. On mine (repro items) they were loose enough ot jump out of their own accord and needed a fix. Hope you're making progress.

Another position to explore for the hazard relay is one the engine bay side of the bulkhead. Just behind where the positive terminal of the battery is, there will be two or three relays mounted on little brackets (flasher relay, horn relay and, if fitted, overdrive relay). Perhaps the single most common cause of non-hazard flashing is simply detachment of (one or more) of the spade connectors on the back of the hazard switch itself. But if attending to the switch; extract it very carefully and make copius notes of the terminal positions of the wires. It can be very tedious having to them out afresh.

The chrome always flaked of nuts which is why the later ones had the little 'v's cut into the edges to try and restrain that tendency - didn't work. Hence stainless. Rimmers, Canley and Moss all have photos of the nuts which have the right shape. But given the prevalence of hopeless imitations I'd be most particular that what is sold is actually what is pictured. The nuts are , in essence, just hex bar that's been turned down. Although the dome is polished, the faces never have been, from any supplier. It's down to the owner to polish the faces which is a slow and tedious business. Took me two days to do my set, even once I worked out a good method that didn't take the sharpness of the edges of the hex.

Might one add valve spring compressor? Not sure it counts as 'special tool' but possibly weighing scales with a fine resolution (<1g) if you're particular about weighing the pistons and con rods and pairing them up by weight. Are the valve guides being removed/replaced? If so, worth considering what might be required in that respect (opinions vary, so I'll duck the specifics on that one). Materials, if not already to hand: Gasket maker (e.g Wynn's, V.Reinz) 200ml should do it: Copperslip for where it is appropriate (and not where it isn't!).

Very much to your credit to change the tyres on the basis of age. I very nearly came a cropper in that respect ; running around on 2008 tyres which 'looked fine' untill I removed them to paint the wheels. On removal it was evident how frail they were. And deformed as well. So before getting deeply involved in steering geometry it might be worth just seeing how the vehicle feels when freshly shod. As for spoilers: I don't know of any firm evidence about these. But when introduced (on mid-run Mk4 Spit) it was the opinion at the time that they were significantly beneficial handling-wise. If yours is a late, non-roto, GT6 then by rights it would have had the spoiler in any case. So liitle to lose by giving a spoiler a go. I had a hard time sorting out the 'twitchiness' on my GT6 (roto) after rebuild. Long story and more than one factor was involved; incorrect anti-roll bar, worn steering UJ, loose steering column, excessive tyre pressures and severely incorrect (too little) caster on left front suspension. Thus handling issues may not just be about adjusting things but assessing all components of the steering/suspension for wear or deterioration. If the vehicle doesn't feel right at speed then there is the potential influence of modified spring rate and shock stiffness. And whether stiffer is actually better or not for the particular requirements. A Hands Off test can be informative. On a straight, even, clear road lift hands (just) off the steering wheel at a modest speed (e.g. 50 mph). Vehicle should 'hold it's own line' without wandering or deviating for a good distance (e.g half a mile). If immediate correction is need then something needs attention.