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SixasStandard

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Posts posted by SixasStandard

  1. 2 hours ago, Pete Lewis said:

    the olde mix and match of classic ownership or ...  as  my Dad always said they have more reasons to sell it than you have to buy it 

    so with that in mind we go out and buy a headache   we have all been their at some time in life

    looks like its has an alloy head so presume thats from a  Arrow...Hunter/Rapier  spec, the super minx as far as i remember used a cast iron head

    keep smiling it will all be good before long 

    Pete 

     

     

    I think the engine is a standard Alpine unit that has been rebuilt with a replacement 1725cc block from a Super Minx. It was running on twin Strombergs when I bought it. Ironically the rebuilt engine that I have in the shed is fast road spec, with a stage 1 cam, flat top pistons and a gas flowed head.......so probably pretty close to Holbay spec. That being said I won't be putting the Holbay rocker cover on it, as it's not a Holbay engine and I wouldn't want to pass it off as one.

    You're bang on regarding the Super Minx having a CI head Pete..........so the cam and valve sequence would have been different to that of the Aluminium head engine.

    Ian     

  2. 3 hours ago, Mathew said:

    At least you have an engine to go in.

    Do you mean someone has been dishonest and sold something that it was not, yes there are some crunts out there. They think they get away with it but it catches them all out in the end.

    Looking forward to your renewed progress.

    The guy that sold the car to me was equally surprised about the engine, he'd bought the car back in the 1980s on the understanding that it was a Holbay, but then the car remained untouched in his ownership in storage until now. The seller back in the 1980s was a real Prince by the looks of it, as dismantling the car so far has shown numerous bolts missing, or of the wrong type........so let's hope Karma has caught up with him at some point in the last 40 years.  

    Ian

  3. Babubbabahbaabaaaaaaaah  (that's a trumpet intro for the uninitiated). So......the black sheep of the Forum finally returns after a lengthy sojourn.

    Looking back over this thread brings tears to my eyes when I recall the youthful innocence and trust in human nature on display in most of my postings. Unfortunately the dark unsightly underbelly of the classic car movement has shaken my idealism since those heady days, and I speak to you now in rather more 'battle hardened' state. As you may recall I was undecided on whether to use the 'Holbay' engine in my newly acquired Alpine, or else stick with the rebuilt engine I have stashed in the shed. Well, that decision has been simplified somewhat after I started to strip the engine down.........finding that it most definitely hadn't ever seen service in a Rapier H120, and in fact wasn't anything close to a Holbay at all......apart from the shiny Holbay rocker cover on the top of course!  No small induction ports, no heart shaped combustion chambers, no flat top pistons, no Holbay cam.........in fact nothing bloody Holbay at all except for the rocker cover. It was a particularly nice touch when I checked the number on the engine block and found that it had started life under the bonnet of a Hillman Super Minx MkIV estate (yes.....a bloody estate!!)........not a model particularly renowned for its 'leave em at the lights' performance.  Caveat Emptor indeed!!  Anyway........the car is reassuringly solid, and I didn't buy it on the basis of the engine.......nor was the price skewed particularly by the supposed Holbay, so could have been worse I suppose.......and I'm now older and wiser. The 'dodgy' engine is now skulking in a corner of the garage, suitably ashamed of itself, and I can begin to clean down and prep the engine bay......................or I could............. if I wasn't currently embroiled in a complete DIY bathroom renovation. A few pictures attached (of the car, not the bathroom), and there's likely to be another lengthy break (including a few visits to A&E) before the next instalment of 'Alpine Adventures'.

    Keep the faith.

    Ian

                

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    • Like 2
  4. 1 hour ago, Pete Lewis said:

    having had a good few Gazelle Hunter Vogue  and Sceptre  for runs to scotland / cornwall fully loaded we never found the 1725 lacking in eating the miles 

    and the last years of the Commer PB with a high comp and overdrive was good fun 

    Pete

    Don't get me wrong Pete........the Rootes brand was a well made group of cars, indeed over engineered in many respects, and the 1725cc 5 bearing engine was a strong reliable unit..............but if you wanted to travel to the other end of 'wherever' without getting a crease in your cravat .................... 

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  5. 16 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said:

    aha the good old days when GT meant Grande Tourer  not an  ill conceived  Go faster badge 

    pete

    Yes Pete, although in the case of the Alpine I think that Rootes were possibly stretching the definition somewhat! 'GT' for me means a car that is able to cover long distances with both the driver and the car itself left unstressed at the end of the journey...........and I'll never be convinced that a 1725cc four pot (albeit mated to an overdrive gearbox) will ever truly deliver on that. Eventually I'll probably search out a 1: 3.89 rear diff from a Series 3 car to make motorway journeys a bit more comfortable, the car is currently running its standard 1: 4.22 

    If money was no object I'd probably be tooling around in something a bit more deserving of the 'GT' moniker, like an Alvis or a Lagonda, and no doubt casting disdainful glances at Sunbeam drivers as I wafted past them on the way down to Biarritz! ............you can always dream!!

    Ian      

  6. On 24/05/2021 at 11:13, Peaks said:

    😂 Fair enough! So many GTs get converted, soon there won't be any left. And they are lovely things with all the posh bits that come with the GT spec. I think I read somewhere that they even had more sound proofing than your common or garden Alpie. Dunno if that's true though.

    You seem to have a knack for finding unicorn poo: a Holbay engine, a rust free hard top, a totally solid Alpine shell for that matter 👏

     

    I'm not an expert on these things by any stretch, but I do know that the GT spec car had a cast iron exhaust manifold in preference to the tubular manifold used on the STs, had a different induction system, and was slightly de-tuned, all to give a more 'civilized' driver experience at the expense of outright performance. The hardtop would also have made the cabin quieter whilst driving in comparison to an ST with the hood up. The other GT interior refinements such as wood veneer dash, carpeting and pleated interior panels have now been added to a lot of STs, but the difference is still obvious to the observant eye when you see the smaller quarterlight chrome trim, the lack of padded door cappings, and the visible paintwork around the door panels. 

    You're quite right on the unicorn front.........I've certainly had a run of good luck just recently..........and picking up the hardtop for 400 quid certainly rates as the high point..........so let's just hope it continues! 

    I'm still busy sorting through and cleaning up the boxes of parts that came with the car, so no work is currently ongoing on the car itself, but more updates will follow in due course. 

    Ian

  7. 3 hours ago, Peaks said:

    OK, I'll ask.... why are you removing the Holbay engine? You should get good money for it! 

    And do you have the GT hard top, or are you going to convert to a convertible, if that makes sense! 

    To be honest I'm a little less decided on the whole issue than I've previously stated. I have a fully rebuilt 1725cc (or 1789cc actually, as it's been over-bored) ready to go into the car, together with a fully rebuilt OD gearbox. I've also got one of the new Webcon induction kits for the rebuilt engine, which comes with a special curved runner induction manifold and brand new 32/36 Weber. The sensible thing to do would be to hoik the Holbay out and install all of this nice new shiny stuff, but the more I think about it the more 'off piste' my decision making seems to veer!  I keep thinking about the bloody Holbay and the glorious induction roar of a pair of twin 40s going full 'balls out'..................maybe I'll flip a coin........then ignore the result and stay with the Holbay anyway. 

    As for the hard top, yep.......managed to snag one of those the day after I bought the car.......this time I only had to travel to Peterborough to pick it up (the car came from Surrey). It is totally solid in all of the usual 'red flag' areas, and just needs a few dents hammering out of the roof before a respray and a new set of seals.  Converting a GT to a soft top is heresy as far as I'm concerned..........anyone doing it should be shot at dawn with no namby pamby appeals process. 

    Ian  

  8. 1 hour ago, Mathew said:

    That looks like its going to be a real stunner. Looking forward to your progress. What colour are you going to paint it?

    The original colour was Rootes Mediterranean Blue (a shade of light blue) so my plan is to return the car to that colour.

    Ian

  9. 1 hour ago, Pete Lewis said:

    with that angle its looking Imp based  

    Pete

    does than involve dumping the holbay head ???   

    pete

    I'm not sure what my plans are for the Holbay at this point Pete. Once I've had a chance to get a compression tester on it, and the head and sump off to check the state of the bores and the big end journals I might change my mind and use the engine after all. One of my engines is definitely going to have to go, that is for sure. 

    Ian 

  10. 2 hours ago, Pete Lewis said:

    how on earth do you control the float/fuel  levels with the stroms at such a crazy  angle ????

    was the manifold off a hunter range as they had the engine inclined ???
    pete

    The engine is out of a H120 fastback Rapier, and would normally have been fitted with a pair of Weber 40 DCOEs (I have them in a box). The Arrow range cars had the engine inclined at 5 degrees, hence the issue here when you fit an Arrow range induction system into an Audax range car. It's all academic in my case, as the engine is coming out to be replaced with a rebuilt 1725cc Series V Alpine engine and OD trans. I bought the car primarily based on the integrity of the structure, it's rock solid in all the Alpine trouble spots.......so quite a rarity!!

    Ian  

    • Like 1
  11. Here we go you lot.........the next chapter in my Alpine experience!

    A big thanks to Dave (Clive's mate) for delivering the car, a good reliable bloke if you want your car shifting.

    Now christened 'Katie' this Alpine is resplendent in grey primer, with partly digested seats (I'm not going to speculate on what did the digesting!), Holbay engine with a cracked exhaust manifold, exhaust held on with washing line, plywood dashboard, and best of all........an 11 inch Carlos Fandango sports steering wheel!!..........she's absolutely AWESOME..........I mean.....what's not to like!!

    Plenty of fun ahead, but the main point is that I've got a rock solid chassis, floorpan, cruciform, and sills with this car. Original colour was Mediterranean Blue........and that's what she's going back to. Get a load of that Louvred bonnet as well! which is actually steel, not fibreglass. The Holbay will be coming out and replaced with a rebuilt 1725cc Series V engine, which I imagine is quite a novel approach based on the widely held reverence for the Holbay.

    More updates to follow.

    Ian   

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    • Like 1
  12. 10 hours ago, Peaks said:

    That's good to hear, as you say Ian these things can rust! Like Gary I also have a Tiger, and it's had to have an awful lot of new metal put into it to get it into a sound condition. The photo below is of it in it's current state.  

    As for the Hillman Husky/Commer Cob association, it's pretty loose, and there are very few common panels. A bit like saying the Triumph straight six is basically a Standard Eight engine.

    Anyway, sounds like a great buy, and I look forward to reading updates on your progress 👍

     

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    Yes, I know all about the corrosion that you can find in these cars. I bought a Series 3 several years ago without the benefit of an inspection (I was in Canada at the time)........and it turned out to be a patchwork quilt of poor welded repairs and corrosion on the chassis legs and cruciform. I repaired the front section of the car but decided to pass it on to a more experienced restorer once I got it onto the rotisserie and saw what I was facing underneath. This time around I was determined to do my due diligence, and gave the car a full 2 hour inspection, top and bottom. The car has been in dry storage since the early 1980s, and I don't think I've ever seen such an original and solid chassis on an Alpine. It received new floors, sills, and 'A' post repairs by John Timms back in the day, and will be receiving a lot of rust prevention and treatment (particularly in the box sections) to keep it corrosion free. The original colour was Mediterranean Blue, which is one of my favourites, so an added bonus. It's currently fitted with Ford Rostyles, but will eventually sport Dunlop D1s.

    Ian     

  13. 2 hours ago, Badwolf said:

    Ok, so, machine guns in the side lights, ejector seat (of course), you will need spinners on the wheels for the tyre slashers, satnav is now standard, does the alpine suffer from oil slick syndrome?, as for the tyre tacks you can just lob them over the boot lid if the hood is down....... get my pills, again, quick!!!

    Sounds like your pills are being prescribed by Dr. No!........tyre slashers though.......hmmmm.......not totally averse to that idea........did Rubery Owen make those for the Alpine?

  14. 1 hour ago, Pete Lewis said:

    Holbay head and twin webers makes an awesome intake  song  with the air box removed 

    when i ran our emission  dept we did some tests on Rapiers H120 s of the day 

    i remember the induction nearly sucked my tie and jacket down the throats 

    the overdrive could be either D or J type    both were used over the years , 

    even on the PB vans 

    Pete

     

    My car is fitted with the engine out of a H120, although the current induction is more along the lines of 'into the loudest cars on Earth Hall of Fame'.

    Ian  

    • Like 1
  15. 46 minutes ago, Gary Flinn said:

    Ian

    Neither, this one's a late Mk1 and ROARS! 😺🙀🙀

    Regards 

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    Blimey!........I couldn't make out the Tiger side script!! Very nice indeed Gary.........although I have to say mine's still louder than yours at the moment!

    Ian

    • Like 1
  16. 27 minutes ago, Gary Flinn said:

    That looks a great Project, well done.

    Here's mine in good company at the TR International in 2018, I must try and get out in it more.

    Gary 

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    A Series IV or IVa Gary? I can't make out if it has the square corner bonnet and doors (GOD!!......do I sound like a nerd or what!).

    Ian

    • Haha 1
  17. OK you lot........it appears that several gluttons for punishment among you are interested in my latest acquisition (well........it will be an acquisition when the queue at the local HSBC thins out and I can arrange the cash transfer to the seller). I went down to Surrey yesterday to view the car, which for the uninitiated is a 1966 Series V Sunbeam Alpine GT, fitted with a 1725cc Holbay engine. The car is VERY sound, with the chassis/sills/floors/inner wings/spring hangers all gloriously free of the dreaded tin worm.....unlike pretty much every other Alpine that I've looked at. The seller started up the engine for me, but the resulting cacophony of sound from the cracked exhaust manifold scared crows out of trees a good 300 yards away, not to mention leaving me with the sort of tinnitus not experienced since my disco days in the 1970s. Needless to say that puppy is coming out pretty sharpish, together with the OD gearbox which has a bad case of oil incontinence. Luckily I have a rebuilt 1725cc engine and gearbox waiting in the shed, so no need to panic. The car is complete, but partially disassembled......so a pleasant 2 hours was spent poking everything with a screwdriver, then sorting through various boxes of bits to check everything was there (it WAS all there). The car has a pair of Strommies fitted, but also comes with twin 40 DCOE Webers in a box, just in case I want to be crossed off Greta Thunthingy's Christmas card list. The car hasn't seen tarmac since the late 1980's, and currently wears a very fetching grey primer paint job........so what's not to like?

    Right, I'm off to see if the HSBC queue has thinned out.

    Ian

         

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    • Like 2
  18. 11 hours ago, Bfg said:

    I was seriously considering buying an Alpine (also honed in on the series 5) so have a number of books and an original Rootes workshop manual which covers the engine.  Can sort them out and give you a price if you're interested.  

    Good luck with your project Alpine S5.   Personally I would be very glad if you shared that and its subsequent restoration with us here.  

    Pete.

    Thanks Pete,

    I've managed to acquire quite a library myself over the last 8 years, so I'm pretty well fixed for reference material. Thanks for thinking of me though. If you wanted to let them go you'll be surprised how much that sort of thing fetches on E-Bay..........would definitely pay for a few rounds down at the local!

    Ian

  19. OK.....you've talked me into it........I'll continue to bore you all senseless with the Alpine restoration............... and you've only got yourselves to blame!! 

    Ian

     

    • Like 3
  20. Thanks guys, I appreciate the comments. I'll look in now and again to see what shenanigans you're all up to. Somehow I don't think that the Alpine Forum will be nearly as entertaining!!

    Ian

  21. 2 hours ago, Badwolf said:

    Ian - Good luck with the Alpine or whatever.....but I bet you end up with another Triumph, eventually.

    Well..........I could envisage a TR4A at some point in the future...........never say never!

    Ian

  22. Hello All,

    The Vitesse was collected by its new owner yesterday, so in the space of 3 days I've gone from owning 2 classics to owning no classics! I'm hoping to rectify that tomorrow when I drive down to London to view a project Series 5 Sunbeam Alpine.

    Anyway, as I'm no longer a Triumph owner I'll be bowing out of the TSSC Forum. I just wanted to say thank you to other Forum members for their support during my (albeit brief) Triumph ownership, and for sharing their knowledge and experience so generously. I really do think that this Forum stands out amongst its peers, and it was a pleasure to be part of it for a short time.

    I wish you all well for the future, with clear skies and open roads.

    Ian 

    • Like 3
    • Sad 2
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