postman

Might well be a spare earth lug on the back of the tacho, which is quite reachable albeit uncomfortably. Unlikely to be the original choice but it's an earth.

Colin, I've just been and measured the hole in the dash support is bigger than I thought and the Kienzle should just squeeze nicely in there. How much do you want for it?

Thanks Colin, that would have been fine. I do like the Keinzle but it's to fit in a blanking plate I'm making where the radio was. Even the 52mm clock will need a little judicious work with a file to squeeze in there I think.

Does anybody have a Smiths 52mm time clock in working order they would like to sell, preferaby with bulb holder ? It's for a 1500 Spitfire. Thanks, Tim.

Smashin' thanks Colin. Dismantling it (again!) I remembered (crikey, it was only a few days ago, what's wrong with me?) that the other end of the yellow wire was also almost ripped off so I resoldered it. I wonder if I've damaged the little circuit board or components with heat.

Oh, I just remembered that one of these red wires was hanging off so I've soldered it back to the +ve terminal. I'm doubting myself now - does anybody know if this is correct with both red wires soldered together here? I'm kind of sure that's how it was but in the heat of the moment I do silly things.

Thanks Matthew, The brass post is where you can see the yellow wire which I have now soldered back into place. All other connections in there look fine. Tim

When I stripped the dashboard the rev counter bullet connector on the white/slate wire to the coil unfortunately failed to seperate and ripped the brass post out of the back of the tacho. I've taken the tacho apart, epoxied the brass post in place and resoldered the tiny little wire to it. Feeling pleased with the job I tried it in the car and as soon as the ignition is switched on the needle jumps to full scale deflection and stays there until I switch the ignition off. My electronic abilities are limited to checking continuity and voltage, so does anybody have any suggestions as to the problem ? I am as sure as I can be that it is all connected correctly. Thanks, Tim.

Yes, I think it's pretty much the same as the Morris Marina. I used to rally one decades ago and must be one of the few to have actually won a rally in a 1300 Marina. Sadly this is no reflection on my driving abilities - it was a very foggy night and I had a brilliant navigator who I trusted completely. Ancient history now.

Yes , but mimosa is so common (yes, I spotted your avatar Doug 😁).

Not my favourite choice of colour Doug (Inca) but I think it's growing on me. The good news is that friends' wives and my wife's hairdresser all want a ride in it when it's finished.... ...in fact s*d the rain, I'm going outside to work on it now ! Tim

Thanks Johny. I know I should but the car is such an unknown quantity I really want to get it to MOT standard and hopefully get a few miles under it's belt to see what else needs attention. The car is so much better than anticipated so far (cosmetic bodywork to be attended to, but chassis,sills etc excellent ) I'm expecting some major maladies to be attended to so I want to try out the engine and back axle as well as gearbox and clutch and do it all in one hit. Many thanks for your advice and knowledge . Tim

...and Nigel

Thanks also Doug and Pete. I definitely like this forum ! Photo of late night special delivery to keep me quiet through lockdown no. 2. It's certainly doing the trick.

Many thanks everybody. My mind is made up. I will carry on bolting everything back together and aim for putting the car on the road sometime in May with a bit of luck and half decent weather (unfortunately the car is on the drive on axle stands as the garage is too narrow for working). I will however cut in some access panels both sides of the gearbox cover ready for next time. Thanks again,Tim.

Thanks to all for your replies. I think the jury is still out. I'm currently siding with Colin. Having bought the car unseen on ebay (!!!****!!!) my original plan was to do as little to the car as possible to return it to active duty (nope, it's better than I expected so interior is stripped, floor painted, controversial roll over bar fitted, new belts,chassis stripped and waxoyled, new brakes, suspension, all hoses, wide radiator etc etc) and then see what really needs doing. Further opinions are welcome.

Today I drained the gearbox on my 1981 Spitfire 1500. It's a non-overdrive box. I bought the car to refresh (I hesitate to call it a restoration) after long term storage, so I have never driven it although the gears all seemed to select fine with the engine running. The magnetic drain plug looks horrendous and my immediate reaction is to take the box out for rebuild. However when I cleaned the plug on a clean paper towel there are no actual fragments, more like miniscule iron filings. Is this fairly normal for a 35000 mile gearbox ? I have no idea as I have only ever drained properly broken gearboxes before. It seems a shame to drag it out for rebuild if it's not neccessary or if it turns out the engine has to be pulled out too. What do you think ?

As above, ideally a 'wide' one. I'm in South Devon ,will travel up to 100 miles or so to collect.