KevinR

Original thread restored

That's very good advice ! Even better advice is "If you think you might need it sometime in the next 50 years then buy it" You'd be surprised how many times you then find the perfect tool in the tool box to perform the unexpected job.

DVLA says that the tax was due 1 April 1988, and last V5 issued 1 July 1987. Some things to bear in mind : 1. This predates the need to declare SORN - SORN came in in 1997. 2. This predates the automatic expiry of car tax on change of keeper, so when sold, the new keeper got the balance of the tax remaining. 3. This predates the time when scrapped vehicles were removed from the DVLA computer. 4. This predates the online MOT records. 5. This predates details of vehicles being exported being recorded as exported on the DVLA system (ignore the "export marker") Therefore, its possible that : a) you sold it in at the end of June, 1st July 1987, with 9 months road tax remaining. b) The new owner drove it until the tax expired and then scrapped. c) The new owner drove it until the tax expired and then put it in a barn where it has remained ever since. d) The new owner exported it and its running about somewhere in a foreign country

Using stainless steel sleeves will not stop the corrosion, it will just change the source of the corrosion, and may make it worse. The only guaranteed way to stop the corrosion is to also use stainless steel bolts - and that is a VERY BAD idea and should not be done. The problem of dissimilar metals is Galvanic corrosion. The further apart the metals are on the the scale, the worse the corrosion. To minimise galvanic corrosion, you really need to keep the potential difference less than 0.1V Using a good high quality highly water repellent grease, such as Molykote Longterm W2 in the sleeve will help minimise corrosion. Under no circumstances should one use copper grease.

First point I notice is that you are crimping a blue crimp with the red jaw, not the blue jaw, so you are probably putting too much pressure on the crimp. Second, it looks like you didnt start with a cleanly stripped wire Third, I'm not confident about the state of the jaws on the crimping tool you are using. Below are some pictures of my crimp tool, and its jaws - note, I dont have to worry which side of the tool the wire goes. Then there is a picture of the prepared wire and the end result - a very strong serviceable crimp

If you are looking for quality crimps, then you need to look at PIGD (Pre-Insulated Diamond Grip) crimps. https://www.te.com/usa-en/products/brands/pidg.html?tab=pgp-story They are qualified for aerospace applications, where high vibration is a given - I've never had one fail.

some pictures of your problem crimps and the crimp tools would be useful to try and suggest alternatives I use these https://www.toolstop.co.uk/eclipse-ect-rby-ratchet-crimping-pliers-p73609/ without a problem

Back in the late 70’s, a car got a current plate when first registered, regardless of its year of manufacture. There are thousands of RHD cars that were bought here by British Military personnel based in Germany, and driven from new on BFG “B” plates before being brought back to the UK at the end of a posting and getting a current plate. My parents were responsible for bringing back several 1970 Morris Travellers (ex Military) and putting them on S plates.

Don't you just love previous owners !

The problem with that approach is that it wont identify if the complete body tub has sagged due to incorrect sill replacement at some time in the car's past

Adjusting the screen to get the rake correct will enable the windows to be closed properly, so if driving in the wet, or on a windy day the driver and passenger can get some side on weather protection. It will also affect the tension of the soft top, and in the extreme, with a soft top that has shrunk a bit, will mean that it is too tight to fit - there may be a bit of movement at the back to help, but it may need a good sunny day to soften the material to get it to stretch to fit. It's a big 3D jigsaw puzzle, and making one adjustment will throw out other things, but its a necessary evil in order to get it all sorted. Start with getting the screen rake correct and then deal with the consequences as they arrive.

As revealed by winding the windows up, the windscreen is tipped back too far. On the MKIII Spitfire, the rake of the windscreen is adjustable - fittings inside the A posts. Before tackling the hard top, you need to correct the rake of the screen. This will involve loosening the fittings inside the A posts and the tipping the screen forward until you can wind the windows fully up and get a uniform gap between the glass and the windscreen frame. Once this is done, the hard top should fit correctly. Changing the capping from early to late should be fairly simple, but then the soft top will also need changing. I've never done it, but there must be a way of fitting a hard top with the early soft top fittings - I'll let a MKIII owner chop in with the answer.

I'd want to check that the rake of the windscreen surround is correct. Any chance of a photo with the windows wound fully up ? Also, note that the top of the windscreen has the early MKIII soft top fittings, and not the ones used on the later MKIII cars.

It's NOT a scam, its a message for all Forum members to be alert for a scammer pretending to be Nuala trying to scam money. Below is the warning you get if you click on the link in the header. A warning to ignore Facebook friend requests from Nuala Dowie Many of you will know this legend of engine tuning who died last year, a regular at Classic Le Mans. Some scammer has recreated her account and is pushing a sweepstakes scam

The engine should look something like this If it looks like this, then its an American style installation that used a single Stromberg instead of twin SU carbs.