Peter Truman

Well done great longlevity happy new year it was 32C here today but heavy rain tonight not as picturesque as snow

I've just replaced my daughters Mk2 Spit type 12's with type 14's and that was a 30% piston upgrade and I thought I was doing good I also used a Vitesse master for the increased volume? must look up the BCC 4 potters, what rotors did you use to dissipate the heat?

You have to be even more careful if you have a Dolly Sprint with the alloy wheel nuts easily stripped with a rattle gun, the early models only had the 3/8in stud later increased to 7/16in, as the earlier ones were known to shear with enthusiastic cornering.

Same here for Vitesse I gave up the on the spin on conversion fitment angles are all wrong and sold the Mocal to a big saloon guy. My local club here brought the old Triumph type stock of air and oil filters from GUD a wholesaler supplier (Ryco Filters) so I stocked up with 10 original fitment oil paper element filters that keeps me going! Ryco is a good make. GUD we’re going to dump the filters as slow moving stock we had an in to the boss’s Sec so put in a ridiculous low offer and the deal was sealed aad everyone was happy! To stop the old cold start bearing rumble I’ve fitted an electric fuel pump with switch so after a lay up I turn the pump off spin the engine for 15 sec then turn pump on let it prime then hit the high torque starter and Vroom NO rumble oil pressure to 95psi immediately.

I've fitted bonnet locks to both the Vitesse & Spitfire that stops the catch's unlatching, the easy or bodge solution I could never get the right tension on the catch and cones! Anyway it's added security .

My daughters 66 Mk2 Spit has a small vent hole incorporated in the Bowl Lid one of the carbs is covered with a removable clip to stop ingress of dirt which any vented fuel bypass's, the others missing. Maybe similar is incorporated in yours and could be enlarged to take a small 1/4in copper pipe to deflect leaking fuel away. My Dolly Sprint some 10 years younger had proper vented pipes which were I think piped to the carbon canister, See attached photo of the vent hole

Have you looked at the plastic/nylon drip irrigation tees and elbows that is what we use here for the breather pipes

Araldite when repairing large wrought iron mains under pressure tapered timber perf pegs are impailed into the hole and then when watertight a patch is welded over the area Around 25 years ago I was called out to a century old 36in main where the patch coupon had just blown off and the water spout was going around 60 feet into the air drenching a house but there was no sign of any weld, closer inspection revealed a whitish hardened paste on the main and steel coupon we reckoned someone in the early 60’s had tried this wonder glue Araldite! Well it did last 20 plus years!

well done, looks like a (good) plan

The thin locking nut is a good idea to stop throwing away the old original all 5/8in 18TPI threaded tube with the old filter, as Colin L has done I've done that a couple of times.

I got a spare adapter to convert the threads to the more usual air filters last year from a machine shop in Auckland NZ, I know it's a little far to go, but if needs I can search out the supplier wasn't too dear.

I've had the brass olives swage into the pipe so they can turn on the pipe but not come off, the result is a leak past the olive to pipe joint, my solution was to solder the olive onto the pipe

Gee you have to buy the alignment tool, most of the clutch kits I buy have one included so I now have around 3 coarse (10) and a couple of fine (21) splined tools.

I also thought the rear deck panel to wings of the Vitesse and Spitfire were brazed where the boot drainage Chanel’s meet Aus AMC CKD Spitfire assembly also had brazing where the brake master cylinder strengthening brackets meet the vertical part of the bulkhead

I recently fixed a part by making like a top hat that fitted over the sleeve/barrel and had the top of the hat with a hole in it that let the rod/cable slide through, this was then indented in the sleeve to stop it coming off. I hunted thro my bits and pieces and found a suitable brass part that suited, bit of brass tube with a brass washer soldered over one end might work.

No it’s for number one son is a very well established GoKart driver here in Aus, drives for one of the prime Kart manufacturers team. Stu’s dad had a brake repair business a great guy very practical did a great job never wasted your money and I believe at one time he did the brakes for one of the major V8 Supercars (Commodores and Falcons) here in Aus the cars that race at Mt Panorama. Thats why Stu’s car has such fantastic brakes. His dad made the triple SU inlet manifold and it’s a work of art! There’s petrol running thro the family veins!

They look Di-cast so can't be brazed or soldered, on the daughters Mk2 Spit the heater valve push pull cable and knob was always missing why in Aus she needed one? but she insisted so I modified a choke assembly where the push/pull was brass but of similar action, I soldered the bowden cable outer into the brass assembly, and cable into the inner slider all works well and she's happy!

It’s a local car and owner here and I can vouch it goes like stink ask Stu how many clutch’s he’s had?

Diode packs and rectifiers are easy and relatively cheap to replace I’ve not had bearings or windings fail although I do carry at least 2 new spare units but when I fix the olden I put it back in our old Jag X type charged at over 15 bolts on start up by design then cut back to 14 plus bolts when warm why I don’t know but the RACV here used to log it as overcharging when fitting a new battery for their wattanty protection!

John, Just be thankful Kevin is there to protect us . our national telephone and nbn provider is advising me to update my email address or I won’t be able to send when I look at the pages to update I don’t know half the info there asking forI’ll have to get my little IT Vietnamese guru in to sort it!

The thin plastic pipe will swell slowing the pressure to vary unlike the braided SS covered nylon pipe which will be more constrained and build up a higher pressure. I must upgrade to the nylon braided pipe on the daughters Spit on my Vitesse I’ve always used copper pipe with coils at each end to reduce fatigue

Any Panhards always liked them

Love the GT6 style and spec, and esp that engine BUT its so hard to get into for a 6ft2 person of appropriate width, also claustrophobic, and as said very hot! Wonder if any one has fitted air con someone must have if living in southern states of the USA. Think the daughter who's 5ft5 and under 7st might upgrade to a Mk2 GT6 from her Mk2 Spit with her inheritance, Her local garage owner in country Vic has a Mk3 which his family has owned since it was 1 year old, all very original down to the paint, his dad brought it to go racing BUT his mum said " no way " I'm having that!! At least the GT6 has good leg room length unlike the E Type which is built for midgets, the footwells are long enough but the idiots positioned the pedals halfway along?

Some of you might enjoy this it's a local county clubs free monthly mag, I usually enjoy it, some heavy US cast iron unfortunately. Hope it's not too big a size, and the print ain't to small 000_55_Country_Motor_Reduced.pdf

My 68 Vitesse has never had it's head removed, original Triumph install on assembly line, what's my chances??? Compression test good at around 165psi and oil pressure over 90 at start up and just under 70 running even on a very hot day,