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** ON TO THE NEXT BIT ** Nose to Tail - 1972 Spitfire MkIV restoration upgrades!!


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Just gone out and found a small puddle of brake fluid under the front off-side wheel.  The caliper appears to be weeping even though it has a new piston and seals.  Before I strip it and get a new seal kit, could it be that the caliper unit is past it and need replacing.  It was fine up to moth-balling the car and, as mentioned, has been refurbished, could I have put the rubbers in wrong or, in the view of safety, should I be looking at replacement. If so does this need to be done in pairs?  It was fine for the MOT and has shown no weeping for the past two weeks.

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Got the kit from 'Chester'. It included the small washers that live in the centre of the two caliper halves. I didn't replace those as everything I read warned me off sllitting the caliper halves!! Then I also read that you should use 3  in one oil in the dashpots. Something which I believe gave great merryment at twiddle day (mark I). It could be that I trapped some muck when fitting the seals, maybe I should have used a little rubber grease in the grooves when fitting. Maybe you and Pete should write your own version of the 'Haynes' manual. Do you think it worthwhile to take out the rubbers, clean up carefully and try again with rubber grease. The other 3 seals appear to be ok...at the moment.

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Back to toolkit. I carry a toolbag which contains the following:

medium engineering hammer. set of spanners, 5/16 up to 11/16 Adjustable spanner Mole grips. Combination+pointed nose pliers. Wirecutters. 3/8 Socket set with extension bars etc Selection of screwdrivers. Knife. Torch. Feeler gauge Multi meter

Tube of Epoxy putty. Superglue. Quick set epoxy adhesive. Gaffa tape. Selection of tie-wraps.Electical tape. Selection of nuts/bolt/washers, long length of wire and crimp ends. Rad weld stuff.

I have probably forgotten a few odds and ends. But I have the spare wheel "upside down" and the kit fits in the wheel recess. This kit has served me well under lots of circumstances. As indeed the spares I carry stuffed into the gap between the rear wind and inner wing (waterhoses, fuel hose, F and R wheel bearing kits, fan belt, master cylinder kits, spare accelerator cable and so on) Infact I must replace the grease sachet from the bearing kit, it got used by a friend for his Stag after his front brakes got rather hot down stelvio and melted most of the grease out of his bearings.

 

 

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That's what I call a toolkit. Work for the AA/RAC/Green Flag by any chance?  Anyone else out there. I'm trying to put together a tool kit, probably not quite as extensive as Clive's, but just a reasonable selection for the place where you break down, with no mobile signal that the average user needs

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23 hours ago, Badwolf said:

Here's one for discussion that I haven't yet found on the forum. What is the normal 'tool kit' to carry in the boot, apart from the spare wheel? Obviously space is limited and I was wondering what everyone else considers important.

Assuming you've got jack and wheelbrace, or suitable wrench and socket, and a good spare... not some tired shrivelled cracked thing that hasn't been checked in years? :)

A few thoughts on an early morning with not enough coffee yet:

Some sort of sealable plastic container.... old clean oil bottle, collapsable camping water bag or the like. Can be used for water if rad runs dry or fuel if tank runs dry - maybe also a coiled plastic pipe for siphoning? No point in standing beside a tap or stream and nothing to carry it in! A cheap fold-up tarpaulin from a pound shop, to lie on or keep the rain off. 

1/2 and 9/16 spanners or good - stress good - one-size-fits-all adjustable socket. Good pair of pliers and good screwdrivers - you don't want cheap tools to let you down at the roadside when shops are closed. Cable ties, heavy tape and a small tube of silicone sealer will cure many a leak or hold bits on long enough to reach a garage or get home. Even half a dozen assorted sized nuts and bolts can make all the difference.

The old days of hiding spare change somewhere in case of having to make an emergency phone call are probably long gone, as is the practice of hiding a spare key inside the rear light... but a spare key in the boot, under the carpet or hidden somewhere else in the car can be a life-saver.

Spare replacement parts.... hmmmm... one HT lead - the longest, so it will fit anywhere. Fan belt, spare bulbs, rotor arm, sparkplug... is the boot full yet? The space inside the spare wheel can hold a surprising amount of stuff. Don't forget the handbook; it used to be carried in the glovebox and had all the maintenance settings, and even if you're in the AA or whatever the mechanic might need a look as your car probably won't be on his computer. There used to be a blank page at the rear for noting down oil filter codes, spark plug codes, fan belt sizes, anything that you might need to refer to at the roadside.

...and a cloth to wipe hands, if you don't have a few disposable rubber gloves in the kit too. You can wrap all the tools in it to protect paintwork and stop it all rattling.

 

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I would include a 1/4" spanner for the small nuts and bolts on the carbs. When Pete and I went down to Guilford he didn't have one but luckily, it was the only tool I'd brought with me, I'd found it in my dressing gown pocket that morning. (Don't ask! :lol:)

Also, if you have electronic ignition, your old points, capacitor and fixing screws in a plastic bag.

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The brakes appear to be sorted. Popped the cylinder which was weeping and found that the internal seal had two areas where the rubber had bits missing. Looks like I hadn't seated the seal properly before pressing in the piston and it had shaved some slivers of the seal which had stated to weep. Replaced and bled. Now appears to be ok.

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On 9/24/2017 at 7:08 PM, dougbgt6 said:

 

My daughter found my missing 1/2" ratchet spanner under my 3 year old grandson's pillow. Little bugger had nicked it!

Never ever let your other half into the garage.

I couldn't find a 9/16 spanner the other day, despite having four assortments. Checked a bit further and realised that not only were they all mixed up ( hung on magnetic strips on the wall) but there were also no 1/2 inch spanners either.

It appears beloved wife and daughter needed to screw studs into horses hooves. They had one pair of my missing spanners in the car, one set in the trailer, one set in the stable.

THEN they had the cheek to complain that my spanners weren't great as they didn't fit right, being either too small, or too big.

I gave them ONE old 13mm and told them to make it last.

I suspect the 9/16 sockets which I couldn't find this morning have gone the same way.

 

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Hanging your spanners on the wall is a security risk, from familay and other burglars.

Mine are all in a roller cabinet, locked away.

Suggest you buy a proper stud spanner for your ever-loving!  Cheaper than a quality spanner too! 

https://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Hoof-Mate-Stud-Spanner/Productinfo/STUDSPAN/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw9afOBRDWARIsAJW4nvwRZ1Jn3uCxazlBr13i4z7zdlia5AdhfeYoifK3U3iAM61CeNxMkF0aAlSjEALw_wcB

John

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