Fresh from the paintshop.
Monday, April 03, 2006
midget work.
So went and collected the Midget on friday evening from Ross down in the New Forest. Not too much rain on the way back fortunatley, no roof on the wee beastie!
We started work on putting it back together on saturday morning and were complete by about 7ish that evening. Kate concentrated on the fiddley bits inside the doors, Ian rewired the headlights and indicators and I look after the rear of the car. Then on to the front brakes and exhaust. A good job and THANKS again Ian.
Photo's to come.....
Onwards to Rushmoor.
We started work on putting it back together on saturday morning and were complete by about 7ish that evening. Kate concentrated on the fiddley bits inside the doors, Ian rewired the headlights and indicators and I look after the rear of the car. Then on to the front brakes and exhaust. A good job and THANKS again Ian.
Photo's to come.....
Onwards to Rushmoor.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Update
So a busy week off work started with finishing to strip down the Midget ready for its respray at Ross's paint shop. www.ross-packard.co.uk
With that done I attempted my first tow and with someone else's trailer and my wife's car on it!! Thanks Tim for the loan, really must get my own one now. An uneventful trip to the New Forest was had thankfully and then home to start on the B.
Wheeled the B out of the hanger where she has been parked up since the last weekend in October last year, and did the usual oil checks and turned her over with the coil disconnected just to get some fluid moving then re-attached the coil and fired straight away with just as much bangin and popin as when parked up (must work on that self fixing attachment).
Drove her down to the garage and started stripping the head off to get to the problem (the Cam timing)
So after much faffing about and telephone calls to Ian McDougall-Bell,http://macsport.blogspot.com/, I finally managed to get my head around how to work out where the cam should be. Set at 107 degrees ATDC on the number 1 inlet valve. See sounds easy now!! But thanks to all for there assistance with the daftness that was flowing at an alarming rate.
Finally got it all finished last night at around 6pm and this morning took her for a blast arund the farm and had a HUGE grin on my face whe I came home eventually!! Just need to get an MOT now. Well and a trailer........
With that done I attempted my first tow and with someone else's trailer and my wife's car on it!! Thanks Tim for the loan, really must get my own one now. An uneventful trip to the New Forest was had thankfully and then home to start on the B.
Wheeled the B out of the hanger where she has been parked up since the last weekend in October last year, and did the usual oil checks and turned her over with the coil disconnected just to get some fluid moving then re-attached the coil and fired straight away with just as much bangin and popin as when parked up (must work on that self fixing attachment).
Drove her down to the garage and started stripping the head off to get to the problem (the Cam timing)
So after much faffing about and telephone calls to Ian McDougall-Bell,http://macsport.blogspot.com/, I finally managed to get my head around how to work out where the cam should be. Set at 107 degrees ATDC on the number 1 inlet valve. See sounds easy now!! But thanks to all for there assistance with the daftness that was flowing at an alarming rate.
Finally got it all finished last night at around 6pm and this morning took her for a blast arund the farm and had a HUGE grin on my face whe I came home eventually!! Just need to get an MOT now. Well and a trailer........
Monday, January 16, 2006
New Year Blog.
So first post of the new year.
Started working on the Midget and have managed to fit a new electic fuel pump instead of the crappy mechanical one that kept getting air locks! Put it on a swich on the dashboard with a nice red led on the end of the switch. Very handy in the dark. Also fitted a replacement passenger seat so they are both Cobra roadster seats. Comfortable, low and now with harnesses.
So whats left to be done...the brakes and rear suspension. As Kate is going back to standard class this year I will have to remove the drilled discs and fit standard smotth ones. So also going to redo the rear shoes and drums because these were oval when I changed the diff at Silverstone.
Then its on to the B. Remove the head redo the timing, reseat the valves and put it all back together again.
Also must register for the championship....http://www.mgcars.org.uk/mgccsc/2006/entry06.pdf
Started working on the Midget and have managed to fit a new electic fuel pump instead of the crappy mechanical one that kept getting air locks! Put it on a swich on the dashboard with a nice red led on the end of the switch. Very handy in the dark. Also fitted a replacement passenger seat so they are both Cobra roadster seats. Comfortable, low and now with harnesses.
So whats left to be done...the brakes and rear suspension. As Kate is going back to standard class this year I will have to remove the drilled discs and fit standard smotth ones. So also going to redo the rear shoes and drums because these were oval when I changed the diff at Silverstone.
Then its on to the B. Remove the head redo the timing, reseat the valves and put it all back together again.
Also must register for the championship....http://www.mgcars.org.uk/mgccsc/2006/entry06.pdf
Monday, August 22, 2005
Long time no blogging
Blimey I cant believe that I haven't posted anything since June and its now August.
So what's been happening well Broken engine/Silverstone/fixing the B/Castlehill.
Broken Engine.
So I had a slight problem with the B. I broke the timing chain. Fortunately it happened when I was starting the car rather than at 6000rpms. The immediate damage appeared to be the chain and the lovely aluminum timing cover. At this point I then had to travel to Turin on business for two weeks leaving the car in a non working state was not pleasant. Off I went to Turin which was hot. I did manage to find a couple of bits that had been used in the Italian Job which was fun.
Also on that fateful weekend Tom Withers was over in his midget and we went for a spin in it and then Tom decided he was going to demonstrate some of the driving skills needed for Autotest. And promptly broke the diff! The midget was duly raised up on axle stands and left on the drive. Body count was 2 dead mg's 1 alive and I was going no where near kate's midget!!
Silverstone.
When I came back from Turin(no work comments on this blog) Silverstone was the following weekend and the car was still in bits. Tom had managed to clear his midget off the drive by changing the diff for a recon one from Summit. Richard Withers, Tom's father had very kindly agreed to let me double drive his car at Silverstone and I was set to drive Kates midget in the autotest on the Saturday. Tom drove over to our house on the Friday morning to pack up the cars and load anything extra into the Golf which I was driving up. Off we went. Nice drive and found a good camping pitch in the competitors camping area. We managed to create quite an enclave with Iain McDougall-Bell as well and also Ian Tapner . Weather at this point was good.
Friday we spent wandering around the stands and drinking a few beers, watching a bit of racing. Very nice time. It was after the BBQ that Tom and I decided to take Kates midget out to "practice" for the Autotest in the morning. We drove over to the nice empty carpark at the gates of Silverstone and I decided what I need to try was a doughnut in the midget as the B does them very nicely. 1 doughnut later and I had blown the diff. Got on the radio and asked Kate to come and rescue us in the golf. The response on the radio was controlled!!
Saturday morning I spent with Ian under the midget changing the diff for a 4.2 that we found on one of the stands(£35). Got the car ready for the sprint and calmed Kate down enough for her to compete the following day.
Sunday was WET WET WET. Actually it was really wet, so wet it felt like you were being hosed down from a firehose. The sprint was really a waste of time as it was almost too wet to drive in. But needless to say Richard and I both did one timed run in his B and called it quits. We went back to the campsite and packed everything up and got wetter. Then headed home.
Fixing the B.
I managed to get all the parts needed to fix the B and Tom came over and we dialed in the cam shaft without taking the head off the engine.Which with hindsight probably wasn't the right thing to do. As the car isn'tt quite perfect. It is still quick but not A1. We did it correctly and took our time over it and didn't rush and checked and rechecked everything before we moved onto the next step. A good day and lovely to have the car drivable again.
Castlehill.
Long drive down to Cornwall for this hill climb but a hill worth traveling to. Kate and I had decided to compete on both days of the weekend and this was great fun.
Saturday was a bit wet but good practice. And then a few beers in the evening with friends, which is always good.
Sunday and it was close between Richard, Mike and myself however Mike beat Richard by 5/100thss of a second. Well done Mike and never mind Richard.Ii was off the time buy about a second and a bit. (cam not quite perfect, should have taken the head off)
Nice drive home on the Monday which only took about three hours compared to the five and a half it took to get down there.
Next?
Next is Wiscomb hill climb which I am not competing in as I think the B is also losing compression so I am not going to push it and I will save the engine for Castle Coomb at the end of the season instead. But I will be spannering for Kate as she attempts the hill for her first time.
Photos to follow and thanks for getting this far!
So what's been happening well Broken engine/Silverstone/fixing the B/Castlehill.
Broken Engine.
So I had a slight problem with the B. I broke the timing chain. Fortunately it happened when I was starting the car rather than at 6000rpms. The immediate damage appeared to be the chain and the lovely aluminum timing cover. At this point I then had to travel to Turin on business for two weeks leaving the car in a non working state was not pleasant. Off I went to Turin which was hot. I did manage to find a couple of bits that had been used in the Italian Job which was fun.
Also on that fateful weekend Tom Withers was over in his midget and we went for a spin in it and then Tom decided he was going to demonstrate some of the driving skills needed for Autotest. And promptly broke the diff! The midget was duly raised up on axle stands and left on the drive. Body count was 2 dead mg's 1 alive and I was going no where near kate's midget!!
Silverstone.
When I came back from Turin(no work comments on this blog) Silverstone was the following weekend and the car was still in bits. Tom had managed to clear his midget off the drive by changing the diff for a recon one from Summit. Richard Withers, Tom's father had very kindly agreed to let me double drive his car at Silverstone and I was set to drive Kates midget in the autotest on the Saturday. Tom drove over to our house on the Friday morning to pack up the cars and load anything extra into the Golf which I was driving up. Off we went. Nice drive and found a good camping pitch in the competitors camping area. We managed to create quite an enclave with Iain McDougall-Bell as well and also Ian Tapner . Weather at this point was good.
Friday we spent wandering around the stands and drinking a few beers, watching a bit of racing. Very nice time. It was after the BBQ that Tom and I decided to take Kates midget out to "practice" for the Autotest in the morning. We drove over to the nice empty carpark at the gates of Silverstone and I decided what I need to try was a doughnut in the midget as the B does them very nicely. 1 doughnut later and I had blown the diff. Got on the radio and asked Kate to come and rescue us in the golf. The response on the radio was controlled!!
Saturday morning I spent with Ian under the midget changing the diff for a 4.2 that we found on one of the stands(£35). Got the car ready for the sprint and calmed Kate down enough for her to compete the following day.
Sunday was WET WET WET. Actually it was really wet, so wet it felt like you were being hosed down from a firehose. The sprint was really a waste of time as it was almost too wet to drive in. But needless to say Richard and I both did one timed run in his B and called it quits. We went back to the campsite and packed everything up and got wetter. Then headed home.
Fixing the B.
I managed to get all the parts needed to fix the B and Tom came over and we dialed in the cam shaft without taking the head off the engine.Which with hindsight probably wasn't the right thing to do. As the car isn'tt quite perfect. It is still quick but not A1. We did it correctly and took our time over it and didn't rush and checked and rechecked everything before we moved onto the next step. A good day and lovely to have the car drivable again.
Castlehill.
Long drive down to Cornwall for this hill climb but a hill worth traveling to. Kate and I had decided to compete on both days of the weekend and this was great fun.
Saturday was a bit wet but good practice. And then a few beers in the evening with friends, which is always good.
Sunday and it was close between Richard, Mike and myself however Mike beat Richard by 5/100thss of a second. Well done Mike and never mind Richard.Ii was off the time buy about a second and a bit. (cam not quite perfect, should have taken the head off)
Nice drive home on the Monday which only took about three hours compared to the five and a half it took to get down there.
Next?
Next is Wiscomb hill climb which I am not competing in as I think the B is also losing compression so I am not going to push it and I will save the engine for Castle Coomb at the end of the season instead. But I will be spannering for Kate as she attempts the hill for her first time.
Photos to follow and thanks for getting this far!
Sunday, June 26, 2005
Lydden...Gurston.... Festival of Speed.
Blimey been really busy so sorry for the lack of up date.
So last weekend was Lydden Sprint and Gurston Down hill climb. Both scorchingly hot days strangley the aircon in the B doesnt seem to work must be because it isnt fitted!
Anyway what happened was a brilliant couple of days eventing with good friends. Did my fastest time ever at both venues as did Kate in the midget, which is going like the clappers!
Lydden I really figured it was in the bag but Mike Cole beat me by 4 tenths of a second in the final run, Drat but well done Mike. A really great days competition and I still got an award for fourth in class.
Gurston was another scorcher. And another fab day. Went really well but couldnt catch Richard Withers on the last run he edged past me by 2 tenths of a second, which was what he was beating me by after the 64ft time. I really must practice my starts. Because on the first timed run we did an identical time.
So this brings me to this weekend and yesterday. Got a phone call from a mate asking if Kate and I would like to go the Festival of speed at Goodwood house. Do bears sh%t in the woods? Of course we would love to go.
So off we went yesterday and there were some amazing cars which I will publish some photos of. And another great day of motorsport.
Next weekend... we are sprinting at Goodwood race circuit. It'd free entry so why not come down and watch I am car number 55.
So last weekend was Lydden Sprint and Gurston Down hill climb. Both scorchingly hot days strangley the aircon in the B doesnt seem to work must be because it isnt fitted!
Anyway what happened was a brilliant couple of days eventing with good friends. Did my fastest time ever at both venues as did Kate in the midget, which is going like the clappers!
Lydden I really figured it was in the bag but Mike Cole beat me by 4 tenths of a second in the final run, Drat but well done Mike. A really great days competition and I still got an award for fourth in class.
Gurston was another scorcher. And another fab day. Went really well but couldnt catch Richard Withers on the last run he edged past me by 2 tenths of a second, which was what he was beating me by after the 64ft time. I really must practice my starts. Because on the first timed run we did an identical time.
So this brings me to this weekend and yesterday. Got a phone call from a mate asking if Kate and I would like to go the Festival of speed at Goodwood house. Do bears sh%t in the woods? Of course we would love to go.
So off we went yesterday and there were some amazing cars which I will publish some photos of. And another great day of motorsport.
Next weekend... we are sprinting at Goodwood race circuit. It'd free entry so why not come down and watch I am car number 55.
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