ferny

blueyedmuffin.co.uk

RIP buzzing hornet

Acclaim carbs

Wolseley 1500

Kenny says hello to Bertha

Fail, but not an epic one

Mini cap on an Acclaim

Who needs the gym?

righto…

plates, insurance and seeing an old friend

Convertible bread van

RIP buzzing hornet

Firstly, I finally fitted a replacement starter motor to the Herald, woohoo! Only took me three years to get around to it and it now fires up instantly rather than waiting ages with a “chug chug chug” or needing a smack with a hammer. It’s the original one for the engine (1500 dolomite) and spins the engine so fast it sounds like a bike starter motor…

Now onto the Acclaim. Those who have heard it have passed comment on its unique sound. It can only be described as imitating a wasp farting through a kazoo at high RPM. I’ve never been happy with the way it sat on the car to be honest. It was a Renault back-box and was clamped on a bend which never worked properly. Anyhoo, on the way back from Birmingham on Friday I killed it.

Four years from an OEM exhaust? That’s pants. I knew it was on its last legs ages ago so ordered a replacement, made out of plastic of all things. It’s a strange beastie, plastic bodied and a 2″ straight stainless pipe going through the middle. You can get a rough idea of what it’s like below. I was also never happy with the way the old one was attached to the car so tried to do things a bit better this time round. I bent some bar around the box which has a grove for it to sit in, then welded a brace between the two ends. None of it can be removed from the box unless you cut that brace. I’ve also hung it using polyurethane mounts as the rubber ones from Halfords are utter shite and started to crack and give way almost instantly.

As it’s a straight-through jobbie I expected it to be rather loud so put the original resonator box back on then set about welding new bits on and changing the run slightly. The old Renault box had a long pipe with lots of bends which were no use to me so I cut them off and kept them just in case I ever needed them, which turned out to be a wise move.

The next task was to make some tube to fill in the gaps. Dead simple with the right tools.

Then it all needed welding together to create a strange metallic snake.

I have to say I’m rather pleased with it. It sits properly, will hopefully last longer than the last one and isn’t loud at all. It has a nice quiet burble on tickover but when being driven is almost silent.

Now I just have to make my mind up whether or not to service it before using it on Raiders Triumph event.

posted by ferny http:// 22nd August 2012 09:00am gmt

Acclaim carbs

Here’s a scan of all the carb info you should need. Images should be big enough for printing. And it’s all compiled into a pdf file below.

training manual – carbs

posted by ferny http:// 01st July 2012 09:02am gmt

Wolseley 1500

Real quick one today. I’ve (almost) fitted a Wolseley 1500 gauge into the Herald. I was going to tweak the dash and I had a few ideas to make it look more “racey” so I was looking through eBay for an oil temperature gauge. Instead, I found this. So I put a bid in and got it for £4.99 delivered. It’s not a straight swap. I’ve put my water temp. and fuel gauge in it as I know what they should be reading and it needed a quick fettle to do so. I also need to relocate the main beam and indicator tell-tale to somewhere else. I may try and fit them into this gauge, but there’s not much room! Anyhoo, I think it looks period and right and the worry checks are all done with one glance now, so I’m happy.

posted by ferny http:// 29th June 2012 08:18am gmt

Kenny says hello to Bertha

Quick update on the Herald – it passed its MOT and is now being used daily. When I took it back to the testing station he asked if I’d replaced the TRE and done the headlight, I said yes, he went away and then came back with a clean sheet. When I commented that he was very trusting he replied “well, you wouldn’t have said you’d done it if you hadn’t, would you?” I see his logic! The oil cooler appears to be earning its keep and I’ve fitted the original fan to the radiator as well.

Yesterday I replaced another CV boot on the Acclaim.

Now onto the 2000. Called Kenny because he was built the day JFK was shot. I’ve got myself some TR4 wheels with the assistance of Bodders. The trouble was only three of the five had tyres on. Even worse, those tyres are fecked! So today I set about removing them. Driving the Volvo over the edge did nothing so I resorted to a big lever and a wedge of wood. Now, some of you will wince here but I chose to use the 2000 sill to lever against as I’m replacing them anyway. Thanks to it being protected by a bit of wood all is fine. The beads were an absolute bastard to break! It took a couple of hours, two people and a six foot lever. Take a look at the photo below to get an idea of how much effort was needed… I think the reason for them welding themselves together was the inner-tubes it had fitted. They’d trapped moister and made a mess of everything. Anyhoo, all done now!

posted by ferny http:// 18th June 2012 5:48pm gmt

Fail, but not an epic one

I’ve spent the last few days tinkering with the Herald and yesterday booked it in for an MOT today. It’s been a bit annoying really. I spent a most of the day fitting a replacement hood frame, which didn’t fit. Then I fitted a replacement hood, which ripped.

Anyhoo, I did some more pre-MOT stuff. Put the legal lights on, fitted seatbelts, took the noisy exhaust off and adjusted the handbrake with the car on ramps. That last one isn’t easy, but doable. This afternoon I headed off to the station for it’s £35 test and on the way noticed one of the headlights didn’t work. I had a fiddle outside but there was no joy. I went in and waited nervously. A while later a head pops in and asks if I have an electric fan fitted to which I replied yes. “Has it got a switch?” “No, it’s got a sensor.” “Oh, well it’s just boiled up and chucked water everywhere.” He also told me one of the track rod ends was shagged.

No big deal really. The fan has been sorted (bad connection) and I’ve driven over 30 miles with no water before so know the engine will be fine… Two TRE’s have been ordered and I hope they arrive by Wednesday so I can fit them in the evening. The headlight was down to a duff connection. But, typically, whilst I’m at it I’m relocating the oil cooler, the air filter and the horns. I’m also putting in a much bigger fan. One day I’ll learn to only do the jobs which need doing and not find lots of others!

posted by ferny http:// 08th June 2012 7:16pm gmt

Mini cap on an Acclaim

Despite not getting in until 12:30am this morning and consuming a little too much beer last night my body decided it would be a good idea to wake me up at 5:30am. So after far too many hours fannying around online I decided to be more productive. I’d always wanted a lockable fuel cap on the Acclaim despite the flap having a lock already. It just seemed like it would seal better and perhaps stop some fumes/leaks just after filling the tank up. When the Herald cap got stuck on last week I asked on the forum if an original Mini cap would fit only to be told no, it was too big and had two prongs rather than the Herald’s three. Ahha! The Acclaim has two prongs… A quick nose on eBay saw me taking a punt on one which was less than £3.50.

When it arrived I test fitted it and it was a no-go. A closer look showed that the prongs were too large. So this morning I stripped the unit and attacked it with a file. For the record, they need to be no wider than 7mm. Their length also needs a quick trim. To take it apart remove the pin at its tip – do so carefully as there’s a large spring which may make you jump.

Here it is broken down;

posted by ferny http:// 27th May 2012 09:49am gmt

Who needs the gym?

I’ll try and make this quick.

Over the last week or so the lower wing has been painted and all is fine. It looks fecking terrible in daylight but aww well. Dirt will soon hide that and hopefully the rear tub will be replaced in a couple of years. The exhaust got a slight tweak so that it no longer fires up into the valance. It was making the paint rather hot and after a short run you couldn’t touch that part of the car. The gases couldn’t have been doing many good things to the metal either.

Saturday I mostly faffed around getting the car outside and cleaning up the garage. No idea what people walking past the house thought when they saw me hoovering the carpet in the garage! I got the doors on and adjusted then turned to the bonnet. No matter what I did I couldn’t get the n/s to sit nicely which I found out was down to it no longer being attached to the bonnet tube there! The catch on the o/s also doesn’t meet the bulkhead. It’s probably got all kinds of bentness going on. Safe to say, the bonnet shut-lines look shite and is well beyond any reasonable effort to put right.

Sunday Mr Dave came over, which turned out to be rather helpful! I’ve cut the ends off the front tube/bumper thingy as they were rotten and at this point found out it’s clearly had a bump in the past and had the tube bent back to normal.

Oh, and whilst I’m here, if your brackets which hold the front valance look like mine, they’re shagged.

Then I set about attacking the 2000, which is where Mr Dave came in handy. Once petrol was added and the hole caused by mice in the servo hose sorted out it fired up a treat. Slight issue though, the clutch was stuck, the n/s rear brake was struck and it was parked tightly into a hedge! At this point I didn’t know the brake was stuck so set about pulling it out by hand thinking is was just tight and would free up with a bit of movement – with Mr Dave inside the car to stamp on the brakes just in case it started to roll over me. Three feet later (as bourne by witness marks on the block paving from the tyre) I was knackered, now aware the brake was stuck on and the car was far enough forward to be “bumped” to the right with two people on the back lifting. Ever tried pulling a 2000 along the ground and then lifting them? They’re sodding heavy… Anyhoo, I put the rear on axle stands, started her up in gear, gave a blip of the throttle and stamped on the brakes with the clutch depressed. That got the clutch off easily and all I had to do for the brake was give it a few swift smacks with a lump hammer and some wood. She got a clean and a polish and was parked back in her spot. Hopefully she’ll be going into covered storage soon.

Whilst the 2000 was accessible I took her front seats out to see if they’d fit in the Herald. It just about works, but is far too tight in my opinion so I’ll not be getting the black ones I really wanted. I’m thinking now of rebuilding the original ones in the car. I’d love recliners for events and just to make it more comfortable, but the b-post makes that idea almost redundant.

I finished up the day by stripping the inside of the car and slapping on some paint. The aim is for a rust-free floor pan and chassis with the outside looking reasonable. I’m slowly getting there.

Hmmm, that wasn’t really that short, was it. Righto, I’m off to cook a curry ready for lunch and nip to the gym. Hopefully the paint I’ve put on this morning will be dry after that and I can fit the new carpets.

posted by ferny http:// 21st May 2012 08:53am gmt

righto…

So, been doing some more welding this weekend. Everything was cut out, new bits made and some welded in on Saturday but I stopped early as I didn’t want to make any noise with the angle grinder after 5pm. Having done this type of repair a couple of times already I’m finding it fairly simple. Then Sunday afternoon I finished it off but again had to stop because I felt it was too late to grind back the welds. Today I attacked it for a while and I’ve slapped on some oxide paint which I’m waiting to dry as I type. I should get a skim of filler on it before going out tonight but doubt I’ll get any primer on top like I wanted to.

I would have got more done on Sunday except I had to do some work on the Acclaim. It started to make a grounching noise from the n/s/f as you slowed down on Friday and the only idea I had were the brake pads must be getting low. I had my doubts as before the HCR I checked to see how much meat they had on them and all seemed fine. Anyhoo, turns out there was no material left on one of the pads and the rest were well past their best and due replacement. They’ve lasted less than 20k miles which is crap. I’ve never been happy with them since I fitted them. They have no real feel and fade easily. Happily I bought some asbestos ones at the NEC last year so grabbed them only to find they were nowhere near the right size or shape. That obviously made me less than happy but luckily I had another spare set… Sadly they’re identical to the ones I hated before but I had no choice so had to use them.

Straight away I went online and bought some EBC Ultimax. I hate EBC Green Stuff, I think they’re shite but as these are meant to be OEM spec and what’s on there now is rubbish anyway I thought I may as well try them. Now I’m left with a choice, let the rubbish ones wear down or fit the EBC ones right away?

posted by ferny http:// 02nd May 2012 3:00pm gmt

plates, insurance and seeing an old friend

I’d been meaning to get some new number plates for the Acclaim since I got her 4/5 years ago. I’d planned to get German style metal plates as I felt it’d suit the boxy lines of the car. Typically I never got around to it, until this week. Someone (not me!) didn’t see a small wall when parking the car and managed to remove to front plate without realising! I’d forgotten you now need to send off ID when getting plates until I started trawling websites. So, a quick look on eBay and I found myself some pressed aluminum plates I could get a lot more quickly. They’re not German style and they’re reflective. Might keep the Police away… I didn’t realise how bad the old ones were until I took a snap with the flash on.

Next job yesterday was to sort out the car insurance. I got a renewal letter and the cost of my premium had gone up by 90%. So I did some quick phoning around and no-one could match it. One actually said I’d had a really good deal! So I phoned my original broker back to find out what had changed and apparently they made a mistake a couple of years ago. All the cars are insured to be parked on the road at night and they’d been charging the price for storing them all in a garage. Ahh well. If I want to be pragmatic I can say this years insurance is effectively free and £250 for three cars parked on a road in Luton isn’t bad.

Now my old friend. A few years ago I repaired the n/s area in front of the rear wheel on the Herald. Soon afterwards rust started to appear and I assumed I’d left a pin hole in the paint. Seeing as I have to repair a section next to that anyway I thought I’d rip it all off and do it in one. What has actually rusted is the old metal I’d used, not the new. I’d tried to be clever and use as much of the old metal as possible but that obviously had a touch of rust on it I’d not seen but disturbed. Shouldn’t take long to sort out and I’m happy to be doing it as I’m not impressed by how I did it before! What I did before is safe and stable but clearly my methods and techniques have changed for the better as I’d never do it like this again! Here is the bit of rot I’m gonna remove at the bottom of the b-post. I’ll replace the rear tub in the future…

posted by ferny http:// 26th April 2012 06:10am gmt

Convertible bread van

More very slow progress on the Herald and I’ll make this quick anyway!

Since my last entry;
engine has been fired up
doors have been fitted and fiddled with
spacers made and put under the body mounts
brakes bled
handbrake freed
wheels on
windscreen/rubber/insert in
drivers seat…
gearbox tunnel fiddled with
and probably a few other bits and bobs

I’ve taken the drivers door off again so I can paint the tread plate. Of course, it would be highly illegal childish and dangerous to have a play and see what it’d be like to drive without it there.

Oh, and here you can see the quick tidy I’ve got to do on the other side…

posted by ferny http:// 23rd April 2012 05:52am gmt

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