Things have been characteristically busy in the workshop since my last post (which is also, as usual, the reason why it has been so long since the last post!). Work is progressing well on the Jaguar 3.8 and the Triumph TR6 as well as to various “day visitors”: Yesterday saw the return of a 1936 Riley Kestrel 12 which left the workshop some years ago after a long restoration. I had re-coloured some new wheels for the car in two pack paint after the wheel supplier had been unable to match the correct colour in powder coat, and the first job was to fit the tyres without damaging the new paint. I’m a great believer in the use of rubber mallets instead of levers or tyre machines when it comes to pre-war rims and the tyres went on nicely with no marking to the wheel finish. The rear tyres on this car only seem to last for about seven thousand miles, so a good fitting technique is proving to be essential! The starter motor had been giving intermittent trouble on the car so I had checked over a spare unit which seemed to be working fine, and when fitted it turned the engine over nicely and briskly… sadly for only a couple of times before it expired. Having removed the exhaust and the engine breather one more time we stripped the original starter and attended to its maladies before re-fitting.
Strangely enough, this experience has been preceded by a similar occurence with the Porsche 944 to which I had fitted a wiper motor obtained through ebay and which had worked a few times before failing. The owner and I decided to bite the bullet and dismantle the motor which has proved a lot more reliable having polished the commutator and re-seated the brushes. 944 wiper motors, although easily visible with the bonnet raised, are not removed very quickly; furthermore new items from the manufacturer are formidably expensive, so we are both hoping that the repair proves to be long lasting!
Future projects which have been under discussion since the last blog include the imminent conversion of a late Series 1 Land Rover to a 200TDi engine, the possible conversion of an early Series 1 to a Nissan LD28 engine and the conversion of an Alvis TD21 to a Ford Type 9 gearbox. The 200 TDi engine will be the next major project and to which end there is a very tired looking old Discovery sat in the yard awaiting dismantling.