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I must apologize to those who followed my progress report, just don't have the time nor the room anymore to work on my 67 Sprite. It is a 67 Sprite that is torn down and middle of restoration. It has a lot of body work done already and shouldn't take much to finish. The shell and doors were professionally sandblasted to bare metal. (cost over $400 for just that). Car is apart but well cataloged, small parts in Ziplock bags with labels, bigger parts in categorized plastic bins, shell on a dolly, new VB parts used cost over $600.... MORE
G'day all Gotta ask - why?????? Under heavy braking, when the weight transfers to the front, the rear brakes lock up with the standard drum brakes fitted. I get slower as I get older (or so my bride tells me), but perhaps someone can explain to me why locking up the rears sooner (by using disc brakes) is an advantage. Personally, I enjoy power oversteer, but don't cherish disappearing backwards into the shrubbery under hard braking. Of course I have seen a few people fit rear disc brakes. Guess what they fit next. A brake biassing valve (usually off... MORE
Heh, heh.... Well, Terry.. ......if he's capable of doing his own machining then it's basically his time and not really the money that is at stake. With a proper biasing valve it should work. Different strokes for different folks, I guess. I, too, find the stock brakes pefectly adequate. Wonder what it'll be like when he hits the pedal in the rain? Probably have to crank in a little more bias to the fronts, I would imagine. Which will probably defeat the whole purpose of discs in the back for superior stopping in the dry? Maybe he'll make page... MORE
That reminded me of a funny story my father told me. It seems a fellow had rebuilt a Midget motor and clamped it to some timbers to start it before he installed it in the car. He was doing this in an old house trailer that had a carpet floor (don't ask me why). Every thing was fine until he rev'ed the engine and it tipped over. The flywheel then snagged the carpet and ripped it loose from the floor. The motor ended up wrapped up in the carpet at the door of the trailer. The motor was unharmed... MORE
Terry This seems like a great amount of work. Is the car raced? If not then why does he want disks on the back. The fronts do most of the breaking and the original drums in good condition are more than adequate. Just my opinion but it's much easier to rebuild to good stock condition than do all this rework. J. jeremy.cogman@... 23255... MORE
Terry, I am running a narrowed Vega 3.36 posi rearend in my Sprite. It has drum brakes, the emergency brake mechanisms of which are actuated by cables in sleeves as you might expect. I was able to adapt the stock E-brake lever mechanism quite neatly with some fabrication. The stock e-brake linkage on the rear axle was not useful to me. SO... if in the event that your friends disk brake E-brake setup is cable actuated, I can provide details and/or some digital photos. Let me know if needed. Chow. Hamondale "hamondale" 23248... MORE
Hi A friend with a 1500 rubber bumper job has just bought (breakers yard job) the rear disks and calipers from a Rover 216 GSi. He has been told these will fit his midget, all he has to do is make up a new back plate to support the caliper. He has been told the original habdbreak cable can be retained. Has anyone done this if so have you a drawing of the backplate to give him a start. He has just fitted the frontline telescopic mod and thinks it is fantastic, makes the front of the car more... MORE
Not sure, Roger. Bugeye, Bugeye gas gauge, sender new/unused in original box, bought from a parts pack rat in '00. Didn't study or keep the box or part #. Just checked to verify reasonable variable resistance data and then installed it in stock Bugeye tank. It "looked" the same externally as the old one. H "hamondale" 23228... MORE
You know, from one rust removal project to another. Sold my 63 midget last week to a friend who fell in love with it. Working on the bugeye bonnet from hell, determined to bring it back to life. The 74rwa is looking good and running well, can't bring myself to use it for the bugeye bonnet project so . . . I am going into another stage of insanity . . . buying a another 73 rwa to put it on. There goes the money from the 63 . . . As you see things are going along quite... MORE
Rust . . . Good morning Spridget land. Don "Don May" 23231... MORE
results (recorded in my notebook a couple of years ago): approx Resistance position (ohms) E 7 1/4 18 1/2 31 3/4 70 F 880 The variation was smooth, but obviously non-linear. (Expressing the relationship as a higher order polynomial is left to the student as a homework exercise.) I have no idea why it differs with Don's data, but it could be my meter among other things - an old Sears multifunction auto analyzer. What I can say is that it looked reasonable, and when coupled to my stock fuel (oops, petrol) gauge, the combo worked fine. I routinely... MORE
Don Thanks for this post. It's not just about saving money is it, it's also about re-using original parts. I'm totally with you on this one. I may use new nuts, bolts and washers, but I'll go out of my way to use/restore/refurbish as many of the original parts from my car as possible. Nigel "amukdigiphoto" 23213... MORE
Well....obviously, RBH! And, good to have you baaaak, fully erect of course. Let me know if you want any tips on Corvettes. I know a fellow who works at Sports & Classics building a convertible Sting Ray in their back yard. Does his own engine work, fibreglass and paint... real talented young adult!! Good taste in paint color, too....deep metallic blue with a little purple thrown in..beautiful! :) Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 23209... MORE
On the unit I have there are three bend over metal tabs holding the case sections together. Carefully bend them up to pull the unit apart. There may be some resistance at the float shaft end that looks like a slotted screw to pass through the hole, a little cleaning there and you can pull the case apart enough to remove the brass spring. I also rubbed the ends of the spring on fine sand paper and cleaned the case surface around the shaft hole where the spring contacts the case and the surfaces of the round bushing next... MORE
Eeg Nope, not used any weld-through primer, as per your experience of it, I've heard it doesn't work too well. I do coat the inside of each panel with primer, leaving enough bare metal to weld to, before I weld them in. As far as seams are concerned, I intend to coat each one with brushable seam sealer after i've applied a few coats of primer. All box sections will then be protected with waxoyl. I think this will be enough to keep rust at bay for a good few years. I'm actually doing a full bare-metal re-spray, ie... MORE
Eeg I've just completed this on my car for both sides, and both ends. You're right they don't fit particularly well, but a little gentle adjustment with a hammer usually fixes that : ) One side of my car was easier than the other, I think that was more due to the fact I'd learnt from doing the previous side. I'm afraid to say this, but if you're having real problems getting those sill end plates to fit, something's not right either with the inner sill position/outer sill position or outer rear bulkhead position. I had a lot of... MORE
Hi guys You may have noticed I've been rather quiet regarding posts to the list lately, thats soley because I've been beavering away on the Midget restoration, and making the most of the good weather. I'll bring you up to date on where I am. I'm glad to say that about 90% of the structural welding is now complete and includes two new floorpans, two new inner and outer sills, two new inner footwell side panels, two new lower hinge repair sections and outer covers, two new lower rear inner and outer wing repair sections, localised repairs to both... MORE
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ViewItem&item=2422578220&category=18308 1980 MG MIDGET - 1500cc - BHU 575V MY PRIDE AND JOY :) ORANGE/RED BLACK CONVERTABLE ROOF. 126,000 MILES ON THE CLOCK. NO TAX OR MOT. DONT WANT TO SEE IT GO, BUT CANT DO THE RESTORATIONS NEEDED. IDEAL FOR MG ENTHUSIAST LOOKING FOR A RESTORATION PROJECT. DOES NOT RUN AT THE MOMENT, BUT WILL DO AFTER A LITTLE WORK. ENGINE IS DIRTY, BUT PARTS ARE FULLY CAPABLE OF WORKING. HASNT BEEN STARTED FOR A WHILE, BATTERY HAS GONE. NEVER BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT. BODYWORK HAS BEGAN TO RUST IN SMALL SECTIONS. THIS CAR HAS SO MUCH... MORE
I can only suggest that you look on the internet and find out where the most local midgesprite and MG Car Club meetings are (oh yes, the MG owners club too) and go along and have a look at some of the cars. You will probably find enthusiasts who live near to you who would be only too willing to help. All those who I have met over the years have been very friendly/helpful and willing to share their knowledge of these cars with fellow enthusiasts. You do not need to know much - just be willing to learn.... MORE
MGOC (Who trade as Lanacaster) for the last 12 years. Unbeatable premiums and excellent service when I've had to claim. I have a policy for 12000 m iles a year inc. to & from work, on a modified mk2 Sprite for less than =A3 200 fully comp. Also comes with breakdown but I've never used it as I'm in the RAC. However the breakdown extends to Europe which is handy. jeremy.cogman@... 23128... MORE
it's just a case of 'adjusting' with hammer and dolly till you get as good a fit as possible. It's not good practice, but you can force them to take up the profile of the sill using lots of clamps etc while you weld. If the car is on its side or upside down, it's reasonably straightforward to seam weld them in position. You *can* get 'weld-through' primer to paint before you fit them, and once welded, brush on seam-sealer to seal the gaps and spray the inside with Waxoyl or similar. Regards David "David Jacobs" 23105... MORE
List, I'm getting closer and closer to welding in a new (left hand side) outer sill. During preparations I noticed that the sill closing plates don't fit very accurately to the sill! (Especially in the curved area's). I might be able to dress them up a bit to achieve a better fit. Does any of you have some tips / tricks concerning the fitting of the closing plates? How to prevent rust after fitting them with quite some gaps / spaces? (Painting that area upfront isn't an option since they have to be welded in place) Could I best... MORE
Need some help on this. I intended to rebuild my clutch master cylinder so I looked in the Haynes 1275/1500 comic book. It says to remove the pedal box cover remove the cotter pin and pin and than remove the master cylinder nuts. How does someone remove the lower nut without taking off the entire pedal box along with also removing the brake master cylinder. Not so simple a job. Is this the only way to get at the nut. Dougp77 Michigan. "dougple" 23062... MORE
Wimpy.... There are 1500 owners who would very much like to be in your shoes with your 1275 driveline set-up, believe me!! When YOUR transmission goes, you can at least exchange it for the readily available, easily installable Datsun 210 conversion for about what it costs for a rebuilt British ribcase at today's prices. AND, you have the benefit of already having the higher geared 3.7 diff. as well (most likely) which came stock in the later 1500 Spridgfires. Which is a good thing considering the first 3 ratios for the 210 gearbox are slightly lower than those in... MORE
Hi Kelly, The e-mails are now begining to come through now, I expect the system was down for a bit, as it sometimes is. As for Midgets, mine is now out in the drive, newly serviced etc, and ready for the long haul to Scotland on Friday morning. It's about a 500 mile trip, and should take about 10 hours. Hopefully I will meet up with David Campbell and his wife Paula from the USA who are holidaying near our cottage in the country. The weather here has changed from a scorching day yesterday (Sunday) to raining all day!!... MORE
