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I recognize this is one of those thological deputes that have been debated for years, like wht fluid shouold I use in my dashpots, 20 weight or atf. The fact is that my engine is still within the tolerences specified in the haynes manual. That is it is only .001 larger than stock. This being teh case there is a slight ridge at athe top that needed to be taken off to safely remove the pistons. Plus, how is it that a re ring and hone job would be any shorter lived than a re bore which would necessitate,... MORE
Hi all, If you were at the show today and i didn't introduce myself sorry, loaded down with bits. I was on the Midget/Sprite Club stand and there was a White Midget with Red interior and an amazing Roll Bar. It was covered in red material and had a wind shield. I want to know how the wind shield was made or was it bought? and was it difficult to cover the roll bar. Thanks Ian "mandy716412" 36148... MORE
Just in case anyone on the lists was considering visiting Brad, or passing through DFW on the way to see me or CA, and for the Yankee that moved her (mike) I thought this might be helpful. First you must learn to pronounce the city name. It is DAL-US, not DAL-ISS. Forget the traffic rules you learned elsewhere. Dallas has its own version of traffic rules. . ."Hold on and pray". There is no such thing as a dangerous high-speed chase in Dallas. We all drive like that. All directions start with, "Get on Beltline". . . which has... MORE
No, Ed. It's not a myth. I am an electrochemist, and I've made my living in that field since 1964. I've published articles in peer reviewed journals, and I am certified by the American Electroplater's and Surface Finisher's Society. I have served on ASTM panels writing recommended metal finishing practices, and I am certified to give legal testimony as an expert witness in this field. Here's a quickie explanation. In order to oxidize metals, a positive ion has to form, that is Fe has to convert to Fe+2 in order to form iron oxide (rust). When you impose a... MORE
Has anyone tried the modifications listed in the bl st manual? I mean adding twin hs4 SU carbs, a race distributor (part number C-27H7766), a head with 9.5:1 compression, and a free flow exhaust? The performance figures make this look tempting. Too bad I dont see anything about gas milege or emissions (in the unites staes this can be an issue. "gan5ub91179g" 36012... MORE
"Location of timing marks, etc." Exactly....A humungous, giant PITA if there ever was one. Why would it have been designed this way??? I just don't get it. One of the main reasons I "lost" the points and went electronic (set it, forget it). What did they figure??? You'd have it up on a lift changing the oil so this would be a convenient place at that time, or what?? A pox upon the designer!! Cap'n Bob (Timing marks relocated) '60 Frog "Robert E. Shlafer" 35992... MORE
I rebuild mine and consider myself a C- mechanic. After jacking up the R side, it is accessed thru the large rubber plug on the R side of the tunnel. For me it was just time consuming since you'll have to bleed afterwards. One trick I used was to put a piece of plastic wrap (rubber banded) around the top of the master before you open the bleed nipple on the slave, as this will keep most of the fluid in the system instead of on your garage floor. You will still have to bleed the system, but at... MORE
Hi Jim, Rubber band the trigger on the timing light, prop it in place with blocks and with your wife's vanity mirror laying on the ground, you hardly need to stoop down to see the marks as you rotate the dizzy!! Yes, I have a vanity mirror in my tool box!!! Paul A "Paul Asgeirsson" 35987... MORE
My cousin Donald in Irving is having a problem with his 1997 Ford F150 pick 'em up truck. It's a V-6 and after driving about 15 minutes, his #3 cylinder starts to miss. He's changed plugs, wires, and now was attempting to change the coil. On these trucks the coil and dist. cap are made in one unit apparently? Anyway, he got a replacement coil and enstalled it and no joy, the truck would not even start. Put the old one back on, it runs but misses after 15 minutes. He went back to the auto supply and got... MORE
"The Modern Toolbox" Hammer - In ancient times a hammer was used to inflict pain on ones enemies. Modern hammers are used to inflict pain on oneself. Screwdriver - The drink ordered at the local bar after you call in a professional repairman to undo the $500 in damage you did while trying to change out a tail light socket in your newly painted car with your handy screwdriver. Phillips Screwdriver - The bar drink that you order when the damage estimate is over $1,000. Contains twice the vodka. Pliers - A device used to extend your reach the... MORE
I was a member over a year ago and had to drop out. Well I'm back and this time I need to seel my 1973 Midget. If anyone is close to Las Vegas and wants it, it's going cheap at $750. I need to sell it due to my retiring from the Air Force and moving back to Louisiana. Here is what I have in it: It runs good (28+ miles per gallon in town) 5 new tires with less than 2000 miles 3 year old top no broken glass Vynil coverd seats Cassete radio (not installed) Weber carb... MORE
Well, Bob.... Guess I'm just a meat eatin', bird shootin', deer slayin'', varmit killin', kinda guy. You ever see what a couple of coyotes'll do to a dog? We got 'em out here that eat calves and will take down a full grown cow if hungry enough. That's about $1200 right out of some poor farmer's pocket. We also got mountain lions. You get that close to nature and you get a little different view of her sweet, little, furry critters. Bob - I'm tellin' ya, it's dog eat dog out there!! Besides. You call animal control folks and... MORE
FWIW, Had my flywheel lightened by a local mechanic who specializes in imports and is very familiar with British makes. For all you 1500 spridgeteers our there my guy only took out about 1 lb. of material. Told me the flywheel is pretty light as it is and any more might be counter-productive. So 1500 guys we either have better Triumph technology in our motors OR we've been screwed again. I personally like the better technology option. Rob C Webfoot Leisure.com Your Local Pool Store-On the Web rob@... 866-530-9801 toll free " robbiesg@... " 35916... MORE
RBH, You are a master of explanations as well as BE crazy. My rubber bumper car was converted to disc wheels and no bumpers at all. The rear end IS the tricky part. I considered two approaches:1) Have a body shop do it or 2)take a mold of my buddy's RWA section under the tail lights and make up a fiberglass piece to replace the flattened area. Use the folded over metal in the flat area to secure the new pieces and bondo 'em in. There isn't as much material removed on the rubber bumper cars as it appears... MORE
Well Herb, et al. The Company is a consulting engineering outfit called Ricardo . http://www.ricardo.com/investorCentre/investorCorpProfile.asp Started life pre WW1 when the founder doubled the efficiency of diesel engines in the very first WW1 tanks.(I understand the exhaust exited in the tank also , so the enemy wouldn't see them coming - the early tank crews did not last long !!! He used his experience on improving early Triumph motorcycles, on combustion chamber shape mainly and camshafts (Along with Weslake). "Alan" 35852... MORE
Aside from Margaret's suggestion of the Heritage certificate, you can probably find the original colour on hard-to-get-at places such as up underneath the dashboard top area, inside the transmission tunnel or inside the heater ducts in the footwells; all places that are unlikely to get repainted in a casual paint job. For the factory colour code, there's pretty much only one of each shade for any given year of manufacture, and this year can be obtained from the chassis number. There are tables of the codes available in various books, or http://www.teglerizer.com/mgcolors/ has a good visual indication of most... MORE
Duncan, I know a remodeling construction guy and I noticed that when he was working on a house, he would roll out some kind of thin plastic sheet, perhaps 4 or 6 feet wide, that had a light sticky glue on one side. It would stick to carpet and floors and not slide around but not sticky enough to be a problem pulling it up after the job was cleaned up. Kept the rugs and floors from paint drops and dirt etc. The backing was about as sticky as a yellow post-it note and I think it was clear... MORE
G'day Steve These packers were used "as required" on all Sprites and Midgets with wind-up windows, not just the rubber-nose cars. They are made out of a compressed fibre board not dis-similar to the backing on all the trim panels. They are approx 1/10" thick, and you use as many as you need to fill the gap. I have a few NOS ones, but it is very easy to make your own out of whatever material is close at hand. Just use the mounting plate at the bottom of the screen for a template. avagoodday Colin "Colin Dodds" 35733... MORE
got it! Robert B. Houston Texan in NM 73 Midget and others John Bernard Books (The Shootist): "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on. I don't do these things to other people and I expect the same from them." rbhouston@... 35737... MORE
no attachment? no pic.... Robert B. Houston Texan in NM 73 Midget and others John Bernard Books (The Shootist): "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on. I don't do these things to other people and I expect the same from them." rbhouston@... 35735... MORE
Well, I voted for Kerry three times aleready, but she is wayyyyyyyyy behind. Anybody know if any LBJ operatives are still alive? Robert B. Houston Texan in NM 73 Midget and others John Bernard Books (The Shootist): "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on. I don't do these things to other people and I expect the same from them." rbhouston@... 35727... MORE
Chuck...do not be mislead by compression ratios which could be had back when leaded ("manly") octanes were available . Today's unleaded "garbage" octanes require a little more thought in this di rection, assuming a cast iron head and the ignition advance curve you're probably working with, along with a "mild" cam with relatively little duration which will favor maximum "trapping" of the combustion gases in favor of the low end of the useable rpm spectrum (torque.. as in street application). With aluminum heads you can go about a point higher than with cast iron, all else being equal. Also,... MORE
Actually, Chuck.... .milling the head is preferred over flat-tops or domed pistons (as explained in your Vizard book, BTW) as a way of bringi ng the CR up a bit. With all due respect....strongly suggest you read the book...from cover to cover..... BEFORE (not after) you build your motor!!!! :):) Fr'instance....an understanding of the sections on cams will allow YOU to choose the best cam for your application, without input from others (though of course we are always at your disposal, obviously!!:). Cap'n Bob '60 Frog "Robert E. Shlafer" 35712... MORE
Hi all,I am building a 59 bugeye with a datsun 5 speed and parts from a 72 midget.The 1275 is a smog head 72 motor and I was just wondering if anybody knows a mild street way to build this motor.I would like a mild street cam ,am planing on a header and punching the block 20 over.I have the vizards book but its a lot to digest.He says MG metro pistons work fine but thats only 8.8 to 1 cr.I think I would like to have about 10 to 1 C.R..I don't think My motor has ever been... MORE
Duncan, You are right - I didn't think of that! Since the valves appear to open at the right moment (1 or 2 deg off?) the chain should be OK. Then the question may be whether the pulley can somehow be rotated 15 deg? I have never taken it off, but looking into Haynes and Ball it looks like there is only one way to mount it? Anyone knows? An unknown number of previous owners have worked on this car with probably various levels of proficiency.. Thanks, Stephan. "legalalien97" 35694... MORE
