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Spitfire Frustrating Spitfire Weekend - Progress My Foot

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dklawson

dklawson

Yoda
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I bought a used "large" radiator for my project Spit. It had some telltale green stains on it by I was optimistic that it was intact. I acid washed its insides to remove the scale and quickly found the scale was plugging a myriad of pin holes. Oh joy.

Then I decided it was time to finally fill the new brake master cylinder and start bleeding the system. I filled the reservoir and immediately saw it was dripping. I thought at first I'd forgotten to snug the pipes. Nope. I had a leak between the plastic reservoir and the metal cylinder. Off it came for some judicious sanding and filing to shorten the brass thread inserts and flatten the sealing surface of the reservoir.

Hours behind schedule (as if time mattered on this project) I decided to use my generic MityVac to suck the brake fluid through the bone dry lines. I managed to drop my hand-pump and break/un-calibrate the vacuum gauge. Off it came for some bench adjustments.

Like I said, it's a good thing I wasn't on a schedule. I hope your weekend went better.
 
If it makes you feel any better I've not even had the chance to touch my LBCs this weekend. Had to replace rear struts on SWMBO's corolla, snapped a lug while I was doing it, so had to beat on the brake drum until it'd come off pop out the old lug, press in a new one, and reassemble everything. I'm still going actually, just stopped for supper.

Oh, and the genius engineers who made the struts require you to disconnect the brake lines to remove the strut, so I get to bleed the brakes for no good reason why I'm at it.

Jody
 
I worked all day, got home, put on my new fuel pump, got my 78 Spitfire to finally run. Except the SU's which I bough rebuilt are missing the washer and o-ring for the front jet tube/bowl interface. Gas pouring out. Heater return pipe appears to have a bad lip allowing blowby back by the firewall. If I can get these two issues done, and bleed the brakes, I'll be at TX All British Car Days as a participant. Wish me luck! Time to go hunt down parts!
 
The closest I got to my LBCs was folding the t-shirt from the micro car show I went to two years ago....did laundry, can you tell?? LoL
 
Misery loves company so thanks for the posts.

I posted a similar summary of Saturday on another board and a member there offered me a second radiator. With any luck I've fixed the vacuum gauge well enough (until I buy a replacement) and I hope to do more work on the brakes today (assuming I don't go out and find the reservoir dry.

So things are already looking up on Sunday.
 
Yesterday I didn't get to the car until 21:00. I though I would just spend a few minutes,one thing led to another and two hour later I could leave the car knowing I could drive it to breakfast in the morning. This afternoon I spent hours trying to adjust the steerig wheel/ column. The driving position had one's nose on the steering wheel and elbows out as it awaiting take-off.
Still not done. The horn push needed attention, the overdrive switch came apart, the steerig wheel needs paint. The good new is, this morning the car ran well- the new synchros, seals, bearing,and O rings worked flawlessly. On to Triumphest.

T.T.
 
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