The final straw

[SilentUnicorn]

I have been working on my engine, it had low compression and the leak down numbers were telling me bad things...anyway- i get the valve seats reground and buy new valves. Might as well get a new rocker shaft. Came today in the mail. I look at the made in India sticker with some trepidation, make note of the burs sticking out all over it. Just messing around with it i tried to play it like a flute... lo and behold i find a oil feed hole not drilled thru!! Ok so i drill it thru- wondering about other folks who may not check for such things. I strip out my old shaft and clean the pieces. stone the burs off the new shaft and coat with assembly lube and fit up all the bits on my new shaft( dreaming of fantastic increases in oil pressure. The head is sitting there waiting for my to paint it, so i do a dry fit- the pedestals don't line up from end to end...hmmmmm....strip out the new shaft and compare it to the old one- Get this it is one full half inch short.

So lets tally up
1 burrs
2 oil feed hole not drilled thru
3 shaft is short and unusable


I have had it
the old shaft is going in and the car is going out in the front yard with a big FOr Sale sign on it and the first guy to offer me money for it will own it....I have had it...what good are parts suppliers that are there to keep these cars on the road if the parts they ship have to be returned? costing time and money, causing aggravation? tell me please.....


Mark

 

[Trevor Jessie]

Put down the hammer and step away from the car.

I'm guessing they sent you the wrong shaft. What part # did it have on it?

 

[BugEyeBear]

Mark,

Sorry to hear about your India shaft experience. (OK, I gotta say it, "You really DID get the shaft on that one!") (Sorry, I just couldn't resist!!)

There ARE good vendors for parts, & there ARE bad vendors for parts.

This applies to our old cars, but this applies also to new cars.

Might I suggest that you send a Private Message (PM) to Hap, Peter Caldwell, & some of the other vendors/suppliers here on this site, to ask their opinion on reputable sources for your repairs...

Good parts are available. Unfortunately, so are bad parts (as you've discovered).
& sometimes you really do get what you pay for, and that "bargain" part is really no bargain at all!

There is a TON of experience available here for the asking. & most everyone here is happy to help a fellow Spridgeteer!

I'm hoping that you'll reconsider your decision to sell the Spridget...

"Cheers!"
-Bear-

 

[tony barnhill]

Mark...time to throw the cover over it & walk away...where'd you get that shaft? They need to know their quality problems - in a calm, professional voice - because they (depending on who 'they' is) can't check each part as it hits their loading dock..

Nothing wrong with using old shafts. I do it all the time. But, I just got a great new one for an MGB engine I'm doing that has serious head problems...new shaft & everything that goes on it except the pedestal...no problem with it that I can see.

 

[SilentUnicorn]

AAAAAARGH!

I ordered the correct part.

aaaarrrghhhg

 

[Morris]

I have had real good luck with Spitbits.com for engine parts. Good prices, good parts, good service.

 

[BugEyeBear]

AAAAAARGH!

I ordered the correct part.

aaaarrrghhhg

Yes, but that doesn't guarantee that they sent you the correct part!
Nor does it guarantee that the part in the box w the correct p/n on it is actually the correct part!

ALWAYS good to compare old & new parts to be sure you actually have an equivalent part!!

-Bear-

 

[SilentUnicorn]

What is the correct length of a 1500 rocker shaft?
how about a 1275?



Tony: did you check the oil feed holes on that new shaft you got?




m

 

[JPSmit]

Just want to come back to the original post and hope and pray that this is the opportunity to vent with those who share your pain. I suspect we have all been disappointed by some of the cr*p that passes as parts - and we had to pay for it. Sometimes we make do, sometimes we send it back and sometimes, like now, we walk away for a week or so before someone (something) gets hurt.

Selling the car because of a lousy part is like cutting off your nose to spite your face but if I were a mile or two closer I'd be heading your way with some single malt.

we're with you!

 

[tony barnhill]

What is the correct length of a 1500 rocker shaft?
how about a 1275?



Tony: did you check the oil feed holes on that new shaft you got?

m

Yep, & laid it alongside the old one on a clean shop rag as I was assembling everything onto it....when possible, I always try to have the old part next to the new one for comparison.

But, then, I'm not the best mechanic on the BCF!

 

[BugEyeBear]

I Agree!

In times like these it is best to put down the tools, close the bonnet, turn out the lights, close the garage door, and go toss back a few cold ones!!

It won't fix the issue, but it surely will make it easier to accept.

Besides, there's a reason these cars (esp Bugeyes) have flat inner fenders! (typically stained with beer bottle circles!)
(I've often thought of mounting a cup/bottle holder on the top of each inner fender!)

-Bear-

 

[DrEntropy]

Very disappointing.

Not that this is any consolation, but I never take "aftermarket" parts for granted. Rather, expect to have a hassle. Finding a camshaft for a 3 litre post war Benz, for example... it is just a ~given~ that a forty year old, out of production machine will only have so many dedicated folks supplying the bits needed to make 'em well again. We're actually fortunate with LBC's. There's still enough interest and ~profitability~ in the things that there are suppliers for most of what it takes to keep 'em going. Granted there are plenty of bogus bits floating about but it IS possible to acquire the right ones from *someplace* for the most part. It SHOULD be a simple matter of placing the order and installing the part. But ~remember~: these are FORTY-PLUS YEAR OLD CARS we're insisting on resurrecting. If it were a 1985 Honda Civic mebbe it'd be easier... but I DOUBT it.

Stay the course, Mark. Just be ready for inevitable frustration. Overcome it.

And ~KNOW~ there are MORE parts available for your forty year old English lump than for a twenty year old HONDA!!! ...and consider the production numbers of each in that 'equation' as well. :wink: :thumbsup:

 

[jlaird]

Ok hear is your answer. These folks rebuild what you have A 40 engine is $128 bucks. https://www.rockerarms.com/Austin.htm

 

[WA1KWA]

(I've often thought of mounting a cup/bottle holder on the top of each inner fender!)

Bear,

You get the gold star for Idea of the Month here on BCF. Maybe you should engineer such an item? Might keep you in Old Speckled Hen for a while!

Colin

 

[SilentUnicorn]

ok.. so i have calmed down a little bit. I am still PO'd at the fact that quality and doing it right the first time have pretty gone the way of the Edsel. I guess it too much to ask for these big vendors to get it right the first time. I know that when i make a part for a customer it gets to them on time and done right the first time- if not i lose my job. We(consumers of these parts) are as much to blame for putting up with this. Ya know it is not like they are selling 100 rocker shafts a day in fact i bet there lucky to sell one a day. Some things are easy to check for-such as overall length- but then of course you would have to know what your selling. Not just be a middle man pawning off junk on the unsuspecting owners. This vendor is going to get a piece of my mind today and absolutely no more of my business, and any who ask me will be told of the poor quality and workmanship of the products they pedal.


geez this ticks me off......



m

 

[Hap Waldrop]

I know I may catch some flack for this comment, but here's what I tell folks on engine parts, don't buy from the two biggies MM and VB, they offer like zero choice in quality, and lot of Asian made parts. When I buy engine parts, a piston ain't a piston, a camshaft ain't a camshaft, a lifter ain't a lifter, a bearing set ain't a bearing set. Then if the big two does have anything trick on thier menu, they rape you, sorry I don't have time for that dog and poney show. I want choices, and I deal with companies that offer me choices, choices that represent quality. The big two offer one of pistons for 1275 for example, that is laughable, they must be atleast 15 off the shelf piston offerings offered for a 1275, why only offer me one choice. Why charge more for hand selected stock lifter checked for hardness, when I can just buy a set of really good quality lifters for less, why offer me a no-name camashaft, when there is well over a dozen offerings. Sorry the big two just don't cut for me when it comes to engine parts, not even close. I'm glad the big two are there in case I need set of floor mats, a carpet set, or such items, but for engine parts I'm not wasting my time with them.

When it come to quality engine parts you need to look outside the big two and the vendor that only sell for the big two. here's my short list of preferred A-series engine part vendors. I'm not saying there isn't more good vendors out there that sell good stuff, but these are the guys I've dealt with and am pleased with.

APT
Mini Spares/Mini Mania
The Winners Circle
The B Hive
British Parts Norhtwest
Seven Enterprises
Engle Import

 

[Morris]

I am sure I too will catch some flak, but I only shop at the big two as a last resort. While I appreciate that the big boys have kept the British car hobby alive, I am very grateful that they have some good competition now. In my experience when purchasing from the big boys, dissatisfaction with the quality, fit and price of parts is the rule, not the exception. And what is up with shipping and HANDLING????? That drives me nuts! Haven't I already paid for handling in the 180% mark up! Sheesh! Handling means, "we don't have the hojos to mark the part up 220%."

But how I love the big boys when I need to find an impossible special fitting that has some kind of crazy thread pitch from Mars. They are great for that stuff!

In short, I feel your pain Mark... and please don't give up on us!

 

[Hap Waldrop]

Morris you nailed it, the big two do serve a purpose, and they hopefully are not going anywhere and they have near 100% parts coverage. The only thing I hate is that they sell a set of bearing that are absolute junk ofr more than you can say ring another vendor and buy a tri metal bearing like the factory used orginally. I looked on one of the big two's site this morning and they are offering alloy valve retainers for $28.95 each (thats 231.60 for a set of 8) , I almost spit coffee on my keyboard, I can ring a half dozen places right now in the US that will sell any of you for retail a set of alloy retainers for a A-Series engine for under $100.00 set (heck at one time I sold titanium retainers for $160.00 a set), it boggles my mind, is there really someone out there so uninformed that will pay $231.60 for set of alloy retainers.

I tell you I talked to someone today, and I think after that conversation, I'm looking at getting back into the parts business, mainly engine parts, and I won't offer anything but quality items for good prices, because who wants junk, right?

 

[drooartz]

I would happily pay more to have a quality part, no question. Hap, I think you'd have customers for a properly chosen and vetted set of parts.

 

[jvandyke]

is there really someone out there so uninformed that will pay $231.60 for set of alloy retainers.

Yes.
The uninformed (like me) and the two biggies bank on it, and make money. Not that I blame them for it. Retail is "charge what you can get away with" I guess. That's alright. As a newbie to Spridgets, I wouldn't know any better and would figure that's close to the going rate and order away. It is convenient to buy from them, you can figure you pay for that too with the higher costs. I'd like to think retailers set their margin and stick to it but apparently they're happy to gouge when they can. Prey off the uninformed.
Well, now I know I need to shop more before I buy stuff and go to those guys when the price is similar (or I'm in a hurry and willing to pay for convenience). Also, as far as quality goes, many wouldn't know the difference, myself included, but now I do!