Thowman's PB
- Thread starter thowman
- Start date
Wiring completed today. All works as it should, including things that in the past didn't. Now have a nice voltmeter and accurate temp gauge, a full set of fuses and relay and an electronic flasher.
Also fitted some clear lenses for side and front indicators (with the flasher corrected to be on the top) with amber bulbs for the flashers. Looks cool.
Here's some photos:
Work in progress on the wiring loom - quite simple really.
The dash from behind with new instruments, and some connectors for quick removal (yet to be fitted at time of photo).
New mission control - relays for horn and lights and an electronic flasher. A midi 100A fuse on battery feed and two fuses boxes - one for lights - individually wired and fused per side, and the other for accessories - with space for future additions.
Tomorrow, put the seat back in and go for a test drive with new head and loom.
Andy
Also fitted some clear lenses for side and front indicators (with the flasher corrected to be on the top) with amber bulbs for the flashers. Looks cool.
Here's some photos:
Work in progress on the wiring loom - quite simple really.
The dash from behind with new instruments, and some connectors for quick removal (yet to be fitted at time of photo).
New mission control - relays for horn and lights and an electronic flasher. A midi 100A fuse on battery feed and two fuses boxes - one for lights - individually wired and fused per side, and the other for accessories - with space for future additions.
Tomorrow, put the seat back in and go for a test drive with new head and loom.
Andy
Excellent [8D]
"You,re only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
"You,re only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
Nicely done.
Thanks for the nice comments. Wiring neatness does help - and even then having more than six colours helps even more. As I have been making looms for imps recently - I already had all the necessary colours - I don't think I would have coped with just 6 colours as per Sam's photos - and certainly not making the loom up in situ. It was hard enough pluging all the lights into the bullet connectors.
Well, I ordered a matched sender unit for the TIM water gauge today - as the van was reading 100 degrees on the open road - which is about 20 more than it should be. So those nice people at demon tweeks have sent me one in exchange for £20, including the 5/8th adaptor.
So my next question is - what is the size of the ring for the exhaust pipe to manifold joint. Mine didn't seem to have one fitted, and so the exhaust is blow under load.
Answers preferably not on a postcard.
Thanks
A
Well, I ordered a matched sender unit for the TIM water gauge today - as the van was reading 100 degrees on the open road - which is about 20 more than it should be. So those nice people at demon tweeks have sent me one in exchange for £20, including the 5/8th adaptor.
So my next question is - what is the size of the ring for the exhaust pipe to manifold joint. Mine didn't seem to have one fitted, and so the exhaust is blow under load.
Answers preferably not on a postcard.
Thanks
A
Well, Babs is now parked back at the workshop in the naughty corner. SHe's dropped compression on #1 cylinder, and so I came back about 80 miles on just 3 cylinders.
Even with the rockers removed from the head, I am only getting 25 psi on the cylinder, so it's either a broken ring, or burnt valve or something. So, it looks like the head is going to be coming off again.
Hmmmmm
Even with the rockers removed from the head, I am only getting 25 psi on the cylinder, so it's either a broken ring, or burnt valve or something. So, it looks like the head is going to be coming off again.
Hmmmmm
Well, 7 months since my last posting, a quick update on Babs
In the last 7 months I have done no work.
I still have to investigate the engine problem - but other than entirely short term - I now have a Mazda R2 2.2 litre diesel engine which I am going to install in her. It's come out the back of a Land rover which had it for the purposes of replaceing the petrol unit it there. It only cost me a ton, and apparently is a sweet unit - and upon measuring it all up - it will fit snuggly into the engine space.
Short term, I am hoping to get everything going in order to make it down to Wales not in Peggy. I have a hole in the floor by the driver's side door - and the sills under the doors are a bit crumbly. Are these considered to be structural areas? It must be said it passed the MOT last time in this condition - just before I purchased her? Ideally, I'd like to spend and do as little as possible at the moment as I will do the full restoration over the autumn/winter - before we head for new southerly country destination in 2012.
Additionally, how easy would it be to convert Babs to left hand drive, other than getting a different steering rack - and rewiring the dash to suit LHD?
The other bigger problem at the moment is that I have misplaced the keys - and in spite of searching for 2 days I haven't found them. Yes, they are my only set. I can get in the van no problem - as the quarterlight isn't exactly thief-proof - but does someone have a spare set of door/ignition locks that that would be able to sell me if they don't turn up?
Andy
In the last 7 months I have done no work.
I still have to investigate the engine problem - but other than entirely short term - I now have a Mazda R2 2.2 litre diesel engine which I am going to install in her. It's come out the back of a Land rover which had it for the purposes of replaceing the petrol unit it there. It only cost me a ton, and apparently is a sweet unit - and upon measuring it all up - it will fit snuggly into the engine space.
Short term, I am hoping to get everything going in order to make it down to Wales not in Peggy. I have a hole in the floor by the driver's side door - and the sills under the doors are a bit crumbly. Are these considered to be structural areas? It must be said it passed the MOT last time in this condition - just before I purchased her? Ideally, I'd like to spend and do as little as possible at the moment as I will do the full restoration over the autumn/winter - before we head for new southerly country destination in 2012.
Additionally, how easy would it be to convert Babs to left hand drive, other than getting a different steering rack - and rewiring the dash to suit LHD?
The other bigger problem at the moment is that I have misplaced the keys - and in spite of searching for 2 days I haven't found them. Yes, they are my only set. I can get in the van no problem - as the quarterlight isn't exactly thief-proof - but does someone have a spare set of door/ignition locks that that would be able to sell me if they don't turn up?
Andy
We might be able to help Andy 
"You,re only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
"You,re only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
Here's the engine that will be eventually going into babs. The sump will need to be altered, but the dimensions are very similar to the standard engine, as long as I remove the viscous fan - and put an electric fan infront of the rad.....
Engine is a Mazda R2 2.2 diesel that comes out of a Mazda pick up truck or E2200 van. Probably a slight increase in HP, but more than double the torque - which is what I am after. It's narrow enough at the bottom to get the sump in, and the ancilaries will all fit at the top of the engine bay. The water inlet and outlet are also in the right positions for the standard radiator. Nice.
watch this space.
Andy
Engine is a Mazda R2 2.2 diesel that comes out of a Mazda pick up truck or E2200 van. Probably a slight increase in HP, but more than double the torque - which is what I am after. It's narrow enough at the bottom to get the sump in, and the ancilaries will all fit at the top of the engine bay. The water inlet and outlet are also in the right positions for the standard radiator. Nice.
watch this space.
Andy
Well, some good news. Picked up some random imp keys - and it just so happens that I have a key that fits the drivers door and ignition switch perfectly.
All I have to do now is go home, and look for all the other rootes keys I have and try them. Silver lining in every cloud and all that.
So my stiletto and Camper share the same door and ignition key - that's lucky, isn't it.
A
All I have to do now is go home, and look for all the other rootes keys I have and try them. Silver lining in every cloud and all that.
So my stiletto and Camper share the same door and ignition key - that's lucky, isn't it.
A
Well, made some progress on Babs over the last few days, finally looking like she will be going to the ball after all - if I can manage to get an MOT for her.
Following my quick engine rebuilt last year - or in other words, replacing the original head with one from a 1500 hunter that I was given in order to cure the problems I had been having with the noisy tappets and snapping valves - I am now in the process of having that head rebuilt. When I fitted it, I didn't bother doing much to it other than to clean off the carbon and stick it onto the engine. It seemed to run ok at first, and got up to Commerland for the meet, but on the way back - I lost a cylinder to a misfire - and drove home from around Newark to London on 3 cylinders.
At the time, I had a quick go at seeing what the problem was - but it wasn't either electrical/fuel or tappet related - and I got a reading of 25 psi on #1 cylinder - which was the one that was missing. I ended up slackening off the tappets on that cylinder to see if that made a difference - which it didn't. The other 3 were all bang on around 125 psi.
So.... since then it has been parked next to my workshop and left... until last week. Tried starting her again, and I even had fuel spurting out of the top of the carb when turning over. It turned out that #1 Inlet valve was in very poor condition, and wasn't sealing properly, so on it's compression stroke it was blowing all the contents of the cylinder back up the inlet manifold and out of the carb.
Took the head to the machine shop today, then drove to Brighton to Speedys (it was a nice day and I went down in the MGF with the top down) to buy a new set of valves, guides, springs etc - as I needed to get them to the machine shop today for them to be able to return the head before the weekend. The head went into the blast cabinet this morning before I went out, and came out looking quite new and pristine. I decided that as I don't do many miles, and have a diesel lined up to go in at some point, that I wouldn't get hardened inserts fitted as they wanted £140 plus vat to do that work. Therefore will stick with additives for now. Should have the head back on Thursday, and then next week I will weld up the holes in the floor and battery box and take her for an MOT so that I have time to sort out any other problems.
The sills under the doors are in a shocking condition, and really should be replaced - but now don't have time or money to do this - am I right in thinking that these shouldn't be considered to be structural for the MOT?
Fingers crossed
A
Following my quick engine rebuilt last year - or in other words, replacing the original head with one from a 1500 hunter that I was given in order to cure the problems I had been having with the noisy tappets and snapping valves - I am now in the process of having that head rebuilt. When I fitted it, I didn't bother doing much to it other than to clean off the carbon and stick it onto the engine. It seemed to run ok at first, and got up to Commerland for the meet, but on the way back - I lost a cylinder to a misfire - and drove home from around Newark to London on 3 cylinders.
At the time, I had a quick go at seeing what the problem was - but it wasn't either electrical/fuel or tappet related - and I got a reading of 25 psi on #1 cylinder - which was the one that was missing. I ended up slackening off the tappets on that cylinder to see if that made a difference - which it didn't. The other 3 were all bang on around 125 psi.
So.... since then it has been parked next to my workshop and left... until last week. Tried starting her again, and I even had fuel spurting out of the top of the carb when turning over. It turned out that #1 Inlet valve was in very poor condition, and wasn't sealing properly, so on it's compression stroke it was blowing all the contents of the cylinder back up the inlet manifold and out of the carb.
Took the head to the machine shop today, then drove to Brighton to Speedys (it was a nice day and I went down in the MGF with the top down) to buy a new set of valves, guides, springs etc - as I needed to get them to the machine shop today for them to be able to return the head before the weekend. The head went into the blast cabinet this morning before I went out, and came out looking quite new and pristine. I decided that as I don't do many miles, and have a diesel lined up to go in at some point, that I wouldn't get hardened inserts fitted as they wanted £140 plus vat to do that work. Therefore will stick with additives for now. Should have the head back on Thursday, and then next week I will weld up the holes in the floor and battery box and take her for an MOT so that I have time to sort out any other problems.
The sills under the doors are in a shocking condition, and really should be replaced - but now don't have time or money to do this - am I right in thinking that these shouldn't be considered to be structural for the MOT?
Fingers crossed
A
