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| Darth V8Rs project | Rating: 
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| Posted: 08-07-2023 03:12 am |
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21st Post |
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vnavaret Member 
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Here is my first quarter panel repair. There were a couple of dime sized holes, and a several BB sized ones. Cut out the area, and out fell a pound of dirt. Guess I know now how the quarter panel came to be rusted. This makes me wonder if this is a flood car, as I don't know how that much dirt could get in there in daily driving. The fitch panel in the wheel well closing off this area is intact and not rusted. There are rubber seals around the panel, but maybe there is some way it could get in there that I have not discovered yet. Enjoy... Attachment: RRQtrPanel.jpg (Downloaded 175 times)
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| Posted: 08-07-2023 03:13 am |
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22nd Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Here is the completed repair on the LR quarter panel. Two more quarter panels to repair. Attachment: repair.jpg (Downloaded 176 times) Last edited on 08-15-2023 04:40 pm by vnavaret |
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| Posted: 09-23-2023 11:57 pm |
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23rd Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Lads: I have a surplus 4 speed available for free to a good home. Located in the Portland Oregon area, text me at (503)608-8206 if interested. The car was inoperative when I acquired it, so the state of the transmission is unknown and it should be regarded as a core. If no one claims it, it is going to the scrap yard. Vance Attachment: IMG_0354[1].jpg (Downloaded 159 times)
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| Posted: 09-30-2023 08:00 pm |
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24th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Lads: Been quite a while since I posted an update. Well here it is. All the cutting and welding is done, and I am getting the car ready to paint. I have borrowed a large cart, and in the attached image, I am getting ready to deposit it on the cart. I will drop the suspension, and using my chain hoist lift it on to the cart. My welding is not the best, but a thin skim of filler over the areas I have repaired and the new steel will be invisible. Three quarter panels required new steel due to extensive rust perforations in the lower 5 inches. Both front inner fenders required extensive patching due to botched previous repairs, and both front frame rails need aligning and reinforcing where previous repairs had failed completely. Important tip: Do not use brazing to section a car. It has poor fatigue resistance and lower strength than welding. The previous body tech did not heed this important information. Doh! I have ordered seat covers and vinyl from Riverbourne classics in the UK, in biscuit. I am therefore committed to my original plans for a biscuit interior and British Racing Green exterior. I have not committed to carpet color yet, but I am thinking a cocoa powder brown to highlight the biscuit seats and door skins. I have not committed to this, however. Biscuit carpet would give the interior a totally matching look, but I am partial to things like accent walls in houses that make rooms pop, so am considering a similar concept for the interior. Just Dashes in CA still have my dash, estimated total turn around time is about 8 months, so I cannot recommend them to anyone. A long lead time, and a demand for payment before they even start the work leaves me feeling little sympathy for their business model. Oh well, at least they are outrageously expensive. Those guys should wear a mask and hold a gun when giving estimates. Sheesh. Well, stay tuned for further (snail like) progress reports. Vance Attachment: IMG_0356[2].jpg (Downloaded 150 times) Last edited on 09-30-2023 08:06 pm by vnavaret |
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| Posted: 11-03-2023 04:15 am |
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25th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Status update on "Rusty" the car. I received my seat covers from Riverbourne classics, Allison answers the phones there and she is terrific. I also ordered some extra vinyl to cover the bare panels I got some time back. I was going to make my own, but found a set of die cut panels on eBay for less than $200, so decided to go that route. I also got my dash back from Just Dashes. They had my dash for 8 months and I finally gave up and sent them an email (they do answer their emails, a small plus) demanding the return of my dash and a refund. I did not hear from them for two business days, then voila! An email saying the work was complete and the dash had been shipped. I don't believe they touched it until they received my request for a refund. The work is of good quality, but gruesomely overpriced, and the lead time is, well... ridiculous. Not recommended. Picture is attached. They painted and recovered the dash and instrument binnacle, and installed new silver piping on the binnacle. The body is getting shipped off on Monday for paint. I have changed my mind on the color, too many LBCs get either British Racing Green or red. So I am going with Triumph Delft Blue. Call me crazy. I have started pressing the bushings out of the suspension, and am tearing down the front chassis assembly. Bought some cheap spring compressors from Harbor Freight, and KYB front and rear shocks. I am thinking that the front assembly will be powder coated, but have not committed to that yet. That's it for now. Vance Attachment: Just Dashes.jpg (Downloaded 137 times) Last edited on 11-03-2023 04:28 am by vnavaret |
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| Posted: 11-28-2023 01:59 am |
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26th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Just an update of recent work. I have completed the tear down of the front suspension, and disassembled the hubs. I am planning on new wheel bearings and seals. I ended up pressing the centers out of all the bushings. The metal inserts and the shells are all vulcanized together, which means that you cannot just press out the rubber (upper control arms are an exception). This left rubber sticking to the inside of the shells. From there I used a hacksaw to cut the shell from the inside, then a hammer and a drift to drive out the shells. Pretty crude, but it got the job done. I have stripped the front calipers, but the pistons seem to be rusted into place despite the rubber dust seals being intact. This is pretty common if the brake fluid does not get changed as it is hygroscopic and absorbs water. From there the water rusts everything from the inside out. After the brakes get rebuilt, DOT5 fluid will be used as it does not absorb water and rust things. Plus, it does not damage paint if things leak. Many people claim that seals fail when DOT5 is used, but I have used it on my last 3 restorations without a problem. I suspect that people convert an existing system to DOT5 and their old seals give up the ghost, so they blame the fluid. I will probably need to replace the pistons (when I manage to get them out) as they are likely to be pitted, but we shall see. Oh yeah, the car is off for paint. I had to delay painting as when I refitted the bonnet the panel gaps were horriffic. The PO had sectioned the nose, and was not watching the dimension between the outer fenders. He got it about 1/2" too wide, so he used filler to build up the inner fender lips to get the panel gaps reasonable. Arrgh! So I ended up slicing out a ribbon of steel from the left inner fender, then used ratcheting straps to pull the outer fenders closer together. I then welded the inner fender to lock the outer fender in place. The panel gaps are now fixed. Anyway, that took me a couple of weekends of fiddling, so paint got delayed a bit. Stay tuned for more news. Vance Last edited on 04-08-2024 06:52 pm by vnavaret |
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| Posted: 02-03-2024 02:47 am |
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27th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Latest news on Rusty the car... I decided to toss my old brake calipers as I could not get the pistons out. Compressed air popped one out, but he rest, well, not so much. I asked a buddy what he does for this, and he welds a bolt to the piston and uses a slide hammer. I felt that if I was that desperate, the bores would be pitted so I tossed the old calipers and bought new ones for $90 each. They are the same calipers that the early Spitfires use, so they are readily available stateside. The rear slave cylinders appear to be the same ones that the TR7 4 speed and the TR8 use, so these are not an issue either. I got some photos back from the body shop, and the car has had all the dents removed and is now in primer. So progress is being made. In the meantime I have rebuilt the heater (removed a wasp nest, bead blasted, painted with new gaskets), torn down the rear axle, painted the brake drums, powder coated the bumpers, and acquired a bunch more parts. I even got a spare engine so I can replace a cracked cam gallery that the PO had patched with silicone (it didn't work, BTW) The trailing arms have been cleaned and painted, and I got the last bushings in the rear axle removed. They were the worst to get out - argh. A tip of the hat to Bruce Madden, who has supplied me with some difficult to find parts for very reasonable prices. Stay tuned for more news... Vance Attachment: IMG_6052.jpg (Downloaded 108 times)
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| Posted: 02-03-2024 03:01 am |
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28th Post |
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redracer Member
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Glad to hear you're making progress on your car--hopefully you'll have it ready for spring? I made a puller for the caliper pistons(looked all over for one but no one has one??). You need to pull the 2 halves apart(DON'T LOSE THE FLAT WASHER THAT GOES BETWEEN THE 2 WHERE THE BRAKE FLUID GOES), and make some type of a puller with small jaws 90 degrees to the shafts. Anyway, you've already found suitable replacements, but I probably have around 20 sets, so it was a good addition to the tool collection!
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| Posted: 03-28-2024 01:10 am |
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29th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Lads: Latest update on Rusty. I have finally completed the rebuild of my front suspension. Powder coated (expensive, will not be doing that on my next project), all new bushings, new KYB shocks, gaitors, tie rod ends, etc. I rotated the lower suspension arms so that I can add a front sway bar should I feel that the car needs it. I spent some time waiting for the UPS man on a couple of occasions. I had failed to order a couple of bushings with a big order placed a couple of months ago, and I needed an internal spring compressor to reinstall the springs. I had some MacPherson spring compressors, but they were not up to the job. For the most part I used my vise to press in the bushings, but used some threaded rod and sockets in a couple of cases. BTW, getting tools from Amazon is much less expensive than Harbor freight, and if you are a Prime member they are delivered in two days. Recommended. The rear axle has new bearings, a drain plug, and is fully painted so it should not rust for a while at least. I have the new bushings in the trailing and radius arms, but they are not yet attached to the axle. I have been promised that my car will be back from paint "any minute now" for about 4 weeks. I am not in any rush as I still have lots of cleanup and prep to do on many small pieces. I may tackle the glove box next, it is in very rough shape as the felt has separated from the press board, and there are some tears that need work, as well as redyeing the felt, which is badly faded. Vance Attachment: JH Front Susp [1].jpg (Downloaded 90 times) Last edited on 03-28-2024 01:17 am by vnavaret |
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| Posted: 04-07-2024 02:58 am |
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30th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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A quick update on the project: The paint is finally going on the body. I have attached a photo of the paint - Triumph Delft Blue. I have started work on some of the interior bits. I rebuilt the glove box which had totally fallen apart. The felt had fallen loose from the hardboard, the front of the glove box had fallen off, and the hardboard was badly warped and faded. I cut an aluminum strip and glued it to the inside of the glove box to restore the shape, then used spray adhesive to reattach the felt, which I recolored using spray on fabric dye. I painted the hardboard, and stapled and screwed the front of the glove box to the hardboard. Looks almost new. Here is that photo of the paint going on. Vance Attachment: IMG_6324.jpg (Downloaded 77 times) Last edited on 04-07-2024 02:59 am by vnavaret |
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| Posted: 04-08-2024 04:37 pm |
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31st Post |
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noomg Member
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Vance, I don't think that dirt in post #21 was from a flood, when I redid my J/H I removed the fenders and found some dirt back there, not as much but my car has lived it's whole life in SoCal. So while those inner panels do seal out most of the dirty road water some does get past. When I restored my Austin-Healey (no inner panels) I found two to three pounds of dirt in the back of the rear fenders on each side! Your experience with Just Dashes is about normal, outrageously expensive, incredibly long wait times. They do dashes for a lot of 60s muscle cars so a dash for a $100,000 restoration probably takes priority over your $5,000 Jensen-Healey and I agree it's a lousy way to do business. Swapping the lower suspension arms while out of the car was a good idea it's a real PITA when it's on the car. And yes you will want to add both front and rear anti-sway bars as they will make a significant difference in handling. The paint turned out beautifully, I'm just curious which Triumph cars they used Delft Blue on? The TR7 I test drove was blue but as I recall it was a lighter blue similar to the Malaga Blue offered originally on the Jensen-Healey. I'm just curious especially at this level of restoration, have you ever driven a Jensen-Healey?
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| Posted: 04-08-2024 05:00 pm |
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32nd Post |
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noomg Member
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Vance, I forgot to mention now that you're reaching the point where reassembly is going to begin I highly recommend when you get to that point you install the dash first THEN the windshield. While it seems counterintuitive since you'll have better access to the dash for the install (which you will) without the windshield in place, it's a real bitch getting the windshield over the dash and into place. Plus you run the risk of cracking the unsupported windshield while trying to get it over the dash.
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| Posted: 04-09-2024 02:03 pm |
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33rd Post |
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noomg Member
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Vance, Sorry for the mix up on the last post, it should read install the windshield FIRST then the dash. It probably makes more sense now.
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| Posted: 04-09-2024 04:57 pm |
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34th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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noomg wrote: Vance, I figured that is what you meant, that the windshield should go in first, but thank you for the clarification/confirmation. To answer your question, no I have never driven a JH. I like the styling, the motor tech, and the fact that it is a relatively obscure British marque. I seem to need a restoration project in my life to keep me busy, and the JH filled all my requirements. I have not touched the motor yet, but I have acquired a few parts such as performance camshafts and a set of high compression pistons. I intend to keep the Zenith carburetors, as I have found them to be an excellent blend of performance and economy and they keep the car more original. Cheers, Vance
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| Posted: 04-09-2024 09:59 pm |
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35th Post |
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JH12947 Member
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I certainly don't want to portray myself as an expert on this, having only done it once, but in my current restoration I completely finished the interior, including the dash, prior to putting in the windshield. I had absolutely no issue installing the windshield and can't really see where fitment would be a problem. I'd prefer to leave the windshield in a nice safe place while doing other work around the car, including the engine and bonnet. JM2CW
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| Posted: 04-10-2024 04:11 pm |
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36th Post |
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noomg Member
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JM2CW, I'm glad to hear your install went off without a hitch as mine didn't. The only reason I can think of for that is maybe all restorations are all a bit different. On mine with the dash in place and the windshield posts in their holes the bottom of the windshield was obstructed by the dash and couldn't be rotated into place. Eventually with a lot of lube, jiggling, and some minor paint scratching I worked it into place. I was about ready to pull the dash before it slipped into finally place. Vance, I too was drawn to the elegant simplicity of the design. Once you get it on the road I think you'll find the driving experience to be delightful. In comparison to the Wedge the steering is quick and very light and the overall feeling of the lightness of the car will become readily apparent. Looking at motor upgrades you're probably finding the tuning options for the 907 are almost infinite. The most common upgrades for the motor include the 2.2 stroker kit, Dellortos and either 104 or 107 cams plus a few other bits. This combo will push you up to around the 190hp range. That's a lot more HP than Lee Mueller had when he won the SCCA national championship in '73 driving a J/H. While some guys on our Wedge website think they're crap I really like the Zeniths, they're easy to maintain and tune and very reliable. Since I've got to smog test every two years the carbs need to be up to snuff which is easy with the Zeniths.
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| Posted: 04-10-2024 04:49 pm |
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37th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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noomg wrote: While some guys on our Wedge website think they're crap I really like the Zeniths, they're easy to maintain and tune and very reliable. Since I've got to smog test every two years the carbs need to be up to snuff which is easy with the Zeniths. I think the reason so many disparage the Zeniths is that there are several adjustments on the carb, and if you do not know which adjustment to make, you can get them pretty messed up. The SUs by comparison are elegant in their simplicity, and more difficult to fubar. Hence the near universal praise for them. I get tested every two years for emissions, and having worked with both SUs and Zeniths, I can say that the Zeniths are superior in that regard, while giving up nothing in terms of performance. And despite claims to the contrary, there are many (I counted over 100) needle profiles available from Burlen Fuel. I recommend that people find a copy of the Haynes book "Zenith/Stromberg CD Carburetors" and READ it. Zeniths will make perfect sense and maintenance is a snap after perusing that reference. Vance
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| Posted: 04-10-2024 04:58 pm |
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38th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Paint is finished, so now I need to get the car home and start reassembly. I am starting to get excited, but still MUCH work to do. Vance Attachment: IMG_6334.jpg (Downloaded 51 times)
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| Posted: 04-10-2024 06:25 pm |
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39th Post |
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redracer Member
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Vance: the Stromberg carbs are very easy to adjust, especially if one has a CO meter(my Heathkit from 1983). Also, I happened to get a reference book in the late'70s made by INTERAUTO, entitled "STROMBERG CARBURETTER", which is 4"X8" soft covered, that explains every little component that goes on it. It has been very useful. Here is more info if you can find one: ISBN 0-903192-52-7 LONDON 1973
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| Posted: 04-29-2024 11:32 pm |
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40th Post |
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vnavaret Member
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Lads: Latest on "Rusty". Car was dropped off a couple of weeks ago after paint. I spent some time seam sealing the fender wells, and giving the undercoating a refresh. Just finished installing the front suspension/Engine cradle into the car - picture is attached. Attended a local swap meet on Sunday and picked up some new horns. Still haven't touched the engine, but I did order a set of pistons from Delta. 9.5:1 +0.030". The higher compression should add a few ponies and some torque when I finally work on the motor. Other plans include more duration on the exhaust cam, 3 angle valve job, etc. Next is to reinstall the rear suspension, and get the body off the dolly. Reassembly has begun! Woo-hoo! Vance Attachment: JH Suspension.JPG (Downloaded 26 times) Last edited on 04-29-2024 11:33 pm by vnavaret |
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