Started the Easter break with another trip to the scrap yard, was looking for a replacement wiper arm, but came home with a high level brake light from a Rover. As the light housing was designed for a sloping rear window, I carefully broke the heat welded housing and separated the light into 3 parts, the diffuser, fresnel lens and the led strips it's self. All I need to do now is to find a way of mounting it above the rear window.
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Spent the morning having a look around the Auto-Jumble at the local transport museum, coincidentally called the Grampian Transport Museum, rewarded me with, what I think is a Morris Marina Coupé badge.
A few weeks ago I decided to remove the engine, for a check over, clean up, and to allow easier access to a few bits of rust in the "engine bay". So I jacked the whole rear of the car up, removed the 8 securing bolts and with the body held in place, lowered the engine out from under the car. Once out, I put the engine into a wheelbarrow and took it round the back of the house. Will need to get a cheep tarpaulin, before I start cleaning the oil and grime off tomorrow.
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Started the clean up, by laying some polythene sheet with a tarpaulin to keep the slabs clean, then a quick Cillit bang and a jet wash removed the worst of the grime. Allowing me to start stripping the engine and lift it from the subframe.
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As the forecasted rain was past by mid-morning, I gave the exhaust a quick wire-brush and sand, followed by a coat of Hi-temp paint, and hung it up to dry in the sun.
After a final clean, I started to strip the engine down, first off was the engine mount and the speedo drive housing, followed by the diff housing, side plates and the diff it's self. All look in excellent condition, with very little gunk and staining showing on the gearbox casing.
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Finished off the day, by cleaning and then priming some of the engine brackets,pipes and gear selector, ready for painting.
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A return of the bad weather curtailed my activities, with only a second coat of primer on the parts, then a quick tidy up of the area, as with the Easter weekend approaching, I needed to reclaim the patio.
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Nothing major today, with an extra pair of hands available, I moved the bodywork, further up the trailer, meaning that the other cars now fit on the drive.
A showery day allowed me to clean and paint a few more bits and pieces.
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A warm sunny day allowed the painting to progress, including the "space-frame" in the rear of the car.
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A few days holiday, allowed me to visit various mini and motorsport stores and produced a few parts needed, to complete the engine clean up and refit. The list runs to Cone Compressor, back "front" brake hoses, 50psi oil pressure switch, Dsuz fastener tool, fuse box, weber "O" rings plus fittings, various gaskets, alloy rocker cover, thermostat housing, seals for the rod change in the diff and a Polarn pump.
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Started the clean up of the parts I had bought when on holiday. The rocker cover at some point in its life had been painted black, and had "Do Not Touch" lettering applied. I decided to strip the paint off, ready for a repaint in a yet to be decided colour. A few minutes with a wire brush in the angle grinder had the bulk removed, and a while later, some sandpaper had removed 99% of the paint. While the grinder was out, I cleaned up the thermostat housing, and place both in the dishwasher for a nice hot wash.
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After the rinse in the dish washer, it was time for a quick coat of primer.
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After a few coats of primer, and having decided on a colour scheme. It was time for a coat of gloss black, unfortunately I managed to run out of paint before I finished the rocker cover. So it looks like an early morning trip is needed to pick-up some more, tomorrow.
Picked up some paint and continued painting the rocker cover.
While it was drying I stripped the suspension off the subframe, and at the same time removed the brake pipes, this turned out to be quite a problem, resulting in me having to cut the pipes and remove the brake cylinders to get them into a vice. But they released with no damage to anything I wasn't replacing.
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As the rain returns, I head inside to start adding the red highlights to the rocker cover. Using a "foam" brush I have dabbed on a layer of red paint. Once it's dried, I will add a few more layers.
Finished off the rocker cover and removed the masking tape. Not to bad a job, and a nice touch I think.
Spent most of the day painting various part of the car. The suspension arm were given a oat of black hammerite, the clutch arm was primed and painted black, then the engine was given a coat of red. Hopefully now that is most of it covered and it's just a case of putting it back together.
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Another ebay purchase arrived today, in the form of a pair of rear brake cylinders. In an effort to produce more braking force at the rear, I have swapped the existing 11/16" Mini cylinder for a pair of 0.8" Austin 1300 cylinders.
Now the paint was dry on the subframe, I took the chance to weld in a pair of 10mm set screws on each suspension tower. The existing ones, having come loose when unbolting the subframe, meaning I had to cut them off at the time.
In preparation for the larger rear cylinders being fitted, I cut the rear brake lines, and inserted a brake proportioning valve, this will allow me to adjust the pressure of the rear brakes and stop them locking before the front does. Still need to drill a hole, and fit a bracket, but those need to wait until the gear change is re-fitted.
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