73 Mini

Started by MiniDave, November 03, 2016, 04:19:39 PM

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MPlayle

I don't have a Paypal account.  Check is fine - like with the gas cap.

I still have your address over in the PM section.  I'll get a box today and get them into the mail by Monday.

Address for me changed:

Michael Playle
5903 Babcock Rd, Apt 1505
San Antonio, Tx 78240


MiniDave

Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MiniDave

Had a heck of a time fixing the tach wiring - getting the little connector out of the housing was the tough part, then I had to retrace which wire did what and label them.....now it's ready to go back in the car, but first I have to make up a new oil pressure gauge pipe.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MiniDave

#228
Installed new rotors and EBC green stuff pads, although the old ones looked almost new and I saw no wear on the rotors at all - but, his call.

One thing I've found on these AP calipers, when you use the stainless brake hoses, the fittings screw further into the caliper than the stock hoses, then the inner piston won't retract quite fully. If you go ahead and stuff a new pad in there you could create enough drag to heat and warp the rotor - I wonder if that's what was going on here?

My solution is to use my belt sander to take a little off the inner pad till it slides into place easily and doesn't drag.

I tried to install the oil pressure gauge pipe but it broke in two...this gauge uses a weird fitting I've not seen before so I'll go to the hydraulic store and see if they have some hose small enough that I can just clamp it onto the broken piece and reuse the fitting it had.... sure don't want to dump oil all over the interior.

We've decided (well - I've decided) not to pull the cylinder head, I checked the valve clearances and they're fine, it has an 11 stud head and high performance rockers, I can't believe someone took this much trouble to build this engine and didn't do the hardened seats.....plus I doubt he'll do 500 miles a year in this car and very little of it will be near redline or on the highway. Bottom line, I think he's fine.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MPlayle

#229
Package with the defrost vents is on its way - estimated delivery for Wednesday.

Edit:
USPS tracking number 950551462782232199786


MiniDave

#230
Perfect, I'll mail the check in the AM....thanks Michael!

Today I finished his tow bar, all the brackets and chains cut to size so I can get mine back (he'd been using mine while waiting for the tow part to come in from Harbor Freight)

I also installed the new electronic distributor, but I can't start it and set the timing till I get the oil hose fixed. Likewise I can't finish the dash install till I get the nozzles from Michael and install the oil pressure pipe and gauge, then the tacho and run the wires for it.

Wednesday the glass guy is coming to replace the windshield and front and rear rubbers and chrome finishing strips, the owner is hoping to take the car home Wed night, but we'll see if I get all the little bits and bobs done by then, he'll certainly have it for the weekend and the nice weather still to come in Sept and October.

I have to work Monday and Tuesday so if I can get the hose I need before then I might get it all done by the evening.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MiniDave

#231
Defrost ducts got here this am, thanks again Michael, that's exactly what I needed.

Gave the right one a quick wire brush and a coat of Rusty Oleum, but I just heard from my glass guy that he's not coming today and re-scheduled for Friday, so I have a little more time for the paint to cure, and I can finish buttoning up the interior bits. He bought a new vinyl that covers the bottom of the parcel shelf, it goes in before the dash cards, and I thought it would be cut to fit, but nooooooooooooo......I've been trimming and fitting it for an hour now! It's now done, so I need to put the heater back up, reinstall the shift boot and shift knob then I can see about trimming the dash cards to fit the new binnacle, I think the left one will fit as it, but the right one will have to be contoured to fit around the tach. I might have to cut a new opening for the defrost hose from the heater too, I don't know if it will reach the way it is now, but that's no biggy........

I also came up with a simple way to fix the broken oil pipe for the oil pressure gauge with a couple of couplers and some of the regular nylon oil piping

It was 58* this morning! What a relief from all the rain and humidity and 90+ temps we've been having.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

Willie_B

Just a thought while you have the dash area apart. Maybe install a power plug, some now have a USB post built in along with the round plug.
I now have two under my dash, a regular one and a heavy duty one for my seat cooler.

MiniDave

#233
Yep, one of the things I did in the first go around....I put one in my car and Susan's too....you need those for GPS and phones.....just left of the radio in this pic.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

gr8kornholio

More info or links on those plugs.  Please and Thank You.
I am the GR8KORNHOLIO! Are you threatening me?

Saussie Aussie 1965 Australian MK1 Mini.
"Beavis" - 07 MY/MY MCS, B/MY Konig Daylites, JCW sideskirts, TSW springs, TSW lower rear control arms -- Exploring the country with new friends since 11/09.

MiniDave

#235
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

gr8kornholio

I am the GR8KORNHOLIO! Are you threatening me?

Saussie Aussie 1965 Australian MK1 Mini.
"Beavis" - 07 MY/MY MCS, B/MY Konig Daylites, JCW sideskirts, TSW springs, TSW lower rear control arms -- Exploring the country with new friends since 11/09.

MiniDave

Buttoned up all the loose ends on the '73 Mini and took it for a run this afternoon - mixed results. The car starts and runs fine, and drives well.

The new brakes will take some bedding in, but no matter after I pulled out of the garage I found a puddle under the right rear wheel - I don't think I'm ever going to be finished with this car!

.......and dammit the tach still doesn't work, and the temp gauge still reads high.

The hard start problem seems to have been cured by changing out the Lucas ignition for a new dizzy with points eliminator kit in it.

After all this work, I'm still dealing with two of the original problems....plus now I have new ones...<sighs.>
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

94touring

Did I read in here that a different gauge showed it didn't read high? 

Faulty tach or screwey wiring gremlins?

MiniDave

Yes, a mechanical gauge showed the temp running just where it's supposed to.....but this gauge and the old one read high. I also tried a different temp sensor....same result. I wonder if the voltage suppressor is working right.....more investigation needed.

Dunno, the damn tach worked before, it ought to work now too......
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

94touring

#240
Yeah the suppressor would screw you up.  I believe the tahaiti blue build I had to flip some wires around to get the temp gauge to work.  Does this tach being electrical and all share the suppressor? Might have some wires flopped around back there.

Also I'm sure you're aware but I'll add some limited info I know on mini tachs.  The green wire you had pull loose is your 12v wire, black ground, red illumination, and white is your signal wire. A white wire goes to the negative post on the coil and the other goes to the spade terminal on the distributer.

94touring

I can't see but does that tach match this model?

RVI 5000/00A

Illuminatin:  Red with white stripe
Ground Wires: Green & Black
Power Supply Wire: Red
White with Red: Distributor side of Coil
White with Black: Distributor

MiniDave

#242
No, close....the way you described the wiring in your first post is more how this one wires up.....but this is an aftermarket Smiths tach....the one difference is it has an additional wire for "electronic ignition" and one for "normal", and the car had a Lucas electronic ignition -  I removed that and installed a modern dizzy with a points eliminator kit, so I need to get into the harness and see if switching that wire will make it work, which means redoing the entire damn harness as I shrink taped it. Originally it was done with butt connectors that barely made connection and tape and I soldered all the connections and shrink taped it all up.

I'll have to get my meter in there and probe around a bit and see whether the voltage stabilizer is working or if the wires are even hooked up to it - I'm thinking this gauge needs the reduced voltage and that's why it reads high.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MiniDave

Rear brakes....went to drive it the other day and found a small puddle under the right rear wheel, so I got new shoes and wheel cylinders at Victoria British and changed them out today. The parts look new but the shoes were sticky with fluid - I think the car wasn't driven much after the restoration was done a number of years ago - same with the front pads and rotors. I'm going to clean up those rotors and keep them for a back up set for someone - my car has 8.4's and these are 7.5's - I might take them up to school and take just a few thou off to make sure they're true and don't have any hard spots on them.....
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

BruceK

I'm guessing you didn't use the special wheel cylinder tool for that job.
1988 Austin Mini
2002 MINI Cooper S
1992 Toyota LiteAce (JDM)
1997 Jeep Wrangler Sahara

MiniDave

#245
Yes, actually, and it worked pretty well too!

When I have the backing plate on the bench I can just pop them on with a hammer and a drift, but on the car the tool works better - if it works at all.

The cone has a number of divits in it now, but it still seems to work with some grease on it.....
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

BruceK

Good to hear it worked.  I remain unimpressed with it. 
1988 Austin Mini
2002 MINI Cooper S
1992 Toyota LiteAce (JDM)
1997 Jeep Wrangler Sahara

MiniDave

Nor am I, but I'm glad it worked as it's a bit awkward wedging the wheel cylinder hard enough to hold it while I bang the clip on with a hammer and drift - I've done it but it's not easy.
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MiniDave

This '73 Mini is just about ready to go home, at last!

The new tachometer came in from MiniSpares and I made up a new wiring harness and it works perfectly, thank dog.

He bought a new plastic horn button for his Moto Lita wheel, but it doesn't fit so back to the interwebz for that.

Still had a brake fluid leak right at the right rear wheel cylinder - the cylinder is new so I made a new brake line - hope that's it but I couldn't find anything wrong with the one on the car other than it was old. All I need to do now is bleed the brakes again.....

The glass shop (Safelite no less) did a perfect job on the windshield and back glass, the rubbers fit perfectly and the chrome trim looks great too....they charged him $150 each.

The last thing I need to do other than drive it and bed in the brakes is maybe tune the carb a little bit......
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad

MiniDave

The '73 went home at last......

I fitted a voltage stabilizer to the temp gauge and that seems to have fixed it....after running in the shop for about 10 minutes it was reading just under the N - which is what my car does, it's only when I get on the road on a hot day that it gets to the center of the gauge, and the highest I've seen it on a hot day after a long run on the highway is just to the top of the letter N. I checked it with my laser thermometer and it's running right at the thermostat setting - 165-170....I'm calling it good.

He towed it home with his new towbar and a big smile on his face, and is already making plans to bring his 71 Cooper S over. On it (so far) I need to fix a leaking displacer hose and the breather on the top of the bell housing is one I'd never seen before - but looking in the original Mini Parts catalog sure enough, it was used on Cooper S of that era. It has a stripped bolt hole that I'll heli-coil and I think that will cure his major oil leak. He also has lost brake fluid and says he saw a puddle under a front wheel, so it sounds like I'll be rebuilding his calipers and maybe the whole brake system for good measure. Lastly, he wants to figure out how to make his tow bar work with this car too, but it has a lightbar mounted in those holes, so it may take some engineering to make it work - or a different lightbar.

I told him I need to finish a few other projects first, not the least of which is Dan's engine, which is all done and just needs to be run in, and the wife's Audi which has a parasitic draw that flattens the battery over a couple of nights. If I can I'll make his car a winter project, tho I'm pretty sure he won't want it out of the safety of his storage at his work. His company is in one of the huge converted industrial caves we have around here where the temp and humidity are even all year round - great place to store something that's prone to rust!
Complete failure at retirement

1989 Cooper Racing Green
2009 Clubman S
2014 Audi Allroad