I'm starting a series of videos showing how I rebuild a Mini or Sprite A series engine.....
Here's the first installment......
I don't know if I'll go all the way thru, but you all can let me know if I'm giving too much detail or not enough. I just set the camera up in one place - if I need to show close ups of something, let me know.
Oh cool, I was hoping you'd do some build videos.
Yes so was I, these should be great!
Cool idea to share your work!
thank you for this. a great "pre-run" to see what's what for my own engine tear down.
I'm going to try and be thorough, and I don't want to bore people but I'm sure there will be tiny details that I'll miss describing. Things that seem obvious to me may not be so obvious to the first timer - so if something doesn't seem right, or if it seems like I skipped a bit, ask and I'll do my best to explain further.
One thing I can't stress enough is to use the correct puller to remove the flywheel - the best one you can buy is the one John sells on Guessworks. It's a little spendy but it will work, and to me that's worth a lot - not wasting time using an incorrect puller or damaging parts with the wrong tool or process. I don't have that puller, mine seems to do the job for me, but I also use an impact wrench - tightening the puller with a breaker bar may not give the same quick results.
http://guessworks.co.uk/Shop/Parts/display.htm?id=501 (http://guessworks.co.uk/Shop/Parts/display.htm?id=501)
I've read countless accounts of guys having to use heat, banging on the flywheel thru the starter hole and so on to get one off - if you're going to do it just buy and use the right tool, save a ton of grief and frustration.
I agree that the right tool can make all the difference in the world. I just spent a little over a $100 bucks on a tool, specifically made by a guy up in Omaha to change the real axle seals on my Toyota 4runner. I will probably only use it once (may find other uses for it who knows) but that $100 dollar tool will save well over a thousand if I took it to the dealership to get the seals replaced, and actually saves about $200 in parts as it allows me to reuse parts that would otherwise not be reusable.
The guy used to make some special stuff for Mini's I guess (he used to work as a tool and die maker or something) so I was asking him if it was for the original Mini's or the new MINI's. He said it was all for 1st gen MINI's. I asked because I was thinking of buying that quessworks puller and figured maybe I would get lucky and he had some special tools for the old Mini's, he said no, but that he was always up for the challenge of making new stuff.
A million years ago when I first started working on cars, the boss had a puller for Mini clutches that he made from a 3/4" thick piece of steel, cut in a triangle shape, threaded for a 3/4" rod roughly in the center with a nut welded on the end of the rod to drive it. I used that thing a LOT to put Mini clutches in. So, it's def possible to just make one, but today at what cost in time and materials? He cut the steel out using a cutting torch so all the edges were rough as can be......also, the older engines used a different setup than the later ones, so you need the appropriate bolts and such...
I'd rather spend the $100 and get one made for the job and proven to work. I agree that using it only once is frustrating, but not having it when you need it is even worse. I used to loan tools like this out thinking that they couldn't be hurt, but soon found out otherwise as they came back stripped, parts missing etc.
I don't do that any more......if they're local I'll invite them to bring it to my shop and I'll do the job for them. Otherwise, I'll tell them where to buy the tool they need.
This puller has been modified too....I had to come up with some much stronger washers under the heads of the bolts, and I switched to grade 8 bolts. If you use it right, it will be difficult to damage it.
OK, here's part two where I remove the oil pump, cam, lifters, rods/pistons and crank.
Part 3, where I talk about cylinder heads and valves..
OK, not a video, but just some pics. I spent a lot of time cleaning the block and pistons up - that doesn't make for good video so I didn't bother....
I'm on the horns of a dilemma right now. I thought maybe I would just freshen this engine up - new consumables like bearings, oil pump, timing chain and rings. Give it a light hone to clean up the cylinders and build it back a little better than stock - after all it ran really well - it just smoked, leaked and had worn synchros and a noisy bearing in the gearbox, all fixable with a minimum outlay of parts. I already have a cam, lifters, and rings in stock that I would like to use up but......
After cleaning up the pistons I found one is damaged - I'm going to talk to the machinist before I do anything more with it. It's possible the block is worn or tapered too far and will require boring oversize. I'm almost certain the crank will need to be turned, although I also have a std crank that does not need anything.
So - if I'm going to bore it anyway......normally I would just go 40 over, leaving one more overbore to 60 if needed. OTOH, this would be a chance to go crazy and build a 1380 - when you do that the block is no longer useful once it wears out - you're done. But, do I really care?
Also, the plan for this car is to get it running nicely and sell it on, so I can build my hot rod motor for my rear engine project. That one could be the 1380 plus turbo that I've been thinking about. I already have the spare block, crank, rods and head to build that engine.....and if I go crazy I might even put a 5 speed in it and make the ultimate highway cruiser - all of which would suggest just build this one into a nice driver and send it on. OTOH, I might keep it for a while.....
See the problem? can't make up my mind.....
A couple of pics of the exhaust ports "before", I'll have after pics later. Also, block and pistons cleaned up and a close up of the damaged piston.
You also have this brand new 1410cc innocenti sitting in my shop you could just hop in and drive! Granted I know you want different seats but still.
Need to get that buttoned up and cashed out/sold! 4.gif
I'll have another short video soon, I've mostly just been cleaning parts.
The machine shop measured the block and crank and as suspected, we'll need to turn the crank down 10 thou, the ring land on the pistons was also pretty worn, so we're going to go ahead and bore it out 60 over.
Today I'll order pistons, bearings and all the other bits I need so things will slow down till parts get here and I can start assembly.
In the meantime I'll do a short vid on how the head turned out, and then start disassembly of the gearbox. I want to order the parts for the box at the same time as the engine parts to save some shipping, but I'll bet there will be something I'll miss! Plans right now are for a 2:76 diff (cause I have one) so it will be a nice highway cruiser.
I still need to find a good source for a cruise control - you used to be able to buy a nice kit for about $75, but now all the aftermarket cruise controls are designed to work off the ECU, and since we don't have those they will not work.
Today I disassembled the gearbox for overhaul.....it was leaking from every seal and gasket, it had a crunchy second gear synchro and a noisy bearing somewhere.
Quote from: MiniDave on September 16, 2021, 07:15:34 AM
Plans right now are for a 2:76 diff (cause I have one) so it will be a nice highway cruiser.
I have a good 3.1 final drive set if anyone is interested.
I think I'm gonna stick with the 2.76 I have.....
Today I spent all day cleaning parts, I swear I spend more time doing that the the disassembly and re-assembly combined! The worst part is scraping off all the old gasket material, sometimes it is REALLY glued on there! And.........I'm still not done! I still have to do all the nuts and bolts and fasteners, plus paint any small bits, plus weld up that broken bracket, plus....plus....plus.....
I also got the main shaft torn down far enough to get the second gear synchro out and figure out why it was crunching in second gear, but you'll have to wait till my next video for the answer - stay tuned!
I got all my parts ordered last night, and then remembered 4 more things I needed as I lay in bed, so got up early this am and sent an email off to Spares to see if they can add it to my order. I didn't get any reply today so either they didn't or it will delay my order some more. Shazbot!
Tonight's video is a shorty......where I tear down the differential.
Rebuilding an engine and/or a transmission is not just taking the old bits out and putting new bits in (unless you're Edd China) but also endless hours of cleaning parts, painting steel parts so they don't rust and corrode, running a tap into every threaded hole, chamfering said holes and cleaning, cleaning, cleaning.....
You also discover where work was done previously, and in a lot of cases - how poorly it was done. You also find more worn or broken parts to either fix or replace as I did with the exhaust bracket....I'll weld that up later. I'll want to fit it on the trans first so I can tack it together in the right orientation.
I also found that this transmission had not one, not two, but THREE seals for the shift shaft! It also looks like they used a pickaxe to dig the old ones out and didn't bother to clean up the mess that made before fitting the five (three sir!) three seals back in. So I took a file to it to knock down the big burrs, nothing I can do about the digs in the metal, but I doubt it will leak from there anyway - I'll use a light coating of sealer just in case.
Speaking of sealer - if you don't know the correct way to use RTV, DON'T USE the damn stuff!
I have spent hours wire brushing the stuff out of the threads on the bolts, digging it out of the bottom of blind holes and cleaning it out of the threads in said holes. It also forms a nice little ring around the shaft of the bolt which sticks in the hole and is a mother to get out again! Bottom line, it's a royal PITA. Plus the way it was done on this engine it was still leaking!
The original gaskets have a sort of sealer impregnated in the paper/cardboard, so you really don't need to add additional sealer. When they're old like these they can be a mother to scrape off too. More hours......
Lastly, the steady bush on the trans that the shift steady bolts into was completely perished, the rubber was just jelly, so I had to change that as well. you have to be careful removing and re-installing one of these you can't just beat on it or you might break the casting for the diff. Since this one was just mush I pulled the inner part out then took a hacksaw blade and split the casing so I could drive it out. I also had to clean up the bore that it fits into so that I could tap it back in again.
So, all the parts are cleaned and ready for re-assembly. Parts are on the way from Spares and they did manage to add the extra parts I forgot, so maybe a week before I can start putting it back together. Once the parts get here I'll need to run the pistons and valves over to their respective machine shops, and it will be a week or more before they're done with the engine components so I'll build the trans while I'm waiting on them.
More as it happens.....
For the gouges where the shift seal goes, could you use a thin smear of JB-Weld to fill them?
Could do, but I don't think it's needed. That's actually where the support aluminum ring sits. Where the seal sits is OK
Great thread - I really like the pictures.
Hmmm, we can't 'like' posts or bookmark threads to follow them anymore?
Quote from: John Gervais on September 18, 2021, 03:00:11 PM
Great thread - I really like the pictures.
Hmmm, we can't 'like' posts or bookmark threads to follow them anymore?
Interesting. Like post are in the lounge still but not here 8.gif Probably some setting I need to enable. If you click notify it should let you know when someone replies to a thread. I guess I never used it or if it said bookmark didn't use that either.
Won't allow like post in subforums for whatever reason.
Got the last few bits cleaned up and ready for re-assembly, so I cleaned, primed and painted the case.
New posts should show up as such on the home page tho, right?
Correct. And looks like-like post are working in here now. From my phone anyways.
Yep looks like you can like stuff here now.
I noticed it wasn't an option a while back but since it only seemed to be in Dave's garage I just figured maybe he didn't care if we liked what he was doing or not ;D
Hey, that's real cool - thanks a bunch!
Trying to think of a color for the engine block and head other than red, black, green or yellow.....those have been done to death.
Stan painted his engine Pontiac metallic blue and it looked pretty good, but I dunno how that would go with the metallic green of the body.....
I've seen some pretty interesting paint technologies lately, nanotech, ceramic, anodized.....
Maybe olde englishe white?
Bright green like your avatar or more like British racing green? I was thinking a grey. It's a popular color currently and there have been some beautiful grey classics posted.
The head is already down at the machine shop, tho they are waiting on valves and guides from me.....in the meantime I forgot to post a pic of how the head turned out - I don't have any good pics of the combustion chambers but here's how the ports looked when I was done......
I also did quite a bit down in the ports them selves to smooth the flow and remove bumps and such. I was limited a bit by the length of the shafts on my carbide burrs, there were some areas I couldn't reach as well as I wanted, but I figure anything I did is an improvement. I have a head for another engine here that was done by Keith Calver and I used it for my model.
Before and after.
I spent a little time today getting ready for the assembly once the parts get here. I've got everything cleaned and painted so I'm down to just little stuff till the parts get here.
To that end I put in all the shift linkage inside the case and drove the small roll pin in place to lock it in.
I also removed the remains of the bearing inner race on the 2.76 crown gear. I tried to use my bearing spreader on it but it simply wasn't having it, so I got out the cutting wheel and made a slice in the bearing race, I didn't even have to hit it with the cold chisel, after I made the cut as I was walking over to get the hammer and chisel I heard a 'pop" and when I looked at it I could clearly see the split, it pulled right off with a pair of channel locks. No damage to the gear either.
The last thing I did was install the seal and support bushing for the shift shaft, and the seals in the side covers.
I dug out extra shims and other odds and ends for the assembly, the new crown wheel bolts and lock tabs etc. Now I'm stopped till the new parts get here. More as it happens, probably a week from now.
I placed an order to MiniSpares last Thursday, and one to Moss on Monday of this week, and I wondered which would get here sooner - it's still a toss up as I haven't gotten a ship notice yet from DHL and it's usually at least three days from then that parts arrive. I did get ship notices from Moss, 1/2 of my parts are coming from Virginia, the other half from California! Still a toss up on whether England or the US parts will arrive first!
Well, Moss won - both shipments came in - one on Sunday and one today. It surprised me to see that what they shipped from California - one tiny little spring! I needed it so I was glad it came in - now I just nee DHL to visit so I can get the machine shops to work on the block, head and crankshaft.
The Mini gearbox is cleaned and ready for assembly....
DHL dropped my parts off yesterday, so I ran the valves and guides down to the cyl head shop and the pistons out to the block guy - their crank guy will be in Friday and mine is the first one on his list so I'm hopeful everything will be done Friday afternoon and I can pick it all up and start building again.
I picked up the block, pistons and crank today, but the head won't be ready for another week or more - the shop is that backed up.
So tonight I decided to start on the diff - to that end I took it the rest of the way apart - my plan was only to change out the cross shaft as that's the part that wears, but it was badly damaged, along with the bushings in the side gears so a decision has been made for me - I'll be installing a new cross pin diff carrier!
I also noticed that one of the fiber thrust washers for the stub axles was completely worn out and gone. All these parts come new in the cross pin kit so they'll all be replaced. Now I need to double check the bushings in the side covers and see if they've worn badly too - I can press new ones in but they'll have to be reamed to fit and I don't have that reamer either. I hope they're OK.....I suppose I can just buy new side covers with new bushings already installed and sized.....that would run another $150......what the hell, it's only money! ::)
Lastly I took a look at the new laygear inner shaft - I noticed it's made a little differently than the old one - someone tell me why this matters?
No takers for my question about the inner layshaft?
Normally you would not want to see a sharp edge on a shaft as it transitions from one size to another, as those create stress risers and they can break there. However, if you look closely in the second pic you can see there is a small radius at that edge - MED sells the exact same shaft for their race gearboxes, so it must be OK!
Today I built the cross pin differential and installed the 2:76 final drive gear, film at eleven!
I also got started on the gearbox re-assembly but ran into a small issue on the shifter - I hope I don't have to remove the entire main shaft again to fix it!
Awesome! Probably feels good to have your gearing and transmission coming along.
Yep, once this is done I'm ready to start on the engine block.....I have a lot of cleaning and such to do.
I usually have the machine shop remove the core plugs and oil gallery plugs before they run it thru the jet wash but they "forgot" to do that this time, so I get to. They also didn't remove the cam bearings so I'll need to do those too.....
Quote from: MiniDave on October 03, 2021, 03:26:09 PM
No takers for my question about the inner layshaft?
Normally you would not want to see a sharp edge on a shaft as it transitions from one size to another, as those create stress risers and they can break there. However, if you look closely in the second pic you can see there is a small radius at that edge - MED sells the exact same shaft for their race gearboxes, so it must be OK!
Normally it would be designed with a generous transition radius. Zoom in shows it has a radius but is really rough.
Tonight's video.....the gearbox is done, so I've started working on the block. Just got the call today that the head is done too so progress should speed up on this project.
Where you changed the final drive ratio, are you going to also change the speedometer drive gears to keep the speedometer accurate?
Nah.....I just use my Garmin.
Who knows, it might be accurate with the 2.76......going from the 3.44 to the 3.1 got it almost right.....maybe the 2.76 will match up with the cluster that's in it, since that's also not original.
Got the block all cleaned up and I'm giving it a few coats of paint today, the weather is perfect for painting outside - we had a hell of a rain storm last night so there's no dust in the air, and today it's sunny, warm and fairly not humid with a very light breeze. Just enough to carry off the paint fumes! 77.gif
I installed all the water and oil core plugs - one tip, drill the hole in the oil plugs with a 1/4" bit, not 5/16" as I used - it leaves a lot more metal to tap the old shell out with. Much easier that way....
Color to be revealed in my next video, where I'll be building the block back up.
I found that I forgot to order thrust washers, so I cleaned up the originals and stuck them in to see how badly they might be worn (it was pretty clear from looking at them that they were worn - I didn't know how badly) I set up the dial indicator - normal clearance is about 3 thou, but as the picture shows - these are way too far gone. Just to be on the safe side I also ordered a set of 3 thou oversize too.
Today I'm mostly just cleaning and painting bits, so when the rest of my small parts get in I'll (hopefully) have everything I need to put it together.
The cylinder head came back yesterday so I can clean it up and get it assembled in the meantime. I'm using a set of forged 1.13 rockers and a new shaft.
In tonight's installment I put in the pistons, crank, cam bearings and cam......
New thrust washers came in so I got the clearance set right - 3.5-4 thou instead of 10.
I also set the cam timing, installed the timing chain tensioner and put the front cover on.
Bottom end is now basically done, the head is also done and ready to install BUT my new cylinder head studs were supposed to be here "by the end of the day" and they didn't show, so it will be tomorrow sometime before I can drop the head on and put the block onto the transmission assembly.
Today I drop the motor onto the gearbox.....my Spares order now says it will be here Friday (which probably means Thursday given the way they've been running lately) but either way it won't matter, I'm stopped till the order gets here as it has the new headstuds in it.....so the head can't go on till then, I still have a few more things I can go to get ready to drop the head on the block, and I have some cleanup and arranging to do before a new arrival hits the shop on Thursday too.
Stay tuned, same Bat time, same Bat channel!
One interesting thing happened with yesterday's video - because the radio was playing in the background, You Tube banned the video for copyright infringement! I had to use the "song mute" program to delete just that song - I listened to the video today and I couldn't hear any difference other than the radio disappeared out of the video for a bit, didn't seem to make any difference to the narration.
DHL dropped a couple of days early so I had the parts I needed to install the cylinder head....
The next chapter - does it run?
Well, of course it does! ;D
I warmed it up and retorqued the head, then fired it up again and ran for 20 min to bed in the cam. This is the final run up before I pull it out of the stand and put it in the car - that's a whole 'nother story tho!
Looming good and sounds good too Dave.