Phase 1 BJ8 on test
Butch got the Healey Blue over Old English White BJ8 out for a hot lap Tuesday. He reported that the power was all there and then some, also seconded by Ron Diurba, seen here behind the wheel, who added that it handled, too.
We asked him to confirm his observations by sampling one of the other two BJ8s here currently, which he did. We thought it was gonna be a road warrior, and now we know.
calculating speedometer calibration
Our next up task was to mark out 52 feet, nine and a half inches on the barn floor to produce some data by which Nisonger Instrument can calibrate the speedometer to account for tire size, final drive ratio and the Toyota transmission fifth gear factor, all of which make the standard speedometer hopelessly inaccurate.
We did it twice, actually, having used a 50 foot mark out instead of the one which is 1/100th of a mile the first time.
Access Denied: Zerk fitting obsructed by nyloc nut
Suitable for Servicing: Nut & bolt reversed
Generally speaking, we prefer to own our mistakes rather than trying to bury them, work and life are usually a lot easier that way.
This E-type was last serviced by a high class Jaguar repairer in Rocky Stream, Connecticut. We know that by their service sticker on the door. But we also know that we have different standards for what constitutes “chassis lubrication”. The grease fitting on the front driveshaft universal joint was completely obstructed by the nyloc nut which you can see in the picture on the left.
Cold chiseling your way to success
A suitable repair using high class materials
Now we can also pretend the zerk fitting isn’t there, or we can rectify the situation and installed a longer zerk. Because replacing the U-jont when it goes dry and fails means the IRS has to come out, we rectified the situation and installed s longer zerk. Cedric & Nigel apparently also replaced the speedometer cable. This repair was made easier by cutting a slot out of the side of the TX tunnel with a cold chisel. What’s done is done, of course, so the only thing to do was to at least make a commensurate repair, which we did, using a Castrol Syntec oil jug. Carpet hides a multitude of sins. Yes it does.
Outer brake pad installed wrong way up
The season is upon us now. Wednesday we had an MGB towed in from Keene, N.H. for some brake work. John was kinda’ surprised when he looked it over and discovered that three out of four brake pads were installed wrong way up ! Why can’t we ever get away with something like that ? It was shipped over from a general repair shop that told the owner that his MG needed a new master cylnder and a brake servo.
This certainly pigued our interest; we’ve only seen a single late MGB booster failure in 25 years. We’re guessing the mis-diagnosis might have had something to do with the master cylinder hold down nuts having backed off about a quarter inch from the mounting flange. John tightened them up again and , Et Voila ! Boost, but not much brake.
Another seasonal sign: Holsteins behind the shop Thursday
Spring Scene: Cattle graze behind the shop Thursday morning
