Patrick strips an E-type differential output shaft
We’re closing out another week with no road test activity. Although the roads are clear and dry, the zero to ten degree (fahrenheit) ambient daytime temperatures are the decisive factor.
Meanwhile, Patrick is moving along with his 2nd E-type IRS overhaul of the month. He has all the major sub-assemblies stripped, cleaned & painted, and he’s putting it all back together now. In the photo here he can be seen taking what turned out to be the badly worn taper roller bearings off one of the differential output shafts. The tool in his right hand is an open-centered output shaft lock nut undoer, specially commissioned by us.
Warner checks TD cam timing
Downstairs currently, Warner is finishing up with the first MG TD engine in our current queue. There’s quite a bit of information on display here, beginning with the notepad & pen in his left hand and continuing around to the degree wheel underneath the socket wrench in his right.
There are two dial indicators at work on top of the cylinder block. The dial indicator on the left provides a constant calibration check on the degree wheel, while the one on the right is recording the travel of the cam follower.
We take our timing readings once the cam follower has moved .050″ up the cam lobe because this is the point where the relative velocity of the degree wheel & dial indicator are reversed, which makes it highly accurate. In fact, a .010″ checking error on the dial indicator may only cause a degree or so of checking error on the degree wheel. For more about why this matters, see “A Mea Culpa & Some Cam Timing 101″ from this page on May 11, 2011.
Patrick & Butch haul the nose off the TR3
After due deliberation, and with some input from the owner, we decided to do the Right Thing, and take the nose off the TR3. We’re taking this approach to improve service access to change the fan belt in the future, and for better cooling now, we’re also fitting an optional “Tropical” fan blade. Having gotten this far it seemed like a pity to waste the additional effort, so we shipped the radiator off to B&R’s Garage, from where Rodney called to report on a veritable Missippi Delta full of silt which he’s boiling out of the radiator today.
