YJV 823 - 1071

[Andrew1967]

I would appreciate learned eyes - is this the correct cover for the 1071? and perhaps missing the plumbing (pipe)?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/403951979502 ... name=11051

Yes, but as you say, missing the down pipe.

Should it not be the earlier convex type cover with the cork gasket Mark ?

[mk1]

It certainly should.

Maybe I should have had my specs on

M

[richardACS]

A further image has come to light:

this was a later race car owned/developed by GW - he still retained the plate (on his wifes car) and used it as a joke...

[richardACS]

Might this have been Geoff Woods laughter at seeing this 2022 picture?

Note car without RHD fuel tank, on the 3.5" rims and with clear seat covers!

[richardACS]

Geoff Woods young daughter in the driving seat, in the workshop image one can make out a Mk 1 steering wheel hanging on the wall - might this be the original steering wheel after being replaced with the les Leston 'Monte Carlo'

[richardACS]

Looking for the following 1070 items - where date stamped: April, May, June 1963

Clutch master cylinder
Flywheel housing
Clutch cover with arm
Possibly crankshaft - do have one but has yet to be crack tested
Possibly block as one I have is dated April 64

Rocker box with angled hose tail
Lucas dynamo C 40 22742
Rear suspension trumpets 21 A 1302
Clutch system
4.5j minilites (unrestored)

Letter S for bonnet and S for boot lid
Les Leston 'Monte carlo' Steering wheel
Boss for above
Morris horn push
Period Rev Counter

[Costafortune]

I think you can get a new 1071 S billet steel crank for about £1500. I'd be tempted to use one if I were to really use the car as intended.

I would be very wary of old magnesium Minilites as well.

[Andrew1967]

I might have a clutch cover and arm .. will have a look when its stopped chucking it down

[richardACS]

I think you can get a new 1071 S billet steel crank for about £1500. I'd be tempted to use one if I were to really use the car as intended.

I would be very wary of old magnesium Minilites as well.

There does seem to be a widely held view of being wary of old magnesium castings (and my thanks to the Australian member - whose name I cannot at this moment locate) for providing this link:

https://web.archive.org/web/20170219145 ... -castings/

Have also found this company: Ian Jemison Engineering - Yorkshire who specialise in repair and refinishing alloy and Magnesium wheels.

I wonder however why there is a wariness of them - actual experience or?

What a shame Minilite don't re manufacture their product these days...

[richardACS]

I think you can get a new 1071 S billet steel crank for about £1500. I'd be tempted to use one if I were to really use the car as intended.

Yes I would agree with you......

[richardACS]

I might have a clutch cover and arm .. will have a look when its stopped chucking it down

Thank you!

[mk1]

There does seem to be a widely held view of being wary of old magnesium castings (and my thanks to the Australian member - whose name I cannot at this moment locate) for providing this link:

https://web.archive.org/..............................

Have also found this company: Ian Jemison Engineering - Yorkshire who specialise in repair and refinishing alloy and Magnesium wheels.

I wonder however why there is a wariness of them - actual experience or?

What a shame Minilite don't re manufacture their product these days...

There is a widely held wariness of old mag castings because they are potentially highly dangerous. This "danger" is however usually somewhat over-stated. It mainly comes from the historic aircraft & racing world where a broken mag casting can be a VERY serious issue instantly. TBH, in most cases if a wheel gives up on an old car it will usually lead to a puncture / instant deflation of a tyre & not that much more. I do however strongly feel that anyone who chooses to use 50 year old mag wheels to go racing or even spirited track day driving needs their bumps feeling.

I can personally vouch for the work carried out by Ian Jemmison engineering, I have known Ian for over 30 years & he has restored & repaired many mag & alloy wheels for me & people I know. I seem to remember that someone on here had him repair a fairly badly corroded mag wheel not that long ago.

Minilite can't remanufacture "their product" nowadays, they have gone bust multiple times, they don't have the tooling, don't own the rights & aren't interested in doing Magnesium castings at all nowadays. Other than that there is nothing to hold them back.

A more or less perfect copy of the original Minilite Mag wheel is what used to be called the Minispares Minilife wheel. But people aren't keen on them nowadays because presumably, they feel that they need to spend more on their wheels than that.

[roger mcnab]

hi mark yes mag wheels can be risky especially when having repairs done they can light up easily and very hard to extinguish and burn very brightly even under water so care is needed
a young bloke crashed his macleran car on the gold coast and it burnt very quickly i think there is a bit of magnesium in them
cheers roger

[richardACS]

I spoke with Ian Jemison today re the magnesium repairs and general concerns over their strength and safety.

To sum it up he said that alot is mentioned about this, but for anyone with a concern it would be best to talk directly with those that handle them day in day out - the man issue being that if they have been stored with a coat of paint then all should be well as they deteriorate with moisture. The process is bead blasting, crack testing - inspection - powder primer coat either followed by wet paint or powder coat and lacquer.

[roger mcnab]

hi are the wheels in question real mags or alloy wheels which most people refer to as mags if there is no paint on them they may well be alloy cheers roger mcnab

[richardACS]

hi are the wheels in question real mags or alloy wheels which most people refer to as mags if there is no paint on them they may well be alloy cheers roger mcnab

Hi Roger, they are definitely mags and not standard alloys, they are also painted, its the texture that gives them away and more noticeable from the rears than the fronts....

[mk1]

The ONLY reliable way to tell a mag minilite from an alloy one is to weigh it. While mags "usually" show some corrosion which will identify them as mag, this is certainly not always the case.

I have some NOS magnesium Minilites at the shed & the surface finish is no different to an alloy one when new.

[richardACS]

Would be interested to know what the comparable weights are Mark?

As you have mentioned previously the Mini Spares alloy copies are visually good...

[mk1]

I seem to remember that a Mag Minilite is 2.9kg & the alloy Minispares one is 3.4kg.

M

[richardACS]

I seem to remember that a Mag Minilite is 2.9kg & the alloy Minispares one is 3.4kg.

M

I don't know why but that is not as much as I had assumed! very useful thanks.