mk1-forum.net

hi me again
this project is going nowhere at the moment but a call from the engineer tells me my work is finished so i will pick it up soon still waiting for more parts to come they are on a ship some where should get them soon i hope

should have the rebore finished soon everything will happen all at once
cheers roger

hi
well i decided to have another go at getting the bonnet for the clubman sorted so i made up some plates for the bonnet hinges which are from a porsche boxster as there are no inner guards to prop the bonnet the normal way these stay up as they have struts so the plates are bolted to the hinges the nuts will be welded to them then i will make up the part to weld to bonnet skin when i get it made up have to make the outer frame for the edges and then make the outer skin in sections will try to get some pics on here soon
cheers roger

hi
after a lot of bad welding with the mig i had a careful look and found that when i put the .9 wire in i forgot to change the tip to .9
it welds a lot better now it appears that the .8 tip when it got hot it grabbed the wire and slowed things down
i will have to be more careful when changing things and do the job properly
cheers roger

hi well got some more parts for the rear brakes so i will look at putting some of it together need to pick up con rods for cleaning and maybe a bit of a polish then take them back so pistons can be fitted
next on agenda is to get coil over kit so suspension can be fitted then order wheels but need to get engine assembled as well big job then mate it to gearbox and hope clutch lines up could be a problem yet to be sorted also some more welding to be done i e sandwich plate needs a piece welded to top and bell housing needs a piece welded on so both can be bolted to engine so still a lot to do yet need to concentrate on mini instead of tiger 100 engine for a change but that is an interesting diversion as rest of project is rd yamaha frame fitted with later r z front and rear suspension a good special i may not get any of this on road but keeps brain alive better than sitting on couch
cheers roger mcnab

I've really enjoyed reading, and seeing your progress on your car Roger!

More than anything sir... I'm impressed.
And... a little.... embarrassed.

At well over 20 yrs your junior, I'm already a decade into my project- and it's nowhere near as ambitious as yours sir. Keep up the good work- she's gonna be a beast when you get her done.

Joel from the US.

thanks joel
my biggest problem is $$$ the money tree died some time ago in the drought but am slowly getting there but the main idea behind this project is to keep the brain working so far so good plus my triumph daytona engine also uses money but it is handy to fill in time while waiting for parts to turn up as it is all imported and always on back order so which gets finished first is in the lap of the gods
i need to get some more welding done so i can try fitting the clutch shaft to check the alinement this is crucial for the drive train
cheers roger

hi all
i picked up my dummy 1800 gear box on tuesday and now have to install the crank in the rover block and sit it on gearbox and put the sandwich plate and bell housing together and try the clutch shaft for fit fingers crossed it might fit straight in if not some remedial work will have to be done
hears hoping well cheers for now a few weeks will see what goes on

hi
made some progress to day check under winged nz for my report cheers roger

hi
after shortening the clutch shaft i fitted it in the bell housing and it appears that the block needs about half a mil taken of the bottom for the shaft to fit through the bearing a few weeks to wait for the engineer to be back at work then should be able to get it done
cheers roger

hi
been fiddling about with engine fitting bits like the timing cover which has the water pump removed with some more to be done with the water inlets but been fitting the socket head bolts which i bought a long time ago also need to remove a bit more of the front of gear box so the crank can do a complete turn also been making some brackets to fix the engine and box together using the side mounting bolts to bolt it to the gear box
i need to get some more pics taken to be put up need to investigate how it is done
cheers roger

hi
moving forward this week the engine goes to have 1.5 mm shaved from bottom of block to allow clutch shaft to line up also pick up pistons and con rods from engine reconditioner as the gudgeon pins have been installed so slowly the thing is moving ahead this project is dragging out but should be finished some time cheers roger

Hi Roger, any chance of a few photos ?

I am sure we can help you post them, if you can email them

Cheers

hi ex miniman
i plan to get some more pics soon i will send them to member in oz and he will put them up for me
cheers roger

hi
well quite a day at the machine shop today he quickly worked out what was needed and put the block on the mill and spent 45 mins getting it level as the original machining was a little bit ordinary at the factory but now with 1.45 mm removed it all fits together so a big step forward now some minor adjustments to some bits and will get pics and then get all welded up so watch this space
cheers roger

hi
today i thought i would install the crank shaft in the block properly with all bearings in place all was going well until i offered up the crank it was no go as the centre bearing did not fit the crank it was 20 thou over size so after consulting several firms it was decided that the sides needed to be reduced to fit lots of rubbing on wet and dry paper on flat surface slowly reduced the thrust faces to fit with 5 thou clearance now to do the other half it appears that they are only supplied over size even standard size which these are this crank did not need grinding hence the problem as the shop would have supplied bearings fitted
well nothing good happens fast something for a boring afternoon
cheers roger

Never fails! Sigh...

hi joel
how right you are its murphys law and sods law combined but only a high spot or 2 and all will be ok a lot of rubbing but wearing it down
cheers roger

hi
well after hours of rubbing both sides of the top and bottom halves of thrust bearing i got it to fit with about 8 thou clearance and the crank spins freely also the clutch shaft fits nicely in the crank end it had to be shortened by 1 inch also had fun getting the ist motion shaft bearing which is a roller without inner race
the local bearing guy located one in melbourne this is a hard to find r&m b11618 bearing and the 1800 has all but disappeared over here those sort of bits are hard to get next problem is to sort a thrust bearing to work on the dolimite sprint pressure plate
cheers roger

well i am still at it my parts source has changed hands after months of phone calls with no response so will have find a new source but never the less i just keep working away at it had to get new flywheel altered so the clutch plate would fit will be getting some welding done to fit adapters to bell housing and also the adapter plate so they can bolt to the engine block then comes the welding of the adapter plates to the side of engine block so it can bolt to the gear box
will get some pics of all this before and after also need the clutch release bearing made because the carbon one will shred itself on the dolomite pressure plate also they are scarcer than hens teeth so just keep on at it and one day it will be finished
cheers roger mcnab

well abit of progress the 13x7 superlight wheels arrived today after a long wait look nice gold with polished edge will go well with velocity red [mazda color]still a lot to do will need miglia arches to cover the tyres but a little here and a little there it will get done some day
cheers roger