SiC

Too late! I don't actually remember seeing the paper gasket thinking about it. Might order a new one and replace it as I've had it out. Better than it leaking once it's filled. Diff looks to be leaky so I wonder if it's simply many years of being sat it's all dripped out. Gearbox oil is pretty much ok though which surprised me. Engine oil wasn't that far off max either, despite being dirty. Not as bad as the Dolomite. That has 3/8 studs too but over three times the power and aluminium nuts! That iirc is only around 45lb/ft on them. No fluid at the moment, so don't work right now. I might get a set of cylinders and then rebuild these if original. Can't get Delphi (formally Lockheed) at the moment as out of stock in most places. So would be cheap ones. Apparently the rear cheap aren't too bad, but the fronts are crap. Handbrake doesn't hold the car at the moment. I think that may just be from solidified grease. I'm not 100% the 1275 is staying just yet. Depends if it runs ok with decent pressures and without chucking out ridiculous levels of oil out the back. I'm quite enjoying not having to do welding at the moment and doing mechanicals is a welcome change. It was getting a bit tiresome. Once the brakes are sorted, I need to rebuild the carb and tune the engine up. Then pretty much ready for going on local runs! Once I know I can trust it, I'll venture into Bristol to get it MOT'd. Seemingly going too easy right now... (Tempted fate there) I knew I recognised that triangle from somewhere! Thanks.

Interesting. Never had this before but I had a Pixel 4XL. I reckon this has only happened since I've downgraded to a Pixel 5 after my 4XL broke.

Either Marina or Ford Calipers seems to be the standard conversions.

Next step in Moggie awakening is the brakes. Starting on the rear first as they're cheaper to sort! Wheel came off easy enough. One of the retaining screws is mullered. I found these screw extractors that I bought from Aldi years ago and written off as useless. This time though they did the job perfectly. Pays to be a hoarder at times. Then the fun of getting the drum off. I'm used to other British cars with the adjuster on the back, these however are on the front. There is a hole in the drum for adjusting the position. However I couldn't find where it was. Instead I used a screwdriver to prise the drum off and as it started shifting, I didn't bother looking or researching further. These cars do seem simple enough to simply figure this out as you go without needing a book. Other screw on the inside removes the half shaft. This goes from the studs/hub to the diff. No oil came out when I did this, so I presume the diff maybe on the dry side and need topping up? Shoes look in reasonable condition with plenty of meat still on them. Certainly in my view good enough to not need replacing yet. I'll give this all a good clean with brake cleaner. I'm debating whether to just replace these cylinders. They don't look in bad condition but I generally err on the side of caution and always replace them. Are they genuine Lockheed? I don't recognise the logo. I know genuine Lockheed are still available new, so if these are only cheap cylinders, I'll replace them with some decent ones. Rubber Flexi is on the other side but I will replace that as a matter of course and already have a replacement. Cheap enough to not even worry about the age and condition of the one on here, even if they look pretty decent condition. Front flexis I want to change but I need to ID the calipers to ensure I get the right one. Also need to determine if the calipers are in usable condition or if they need rebuilding/replacing. Ideally not as they're quite expensive and I'm trying to keep costs down for now until I get it back on the road.

I have thought of painting the bonnet but the problem is it'll look too shiny against the rest of the paintwork. Ideally I'll find a Trafalgar Blue lid like you said, as that should be a similar-ish shade. Rear tail lights don't offend me. I do have the older all red covers but I don't think I have the housing. But that means going to flashing red brake lights and I'm not sure most road users nowadays will understand them. I'm not a huge fan of the front indicator and sidelight on the later cars like this has. Not sure if it's a straight swap hole size wise (probably not) but I would like the single indicator lamps. Wings are fibreglass anyway. Would also mean putting a pilot light into the headlamps. They're halogen conversion anyway. I guess 80s vintage. As a side note, the Driving Lights have DDR printed on them and so I did wonder if they were made in the DDR. Lights will stay as they are for now as they work and are all surprisingly bright too. Main priority is to get it back on the road before I get fed up with it sitting on the drive doing nothing. It's insured and taxed now. Just waiting for the DVLA to return the V5 again and then I can declare the correct engine size and code too. Insurance company has also told me that they expect me to change it. So a case of getting the brakes sorted and then I can give it a run up and down the road. If all good, then new tyres and it's ready to start being used!

I hadn't a clue until it was pointed out to me. Commercial doesn't have the trim and coach line that goes around the door to the front. Also missing the handle on the bonnet too.

Out of the two housings I found, I decided to use the one with the better block facing, even if the outlet was more damaged. Managed to find a pair of spare studs, so I cleaned up one of the original ones that wasn't awful. Fitted new bottom and top hoses. Heater matrix pipe literally snapped off. For now the heater is bypassed. Not least because the pipes going into the cabin do this. I've cut them back for now and also bypassed the manifold coolant flow too. I think this might be worth reinstating as it'll keep the manifold cool from the heat of the exhaust. That exhaust I reckon I may have to wrap too. While I talk about cooling, the fan is certainly extremely close the breather canister. Just clears it! I had a quick look at the carb and gave the damper a quick clean too. Needle was filthy. I scraped the worse of the varnish off and then used carb cleaner to finish. Bigger problem is that the jet is stuck down in partially choke engaged position. I think I'll need to get a rebuild/service kit for this carb next and strip it down. I did try tapping the jet to see if it'll loosen but it's completely seized. Mrs SiC is quite keen to have a go painting this soon. However my mind is changing a bit towards not painting as I quite like the patina. People pay a lot of money to get their car looking like this! However a good clean to get all the white blobs off has made a quite difference to how it looks imo. The white marks left are mostly primer showing through - especially on the fibreglass front wings. It's also definitely had a respray previously without having the glass taken out. However I might replace the bonnet as the black/white/rusty scabs looks like it's got a really bad perianal disease. Also I don't like the look of the commercial bonnets much either. I plan to get the machine polisher out too and see what that does. Not sure if rusty blebs and shiny paint will work but being cellulose based, it'll fade back down soon enough if I don't wax it. Nothing better than polishing a turd, right?

Correct! Many internet points go to you. I disconnected the oil pressure switch and the ignition light goes out. Wiring colours are correct, so must have had the wrong bulbs pushed into the wrong hole. Will have to swap them around at some point. Does also mean that my alternator is lazy though. I think it might also be where the noise is coming from too. I do have a rebuild kit somewhere but easier to swap the whole unit out and join my MGB alternator on the shelf that I will rebuild one day... Now I've got a hydraulic press though, it should be trivial to push the old bearings out.

Found two candidate housings in my box of spares. The pipe end on both isn't in best of condition thanks to corrosion, but they should be good enough. Car came with a whole load of bits and I'm still getting used to the fact that I can rummage through there for bits. No replacement studs though, so still will need to nip down to Moss. But at least those bits are cheap. Head surface on one is better than the other. Hopefully a clean up and a fresh gasket will seal fine. Fits perfectly on the 1275 with a 1275 hose and cut down radiator outlet.

Mine already has the radiator outlet chopped down to fit a 1275 hose. I think I might get the Charles Ware housing. Looks similar to what I mangled. Moss do a similar design but is twice the price. https://www.morrisminor.org.uk/parts/7-rocker-cover/324-thermostat-housing-elbow-water-outlet

No one has actually and that makes complete sense. Didn't think of that! I'll disconnect the oil pressure switch and see if the alternator light goes out.

I might be talking a load of bollocks here, but wouldn't the thermostat mostly regulate this? When the engine is warming up, the thermostat will only open when hitting it's opening temperature. Cool water will flow back in from the radiator, cooling the thermostat and closing it. So does an uprated radiator just allow the engine is able to regulate it's temperature better and prevent any chance of overheating, rather than overcooling it? A fan obviously allows airflow around an engine and help dissipate heat from the block easier. I.e. the engine itself is a radiator. If anything a fan is useful to have sucking air through to prevent hotspots in an engine bay (e.g. around the manifolds) and help stop things such as fuel vaporisation when stuck in traffic.

Yours is different again as it has the tapping for the temperature sender. Iirc yours is a Marina 1275?

Mine doesn't have the collar and presumably has been like that for quite a long time. Even at high revs, I don't think the water pressure is that high on these.

Grinder was in the way when I took these photos but there should be enough in shot to give an idea. I believe this is a standard mod for 1275 retrofits.