Project Rusty Triumphs in Scotland - Triumph HGF autopsy - 04/05/26

[TooManyPeopleMovers]

Nice video Captain! 

I enjoy your dry style...and it was cool to see an oil change run through on the Acclaim.

I've subscribed - I'd be keen to see more.

[captain_70s]

Bonus mini-video.

 

[SiC]

One of these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/123739667981

Connected to the door pin on the black lead and red lead to the light circuit. Open the door with the lights on, buzzer will sound. 

If you have a lighted ashtray, it can be used as a useful light power pickup point.  

I did this on my MX5 MK1 after leaving the lights on a couple times. 

[LightBulbFun]

6 minutes ago, SiC said:

One of these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/123739667981

my primary school used to have 3V versions of those, in those little electrical kits schools had (you know a bunch of alligator clips some battery holders and some 3V bulbs and E10 lamp holders, for teaching the kids how electricity works etc)

I remember hooking one up of those buzzers to about 12V worth of batteries I strung together, and accidently made the teacher think the fire alarm had gone off LOL

(honestly surprised it didn't just got PHUT and let out some smoke LOL)

[captain_70s]

Some rare non-car content:

New video/posts coming this weekend on car related things. Namely me moving the Dolomite up the street with just myself to get the job done.

[Jikovron]

I've learnt new facts about the 8 track format via your video, they have concurrent recorded tracks on the same tape where before in my minds eye they had a capacity of 8 tracks, what an upgrade in perspective! 

Also that they seem to be temperamental to the point when that tape was falling off the spool, I would probably end up with bits of plastic and ribbons of tape everywhere!

[captain_70s]

14 minutes ago, Jikovron said:

Also that they seem to be temperamental to the point when that tape was falling off the spool, I would probably end up with bits of plastic and ribbons of tape everywhere!

Apparently back in the day it wasn't uncommon to see streams of tape blowing around the motorways from where frustrated motorists had lobbed tapes out of the window after they'd been eaten. You'd really need the patience of a saint to be able to wind one back.

The actual format itself is quite interesting, the way you have 4 'programs' on each tape with 2 stereo tracks each, thus "8 track" with the head just clicking into a different position to read different bits of the tape. However the very precise movements required do not lend themselves well to 45 year old equipment... I suspect the head in my machine being free to move back and forth so much is a large reason as to why it doesn't sound very good as it's not lining up with the tracks correctly, you also get bleed through from adjacent tracks and adjusting the head position is little help as it changes whenever a new tape goes in. The machine running slow is almost certainly the new belt not being correct for the machine, I did try putting the old one back in but once it'd been unstuck from the capstan and flywheel it'd just slip.

The tapes also degrade badly if not ideally stored. Given most of them spent their lives rattling around in glove boxes and parcel shelves it's no wonder they all seem to be shagged. The adhesive used to fix the labels on to the carts also goes bad with age and causes the labels to bubble, which is why almost all 8-track tapes look like garbage.

[somewhatfoolish]

Is there no Hipster effect causing someone to put the format back into production like cassette tapes? I'd have thought the mason jar, lumberjack shirt and braces crowd would lap 8 tracks up.

[captain_70s]

2 hours ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Is there no Hipster effect causing someone to put the format back into production like cassette tapes? I'd have thought the mason jar, lumberjack shirt and braces crowd would lap 8 tracks up.

I'm sure somebody released a special edition of their album on 8-track not long ago, but that was using NOS blank tapes IIRC...

Hipster appeal is limited because 8-tracks are too much hard work, cassettes and vinyl give the appearance of individuality and retro chic with none of the effort, hence their popularity.

[gm]

 

i was watching techmoan talking about the very subject recently, about 4 mins in

 

[captain_70s]

Quality video content of me moving a car 20ft.

More to come later of me finding it's totally fucking fucked m8.

[Jikovron]

That's like a throwback to when I tried running mine as a standard daily 1500hl so after 6 months of 3-4 solo bump starts per day i actually increased the strength in my left arm more than my right from pushing awkwardly via the A pillar ! , hopefully the new power pack negates all that lol.

[captain_70s]

So, t'was a sunny Saturday and I had decided to strip down some more of the Doloshite's engine bay for rust treatment/painting before the engine swap. To facilitate this I'd ran an extension cable (or two) down from my bedroom window down to the street below, it was as I was setting up the angle grinder I noticed something...

With the wheels at full lock and turned into the kerb I saw a moist looking area of peeling underseal in the F/N/S wheel well. A compulsion came over me, I leaned over and pressed my thumb gently against the suspicious area, the was a wet crunch and my thumb vanished into the chassis leg right next to the front subframe mount. I started poking about by hand...

Oh yes, that's really rather fucked.

I then applied the grinder.

The other side was assaulted with a wire wheel and then attacked with a scrwdriver.

Alright. That's all quite bad, the outer edge of the chassis leg is fucked all the way back to the brake pipe mount, the inside edge is rough but I can't hole it, ditto the bottom the top is fairly decent, the grot on the top is because that's where the battery lives. The leading edge is also all fucked, I suspect this is where it initially failed and water/dirt has piled in and rotted it from the inside out.

Perhaps this is an isolated issue though, the other side might be fine?

Aye, no. That's worse, and it's already been patched up at some point prior to my ownership. Okay, time to step back from the poking for now I think...

So, I wire brushed all the loose rust from inside the engine bay, Vactan'd everything and then splashed some red oxide over it all to prevent further nightmares.

I then removed the heater blower motor and windscreen washer bottle, because they look like shit and hey, while I'm here...

 

So. So... Soooooooooooooo...

Aye, that's a bit grim to be honest. Obviously my original plan of simply working on the car at the roadside just isn't going to work, I contemplated welding it at it's current location but the drawbacks are... extreme and negative consequences are likely. The way I see it there are 3 options from here for the car:

1 - Break it for spares.
2 - Patch it up.
3 - Drop the subframe and replace the chassis legs*.

Obviously the plan is going to be either 2 or 3, I haven't decided which one yet. I have secured a place to work on the car, somewhere indoors, with electricity.

Yes, it's my parent's garage. Again. Not the exact same one that I started my Triumph tinkering endeavours in, but my parent's garage nonetheless. People who know me may also know my parents live in the middle of nowhere, in the Cairngorm National Park, 130 miles and 3 hours drive away from my Glasgow flat. This is inconvenient, but as they also live there I can kip on the sofa, for long weekends of automotive grafting. Transport will be by the medium of rented car trailer and an official SVM Assist technician and tow vehicle.

I have also acquired AN WELDER for the princely sum of £free, this is coming from the chap who has my old 1850HL in a field, he's upgrading his setup and lives a mere 40 mile 1 hour drive further North than my parent's place...

 

I've not yet decided how much work I'm going to do to sort this out. I could patch it, the top and bottom of the legs are solid enough to take a weld, and it needs never see an MOT station again (gr8 idea m8). The subframe might not even fall off...
However, if the car is already in the garage, and the engine is already out, and I know the rear mounts always rot out first (that's what sent my 1850HL off the road) and I haven't even glanced at them yet... Welp. The subframe might have to come off... And all the front panels because the headlight retainers are essentially gone... New sills would be ideal... Those rear arches, obviously. Yeah, I don't know how far this is going yet...

The engine swap and tart up was only ever going to last until I had my own garage to actually do proper work to the car. I knew it was frilly, I was just counting on this being a couple more years down the line... We'll see once it's in my parent's garage and up in the air, which isn't going to be until after lockdown is lifted regardless.

So yup, the project has snowballed, again. It's going back up the country to where it fucking was before I rescued it the first time and I'm going to have to throw acres of MIG wire, money and time at the thing to get it anywhere near the road. So everything is going about as well as can be expected.

 

*As a hilarious aside, the main panels I'd need from the TDC are all "collection only" from the West Midlands.

[Zelandeth]

Oof...I can hear that first horrible "scrunch" from here. 

With the car moved somewhere safe and under cover though I think it's got a far better chance.  There's a lot of work to be done, but if you can do it bit by bit nothing is impossible.  You obviously have an attachment to the old thing so I say it's a big thumbs up.

As a complete aside...any part numbers on that heater blower assembly?  It looks to be basically the exact bloody thing I've been looking for for my Invacar heating/ventilation upgrade...if that's a cutoff flap in the outlet tube that would be even better for my plans...

[big_al_granvia]

Triple bollocks mate, rust is a total b'stard 

[junkyarddog]

Is there a mobile welder around your location that could weld up that chassis for you?

https://www.gumtree.com/p/blacksmith-services/mobile-welder-fabricator-blacksmith-multi-coded/1134009333

It would probably be cheaper in the long run to pay to get that rot welded,then fit new engine,rather than carting it's sorry carcass 3 hours away.

[SiC]

Ouch. That looks like an awful lot of work to do right there. The engine grenade itself probably was good timing in hindsight. Unless the lack of heat to try the bay out and the time sat did a fair bit. 

 

Makes me nervous what those areas are like on mine. Not gone investigating them yet.

I need to go up to Alun at some point and get a few panels. If you want, I can always pick up what you need to and then Shitely Express them up whenever there is someone going north bound. Alternatively see if you can get a £1 hire car thing and fly into Bristol airport on a cheap flight from Glasgow (if they ever exist again).  

[SiC]

Plus point is, if this is in storage ... then there is room in Glasgow/insurance money freed up for another car? ?

[Asimo]

On 4/30/2020 at 9:05 PM, captain_70s said:

Apparently back in the day it wasn't uncommon to see streams of tape blowing around the motorways from where frustrated motorists had lobbed tapes out of the window after they'd been eaten. You'd really need the patience of a saint to be able to wind one back.

Weirdly, the tape most often seen blowing around alongside the hard shoulder was from video cassettes. (1/2'' wide - double the width of 8 track tape)  Never understood video tape and motorways. 

[Andyrew]

Offf that's a shame

Can complete chassis leg panels be purchased or are they just sections?

[Tadhg Tiogar]

1 hour ago, Andyrew said:

....Can complete chassis leg panels be purchased or are they just sections?

At a considerable price if you feel like being Rimmed.

[SiC]

Not as bad if bought from the club. Reportedly better quality too.
https://forum.triumphdolomite.co.uk/download/file.php?id=12411

Depending how thin the rest of the metal is, it wouldn't take too much to cut the bits it needs out of sheet steel.

[captain_70s]

4 hours ago, junkyarddog said:

Is there a mobile welder around your location that could weld up that chassis for you?

Not for the sort of price I could live with, also if he has any sense of professionalism it'll be a huge job...

3 hours ago, SiC said:

Ouch. That looks like an awful lot of work to do right there. The engine grenade itself probably was good timing in hindsight. Unless the lack of heat to try the bay out and the time sat did a fair bit. 

 

Makes me nervous what those areas are like on mine. Not gone investigating them yet.

I need to go up to Alun at some point and get a few panels. If you want, I can always pick up what you need to and then Shitely Express them up whenever there is someone going north bound. Alternatively see if you can get a £1 hire car thing and fly into Bristol airport on a cheap flight from Glasgow (if they ever exist again).  

Aye, I can't imagine it having been much better when last in regular use... Sitting hasn't helped though, those box sections will never dry out once moisture is trapped inside... Unsure on parts collection yet, that's a fair bit in the distance so far but I'll keep you in mind fella!

3 hours ago, SiC said:

Plus point is, if this is in storage ... then there is room in Glasgow/insurance money freed up for another car? ?

I'm self limiting to two active project cars at any one time. My girlfriend it limiting me more by threatening to leave if I continue buying money pits...

1 hour ago, Tadhg Tiogar said:

At a considerable price if you feel like being Rimmed.

Never even knew Rimmer Bros did them. I was just looking at the TDC examples... As SiC says the TDC stuff is pretty much universally higher quality.

[Andyrew]

Fairly pricey. 

Always a tough call tho with panels cost vs time. It's alot of money  no doubt about it.

I once spent ages repairing the headlight box on a Discovery as a whole panel was around 150.  It took me say 30 hours to make something that was alright in the end but id used more gas, flap discs, fuel driving back and forth , electricity and time.

 If I'd have just got the bloody panel it would have be done in about 10 hours and have 20hours to do other stuff on the list.

 

[captain_70s]

14 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

As a complete aside...any part numbers on that heater blower assembly?  It looks to be basically the exact bloody thing I've been looking for for my Invacar heating/ventilation upgrade...if that's a cutoff flap in the outlet tube that would be even better for my plans...

There is indeed a flap, mine is jammed open and the cable had snapped. It is a fairly big fucker though (human hand for scale)

Mine also seems to have been a bit on fire.

 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

4 hours ago, captain_70s said:

...Never even knew Rimmer Bros did them....

Hopefully I've given you a source to avoid, in that case.....

[captain_70s]

3 minutes ago, Tadhg Tiogar said:

Hopefully I've given you a source to avoid, in that case.....

I've actually ordered quite a few things from Rimmers over the years, much to my shame. The Dolomite 1300 exhaust downpipe which had no chance of fitting, 3 DoA starter solenoids and 1 DoA fuel pump has rather put me off them to be honest...

[Zelandeth]

Thank you, really appreciate it.  That looks absolutely spot on for what I'm after.  Size shouldn't be a problem has there's plenty of room in the engine bay.

Time to set up a saved search on eBay methinks...

The ballast resistor will get pretty toasty so a bit of charring next to it doesn't hugely surprise me.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

6 minutes ago, captain_70s said:

I've actually ordered quite a few things from Rimmers over the years, much to my shame....

There's a reason why they're called Rimmers....

[Yoss]

7 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Thank you, really appreciate it.  That looks absolutely spot on for what I'm after.  Size shouldn't be a problem has there's plenty of room in the engine bay.

Time to set up a saved search on eBay methinks...

The ballast resistor will get pretty toasty so a bit of charring next to it doesn't hugely surprise me.

I think variations of those Smiths heaters were used in lots of old British cars, certainly Leyland ones so they shouldn't be too hard to find. My 1300 doesn't have the big metal tube  with the flappy valve as the heater sat nearer the middle of the engine bay (surprising how different the front and rear drive bodies are). Even my Routemaster had the same main blower bit.