Project 1974 MGB GT - The Mustard (Mit) Mobility Scooter - 6yrs ownership & the end is potentially nigh!

[Guest Hooli]

At least you won't be bored next weekend now.

[SiC]

At least you won't be bored next weekend now.

My friendly neighbor has offered to give me a hand to bleed the brakes too. He has a motorbike as a project of his own (similar age and interest to me), which he's had a lot of fun trying to bleed it's brakes. He ended up reverse bleeding it with a big syringe. I don't think that'd give enough pressure for my brakes, but still tempted to try with the Gunson or get a Sealey.

 

Unfortunately though my wife has thoughtfully* planned a whole bunch of things to do for next weekend. I also need to get on and finish the last bits of DIY, as we're planning to move soon.

 

I do still have 2 days of holiday left that I need to use up before end of September. So if I see a day soon that looks like it isn't going to pee it down all day, I'll take a day off to have another go.

[cort16]

It can be a great* hobby sometimes.

[captain_70s]

Welcome to working on old cars where things go badly as soon as you think they might not. Hence why I bought cars with fairly naff but presentable from 100 yards paint jobs, the fuckers are covered with parking dings, marks from laid down/dropped tools, shirt/jean buttons scratching paint, fluid spills etc.

 

On the flipside I wish any of my brake parts would come off that easily, nearly every fitting on the 1850 was seized solid and either rounded or simply disintegrated upon attempted removal and the Civic wasn't all that much better...

[SiC]

I have to say, I've had far bigger battles trying to remove rusty and inaccessible parts on moderns.

 

The air and brake bleeding marakly I can live with. However the ruined paint work really annoys me the most. Especially as it's the type of mark people looking around are very likely to pick up on. That's when I have to admit it's my own doing with me being clumsy, not a previous owners.

 

It's a similar time frame to when I managed to put a big scrape on the rear passenger side of the Laguna. Something else I've never done before. I'm making these accidents some sort of habit.

[Guest Hooli]

 He ended up reverse bleeding it with a big syringe. I don't think that'd give enough pressure for my brakes, but still tempted to try with the Gunson or get a Sealey.

 

 

That works a treat on bikes & is almost the only way to get the front brakes done on my GSX14.

 

I've been known to open all the nipples & keep pouring fluid in the master cylinder till it's running out the nipples to get a dry system full enough to bleed normally in the past.

[vulgalour]

If there's any panels and stuff you need, Mike_knight might be able to help.  I'm not sure what he's got in the inventory, but he's definitely got some new stuff.

[SiC]

If there's any panels and stuff you need, Mike_knight might be able to help. I'm not sure what he's got in the inventory, but he's definitely got some new stuff.

That would be great, I'll bare it in mind. At the moment it just seems to be under the drivers wing is the worst. I had a peer through the passenger arch earlier and I could see light in the same area. Those sections seem available cheaply and from my local Moss branch. I think it's because it's mostly flat bits of metal.

 

So far, fingers crossed, I haven't found anything too nasty. But then I haven't removed the wings yet!

 

Does anyone know of a good body shop in, near or around Bristol or surrounding area that they would recommend? I know of one that a friend used, but they are Porsche and Mercedes approved. Do excellent jobs but also charge amounts that reflect that excellent work. I.e. more than I can realistically afford.

[Steve79]

Me and most of my mates have always used Dando's in Kingswood. They're an insurance approved bodyshop.

 

http://www.ddandomotors.co.uk/

 

http://www.ddandomotors.co.uk/gallery

 

Go in and ask for Mark. He often does cash in hand jobs. He's done a few of my company cars when they've been hit and he resprayed the whole front end of my charade. His colour matching and blending is absolutely spot on.

 

Definitely recommended.

[SiC]

Those from my buy thread on this may remember this red crap heap:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mgb-gt-red-overdrive-new-MOT-Gold-seal-engine-with-good-oil-pressure/272754496809

 

I kinda despise it a bit as it made me miss out on another that was a good buy.

 

The buyer of that then listed it up on Gumtree for £1900, and its been relisted a couple of times over the last month or so.

 

They then listed it on eBay where it failed to meet reserve: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/mgb-gt-1975/142468433888

 

Now it appears to be listed again, but this time with a lower buy-it-now than what they paid: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/mgb-gt-1975/142481366615

 

Complete turd inside with knackard seats, missing headliner, scruffy carpets and stinking of fags. Underneath is full of shit welding repairs and the paint on top looks like its been applied with a brush. I do wish I had spare room though, as I'd like to buy that (if it drops some more) and rip all the parts off it. Especially that engine, as it seemed to be in very good health and had low miles on it. The engine and gearbox together if it came down a bit, would be less than a rebuild of an engine.

 

I do suspect they bought it and didn't realise until they got it home and looked underneath it, it was a complete turd of a body.

 

You bid to buy not tyre kick and try to get it for less on the day.

Yeah, because in this instance, I suspect those that bid on it without viewing will either ask for discount or just walk away anyway.

 

I really ought to delete my eBay/AT/Gumtree saved searches on MGB GTs!

[SiC]

The shit heap above didn't meet reserve and didn't get above £1k. I bet they regretted buying that. Probably no-one really cares about it but me tbh!

 

In other news I chatted to my dad too for a bit of advice about my brake problems, as a good 40 years ago he was a mechanic and had to fix BL chod regularly. After a couple of years he soon got fed up of fixing them and changed profession. Anyway he had too suggestions. Firstly he advised what he used to do is open the bleed nipple, give 3 vigorous pumps on the pedal and on the last, keep the pedal down and tighten the nipple back up. Also to push down the pedal and leave it for a couple of days to let the air flow up itself.

 

So I left work a tad earlier than normal and popped down to ECP to buy yet more brake fluid. This evening I decided to give it another go. As the wife was inside enjoying watching the TV, I didn't really want to disturb/pee her off. So I had to give it another go with the Eezi Bleed. As I didn't have a helper I changed what my dad suggested a little. I firstly opened the bleed nipple to get fluid into the pipe. Then with the bleed nipple open and pressure still on the system, I gave the pedal a couple of pumps. Checking the bleed pipes, there was plenty of bubbles coming through. Did it a couple of times and then finally let it bleed through a bit more before shutting it off.

 

Pedal now a fair bit harder but not quite perfect/how it was. So I've left the cap slightly ajar and a jack handle pushing down on the pedal.

 

Hopefully in a couple of days I should have a better brake system all being well. Reading up it appears that air often gets stuck in the brake booster - not helped by the angle that BL engineers fitted them at.

 

So far this is the amount of fluid I've got through. A bit more than I expected. Admittedly some was from the system when changing the pipes and the clutch system.

 

A proper ballache this has been.

[SiC]

And yesterday I cycled back with this on my back. I'll let you have a go guessing what was in there!

[Noel Tidybeard]

moar break fluid

[They_all_do_that_sir]

Steering wheel?

 

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[Kiltox]

You know they do brake fluid in 5L right

[Eddie Honda]

You know they do brake fluid in 5L right

You know they do 20L boxes too...

[Mally]

I bought 5 litres from Halfords, can't remember how much, but wasn't bad with the trade card.

[SiC]

You know they do brake fluid in 5L right

Yeah, if I knew that I would fail so miserably in bleeding my brakes I would have done! Also I thought I'd have at least 1 bottle spare and I'd rather have it left as a sealed container. Weirdly the 500mL bottles from ECP are cheaper per litre than the 1l bottles!

 

I've got 2 left now. Possibly might need another one when/if the remaining bubbles come to the master cylinder and drop the fluid a bit. I suspect the remaining bubbles are just aerated fluid.

 

You know they do 20L boxes too...

Don't confuse that with the boxed wine in the garage...

[SiC]

Steering wheel?

 

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Almost! Steering lock. Busted my back a bit dragging it home though.

 

It just fits on the steering wheel. Requires a good squeeze to get it to fit. Gives me a perfect excuse to get a new wheel though.

[Guest Hooli]

Useless fact - Holding the pedal down doesn't allow the air to flow back up, if it did then the pressure wouldn't be held in the braking circuit. The only time the air can escape is when the pedal is up & the master cylinder is open to the reservoir. What holding the pedal down is keep the system under pressure, which compresses the stuck air & that can mean it moves easier, not that I understand why.

 

You are bleeding them in the correct order aren't you? I think it's start furthest from the master cylinder, but it does vary on some cars & it's years since I did a non-ABS car.

[SiC]

Useless fact - Holding the pedal down doesn't allow the air to flow back up, if it did then the pressure wouldn't be held in the braking circuit. The only time the air can escape is when the pedal is up & the master cylinder is open to the reservoir. What holding the pedal down is keep the system under pressure, which compresses the stuck air & that can mean it moves easier, not that I understand why.

 

You are bleeding them in the correct order aren't you? I think it's start furthest from the master cylinder, but it does vary on some cars & it's years since I did a non-ABS car.

I had a google around and seems quite a few people suggest jamming the brake pedal down. I wasn't sure how it'd work, but as many do, I thought I'd give it a go.

 

I bled it in the following order - nearside rear, offside rear, nearside front, offside front. Looking online, it appears apart from the brake boost getting air stuck in it, the master cylinder has some sort of slow pressure release valve. Mentioned here: http://www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/mcvalve.htm

[SiC]

I wonder if I need to adjust the rear brakes?

[Mally]

My assistant jabs the pedal sharply 3 times before a long slow down press. Then shouts floor.

I tighten the bleed nipple.

Pedal up and Repeat. Don't forget to top up.

When no bubbles, one long press and tighten.

When that fails I eezy bleed.

It can happen that the pedal becomes better overnight due to air bubbles rising, but don't bank on it.

[Felly Magic]

I actually had a look at that £5k blue rubber bumper Sherpa Sports today, very, very fresh paint, and some daft twunt has put 2 white stripes on it that run along the bonnet, roof and tailgate, covered in dealer beauty products as well, I bet it is hiding plenty of sins

[SiC]

I actually had a look at that £5k blue rubber bumper Sherpa Sports today, very, very fresh paint, and some daft twunt has put 2 white stripes on it that run along the bonnet, roof and tailgate, covered in dealer beauty products as well, I bet it is hiding plenty of sins

Which one was that? Linky?

 

If I ended up with a white one, my plan was actually to have put blue stripes along it. I think it really suited them - especially in rubber bumper format.

 

Each to their own of course.

[Felly Magic]

Sadly trader doesn't have a website, it's at a car sales lot in Felixstowe, forecourt is full of modern toss at high prices, like an Ovlov V70 on an 05 plate for 3.5 bags. the Coopay looked horrid, the rubber bumpers were all shiny due to the 5 gallons of trim snot on, same for the tyres, next time I'm passing, I will get snaps of it, it looked like a £2.5k car max to be honest

[SiC]

Had a read of the installation manual for the brake servo. Some bedtime reading here: http://www.mossmotors.com/graphics/products/PDF/981-173.pdf

 

Two interesting things in there. First is that British Leyland installed it incorrectly. It should have the air filter at the bottom - around the 5 o'clock position. Where as they were fitted around the 2 o'clock position. This won't be helping with air getting stuck.

 

Secondly it too recommends to crack open the outlet when having the pedal pressed to clear some of the air. So if keeping the pedal down for a couple of days doesn't do the trick, it'll be next trick on the list.

 

Kinda tempted to buy a replacement brake pipes to rip out this servo completely. Appears not a necessity on the MGB as they can lock the wheels without them and a lot say they drive better without too.

[Guest Hooli]

I wonder if I need to adjust the rear brakes?

 

Can't hurt.

 

Jamming the pedal can work, on bikes people often cable tie the lever back over night. I was just saying I don't under quite how it works.

[SiC]

Well a small update. I removed the pole last night and they feel a fair bit harder at the top. Checking the fluid level before and after removing the pole, I noted that the fluid level had dropped. So it must have got something out. As long as it's not leaked out the master cylinder.

 

I've put the pole back in again and I'll check again tonight. One thing I noted is that I got the pedal to the floor by applying hard pressure to the brake pedal and over the space of a minute or so it gradually sank down there. I assume this is normal?!

 

I'm still pondering whether to have a go undoing the brake booster outlet while under pressure. If I do though, will I need to bleed the whole system again, as I might introduce air into the pipes to the calipers, due to it not being at the end of the system?

[Guest Hooli]

Dropping when the pedal is held down sounds wrong to me. You sure it's not leaking?