invacar LightBulbFun's Invacar & general ramble thread, index on page 1, survivors lists on Pages 24/134 & AdgeCutler's Invacar Mk12 Restoration from Page 186 onwards, still harping on...

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

10 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

No problem happy to help! I look forward to seeing your Model 70 return to the road

 

I would not be so quick to write off the battery, pretty much all the electrics goes through 2 fuses in a fuse holder, mounted to the front bulkhead under the dashboard (plus a 3rd fuse in the engine bay to do with the Dynastarter charging)

these are your good old Lucas Glass fuses, 25A and 35A in the case of the cabin fuses (note these are Lucas fuses, so DONT put regular 25A and 35A glass fuses in there as they are not the same)

as such you will probably need to take the fuses out clean them up and and fuse holder contacts scrubbed up as well before things actually work 

(something I need to do on REV as at the last FoD Gathering I had to give them a spray with some electrical cleaner and spin the fuses in the their holders to get things working)

Will give that a go today, thank you, when (if!) The rain ever subsides! Lol

[LightBulbFun]

whoa check this out an Invacar buff logbook, for an early one! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/254873376543 (and I think its the first buff logbook I have seen for any invacar full stop, I have seen a few for other invalid vehicles but not Invacars, I would love to see what a Model 70 buff logbook looked like)

shame the Chassis number is illegible but interesting to know just how exactly early invacars where registered and what their weight was etc, 177Kg in this case

 

for those unaware, it would of been for one of these  

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

4 hours ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Will give that a go today, thank you, when (if!) The rain ever subsides! Lol

@LightBulbFunFound the fuses thank you, cleaned them up, they weren't too bad but the battery has had it, just have to wait for the new one to arrive, here are the pics of the carb..... Hope they are of use!  Cheers David

Edited February 20, 2021 by OldBlokeInACaravan
.

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

NEW OLD STOCK INVACAR SPARES

Hello, I thought I would list these here before putting  them on Ebay..... Please PRIVATE MESSAGE me for more info... there will be many more smaller items to follow....Open to sensible offers, plus postage or collect from Morecambe.

Pic 1...N.O.S. Seat backrest

Pic 2...N.O.S. Fuel tank float, (FOUR available) part no: STY 510

Pic 3...N.O.S. Exhaust downpipe, part no: STY 492

Pic 4...N.O.S. Exhaust downpipe, part no: STY 491

Pics 5 and 6...N.O.S. Inlet manifold, (FOUR available) part number as shown.

 

16 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

No problem happy to help! I look forward to seeing your Model 70 return to the road

 

I would not be so quick to write off the battery, pretty much all the electrics goes through 2 fuses in a fuse holder, mounted to the front bulkhead under the dashboard (plus a 3rd fuse in the engine bay to do with the Dynastarter charging)

these are your good old Lucas Glass fuses, 25A and 35A in the case of the cabin fuses (note these are Lucas fuses, so DONT put regular 25A and 35A glass fuses in there as they are not the same)

as such you will probably need to take the fuses out clean them up and and fuse holder contacts scrubbed up as well before things actually work 

(something I need to do on REV as at the last FoD Gathering I had to give them a spray with some electrical cleaner and spin the fuses in the their holders to get things working)

Will give that a go today, thank you, when (if!) The rain ever subsides! Lol

Edited February 20, 2021 by OldBlokeInACaravan
.

[LightBulbFun]

4 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

@LightBulbFunFound the fuses thank you, cleaned them up, they weren't too bad but the battery has had it, just have to wait for the new one to arrive, here are the pics of the carb..... Hope they are of use!  Cheers David

Ah shame it was not that easy! always worth doing tho, as the Model 70 compared to most british cars of the time is actually somewhat over fused as even tho it only has 2 or 3 fuses, EVERYTHING goes through said fuses 

which is good for electrical safety, but not so good if they start to play up or if something does cause one to blow! (I know on something like an MGB the headlamps are not fused at all for example)

 

thanks for the Carb pics, defo a webber carb

but I cant quite make out what it says on the side there, it should say 32ICS10

or 32ICS3 (maybe, still trying to work out if Early Model 70's like the one your engine is from used 32ICS3 or 32ICS10 carbs)

 

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

2 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

Ah shame it was not that easy! always worth doing tho, as the Model 70 compared to most british cars of the time is actually somewhat over fused as even tho it only has 2 or 3 fuses, EVERYTHING goes through said fuses 

which is good for electrical safety, but not so good if they start to play up or if something does cause one to blow! (I know on something like an MGB the headlamps are not fused at all for example)

 

thanks for the Carb pics, defo a webber carb

but I cant quite make out what it says on the side there, it should say 32ICS10

or 32ICS3 (maybe, still trying to work out if Early Model 70's like the one your engine is from used 32ICS3 or 32ICS10 carbs)

 

Was definitely worth doing, just got to get the seized battery bracket off now, but that's another story!! Lol will have another look at the carb 😉

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

20 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

Ah shame it was not that easy! always worth doing tho, as the Model 70 compared to most british cars of the time is actually somewhat over fused as even tho it only has 2 or 3 fuses, EVERYTHING goes through said fuses 

which is good for electrical safety, but not so good if they start to play up or if something does cause one to blow! (I know on something like an MGB the headlamps are not fused at all for example)

 

thanks for the Carb pics, defo a webber carb

but I cant quite make out what it says on the side there, it should say 32ICS10

or 32ICS3 (maybe, still trying to work out if Early Model 70's like the one your engine is from used 32ICS3 or 32ICS10 carbs)

 

Just been out and took this, can't see very clearly, but will have another go when the weather clears up !!

[LightBulbFun]

3 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Just been out and took this, can't see very clearly, but will have another go when the weather clears up !!

Yeah will be interesting to see if its a 32CIS3 or a 32ICS10

35 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

NEW OLD STOCK INVACAR SPARES

Hello, I thought I would list these here before putting  them on Ebay..... Please PRIVATE MESSAGE me for more info... there will be many more smaller items to follow....Open to sensible offers, plus postage or collect from Morecambe.

Pic 1...N.O.S. Seat backrest

Pic 2...N.O.S. Fuel tank float, (FOUR available) part no: STY 510

Pic 3...N.O.S. Exhaust downpipe, part no: STY 492

Pic 4...N.O.S. Exhaust downpipe, part no: STY 491

Pics 5 and 6...N.O.S. Inlet manifold, (FOUR available) part number as shown.

 

Will give that a go today, thank you, when (if!) The rain ever subsides! Lol

Ohhh spare parts, always handy  

dont suppose theres a fuel tank in there  somewhere?

its the one major part I lack for REV!

 

will be interesting to see/hear what else you manage to unearth!

 

BTW do you have a picture of the headliner in your Model 70? it has an interesting texture, not one I have seen before in a Model 70!

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

4 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

Yeah will be interesting to see if its a 32CIS3 or a 32ICS10

Ohhh spare parts, always handy  

dont suppose theres a fuel tank in there  somewhere?

its the one major part I lack for REV!

 

will be interesting to see/hear what else you manage to unearth!

 

BTW do you have a picture of the headliner in your Model 70? it has an interesting texture, not one I have seen before in a Model 70!

Fraid not on the fuel tank front, just the senders, I've been looking through the smaller items, there's some N.O.S. door stays, wheel bearings, and stuff I've still to identify!!??!!  I've got two exhausts, I would let one go if someone was desperate for one, but want to hold on to them for now...... Will do a couple of pics of the headlining, it's very 60s !!!!

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

9 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Fraid not on the fuel tank front, just the senders, I've been looking through the smaller items, there's some N.O.S. door stays, wheel bearings, and stuff I've still to identify!!??!!  I've got two exhausts, I would let one go if someone was desperate for one, but want to hold on to them for now...... Will do a couple of pics of the headlining, it's very 60s !!!!

Don't dazzle, dip your Invacar headlining! (I really want a matching suitcase......lol)

[LightBulbFun]

21 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Fraid not on the fuel tank front, just the senders, I've been looking through the smaller items, there's some N.O.S. door stays, wheel bearings, and stuff I've still to identify!!??!!  I've got two exhausts, I would let one go if someone was desperate for one, but want to hold on to them for now...... Will do a couple of pics of the headlining, it's very 60s !!!!

Yeah! figured LOL on the smaller bits and bobs you are not sure whats what, if any have STY codes, tell me what they are and I can tell you what the parts are exactly etc  

(STY is the internal Ministry Store code header for Model 70 bits)

 

yeah I dont blame you for holding onto exhausts! they are not easy to come by sadly, iv got a few people knocking on my door so to speak looking for Model 70 exhausts

which is fun as I dont even fully know what condition the one on my own Model 70, REV, is like! (or on Dolly for that matter)

I dont think its leaking but I have not yet had a chance to give it a proper poke, so id like to do so and know where I stand there

I do know that one my exhaust downpipes has a hole in it, but thankfully theres a NOS set in my spares stash

10 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Don't dazzle, dip your Invacar headlining! (I really want a matching suitcase......lol)

ohhh interesting thats not one I have seen before!

from what I have seen Post March 76 Model 70's would of shipped with this type of headlining 

and then in the 1990's as they failed/went droopy,

 

 

 they where replaced by this type, which is what is fitted to REV and Dolly (and TWC, although TWC being a pre March 1976 Model 70 never had a head liner until Dollywobbler fitted one)

so I wonder what the story is behind yours!

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

5 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

Yeah! figured LOL on the smaller bits and bobs you are not sure whats what, if any have STY codes, tell me what they are and I can tell you what the parts are exactly etc  

(STY is the internal Ministry Store code header for Model 70 bits)

 

yeah I dont blame you for holding onto exhausts! they are not easy to come by sadly, iv got a few people knocking on my door so to speak looking for Model 70 exhausts

which is fun as I dont even fully know what condition the one on my own Model 70, REV, is like! (or on Dolly for that matter)

I dont think its leaking but I have not yet had a chance to give it a proper poke, so id like to do so and know where I stand there

I do know that one my exhaust downpipes has a hole in it, but thankfully theres a NOS set in my spares stash

ohhh interesting thats not one I have seen before!

from what I have seen Post March 76 Model 70's would of shipped with this type of headlining 

and then in the 1990's as they failed/went droopy,

 

 

 they where replaced by this type, which is what is fitted to REV and Dolly (and TWC, although TWC being a pre March 1976 Model 70 never had a head liner until Dollywobbler fitted one)

so I wonder what the story is behind yours!

Mmmmm! I reckon mine was a parts bin special lol 😆

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

4 hours ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Mmmmm! I reckon mine was a parts bin special lol 😆

Bugger! Was outbid at the last second on the Argson Handbook, but when it went over £32 I thought it Was a bit too top heavy!!! Oh well!!

[LightBulbFun]

18 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Bugger! Was outbid at the last second on the Argson Handbook, but when it went over £32 I thought it Was a bit too top heavy!!! Oh well!!

blimey yeah £32 is a bit much! wonder who won it, thats quite a lot to pay for a random old user manual unless you happen to need one because you own what its for, so I wonder if whoever won it also has an Argson?

 

[R1152]

23 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

these are your good old Lucas Glass fuses, 25A and 35A in the case of the cabin fuses (note these are Lucas fuses, so DONT put regular 25A and 35A glass fuses in there as they are not the same)

In what way are they different from a typical 1.25" x 0.25" fuse, LBF?

The other thing I noticed, wondering how it was done on seeing Dollywobbler's Invacar, was how the indicator tell-tale was wired - given there's one lamp for either side. I see it uses the opposite-side lights as the earthy return for the tell-tale!

[R1152]

5 hours ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Don't dazzle, dip your Invacar headlining! (I really want a matching suitcase......lol)

That looks like it belongs in a 1960s Fidelity record player...

[Mr Pastry]

4 minutes ago, R1152 said:

In what way are they different from a typical 1.25" x 0.25" fuse, LBF?

Here we go...Link to international vintage glass fuse-collecting community coming up.

[LightBulbFun]

15 minutes ago, R1152 said:

In what way are they different from a typical 1.25" x 0.25" fuse, LBF?

Lucas fuses are funny in that its 35A blow, but only rated for 17A continuous (and im not sure what the continuous  current rating of a lucas 25A fuse is!) so any current above 17A will eventually lead to the fuse failing, the more current above 17A the quicker it will fail, and at 35A it will fail instantly

a regular 35A glass fuse is rated for 35A continuous  

if you compare a lucas 35A fuse with a normal 35A fuse, you will see the fuse wire in the lucas fuse is much skinner compared to a normal 35A fuse

so if you fit a normal 35A fuse in place of a lucas one your affectively fitting too large a fuse and could risk something melting/catching fire as a result

 

sadly most people dont realise this and merrily fit regular 35A fuses

tis not the first time I have mentioned it  

 

On 11/04/2020 at 01:04, LightBulbFun said:

so I was watching @richardthestag part 12 on sandy the landy the other day, and he was talking about fuses how the Land rover has 35A fuses that are 35A blow but only 17A continuous, but that someone had fitted an actual 35A continuous fuse  

and it got me thinking that I never really thought about the blow characteristics of automotive fuses and it turned my attention to the fuses in the Model 70 (naturally LOL)

specifically the 2 mounted on the bulkhead in the cabin theres a 35A main fuse and a 25A fuse for auxiliary circuits

and it made me wonder if the 35A (and the 25A) fuse is meant to be of the Lucas 35A blow 17A continuous type?

as doing some maths 35A at 12V is 420W which is way higher then what the dynastart is rated for (240W) however doing the maths at 17A gives me 204W which sounds much more reasonable so I do wonder...

and the final reason I bring this up is because im pretty sure @dollywobbler has a big beefy 35A continuous fuse fitted to TWC, like the incorrect type removed from sandy the landy and I just wanted to go over this to make sure TWC and other Model 70's have the correct fuses fitted!

for those wondering this is what the workshop manual has to say on fuses etc

 

 

as a side note it makes me wonder what the blow characteristics of modern blade type automotive fuses are?

 

 

[R1152]

2 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

Lucas fuses are funny in that its 35A blow, but only rated for 17A continuous (and im not sure what the continuous  current rating of a lucas 25A fuse is!) so any current above 17A will eventually lead to the fuse failing, the more current above 17A the quicker it will fail, and at 35A it will fail instantly

[...]

tis not the first time I have mentioned it

Remember I'm the New Kid In Town round here, especially with the finer details of Invacars - but it seems counter-intuitive to this electronics practitioner of some fifty years to rate a fuse at the rupture current, not the capacity?

That'd be like saying the 13A fuse in a plug is really a 400A fuse...

[LightBulbFun]

12 minutes ago, R1152 said:

Remember I'm the New Kid In Town round here, especially with the finer details of Invacars - but it seems counter-intuitive to this electronics practitioner of some fifty years to rate a fuse at the rupture current, not the capacity?

That'd be like saying the 13A fuse in a plug is really a 400A fuse...

indeed! but thats Lucas Electrics for you, dont look at me, look at them!

its not just the Invacar, but pretty much every British car works this way

Invacars are just made of fibreglass so you have a few more dodgy earths to deal with just for good measure

but at least the Model 70 is Negative Earth!

[R1152]

7 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

its not just the Invacar, but pretty much every British car works this way

Invacars are just made of fibreglass so you have a few more dodgy earths to deal with just for good measure

but at least the Model 70 is Negative Earth!

I give you "The Interrupter", as used on 1960s Vauxhalls in their headlight circuits.

Looking at the diagram of the Invacar (ta for posting that 🙂), I have visions of those "bullet" connector junctions being used in abundance.

[LightBulbFun]

7 minutes ago, R1152 said:

Looking at the diagram of the Invacar (ta for posting that 🙂), I have visions of those "bullet" connector junctions being used in abundance.

yeah there are a fair few of those floating around, at least at the back where the rear lights connect up to the main loom

(and in the wiring diagram where you see those little squares like what the rear number plate light go into, those are bullet junctions)

and they are all quite crusty on my car which is probably why none of my rear lights works!

so its is why I have been eying this up https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/143252988789

as while I think the brass bullets themselves are fine, the little rubber sheathed, steel springy tubes they connect into have all gone horribly rusty (in some cases trapping the bullets inside)

so I think ill have to spend a bit of time cleaning up the bullets and replacing the little connecting tubes

[R1152]

I'm trying to remember which car electrical company I bought mine from; my trailer has the light units from a Triumph 1300 on it you see (they do have a Lucas part number) and I thought it'd be a nice touch to wire a replacement unit up properly as one of the lamp holders is rather intermittent.

Ah - here they are. https://www.autoelectricsupplies.co.uk/product/29/category/6

[somewhatfoolish]

45 minutes ago, R1152 said:

I'm trying to remember which car electrical company I bought mine from; my trailer has the light units from a Triumph 1300 on it you see (they do have a Lucas part number) and I thought it'd be a nice touch to wire a replacement unit up properly as one of the lamp holders is rather intermittent.

Ah - here they are. https://www.autoelectricsupplies.co.uk/product/29/category/6

There's also VWP

4.7mm Bullets, Sockets & Snap Connectors (vehiclewiringproducts.co.uk)

and Autosparks although their website appears to be on the fritz(or might be my browser).

[LightBulbFun]

13 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

There's also VWP

4.7mm Bullets, Sockets & Snap Connectors (vehiclewiringproducts.co.uk)

and Autosparks although their website appears to be on the fritz(or might be my browser).

looks like the security certificate for the autosparks website has been revoked so thats why its refusing to connect

 

but yeah good to know who does what  

I had a look around the VWP website and they do the special lucas fuses, including the 25A one and list its continuous current rating, which is 12.5A

https://www.vehiclewiringproducts.co.uk/c-52-fuse-boxes-fuses/c-121-fuses-and-circuit-breakers/p-675-glass-cartridge-fuse-30mm

pleased about that as I had not been able to find what it was for the 25A fuse and was wondering what it was

although I see theres a handy chart on Wikipedia as well  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuse_(automotive)#Lucas_type

[R1152]

11 hours ago, somewhatfoolish said:

and Autosparks although their website appears to be on the fritz(or might be my browser).

"Suspicious page blocked for your protection" says Bitdefender here.

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

Well it's been a lovely day in sunny old Morecambe (for once!) So got the electric polisher out and gave the old thing a once over!  Not bad considering its been off th road since 1991!    Last pic, as found!  Thank you @LightBulbFunfor finding her ID  VJN 593S is on the way back...!

[LightBulbFun]

27 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Well it's been a lovely day in sunny old Morecambe (for once!) So got the electric polisher out and gave the old thing a once over!  Not bad considering its been off th road since 1991!    Last pic, as found!  Thank you @LightBulbFunfor finding her ID  VJN 593S is on the way back...!

Looking very nice!  (tis VJN953S BTW ) 

27 minutes ago, OldBlokeInACaravan said:

Not bad considering its been off th road since 1991!   

I do wonder about that as she has some late service fitments, like the Rubbolite/Britax rear lights and Spax gas shocks

and the NOS Model 70 Spax shocks  I have seen have a letter in them that is dated to 1995

so I do wonder if she finished her service life wearing the number plates of some other Model 70

it was not all that uncommon in the later days of Model 70's for an approved repairer to take someones Model 70 that needed servicing, and just slap its number plates on another Model 70 they just withdrew and send the withdrawn one back out the door under the ID of the Model 70 that needed servicing rather then actually service said Model 70!

but im still researching exactly when the Rubbolite/Britax rear lights where introduced (For Model 70's) and when exactly the Spax shocks where introduced, it may be the letter dated to 1995, is simply a revision of a letter dating back to some other date

 

actually, just had a bit of a brainwave, Can you take the lightbulbs out of the rear lights and post pictures of their markings? (they will be quite small and I will need them to be in good focus so you might want to find a magnifying glass or such to help you there )  they will have date codes that I can decipher and that should tell me if she finished her service life under the ID of another Model 70 or not!

since if I see a Lightbulb dated to 1995 or something such then that will tell me she was in use under another Model 70's ID even after she was officially withdrawn in 1990

 

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

1 minute ago, LightBulbFun said:

Looking very nice!  (tis VJN953S BTW ) 

I do wonder about that as she has some late service fitments, like the Rubbolite/Britax rear lights and Spax gas shocks

and the NOS Model 70 Spax shocks  I have seen have a letter in them that is dated to 1995

so I do wonder if she finished her service life wearing the number plates of some other Model 70

it was not all that uncommon in the later days of Model 70's for an approved repairer to take someones Model 70 that needed servicing, and just slap its number plates on another Model 70 they just withdrew and send that back out the door under the ID of the other Model 70 rather then actually service said other Model 70!

but im still researching exactly when the Rubbolite/Britax rear lights where introduced (For Model 70's) and when exactly the Spax shocks where introduced, it may be the letter dated to 1995, is simply a revision of a letter dating back to some other date

 

actually, Can you take the rear lightbulbs out of the rear lights and post pictures of their markings? (they will be quite small and I will need them to be in good focus so you might want to find a magnifying glass or such to help you there )  they will have date codes that I can decipher and that should tell me if she finished her service life under the ID of another Model 70 or not!

(since if I see a Lightbulb dated to 1995 or something such then that will tell me she was in use under another Model 70's ID even after she was officially withdrawn in 1990)

 

Oooopps ! Long day with the reg no! Lol

[OldBlokeInACaravan]

5 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

Looking very nice!  (tis VJN953S BTW ) 

I do wonder about that as she has some late service fitments, like the Rubbolite/Britax rear lights and Spax gas shocks

and the NOS Model 70 Spax shocks  I have seen have a letter in them that is dated to 1995

so I do wonder if she finished her service life wearing the number plates of some other Model 70

it was not all that uncommon in the later days of Model 70's for an approved repairer to take someones Model 70 that needed servicing, and just slap its number plates on another Model 70 they just withdrew and send that back out the door under the ID of the other Model 70 rather then actually service said other Model 70!

but im still researching exactly when the Rubbolite/Britax rear lights where introduced (For Model 70's) and when exactly the Spax shocks where introduced, it may be the letter dated to 1995, is simply a revision of a letter dating back to some other date

 

actually, Can you take the rear lightbulbs out of the rear lights and post pictures of their markings? (they will be quite small and I will need them to be in good focus so you might want to find a magnifying glass or such to help you there )  they will have date codes that I can decipher and that should tell me if she finished her service life under the ID of another Model 70 or not!

(since if I see a Lightbulb dated to 1995 or something such then that will tell me she was in use under another Model 70's ID even after she was officially withdrawn in 1990)

 

Ooohhh! Will have a look tomorrow no problem, that does explain one thing (sort of) the nearside rear light lens was not fixed on when I got it! but there was a used (and a new boxed one) was inside.....