mintylamb.co.uk

Light Relays

admin — Thu, 29 May 2008 22:20:03 +0000

I finally started work on the relay wiring - it’ll sit next to the existing fuse box - with the cable going in to the wing. I’ll be using some loom tape to tidy it up the cable - a shame because all the cable is the correct colour - no less than 7 different colour combinations… All that’s left are the earths to each relay and the aux lighting supply…

It works something along these lines:

Except I have two relays for the mains and an extra one for auxilary lights. One 30A relay can handle up to 360W of lighting - so you need to run two if you’re running 4 mains above 90W each.

This set up should stop switches from burning out - and also get the power to the headlights in a more direct route (straight from the battery rather than up to the dash and back)

More photos from last year

James — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 22:24:33 +0000

As stated in a previous post - my car was the star of a Badly Drawn Boy video. Today I was furnished with some photos of the car on set.

10CR Photos

James — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 00:51:40 +0000

Dawson just sent me a photo from our trip around the Nurburgring - I had forgotten all about it. So I thought I should finally upload the rest of the photos he took.

Spitfire Update

James — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 19:36:49 +0000

Well the car is back with me, chassis built up and tub painted.

So I guess it’s time to start updating my blog with progress.

First plan is to get the fuel system in - filter, Facet fuel pump, fuel line and Filter King.

Famous for 4 minutes and 6 seconds

James — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 22:18:37 +0000

Well not me, but the car.

Click here

Pedals & misc

James — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 21:20:32 +0000

Well bits keep on getting done - little by little.

I installed the air horns that have been sitting in my cupboard since before the 2005 10CR on Friday evening. Just replaced the right hand horn with the compressor - straight swap. I’ve left one of the old horns still attached as I don’t see any point in removing it and it’s even louder with 3 horns now!

The breather hose from the rocker box to the inlet manifold was split - so I removed that and plugged the manifold with a plug from a Spitfire 1500 manifold. At the moment I’ve just used some pipe and directed it to the ground - I need to site a small catch tank somewhere in the engine bay - it’s quite crowded really!

I cleaned up the manual flywheel using distilled white vinegar - about 12 hours of soaking and all the rust is off! Marvelous stuff - used a block and some 600 wet and dry to totally clean up the front surface.

I removed the pedal box from the car with its single brake pedal and swapped over the new pedals I cleaned up the other week. Just need a spring for the clutch pedal and I can put it all back in the car.

Replacement Tank

James — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 16:05:10 +0000

As the inside of my petrol tank seems to be rusting like crazy and filling up countless fuel filters with crud I was on the look out for a replacement to clean up and swap. I found one on eBay which was described as being a year old before the car it was removed from was scrapped - condition didn’t seem all that relevant as I guessed I would need to do it up anyway. Luckily it was located close to my sister so she could pick it up - and even better it went for 50p!

I removed the sender unit from the back this morning and peered inside - totally spotless! So I masked it up, got the wire wheel and angle grinder out and cleaned off the surface rust. A quick spray paint later and a nice looking petrol tank… shame you won’t see it!

Pedal-prep

James — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 21:43:38 +0000

One job that needs to be done is to add an extra pedal for the clutch. I got a pedal box off Doug - the box itself was a bit rusty so I cleaned it up with a wire wheel on the angle grinder. However whilst browsing the parts catalogue (like you do) I realised that the box itself is the same part number - in fact everything is the same apart from the pedals themselves. Sticking my head under the dash proved this and revealed a pedal box in immaculate condition already there. So I finished cleaning up the pedals and gave them a quick spray paint.

I am using an MGC clutch master cylinder - so I needed to devise some sort of stop for the pedal - I’ve drilled a hole in the pedal and will simply put a long bolt through it. Nice and simple solution - hope it works!

123Ignition

James — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 22:24:18 +0000

Installation is really straight forward, it’s basically a straight swap. In fact it took longer to work out what curve to use! The instructions give a list of curves with their advance at 2,000 and the max advance at a set RPM. Looking up the test data in the workshop manual reveals the following for the Mk1 2 litre:Idle - 8 to 10 BTDC

2,300rpm - 22 to 28 BTDC

4,200rpm - 30 to 36 BTDC

With this data I worked out that I needed curve F. I made a little tool to help with this too; 123ignition curve-o-rama

The car seems to hold idle much better now - there is a definite improvement there. However everything still needs to be looked at and tuned up properly. I have an old high power Flamethrower coil which I may put on there - might give the plugs a bit more bang.

I’m really enjoying doing all these small bits on the car - when you’ve had a massive project sitting over your head (namely the Spitfire) things get a little daunting. I’d forgotten what it’s like to work on a car - and although they’ve only been small jobs I’m regaining the confidence I built up with my first Spitfire. If there is a break in the weather tomorrow I’ll fit the air horns I have and make up a loom and relay pack for new headlights.

New Wheels

James — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:10:05 +0000

Today James delivered the wheels and tyres I’d bought off him. Decided that I may as well fit them straight away, so on they went. They’re real mag style Minilites with the steel inserts and heat treatment for competition usage. I was in two minds to paint them gloss black and get the rims cut - but they’re in good condition already and it seems a shame to mess them up. When they get to the point that they need a refurb I will get them done this way.

At the same time I fitted my new Motolita 15″ dished steering wheel - so much nicer than the horrid thin standard one!