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An MGA uncovered!
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JC T ONE



Joined: 30 Oct 2008
Posts: 1139
Location: Denmark

PostPosted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 5:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is coming together really nice Cool

what waxoil product did you end up using ?
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 7:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

JC T ONE wrote:
This is coming together really nice Cool

what waxoil product did you end up using ?


Thanks Very Happy its taken a while but I'm getting there!, I ended up not having to make a decision on the wax, whilst moving some other stuff I found 2 x 5L cans of Waxoyl that I bought in a Halfords sale (£11.99 per 5l) a few years ago, I had to add quite a lot of white spirit as I presume there had been some evaporation in storage, and as I didn't have to buy any wax I treated myself to a Sealey Wax gun, it comes with a couple or really useful lances, and made far less mess than when I used my paraffin gun.

Dave
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Rick
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Joined: 27 Apr 2005
Posts: 22429
Location: UK

PostPosted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 7:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That's really looking well isn't it, the seats came out great too. No condensation issues your way then!?

RJ
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 8:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rick wrote:
That's really looking well isn't it, the seats came out great too. No condensation issues your way then!?

RJ


Thanks, the seats were rebuilt in Market Drayton, I suspect you will know by who! re the condensation; I get none, the garage is brick double skinned and I heat it in the winter at weekends with electric storage heaters, its bone dry.

Dave
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Wed Dec 26, 2012 2:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Found some pictures of the day I picked the MGA up way back in 91...funny the car I used to tow it back with is considered a classic in some circles these days! Laughing

All the original panels have been kept and restored, apart from the RH door, that was beyond salvage, it doesn't look too bad in the pic's below, but had a knock that had split the aluminium skin, and put a twist in the frame. There was more weight in the filler in it than the original door!!!











Dave


Last edited by ukdave2002 on Wed Dec 26, 2012 3:10 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Rick
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Joined: 27 Apr 2005
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 26, 2012 3:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wow the body was looking a little secondhand wasn't it Shocked

RJ
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
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Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Fri Dec 28, 2012 9:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rick wrote:
Wow the body was looking a little secondhand wasn't it Shocked

RJ


It was!!!!!,

From what I could piece together, it was sold new in 1958 by a Californian dealer, I know nothing about the owners (apart from one of them decided to hand paint it gold !?, it was originally Orient Red). It was then scrapped in 1974, spent 17 years in a Californian scrap yard, in a "stack" of MGA's. I'd imagine this is where the body picked up a lot of the damage that can be seen in the pictures as it was peppered with dents.

When the paint came off there was minor accident repair damage in all the panels...certainly not a "one careful owner " car Laughing

In 1991 it was bought by Bob West who specialises in MGA's and restoration; he has restored some of the BMC works car's, at the time Bob was importing many MGA's from dry states, so I had a few to choose from, but as cost was the major driver, I went for the cheapest!

I wish I had more photos of the early days of restoration, but it was the early 90's so pre digital Sad I'm sure I have a few more, will have to dig them out.

Dave
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Rick
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 28, 2012 10:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

At least it was in better condition than this one I stumbled across many years ago (I don't think I've posted this previously) Shocked


http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/scrap.htm

RJ
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sun Jan 20, 2013 9:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rick, what a shame, I wonder how many cars have suffered that fate?

Bit of a frustrating weekend Shocked

Don’t think I have previously mentioned this, but in 1996 we moved 20 miles from Chester to Nantwich, because of a complication with the move we moved out 6 weeks before we moved in, and put 95% of what we owned into storage with Pickfords. 2 days before we moved into our new place, the Pickfords warehouse in Chester burned to the ground!!!, Shocked Surprised Confused this included all the bits I’d stripped from the MGA, so basically, I had all the body panels, engine, gearbox and diff...basically a rolling chassis . All the other bits I either had had to buy repro or scour auto jumbles then later ebay, this I have done over the last decade or so!

This week end I wanted to get the brakes working and put the wiper mechanism in ( I have always hated wiper mechanisms!!)
Starting with the brakes, its drums all round on the 1500, fronts were straight forward, rears had a production change; at some point MG moved from BSF fittings to UNF, I had managed to acquire a right mixture of the two! The brake pipe set I bought some 15 years ago assumed it was all UNF. Fortunately having restored some Morris 8 brakes I had a few BSF brake fittings, so could chop the pipe and re-flair with the right fitting, however I was missing a BSF banjo bolt, again fortunately I had some 5/8 hex bar and turned a new banjo bolt.

The MGA for the first time in 40ish years now has brakes!!!
Next was the wipers; I hate anything to do with wipers! (have I said that ?!) I fabricated a missing wiper motor bracket:


and had previously bought a Moss kit for the wiper tubes....however the tube between the 2 wiper box’s was too long, and the tube between the nearside side and the wiper motor, was far too short. Fortunately I had some 5/16” copper pipe and a flaring tool, so was able to shorten and remake the offending tubes (pic taken from the NS (LHS) pasenger knees, looking upwards.


All sorted now have brakes and wipers Very Happy

Dave
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sat Jan 26, 2013 7:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Must have broken the back of this now as I am starting to fit bits of trim Very Happy

Today the dash rail was fitted (kindly re-trimmed by my better half)



and the grill Very Happy



The dash rail was fitted because its a pig to do once the dash is in, same with the grill; once the radiator and valance are fitted , child size hands are needed!

I also plumbed in the clutch and fitted the fuel line...not far off firing her up Shocked Shocked

Dave
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JC T ONE



Joined: 30 Oct 2008
Posts: 1139
Location: Denmark

PostPosted: Sat Jan 26, 2013 7:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

ukdave2002 wrote:


apart from one of them decided to hand paint it gold !?,


Dave


I have seen & heard something about some special edition MG A,s that were painted Gold, cant remember what the story was ?
but I am sure some MG A historian will know more.


Car looks really nice Cool
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
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Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Mon Jan 28, 2013 9:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think the 100,000th MGA was painted gold at the factory.

Mine had been brush painted gold over the original Orient Red, there was also a number crudley painted on the doors, I don't know if the car had been used for some form of racing, or possibly it was a morker that the US scrapyard put on for identification?

Dave
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sat Feb 16, 2013 5:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Fitted the valance and bumper today...on paper it looks like about an hours work! took me about 6 Surprised

One of the advantages of MGA ownership, is that most bits are available new, one of the disadvantages is that they are made in the far east and don't always fit, the bumper is a repro, as are the bumper springs and the valance, so had the usual challenge of getting things to fit together Rolling Eyes , had to modify the bumper springs slightly, its almost right now, will still need another hours final fettling....couldn't resist fitting the number plate Very Happy



Dave
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Fired the engine up today Very Happy ,

Had a few challenges ; firstly the starter motor bendix was sticking, it just required a clean, then the 14 year old nos fuel pump refused to do anything, this needed the contacts cleaning.

I'm fitting an electronic distributor ;these can't be statically timed ,the timing instructions assume that you are replacing the original however I'd given the original to someone knowing that I had a new unit Confused In the end I figured out to within +/- 10 degrees where it should go,thinking that it should at least fire up, then I'd then adjust it for maximum revs and then check with the strobe. Luckily this plan worked Very Happy and apart from a noisy tappet the engine is running nicely Very Happy I'll stick it on my engine analyser tomorrow to check it over.

Dave
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ukdave2002



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4100
Location: South Cheshire

PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Fired the engine up today Very Happy ,

Had a few challenges ; firstly the starter motor bendix was sticking, it just required a clean, then the 14 year old nos fuel pump refused to do anything, this needed the contacts cleaning.

I'm fitting an electronic distributor ;these can't be statically timed ,the timing instructions assume that you are replacing the original however I'd given the original to someone knowing that I had a new unit Confused In the end I figured out to within +/- 10 degrees where it should go,thinking that it should at least fire up, then I'd then adjust it for maximum revs and then check with the strobe. Luckily this plan worked Very Happy and apart from a noisy tappet the engine is running nicely Very Happy I'll stick it on my engine analyser tomorrow to check it over.

Dave
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