Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[ukdave2002]

[MikeEdwards]

[Rootes75]

After another few days working on the lorry brakes we finally have pressure back in the pedal! That has been one hell of a job.

We've had the hubs off and cleaned and freed everything up. Fitted a new master cylinder and then finally on Saturday I made up new copper pipework for the rear brakes.

After a lot of bleeding, going round the system 2 or 3 times each wheel we got a lot of air out, but we then really got pressure back in and its noticeable that the pedal is much better than before all the problems.

Its still not finished. We will need to get her back out and get all 4 wheels off the ground to then adjust each one up correctly. But at least we are getting there now.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[MikeEdwards]

After noticing quite a few stone chips on the Sports Hatch at the weekend, I spent a bit of time this afternoon putting little blobs of paint on them in the hope that it'll disguise them enough until I do something proper about them. I don't know whether I'll flat down and polish as I know I should, or just polish and buff up. I don't want to risk making them worse. They're on the leading edge of the rear wheelarches, so once they're sorted I'll have to cut some paint protection film to stop it happening again - some HC models had stainless steel trim plated on there, but neither of mine did and they wouldn't suit the car.
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1976 Vauxhall HP Firenza, 1976 Vauxhall Sportshatch (x2), 1986 Audi coupe quattro, 2000 Audi TT

[Ray White]

[alastairq]

Dellow broke down [AKA, conked out] on the way back home from my farm shop [and its excellent take out lunches!]...

Contacted an Ex-Missus to come rescue me, as I was parked in the shade, on an incredibly narrow, but little used, back road...the back road of back roads round here.

Anyhow, without ''warning, ' it stopped. {Ford 100E engine]

Severed wire, perhaps?

Anyhow, I carry various spares of a 'get-me-home' nature, as I'm fed up with breakdown services turing up hours later, or not being able to find me at all.

A Sparkright spark tester failed to flash...so, no spark [I pulled a pug anyway, as these bits I keep in a plastic food box bolted to the bulkhead inside the engine bay....fanbelt, spark plug spanner of the folding type, set of plugs, one of those round plug gappers, etc.

Ignition is by Powerspark Hall effect ignition module and magnet.

Been in there for around 12 years now. Never failed to start...

Also in the little box was an original Ford[Lucas?] baseplate with points & condenser, already set up & gapped [before I put it away in a little bag]..

So, with a certain amount of aplomb, [I had, by then, an audience, a few from one of the poashe houses on the lane , came to offer assistance, etc]..I undid two screws, had at the coil nuts to release the Powerspark wiring, then stuck points baseplate in, did up two screws, spent an age trying to find where I had sealed of the original points wiring [found it buried in tape, out of the way...been like that for 12 years!].....connected it up...[1 wire...]....and, to the disbelief of onlookers[who no doubt were laying off bets?] the Dellow fired up & ticked over like a good 'un.

Mind, I did rock the car in top gear to get TDC up to its mark..just in case....

No idea whether it was TDC for number 1 or number 4, however....the pistons are a tad out of sight from the plug 'oles.

This was all a bit spread out, as I had a dox appt [blood letting]...after an hour anyway...which my Ex kindly took me to & from...even went home to fetch my old daily out...just in case.
{I have not a lot of faith in my mechanicking...borne out of decades of bitter experience.]

Whilst getting the daily, I nipped online, and purchased a new Powerspark kit for a reasonable sum...It came yesterday, and was fitted in around 5 minutes.

Also attended to the distributor shaft spacers....as, unbeknownst to me, someone had fitted [in the USA!!] a plastic washer of the right thickness, which was now in 3 bits! {I checked, all three bits made a circle...nothing ''missing!'']
Noticed as I pulled the dizzy to realign the drive shaft one or two teeth, for a better location so the plug leads weren't too stretched or convoluted.

Went back later this week to retrieve a couple of nice spanners I had dropped into the grass underneath....and promptly forgot to pick up once the car was moved!
One was a 10mm/8mm, the 8 mil happens to fit nicely on the brake adjusters.[Ford 'E93A' running gear]..and the spanners came from a SKoda Estelle tool kit... with nice thick 'ledges' in the spanner jaws, not thin things at all.
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Dellow Mk2, 1951 built, reg 1952.
Fiat 126 BIS
Cannon special [1996 registered. Built in 1950's]
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Ford Pop chassis, Ashley 1172 bodyshell, in pieces.

[Rootes75]

We took our Big Hillman out to a nearby pub, well about 17 miles from us, as a road run of steamers and tractors were coming up for an evening from a local steam show. It was absolutely packed, 3 fields full of vehicles.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[MikeEdwards]

I have a slightly longer trip this weekend, so I figured an oil and filter change would be a good idea. Took out a mortgage for 5l of oil at the weekend, drained it out this afternoon, and now I can't find my filters. I've spent all afternoon searching for them, I know I've got some, but they're better at hiding than I am at seeking. I did find a new 4.5l can of oil, though.
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1976 Vauxhall HP Firenza, 1976 Vauxhall Sportshatch (x2), 1986 Audi coupe quattro, 2000 Audi TT

[MikeEdwards]

Found my oil filters, obviously in a cupboard I searched yesterday, so I finished this job, adjusted one of the front wheel bearings, so that's done for a bit.
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1976 Vauxhall HP Firenza, 1976 Vauxhall Sportshatch (x2), 1986 Audi coupe quattro, 2000 Audi TT