Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[alastairq]

Blue Hylomar?
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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.

[Ray White]

[Ray White]

I am feeling more relaxed about buying a new petrol tank when I saw what came out of the old one.

This is just a fraction of what I have collected.

[bjacko]

Yes, Hylomar was the one I was trying to recall. I find the aerosol is easier to use as it produces a fine mist. It is also easy to take apart in the future.

[Bitumen Boy]

[Ray White]

One of the historically interesting things about the jointing compound that I use; Wellseal, is that it was developed by Rolls Royce
for use on their Merlin engines. I understand it is manufactured under licence by a company called Kommerling in Preston.

These days Wellseal goes by the trade name Stag but it used to be made by Kenilworth Manufacturing Company or KMC.



I still have one of the original tubes in it's box.





The product is quite runny and you only need a thin layer on close fitting surfaces which is why it lasts so long.
It will probably last indefinitely but I would not trust a sealant that is over 20 years old!

[Ray White]

As previously reported, the new petrol tank seems to be a little bit narrower than the original.

This has meant the special bolts that come with a rubber bush kit (that goes between the wings and the tank)
are a bit too short to screw into the captive nuts in the brackets on each side of the tank.
Forcing the bolts to meet the brackets just pulls the wings inwards.

The bolts, which are made to pass through round rubber bushes are 7/16" dia. with a 3/8" BSF thread.



I have numerous 3/8" BSF bolts...and several at 7/16" but none with this combination so I have had to make some.

I mounted a 7/16" dia bolt of sufficient length in the lathe and turned the threads down to 3/8". I then cut a 3/8"BSF thread.
The new bolt then needed to be cut down to the required length and the oversize head reduced in thickness to match the original.




The result is as expected and with a 1/8" thick washer of the same size and placed next to the rubber bush a good secure fix
has been achieved without distorting the wings. This photo shows why I needed more threads...



Another time consuming job has been to make gaskets for the low level fuel light sender unit.
Getting the holes in exactly the right place is essential if the sender unit is not to leak.

The float was leaking so that has required soldering. Now the refurbished sender unit is fitted into the tank

and is one more job ticked off the list.

Another hour or so has been spent tidying up the off side rear wing where it joins the aforementioned bush kit. It was in a mess but
I think looks O.K. and I have now finalised the position of the screws that fix the rear wings to the body. This has taken a lot of trial
and error (mostly error!)...
but is necessary in order that the rest of the body falls into line.

There is much more work involved with the petrol tank than I had expected. The tank came without a cap but owing to the
poor quality of replicas being made these days, I have decided to rebuild the original and have had the outer cover chrome plated.

One of the nice features is a little release clip with an MG logo . This was removed from the original tank by grinding off the end of
the little pivot. I have been lucky in finding a bolt small enough to pass through the the clip and pivot holes and with the
correct thread to screw into the other side where it is further secured with a nut; possibly 6BA.

The worn appearance of the clip will be retained as I fear the detail would be lost in the plating process.

[bjacko]

It is important to have a good earth for the sender to make it work. Most people use one of the mounting screws with a made up lead to the chassis, (on Morris's).

[Ray White]

[Ray White]

Not being inclined to cut corners, I am fitting 1/2" thick rubber packing strips to the back board (behind the tank) as per original.

There are two vertical strips and a single horizontal one.

Also, the tank sits on two short strips which are held onto the chassis with bifurcated rivets. The ones that came with the kit are too short. When I find my tin of split rivets I will improve on them.


I have placed 3/4" (slotted) wood screws at about 5" intervals with countersunk pilot holes. It may not be exactly as manufactured but I have added a few more screws to make a better job of it.

Not a difficult task...but it all takes time.!

[Ray White]

I wish people would use the correct tool for the job. This petrol tank drain plug required a 7/16 Whitworth spanner or socket. Clearly,
by the way the corners have suffered, it has seen something less than ideal.

I can't decide whether I should replace it... or just leave it as is.

Next to the plug is this petrol pipe connector. What can be seen are the remains of a filter. I could, I suppose , create a new one from
fine gauze but my new petrol gauge sender unit has a filter so it would probably be unnecessary duplication.

[kevin2306]

If you want to replace the mesh filter on the connector, you could get one from a classic bike petrol tap, they are soldered on so would be an easy fix.

Kev

[Ray White]

[Ray White]

Having had enough of working on the rear wings for a while, I thought I would return to the job of sorting out the dash board.

One thing that I find frustrating is not having a solid surface to work on. I resolved to provide my own temporary bench and utilising various bits and pieces I think I can now work in relative comfort.

The photos show how simply made brackets hold two lengths of wooden trim in tension sufficient to support a padded trestle.

[ukdave2002]

Are you going to fit an OBD2 port to the back of the dash?

Dave