Mother-%$#@!... Took Fiona into Northend Wrench this morning for her final check-over, timing, and tune. Very hard to start, but I chalked it up to the cold + the raw, unrefined mixture. Just got a call letting me know that one of the pair of rebuilt SU carbs supplied by the garage that melted my old engine is sticking. They're going to try polishing the affected component with an emery cloth in the hopes that it will restore functionality, but the technician didn't sound hopeful. I'm trying REALLY hard not to bad-mouth anyone, but taking my engine to the garage I did was a decidedly TERRIBLE decision, one that's cost me hundreds, if not thousands of dollars and many months of extra time. Wish me luck (again)...
Unless something is bent (as in someone dropped the carbs and one got dinged) cleaning and a light polish with emery cloth should fix you right up - don't despair! How much driving will you do in it in the dead of winter anyway? When the snow and salt hits our roads, I tend to leave the Classics in the garage. That gives you time to tinker and polish and get ready for the spring runs.... Are you planning to go to Mini56? Peace Love Mini - Classic Minis United, Mini 56
Didn't even know about the Mini56... thanks for the heads-up. I actually put a MiniFini hitch setup on my R52 so I can tow to events like that now. The carbs weren't dropped (at least, *I* didn't), so hopefully the polish will work. Whoever rebuilt them also apparently used slightly too-long mounting bolts, which fouled the top domes, which may be contributing to the issue. NOT impressed with the (re)build quality. rrr: Re: tin worm... Yeah that's the next thing to do - door skins and sills need cut away and totally replaced. One day.
I would love to see the classic side of that hitch, how it attaches to the car and so on - I'm thinking of building one for Buzz for the same reason.
I used a custom-made front wheel tow dolly for the classic end and a standard ball hitch on the new MINI - the dolly has a big bolt right at the center point between the wheels, allowing the entire assembly to pivot in sharp turns (you just can't back up): I've seen others use a draw bar with all 4 wheels on the ground, too. the new MINI has enough power to move the classic around - Paul in Dayton has taken his classic hundreds of miles.
Oh, I thought you towed it 4 down, that's what I was wanting to do..I'll have to contact Paul - I think I still have his email addy.
So, apparently it was the too-long mounting bolts. One of them was fouled against the dash pot and had distorted it a tiny amount, enough to keep the piston from moving freely. Still waiting to see if it can be corrected, or if new part(s) will be required. Oi... --M
Looks like new parts will NOT be required (thank God)... just waiting for the final test drive. The technician found a few small issues, but nothing major - apparently my Crack Team's (tm) installation skillz were up to the task. Maybe I'll even be able to drive it tomorrow if the weather holds! (((crossing fingers))) Pics will follow. --M
I'm going to close this thread as I'm declaring the "service project" officially DONE. That's the good news. The bad... or at least less-then-good... news is that there's still a lot to do, both in the interior as well as with the carbs. My mechanic completed the timing and balanced the carbs, but there are still obvious mixture issues that need to be addressed that will probably have to wait till warmer weather. I'll start a new "tuning" thread to ask specific questions since this one has become something of an epic, Russian tragedy novel. Thanks again to everyone who offered help, advice, and support through all this - hope people found it useful (or at least entertaining). --M