MGB Roadmaster

[lawnvett]

Two rear tires were installed today
Fusion UMP SPT  99W  XL  BW
FSPT245 45 17 BWXL  

Should be good for a few more long road trips

All fluids were good, one small engine oil leak at the former site of the distributor.

[lawnvett]

Next RM work party tentatively 2-8-2016 in Jonesville, NC


all interested petrol heads invited to assist

primary task to do:

pull the dash and fix a few things like gauges,

controls for heat/demist,

map light,

radio antenna,

change the steering shaft for one with electric power steering,

plan for future A/C,
remove cooling system surge tank for mods by Jim Blackwood


Lexington style BBQ provided
wear appropriate garage attire

start at 10 am finish no later than 7:00 pm

Ya'll come
PJ Lenihan
aka Lawnvett
aka: Roadmeister director of transportation BADASS

[lawnvett]

Let me know if you can come, I want to have enough food

I may tNOT o be able to reply btw JAN. 21-FEB2, 2016 as I will be in CUBA

wifi and cellular not readily available for USA phones.

Leave a message I'll get caught up when I return

[MGBV8]

I'll be there.  Going back to Flying Circus that weekend.

 Have fun in Havana!

[lawnvett]

Cuba was great

my photos are not organized yet, but some are on Facebook

we are having a RM work party Monday Feb. 8, 2016 at 10;am

134 Bluff st
Jonesville, NC

ya'll come  we will pull the dash and try to get some gauges working and defrost etc

[lawnvett]

looks like we've got a couple volunteers to attend the Roadmaster work day Monday 2-8-16;  we will pick up where we left off last month fixing the little bits such as demister, fuel gauge etc.

I'm buying lunch so ya'll come, the bonus is to see Ken's excellent car collection.


After a 3 week slumber while I was visiting Cuba, Roadmaster fired right up yesterday and attended a Triumph Club car club meeting last night.

We spent 3 nights in Santa Clara, Cuba last week it was not a hectic or crowed like Santa Clara, CA.

PS  Just got the word that Alen Hendrix, Hendrix wire wheels Greensboro, NC is in ICU with internal bleeding after his Jeep was T-boned by a a speeding ner-do-well on Tuesday night.

[MGBV8]

Not gonna work out for me this time, PJ. Sorry.  I was looking forward to hearing about your Cuba trip.

If you want to put a 31" antenna behind the dash it will help with local strong stations. I would it slide in some clear tubing so it won't touch any metal  & zip tie it loosely behind the dash crossbar.

[danmas]

Another option for the antenna is to mount it on the A-post as shown in this thread on the MGE forum. I had mine mounted there before I took it up to Ted, and it worked very well yet wasn't obtrusive. I didn't mention this before because I didn't have a picture of it. I think they are still available.

http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?1,3187990

[rficalora]

I like that.  Where were those available?

[Dan B]

I gave Jim the chrome chinese Sanden I had used on my TR7 for almost one summer, until the engine blew.  So, that is one step towards AC for the car.  Have you sent him the surge tank yet?

[lawnvett]

have not sent surge tank yet, I plan to remove it monday 2-8-2016 at the work party we're having in Jonesville, NC.

I plan to drive RM without a surge tank or maybe do a temporary tank.  any comments??

I also hope to fix the fan for demisting/defrosting

along with a few other bits like gauges

[lawnvett]

Next RM work party tentatively 2-8-2016 in Jonesville, NC


all interested petrol heads invited to assist

primary task to do:

pull the dash and fix a few things like gauges,

controls for heat/demist,

map light,

radio antenna,

change the steering shaft for one with electric power steering,

plan for future A/C,
remove cooling system surge tank for mods by Jim Blackwood


Lexington style BBQ provided
wear appropriate garage attire

start at 10 am finish no later than 7:00 pm

[lawnvett]

The cooling system overflow/surge tank was successfully removed, surprisingly it was a greater challenge than anticipated.  Just a guess but, we think it may have been installed without the bonnet in place. So no other tasks were completed.
 RM is now in storage in Jonesville, NC.  all but one the hoses that once were connected to the tank are plugged.  a one quart overflow tank is zipped tied in but it's not a recovery tank it's just an empty bottle to catch overflow.

I do not plan to drive RM until we sort out a tank to insure cooling as good as prior to the removal of the custom made tank made by Jim Blackwood

I'm puzzled about why the 5/8 hose was connected to the water pump also not educated enough to know why the heater core was plumbed into the surge/overflow tank, but what else is new, I'm a helper not a mechanic, my education is in history not engineering.

[BlownMGB-V8]

Thanks PJ, do you have my address?

The reason the surge tank is connected to the water pump inlet (using the heater return spigot) is to provide a drain to the tank and place it at or near inlet pressure, making it a low pressure point in the sealed system.

This allows vent lines from various other locations to flow towards the tank. Note, pressure differential across the pump frequently can and does exceed the value of a system pressure cap, bringing up a host of issues I'll not address right now, but the point is, there is a pressure drop across the radiator and another across the thermostat. This means the inlet side of the radiator is at higher pressure than the surge tank and any air in the system will automatically flow from bleeds placed at the system high points to the tank and constantly remove any air from the system. This is very helpful for efficient cooling, and where as here the radiator is mounted low it is quite essential.

Without the drain it would be difficult to design a comparable self bleeding system.

Plumbing the heater return into the tank is just a matter of convenience. Hose sizes and fitting locations made it the easy choice, as again, the tank is a low pressure location and promotes circulation of the coolant, with the supply side connected to the high pressure side behind the thermostat.

There are design considerations that vary between downflow and crossflow radiators, with the downflow design generally being the simpler one.

Oh, and I didn't make the tank. Gary did, using dimensions I supplied to him. I thought it turned out rather well considering.

Jim

[lawnvett]

how apt a work day march 21 for RM in jonesville, NC?

[lawnvett]

Dale from Motion machine drove RM yesterday, I'll resize photos soon and post.  Im on a 3 day road trip getting points for the Moss motoring Challenge 2016.

Its the final year for this year long scavenger hunt, I may be in your area sometime this year.
If anyone wants a couch surfer, pm me I hope to visit all 48 staes this year taking selfies.

[MGBV8]

how apt a work day march 21 for RM in Jonesville, NC?

I think we can make that work.

It is getting tough to juggle the Roadmaster, 2 different ChumpCars in different directions, actually make race in the TR6 (I was sick & did not make the treck to VIR), Jim & Melinda Watson's Springtime in the Smokies, our 20th annual British V8 Meet.......and oh yeah, I need to work on my car, too!  

[mowog1]

The Roadmaster is now in Tennessee....

Here's Jim Watson, probably at a cruise-in near Knoxville.

[lawnvett]

great photo, RM looks mean from that angle

How's she running?

[danmas]

The Roadmaster was delivered to Blackwood Labs at 2:00 today.

[BlownMGB-V8]

Took it for a ride around the block and noted a couple things needing attention. I ordered a new heater valve (TR-6 valve, $30) and will try to build a new surge tank before Louisville. Otherwise I was impressed with how nicely it drove.

I'm tracking down the stock gages I sent out for the car and will continue to look into that problem.

The car needs a 3rd gear synchro, if anybody has one in good shape from a T5 we could use it, or possibly install a new one if someone could recommend a good source. Unless I'm mistaken, changing that will require the countershaft to be dropped down and the mainshaft removed, any pointers on the proceedure are appreciated.

It looks to me like it may be possible to adjust some or most of the play out of the steering rack. The one from Jim W. turned out to be not MGB. So, I will do that adjustment and report back. I've talked to Mikey about EPS.

I'll also have a look at how the A/C compressor might be mounted.

Jim

[mowog1]

I would like to coordinate its arrival in Louisville with you in order to obtain parking, etc.

We need TWO sets of keys.

[BlownMGB-V8]

No problem Rick, when do you plan to get there?

Jim

[mowog1]

I'm arriving on Saturday, June 11th.

[BlownMGB-V8]

I can bring the car down Saturday, just let me know when and where and I'll meet you.

Jim