A Mostly British Obsession
Let’s see: Current projects include trying to eliminate the dent on the nose of the XJ6, which once again has demonstrated I don’t know much about bodywork. I also have been slowly working on the E-Type, but it has not been the focus of my attention. And the shot above shows the BSA slumbering in the shop. I need to get it sorted on the cold/hot start front so I end up riding it more this year!
In case you ever see a photo from this site on CraigsList with some nebulous language suggesting a car is for sale…it’s not me. I’ve had several photos plucked by scumbags over the years–there’s one on the Vancouver B.C. CL right now, look for “1963 MGB” in the “general for sale” area. CL has no mechanism for taking them down, so there isn’t a lot I can do, and I’m too tired to even care. (I’m a little surprised there is anybody ill-informed enough to fall for these type of scams any longer.)
I didn’t feel last week’s photo (which I didn’t post here) was all that great, but above (and below the jump) are four “still lives with rust”, my efforts for this week’s photo. I’m not super-wild about the composition of these, but for 20 minutes of fiddling with ye olde car parts on the bench, taken with my pocket camera, they’ll do.
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My poor XJ6 is, indeed, a daily driver. Roads around here accumulate a lot of muck, and a lot of it sticks to the car! Thankfully it is very rare for it to snow, and hence no salt (car does not go out in the snow in any case). Other shots I liked after the jump.
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I agreed to join Mrs. Rustyheaps (and her father) in taking one picture per week and posting to a shared blog…with a secret motive being to do quick updates here, as I’ve been so pressed for time the past few months and have let all sorts of things slide, including updating this blog. My theme for the photos, is… “British iron.” Wow, who would have guessed?
This is the first photo–and I will try to mix in some posts about actual work in the shop over the next year!
I guess I missed a post in here about getting the car running for the first time since the mid-1980s (!), but I’ve been so busy I’m surprised I even remember it happening. I’ll try to put that post together at some point soon.
In the meantime, I got the bonnet on tonight as I took a few minutes to do something other than stare at a computer screen. Below is how I did it–by myself. As expected from the epic struggle with the engine frames, it doesn’t quite fit right. The right side looks OK, but the left side is in about 3/8″ at the back, and is probably in need of a similar amount of movement forward. I might try my hand at adding a shim–it would be nice to be able to latch it!
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Today I completed a straight-across trade–my c.1890 FE Reed wood-turning lathe for this bike, a 1969 BSA 441 Victor Special. This machine hasn’t run in a long time, but is in generally good condition–I’m hoping a bit of fettling may bring her back to life. Of course, machines sometimes are taken off the road for very good mechanical reasons, so I may discover something ‘orrible inside.
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The “heater side” of the engine bay is fairly close to complete. As usual, fitting everything was a chore, and I don’t expect Eagle is worried about the competition, but it’s looking pretty good for what it is.
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I have thankfully been very busy working the past few months, and have had little time to fiddle with the workshop. So not much has changed…the photo is where progress on the E-Type has been stalled while I try to keep things solvent!
Just finished this poster for the upcoming All British in Bellevue. That’s my XJ6 (oddly enough!) and my good friend Paul’s very original Bugeye. Both are used regularly and neither has been restored…the theme this year is “Drivers & Survivors”. (I hope to have the E-Type done to take to the show, but that will be a challenge!)
Just a quick note–work, for once, and thankfully, has been very busy–but I’ve found some time to get a bit of work in on the E. The new porcelain exhaust manifolds are things of beauty, but the Double-S exhaust system aft of them is a big disappointment. Years ago, I put a much cheaper Falcon stainless system on my 4.2 coupe, and it essentially fell into place. On this one so far I have over 20 hours of time trying to get it to fit, and it was a huge premium in cost over the Falcon. More details later, if I can ever summon the energy.
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