Tap washers worked a treat
Having received the radiator back from its testing and minor repair, a quick coat of paint was in order. I'd looked through a Frosts catalogue and seen that special radiator paint was over £12 a can. Having questioned the radiator repairers about what they used, they suggested the use of smooth black Hammerite, and as I happened to have a tin of satin black, then a few ££s saved there.
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I had noticed that one of the rubber radiator mounting bushes was missing when I dismantled the car - in its place was a rather crudely cut down suspension bush. Whilst I don't doubt I could have eventually found the correct rubber from a breakers, it hardly seemed worth the bother. So, instead I went to my local hardware store and bought 4 rubber tap washers for just under £2. Two of these were larger and fitted fairly well in the opening in the radiator shroud. The two smaller washers acted as spacers between the shroud and the fixing post. Once the retaining bolt was tightened the washers expanded and filled the shroud hole quite nicely. I have to confess that I am a little bemused by the position of the radiator, and its "occupant cooking" capability. I'm thinking of fabricating an aluminium shroud to cover the lower part of the radiator but have some sort of shutter that can be opened/closed to act as a heater when needed, but to stop getting some of the heat in the car in summer (that's the less cold, rainy period between May and September for non UK readers). I still need to fabricate a couple of brackets to support the bottom of the radiator - I think attached to the bulkhead will suffice.
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I had noticed that one of the rubber radiator mounting bushes was missing when I dismantled the car - in its place was a rather crudely cut down suspension bush. Whilst I don't doubt I could have eventually found the correct rubber from a breakers, it hardly seemed worth the bother. So, instead I went to my local hardware store and bought 4 rubber tap washers for just under £2. Two of these were larger and fitted fairly well in the opening in the radiator shroud. The two smaller washers acted as spacers between the shroud and the fixing post. Once the retaining bolt was tightened the washers expanded and filled the shroud hole quite nicely. I have to confess that I am a little bemused by the position of the radiator, and its "occupant cooking" capability. I'm thinking of fabricating an aluminium shroud to cover the lower part of the radiator but have some sort of shutter that can be opened/closed to act as a heater when needed, but to stop getting some of the heat in the car in summer (that's the less cold, rainy period between May and September for non UK readers). I still need to fabricate a couple of brackets to support the bottom of the radiator - I think attached to the bulkhead will suffice.
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On the subject of radiators, I had removed and dismantled the small 5-bladed fan (14 mm diameter) that had been rather poorly attached to the radiator shroud with a battered metal support frame. Knowing that overheating had been a problem for some Honda engined JZR owners, I wanted a more efficient fan as the turbo engine had two radiators, both with fans. Looking through the various kit car accessory catalogues, it appeared that the smallest fan I could buy was 7 inches in diameter. This would be too big for the space available so I opted to buy (Ebay again) a second hand 10 bladed fan from a big Triumph motorbike that had good fixing brackets so that I could easily secure it to the bulkhead behind the radiator. A couple of other thoughts come to mind - as I'm doing away with the rather dangerous (and never used by me) front mounted petrol tank, I have a hole in the bonnet where the filler cap poked through. I'm thinking of enlarging that hole and adding an air scoop. This will benefit the engine cooling, and could possibly be used to get colder air to the carbs (more on that later). I'm also wondering whether I can fabricate a duct to take the hot air from behind the radiator to the sides of the bonnet where I already have vents.
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My can of engine case paint had arrived by post so I set about giving it a good coat of satin black. Having donned the mask and opened the garage door to get good ventilation I managed to get most done before the light starting fading. Its probably not best to try painting when you can't see what you're doing but fortunately, an inspection on the following day revealed that I had only missed a very small area which was soon "touched up".
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Now that the engine had been painted I could set about refitting it. The use of an old piece of carpet was an excellent substitute for a more sophisticated means of moving the engine from the front of the garage to the workshop area at the back. With the block and tackle in place, the engine was wrapped in some old foam sheeting and the lifting straps wrapped around that to protect its new coat of paint. It didn't take long to get the engine up and over the steering rack and into position. I placed the rubber boot around the drive output shaft and jiggled the propshaft to mate with the splines. It all seemed too easy, and of course, it was. After getting the front mounting bolts in place and manoeuvring the single, long rear bolt into its locating lugs I discovered that the propshaft had jumped out and was sitting beside the output shaft. After a quick swear the engine was lifted, swung forward and then dropped back into position, this time ensuring that the propshaft was properly engaged. It does take a little jiggling using a jack under the engine to get the mounting bolts lined up, but it is a simple process and was done in a few minutes. Good, its looking more like a JZR again - time for a cuppa!~
With the engine in place I could take stock of the bits that I still needed - the gearchange pedal arm was missing and the turbo one doesn't fit; a water pipe is needed for the nearside of the engine; one jubilee clip is missing from the carbs (is there really no other fixing other than clamping to the inlet manifold extenders?. I may have to find a means of securing them rather better); all other water pipes are needed as the plumbing on the turbo engine was entirely different; tachometer drive cable needed as the turbo had an electronic one. I'm sure there will be more but that'll do for now.
Now that the engine had been painted I could set about refitting it. The use of an old piece of carpet was an excellent substitute for a more sophisticated means of moving the engine from the front of the garage to the workshop area at the back. With the block and tackle in place, the engine was wrapped in some old foam sheeting and the lifting straps wrapped around that to protect its new coat of paint. It didn't take long to get the engine up and over the steering rack and into position. I placed the rubber boot around the drive output shaft and jiggled the propshaft to mate with the splines. It all seemed too easy, and of course, it was. After getting the front mounting bolts in place and manoeuvring the single, long rear bolt into its locating lugs I discovered that the propshaft had jumped out and was sitting beside the output shaft. After a quick swear the engine was lifted, swung forward and then dropped back into position, this time ensuring that the propshaft was properly engaged. It does take a little jiggling using a jack under the engine to get the mounting bolts lined up, but it is a simple process and was done in a few minutes. Good, its looking more like a JZR again - time for a cuppa!~
With the engine in place I could take stock of the bits that I still needed - the gearchange pedal arm was missing and the turbo one doesn't fit; a water pipe is needed for the nearside of the engine; one jubilee clip is missing from the carbs (is there really no other fixing other than clamping to the inlet manifold extenders?. I may have to find a means of securing them rather better); all other water pipes are needed as the plumbing on the turbo engine was entirely different; tachometer drive cable needed as the turbo had an electronic one. I'm sure there will be more but that'll do for now.
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My new gearlinkage was delivered today, so I've fitted that. It has much improved joints - not rose jointed, but the next best thing.
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Roger
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Things seem to be going smoothly for you... and long may it continue!!!
ReplyDeleteI have looked at ways of keeping the heat out of the cockpit,and am looking at using the front tank mounts to support the metalwork. I've got some aircraft grade aluninium that I intend using so I can curve it and then have sliding vents in it for when I want heat in the cockpit. I have in the past used a metalised sunscreen and duct tape which made longer trips bearable.