Pro Street Style MGB GT

[Flying Phil]

Well 8 weeks with not a lot happening, I thought that I would venture out into the cold damp garage in-between storms and have a tidy up.
Another picture of the inside panelling just to show how much more needs doing.....I really need to get on with it!!

[Flying Phil]

I need to set myself a deadline (again!) so, running and moving by July 31st! Posting on here also provides a push to keep making progress!

[Flying Phil]

A bit more work on panels as I have shaped a bit of steel plate to reinforce the rear frame and shaped the aluminium sheet to go between the wheel tub and new section.

[Flying Phil]

The drivers side wheel tub plate has been finished and fixed to the existing sheetwork. The small floor plate has been welded in place.

For those thinking that the bends are a bit crude, I am using fairly basic tooling.....a hammer and vise.




But I have also got the other side completed with just a floor section to fit and weld.(The odd diagonal marking on the sheet is just some staining which will clean off)

[Flying Phil]

Well two months of nothing being done on the BGT I finally started to make the other (drivers side) exhaust tail pipe section. I recycled various bits of tube to make the "Y" piece and finally got some semi decent weld beads....then the wire ran out.....grrrr

[Flying Phil]

As I am waiting for my welding wire to be delivered I decided to look at the battery location options. Ideally I wanted to put it on the passenger side either beside the fuel tank behind the rear wheel (As it was on the Super B...good for traction) or just behind the passenger seat under the aluminium sheet metal around the IRS cage.
The rear location would need much more support structure, the other option didn't look a big enough space.....



However the MX5 has a smaller battery




But it will need to be in a box.....preferably plastic

[Flying Phil]

A bit of box cutting and it is a smaller box...... coming together nicely


but does the shroud fit over it?



Just about and with a bit more "adjusting" it looks good. Then I tried possible battery leads. I had a battery isolator which I can mount in the car using the fuel pump bracket as a mounting point and it can project through the shroud.

[Flying Phil]

To finish it, I will need to weld a clamping bracket system to locate and support the battery and then buy a longer starter motor battery lead.

As there have been no comments this year is anyone out there???

[Flying Phil]

....Just you and I then Turn7.....
The welding wire arrived in the post and I was able to spend a couple of hours grovelling under the car on the dusty garage floor.... I was even able to get some welding done. The old XJ-S silencers and exhaust pipes have been re used. The silencers can be removed and replaced by straight pipes if I have the need for V12 sound! The final job is to make suitable mounting brackets for the system.

[Flying Phil]

Hi Turn7
Yes I do follow that Elan thread on another forum and we were racing at some of the same meetings back in the 70/80's, but in different classes. He certainly is a very skilled and well informed engineer...I am in awe!

[Flying Phil]

For Sooty and Turn7
Well I had a good 6 hours in the garage today....and despite lots of work there is very little progress...
I wanted to run the throttle cable a bit more neatly and discovered it didn't open the carbs. I did some checking and found the centre carb on passenger side had a seized solid butterfly shaft, removed ram pipes to gently tap the butterflies. No way, so off it had to come. Fortunately with WD40, care, and persuasion - it eventually came free. Then put it all back together (2hr) and alter throttle cable run(15min). Decided to check motorbikecharge battery and fire up....runs on 3 out of 4. Plug out, clean, put back. Still doesn't fire.Swap plugs to check coil packs. Still same dead plug. Clean it and cook it on gas stove...replace still dead. Search old plugs stock...find a semi suitable new plug put it in and now back on all 4 (1.1/2 hours).
Back to BGT Need to make a new face cover for rev counter/Speedo housing (I did make one years ago but I think it blew away in the house move saga!). Cut out cardboard template. Need to drop steering column, need to take out dashboard to properly attach steering column as I had only put it temporarily in prior to move, find suitable size perspex offcut (2 hours). Repair drawer as too many bits had overloaded the cheapo 35 year old MDF unit.(30min)......

[Flying Phil]

I have been asked about this on another forum.....

" an MGB back axle, the wire wheel type!
To remove the hub there is a castellated nut recessed inside the wheel mounting hub. But I dont know what size it is",


.....As I don't know I thought that I would ask on here??

[Flying Phil]

Lots of gardening done....and a tiny bit more on the BGT. I have moved the fuel pump so that I can run the fuel lines through the tunnel and mount the battery isolator on the existing bracket. I will be boxing it off as well.

[Flying Phil]

Thanks Sooty.
I have made a shield for the fuel lines, then a box to isolate the fuel pump, after that a hole in the rear panel, so the battery isolator can be switched from behind the seat. Lots of tooo-ing and frooo-ing!

[Flying Phil]

Only a bit of work done recently in getting the instrument panel face cover sorted.

[Flying Phil]

The panel face is just about finished.



Then I made up some brake pipes to the rear callipers.



and put in a little manual line-loc...... just in case!



As everything had gone quite well I then connected to the brake master cylinder and got that pumping brake fluid. Then I tried opening the bleed valves on the rear callipers ........and have broken both of them!

[Flying Phil]

For we 4 readers!
Well I have drilled out the broken bleed valve with progressively larger Left handed drills.....and it has not cleared out the old thread. So then I tried the other calliper...and broke the smallest drill. So then I decided to get both callipers out. Despite the Haynes book saying it just needed the hand brake section removing and calliper bolts undoing - it also needed the wheels removing, coil over removing, half shafts unbolting etc etc!!!
Then I looked up the price of replacement callipers....Plan B is to try and get mine repaired by recutting the bleed hole thread and getting an oversize bleed valve.

[Flying Phil]

I had another go at sheared screw with the broken drill bit...it has now got Two broken drill bits stuck in! I spoke to a reconditioning Company and they can drill out and helicoil at quite a lot of money so I am spending a bit more and getting two new units.....Money spent on the BGT!!

[Flying Phil]

The two new calipers arrived yesterday afternoon! Really excellent service (from British Parts) and they look very good - so I have now started to smarten up the car so they feel at home....

[Flying Phil]

I had to make new transfer pipes for the two new calipers. I have started to put them in the car, so I will soon be back to where I was ten days ago....