Ready for MOT !!!!

The blue 2000 is now ready for an MOT!

Stripped the front brakes today, thinking I would have to put new discs on. The discs were rusty but when I inspected them..... no wear ridges or lips at all. I cleaned them up and put new pads in and also changed the bleed nipples as the originals were all chewed up. All good now!





New (well, good second hand!) Master cylinder as the original had perished seals and was weeping a bit, then bled all the brakes again. I also fitted another fuel pump as the original one was just too gummed up to work properly. Now running like a dream! Quick oil and filter change and its done and ready for MOT....... then a trip to the tyre fitters for a new set of treads and its ready for a new home.


Bradley was helping out again............ but he seemed more interested in polishing the front bumper than anything else........... even Dave Marshall had to get his hands dirty and changed a headlight........... made him polish the chrome headlamp retaining rings before he put it back on though, I think he was a bit upset about that. Polishing just does'nt come as natural to him as it does to Bradley or myself!!



Look at the concentration om Bradley's face as he polishes the bumper............!!

Had a break for an hour to fit some parking sensors to the back of Dave's Shitroen..... Easy job using my favorite £25.00 ebay kits.......... looks like factory and should stop him stuffing the towbar into things!

So, MOT hopefully this week and see what happens...............

Nearly finished!

So, what do you think the most useful tool you have in your toolbox is??........

9/16th Spanner?

1/2" spanner?

Flippin' big hammer?

All wrong.

When working on Triumph's, I have discovered that you need a "Bradley" (not to be confused with a Bradall, that's a sharp pointy thing for poking holes in things with.) A Bradley is a very useful "spanner-monkey". Excellent for reaching hard to get at bolt due to its very long reach, does exactly as it is told and makes excellent coffee!!

Anyway, more work on the 2000 yesterday, aided by Bradley.

First stop was finishing off fitting and cleaning the carbs and cleaning out (yet again!) the fuel pump. Its all gummed up with slime and sticky old fuel and its just not pumping as well as it should. I fitted an in-line fuel filter just before the pump to try and help, but it wasn't happenening.

So, we drained the tank and then blew threw all the fuel lines with an air hose and soooooooo much rubbish and goo came out, it must be okay now.

This is what was living in the petrol tank......... pretending to be fuel........ it actually RAN on this stuff (not very well I must admit!)


So, with fresh fuel in a clean lines up it started and ran perfectly! Bradley then spent a few hours replacing the indicator switch I got from Stoneleigh last weekend. Should have taken a couple of minutes, but getting it lined up with the cowling took some time. We had right hand indicators, but no left, then left but no right......... but now its all fine.


Next problem....... stuck clutch. I was dreading this, as I had an awful feeling that the gearbox was going to have to come out. So, we started it up and left it running for a while to get it nice and hot. Back end up on stands, Bradley in the passengers seat hold the clutch down with his right foot, me in the drivers seat with the throttle and the brakes. Bit of power, progressively harder braking and then the clutch let go and freed off on the first go!!!

I couldn't believe it!!!!

Bradley was pretty stunned too!! (or did he just sit on the old indicator stalk?)

So, for the first time in 19 years, it moved under its own steam. Took it for a little tootle (well, down the drive and round the end of the cul-de-sac!) and all is well.

Jobs left to do.

New Brake Master Cylinder needed (seals perished and weeping)

Change the fuel pump for a better one

Change one headlight

Another oil and filter change

Then, its MOT time!!

More work on the Blue 2000........

More work on the Blue 2000 on Saturday. Stripped the rear brakes and replaced the shoes, wheel cylinders, flexihoses and had a couple of new brake pipes made up.


It all came apart alarmingly easiliy, so say it had'nt been touched for over 20 years!

Many thanks to Bradley and Dave for their help!! Much appreciated. Here are the happy minions de-gunking the sliding splines of the driveshafts before re-greasing and replacing!


New copper brake lines and flexihoses. The lines were full of horrible white gooey stuff. But after bleeding through about 1 litre of brake fluid........... clean fluid, no air and a firm pedal! Handbrake set to lock at 4 notches.......... looking good!

We were so impressed with the rear brakes we did, we decided to try and get the engine to fite. The carbs (see earlier posts) were ready and I re-fitted those. I had to draw off loads of stale old fuel which stank but also had set in the fuel line.

I stripped and cleaned out the fuel pump and filters, then after what seemed like hours, we had some fresh fuel coming through to the carbs. Quick check in the dizzy and a new condensor, it fired up, but only on 5 cylinders................. eventually traced to the HT lead on number 5 not being pushed on properly!!

After that, it ran very sweetly! I have to say, it is one of the smoothest sounding engines I have heard in a long time.

So, front brakes, flexihoses and wheel bearings next............ then to sort out the stuck clutch (I do hope I don't have to take the gearbox off!!)

No Polish used........ honest!!

Took off one of the carbs this afternoon, and spent a pleasant couple of hours cleaning the gunk off it, and all of the old petrolly waxy crud from the inside. The were all seized up, and full of horrible stuff....... so this really needed to be done.

New gaskets and O rings (Thanks to Mr P at Canley Classics today!), new Diaphrams and a flippin' good scrub and hey presto!!........ clean and working carbs.


Honest, I just cleaned them in de-greaser and gave them a good scrub.......!

I was really tempted to get the autosol out and give them a bit of bling....... but I managed to resist....... aren't I good!!!!

Another one?!??!........

Another 2000 arrived at "Polishing Towers" today. 86k, one owner from new 2000 MKII saloon. Very original and unmessed with, but after being in storage for 18 years, very VERY dirty!







But, after a good wash, a gentle rub with cutting compound and severa coats of Autoglym...... the shine returns to reveal the best bodywork I have EVER seen on an unrestored car......... its simply stunning.....

The original dealer sticker is still in the back window, and the previous owner gave me the cheque that he paid for the car, payable to the dealer from the sticker, dated 22nd Sept 1972, the registration date on the Log Book being 21st Sept 1972.... hows about that for history!!

The interior, dusty, but perfect. Clutch not stuck, brakes not seized, but the brake master cylinder suspisiously empty and the carbs sticking and leaking.

So, new wheel cylinders, new flexihoses, new shoes, new pads, strip and clean the carbs, new coolant hoses and fuel lines, maybe an exhaust and a set of tyres, check and reset the front wheel bearings, check out the bushes and u/j's...... and it'll be ready for MOT and a new home.

I am going to enjoy doing this one............

Moving day!

Busy day today! A couple of years ago Marc put his MKI 2000 Estate "project" in my barn for storage......... but due to a huge rent rise we are having to give up the barn, so today was moving day for the Triumphs. He has done all the welding on it, new panels and a respray in the original Jasmine Yellow......... its going to look well hard when its finished!!

Also out there was my MKII PI Estate "scrapper"......... it used to be a lovely car, but it has seen better days now...... rotten as a peach! But, the 180bhp TR5 engine, A type manual/overdrive gearbox is still excellent, so the plan is for Marc to fit the engine and gearbox into his MKI.... so oday he got his MKI back and "acquired" a MKII into the bargain!

Here are our "barn finds"......................



Once the green PI estate was out, it didn't look that bad.................. but it is!!




Rather than hiring a trailer, Marc had purchased (very reasonably!) a towing frame. What an excellent piece of kit........... I think I'll be borrowing that in the future!! Clamps onto the suspension arms and away we go!



Trip number one................

Trip number 2!

All in all, a good days work........... now all Marc has to do is to FINISH it!!!

Catching up!

Sorry!! Been so busy and I only noticed the other day that I hadn't updated by blog since before the Round Britain Run in October 2008!

So here we go with a quick update on Triumphy things since then!

Sam & I did the 2008 RBRR in the yellow estate. No major issues really apart from a snapped speedo cable and then the Road Angel blew up so we had no idea of any speeds! Many thanks to Brian Millington from the 2000 Register who dug around in his shed, found a speedo cable and then met us at midnight at Oswestry services! Thanks Brian!

The car was unbelieveably filthy afterwards, so not surprisingly, I spent most of the Monday cleaning (and maybe a little polishing!!) the car............ got busted by Sam who took some photos of me to prove what a sad case I really am!

Then in November I was at the NEC show, with the Red PI on the 2000 Register stand. Excellent show, met loads of friends and put up with the usual leg-pulling about polishing!

On New Years Eve, I took a trip down to Wiltshire and met up with some friends from Club Triumph for an informal lunch at a pub. It was flippin' cold and the washers kept freezing (got the car dirty AGAIN!) but a really nice day. Well worth the 280 mile round trip! (note the polish bottles on the floor infront of my car.......... these CT jokers, relentless they are!)
Now the sad news, my Stag has finally been sold. I had it advertised on Piston Heads and it sold quite quickly to another Stag owner from Kidderminster. He wanted a better one and decided that mine was for him. I delivered it to him the other day........... sob!! I do regret this sale, but we had to get rid of one car as we just had too many and not enough space.

Anyway, with the Stag gone it made some space in the garage. Today I had a tidy up and a sort out and then put the yellow estate back in the garage. Its been living outside under a cover for the last 18 months and it was time to bring her back into the warm and dry!

Thats it for now, I promise I'll try and keep things more up to date in future!