monty
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Posts posted by monty
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Conversations I have had have tended to point to thin semi-synthetic oils and also the name Fuchs/Silkolene eg Comp-4 20W/50 or Pro-R 15W/50.
www.opieoils.co.uk gives some interesting insights.
I use Castrol 20/50 Classic in mine which seems to be fine.
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi Monty
The creaking does reocurr over time and nipping the bolts and wing type nuts on the hard top periodically is the key.
We do twenty miles a day, every day and I find myself automatically just nipping the attachments up, more especially the hard top to rear screen fixings and I can usually get a slight tighten on them which stops the creaking immediately.
Another rattling noise which I lived with for a long time before investigating was the captive nut plates for the hood frame, behind the trim next to the B posts. Thought it was the door lock mechanism rattling initially but further investigation revealed the former.
Best
Darren
Many thanks to you all. My creaking is from the Surrey roof where it attaches to the rear window. I have re-tightened the nuts here & will see if that makes a difference. I have also put a strip of thin foam rubber between the top & window to see if that helps.
Dazzer, can you enlarge your comments regarding the rattle you had with the plates behind the trim? What do I need to do?
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi All,
Just put on the alloy Surrey top for the winter & it is creaking on the awful surfaced roads around here.
Is a creaking Surrey normal or does anybody have any miracle cure! Fitted with the normal 2 bolts at the front & 2 screws/bolts at the rear. Seems worse than I remember from last year!
Regards,
Monty.
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Monty the solid state ones that are available on ebay are probably the best solution as there have been a lot of dubious repro originals about.
Stuart
Many thanks Stuart but can you give me a link or something as I am not sure what I am looking for! Are these things a straight swop etc?
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi All,
What is the latest in the voltage stabiliser situation. I have read the various posts & have come to the conclusion that I suddeenly have the symptoms suggested i.e. temp gauge & fuel gauge readings fluctuating & today finally no readings at all! Are replacement units now better or can somebody tell me an alternative solution (solid state unit?). Where can I purchase?
Regards,
Monty.
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I haven't really had a chance to check the 'Mark 2' bracket though I suspect it will also suffer from vibration,
though I'm sure there will be vibration wherever you mount it.
AlanR
Guys
Further to my posting on the trad chrome bullits, mounted on the door and as close to the A post as possible they show no vibration. Even when scuttle shake is so bad
you can't use the rear view, the door mirrors are solid
Mike, do you really get scuttle shake on that lovely car of yours, thought it was just me!
Regards,
Monty.
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When the cars were built with a new & jig welded chassis, everything was (hopefully) where it should be & the notched brackets were fitted in pairs giving the desired camber both sides, accurate within +/- ½ a degree; although I suspect some cars may well have left the production line with odd bracket fittings to correct camber problems highlighted by final inspection. The problems with differing camber angles now common on these cars arises mainly through lack of accuracy with the manufacture &/or replacement of rotted out trailing arm sections. If pattern chassis sections are made with tubed holes even very slightly out or if the chassis is not properly jigged & clamped when the new sections are welded in, the result can be different camber angles on each side of the car when using the original bracket configuration. The notches on the 3 different brackets denote a different offset for the pivot point on each bracket (which isn’t much). The Buckeye Triumph technical publication lists the effect different bracket combinations will have on the camber angle. If you cannot successfully adjust your camber using the bracket combinations & have to resort to different height springs spacers either side, I would say there is something more serious out of alignment with the chassis, the spring mounts/trailing arm casings are bent or the springs are not the same length/rate. Lowered springs with throw the camber wildly out & a common method of correcting this is to fit spring spacers but I see little point in that; although it will give a stiffer spring rate, it will bring the ride height back to original so why have shorter springs in the first place! It’s the brackets that should be changed if you want to keep the benefit of lowering; although they will probably have to be adjustable or custom made.
The brackets alter the pivot axis of the trailing arm pivot in relation to the spring mounts, so altering the camber angle & it‘s these four points of contact, top/bottom of the spring & 2 pivots, which dictate the suspension geometry. The fact that they may all be slightly different in terms of connection to the chassis & the orientation of the suspended chassis & body itself is largely irrelevant; it may alter the ride height slightly on one side but if there is a large difference, it’s likely to be caused by component damage or more serious misalignment.
Changing the brackets in pairs will not correct alignment problems associated poorly executed chassis repairs; it will alter the camber angle but there will still be the same amount of difference in camber as before. Although I have the DVD, I’ve not read the Technicalities article but from a technical viewpoint it is misinformed.
Many thanks for your help Richard & everybody else who has commented.
Job is now done! Took less than an hour to remove the outer bracket & turn it upside down & refit to give the same camber as the n/side within 1/2 degree, which I am happy about. The excellent Neil Garner Performance Engineering workshop of Kemble, here in Gloucestershire, did the job in their usual efficient way so can still thoroughly recommend them!
Regards,
Monty.
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They'd have to be jellified to cause that problem
Polys... I think one gets brainwashed by the Polywallahs who want to sell us Polys... if you have uprated susp and engine you might flex the rubbers so as to notice it, but standard car, on the road, hmmmm.
Handling, well I suppose on a track...... 'he's coming to the chicane turns in foot on the gas out of the chicane turns out he's spun he's running backwards towards the icecream tent he's hit a cone....' but on the road, well if there is a difference my behind hasn't noticed it.
Ivor
Yes Ivor, I too am not completely sure about polys. Put them on the front earlier this year & must say I cannot tell any real difference to be honest. The steering still feels every damn bump on these awful British roads!
Monty.
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Hi Monty, has the RH side always been lower with more camber? Also is it the body which is lower, or the chassis or both?
There are basically two areas to look at, firstly check the length of the springs off the car are they matched in length and coil diameter? and secondly is the cross member which retains the springs at the upper end horizontal, the bit which overhangs the part which is welded to the chassis has a habit of cracking and the overhang bends up effectively raising the spring and lowering the car and increasing the camber. You can see this as there is a gap between the top of the crossmember and the body and it should be about the same both sides.
Until I bought new springs I originally solved a similar problem by swapping the springs over left to right, and right to left.
Hope this helps.
Chris
Many thanks for that Chris, will take another look next week when it goes to my friendly workshop. Think it unlikely the springs (slightly lowered & stiffer) would be different as they were ordered together from TRGB for the restoration & have only 'done' 7000 miles! Will look again at the cross member but did not notice anything untoward the other day during a brief check with the car jacked up.
My 'gut' feeling is that the chassis is slightly 'out' on the offside either from a previous repair or something done during restoration.
Regards,
Monty.
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Difficult - depends how you define 'difficult'.
I regretted removing the old rubber bushes from my trailing arm as I found during removal that they were perfectly good. Polys are OK but they harden the ride and unless you want the nth degree of handling I don't think they are a benefit on a standard road car. Just my opinion.
I still have the PO's polys in the offside and I put new rubber in the nearside. One day I might get round to removing the polys...
Ivor
Ah! thanks Ivor, I was wondering whether it makes a difference having polys in one side & rubber in the other! Any handling problems? Is it easy to see if the bushes need renewal as the car has only done around 7000 miles on those rubbers since restoration about 8 years ago. Will not bother with polys unless worn rubber bushes are what is causing my problem.
Monty.
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It's good that you have what appears an easy problem, ie neg camber + low ride height, as fixing one will tend to fix the other.
The table of camber & ride height in Buckeye is in degrees, so you need to measure in degrees, then you will be able to work out the bracket progression, go on, splash out on that camber gauge, otherwise you'll be faffing around changing and changing brackets and still not get it right, money spent on tools is never wasted.
Ivor
Thanks Ivor. Yes I have a camber gauge available next week so hopefully will get it sorted although dreading the job of changing the bushes, seems it can be very difficult to get them out & in so to speak!
Regards,
Monty.
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Thanks to all those offering advice, which is being heeded.
To summarise. Taken another visual check today of the offside rear suspension. The wheel leans in around 3/8 to 4/8" more towards the Spax shock absorber (negative camber) on the offside than the n/side.
The poly spring insulators look as new & are located correctly top & bottom.
The suspension arm bushes look ok visually but shall replace anyway next week with poly bushes.
The chassis looks ok visually but no measurements taken.
The suspension arm location points on the chassis look as new without any visible corrosion whatsoever.
The brackets look as new & fitted as standard with 1 notch inner & 2 notch outer both with the notches upwards.
Ride height on the offside is about 1/2 inch to 3/4 lower than the n/side.
From all previous comments it looks to me that a change in outer bracket may rectify the problem by reducing the adverse camber & slightly raising the rear on the offside.
Can anybody tell me which setting of that outer bracket would translate to bringing the top of the wheel out by around 1/2 inch? i.e. what amount of camber is equal to 1/2 inch I guess.
Regards,
Monty.
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As I said, camber is usually adjusted by changing the trailing arm brackets or by fitting adjustable brackets & setting up with them. First I would advise you check out the cause of your particular problem as there are potentially several causes; it could be the brackets are incorrectly fitted, weak/different length springs (also fitting lowered springs), the spring seating collars (or lack of them) or a problem with the chassis/trailing arms. Reading the 6 archive posts will help you understand the causes & what you can do to rectify the problem.
Many thanks Richard, you seem to be the expert on this!
I have read through the postings as suggested & I now understand things clearer.
I have the standard brackets fitted the same both sides (inner with 1 notch, outer with 2 & both fitted with notches up).
Have yet to check camber with gauge but n/s looks pretty well correct using a spirit level but o/s is several degrees more negative with tyre just touching the Spax plastic shroud when car is laden.
The car goes in next week to look closer at these trailing arms/brackets but is there a starting point for changing one or both inner & outer brackets in order to lose some negative on that offside? I have the table you mention & a spare 3 notch TR6 bracket to play with but which way should I go? Buy another 1 notch giving nearly all the combinations?
The ride height on the o/s is also around 3/4" lower than n/s so changing the outer bracket appears the one to do bringing the height up slightly maybe?
Some help needed please! 1,2 or 3 notches up or down?
Regards,
Monty.
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The camber is changing with the position of the wheel in respect to the chassis (the wheel moving from bump to droop): to know if the difference in camber left and right is real , the car has to be on a level floor and the height from chassis points to the floor should be equal left and right. A lot of cars are sitting lower on the offside, then the camber is more negative at that side.
I know that there is slightly more negative on the offside as the tyre (using 195/65) occasionally just brushes the plastic shroud of the Spax shock absorber on that side & not the nearside.
How do I adjust & rectify this?
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi All,
I appear to have slightly more negative camber on the offside compared to the nearside. I assume it is important that the camber should be exactly the same both sides so is it just a case of removing or adding shims at the attachment points or is there more to it? To add or remove shims is there an easy way or do I need to remove the whole trailing arm assembly as per the workshop manual. I guess if that is necessary it would be well to replace the bushes with poly ones?
Regards,
Monty.
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Bonjour, Hello,
As already mentioned, the ultimate solution is the latch release contraption sold on Ebay. Cheap, foolproof.
La meilleure solution: le levier de secours vendu sur Ebay. Attention : Ebay.com.
Ebay.fr n'a aucun intérêt.
Regards,
Cordialement,
Badfrog, "le mauvaise grenouille"
Prestige Developments & Injection of Wrexham (01795 535068) sell a kit.
Monty.
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Hi Everybody,
Can anybody tell me what different fuel consumption I might expect using twin Weber DCOE45's instead of SU HS6's. I know it all depends on driving etc but I expect it to be less MPG with the Webers. Would just like an idea of how much less!
Anybody there with a TR4 & Webers who can tell me what they get on average.
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi All,
Just want peoples opinions really. I have a very nicely restored TR4A which I am very happy with except for the usual niggles of oil drips etc! but have recently seen advertised a superb sounding TR4 with an even better spec than mine! Am tempted to go & look but is this a retrograde step in TR terms?
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi All,
It looks as if I have an oil leak from the oil seal @ the rear of the gearbox extension. Drips on the garage floor a little after a run. Is this normal, acceptable or do I need to renew by way of removing the gearbox as the workshop manual suggests? Can it be left or will it just get worse so that I lose all the oil! Seems a big job for an annoying oil seal or are there any short cuts?
Do not have the facilities or inclination to remove gearbox etc myself!
Regards,
John.
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Hi All,
A friend of mine has a TR3A partly restored (around 50% I would guess from description). All parts to finish are present with even some extras. It has been in a very dry garage for several years. What kind of price could he expect & is anybody interested in taking it on?
Regards,
Monty.
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Dave,
I am glad you found an acceptable resolution. I do not hold with the "Do it on the car" method, I believe it is a waste of time.
Two comments. First where did you find the "Angel of Mercy" (it would help others). And secondly, all those who disagree with my comments, please don't bother to remonstrate, there will be no further response, not only that, I know I'm right!
A Pringle Esq, PM me, gl@vowhtr.org will do, we have things to discuss.
Yes, I wonder if a list of tyre places could be conpiled where we know there is a reasonable chance of 'getting it right'!
I have Minilites with centre splines on my car but still get wheel wobble at times.
Regards,
Monty.
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Definitely condenser, and yes even new they can fail, used to be common place in the 70s and 80s as well.
Just had the same problem with new condenser, driving along a week later and pop, bang, stall, although through experience I immediately took the cap off at the side of the road, and removed the points which although new were now blue and pitted. (obvious sign of condenser failure)
I just replaced points and condenser (always replace the points as well if the condenser fails) and was on my way again within ten minutes and its been absolutely fine since.
Once you get a condenser that works they are robustly reliable and you shouldnt be touching it again until your next major service.
If your distributor isnt absolutely pristine, gap your points on the tight side 12 to 14thou, as there will be variation in the cam and shaft bearing. If you decide to use a dwell meter (best avoided in my opinion after years of experience) you'll find the gap on a worn, but still serviceable distributor to be nearer the 8 to 10 thou mark which will close up even further during service, so best to gap by feeler gauge.
New points can also have a coating on them, pull the edge of a clean cloth through them before fitting, grease the cam very sparingly and make sure you dont accidently earth to the base plate when fastening down the leads with the plastic insulator on the points, dont overtighten either.
And a single drop of oil in the cam top
Timing will vary a little but easily adjustable with the vernier
Hope this helps
Cheers
Darren
Hi Dazzer,
Just a related question & please excuse my ignorance but does electronic ignition have a condenser?
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi
The master cylinder 'leak' if leaking from anywhere would be from the piston seal, lift back the dust cover and see if any fluid runs out, but before you go down that route, have you had new pads fitted recently? or the pistons pushed back in the front calipers or rear wheel cylinders? if so this will raise the fluid level in the master cylinder and sometimes eject the overflow out of the breather. Not a problem, just messy, and if you're using mineral based brake fluid superb at stripping paint.
If the plugs where in adjoining cylinders 1&2 or 3&4 might be a carb issue but certainly not jets or needles, with it happening suddenly I would look towards electrical first, Condenser and points are favourite, if the points are blue and pitted on the surface, replace them both. I think the oily and sooty plugs are probably due to not firing because of the condenser failure.
Sudden misfires and lack of power in my experience is nearly always points and condenser, keep spares as even new condensers can be faulty, order two of each to be safe.
Hope this helps
Cheers
Darren
Many thanks for your input Darren.
No new pads fitted so will look & see if the seals are suspect.
I have electronic ignition so no points to worry about & yes I do not think the carbs are at fault as it has been running well since they were looked at. Still waiting for a dry day to go for a longer run since cleaning the plugs!
Regards,
Monty.
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Hi All,
A couple of things have recently occured on the car & I wondered if you experts out there could give me any suggestions as to causes & if I need to worry!
Firstly, a very fine deposit of brake fluid has appeared around the master cylinder area under the bonnet. It appears to me that it may be exiting the brake cylinder filler cap via the tiny breather hole? There has been no apparent reduction in the level in the reservoir. Is this normal or could the master cylinder be on the way out?
Secondly, the other day the engine suddenly started misfiring with loss of power. I took out the plugs, one was black & one had oil on the centre electrode. A similar thing happened ages ago when one carb was too rich & was cured by different needles & springs & re-tune of the carbs. Since then the car has run superbly until the other day. I cleaned the plugs & checked the gaps & after a short run it appeared to be back to normal. Have not had a chance for a longer drive due to the terrible weather! Could this been just an over-choking incident or is there a possible oil leak into a couple of cylinders?
seats again
in TR4/4A Forum
Posted
Hi All,
Can somebody who has Revingtons seats fitted give me their comments regarding quality & comfort & fitting on to existing runners. Price quoted seems around £200 less than Ridgard ones that I was considering.
Regards,
Monty.