Lebro Posted December 23, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 (edited) Well the time had come, no more excuses, before cranking with plugs out to oil pressure, I removed rocker cover, & poured the remaining cam lube (about half the bottle) down each of the pushrod holes to get as much on the cam lobes as possible. The replaced cover, & cranked till I got good (50 PSI) pressure on gauge. Then it was plugs in, prime float chambers, & go for it. It started reasonable easily, but was running quite roughly with a lot of missfiring, set the carbs up for a fast tickover, & checked the ignition timing - it was much too advanced, so backed that off, & the engine sounded much happier. Took the revs up to 2000, re-set advance to 30° BTDC. left it running for around 20 minutes to "bed in the cam " not sure how necessary this was, but did it anyway. then dropped the revs down to a smooth 800. It sound a bit clattery, but I'm sure that's just the rocker clearances opening up a little. they are set at 14 inlet & 16 exhaust which is quite a lot wider than the ST spec of 10 thou. I'm not clear on why they should be set wider ? Anyway, flushed with success (& more than a little relieved), After lunch I refitted the front panel, & reinstated all the bits & pieces around it (horns, lighting connections etc. I also took the opertunity to add a relay in the horn circuit. In neautral the gearbox seemed a lot quieter than before it's rebuild, so hopefully that will also be a success when I get to do the first test drive. Tomorrow it's replacing the gearbox tunnel. Bob. Edited January 16, 2021 by Lebro Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hamish Posted December 23, 2020 Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 BRILLIANT Bob congratulations you should be proud of all you have achieved. thank you for documenting it as well. a great Christmas present to yourself H Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Motorsport Mickey Posted December 23, 2020 Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 Great progress Bob, you've pushed the rework along at a pace. Mick Richards Quote Link to post Share on other sites
iain Posted December 23, 2020 Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 Well done Bob. Those tappet clearances are not that large. ( Kent high torque is 16/18 thou, inlet / exhaust) Did it quieten down when warm? Iain Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BlueTR3A-5EKT Posted December 23, 2020 Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 My 2 r cam is 18 in 20 out. And that runs quietly. All to do with cam lobe design. Q Did you top up the gearbox? Well done Bob. Peter W Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted December 23, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 Gearbox level is fine thanks Peter. Yes Iain it did quieten down when warm, but still a bit more tappetey than I would like. I don't understand why different cams need different clearances, surely the only items which are likely to change dimensions when hot are the push rods, & rocker pedestals. Bob Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ian Vincent Posted December 23, 2020 Report Share Posted December 23, 2020 Bob, I have the same cam with the same clearance and it’s not that noisy in normal driving. After you have taken it for a decent run check your clearances again. Rgds Ian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Harbottle Posted December 24, 2020 Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Excellent stuff Bob,I am sure after your minor adjustments it will run superbly. You will have a good Christmas now for sure, if slightly different like the rest of us. Can’t wait for the first road run results. Merry Christmas Paul. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RobTR3 Posted December 24, 2020 Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Well done Bob. I've been following your posts from the start and I've learnt a lot. Some of it a bit daunting to say the least, particularly the machining you've done, I wouldn't be able to do that. The tappet clearances are a lot compared with standard and causing the 'tappety' engine running. Perhaps you can experiment/reduce the clearances after you've run the engine for some time. As you say, relief it's up and running, a nice Xmas present. Merry Xmas Rob Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bob-menhennett Posted December 24, 2020 Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Bob Well done great work. Glad you achieved it before Xmas. Enjoy the quiet festivities like the rest of us in Tier 4. Have a good 2021. Bob Quote Link to post Share on other sites
billy l Posted December 24, 2020 Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Well Done Bob, It doesn't sound very tappety to me, perhaps it's the video makes it sound quieter, Again, Well done and thanks for all the installments. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie D Posted December 24, 2020 Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Excellent thread. Don't forget the anti-freeze !!! Charlie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted December 24, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 (edited) I didn't (forget the antifreeze) Finishing off day today, started by modifying the overdrive inhibitor switch loom to include my new switch for O/D on 2nd gear (only 3 & 4 on a saloon box, but my O/D is uprated to TR spec) Then moved on to adding a second earth bonding strap chassis to gearbox. Then probably the most difficult job of all, fitting the gearbox cover. I think I would rather fit the engine to the car again than do this, nothing lines up without a great deal of abuse ! anyway, got there in the end. Then -- no more excuses, off for a test drive. Happy to report that everything is fine, engine is much smoother, & quieter than before, & seems to have a fair bit more grunt. only did about 15 miles, which included filling the tank with Esso's finest. There is a rattle from under the car at tickover which is I'm sure, the exhaust pipe touching the chassis. Will sort that out when I get a chance. The gearbox also is greatly improved with it's new bearings, layshaft, & counter gear (3 bearing type). Another short run out tomorrow to deliver prezzies to my family (socially distanced of course), then no more TR work until at least Boxing day ! Bob. P.S. Happy Christmas to you all, & a special thank you for all the good advice I have had on this project, without which I would have been in all sorts of TRouble. Edited January 16, 2021 by Lebro Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dave I O W Posted December 24, 2020 Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Well done Bob you've done a marvellous job really enjoyed the thread, Happy Christmas, Dave. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stuart Posted December 25, 2020 Report Share Posted December 25, 2020 Well done Bob. an extremely useful thread for others to follow. Stuart. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
roy53 Posted December 25, 2020 Report Share Posted December 25, 2020 12 hours ago, Dave I O W said: Well done Bob you've done a marvellous job really enjoyed the thread, Happy Christmas, Dave. ditto BOB good to keep up with you along the journey . What will you do now ??????? withdrawal symptoms setting in yet ? still if your like me a couple of days re tidying up the garage well done Roy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
David Owen Posted December 25, 2020 Report Share Posted December 25, 2020 Merry Christmas Bob. Thanks for all your input this year. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted December 25, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2020 2nd run out today, took it for a couple of runs up & down a local hill, lots of throttle in 4th O/D up hill, then on - off throttle down hill. Certainly pulls well. It did run on for a couple of seconds when I got home & switched off. Bob. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
R.M. Posted December 25, 2020 Report Share Posted December 25, 2020 sounds sweeeeeet. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Steves_TR6 Posted December 25, 2020 Report Share Posted December 25, 2020 Excellent work Bob, Happy Christmas for you i’m sure ! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted December 26, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 26, 2020 (edited) Put a few more miles on the clock today (since weather is downhill from now) went up the motorway to junction 6, turned round, went to junction 10, then came back through Cobham, around 55 miles. all going well. oil pressure holding up well at 70 at 2000RPM, dropping to 20 at slow tickover (very hot by then) & it is only running in oil. Just done a compression check - 209 200 203 206 PSI was around 180 before the rebuild. In tidying up, I took the rings off the old pistons, & noticed that the top ring on one of them had worn extremely thin Edited January 16, 2021 by Lebro Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ralph Whitaker Posted December 28, 2020 Report Share Posted December 28, 2020 Just reading an article in "Muscle Car DIY" about compression ratios, and it says a healthy engine is normally between 150 and 180 psi at cranking speed, but some GOOD high performance engines can be over 200 psi. So well done. It is amazing really that you were still getting 180psi with that top ring so worn, but must have still been doing its job. Ralph. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted December 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 28, 2020 Only just I think. It was on No.1, & readings taken before the head upgrade in May were 151, 168, 88, 173 I then worked on the head giving it new valves, guides, & exhaust valve seats, also re-shaped combustion chamber & skimmed head by 60 thou. Compressions on re-fitting were 172 179 188 188 So No 1 was still down a bit. Bob. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ckeithjordan Posted December 31, 2020 Report Share Posted December 31, 2020 Bob, I sent you a PM. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lebro Posted December 31, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2020 Not received it Keith, try again, my inbox may have been too full, I have just cleared out most of it. Bob. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.