In reply to JoeTR6 :
I agree with your assessment regarding the relative looks between the Rota RB and the Rewinds, but the Rota only seem to be available with 10mm offset for Datsuns. Works for most TR6s I guess but I would have to use an even thicker spacer for front clearance. Not to mention the extra $100 a set. Oh, and 2 lbs. heavier per wheel.
Well, after several days of grinding and cutting through fiberglass, while trying to do as little damage to the outer body as possible, I finally got one side of the bonnet support frame out. I started on what I believe to be the most corroded side, so I hope the other side will come out more intact (the better to use as a pattern for replacements). Again... have any of you seen replacement frame structures offered any where?
Lots of weird angles, but otherwise not a complicated welding project for a good welder. We'll see.
Then, there's this. Been looking for a jar of this for years. The cheap Chinese aftermarket crap just doesn't work like the original Lucas smoke. Maybe worth the premium price, when available!
My hinge frame is off and the center tube is in tact. The whole thing is pretty well in tact really. I'm not ready to let it go yet, but if it would make much difference for your welder, once I get all the measurements I could need off of it and have a firm plan on how my replacement will be made, I could ship it to you.
In reply to CoolHandMoss :
Thanks for the offer, Luke. I took some measurements before I cut it out relative to the spacing of the two corners since the were no longer connected, and I believe the remains, as pictured, should be a sufficient template. Still, I may just need to take you up on that!
In reply to Stu Lasswell :
Let me know. No telling when I may have my replacement together well enough to let go of it though. That is assuming a permanent separation. Temporarily, pretty much any day.
Not sure about anyone offering new frames. Maybe ask the TVR group? Seems like I saw mention there once.
Got the other corner of the hood support assembly out. Took all (of what was left of it) to my local welder. He figures about $200 to replicate the entire structure, plus materials, but that's mostly round tubing. So, maybe $250 tops. I'm thinking of using heim joints rather than that T-shaped tubing with rubber bushing that TVR used. Saw where someone recommended this as it would help with misalignment issues.
Another thing... My welder noticed that although all the tubes seemed to be cut to the same length on both sides, the vertical threaded piece on one side was welded about 3/4 inch off from the other side! Like the tube slipped down in their jig, but the just welded it there anyway, figuring the threaded collar and shaft would allow for adjusting for their sloppy workmanship! Which is true, I suppose, but still pretty poor quality control.
So, onward to the grinding away of all that fiberglass I cut up, and hopefully I can rebuild all that I cut/ground/mangled well enough before the new components get done.
Sounds like a rather good price to me. Especially considering the points that contact the bonnet need to be perfectly spaced. That's tough with distortion from welding and all.
In reply to CoolHandMoss :
I, too, thought the price to be quite reasonable. As to "perfectly spaced", I don't think TVR even managed that. The front bumper mount bolt holes on mine are miss-matched by at least a half inch, and inside it looks like they made up for gaps by just packing in more fiberglass. Also, it looks like the flat metal "tabs" on the ends where they're glassed in are there I think so they can be bent or curved to make up for variances in the fit. Now, I suppose, would be a good time to engineer some sort of improved pivot point to allow the bonnet to open up further, but I'm just going to replicate the stock set-up and work something out from there.
Quite true. On mine they used plywood to fill the gap. So yeah, maybe not perfect. You can always shim out the tolerance.
CoolHandMoss said:On mine they used plywood to fill the gap.
On mine they used rust to fill in the gap.
In reply to TVR Scott :
Well, of course, Scott. It's well known that you found the rustiest 2500M in the country. Nonetheless, you constantly amaze me with your ability to overcome... you are an inspiration to us mere mortals. Or maybe a cautionary tale.
Stu Lasswell said:
Again... have any of you seen replacement frame structures offered any where?
Adrian Venn or John Wadman
In reply to Slow_M :
Thanks! Looks like I'll be making new ones anyway...Does either of the guys you mentioned have a web site or page listing what they have available? I've not seen advertisements from either, although their names are frequently brought up.
Stu Lasswell said:In reply to Slow_M :
Thanks! Looks like I'll be making new ones anyway...Does either of the guys you mentioned have a web site or page listing what they have available? I've not seen advertisements from either, although their names are frequently brought up.
PM’d you their contact info.
Any progress Stu?
If you still need suggestions on bonnet frame replacements, I've talked to Duncan at TVR Classics (https://tvrclassics.weebly.com or duncanrtvr@gmail.com). Last we emailed they were willing to ship new frames overseas. I thought prices were reasonable as well.
It has been a while since I updated this build page, and I do apologize. I have made some progress, but not as much as I really should have by now. Anyway, here's the new bonnet frame, laid out in position:
My local welder copied the original (warts and all) for $200 out the door. It's fine, but I'm now thinking that the problem we all face is rot where the tubing is buried in the fiberglass itself. Seems to me, if I can just bolt it in where the bumper mounts attach and then use some kind of U-clamps along the bottom length I could not glass it in at all. Do you think that would provide sufficient rigidity? After all, it attaches to the car with just the two hinge bolts anyway.
I've also made some progress with the induction system. The 3 Zenith-Stromberg carbs are now fully rebuilt, and I've gone with the Good Parts cold air intake system:
It's a beautifully made piece, and I will be extending the intake forward a fair bit, maybe ahead of the radiator.
I really haven't done much more than that, beyond replacing many of the grade-8 hardware with longer bolts to compensate for the taller nuts, drain and fill the gearbox and diff with fresh Redline fluids, and spend a lot of time just staring and thinking! So much yet to do...
Looking good! I am a fan of that style intake. I think it's the best solution for not sucking in a bunch of hot air right off the exhaust headers. I also recently became aware of the potential hazard of a backfire igniting a foam-in-basket style intake like I currently have, which this intake removes. Some day I might step up to Rich's intake once funds become more available.
In reply to ViperT4 :
In the meantime, I still have three un-used foam-in-basket filters for the Z-S carbs that I will make you a killer deal on!
Well, it has been ages since we've had an update on my build. Sorry about that. Part of the problem has been that while parked at a strip mall restaurant on my way to a cruise-in, my Triumph TR3 got hit. Only damaged the driver side front fender, but paint-matching the 20-year-old single stage paint was looking unlikely, and the whole car was pretty much due for a make-over. The other driver did leave a note, and his insurance provider gave me a pretty low-ball quote (I've been told), However, Michael (dusterdb13) got me in touch with his paint guy, and he assured me he could do the repairs, paint the whole car, and make my deadline of late September for the VTR national meet. Well, he did make the deadline, just barely. He took a LONG time with repairs, and we ended up painting the car (in pieces) at 9:00 Friday night, in my driveway, with 3 vehicles idling with their brights on for lighting. 3 friends came over Monday and helped me throw the car back together, while Tuesday I got the lights, trim, new carpets and the interior back in. Wednesday we trailered it down to Georgia. We drove it all around NW Georgia ans SW North Carolina, and I ran the autocross on Friday in Franklin, NC. We had 63 Triumphs entered, 6 in my (modified TR3/TR4) class. won my class by 4 seconds (~40 sec. course) and second to a GT6 for FTD by .5 sec. If my fastest run had been clean (1 cone) I'd have had FTD. That GT6 was running a TR6 motor, had an LSD, and some "old" race tires.
So, back to the TVR. Progress has indeed been made, but it's been a 2 steps forward, 1 step back process. For instance, I figured I'd upgrade the charging system with a GM alternator, like I have in my Triumph. It's a common upgrade, and I even followed Dan Master's TR6 electrical book as a guide. It's essentially a TR6 set up, right? Turns out, not really. TVR, in their infinite wisdom, bolted the coolant tower (canister? chamber?) right next to the alternator, and the original Lucas unit is fairly small. The GM unit is substantially wider, and, although it barely fit, left no room at all for belt adjustment. All this figured out after I had bought the GM alternator, ground off the protuberances as required, "re-clocked" the mounts, and hogged out the TVR mounting bracket for the larger mounting bolt. The mods meant I couldn't return the alternator, and I had to pay a premium for a high-output Lucas alternator in the end! Oh, well, lesson learned, but now the engine ancillaries are mostly attached. Still working on the heater and cooling system though.
I also polished (well, sanded really) and painted the old T-slot wheels, even though I bought a set of Koenig Rewinds for it. They came out really nice, at least from 10 feet, and I plan on more polishing. I did it so I could run a set of Falken RT660s for autocross, figuring I can use them on both the TVR and my TR3. As the results mentioned above show, they are an awesome autocross tire!
This last week resulted in yet another step forward. I get together for lunch with a random group of Brit car guys, mostly MG owners. A TR6 owner there asked me how the TVR was coming along and if I had resolved my lack of seats. I told him I was still planning on an old set of Miata seats, and he said he had a set of after market seats and belts he took ou of his 6 when he found a stock set. Free! Turns out they're a pair of Corbeau racing seats with 4-point Simpsons competition belts... score!
I know I'm rambling a bit, but I want to get all this down before I lose it through some stupid action on my part. I plan to add a bunch of corroborating photos, but I have to remind myself how to upload them... yes it's been that long! So, stay tuned!
Let's see if I can add some photos here...
This is what started my distraction from the TVR
The accident lead to this...
Which resulted in this. It was about due anyway. Almost 20 years since the last refresh. The 14" T-slots look pretty good on the TR3!
They may be Corbeau's cheapest racing seats, but still $660 a pair! They're a little bit sun-faded, but no tears or damage... and did I say FREE!?
Trial fit in the TVR. Seem to fit well, but the high bolsters may make ingress/egress difficult for me at 6'4" (and 67 years old)!
Here you can see the GM alternator in situ... a tight fit. not going to work.
Not a great angle to see the Lucas alternator, but trust me, it makes all the difference. You can also see the new Wizard radiator and the cold air intake extended out in front of it.
Stu, not sure if you've come across this yet but something I did was "adjust" the door stops. I think this would help with your ingress and egress over those seats. Each top hinge has a flat bar which contacts the hinge arm stops the door from opening further. To perform the adjustment simply Dremel or grind out that bar to your desired opening. I took about half of mine out and the differences in the amount the door opens are dramatic. Not sure why they weren't this way from the factory.
Stu, that engine looks gorgeous. So does the chassis.
Viper, that blue is such a great choice! Thanks for the door clearance tip.
First of all, thanks for posting something on my forum page, ViperT4 and Slo_M... almost 2 months since I posted all that update and photos, and I was thinking nobody was bothering to follow the progress! But really, that suggestion about modifying the limiting straps in the door pillars is a great idea. I just pulled a door off last week, and was looking at that part, although my hinge hardware looks extremely corroded. I may have to cut them out, although the hinges themselves look pretty good... appear to be aluminum.
Looking at your gutted door... have you looked into power window lifts? Very reasonable on Amazon, and my components look very corroded, and don't operate very smoothly, so I'm thinking that might be a solution. Also, my exterior door handles are pretty pitted, but vintage Cortina handles are rare and pricey. I'm thinking maybe MGB or Spitfire handles could be substituted, or maybe even early Miata if I'm going to be glassing/cutting holes for new hardware. Just wondering if you've seen or heard of anyone doing either of these modifications?
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