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Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Ruairidh,
Was it you that mentioned that some time ago?
Rings a bell.

Geoff - Video editing progressing

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Nick,
Had another look at the ply, and it's just the edges that break away so I may be lucky, but only time will tell.
Will take lots of photos and measurements just in case it behaves like an Egyptian mummy.

Bryan,
Springs look fine, but haven't tried removing that Coir yet. Talk about dust, so that must be original.
The string was looped through holes in the Rexine below the leather, thus holding everything in place.
The filling for the seat cushion comprises of a fat piece of foam

Simon,
Your mention of that ply reminded me that I stocked it in my hobby shop, for model aircraft use.
Will keep it in mind if needed.
Thanks.

Geoff - Champing at the bit to get the body off now.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Back on the job after far too long an absence sorting out an issue with the lathe, then replacing Summerhouse felt amongst other things.

Engine cover vents.
Could only remove one of the 'hinge' rods as ALL the others had rusted in place and just would not budge even with the help of THE usual persuader, so resorted to using the ULTIMATE solution - FIREπŸ”₯
From the end of a Blowlamp of course.

Hinge rod rusted in place, so heat applied after overnight dose of penetrating fluid.


Heat and penetrating fluid did the job.


Interior ready for final clean and DTM undercoat.


Exterior ready for final clean and DTM undercoat.


One more rear Mud Shield to do and strip the doors of glass, mechanism, strip the paint from the OS door, then apply DTM undercoat to all the loose body parts.
I can then get the body back into the Carport for repairs, especially making good the horrible mess done to the NS door lower hinge area, ditto the NS B-pillar bottom section, final stripping of paint, then application of DTM undercoat, then decide how to proceed.
May apply the top coat/s to the body with the doors attached, but not sure.

Advice please from anyone who has done a bare metal repaint, especially on sequence used.

Geoff - Progress at last.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Back on track at last!
At last I'm making progress as weather is far more conducive.
Engine Cradle.
Now that I have sorted the lathe out, it was time to think about some way of getting the engine and gearbox attached to my generic engine stand, and then into the Workshop so that I can work on it at night in comfort.
I did the usual internet search, for a suitable design, but only found one that looked as if it would hold an engine weighing a ton.
Having a spare crankcase to hand, it was easy to use it as a template.
It took just a few days to come up with a suitable design that was simple, light plus quick and easy to make.













Video of the assembly being used.

Geoff - Now to carry out repairs to the parts taken off of the car.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Been checking the engine and it appears to be totally unmolested.
With all that white gunk in the top water outlet, and the detritus in the inlet aside of the block, I think it best to remove it and soak it in molasses, as I will be doing with the head, after removing all Welsh plugs.

There is absolutely no wear in the bores, much to my surprise, but haven't cleaned top of pistons yet to see if there is any oversize stamped on them.

That thick sediment in the Crankcase Bottom Cover, indicates that it hasn't been off for ages, if ever.
I shall be removing the crank and rods to check for cracks, seeing that the engine is out.

















Geoff - Busy stripping the loose body parts.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Well done Geoff, this is a big job you are doing!

I was reading back through and noticed this:

 photo d17e2f8e033bfbd78419b1779ce2a74e_zpsmwevqrj1.jpg

These are actually the holes for the bolts that hold the steering box to the top of the chassis rail.

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Thanks for putting me right Ruairidh, and compliment.
Do I bolt the box back on top of the black paint, or scrape it away, down to the DTM coat?

Geoff - Surprised at the impression made though.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

I always bolt it on top of the paint Geoff.

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Ruairidh Dunford
I always bolt it on top of the paint Geoff.

Thanks - πŸ‘
Geoff - One item not to worry about then πŸ‘

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Clutch Mouse springs.
Not sure how these should appear once fitted.
Should they be loose as two are, or resting up against the Declutching levers.









Geoff - More stripping today.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Quick sideline, as I will be using the machine to do upholstery.
Singer 660 A1 sewing machine:
Have at last got the beast to operate as if it has a servo motor fitted.
Now nice and slow
Proof:
Singer operating

Ruby Painting:
Thinking about how to proceed with painting the loose body parts, once stripped of paint, I came up with the 'brilliant' idea of hooking them onto a rail suspended from the Carport roof beams:

New toy:
The old compressor proved useless at doing much more than operating an air gun, airbrush or inflating tyres, but it then started tripping the ELCB before the pressure switch died, after spewing a fat spark.

I had bought a Miller Soda Blaster (MSB) years ago, so what better time to actually start using it, but a more manly compressor was needed.
Wolf Air Dakota 100 the new toy the result:

Assembled and next to the MSB unit:

Photos of the method I used to fit the wheels:
http://s1104.photobucket.com/user/Geoff_Halstead/Wolf%20Dakota%20100%20compressor/story

Engine:
Whilst waiting for an adaptor to connect compressor to the MSB unit, decided it was the perfect opportunity to strip the engine.
Removing the Flywheel
Removing the Cylinder Block
Cam followers and valve springs removal
RubyEnginePartsOganiser
REPO

Mangled bolt head on the oil pump:

The only tool that would loosen it:


Geoff - Approaching 30° in the Carport πŸ˜“

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

The Singer sewing machine is now behaving impeccably.

Foot pedal to clutch lever tidied up

Perfect control now

Geoff - Busy editing the video showing the crankcase bearings being removed.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Sorry about duplicating the Singer details.

Up and down a ladder about 10 times on Wednesday, first to stop the TV aerial wobbling when doves landed and took off, and second to do repairs to the Carport roofing.
Aerial no longer wobbling, BUT my pins are now wobbly.

Why up and down so many times you may ask?
Easy!
I kept forgetting things to take up with me.

Geoff - It's been one of those weeks.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Hi Geoff,

I have just watched your a couple of your videos, first well done for putting all this information up, I am sure it is a useful source of reference for many.
I did note your comment about the dimples on tappet adjusters; They are wear marks caused by the constant hammering on the base of the valve stem, they should be reground flat.
I also noted your cylinder block comment: I find Molasses to be an excellent but slow way of cleaning rusted steel parts, but I have encountered erosion issues with cast components, particularly when left for long periods. I don't know all of the technical details as to why this should be, but the chemical reaction that takes place eats away the surface of cast items.

Location: Auckland NZ

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

This video is 25min long, after much editing, showing me removing the front and rear Crankcase/Crankshaft bearings.

Video

Geoff - Ready to use the MSB soon with luck as 'pins' heave recovered

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Great video Geoff ,much better than watching programs about the bloody referendum .

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Ian/Nigel,
Thanks for comments.
Shows just how long it's been since I worked on a side-valve, thinking that the tappet heads are actuated by the cam lobes.

Engine block has cleaned up well, but I may run some descaler through the waterways.
Most definitely sleeved:






The manifold studs, only one being stepped, came out eventually after having to hammer the sides, thus bending them slightly, but they need replacing anyway, as I will do with the head studs.

Second attempt at removing the oil pump as the first was abysmal.

Geoff - My Facebook page shows both.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Last week used the MSB unit for the first time, and man is it dusty.
Didn't seal up one section of the plastic sheeting properly that was isolating one half of the Carport, so some dust got through.
I will fix this before doing any more blasting or spray painting.





This method does, however, remove paint from areas nothing else can get into.

Attacked a lilac tree using chainsaw, then had to do some wood and felt replacement on Shed roof.

Geoff - Brain says "Can do" but body replies "No bl@@dy way"!

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Grinding tappet heads courtesy of Heath Robinson thinking.

My Heath Robinson set-up of grinding them flat, in lieu of a surface grinder.
High speed bench drilling machine fitted with a grinding disc then diamond cards for final finishing.

Tappet heads - Before:


Grinding by sliding the tappet under the grind stone, but by not more than just over 1/2 Ø:




End result:


Good contact with valve stems after a rub on the diamond card:






Cam followers look fine but will use marker pen to check contact areas during trial assembly of engine.

Time to use the TIG welder to repair body parts.

Geoff - If only I could do the same with my body parts!

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

As far as I can tell from the photos Geoff, the block looks cracked to me? There appears to be a crack from centre stud to pots 2 and 3 and to the waterway.

Great pics and videos

Location: Farnham

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Tappet screws have often been refaced many times. Worth checking with the edge of a file that still hard. Various simple ways of flattening; precision unnecessary.

Location: Auckland, NZ

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Updates soon as I've just got the MIG machine I bought years ago up and running.
Had to remove the cover and re-seat all the spade connectors as the wire feed motor was dead.

Beginning to see why MIG is so popular.

Geoff - MIG practice day.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Time to let everyone know what's been happening,.
S*d all on the Ruby unfortunately.

The heat and humidity has made the Carport nigh on impossible to work in, especially welding.
I did do quite a few practice beads using the MIG before the heat 'stopped play' though.
Plenty to do in the Workshop to keep me occupied though.
Machined backplates for smaller lathe chucks, made a rear tool post and now busy with backplates to mount chucks on the dividing head.

Other half dumped a DOA Dyson Telescope in my lap, having procured it for a fiver at local car boot, with the words "You are a man, you should be able to fix it"
My response was "I have the three parts that confirms my gender, albeit the middle one not as vigorous as before", receiving that look only a female can give.
She then bu**ered of on her yearly 3-week jolly visiting family.

Took a while sorting out how to strip the machine, but eventually had it in parts only to find one carbon brush wasn't making contact with the commutator and that meant bending three tabs back in order to get the brush housing out.
As I pulled the brush clear of its tube it promptly broke in half with that loose bit crumbling in my fingers.
Never experienced this before.
Found a suitable replacement in my electric spares box and used the RSU to solder the lead on and then reinstall and power leads back.
Quick check with motor free and good as new.
Not bad for a fiver and a few hours work.
A well thought out design to make it easy to assemble in the factory, BUT not for carbon brush replacement, so bin and buy a new Dyson.

Was hoping for cooler weather, but 80% humidity in the Carport and not much less this last month is not comfortable.

Geoff - Workshop only slightly less humid

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Update with photos of my first attempts with the MIG and progress on the Ruby.
Hope the photos show this.
As mentioned previously I can now see why MIG has become the de facto method to use.
Quick and fairly easy, but need more practice though.
I think that minute tube from the gas bottle to the nozzle is restricting gas flow as I can only get 5lt/min, so may need to do some surgery to not only fit a larger dia one but also longer power cable as both are far too short for easy working on car bodies, or much else in fact.
The earth clamp was replaced PDQ.

MIG:
















Been busy on the lathe machining backplates for and fitting the smaller chucks I bought 7 odd years ago, plus ditto for two chucks for the dividing head.
Had to do some screwcutting in the lathe for the first time, external to make a thread gauge to do the internal on the plates, and surprised myself no end in not making a dogs breakfast of it.
Did have a brain fade with the change gears on the lathe though, finding I could only get 11.5tpi instead of the 12tpi I needed to thread the backplates for the dividing head, so gave up, had lunch and the minute I looked at the lathe on returning saw I had to replace one of the two change gears with a similar 40tpi, then proceeded, sighing with relief.
I had looked at the information on the lathe detailing what gears to use for what thread umpteen times, but on occasion wood gets in the way of trees, as happened on this occasion

Ruby:
Started cleaning some of the loose body parts prior to applying epoxy primer, and suffered no end with the heat and humidity in the Carport.
September was just too hot and humid to do any work in the Carport so spent the time in the Workshop.
Ground the valves in, machined the flat surfaces for the water outlet and inlet/exhaust manifolds, then draw filed the head and block and they are as flat as I expected.
I need to edit the videos I took and clean up the photos, but the heat and humidity has effected me far more than I ever expected and only now starting to get back into the swing.

Geoff - Never ever thought I would look forward to cooler weather![/quote]

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

I would try turning the wire speed back some what, that will remove the garden slug looking weld. the spots you have done is the right way just over lap them more.
good luck. and keep the posts coming I have learnt alot.

Location: Switzerland

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

AustinSeven
Have been busy getting all the loose small body parts cleaned ready for epoxy undercoat, then September hit and floored me.

September was without doubt the most humid month I can remember, and what with the heat, it made the Carport 'Out of bounds', so have been busy in the Workshop, as seen below.
I had chucks lying around since 2006 ready for mounting onto base plates, for use on the lathe and dividing head, so thought it high time I made them.

Austin:
Machining the manifold and water inlet surfaces on the block:
https://youtu.be/zLBFv60GRNQ

Valve grinding:
https://youtu.be/29NdwYBHzbo

Chuck backplates:
https://youtu.be/eXFRk-fUI_8
For the dividing head, having forgotten to take photos of the ones for the lathe.

Back onto the body and this pair:
I've forgotten where they go.



Any hope of a replacement?





Geoff - Still recovering from September heat & humidity

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Been a while, but here's what I've been up to, so feast yer eyes.

Notations say it all I hope, BUT I have failed to point out that my Ruby is a MK.1 after Margaret Park asked me what model it was, so will add that to future photos.

Thanks to Ruairidh for mentioning that the door window frame on his Pearl broke away where it joins the lower section, so I will be adding reinforcing strips just to be safe, plus photos once I have cleaned that area up, as with the other side.

These photos will, unfortunately, not be in the order as uploaded, as they are linked to Photobucket and all that entails, and that site NEVER saves them as uploaded. GRRRRR!!
I now prepare posts in the iOS Notes App, then copy and paste, having lost some in the past when 'writing' directly into the Forum Thread page.
My Facebook page has the photos in order.

Nearside Door:





























































Geoff - I am now well and truly cross-eyed, so OS door tomorrow or next week.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Offside door:
I've recovered from the marathon of getting all the links for the NS door into the last post.
The OS door isn't in as bad a state meaning nowhere near as much work needed on it.
There where varying degrees of rust between the wood frame and steel panel ranging from minor to quite severe rust pitting under the horizontal centre piece.
The bottom lip is very much 50/50 whether it's worth keeping or replace either some or all of it.
Will need to come up with a solution to replace the perished rubber rollers that the glass runs between, but will add a photo once I have removed the 4 tubes that the rubber is mounted on.
Will get a cost for blasting before trying myself.
Cannot be more messy compared with soda blasting can it!?
1)

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Geoff - Next lot will be of the finish painted small parts.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.


Hi Geoff,

There is a very good blaster just down the road who does wet blasting and dipping, would you like his number?

Keep up the good work,

Tom

Location: Eye on the Norfolk / Suffolk border

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Yes please Tom
Fersfield by any chance?
Do you per chance have access to sheet metal rollers?

Geoff - 5year old's school Christmas Party at 1330h, so girding my loins.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

If you weren't so far away I have a well equipped sheet-metal workshop you would be welcome to come along to.
This offer extends to all in the area...

Location: Ripon

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Much appreciated Duncan.
I used to do Bradford - Diss - Bradford regularly when I was Enginering Manager at Klockner Moeller, so yes a tad too far

Geoff - School party went well, if somewhat noisy.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.


Hi Geoff, the Fersfield company only do coarse grit dry blasting, I was thinking about a company near Stanton on the Bury road. I can’t find there contact details at the moment but I will email you.

Yes I’ve got some sheet metal rollers and you’re more than welcome to use them or give me a ********** sketch and I’ll roll them for you. If you haven’t got the material yet let me know and I can get it pre-cut for you.

Tom

Location: Eye on the Norfolk / Suffolk border

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Thanks Tom, much appreciated.
I will need to pop round with the rear Mud Shields as they both need the area that fits flush up against the inner arches replaced, as do the corresponding sections of the inner arches, that said Mud Shields bolt up against.
They have what I can only describe as being well and truly done over, as with the NS door.
Do you have suitable sheet I could purchase?
If not will get some cut at Roy Allen.
Hope the above is as clear as mud
Some time next month with any luck, as I'll have the body back in the Carport then.

Geoff - Inside today catching up on other things as Carport too 'bleep' cold

PS:
The school party went well

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Time waits for nobody, expect his old f@rt.

It's been a while, but 2-6°C is not all that conducive to working in the Carport, BUT I have been busy.
I moved one of those ubiquitous bench mounted sandblasting cabinets from a corner in the Workshop, into the Carport to try out now having a man enough compressor to handle the air requirements.
Before even connecting up I read/viewed everything I could find on this type, and realised that surgery was needed to get it to work at all , so made a start 24/12/2016 and that is still ongoing.
The cabinet is now doing the job it was 'designed' to do, albeit not all that well thought through, and is now residing on a stand with the compressor lurking underneath.
A video with details later.

I at last made a rack for the 5C collets that have been lying in a box, and now readily at hand at the lathe.

Ruby news:

Just had to rescue it from obscurity and decay.


On the 'Operating Table' ready for some dramatic 'surgery'.


Time to tax the 'collective' brain and imagination, to be used in conjunction with the Engine Cradle I made to fit onto the Engine Stand.


Another post tomorrow.

Geoff - The body will be back in the Carport very soon with luck.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Wheels and cylinder heads.
No need to add anything.

Wheels:










Sandblasting:
Before and after.


High & Low compress cylinder heads difference.


Geoff - Next will be the completed mystery item being used.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Geoff, a simple rule regarding changing tyres - "Start and finish at the valve"

That means, once you have broken the bead into the well of the wheel, lever the tyre off adjacent to the inner tube valve. Unless the opposite part of the tyre (at 180° to the valve) isn't right onto the well then you'll have the devil's own job of levering the bead.

Same applies for fitting - make the last bit next to the valve, and if you can, walk the tyre into place (easier with 19" tyres)

Helps if the tyres are warm.

Location: Gard, France 30960. Used to be Languedoc-Roussillon but now it's Occitanie

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.


Hi Geoff, Email sent regarding shot blasters, sorry for the delay.

Tom

Location: Eye on the Norfolk / Suffolk border

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Thanks Reckless πŸ‘
The tyres where we'll past their usage, hence my method.

Thanks Tom.

Geoff - Video of that block thingy soon.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Tom,
Would you post address here please?
Google is now behaving like YahooMail and won't accept my password even after resetting

Geoff - Video done, just needs editing tonight.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Hi Geoff,

I'll drop them over to you.

Tom

Location: Eye on the Norfolk / Suffolk border

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Preamble:
Whilst suffering a head cold, passed on to my by family members, and not feeling in the least capable of doing any work on the car without making a 'codswallop' of it, decided to post an update.
For some unknown reason I'm unable to upload to YouTube, Facebook or Google Photos from iMovie on the MacPro, but can on the MacBook.
Have asked for advise on Apple Support Communities - iLife, but no luck so far.

Update.
Sandblasting Cabinet:
I have one of those ubiquitous bench mounted cabinets that are, as supplied, next to useless, BUT can be made to work, thanks to all those before me figuring out what to do.
It took days of searching the 'net to find out what mods/additions/changes where needed to convert it from an ornament into something actually worth having.
I also added some of my own ideas, particularly in lighting the inside and clearing the dust from the window, both of which I'm pretty proud of.
A video will, with any luck, follow in the not too distant future.

Austin Seven.
Air vents:



Door wood from Martin Prior, of excellent quality:




Mud Wings - Front:
Vacuum sucked up a lot of the dust.


Rust soon revealed and dealt with.


Ready for repairs plus blasting small areas using aluminium oxide.


Wheels:






Discovered blocked drain holes.


Loose body parts:






Let's hope I don't take so long to post next time.

Geoff - Taste buds AWOL so everything I eat now could be old leather.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

I removed the petrol tank sender unit on the 6th April but only now able to post details, having since then suffered from that horrid head cold and red eyes that's been doing the rounds, and the worst I've experienced to date.

Photos show the angst experienced in removing the screws, the slots having been well and truly mangled.
Was thinking of using one of the tank sealers, but will the two baffle plates prevent full coating?
The gauze filter has a chunk missing so ineffective, see last photo, but I was going to fit a remote filter onto the bulkhead in any case.

The screw slots had been so well and truly mangled that even a hollow ground screwdriver was ineffective, this after a week of squirting every release agent I had at them.
I even went so far as to use a knife to scrape away the cork gasket, opposite the screws, in an effort to get the stuff to wick onto the threads, all to no avail.


'Brain out of gear' brute force the only solution now.


Four screws eventually succumbed, but the last two sheared, turning the air blue.


Sender unit removed to reveal the sheared screw stubs.


One of the sheared bits ready to be drilled out.


One sheared screw drilled out, one to go.


Threads cleaned up revealing brass inserts.
Need to find BA brass screws to replace the rusted in steel ones now.


Sender/float unit in all its glory.


The heart of the sender section.


Attachment of the float to sender.


The gauze filter inside the tank has a piece missing, so no longer of any use.


Suggestions please on what to do with/best way to remove, the gauze plus how to deal with the two end baffles if using a tank sealer?
For the two baffled areas, I don't fancy cutting a hole in the top of each end, ala the sender unit.
Inside of the tank looks reasonable, but there is 'scale' in the filler pipe baffled end, but cannot see into the opposite end.

Geoff - Time to practice welding prior to Mud Wing repairs.

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Geoff
To replace the screws holding down the sender unit Meccano screws are the same thread / length.Regarding the gauze I used fuel tank sealant and Sloshed it around the tank ,turning upside down , on end so the solution went everywhere then when cured I stuck a screwdriver through the gauze and pulled it out and put a sediment glass filter bowl in the line between tank and pump

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

If they suit Meccano 'bolts' they are 5/32" Whitworth- should be available in brass - I think I have some brass round heads.

Cheers, Tony.

Location: Melbourne. Victoria, Australia.

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Am I being dim or have I missed something? Soaking timber in linseed oil prior to gluing seems counter-intuitive to me. Usually glue instructions recommend keeping surfaces clean & dry.
My preference would be to oil after assembly but I'm happy to be corrected if I'm mistaken.

Location: Ripon

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Replacement smiths sender mounting bolts are readilly availible for more modern motors if you search the internet. They are quoted as 8-32 Unified. This is 5/32 UNC. This rather suggests to me that 1930's onew will have been 'whit'.

If they were BA in the 1930's essentially a metric system they would have stayed BA.

I suspect those reported as 3BA have been tapped out. Both tanks Ive messed with i never took a tap anywhere near them and a Meccano bolt went in using finger and thumb and tightened up nicely. The originals were definatley 32TPI.

Location: not north wales any more

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Mine where 3BA Hedd.
Have the necessarily to make my own replacement screws.

Update:
The petrol tank gauze filter was easy to remove, then painted.
A long nosed pair of pliers came to the rescue.






Crushed glass in the sandblaster.
Neither aluminium oxide nor twisted wire wheel, in L-grinder, had any effect on removing all the hard detritus on these front Mud Wing supports.
Someone on Facebook said he has had success using crushed glass, so I ordered a 25kg bag as nothing to loose.
Started with a 5mm nose piece on the gun, but soon changed to a 4mm, the smallest I had, and that was soon doing its job.
Needed a few passes on some areas, as that cr@p was well and truly stuck on.
Used the glass to do all the other parts, and there is far less 'dust' produced compared with the aluminium that needing the inside of the window cleared frequently, even with the SideBlastAir in operation.









Everything I can think of has been sand/glassblasted and coated with Gibbs so now ready to repair the front Mud Wings and give them and small parts a trial coat of Zinga or zinc epoxy, then possibly Jotun Jotmastic 80 on the underside of the Mud Wings, but not sure.

Geoff - Small parts stored to make space for the Mud Wings?

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

......my Austin 10('36) and 12('35) were original and unmolested and were 4BA....
Steve V.

Location: Polegate, East Sussex, United Kingdom

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

NS Mud Wing patch

Advise please on the best way to make this patch.
This is my first attempt at bodywork, and I experimented using 0.6mm sheet
Pretty pleased with it, BUT can/must do better.
A former and tin bashing?
Open to any suggestions.
Not sure where to split the part for easy welding.
My bender produces a bent very close to that from the Austin factory so don't need to make a new blade, with a different radius.

I am thinking of making short bends on the top curved section/s, split as per my experiment after a failed attempt to stretch the metal, and then welding the flat flange/s to them, but just had a thought, would 0.6mm sheet (not 1mm as stated) stretch enough?
I did mange to get a gentle curve only, after a few minutes with sharp end of hammer.
David Gardiner in his video Bodywork Restoration Tutorial makes stretching the metal look so frigging easy - Grrrr
Need to have another look at what he does, before I dive in again.
Trust me to start on this as a first attempt at tin bashing.
My late Dad is shaking his head right now, shouting "Get in with it, it's easy!"







Geoff - Spring!?

Location: South Norfolk - Next to Suffolk

Re: Ruby Rejuvination.

Geoff, the David Gardiner video that I have seen is excellent and would be recommended viewing for anyone attempting this sort of repair. My advice for what it is worth; First measure the panel thickness and make your repair sections from exactly the same gauge material, welding them in will be far easier later. Second set yourself up with some practice sections, fold a few angled strips and practice shrinking one edge to make the strip curve, then do the same but stretch an edge to make the strip curve the opposite way. Once you have mastered these two techniques try Scribing an S curve onto a piece of flat plate mark a a second line 3/4" away and trim to that line. Now get a piece of steel bar and cut a slot in the end face 3/4" deep, you can use the bar over your panel to break the edge and bit by bit lift the flange, you will now need to use hammer and dolly to bring the edge up to 90 degrees, shrinking or stretching the edge depending on the radius you are working is internal or external. Far easier to demonstrate than it is to try and explain in words, but once you have mastered these methods making your patch panels will be easy. Watch David Gardner, again and again, then practice, practice, practice and It should fall into place.

Location: NZ

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