Hello

[cdk84]

I'm with MikeR --Not a small step. Congratulations!

Well Done!

[ColinB]

Thanks chaps, that is great encouragement.

[ColinB]

The threaded stub on a sidelight had been badly damaged and was very short as I had to use the angle grinder to remove it. I decided to drill out the centre and thread it so I could insert a new stub. As I tried to tap it the old stub screwed out to my surprise! I didn't have a die for the thread which was very fine so I ran a 7/16 UNF tap through the light base and then used my old Unimat lathe to turn a piece of brass rod down and then put a matching thread on it after drilling down the centre and inserting it with a spot of solder. It was a bit short but is now firmly fixed in position on the wing.

A puzzle now which I could really do with some help on: rear seats. Fortunately I have both the base and backrest springs so I know the shape of the upholstery. I am however in the dark about the woodwork that supports it all. A friend in Cornwall has sent me some pictures of his car but he doesn't think the details are authentic so I would be really grateful for pictures of an authentic rear seat arrangement both under the seat and behind the back rest.

I attach pictures of the springs and of a mystery piece of worm-eaten wood that looks as if it sat behind the back rest and pivoted forward to permit the stowing of the side screens, but I may be wrong.

[ColinB]

I had some advice from Bruce Grainger who owns the lovely 1928 Tourer you can in the gallery of the Singer Owners Club site. Based on this I have made the base and backing for the seats, including various mysterious pieces of wood included by William when he sold me the car, now making sense at last! I will take these to Brockells in Kings Lynn tomorrow. I will take the springs for their guidance on the shape but I will have the internals made in foam. The space behind the seat where the side screens are stowed is apparently supported by a 3" spacer level with the top of the body. This looks like the missing top of the worm eaten piece in my previous photo so I'll have a play with that tomorrow.

[ColinB]

Just kicking myself rather hard - I have taken the seats to Brockwells but on my return I suddenly realised how the mystery piece of wood and worm-eaten ply works. I had got it upside down! It is actually part of the seat back which covers the rear compartment where the side screens are kept. So its back to Brockwells to pick up the woodwork and re- make it properly.

[ColinB]

This looks more like it! The black wood is original as is the angled piece behind that covers the gap at the rear so this should be close to the original frame. The ply is a piece of marine ply I had left over from re-decking an enterprise dinghy many years ago.

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[ColinB]

Just fixed the throttle and brake return springs. Throttle arrangement is a little odd as the spring is fixed to a washer running along the rod to the carburettor. Foot brake spring goes under the floor onto the chassis. I made a rough bracket as the spring I had was slightly short. Pictures below for the record as it took me a while to find out how these went.

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[ColinB]

Rear seats are already done - I'll pick them up on Monday. I spent a happy couple of hours today making my missing magneto lever from a billet of aluminium I got on eBay for £4. Its not exactly matching but looks OK on the car. Key item was a tapered reamer (also eBay!) which allowed me to make the tapered hole to match that on the steering column. The rest of the shaping was by angle grinder, bench grinder then files and emery cloth. Quite satisfying work for a cold morning. Pictures show the first rough cut, an intermediate stage and the final item in position. And yes the other one was already broken although you can hardly see it on the first picture! Another thing to fix - hopefully I can carefully drill through it and epoxy-in a strengthening rod.

[ColinB]

Seats.

[ColinB]

Really bad news on my magneto - the Bakelite supporting the rotor has cracked away leaving the contact waving about. I have no idea if I can get spares or whether I can repair it. I'll get on to Magneto Mel in Boston (Lincolnshire) to see if he can help. In a distributor it would simply require an new rotor arm but this seems to be more of a built-in part.

[ColinB]

Actually quite good news on the magneto: Mel confirmed it was still working fine after we screwed the rotor back into place with its existing small bolt where it sits quite firmly. I will use epoxy putty to recreate the shape around it as a belt and braces repair. I found a fragment of the broken part with 'Lucas' on it. They took over Rotax in the late 1920s apparently and although parts for Lucas magnetos don't fit mine it looks as if Lucas continued to make spares for Rotax items branded as Lucas. Mel is on the hunt for me.

Despite the confirmation that the mag is fine she stubbornly refused to start. I thought I had the timing wrong and had the mag on and off like the proverbial to make small tweaks. Finally I took out a plug and to my surprise it wasn't wet. Fuel! Having blown through the jets in the carburettor off she went - the rotor was clearly happy even in its temporary condition! I was able to use my home-made hand throttle lever in earnest for the first time to blip the revs.

The icing on the cake was when I switched into Charge mode and the ammeter swung into action. What a good day!

On the recommendation of the upholsterer at Brockwells I have purchased some oil tempered hardboard for the new door cards which is my next big job. I have to get suited up for a company Do at the Ritz tonight but I'd rather stay in my overalls and carry on!

[mikeyr]

congrats on getting it running but i must say I am surprised you didn't know that a gasoline engine needs gasoline to run

I am anxiously waiting for my 2 weeks vacation in the garage over the holidays where I will make progress but nothing like the progress you have made.

[DarcyG]

I agree, great work, especially on the hand crafting job. Add some gold, brass paint, a touch of black or mission brown to add patina and you wouldn't know.

[ColinB]

Its always the obvious thing that gets you Mike! I suspect it was some small particles left in my new tank from its fabrication that blocked the carburettor. I had a similar chastening experience in my Series One Land Rover when the brake lights failed. I went through all the wiring about 10 times, checked the earths especially, checked the switch etc. Eventually I looked at the bulbs and they had both blown! I had put 6V bulbs into the system by mistake and although the sidelights were fine both brake light filaments had blown together.... Doh!

[ColinB]

Started work cutting out the door cards. I am using oil tempered hardboard which is very easy to cut cleanly with a jigsaw with a metal cutting blade. All cards cut out to the shape of the original pieces all of which came with the car. The only parts that don't seem to fit that well are those over the lower wheel arches by the rear seats but I think the covering pieces need to be packed out to clear the coach bolts and strengthening angle. I am waiting for adhesive before I have a trial on a small piece. I have also made the lower seat base supports from information supplied by members of the Singer Owner's Club.