New Project

For now, I lumped all the pre-war cars together, I would LOVE for there to be enough demand to split it into groups (hint...hint, post here about your pre-war Singer)
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mikeyr
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Re: New Project

Post by mikeyr »

DarcyG wrote: Should be finished inside of 6 months???? Or is 6 years!

I am not helping him, so 6 months, if i was helping it could not be done in 6 years.
Mike Rambour. Site Administrator
1953 Singer 4ADT (sold), 1934 Singer 9 Le Mans, 1934 Singer 1 1/2 4-Seater Sports (sold), 2009 BMW K1300GT
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

I'm not taking bets on how long! Good news today though - I took the head off to find the pistons were very clean. Diesel made no difference but I then heated some oil in an old saucepan on the barbeque and poured it into the cylinders. When I put a large lever on the starting handle and pulled, the engine turned over! I was delighted as this is a big milestone. No signs of rust inside the engine but the head gasket had been sealed with a significant quantity of blue sealant so it was a real pig to remove ( this stuff should be illegal). I'll see if the starter motor works so I can keep the engine moving from time to time. The valve gear is also very clean and oily. Hooray!
Head off.jpg
Valves.jpg
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

Starter motor works fine (12v positive earth) and the engine turns over with real attitude. I changed the oil first of course. If I can sort out a head gasket I'm sure she will fire up. I don't think I will remove the engine as a) I think I can paint it in situ and b) I have nowhere to put it!
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

I took the head to EASeals in Suffolk who took a rubbing of it. They will CAD up the design and laser cut a new gasket. Steve Cant of EAS observed that the head had been heavily skimmed so he has recommended a solid copper gasket to increase the volume of the chambers and to provide better definition of them.

I have managed to sell my Sprite body so the barn is available which is larger than the garage. So I plan to move Big Bertha into the barn and return Little Bea to her snug garage. In the barn I have room to take the body off and remove the engine if I need to. Colin Borley from the Singer club has recommended that the engine should be checked over for blocked oil ways after such a long layoff and I think that is good advice. Fortunately selling off the Sprite as parts has generated a budget and I may take it to the same engineers who overhauled my friend's engine.
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

I took the dash off today to have a better look at the instruments. Apart from the clock they don't look too bad. The biggest problem is that some previous idiot had tried to remove them by prying them out from the outside and has bent some of the chrome surrounds in the process. They have also bent the dash panel which is made of brass I think. There is nothing that can't be recovered but its a little frustrating to have to deal with someone else's heavy handed mistakes - my own are bad enough!
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Peter McKercher
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Re: New Project

Post by Peter McKercher »

Colin
Thank you for posting your project step by step. It's always exciting to discover the mysteries that lie beneath a project even if it isn't your own
Peter McKercher
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robroan
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Re: New Project

Post by robroan »

Hello Colin

I haven't been on here for a bit, great to see how the six is cleaning up, looking forward to nippin over soon !
I will introduce myself and start another thread on my project too, all very exciting !

Rob
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

Hello Rob - good to see you on the Forum. You are welcome to come over any time.

For the rest of the Forumers: Rob is restoring an early Singer and only lives about 10 miles away so we can meet up to share trials, tribulations and the odd triumph!
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

Just rummaging through a box of bits that came with the car I found the radiator badge. Unfortunately it has been damaged when I suspect someone tried to pry it off the car, but at least it is present and can be restored. It's vitreous enamel so may cost a few bob.... I also found what I think is the accelerator pedal - its a strange item with a roller rather than a pedal as we know it, but it fits the pictures in the original driver's manual. I have yet to work out how any linkages work from this pedal and the hand throttle to the carburettor, but that is half the fun.
Radiator badge.jpg
mikeC
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Re: New Project

Post by mikeC »

Nice to find the radiator badge; if it was mine, I would just clean it and touch in the missing enamel with black cellulose and a rigger brush.
1914 Saxon Model A; 1930 Morris Cowley; 1931 Austin Seven; 1953 Lancia Appia; 1967 Singer Chamois
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

I took the doors off today so I can think about removing the shell. The doors are in great shape and there are many nice details which it will be a pleasure to restore. The shell is in two pieces as the 'beak' over the screen has rotted so it won't be a big job to remove it. You can see the 'sag' in the longitudinal members that provide the foundation, which will require careful mapping and replacement with English ash.
Nice doors.jpg
Nice details.jpg
Sagging foundations.jpg
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

I wrote to Mr Geoff Rudd who sold the Light Six to John in 2014 and like a true gentleman he has replied. He bought her in around 1980 from Mr Kerr who bought her at auction, so he owned her for around 34 years. Apparently Mr Kerr owned a garage and had the new pistons installed and new white metal applied to the bearings. Other than two short starts by Geoff, one as recently as 2014 , she has never run since the rebuild.
I am very optimistic that she will run again very soon - as soon as the new head gasket appears I will reassemble the engine and start her up.
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

My Junior and the Light Six have swapped homes as the Junior fits very easily into our garage but there is little room around the Light Six and nowhere to put the body. Little Bea drove herself around of course but Big B required some muscle - I sat inside with my back to the scuttle and pushed with my legs through the missing floor, while my wife steered and lugged on the wheels. Phew! She is now thankfully in another building we call the barn which has more headroom and a place for the body (after I have tidied up a bit). I plan to remove all the body fixings, add some temporary framing and try and lift it off in one piece. As usual I will lubricate some friends to obtain the necessary lifting muscle.
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mikeC
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Re: New Project

Post by mikeC »

Well lubricated friends are a wonderful asset :lol:
1914 Saxon Model A; 1930 Morris Cowley; 1931 Austin Seven; 1953 Lancia Appia; 1967 Singer Chamois
ColinB
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Re: New Project

Post by ColinB »

I can't cope without them Mike!
I realised that the scuttle was barely connected to the rest of the body, so I bolted a couple of planks across the body, moved the rear section back a little, and lifted the scuttle off, having first removed the steering wheel and steering box. The rear section is quite light but a bit unstructured so I will wait until Friday when I am meeting some friends at the local lubrication centre (The Swan Inn) and will manage I'm sure to get them enthused with the idea of lifting the rear section off. The bulkhead had what is to me a novel connection - two parts bolted together gripped a flange around the fuel tank and its support. I cut off the nuts with the angle grinder and the bulkhead slid up quite easily.
1 Floor supports.JPG
1 Tank.JPG
1 Bulkhead and scuttle.JPG
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