What to do next.

This week was a week of cleaning Old Biddy, re-organizing, and prioritizing the tasks that need to be done before the cold weather sets in. Here is the Punch List of parts that need to be found (and bought) and tasks.

 

But first, I had to vacuum her out. Just had to!

 

Then the Lucas RB340 voltage regulator needed to be swapped out.

 

The reason was because of this…the resistor on the back side broke. John had a spare that he gave me.

 

I decided to install the long trim pieces that snap onto the roof channel. I wanted to get them in place before something damaged them. Before…

 

After…the passenger side.

 

And, the driver side. A quick ten minute job that may have prevented a headache later on.

 

The next things that need to be done are mechanical. After the old handbrake cable is replaced with the new one…

 

I can concentrate on installing the fabricated instrument sub-panel (and parcel shelf) so the dashboard can be buttoned up.

 

Since Old Biddy lives in “the shed” now, I have to focus on getting the windshield put in before winter. The next few weeks will be geared towards doing all the stuff that has to get done before that can happen. All I need is some rare, uninterrupted spare time.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

OLD BIDDY COMES HOME!!

After four and a half months, Old Biddy has been released from the hospital!! Chris installed the fuel, brake, and clutch lines, and restored the hydrolastic suspension system...and a few other things. We went down to get her from Chris’s yesterday. We saw her sitting out in his driveway.

 

It started to rain so we were in a hurry to get her home, therefore there are no pictures. Sitting on a milk crate, I actually drove her up onto the trailer. We brought her home and it stopped raining for about five minutes so I took this picture. Then it started to pour!!

 

After we unloaded her, she was put into her new home in “the shed”. Since she was all dusty and spotted from the rain, I went out to give her some love today.

 

My goal is to have the dashboard all buttoned up and the windshield installed before winter comes. Notice the key is in the ignition. She starts the "right way" now not by hotwiring her!!

 

Here is just one box of parts for the laundry list of items that need to be installed now that she is home.  I do not have to worry about what I can and cannot do to her anymore because all the “hard stuff” is done.

 

I also have to make a list of the remaining items that need to be found and bought to finish her. That will be addressed in the next post. AAHHHH, now I can do what I like to do best...the finish work!

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Sorting and trimming.

It has been a very busy month. I have not been to see Old Biddy since last posting. But little by little in the tiny bits of free time I have had, I have been gathering the chrome trim strips for cleaning and sorting.

I found what I could and unwrapped the tapes that bundled and secured them together.

 

A couple were slightly damaged and may be able to get “massaged” back to being acceptable.

 

I was stressing over finding the door trim/window chrome and the fuzzy glazing, as I thought they were lost when the car was painted. But to my relief I found them. I have new rubber strips that need to be cut to length.

 

But the fuzzy glazing strips are shot so I will definitely need new ones.

 

It took about an hour and a half to polish the strips back to a nice shine (including the long strips that attach to the roof channels not shown here).  I will still need to make all the necessary dent repairs since finding the actual trim piece I need is nearly impossible.

 

And I also found two NOS strips that someone gave me as a gift. Complete with the BMC certificate of authenticity!! The original strips these will replace are in good condition...just aged with a patina. Once the 50 year old tape is stripped, the half century old sticky glue residue will have to be removed and then the chrome will be polished..

 

And, I collected all the trunk (boot) lid bits and pieces together. I was feeling lazy and did not dig out the new MG badge from the other side of the cellar but I know where it is. I will have to clean and paint this body latch as it is rusty.

 

Here are the only two surviving original fasteners. Now I just need to find a couple dozen correct new ones. Lucky I have these to compare new ones with.

 

 

I will have a progress report on Old Biddy by this weekend. I do have to purchase a new hand brake cable as the original one was unfixable. We are planning to start her for the first time!! I may have to learn how to do a video!!

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy