More parts news.

Time sure flies this time of year! This long winter has been prolonging any real progress on the car. Since I cannot move her, she stays put. But Mother Nature is finally starting to cooperate! I am still working on sorting parts so when I do work on the car, it will save time and aggravation later.

I got a present from John the other day! He dropped off this new old stock window frame chrome piece that he found while cleaning out a friend's barn.

 

That was great because the one I have has blemished over time.

 

A couple posts ago I put out a request for parts. John Elwood from the BMC1100 Google group I am a member of sent me this seal retainer plate. I cleaned it, painted it, primered it, and cut out the foam. This will nearly complete the hand brake assembly. Thank you so much, John!!

 

That auction site has not treated me so well. Nobody is even looking at the parts I put up at dirt cheap prices just to get rid of them.

 

I also sold the sway bar. It went out to Oregon to be installed on a 1968 Austin 1100. But, warmer weather is finally in the forecast. I am looking forward to getting out of the winter doldrums.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

A trip to the shop

After my post from last week, I was sent a message asking if I have been “working on any parts to refurbish them”. Since Old Biddy’s progress has stalled for the next couple weeks, the answer is YES. I like to keep busy so the momentum does not stop on this project even if I am not working directly on the car itself.

I got a chance to go to my friend Daryl’s high school Tech Ed shop and do some work. I brought the rear arm and a chunk of the rusted out sub-frame to which it was attached.

 

The nut on the inside was frozen and I had to hack away at the frame in order to get it separated.

 

I broke my own cardinal rule by not taking a picture of me using the right angle grinder with sparks flying. But after about an hour of hacking away, it finally separated.

 

The end cap has a frozen bolt also. I wanted to separate that, too, but the school’s torch ran out of acetylene gas to heat it up.

 

 

 

 

I snapped away what I could of the rusty sub-frame remnant. The rest will have to wait.

 

 

I then turned my attention to the “parts in the box”; the other end cap, and the hardware to attach the rear anti-sway anti-roll bar.

 

I got to use my favorite machine in the shop, the sandblaster! I love to sandblast. It is very satisfying and I can just zone out and think about other things while I am cleaning parts. It is therapeutic.

 

They came out nice.

 

So I brought them home and primered them. I kept the other rusty end cap in the picture for a before/after comparison. The locking tabs are very brittle so I left them "as is".

 

This week I have a couple other things I would like to do. Parts are going up for sale on eBay…but not selling, even at the rock bottom prices that I put them up for. I know I will not make a profit, I just want them gone!

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy

Parts I have, Parts I need.

The past two weeks have been dedicated to parts inventory. I wanted to know what I had and what I still needed. I cannot do much work on Old Biddy until the weather gets a bit warmer outside and I can roll her out of the corner of the garage. At that point, it will be back to work disassembling things to get her ready for Chris’s shop. First, here is what I have.

Part I, the rusty stuff that needs to be refurbished. Mostly rear end bits; a couple hydrolastic bags, an arm (the other one will be the topic of my next blog post), a trunk (boot) lid torsion spring, and a set of auxillary springs.

 

Part II, the mostly restored stuff. Mostly front end bits: both upper and lower control arms, trunk (boot) lid arms, an anti-sway anti-roll stabilizer bar, a front motor mount, and a fuel filler tube. All this stuff has been on eBay for real cheap just to get rid of it…but as you can see, even at listing them for $0.99…

 

This week I have a couple more things I am listing such as the Austin America headliner loop hangers.

 

And, I am going to try putting this anti-sway anti-roll stabilizer bar up again. Say prayers and cross your fingers that they go to a better home!!

 

In my last post I mentioned a couple parts that I desperately needed. Well, here is one more. This part is keeping me from installing the dashboard. Look at the bottom part of the dashboard under the speedometer. Follow the holes from left to right across the dashboard. There should be a long, black pad there. Once I get that pad and install it, the whole dash can be set in place for good.

 

This coming week I will be going back to my friend, Daryl’s high school Tech Ed shop to do some work on the rear suspension arm I mentioned earlier.

Thanks for visiting.

Toddy