Winter strikes. Work stops!
Progress has stalled on the Riley specials for the moment. We have had Christmas and New year festivities to contend with, and the weather has turned very nasty. … We currently have temperatures of 6 degrees below freezing, snow and ice. … Its so cold in the garage I can see my breath.
I`ve managed a few little jobs. .. Reconditioned the brake actuating parts on the Merlin back axle being prepared for the Sprite chassis. These are similar to the wheel cylinders you would find on a more modern car with hydraulic drum brakes. The difference being the Riley ones are mechanically operated by rods. … Reconning these was a matter of completely dismantling, cleaning all parts, greasing all moving parts and ensuring clearances were within reasonable tolerance, and that they operated as they should. Smoothly and without excessive play. … In fact the whole axle has now been cleaned, checked, painted, etc, etc. (Checking the differential and ensuring the right amount of backlash, checking half shafts, oil seals, etc, deserves more of a “write-up”, but mebe later).
Anyway, while I`m at a point of slow progress with the Rileys, I thought I would tell you about my motorsport plans for the 2010 season. (Rileys won`t be finished). …. I`m planning another season of hillclimbs and sprints in the MG Car Club, Luffield Speed Champonship. A great series of events offering the opportunity to compete at such venues as Prescott Hillclimb, Aintree sprint, Silverstone sprint, Harewood Hillclimb, Shelsley Walsh, Curborough Sprint, Loton Park Hillclimb, and many more great venues. …. I will be competing in the Standard car class in a MG Midget 1500, (rubber bumper model).
Now, Midget 1500`s are not a particularly sought after model by classic MG enthusiasts, but to my mind are a decent basis for a MG roadgoing competition car. … Consider this: They tend to be much cheaper than the more sought after chrome bumper 1275cc cars. In standard trim they out-performed the chrome bumper cars, (top speed 102mph against the 96mph CB cars, and acceleratedfaster to 60mph). … If you remove the huge metal girders that are lurking behind the rubber bumpers, power to weight ratio improves dramatically! Lower and stiffen the ride height in line with the earlier CB cars, add a 4 branch exhaust manifold, decent air filters, tune the twin su`s with decent jets and needles and you have a lively car that is within rules and regs for the standard car class. …. A lively competition car that can be used on the road in the summer months. … I try not to be too snobbish about vintage and classic cars. The MG Midget is a very humble car compared to the Rileys. …. But there is really no comparison, (they were built 40 years apart!). The Midget is great fun for little money!
There are a few other mods needed to satisfy scrutineers for competition. Fitting a fire exstinguisher, making sure the bulkhead between engine and driver is fireproof, (no holes, etc), roll bar, tow eyes, etc. But nothing difficult, and mainly sensible safety mods you would want even for general road use.
Anyway, from time to time I may put articles about the midget on this blog just to get away from the Rileys for a change!
MG Midget 1500
Midget 1500 (rubber bumper)
Taking stock of progress
Every so often whe restoring an old car it is necessary to take a step back, review whats been done, and plan the next phase. I have now reached the stage where all of the obvious and relatively easy work is done. …Stripping, cleaning, painting & reassembling. General assembling and getting the major components into place.
Now for a bit of problem solving! What to do about a waterpump for the Riley 9 chassis with 12/4 engine & gearbox. The engine has no pump fitted. A standard 12/4 type pump is very expensive, (several hundred pounds), and it takes a lot of room at the front of the engine and makes it difficult to fit the radiator as far back in the chassis as I would like. …. I`ve heard about a Ford pump that can be fitted at the side of the engine and belt driven from the pulley on the timing cover, (driven by the exhaust camshaft). … I`m going to investigate this and will put my findings in a later blog entry.
I also need to find a back axle for the other, (Sprite like chassis), now that I know the wide track axle I have won`t fit the narrow track chassis. (I found a cheap post war RMA axle and bought it on spec, but it is far to wide in the track so I won`t be using it).
I have spent about a week sorting out a set of wheels & tyres for the Riley 9 chassis project. … There was a set of wheels with this car, but they had suffered through poor storage. They had been respoked, tensioned & trued, but had areas of surface rust & chipped paint, etc. …. I have spent a week checking, cleaning, de-rusting. I have removed tyres & tubes. Re-enamelled the wheels and refitted tyres with new tubes, and fitted the wheels to the rolling chassis. … This project is now sitting on good wheels which will enable me to start planning coachwork. … I just need to flatten the rear springs a little. They have the chassis sitting a little high now that the heavy saloon body that it once carried has gone, but that will be included in a later blog.
This is my first ever post on my first ever blog
This is my first ever post on my first ever blog. I’m more familiar with vintage cars than computers! This blog will be about the restoration of various pre-war Riley cars that are currently lying around in my garage & other sheds/hiding places. …. It started like this: I owned the remains of a 1936 Riley Kestrel which I intended using as the basis for a pre-war special for road use and some light competition (Vintage Sports Car Club sprints & hillclimbs). Because I was short of some parts I placed an advertisement in the Riley Register newsletter for “Riley parts wanted”. … I was contacted by a chap in Sommerset who had a collection of parts in a farmers barn gathering dust & rust! To cut a long story short, I bought the entire contents of the barn and now have parts to build more than one Riley special! … More of this later.
About the Author
Phil Smith is a vintage car enthusiast with many years experience of owning, restoring and using vintage, PVT and classic cars. A longstanding member of The Vintage Sports Car Club (VSCC), The Riley register and The MG Car Club. Makes he has owned include Alvis, Bentley, Lagonda, MG, Talbot and Riley, of course. Now retired, Phil satisfies his 'old motor urges' by competing in the MGCC Luffield Speed series in MG Midgets from the 60's and 70's. This blog will chart his return to vintage/PVT cars.
Categories
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E-mail: philsmith432[at]hotmail[dot]com