Bob,
Part 1. No advice
Part 2. I installed the TRF leather kit and found it to be very
difficult to pull the seat back material tight enough to remove all of
the wrinkles. It took two people really pulling hard, to get it tight
enough. I had replaced all of the plywood nail strips in the seat
pans. I found some 3/16ths plywood and cut it so that the ply that was
on the "outside" of the curve or horizontal, and that left only one
vertical ply. (This is a little difficult to explain, but when I bent
the wood, I of course didn't want it to break, so I oriented the ply
so as to minimize the stress on the plywood.) Replacing the wood
allowed us to use steel carpet tacks. I bought a tack hammer with a
magnetic tack holder, and it made the job possible. The carpet tacks
have not pulled out anywhere so far.
The results of the reupholster job is nearly perfect. One piece of
advise. Use brush-on contact cement. I tried to use the 3M heavy-duty
spray-on and was not satisfied. I ended up redoing some of my work
with DAP Weldwood Contact Cement, and that worked!
Part 3. I recently got my TR3 engine running after doing most of what
you mentioned in your message, about two and a half years ago. I took
all of the engine parts subject to heavy wear and the block to a large
local machine shop for them to evaluate. They measured every thing and
came back with their recommendations. They said that the crank needed
to be turned 0.010 or maybe it was 0.020. But in any case there was
wear. They said that the cam and lifters needed to be resurfaced, but
not replaced. The rocker shaft was shot and all of the rockers needed
new bushings, and one of them needed to be resurfaced also.
I purchased all of the parts needed from Moss and/or TRF and they
installed them. I had them boil out the block, R and R the cam
bearings and do all of their recommended machine work. They installed
my new 87 mm pistons and gudgeon pins on the old rods, which were ok.
resurfaced all of the valve gear and cam plus I had them resurface the
flywheel. They installed hardened valve seats and had to replace a
couple of valve springs and a valve or two, they supplied those parts.
I had the clutch rebuilt by a local brake and clutch rebuilder that
was recommended by a local TR racer. They installed a new TO bearing.
(They recently did a reline of my brake fluid soaked, rear brake
shoes.) Using this kind of shop, if you can find them, is a very cheap
way to go!!
All of the above work totaled less than $3000.00 not counting the
parts. I didn't have the engine balanced nor did I replace the oil
pump with a rebuilt one, although I wish I had. However, the engine
runs like a top. It idles very smoothly, winds up quickly and seems to
have no redline, which has scared me a little now and then, as I only
have a few hundred miles on it. It has great oil pressure!
Other than the above "wish I hads" it was a great rebuild! I am very
happy with all of the engine work and that part of the TRs
restoration.
Good luck and YMMV and NFI.
Jim Bauder
'58 TR3
Palo Alto, CA
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