Scott:
Can't you just move the rocker to one side on the B, rather
than having to looses the whole shaft. It may be necesary to
back the adjuster *into* the rocker, but as I remember it should
be possible. Of course I could be confusing my mental pitures
of A-series, B-Series and Kent valve trains.
Unfortunately, even if I'd thought of that at the time (:-), I
don't think it could have worked. Even when I'd backed the rocker
adjuster all the way loose, the valve was still depressed enough
that the cup on the top of the pushrod was still firmly ensconced
over the ball on the adjuster. The pressure was enough that I
couldn't move the rocker in any direction.
In any case, the fix only took six minutes after I slept on it
and attacked it with a fresh mind. (Well, and another ten or
so to retorque the head.)
BTW, on the way to work yesterday I realized that the last thing
I'd left undone was to refill the dashpots with oil. Upon arriving
home, I topped them both up -- they were completely dry, just short
of emitting a puff of dust when I unscrewed the caps.
It is worth noting that having oil in the dashpots of the carbs
makes a more noticeable difference in drivability than replacing
the head gasket and having a valve job... Of course, the work
wasn't wasted, as the obvious hole in my old gasket shows, but this
just serves as further evidence that British cars work in spite
of their specifications, while Italian cars fail in spite of theirs.
--Scott
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