[Nobbc] TRs and big engines

[Scott Irwin]

Hi Rich,
  Don't ride with the club much, but I wanted to tell you I've done a 
similar thing to my Spitfire.  You may want to consider sourcing a cyl head 
from a Toledo.  These have larger valves than the Spitfire heads and go well 
with the 9:1 pistons.  Also look very carefully at the space between cyl 2 
and 3 on the head for erosion.  It's very small and a good spot to blow the 
head gasket (voice of experience).  The symptom is no compression at all on 
2 and 3, but also no fluid mixing.  You can mate a 1300 intake system with 
dual 1.25 SU's OK, or find the home market dual 1.5 SU system, or weberise 
the single carb manifold to good results.

 The overdrive will require a shorter driveshaft and a bit of tunnel removed 
to get to the u-joint.  I used a shop in Santa Rosa to re-pipe my 
driveshaft.  The speedo cable is also longer and uses a right angle adapter 
off the tranny.  God luck with it all.

Scott
'65 Spitfire

--------------------------------------------------
From: <rlmossholder at comcast.net>
Sent: Friday, March 19, 2010 9:07 AM
To: "North Bay British Car Club" <nobbc at autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: [Nobbc] TRs and big engines

> Hi Greg,
>
>
>
> B  That Busa V8 was what I'd do to the spitfire if I win the lotto. Did 
> you
> watch the video of the dyno test? The sound of that engine is 
> astonishing!B
>
>
>
> B  Well, I found the main problemB with the Spitfire that kept me from
> participating in any of the rides. The stupid previous owner installed a 
> bolt
> from under the car in the transmission. This bolt served as the fulcrum 
> for
> the clutch throw-out yolk. Since it was installed from underneath with a
> standard nut, over time, the nut worked loose and the bolt fell out. I
> couldn't see the bolt location because the exhaust pipe blocked the view. 
> I
> found this after removing the engine, of course. Since I had the engine 
> out I
> decided to rebuild it all. All the engine bearings were shot as well as 
> the
> pistons and cam. The head had an unusual burn pattern. cylinders 1&4 were
> running rich, 2&3 were lean. I thought this was strange since I only have 
> one
> carb . Maybe it's a function of the intake manifold? I purchased a
> J-typeB overdrive transmission for $400, not a bad deal. I will tear that 
> down
> next time I go up to my Dad's shop. The engine block and head have been 
> taken
> to the machine shop. We are going to useB .030 overB European spec flat
> topB pistons. That will bump up the compression ratio from 7.1 to 9.1 and 
> add
> a little HP to the mix as well.B  The main goal is to build a reliable 
> engine
> with a little more power. We are balancing everything and adding roller
> rockers too.
>
>
>
> B  John Kenner has given me aB bonnet which I am modifying. I always 
> thought
> it would look good with a hood scoop, so I've cutB itB out andB will be
> weldingB that soon. I also want to move the headlights back farther in the
> fenders with the perspex lens covers like the Le Mans Spitfires of the
> '60s.B Not sure how to do that yet. I want to fill in the seams and smooth
> things out a bit too. The fender seam has always looked odd to me. It just
> dies into the door with no continuity to the rest of the body. B I will 
> also
> be removing the bulky side marker/reflectors, and replacing them with 3/4"
> round LED markers with chrome bezels.B  I am , however, keeping the 
> original
> bonnet in tact.
>
>
>
> Have a great ride this weekend. Hope to see you all soon.
>
> Rich
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