From bill at gingerich.us Mon Oct 1 22:02:20 2007 From: bill at gingerich.us (Bill Gingerich) Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 23:02:20 -0500 Subject: [Spits] Clutch resolution Message-ID: <002901c804a9$089955f0$057e1340@shack2> Greetings, All! A couple of weeks ago I had posted about the clutch problem I was experiencing with my '74 Spit. I suspected that I'd lost the clutch arm pivot pin, and had tried to replace it with a bolt without removing the gearbox. Several of you suggested that perhaps the arm wasn't positioned properly when I installed the bolt. You were absolutely correct in your analysis. I was finally able to get the gearbox out of the car this last weekend. The bolt missed the arm pivot hole completely. Once I got the bolt back out, and everything lined up I was able to put the bolt in correctly. With the gearbox back in, the clutch works as it should. It's amazing how well you can fix something when you can actually see what you're fixing. One last comment: This is the first time I've tried taking the gearbox out of the car. What a pain! The worst thing is I get to do it again this winter when I do the OD conversion. I hope to have help then. Thanks again to all for the help! You folks are great. Bill Gingerich #133 Newalla, OK '74 Spitfire Lazarus that actually drives again From jimmuller at rcn.com Tue Oct 2 07:12:20 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Tue, 02 Oct 2007 09:12:20 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Clutch resolution In-Reply-To: <002901c804a9$089955f0$057e1340@shack2> Message-ID: <47020B74.10561.3F0DE5B@localhost> On 1 Oct 2007 at 23:02, Bill Gingerich wrote: > One last comment: This is the first time I've tried taking the gearbox out > of the car. What a pain! The worst thing is I get to do it again this > winter when I do the OD conversion. I hope to have help then. Congrats on the fix. As for pulling the gearbox, it gets easier. As for the OD one, that gets harder. The OD adds a significant amount of weight. Muscling it in and out is much harder. Having another body to help will help. Another person isn't essential but it does help. Consider yourself forewarned. -- Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com '80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+ -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.39/1044 - Release Date: 10/2/2007 11:10 AM From mchmura at umassp.edu Tue Oct 2 14:15:09 2007 From: mchmura at umassp.edu (Chmura, Mike) Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2007 16:15:09 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Inconsistent Fuel Gauge Readings Question Message-ID: Good afternoon listers, Before I get into the issue I'm experiencing I want to let folks know that I have used the archive info to install a new sender unit in the tank, which seems to be working. I didn't see anything in the archive that describes my particular problem. So here goes. All electrical items in the car appear to work fine including the Temp Gauge, which I believe is in line with the Fuel Gauge, at least according to the schematic. When I start the Spit up the fuel gauge needle moves and gives me a reading which I believe is pretty accurate, knowing how much I drive and when the last time I got gas was. The problem occurs after about 15 minutes or so of driving the car, when the needle in the gauge drops back to empty. One time after driving longer the gauge came back to life and was fine that day. Most of the time once the needle in the gauge drops down to empty it never reads correctly again even across engines starts and stops driving that day. It seems to want to really settle like over-night before the gauge comes back to life again. Like I said, the Temp Gauge continues to operate fine during this whole time Sorry for the long winded description but I can't figure out if this is an electrical related issue or a physical one. Thx in advance for all the expert advice. -Mike Chmura 78 Spitfire From w4eae at netzero.net Tue Oct 2 15:48:00 2007 From: w4eae at netzero.net (Gene Eighmy) Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2007 16:48:00 -0500 Subject: [Spits] Inconsistent Fuel Gauge Readings Question In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <000601c8053d$e86f95b0$6601a8c0@KDKA> It sounds like a loose ground on the fuel sender... 1. Check the voltage between the Chassis and the Black wire of the sender (should be 0 volts. If it's greater than 0, then you have and loose ground) 2. Check voltage between chassis and the Green/Black wire of the sender (should be around 9 -10 volts for a full tank) 3. Check voltage between chassis and the Green/Black wire of the gauge (should be around 9 -10 volts for a full tank) 4. Since your temperature gauge is working, I doubt it is the voltage stabilizer but check the voltage from chassis to the light green wire of the gauge. It should be 10 volts. Gene Eighmy Birmingham, AL > > Before I get into the issue I'm experiencing I want to let folks know > that I have used the archive info to install a new sender unit in the > tank, which seems to be working. I didn't see anything in the archive > that describes my particular problem. So here goes. All electrical > items in the car appear to work fine including the Temp Gauge, which I > believe is in line with the Fuel Gauge, at least according to the > schematic. > > > > When I start the Spit up the fuel gauge needle moves and gives me a > reading which I believe is pretty accurate, knowing how much I drive and > when the last time I got gas was. The problem occurs after about 15 > minutes or so of driving the car, when the needle in the gauge drops > back to empty. One time after driving longer the gauge came back to > life and was fine that day. Most of the time once the needle in the > gauge drops down to empty it never reads correctly again even across > engines starts and stops driving that day. It seems to want to really > settle like over-night before the gauge comes back to life again. > Like I said, the Temp Gauge continues to operate fine during this whole > time From jimmuller at rcn.com Tue Oct 2 17:13:51 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Tue, 02 Oct 2007 19:13:51 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Inconsistent Fuel Gauge Readings Question In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <4702986F.19788.6179135@localhost> On 2 Oct 2007 at 16:15, Chmura, Mike wrote: > All electrical items in the car appear to work fine including > the Temp Gauge, which I believe is in line with the Fuel Gauge, > at least according to the schematic. I'm pretty sure you must mean in parallel with the Temp Gauge, not in line with it! > The problem occurs after about 15 minutes or so of driving > the car, when the needle in the gauge drops back to empty. Your problem is, you are driving much too hard. Or else you need to buy gas in larger incements. Spitfire or no, buying gas by the pint won't get you very far. > One time after driving longer the gauge came back to > life and was fine that day. Well, obviously you stopped to buy gas sometime during that day, didn't you? Seriously though, it sounds like a carburettor problem, which is to say, it is electrical. I don't recall with confidence whether the fule guage (note the proper spellings) reads full with lower resistance or higher resistance, so I can't say whether an empty reading means a short or an open circuit. But IIRC correctly it means an open circuit. You have a bad connection somewhere, anywhere from the voltage source all the way back to the sender. The apparent correlation to driving time might be due to drying up water than had condensed into a connector diring the night. That may be a clue as to where to look. -- Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com '80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+ -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.39/1044 - Release Date: 10/2/2007 11:10 AM From jimmuller at rcn.com Tue Oct 2 20:07:15 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Tue, 02 Oct 2007 22:07:15 -0400 Subject: [Spits] that 48-state capitol tour Message-ID: <4702C113.21100.6B6521B@localhost> I just finished reading the last installment of Dan Herrman's 40- State Capitol Tour story, published in three parts in Spitfire & GT6 Magazine. It must have been quite an adventure! 15,000 miles, 63 days, visiting and photographing all 48 continental US state capitol buildings. (See http://www.redeyewi.com/.) It made me want to do it myself. I drove some of those roads back 1970, the summer after my college graduation. That trip was a 10,000 mile tour of the country from Virginia to California and back with my twin brother and two friends in a VW bus. Took a lot of similar pictures but we weren't interested in capitol buildings. A few things about Dan H's trip stuck me as curious, car-wise. He mentioned all the oil changes and break fluif checks and tire checks and plug swaps and carb mixture tweaking for elevation. But he never mentioned setting the valves or the ignition timing. O' course, if he had electronic ignition the timing wouldn't need checking, but the valves would. Also I wonder how good his seats were! 15,000 miles in my Spitfire seats would be a pain in the butt, literally. Damn, I wish I had the time and the money and the patience to do a trip like that again... Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.39/1044 - Release Date: 10/2/2007 11:10 AM From ptegler at cablespeed.com Tue Oct 2 20:43:17 2007 From: ptegler at cablespeed.com (ptegler at cablespeed.com) Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2007 22:43:17 -0400 Subject: [Spits] that 48-state capitol tour References: <4702C113.21100.6B6521B@localhost> Message-ID: <014201c80567$27d3c720$0201a8c0@dragonlair> Dan! I just took a look at the 'extra' pics you took in Annapolis (MD capital) You took one pic at the top of Main St, right in front of the Treaty of Paris Restaurant. A very good friend of mine is(was) the executive chef of the establishment for nearly 10 years! I wish I had known you were in the area. From my driveway to Main St is only about 15 minutes! Paul Tegler ptegler at cablespeed.com www.teglerizer.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim Muller" To: Sent: Tuesday, October 02, 2007 10:07 PM Subject: [Spits] that 48-state capitol tour >I just finished reading the last installment of Dan Herrman's 40- > State Capitol Tour story, published in three parts in Spitfire & GT6 > Magazine. It must have been quite an adventure! 15,000 miles, 63 > days, visiting and photographing all 48 continental US state capitol > buildings. (See http://www.redeyewi.com/.) > > It made me want to do it myself. I drove some of those roads back > 1970, the summer after my college graduation. That trip was a 10,000 > mile tour of the country from Virginia to California and back with my > twin brother and two friends in a VW bus. Took a lot of similar > pictures but we weren't interested in capitol buildings. > > A few things about Dan H's trip stuck me as curious, car-wise. He > mentioned all the oil changes and break fluif checks and tire checks > and plug swaps and carb mixture tweaking for elevation. But he never > mentioned setting the valves or the ignition timing. O' course, if > he had electronic ignition the timing wouldn't need checking, but the > valves would. Also I wonder how good his seats were! 15,000 miles > in my Spitfire seats would be a pain in the butt, literally. > > Damn, I wish I had the time and the money and the patience to do a > trip like that again... > > Jim Muller > jimmuller at rcn.com > > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.39/1044 - Release Date: > 10/2/2007 11:10 AM > _______________________________________________ > ptegler at cablespeed.com > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From jimmuller at rcn.com Tue Oct 2 21:27:30 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:27:30 -0400 Subject: [Spits] that 48-state capitol tour In-Reply-To: <014201c80567$27d3c720$0201a8c0@dragonlair> Message-ID: <4702D3E2.15719.6FFCA8E@localhost> On 2 Oct 2007 at 22:43, ptegler at cablespeed.com wrote: > I wish I had known you were in the area. From my driveway to > Main St is only about 15 minutes! That same issue (#25) with part 3 of the states tour also has an article of yours, the FIS6 project. I haven't had time to read it yet, sorry, but the car looks to be nice! -- Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com '80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+ -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.39/1044 - Release Date: 10/2/2007 11:10 AM From bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk Wed Oct 3 03:02:32 2007 From: bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk (Bill Davies) Date: Wed, 3 Oct 2007 10:02:32 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an original part to measure? Message-ID: <20071003085401.8041E1879ED@autox.team.net> A customer recently suggested that the currently available doorglass outer weatherstrips, part number 612792, are shorter than the originals. These parts are either made on original tooling, or they are very convincing copies of the original in all details. The overall length of the current parts is 75cm. I have checked this out and found the strip is about 1.2cm (7/16"-1/2") shorter than the top of a Spitfire door. A set installed on a friend's Spitfire shows the same discrepancy. I have brought this up with the supplier, who says that none have been returned by any of the major traders they supply to. The official line is that the parts are the correct length. Before I make myself look foolish, I am trying to locate a Spitfire which still has it's original outer weatherstrips. Alternatively, if anyone has a new seal in original Stanpart or BL packaging, that would provide the correct dimension. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help with this. Cheers, Bill. Rarebits4classics .......just what you've been looking for PO Box 1232 Calne Wiltshire SN11 8WA United Kingdom http://www.rarebits4classics.co.uk From foxtrapper at aceweb.com Wed Oct 3 03:42:25 2007 From: foxtrapper at aceweb.com (Nolan) Date: Wed, 3 Oct 2007 05:42:25 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart to measure? References: <20071003085401.8041E1879ED@autox.team.net> Message-ID: <000601c805a1$b4d3ebc0$7029c40a@mde.state.md.us> No way are they made on the original tooling, nor are they a very convincing copy of the original. I am talking about the seals sold by TRF, I do not know about others. The reproduction seals are square edged, like wiper blades. The originals were rounded. This makes a tremendous difference to your arm as you drive with the windows down and your arm resting on the door top. The reproduction units have no flocking on the inner side. The original seals did. Without this flocking, the reproduction units tend to pull down with the glass when the window is lowered. I have not found the reproduction units to be shorter than original. Quite the opposite in fact, I had to trim them to fit. The reproduction units started to crack and stiffen within one year of installation. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bill Davies" To: "'Spitfire'" Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2007 5:02 AM Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart to measure? >A customer recently suggested that the currently available doorglass outer > weatherstrips, part number 612792, are shorter than the originals. These > parts are either made on original tooling, or they are very convincing > copies of the original in all details. The overall length of the current > parts is 75cm. > I have checked this out and found the strip is about 1.2cm (7/16"-1/2") > shorter than the top of a Spitfire door. A set installed on a friend's > Spitfire shows the same discrepancy. > I have brought this up with the supplier, who says that none have been > returned by any of the major traders they supply to. The official line is > that the parts are the correct length. Before I make myself look foolish, > I > am trying to locate a Spitfire which still has it's original outer > weatherstrips. Alternatively, if anyone has a new seal in original > Stanpart > or BL packaging, that would provide the correct dimension. > Thanks in advance to anyone who can help with this. > Cheers, > Bill. From bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk Wed Oct 3 04:29:42 2007 From: bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk (Rarebits) Date: Wed, 3 Oct 2007 11:29:42 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart to measure? In-Reply-To: <000601c805a1$b4d3ebc0$7029c40a@mde.state.md.us> Message-ID: <20071003102111.477CF1879D1@autox.team.net> Hi Nolan, > No way are they made on the original tooling, nor are they a very > convincing > copy of the original. I am talking about the seals sold by TRF, I do not > know about others. I don't know who supplies the seals to TRF, being in the UK I rarely get to see TRF product. > The reproduction seals are square edged, like wiper blades. The originals > were rounded. This makes a tremendous difference to your arm as you drive > with the windows down and your arm resting on the door top. This isn't familiar. Do the TRF seals have the shaped ends to match the skin? What about the two moulded humps on the inside face? > The reproduction units have no flocking on the inner side. The original > seals did. Without this flocking, the reproduction units tend to pull > down > with the glass when the window is lowered. Again, this points to a completely different product. > I have not found the reproduction units to be shorter than original. > Quite > the opposite in fact, I had to trim them to fit. That would confirm that the product TRF stocks does NOT come from the UK source I am querying. Cheers, Bill. Rarebits4classics .......just what you've been looking for PO Box 1232 Calne Wiltshire SN11 8WA United Kingdom http://www.rarebits4classics.co.uk From bdischer at blakedischer.com Thu Oct 4 06:01:54 2007 From: bdischer at blakedischer.com (Blake J. Discher) Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 08:01:54 -0400 Subject: [Spits] HUGE Donation for ABRR Kid's Charity Run Message-ID: <020301c8067e$5cf70e40$02fea8c0@bjdtr3a> Wow... I'm verklempt! In this morning's email was a note from a lister wishing to remain anonymous who will be making a $4,000 donation to the Wisconsin charity, The Center for Blind and Visually Impaired kids (http://www.cbvic.org/). The run's website: http://www.abrr.org. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Blake Discher, Event Organizer America's British Reliability Run Ph: 313-259-4460 ----- Part of my "Ain't to Proud to Beg" initial email... Come Saturday, 25 British cars will begin the fifth annual "America's British Reliability Run." This year there will be two groups participating in two different locations. One in the Wisconsin run, driving 800 miles in two days through Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Another group will drive the Ohio run, again driving 800 miles in two days through Ohio, Virginia and Maryland. In four years the run has raised more than $110,000 for children's charities! The charity for the Wisconsin run is the Center for Blind & Visually Impaired Children. The Center offers a coordinated program of educational intervention and prescribed therapies to infants and toddlers who are blind or visually impaired, including those with additional disabilities. Website: http://www.cbvic.org/. At the end of this run we'll all park our cars at the Center for an "It's OK to Touch" car show for the visually impaired kids! The charity for the Ohio run is Adventures for Wishkids, whose mission is to enrich the lives of children with life threatening illnesses and their families by providing year round, fun-filled group activities and destination events, fostering joy, laughter, normalcy and supportive networking opportunities. Web: http://www.afwkids.org/. One hundred percent of your donation goes to the charity, teams pay their own expenses out of pocket. In fact, your donation is made directly to the charity of your choice. Please help as you can - every little bit counts, and we welcome contributions large and small! You can donate by visiting the secure server site provided by our corporate sponsor, the Little British Car Company. Just follow this link: https://securemg.ipl.co.uk/lbcarco/mibrr.html to donate safely and securely online. Event web site: http://www.abrr.org. Your contribution is tax deductible. From llst at shaw.ca Fri Oct 5 22:36:47 2007 From: llst at shaw.ca (LT) Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 21:36:47 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? Message-ID: <470710DF.5040707@shaw.ca> A customer recently suggested that the currently available doorglass outer > weatherstrips, part number 612792, are shorter than the originals. These > parts are either made on original tooling, or they are very convincing > copies of the original in all details. The overall length of the current > parts is 75cm. I bought some from Spitbits a couple of years ago and they were too short as well. I did not put them on and just went out and measured them and they are 74.5 cm. I found an old one as well as another new one that came in a box of stuff and they measure in at 75.5. The metal part is the same length at 74.5 however the exposed rubber part extends out on both ends to make up the difference. Seems like the repros that I received have the rubber cut too short on the ends. Larry T From bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk Sat Oct 6 01:49:19 2007 From: bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk (Bill Davies) Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2007 08:49:19 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? In-Reply-To: <470710DF.5040707@shaw.ca> Message-ID: <20071006074045.846E21879E6@autox.team.net> Thanks Larry, That ties up with other measurements I've been given. I will make the effort to find out an original used seal in the UK, to show to the manufacturers. They claim that the short seals are correct, and that none of the major Triumph parts vendors has ever complained about their product......... Cheers, Bill. > -----Original Message----- > From: spitfires-bounces+bill=rarebits4classics.co.uk at autox.team.net > [mailto:spitfires-bounces+bill=rarebits4classics.co.uk at autox.team.net] On > Behalf Of LT > Sent: 06 October 2007 05:37 > To: spitfires at autox.team.net > Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an > originalpart , to measure? > > A customer recently suggested that the currently available doorglass outer > > weatherstrips, part number 612792, are shorter than the originals. These > > parts are either made on original tooling, or they are very convincing > > copies of the original in all details. The overall length of the current > > parts is 75cm. > > I bought some from Spitbits a couple of years ago and they were too short > as well. I did not put them on and just went out and measured them and > they are 74.5 cm. I found an old one as well as another new one that came > in a box of stuff and they measure in at 75.5. The metal part is the same > length at 74.5 however the exposed rubber part extends out on both ends to > make up the difference. Seems like the repros that I received have the > rubber cut too short on the ends. > > Larry T > _______________________________________________ > bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From ptegler at cablespeed.com Sat Oct 6 08:11:49 2007 From: ptegler at cablespeed.com (ptegler at cablespeed.com) Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2007 10:11:49 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? References: <470710DF.5040707@shaw.ca> Message-ID: <003a01c80822$d72956a0$0201a8c0@dragonlair> agreed. oems, (ones I've removed from cars that have never been replaced before) had the metal stop just short of the two window guides. The rubber was longer enough to tuck in behind the edge of the guides whereas the metal backing would not fit due to alignment issues. The rubber extended from edge to edge while the metal only extended from guide to guide. Paul Tegler ptegler at cablespeed.com www.teglerizer.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "LT" To: Sent: Saturday, October 06, 2007 12:36 AM Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? >A customer recently suggested that the currently available doorglass outer >> weatherstrips, part number 612792, are shorter than the originals. These >> parts are either made on original tooling, or they are very convincing >> copies of the original in all details. The overall length of the current >> parts is 75cm. > > I bought some from Spitbits a couple of years ago and they were too short > as well. I did not put them on and just went out and measured them and > they are 74.5 cm. I found an old one as well as another new one that came > in a box of stuff and they measure in at 75.5. The metal part is the same > length at 74.5 however the exposed rubber part extends out on both ends to > make up the difference. Seems like the repros that I received have the > rubber cut too short on the ends. > > Larry T > _______________________________________________ From jerry.stasyszen at sbcglobal.net Sat Oct 6 12:00:07 2007 From: jerry.stasyszen at sbcglobal.net (Jerry Stasyszen) Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2007 12:00:07 -0600 Subject: [Spits] Miata Seats In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> I have a set of Miata seats for sale if anyone is interested. These are already modified to fit a Spitfire and can be viewed at HYPERLINK "http://okcspitfire.atspace.com/77spit.htm"http://okcspitfire.atspace.com/77 spit.htm I also have a 71 Spit front bumper and windshield. Contact me off list if interested Jerry Stasyszen HYPERLINK "mailto:jerry.stasyszen at sbcglobal.net"jerry.stasyszen at sbcglobal.net No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.14.1/1050 - Release Date: 10/4/2007 5:03 PM From ebutschek at austin.rr.com Sat Oct 6 11:27:09 2007 From: ebutschek at austin.rr.com (Eric Butschek) Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2007 12:27:09 -0500 Subject: [Spits] plug gap for platinum plugs In-Reply-To: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> References: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> Message-ID: <820B9911DB2B4D3FAFB130C6552733B6@EricButschekPC> '78 Spitfire 1500 with original Lucas electronic ignition. I bought a set of Platinum plugs, NGK BPR5EGP. The box says Don't adjust the gap, as you might damage the little Platinum tip. The new ones are gapped at .035 My Haynes manual says .025 Do I: 1. Run them at .035 2. carefully adjust to .025 3. take 'em back and get regular plugs? Thanks. Eric, Austin Tx. From clarkfot at cwnicholls.net Sun Oct 7 14:28:19 2007 From: clarkfot at cwnicholls.net (Clark W. Nicholls) Date: Sun, 7 Oct 2007 16:28:19 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? In-Reply-To: <003a01c80822$d72956a0$0201a8c0@dragonlair> References: <470710DF.5040707@shaw.ca> <003a01c80822$d72956a0$0201a8c0@dragonlair> Message-ID: <00b001c80920$9adb0eb0$1342a8c0@semperon3400> I have 2 NOS weatherstrips for my 74 Spitfire I bought decades ago and never installed. It's a miracle I still know where to find them! The metal strip section that tucks in the door and is clipped to the door is 29.5" or about 75cm There is a slight step in the metal close to each end, about 1.25" in from the ends The segment that wipes against the glass is slightly longer at 75.65cm Clark -----Original Message----- From: spitfires-bounces+clarkfot=cwnicholls.net at autox.team.net [mailto:spitfires-bounces+clarkfot=cwnicholls.net at autox.team.net] On Behalf Of ptegler at cablespeed.com Sent: Saturday, October 06, 2007 10:12 AM To: LT; spitfires at autox.team.net Subject: Re: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? agreed. oems, (ones I've removed from cars that have never been replaced before) had the metal stop just short of the two window guides. The rubber was longer enough to tuck in behind the edge of the guides whereas the metal backing would not fit due to alignment issues. The rubber extended from edge to edge while the metal only extended from guide to guide. Paul Tegler ptegler at cablespeed.com www.teglerizer.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "LT" To: Sent: Saturday, October 06, 2007 12:36 AM Subject: [Spits] Outer doorglass weatherstrips - anyone have an originalpart , to measure? >A customer recently suggested that the currently available doorglass >outer >> weatherstrips, part number 612792, are shorter than the originals. >> These parts are either made on original tooling, or they are very >> convincing copies of the original in all details. The overall length >> of the current parts is 75cm. > > I bought some from Spitbits a couple of years ago and they were too > short as well. I did not put them on and just went out and measured > them and they are 74.5 cm. I found an old one as well as another new > one that came in a box of stuff and they measure in at 75.5. The metal > part is the same length at 74.5 however the exposed rubber part > extends out on both ends to make up the difference. Seems like the > repros that I received have the rubber cut too short on the ends. > > Larry T > _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ clarkfot at cwnicholls.net Spitfires at autox.team.net http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From bberger720 at sbcglobal.net Wed Oct 10 13:47:00 2007 From: bberger720 at sbcglobal.net (Bob Berger) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 14:47:00 -0500 Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi all, I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and the shop told me that one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is toed out. The wheel that is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in spec by moving the radius arm with 1 shim. The only problem is that they/I do not know enough about the spitfire rear end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or remove the shim. Can anyone tell me which I need? Thanks Bob Berger 78 Spitfire with new tires From zoboherald at aol.com Wed Oct 10 14:18:46 2007 From: zoboherald at aol.com (zoboherald at aol.com) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:18:46 -0400 Subject: [Spits] [TR] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <8C9D991E56261E5-6B4-5118@MBLK-M16.sysops.aol.com> -----Original Message----- From: Bob Berger Hi all, I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and the shop told me that one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is toed out. The wheel that is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in spec by moving the radius arm with 1 shim. The only problem is that they/I do not know enough about the spitfire rear end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or remove the shim. Can anyone tell me which I need? ==AM== Logic tells me that adding a shim, which is done between the radius arm mount and the body, would increase toe-OUT (or decrease toe-IN). --Andy Mace *Mrs Irrelevant: Oh, is it a jet? *Man: Well, no ... It's not so much of a jet, it's more your, er, Triumph Herald engine with wings. -- Cut-price Airlines Sketch, Monty Python's Flying Circus (22) Check out the North American Triumph Sports 6 (Vitesse 6) and Triumph Herald Database at its new URL: ________________________________________________________________________ Email and AIM finally together. You've gotta check out free AOL Mail! - http://mail.aol.com From clarkfot at cwnicholls.net Wed Oct 10 14:20:55 2007 From: clarkfot at cwnicholls.net (Clark W. Nicholls) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:20:55 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <007101c80b7b$1223d400$1342a8c0@semperon3400> If you add a shim between the radius arm and the frame you will increase your toe out or decrease your toe in. Visualize: Toe in is the amount the tire tries to steer/roll towards the center of the car, toe out is the amount the tire tries to roll away from the center of the car while driving forward. Clark From spitlist at cox.net Wed Oct 10 14:33:55 2007 From: spitlist at cox.net (Joe Curry) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 13:33:55 -0700 Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire References: Message-ID: <003901c80b7c$e135aa60$2d02a8c0@Belkin> Adding shims increase the toe-out and removing then increase the toe-in. Joe ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bob Berger" To: ; Sent: Wednesday, October 10, 2007 12:47 PM Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire > Hi all, > > I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and the shop told me that > one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is toed out. The wheel that > is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in spec by moving the > radius arm with 1 shim. > > The only problem is that they/I do not know enough about the spitfire rear > end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or remove the shim. > > Can anyone tell me which I need? > > Thanks > > Bob Berger > 78 Spitfire with new tires > _______________________________________________ > spitlist at cox.net > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From dave at ece.concordia.ca Wed Oct 10 14:59:12 2007 From: dave at ece.concordia.ca (Dave Chu) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:59:12 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Opinion on Roller Rockers in stock 1500 engine Message-ID: <200710102059.l9AKxCP23700@dea.ece.concordia.ca> Does anyone have any opinion on putting in a set of roller rockers into a stock 1500 engine running daul SU HS2's and 4 to 1 header. This is the set up on my car so far, there has not been any head work done and it is running on a stock cam. The roller rockers that I am interested in are direct replacements for the stock rockers and uses the original shaft. The lift ratio is 1:1.5. Has anyone has any experience with these or similar type of rockers? Thanks. Dave |\ | | | _______________________________________/\ /\ /\_____| \|_____| |____________ Dave Chu \/ \/ | /| | | Dept. of Elec. & Comp. Eng. |/ | | | Concordia University (514)848-2424 Ext. 3095 Fax:(514)848-2802 1455 de Maisonneuve W. H941 Email:dave at ece.concordia.ca Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3G 1M8 http://users.encs.concordia.ca/~dave/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From nmoseley at dccnet.com Wed Oct 10 19:27:48 2007 From: nmoseley at dccnet.com (Nick Moseley) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 18:27:48 -0700 Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <1192066025_37622@mx.dccnet.com> It seemed like maybe you wanted to know the stock settings. According to Haynes, rear toe-"out" should be 1/32nd to 3/32nds (.079 to 2.38mm). One hopes the shop should know how to shim to get that. While I've got the manual open, camber should be 0 to 2 degrees. Hope that helps, Nick Moseley -----Original Message----- From: spitfires-bounces+nmoseley=dccnet.com at autox.team.net [mailto:spitfires-bounces+nmoseley=dccnet.com at autox.team.net] On Behalf Of Bob Berger Sent: Wednesday, October 10, 2007 12:47 PM To: triumphs at autox.team.net; spitfires at autox.team.net Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire Hi all, I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and the shop told me that one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is toed out. The wheel that is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in spec by moving the radius arm with 1 shim. The only problem is that they/I do not know enough about the spitfire rear end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or remove the shim. Can anyone tell me which I need? Thanks Bob Berger 78 Spitfire with new tires _______________________________________________ nmoseley at dccnet.com Spitfires at autox.team.net http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From bill at gingerich.us Wed Oct 10 21:56:06 2007 From: bill at gingerich.us (Bill Gingerich) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 22:56:06 -0500 Subject: [Spits] Fuel line Message-ID: <000301c80bba$a7738ed0$057e1340@shack2> It appears that I need to replace the metal fuel line from the tank to the firewall on my '74 Spit. Is there anything special about that pipe, or can I use generic fuel pipe from my corner parts store? TIA, etc. Bill Gingerich Nass #133 Newalla, OK From doug at dougbraun.com Wed Oct 10 22:10:19 2007 From: doug at dougbraun.com (Doug Braun) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 21:10:19 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <394693.16982.qm@web611.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Removing a shim makes the radius rod shorter, which moves the wheel forward, which will make it toe in. I cannot see how an alignment shop could measure the error but not know how to fix it! The swing-axle setup is pretty straightforward. Besides, couldn't they try (for example) adding a shim and seeing if the alignment gets better or worse? Assuming nothing is frozen, rusted out, etc., adding or removing shims takes just a few minutes. They should have dealt with it while the car was on the machine. Doug Braun '72 Spit --- Bob Berger wrote: > Hi all, > > I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and > the shop told me that > one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is > toed out. The wheel that > is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in > spec by moving the > radius arm with 1 shim. > > The only problem is that they/I do not know enough > about the spitfire rear > end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or > remove the shim. > > Can anyone tell me which I need? From doug at dougbraun.com Wed Oct 10 22:25:38 2007 From: doug at dougbraun.com (Doug Braun) Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 21:25:38 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] Fuel line In-Reply-To: <000301c80bba$a7738ed0$057e1340@shack2> Message-ID: <517599.34521.qm@web613.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> I can't say if generic line would work (probably it would), but be sure to inspect all the other plumbing around the tank. There are quite a few rubber and plastic hoses that could need attention. Remember that the gas tank is fairly high up, so if the fuel line breaks below the tank, the entire contents of the gas tank will pour out onto the garage floor! That little bit of rubber hose that goes from the metal line up into the trunk should be carefully inspected. BTW, don't use copper tubing! The nickel-copper alloy that some British parts houses sell is OK, but I would prefer steel, even if I had to buy more tools to properly bend it. Doug --- Bill Gingerich wrote: > It appears that I need to replace the metal fuel > line from the tank to the > firewall on my '74 Spit. Is there anything special > about that pipe, or can > I use generic fuel pipe from my corner parts store? From bberger720 at sbcglobal.net Thu Oct 11 04:57:50 2007 From: bberger720 at sbcglobal.net (Bob Berger) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 05:57:50 -0500 Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: <394693.16982.qm@web611.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Message-ID: The alignment shop did not want to install the shim because my car has a rust hole in the lower outside corner of the vertical panel behind the seats that the radius rod is connected to. They felt this was too rusty for them to risk adding a shim. I should have just asked them for the tools and done this myself while I was there but they did say that they would check it and readjust the front toe when I brought it back. I'll make sure that they bounce or roll the car before they check it this time. Bob Berger 78 Spitfire > From: Doug Braun > Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 21:10:19 -0700 (PDT) > To: Bob Berger , "triumphs at autox.team.net" > , > Subject: Re: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire > > Removing a shim makes the radius rod shorter, which > moves the wheel forward, which will make it toe in. > > I cannot see how an alignment shop could measure the > error but not know how to fix it! The swing-axle > setup is pretty straightforward. > > Besides, couldn't they try (for example) adding a shim > and seeing if the alignment gets better or worse? > Assuming nothing is frozen, rusted out, etc., adding > or removing shims takes just a few minutes. They > should have dealt with it while the car was on the > machine. > > Doug Braun > '72 Spit > > > --- Bob Berger wrote: > >> Hi all, >> >> I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and >> the shop told me that >> one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is >> toed out. The wheel that >> is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in >> spec by moving the >> radius arm with 1 shim. >> >> The only problem is that they/I do not know enough >> about the spitfire rear >> end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or >> remove the shim. >> >> Can anyone tell me which I need? From bberger720 at sbcglobal.net Thu Oct 11 05:31:35 2007 From: bberger720 at sbcglobal.net (Bob Berger) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 06:31:35 -0500 Subject: [Spits] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Ok, One more stupid question. The alignment shop has a range or .14deg to .28deg for the front toe-in and a range of -.07deg to -.21deg for toe-out for the rear. Haynes has these as 1/16 to 1/8 inch toe-in at the front and 1/32 to 3/32 toe-out at the rear. Do the degree numbers relate to/match the inches? How do I convert Degrees of toe-in/out to Inches? The shop can change their machine to read tenths of inches. I could tell them I want the front to be .0625" to .125" and the rear to be -.03125" to -.09375" toe-out. All help appreciated. Thanks Bob Berger 78 Spitfire - trying not to destroy new tires > From: Bob Berger > Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 05:57:50 -0500 > To: Doug Braun , Bob Berger , > > Conversation: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire > Subject: Re: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire > > The alignment shop did not want to install the shim because my car has a > rust hole in the lower outside corner of the vertical panel behind the seats > that the radius rod is connected to. They felt this was too rusty for them > to risk adding a shim. I should have just asked them for the tools and done > this myself while I was there but they did say that they would check it and > readjust the front toe when I brought it back. I'll make sure that they > bounce or roll the car before they check it this time. > > Bob Berger > 78 Spitfire > > >> From: Doug Braun >> Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 21:10:19 -0700 (PDT) >> To: Bob Berger , "triumphs at autox.team.net" >> , >> Subject: Re: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire >> >> Removing a shim makes the radius rod shorter, which >> moves the wheel forward, which will make it toe in. >> >> I cannot see how an alignment shop could measure the >> error but not know how to fix it! The swing-axle >> setup is pretty straightforward. >> >> Besides, couldn't they try (for example) adding a shim >> and seeing if the alignment gets better or worse? >> Assuming nothing is frozen, rusted out, etc., adding >> or removing shims takes just a few minutes. They >> should have dealt with it while the car was on the >> machine. >> >> Doug Braun >> '72 Spit >> >> >> --- Bob Berger wrote: >> >>> Hi all, >>> >>> I just had the alignment checked on my spitfire and >>> the shop told me that >>> one of my rear wheels is toed in and the other is >>> toed out. The wheel that >>> is toed out is is specs and the other one will be in >>> spec by moving the >>> radius arm with 1 shim. >>> >>> The only problem is that they/I do not know enough >>> about the spitfire rear >>> end geometry to tell me if I need to add the shim or >>> remove the shim. >>> >>> Can anyone tell me which I need? From jimmuller at rcn.com Thu Oct 11 07:13:36 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 09:13:36 -0400 Subject: [Spits] [TR] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <470DE940.22744.2FA261F@localhost> On 11 Oct 2007 at 6:31, Bob Berger wrote: > Do the degree numbers relate to/match the inches? > How do I convert Degrees of toe-in/out to Inches? Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand it: Toe-in is usually given in distance, not angle. The distance is the difference between the track measured at the front of the rim and the track measured at the back of the rim. So the relationship to angle is that toe-in = 2 * wheel diameter * sin(angle). The factor of 2 is because measuring the track wheel to wheel gives the sum of the two wheels, whereas if you measured it from the car's centerline it would be just one wheel. A curious thing is that if you had one wheel toed in and one toed out, you could still end up with a correct distance value. Of course, at the front the wheels do turn together but at the back they aren't supposed to. Measuring w.r.t. the centerline would seem to be necessary for the rear. And of course, at the front toe-in changes with steering angle so you need to have the wheels point forward, more or less. I confess I'm unsure of that factor of 2. I'm sure of the calculation, just not sure whether quoted toe-in values take it account or are meant to be interpreted as for just one wheel. -- Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com '80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+ -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.14.7/1062 - Release Date: 10/10/2007 5:11 PM From zoboherald at aol.com Thu Oct 11 07:58:06 2007 From: zoboherald at aol.com (zoboherald at aol.com) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 09:58:06 -0400 Subject: [Spits] [Spit] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <8C9DA25E216E597-F18-173F@webmail-de16.sysops.aol.com> -----Original Message----- From: Bob Berger The alignment shop did not want to install the shim because my car has a rust hole in the lower outside corner of the vertical panel behind the seats that the radius rod is connected to. They felt this was too rusty for them to risk adding a shim. I should have just asked them for the tools and done this myself while I was there but they did say that they would check it and readjust the front toe when I brought it back. I'll make sure that they bounce or roll the car before they check it this time. ==AM== Well, maybe they overreacted. On the other hand, it's almost never a good thing to have noticeable rust near any suspension mounting point, so you might want to look into a good, strong, proper repair (be it preventive or corrective)! ;-) --Andy Mace *Mrs Irrelevant: Oh, is it a jet? *Man: Well, no ... It's not so much of a jet, it's more your, er, Triumph Herald engine with wings. -- Cut-price Airlines Sketch, Monty Python's Flying Circus (22) Check out the North American Triumph Sports 6 (Vitesse 6) and Triumph Herald Database at its new URL: ________________________________________________________________________ Email and AIM finally together. You've gotta check out free AOL Mail! - http://mail.aol.com From bberger720 at sbcglobal.net Thu Oct 11 09:59:17 2007 From: bberger720 at sbcglobal.net (Bob Berger) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 10:59:17 -0500 Subject: [Spits] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: <8C9DA25E216E597-F18-173F@webmail-de16.sysops.aol.com> Message-ID: Andy, I hope to have time this weekend to check out the extent of the rust. I'll see if the reinforcing bracket that holds the radius rod has been eaten away and see if this repair needs to be made before the car is returned to the road. I'm very concerned if this is a safety issue. I'm sure I'll have more questions once I get a good look. Bob Berger 78 Spitfire > ==AM== > Well, maybe they overreacted. On the other hand, it's almost never a > good thing to have noticeable rust near any suspension mounting point, > so you might want to look into a good, strong, proper repair (be it > preventive or corrective)! ;-) > > --Andy Mace > > *Mrs Irrelevant: Oh, is it a jet? > *Man: Well, no ... It's not so much of a jet, it's more your, er, > Triumph Herald engine with wings. > -- Cut-price Airlines Sketch, Monty Python's Flying Circus (22) From bill at gingerich.us Thu Oct 11 13:06:47 2007 From: bill at gingerich.us (bill at gingerich.us) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:06:47 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Seat modifications Message-ID: <20071011120647.4412066ecf79773770454ed1d3ca4b3c.d11032dd78.wbe@email.secureserver.net> Greetings, All! I'm 6' 4" and as a result, my head sticks up rather high when driving the Spitfire. I find I must recline the seat back rather far to see out the windshield. While this works (been doing it for 8 years) it isn't the optimum scenario. It also makes top-up driving a bit strange. Has anyone ever shaved foam out of the seat cushion to lower things? How about taking off the seat track and attaching the rails directly to the floor? I'm not concerned about adjusting the fore/aft position. On another tack, has anyone ever lengthened the seat back so that it is taller? Yeah, I know - custom upholstery. But I'm going to do something non-stock anyway. I'm going to play with all these ideas, but wanted to see what others have done before me. What other options can you all think of? Miata seats seem like too much hassle, and make the seating position higher and further forward than stock. I've sat in Joe Guinan's Cobra seats, and while they were nice, they didn't do what I wanted. Finding seats that are narrow enough to fit down in the Spitfire floor pans could be tough - plus hard to test fit from a catalog or website. I have several spare sets of late Spit low-back and high-back seats to play with, as well as a set of non-reclining high-backs from an earlier GT6. Your suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Bill G Nass #133 Newalla, OK '74 Spitfire "Lazarus of the broken fuel line" From doug at dougbraun.com Thu Oct 11 17:13:34 2007 From: doug at dougbraun.com (Doug Braun) Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 16:13:34 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] Rear Toe - Spitfire In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <23873.97266.qm@web605.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> --- Bob Berger wrote: > 78 Spitfire - trying not to destroy new tires A Spit is quite light and is usually not driven much, so it can take an awfully long time to wear out the tires, even with a slight misalignment. If you have only one shim's worth of error and you see no symptoms of misalignment (like pulling or unusual war patterns on the tires), it could be perfectly OK to just leave things as they are. Doug Braun '72 Spit From r.gosling at penspen.com Fri Oct 12 01:57:15 2007 From: r.gosling at penspen.com (Gosling, Richard) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 08:57:15 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Seat modifications References: <20071011120647.4412066ecf79773770454ed1d3ca4b3c.d11032dd78.wbe@email.secureserver.net> Message-ID: <76458B73D88AF649B30C48899A95ACB09EF73D@sv-lon-exch1.Penspen.com> Bill, I'm 6'3", so I appreciate your problem! One thing, DON'T GO FOR MAZDA MX5/MIATA SEATS, they will have you sitting appreciably higher in the car! BTDT, I ended up almost peering over the top of the windscreen, rather than through it, to see where I was going... I was happy enough with my stock seats position-wise (apart from looking really shabby, and hoping the Mazda seats would give more lateral support, which they did), but the foam was old and probably quite collapsed, putting it in a good position for me. Having removed the seats, their design is quite smart, the bottom of the base actually drops down between the rails to hang lower than the rails, so the bottom of the seat can be as close as possible to the floor. I never measured the clearance between the seat bottom and the carpet, but it's not much. I'd check that clearance before you consider doing away with the rails; you may not gain much. I guess removing foam would help, I never tried it myself. I've no idea about modifying the seat-backs to make them taller. Richard Gosling ________________________________________________________________________ This message (including any attachments) is confidential and may be privileged. If you have received it by mistake please notify the sender by return E-mail and delete this message from your system. Any unauthorised use or dissemination of this message in whole or in part is strictly prohibited. Please note that E-mails are susceptible to change. The Penspen Group shall not be liable for the improper or incomplete transmission of the information contained in this communication nor for any delay in its receipt or damage to your system. The Penspen Group does not guarantee that the integrity of this communication has been maintained or that this communication is free of viruses, interceptions or interference. The following UK companies within the Penspen Group and any electronic communication sent on behalf of any of them, are subject to the provisions of the UK Companies Act 1985; PENSPEN HOLDINGS LIMITED (Company Number : 980600) Registered Office: 3 Water Lane, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1TJ Registered in England and Wales (VAT No; 239 7770 19) PENSPEN LIMITED (Company Number: 584446) Registered Office: 3 Water Lane, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1TJ Registered in England and Wales (VAT No; 239 7770 19) (Unipen, Penspen Integrity and Andrew Palmer & Associates are operating divisions of Penspen Limited and Spencer & Partners and Pencol are trade names of Penspen Limited) MANCHESTER JETLINE LIMITED (Company Number: 2392093) Registered Office: 3 Water Lane, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1TJ Registered in England and Wales (VAT No; 537 8635 08) From spitfirepat at gmail.com Fri Oct 12 05:12:47 2007 From: spitfirepat at gmail.com (SpitfirePat) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:12:47 +0100 Subject: [Spits] New Haynes Spitfire Manual Message-ID: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spitfire-Manual-Restoring-Servicing-Legendary/dp/1844254623/ref=sr_1_1/202-3139453-1342223?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192185541&sr=1-1 or http://tinyurl.com/2qlasq if that URL is too long Looks a good read, although a bit off topic for this board Pat From doug at dougbraun.com Fri Oct 12 07:54:41 2007 From: doug at dougbraun.com (Doug Braun) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 06:54:41 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] New Haynes Spitfire Manual In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <634371.24692.qm@web611.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> I hope the owner of an actual spitfire aircraft has more documentation than just that book available to maintain it! Doug --- SpitfirePat wrote: > http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spitfire-Manual-Restoring-Servicing-Legendary/dp/1844254623/ref=sr_1_1/202-3139453-1342223?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192185541&sr=1-1 > > or http://tinyurl.com/2qlasq if that URL is too long > > Looks a good read, although a bit off topic for this > board > > Pat > _______________________________________________ > doug at dougbraun.com > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From JStasyszen at odmhsas.org Fri Oct 12 09:34:43 2007 From: JStasyszen at odmhsas.org (Stasyszen, Jerry) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 10:34:43 -0500 Subject: [Spits] [spitfire-enthusiast] Miata Seats In-Reply-To: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> References: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> Message-ID: Anyone have the patterns for 76 and up Spitfire seats? I am needing the actual patterns used to cut the material for the seats. Thanks jstasyszen at odmhsas.org From JStasyszen at odmhsas.org Fri Oct 12 09:35:57 2007 From: JStasyszen at odmhsas.org (Stasyszen, Jerry) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 10:35:57 -0500 Subject: [Spits] Spitfire Seats In-Reply-To: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> References: <001301c80842$bb9d96b0$6401a8c0@greeper> Message-ID: Anyone have the patterns for 76 and up Spitfire seats? I am needing the actual patterns used to cut the material for the seats. Thanks jstasyszen at odmhsas.org __,_._,___ From jimmuller at rcn.com Fri Oct 12 16:57:43 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 18:57:43 -0400 Subject: [Spits] no more clunk Message-ID: <470FC3A7.11946.30EEC@localhost> Sometimes the low-tech solution is the right one. I took the fule sender out of the Spitfire's tank the other day. My mirror wouldn't fit into the hole but from what I could see and from poking around inside with a wire I concluded there was nothing loose in the tank. Can't say I like sticking my face into an open tank of highly combustible fluid, but I did wait for a damp, overcast day to do this so as to avoid ESD that might send me to kingdom-come. I observed that the float has a bit of gas in it, which explains why the guage has been reading low. I also observed that a rubber grommet/seal-like loop thingy was dangling loose from the arm. There appeared to be nothing for it to seal. So I guessed that it was a bumper-stop to prevent the float from banging, and that it should have been stretched around the center of the float. So I moved it there, then later looked it up in a catalogue to find pictures which show the float with a collar around the center. Aha! Today's drive to work had no clunking! Of course, the guage didn't work at all today. Maybe when I put the sender back in I got it stuck on the pickup tube. Or maybe the internals decided to break. I believe it is wired correctly, but (though I don't have a diagram in front of me just now) I don't think it should make any difference. So, is there any collective experience to indicate that the sender could just go bad? I could drain and seal the float, but if the non- functional guage is not my re-assembly error then perhaps I should just order a new sender. [All missppellinnggs in this note are intentional. I just can't tpye.] Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.14.8/1064 - Release Date: 10/11/2007 3:09 PM From doug at dougbraun.com Fri Oct 12 19:21:50 2007 From: doug at dougbraun.com (Doug Braun) Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 18:21:50 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] no more clunk In-Reply-To: <470FC3A7.11946.30EEC@localhost> Message-ID: <463996.48268.qm@web606.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Actually for me, the clunking of the float in an almost-empty tank serves as an audible backup gas gauge :-) It is very possible that handing the sander unit during removal and reinstallation was the straw that broke the camel's back, and it is truly busted inside the electrical part. Doug --- Jim Muller wrote: > Sometimes the low-tech solution is the right one. > > I took the fule sender out of the Spitfire's tank > the other day. My > mirror wouldn't fit into the hole but from what I > could see and from > poking around inside with a wire I concluded there > was nothing loose > in the tank. Can't say I like sticking my face into > an open tank of > highly combustible fluid, but I did wait for a damp, > overcast day to > do this so as to avoid ESD that might send me to > kingdom-come. I > observed that the float has a bit of gas in it, > which explains why > the guage has been reading low. I also observed > that a rubber > grommet/seal-like loop thingy was dangling loose > from the arm. There > appeared to be nothing for it to seal. So I guessed > that it was a > bumper-stop to prevent the float from banging, and > that it should > have been stretched around the center of the float. > So I moved it > there, then later looked it up in a catalogue to > find pictures which > show the float with a collar around the center. > Aha! > > Today's drive to work had no clunking! > > Of course, the guage didn't work at all today. > Maybe when I put the > sender back in I got it stuck on the pickup tube. > Or maybe the > internals decided to break. I believe it is wired > correctly, but > (though I don't have a diagram in front of me just > now) I don't think > it should make any difference. > > So, is there any collective experience to indicate > that the sender > could just go bad? I could drain and seal the > float, but if the non- > functional guage is not my re-assembly error then > perhaps I should > just order a new sender. > > [All missppellinnggs in this note are intentional. > I just can't > tpye.] > > Jim Muller > jimmuller at rcn.com > > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.14.8/1064 - > Release Date: 10/11/2007 3:09 PM > _______________________________________________ > doug at dougbraun.com > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From mmilkevitch at yahoo.com Sun Oct 14 08:47:19 2007 From: mmilkevitch at yahoo.com (Matthew Milkevitch) Date: Sun, 14 Oct 2007 07:47:19 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] Tire cracking Message-ID: <315694.95364.qm@web50912.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Fellow Listers; Good day to everyone...here in the middle atlantic the weather is quite nice (sunny and cool). Good LBC weather for sure. I have a question that I would like some lister opinion on. I have notices some relatively minor cracking on the sidewalls of my Spit's tires. Nothing major...and no cracking is evident in the tread area at all. Would this car be safe to drive approximately 3 h? Am I just asking for trouble here? My plan is to replace these tires, but I'd like to move the car to another location first. Thanks for all your input.... Matt Milkevitch Willow Grove, PA From bdischer at blakedischer.com Sun Oct 14 08:54:01 2007 From: bdischer at blakedischer.com (Blake J. Discher) Date: Sun, 14 Oct 2007 10:54:01 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Photos of Triumphest 2007 Message-ID: <002401c80e72$129e1630$6186fea9@bjdtr3a> I had the pleasure of attending Triumphest in Laughlin, Nevada over the last two days. What a great time! Later today I'll post some details about the event, but for now, I've put about a dozen photos up on "The Triumph Forum" in the Image Gallery section. You'll need to register (free, and available to anyone), which is simply creating up a user name and password, to see them. The link is: http://www.vtr.org/forum/index.php Then click on "Image Gallery" across the top. Hope you enjoy them. Cheers, Blake Discher From standardtriumph at btinternet.com Sun Oct 14 09:00:17 2007 From: standardtriumph at btinternet.com (John Macartney) Date: Sun, 14 Oct 2007 16:00:17 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Tire cracking References: <315694.95364.qm@web50912.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <003301c80e72$ef079010$0201a8c0@Bevan> Hi, Matt > I have notices some relatively minor cracking on the sidewalls of my > Spit's tires. Nothing major...and no cracking is evident in the tread > area at all. > Would this car be safe to drive approximately 3 h? Am I just asking for > trouble here? My plan is to replace these tires, but I'd like to move the > car to another location first. Your description suggests they are old tyres for a start - and may have spent some time either standing or under-inflated. I think they would possibly be a Department of Transport failure item in the annual test we have in the UK, so driving on them could be very risky. You don't say how far you have to go before changing them for new ones, but I think I'd keep your road speed as low as possible to avoid over-flexing the sidewalls and risking a blow-out(s). From a safety aspect, I'd change them before driving*** - but it's your car and your life :::))) Jonmac *** Even with new tyres fitted it's always sensible to 'break in' tyres so there's some suppleness in the walls and tread before high speed use. I normally drive gently on new ones for about 300 miles. From doug at dougbraun.com Sun Oct 14 19:19:38 2007 From: doug at dougbraun.com (Doug Braun) Date: Sun, 14 Oct 2007 18:19:38 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Spits] Tire cracking In-Reply-To: <003301c80e72$ef079010$0201a8c0@Bevan> Message-ID: <686926.40086.qm@web613.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> I feel sorry for you Brits who have to put up with an overly-paranoid inspection system (as well as high road and petrol taxes). Especially for a car that is only four years old! In California they do emission inspections, but no mechanical inspection. I never heard of any claim that mechanical defects were increasing the accident rate, and there was never any controversy about adding more inspections... Doug Braun '72 Spit --- John Macartney wrote: > I think they would > possibly be a Department of Transport failure item > in the annual test we > have in the UK, From bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk Mon Oct 15 01:10:02 2007 From: bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk (Rarebits) Date: Mon, 15 Oct 2007 08:10:02 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Tire cracking In-Reply-To: <315694.95364.qm@web50912.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <20071015070126.3EDFA1879DB@autox.team.net> > Behalf Of Matthew Milkevitch > > I have notices some relatively minor cracking on the sidewalls of my > Spit's tires. Nothing major...and no cracking is evident in the tread > area at all. > > Would this car be safe to drive approximately 3 h? Am I just asking for > trouble here? Hi Matt, Your call. The following was published in the newsletter of the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs - it may provide some food for thought: "23 May After a fatal accident, FBHVC says check your tyres! And by that, it doesn't just mean checking the tyre pressures and making sure there is enough tread, but making sure the side walls are in good condition and the tyres not unduly old. Her Majesty's Coroner for Manchester has written to FBHVC with details of an accident that took place last year in which the driver of an H registered MG B lost his life when a rear tyre burst on the M56. Evidence shows that the driver was a skilled mechanic and a careful and experienced driver who was not travelling particularly fast at the time. The car was described by police as being maintained in an excellent condition. The surviving passenger said that just before the accident the driver had commented that a "tyre wobble" had developed and he was going to "drive through it". The wobble went briefly, but then the tyre burst, causing the car to spin, clip a kerb and flip over. Subsequent investigation showed that - although hardly used - the tyre was 25 years old. It was one of a set of as-new tyres and wheels purchased at an autojumble the previous year for use for show purposes - at the time of the incident the car was on its way to a show at Oulton Park." I have a number of little used cars which have been running on older tyres. The above has made me quite mindful of the potential dangers, Cheers, Bill. Rarebits4classics .......just what you've been looking for PO Box 1232 Calne Wiltshire SN11 8WA United Kingdom http://www.rarebits4classics.co.uk From bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk Mon Oct 15 01:17:31 2007 From: bill at rarebits4classics.co.uk (Bill Davies) Date: Mon, 15 Oct 2007 08:17:31 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Tire cracking In-Reply-To: <686926.40086.qm@web613.biz.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <20071015070853.598A71879DB@autox.team.net> > Behalf Of Doug Braun > > I feel sorry for you Brits who have to put up with an > overly-paranoid inspection system (as well as high > road and petrol taxes). Especially for a car that is > only four years old! Yet so many people are determined to avoid this "overly-paranoid inspection system" at all costs. A few years ago I bought a Triumph Vitesse to break for parts. The car was quite appalling, yet had a valid test certificate. I knew what I was buying, so I was not stung. On stripping this car I found some appalling structural and mechanical faults. Worst of these was an eight foot long crack along one of the chassis rails! This had not happened overnight, I doubt whether the car had been subject to a genuine MOT inspection for at least five years. Doubtless he had some dodgy contacts who could provide mail order inspections. The MOT system is in general a reasonable inspection regime, which keeps an awful lot of dangerous vehicles off the road. It's not perfect, recent centralisation and computerisation has caused more problems than it has solved. Nevertheless, If you saw how many three year old repmobiles fail their first MOT, and for what faults, you might appreciate what some people are prepared to tolerate in their vehicles. Cheers, Bill. From JHMDDS at aol.com Tue Oct 16 12:02:10 2007 From: JHMDDS at aol.com (JHMDDS at aol.com) Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2007 14:02:10 EDT Subject: [Spits] Tire size Message-ID: Hi list, I just received my new 13x5.5 wheels and was wondering what size tires others with this wheel size and no fender mods are using? Thanks, James '66 Spitfire ************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com From spitlist at cox.net Tue Oct 16 12:55:37 2007 From: spitlist at cox.net (Joe Curry) Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2007 11:55:37 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Tire size References: Message-ID: <004d01c81026$23ce8d80$2d02a8c0@Belkin> The manufacturers are slowly (or mayby not so slowly) discontinuing tire selections from the 13" range of tires. The reason is that there are very few compact cars that are coming out today that use that size. The ones that are still being produced are econo-boxes and they typically use skinny cheap tires and those are not all that suitable for our needs. So what to do? You pretty much have to search the internet for choices to see what is available in performance. At last chack,I found the choices extremely limited. I need some more rear tires on my Mk1 Spit and wil be going through the same thing in the next few months. On my other car, I installed Panasport 15: wheels (6" wide) and find that the selection increases dramatically as you go up in diameter. I am using Kumho Ecsta Supra 205-50R15 on them. It is a good aggressive tread design with a very soft compound and is performance tested up to something like 150 mph. On the 13" wheels, I use 175-70R13 Perilli's but the tires I have are no longer being made so I will have to search fora good alternative. Good Luck and let me know what you find. Joe ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Tuesday, October 16, 2007 11:02 AM Subject: [Spits] Tire size > Hi list, > > I just received my new 13x5.5 wheels and was wondering what size tires > others with this wheel size and no fender mods are using? > > Thanks, > > James '66 Spitfire > > > > ************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com > _______________________________________________ > spitlist at cox.net > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From jwolff3 at verizon.net Tue Oct 16 12:47:40 2007 From: jwolff3 at verizon.net (jwolff3 at verizon.net) Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2007 13:47:40 -0500 (CDT) Subject: [Spits] Tire size Message-ID: <18354000.24513111192560460816.JavaMail.root@vms074.mailsrvcs.net> I used 175/70HR-13 Sumitomo HTR 200 on my '65 with 13x5.5 inch superlites. Here's some photos of how this looks on the car (disregard the first photo): http://mygaspedal.com/members/member.aspx?jwolff No rubbing issues or fender mods... >From: JHMDDS at aol.com >Date: 2007/10/16 Tue PM 01:02:10 CDT >To: spitfires at autox.team.net >Subject: [Spits] Tire size >Hi list, > >I just received my new 13x5.5 wheels and was wondering what size tires >others with this wheel size and no fender mods are using? > >Thanks, > >James '66 Spitfire > > > >************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com >_______________________________________________ >jwolff3 at verizon.net > >Spitfires at autox.team.net >http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From standardtriumph at btinternet.com Tue Oct 16 15:10:14 2007 From: standardtriumph at btinternet.com (John Macartney) Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2007 22:10:14 +0100 Subject: [Spits] Triumph Trans-America Charity Drive 2009 - Announcement at Triumphest by Glenn Merrell Message-ID: <018101c81038$f25ad070$0201a8c0@Bevan> > Glenn Merrell StagByTriumph at tscusa.org writes: > >> I would like to hear thoughts and comments on the presentation for >> Triumphs Across America 2009 Charity Run I made at Triumphest's Awards >> Dinner. >> This is quite the undertaking by John Macartney and many volunteers on >> both sides of the pond. To which John Macartney (Jonmac) has replied: I wrote an obviously rather too long treatise on this forthcoming event earlier today. I say *too long* because no copy has come zinging back through the ether, so I've either crashed the list server or the post is "awaiting moderation." If anyone wants to know more of the event I'm working on, please write to me off-list and I'll do a copy and paste of the material sent earlier today. Look forward to hearing your various responses to the concept. Cheers, Jonmac From JHMDDS at aol.com Wed Oct 17 10:06:53 2007 From: JHMDDS at aol.com (JHMDDS at aol.com) Date: Wed, 17 Oct 2007 12:06:53 EDT Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited Message-ID: Hi list, Yesterday I asked about tire sizes for my new 13 x 5.5 wheels on my '66 Spitfire. Several helpful people responded with the standard 175- 70R 13 size. I was hoping to use something wider and maybe with a shorter profile, giving the car a more aggressive look (ie possibly 1895 or 195-60s). I also am giving some consideration to using a wider size on the rear. Does anyone know what is the widest tire that won't rub on a non modified fender well? Thanks, James '66 Spitfire ************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com From spitlist at cox.net Wed Oct 17 11:00:13 2007 From: spitlist at cox.net (Joe Curry) Date: Wed, 17 Oct 2007 10:00:13 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited References: Message-ID: <004501c810df$2f936780$2d02a8c0@Belkin> That is a rather hard thing to answer. A lot depends on the wheel offset, the springs that you use on the front, the arch of the rear spring amoung other things. The 205 50-15's I am using are about the same circumference as the 175 70-13's I have on the other car so heightwise, they are the same. The bugger is the width. That is where the offset and spring height comes into play. You can extend the tire outward if the wheel arch of the fender is high enough to keep from rubbing or if you roll the fenders. Another possible problem is that the rubbing often comes at the firewall when the normal offset and tire width are exceeded. A couple of whacks with a large rubber mallet will often cure that issue. I have not answered your question but I hope I have provided foof for thought. It is really pretty much a trial and error situation whenit comes to going with bigger tires. Joe ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2007 9:06 AM Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited > Hi list, > > Yesterday I asked about tire sizes for my new 13 x 5.5 wheels on my '66 > Spitfire. Several helpful people responded with the standard 175- 70R 13 size. > I was hoping to use something wider and maybe with a shorter profile, giving > the car a more aggressive look (ie possibly 1895 or 195-60s). I also am > giving some consideration to using a wider size on the rear. Does anyone know > what is the widest tire that won't rub on a non modified fender well? > > Thanks, > > James '66 Spitfire > > > > ************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com > _______________________________________________ > spitlist at cox.net > > Spitfires at autox.team.net > http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From foxtrapper at aceweb.com Wed Oct 17 11:08:31 2007 From: foxtrapper at aceweb.com (Nolan) Date: Wed, 17 Oct 2007 13:08:31 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited References: Message-ID: <002001c810e0$5a5b7100$2929c40a@mde.state.md.us> I've got some 185/60-13's on TR7 5.5" rims under one of my 1980 Spitfires with no rubbing. But understand, offset is everything. A 2" wide wheel will rub if the offset is wrong enough. If this is for your '66, there is also the matter of the different bonnet shape up front, and shorter axles in the rear. ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2007 12:06 PM Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited > Hi list, > > Yesterday I asked about tire sizes for my new 13 x 5.5 wheels on my '66 > Spitfire. Several helpful people responded with the standard 175- 70R 13 > size. > I was hoping to use something wider and maybe with a shorter profile, > giving > the car a more aggressive look (ie possibly 1895 or 195-60s). I also am > giving some consideration to using a wider size on the rear. Does anyone > know > what is the widest tire that won't rub on a non modified fender well? From v6spitfireguy at cox.net Wed Oct 17 11:43:41 2007 From: v6spitfireguy at cox.net (v6spitfireguy at cox.net) Date: Wed, 17 Oct 2007 13:43:41 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited Message-ID: <380-220071031717434181@M2W031.mail2web.com> Heres the "foof" I have as it were :-) Just to throw more fluif on the fire, it may also depend upon which Spitfire rear axles you're running, stock axles or later 1500 ones (giving a 2 inch wider track). My wifes car (that we took to Laughlin), a MK 3,which has 185/60R 13s on Minilite equiv. rims, Stock track, and there is occasional rubbing with the car fully loaded going over bumps/dips on the fender lips, mostly on the rear fenders - But that was with a fully loaded car - I however, have 205/60R 13s on my MK4 mounted on Panasports, with only minimal Mods (slight flare) to he front fender lips and have no rubbing what so ever front or rear - On the other hand, my 70 GT6 (same body panels as the MK III Spitfire), but with the 1 inch wider rear rotoflex rear end, and I had to replace the 165/70R 13s with 165/65R 13s (mounted on wire wheels) to prevent slight rubbing on the rear fender lips - FWIW - Barry Schwartz La Mesa (San Diego) CA - Original Message: ----------------- Hi list, Yesterday I asked about tire sizes for my new 13 x 5.5 wheels on my '66 Spitfire. Several helpful people responded with the standard 175- 70R 13 size. I was hoping to use something wider and maybe with a shorter profile, giving the car a more aggressive look (ie possibly 1895 or 195-60s). I also am giving some consideration to using a wider size on the rear. Does anyone know what is the widest tire that won't rub on a non modified fender well? Thanks, James '66 Spitfire -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web.com  What can On Demand Business Solutions do for you? http://link.mail2web.com/Business/SharePoint From spitlist at cox.net Wed Oct 17 14:13:17 2007 From: spitlist at cox.net (Joe Curry) Date: Wed, 17 Oct 2007 13:13:17 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Tire size revisited References: <380-220071031717434181@M2W031.mail2web.com> Message-ID: <006c01c810fa$280454a0$2d02a8c0@Belkin> ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Cc: Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2007 10:43 AM Subject: Re: [Spits] Tire size revisited > Heres the "foof" I have as it were :-) > > Just to throw more fluif on the fire, it may also depend upon which > Spitfire rear axles you're running, stock axles or later 1500 ones (giving > a 2 inch wider track). While the actual track is indeed wider, the tops are pointing inward so it doesn't result in a loss of ability to add wider tires. In fact, it may even help the clearance. > > My wifes car (that we took to Laughlin), a MK 3,which has 185/60R 13s on > Minilite equiv. rims, Stock track, and there is occasional rubbing with the > car fully loaded going over bumps/dips on the fender lips, mostly on the > rear fenders - But that was with a fully loaded car - And what a great looking car it is! A true match for your lovely wife! > > I however, have 205/60R 13s on my MK4 mounted on Panasports, with only > minimal Mods (slight flare) to he front fender lips and have no rubbing > what so ever front or rear - > > On the other hand, my 70 GT6 (same body panels as the MK III Spitfire), but > with the 1 inch wider rear rotoflex rear end, and I had to replace the > 165/70R 13s with 165/65R 13s (mounted on wire wheels) to prevent slight > rubbing on the rear fender lips - Starting with the rotoflex setup on Tiny Tim (and moving way forward), I actually shortened the track at one point so that I could keep so much of the 10" wide slicks from sticking out the sides. When I converted it to street use, I put a 1/4 inch spacer in each rear hub to bring them back out because I no longer are runnig such radical tire sizes (only P205 50-15). They work fine but I have to admit that I Frenched the rear fender openings about an inch. Joe C. From bill at gingerich.us Thu Oct 18 20:27:56 2007 From: bill at gingerich.us (Bill Gingerich) Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2007 21:27:56 -0500 Subject: [Spits] On the block once again. Message-ID: <002701c811f7$a9392cf0$8ba5c6d8@shack2> Greetings, All. You've all seen this ad before. I'm hoping to sell a '71 GT6 project car. I bought this car about 7 years ago to save it from the scrap pile, and haven't done anything with it. The car is mostly there. The engine and transmission are not original, but it ran when I bought it (I actually drove it around the block with no brakes. Dumb.) It has the seats and some carpet, but will need to be completely redone. The body is quite rough. Plan on rockers, floors, and rear wings for sure. The doors are decent. The bonnet has some bondo, but I'm not sure how much. The glass is all there. It has a clean, correct non-salvage Minnesota title. I paid $500 for the car, and would like that out of it. Make me an offer and we can go from there. The car is in storage in Mankato, MN. I currently live in the Oklahoma City area. I don't have any current pictures. I do have old pictures from when I bought it, but they really don't show it accurately. Since they were taken I've stripped out the interior, dug big holes in the rusted areas, and removed the bolt on wire wheels. Make no mistake, this car is ROUGH, but in the right hands it could be restored. I hate to just part it out or junk it. Help me find it a good home. Bill Gingerich Nass #133 Newalla, OK '74 Spitfire "Lazarus" From v6spitfireguy at cox.net Sun Oct 28 06:43:16 2007 From: v6spitfireguy at cox.net (Barry Schwartz) Date: Sun, 28 Oct 2007 06:43:16 Subject: [Spits] Bad news from the fire front in San Diego - Message-ID: <3.0.4.16.20071028064316.1e775d2a@pop.west.cox.net> Just heard and saw on the news that the two people died in their home in the fire here in San Diego, specifically the San Pasqual valley, were car restorers, and in the video of the burned out wreckage were two TR6's It's a terrible loss of lives, and not sure if it was anybody on the list, not that it matters - The real tragedy of all this is that it appears some of theses fires were intentionally set Don't know what else there is to say - other than the fires are at this point mostly contained - Barry Schwartz La Mesa, CA (San Diego) From bdischer at blakedischer.com Mon Oct 29 12:10:49 2007 From: bdischer at blakedischer.com (Blake J. Discher) Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:10:49 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Dorothy Deen, American British Car Legend, 1922-2007 Message-ID: <01a801c81a5f$6d037ea0$0201a8c0@bjdtr3a> American British Car Legend Dies Dorothy Deen, March 28, 1922 - October 23, 2007 Oceanside California, October 23, 2007. As raging wildfires threatened her Southern California home, Dorothy Deen Sitz died in a nearby Oceanside hospital after a long illness. The vivacious blonde Deen was best known for the Doretti sports car, a line of sports car accessories of the same name and for importing Triumph Sports cars for the Western United States. A darling of the local and automotive press, she was a common fixture at races and promoting the sports cars she sold. -more- The complete text of the Press Release and a photograph of Dorothy Deen and a TR3A is available for review on "The Triumph Forum" at http://www.vtr.org/forum/index.php/topic,210.0.html. Thank you, Blake J. Discher, President Vintage Triumph Register From v6spitfireguy at cox.net Mon Oct 29 18:09:23 2007 From: v6spitfireguy at cox.net (Barry Schwartz) Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:09:23 Subject: [Spits] List message limits? Message-ID: <3.0.4.16.20071029180923.1e7743e6@pop.west.cox.net> I have tried, without success to send a plain text message (no different really than this message other it is longer), with no attachments or trailers, just plain text, to the list. These shorter messages like this one, seem to come through with no problems. Is there a limitation on the content amount or certain phrases or characters in the subject perhaps? The message in question isn't particularly long (total email file size is 4K or under) I have tried about 4 times now and I have yet to see it posted - hopefully, they haven't just been bouncing around and in another week you'll get all four posts on both lists :-) But it does have me a bit puzzled - Barry Schwartz La Mesa, CA (San Diego) From nmoseley at dccnet.com Mon Oct 29 18:28:36 2007 From: nmoseley at dccnet.com (Nick Moseley) Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:28:36 -0700 Subject: [Spits] List message limits? In-Reply-To: <3.0.4.16.20071029180923.1e7743e6@pop.west.cox.net> Message-ID: <1193707695_83294@mx.dccnet.com> Hi Barry. To add to that, I'm puzzled by why my own e-mail address appears below your signature line. Can everybody see my e-mail address there, or are they seeing their own? Mark B also had this list set up so that when replying to a message, you had to cut off the bottom few lines about how to subscribe and un-subscribe, and the web address etc., otherwise the message would not be sent. That may be the problem in the case of your 4 other messages. Maybe that helps? I'd still like to know if everyone is seeing my e-mail address after Barry's two line signature. Nick Moseley "Barry Schwartz La Mesa, CA (San Diego) _______________________________________________ nmoseleyATdccnet.com " From spitlist at cox.net Mon Oct 29 18:48:33 2007 From: spitlist at cox.net (Joe Curry) Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:48:33 -0700 Subject: [Spits] List message limits? In-Reply-To: <1193707695_83294@mx.dccnet.com> References: <3.0.4.16.20071029180923.1e7743e6@pop.west.cox.net> <1193707695_83294@mx.dccnet.com> Message-ID: <000a01c81a96$fada3480$2202a8c0@newcomputer> Nick, The list server adds that. I see my own on those emails. -----Original Message----- From: spitfires-bounces+spitlist=cox.net at autox.team.net [mailto:spitfires-bounces+spitlist=cox.net at autox.team.net] On Behalf Of Nick Moseley Sent: Monday, October 29, 2007 6:29 PM To: 'Barry Schwartz' Cc: spitfires at autox.team.net Subject: Re: [Spits] List message limits? Hi Barry. To add to that, I'm puzzled by why my own e-mail address appears below your signature line. Can everybody see my e-mail address there, or are they seeing their own? Mark B also had this list set up so that when replying to a message, you had to cut off the bottom few lines about how to subscribe and un-subscribe, and the web address etc., otherwise the message would not be sent. That may be the problem in the case of your 4 other messages. Maybe that helps? I'd still like to know if everyone is seeing my e-mail address after Barry's two line signature. Nick Moseley "Barry Schwartz La Mesa, CA (San Diego) _______________________________________________ nmoseleyATdccnet.com " _______________________________________________ spitlist at cox.net Spitfires at autox.team.net http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spitfires From mark at bradakis.com Mon Oct 29 21:48:44 2007 From: mark at bradakis.com (Mark J. Bradakis) Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:48:44 -0700 Subject: [Spits] List message limits Message-ID: <4726B7AC.7020202@bradakis.com> Here's someting I recently sent to another Team.Net list. mjb. ----- >First one bounced--too big. Hey Mark, isn't 4K a bit too restrictive? Well, yes and no, sort of. It is an arbitrary limit I just picked. On some of the other big lists, though, it is only 3K. Basically the problem lies in the default behavior of many popular email clients in use today. When people respond to a message, the *entire* message is added to the end of the response. Unlike this message, which has only one pertinent line included, at the beginning, where it is clear to see the issue under discussion. So what happens is that as people continue discussion on a topic, the messages keep getting longer and longer and longer and longer. There may be only two or three lines still pertinent to the discussion or necessary for context, but all the useless verbiage keeps getting dragged along for the ride. Last time I actually ran some statistical programs on the Team.Net lists, about 70 - 80 percent of the character count of list messages was text that was included for no real reason at all. That's about the same as buying a 6 pack of your favorite beverage, and getting one or two that are the actual fresh, new beverage, the rest are, uh, recycled product. All this extra, useless text does is slow down the Team.Net network line, transmitting bits that it doesn't need to transmit. It slows down the list archiving processes, as they have to go over the same text again and again. Gee, nothing like getting 50 hits on your search only to find that 48 of them are the same old paragraph added again and again and again to peoples replies. The added replies slow down the mail processing, adding to the delays in getting the messages out to the list. If the preceding paragraph is too much computer jargon for you to get your mind around, then think of it this way - how would your race car start behaving if every time you crossed the start/finish line you had to stop and take on another 50 pounds of ballast? And of course, there is the time I have to spend cleaning up bouncing addresses because all the clueless replies filled up the mailboxes of hapless subscribers who've hit their limit. I know that I'm never going to be able to singlehandedly change human behavior, but it sure would be nice if a few more folks spent an extra few seconds on their list messages. Set your mailer to NOT include the original in your reply, just paste in the appropriate line or two as I did above. Or at least delete the text that serves no purpose in your response, rather than just absentmindedly trying to stuff it down the Team.Net pipe for no useful reason. If you do have a lot to say and your all-original message does hit up against the size limit, I do try to stay somewhat current with admin requests, and I'll approve such messages and get them on their way as I have time. Gee, this message is getting kind of long. Wonder how many folks will respond, and include it in its entirety in their response? For now, I'll just send it off and then spend some more time wading through the 7,664 unread messages cuurently in my Team.Net admin mailbox. From v6spitfireguy at cox.net Fri Oct 26 09:56:06 2007 From: v6spitfireguy at cox.net (v6spitfireguy at cox.net) Date: Fri, 26 Oct 2007 11:56:06 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Some interesting insight on my misfire/backfire problem, and good news Message-ID: <380-220071052615566399@M2W003.mail2web.com> Listers - Since the big fires here in San Diego I had a little time off and could devote some time to figure out what my intermittent miss/backfire was. I figured, since we werent in any immediate danger (the fires were basically burning all around us) I might as well do something to take my mind off of all the destruction etc. This was on my daily driver V6 Spitfire (throttle body FI) that I was going to take to Triumphest in Laughlin, but due to this several month long, on-going problem, I had to resort to the 1970 Spitfire backup vehicle. The problem as it were, was that the car would miss/jerk at random times while driving around. One would never know when this would happen, but usually once a day on some occasions, several times, it would misfire/backfire. Usually at speed, more often than not when just accelerating, but I could never just get it to do it on demand so to speak. It would do this then drive for many miles before it would happen again. After going through the entire electrical system, systematically replacing every component (fuel pump, sensors, injectors, coil, plugs, wires, dist, modules not necessary in that order, but you name it I replaced it etc), and after cleaning the air filter, replacing the fuel filter checking the pump pressure fuel lines blah blah blah, and still having no luck I was at my wits end. Then, just after I had replaced the throttle body and was watching the idle spray I got a misfire (this was the first time I had actually SEEN it happen, not just felt it). This got me thinking about the number three plug that looked just a little different than all the rest, since it was on the intake log of that bank, and I decided to check the valves - Sure enough, the exhaust valve had basically no clearance, and the intake was minimal, probably around .006-8 thou. EUEKA!!! Problem solved! It didnt show up in the compression check because there was just enough valve closure so that at cranking speed I still had compression (a little low, but not out of the ordinary) and apparently would have to bounce just enough, and at the right time, to ignite the incoming mixture and shoot the flame back up the intake track  which is what I saw. As usual, I figured it was electrical because it was so random, but it just goes to show you, not all random problems are electrical or fuel related - they CAN be mechanical! Frustrating to say the least, but sure nice to have the problem fixed. So now I have my Spitfire back  (I ran in to the house, after I discovered the problem, and did the little victory dance that my wife found most amusing). The fires are becoming more under control, and most people are getting back to their homes, at least those that have homes to return to  and things are slowly returning to normal! So I had my victory brew (a Carl Strauss Amber Lager) whilst cleaning the car of ash and soot, (yeah, it even gets inside the garage) and am now able to install the new molded carpeting I had purchased but was not ready, or felt like installing, and can start doing the fun stuff for the vehicles!! Barry Schwartz San Diego (La Mesa) CA -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://link.mail2web.com/mail2web From v6spitfireguy at cox.net Tue Oct 30 04:09:55 2007 From: v6spitfireguy at cox.net (Barry Schwartz) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:09:55 Subject: [Spits] List message limits? In-Reply-To: <1193707695_83294@mx.dccnet.com> References: <3.0.4.16.20071029180923.1e7743e6@pop.west.cox.net> Message-ID: <3.0.4.16.20071030040955.1e77f83a@pop.west.cox.net> Yes, I see mine as well on all emails - I wondered abut that myself - As far as the latter, these would be new messages, not replys - ***************************************************** >Can everybody see my e-mail address there, or are they seeing their own? > >Mark B also had this list set up so that when replying to a message, you had >to cut off the bottom few lines about how to subscribe and un-subscribe, and >the web address etc., otherwise the message would not be sent. That may be >the problem in the case of your 4 other messages. > Barry Schwartz La Mesa, CA (San Diego) From v6spitfireguy at cox.net Tue Oct 30 04:21:50 2007 From: v6spitfireguy at cox.net (Barry Schwartz) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:21:50 Subject: [Spits] Naturally, now the message appears!!! Message-ID: <3.0.4.16.20071030042150.18f78e46@pop.west.cox.net> Liters I apologies in advance but it I just saw the first message about my miss/backfire I posted almost a week ago appear - right AFTER I post a message about it not appearing- Sometimes I wonder if the Internet gods are laughing at me :-) I now fear that you will see it several more times - just delete the others, and again I apologize for the multiple posts. I was just so happy to have the car running normally again! Barry Schwartz La Mesa, CA (San Diego) From jimmuller at rcn.com Tue Oct 30 18:20:13 2007 From: jimmuller at rcn.com (Jim Muller) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 21:20:13 -0400 Subject: [Spits] [TR] Some interesting insight on my misfire/backfire problem, and good news In-Reply-To: <380-220071052615566399@M2W003.mail2web.com> Message-ID: <4727A00D.1121.223F9@localhost> On 26 Oct 2007 at 11:56, v6spitfireguy at cox.net wrote: > the exhaust valve had basically no clearance, and the > intake was minimal, probably around .006-8 thou. EUEKA!!! "EUEKA"? Maynard G Krebs would have said "EUOPA!!!" But all seriousness aside, this prompts a few thoughts. On my GT6+ the idle smoothness and exhaust cleanliness as measured by my nose have always been sensitive to valve clearance. An adjustment seemingly less than .001" can make a difference. I can measure a valve as being too loose for the .009" feeler and too tight for the .011", but if I go one step further and apply careful "digital" judgment and tweak accordingly, the idle improves. I don't know what sort of cam it has but I've never seen a car so senstive to tiny valve adjustment. Could someone tell me, is this typical of the TR 2l engine? Or perhaps of a non-stock cam? The second thought is that with today's engines valve adjustment is a disappearing art, soon to be forgotten. We've progressed through 30,000+ mile intervals for OHC engines for which only dealers bought the shim sets to no maintanence at all save oil changes. I posted a few weeks ago about the 48-State Tour in a Spitfire in which the driver/author described all his mixture tweaking and plug swapping, etc., but never mentioned valve adjustments though 12,000 miles. Do we just forget about them now until some email note or event reminds us? (And then we feel guilty and hope we haven't burned anything for having run too long with one slightly overtight?) Glad you found your problem! -- Jim Muller jimmuller at rcn.com '80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+ -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.15.13/1099 - Release Date: 10/30/2007 10:06 AM From bdischer at blakedischer.com Tue Oct 30 18:58:42 2007 From: bdischer at blakedischer.com (Blake J. Discher) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 21:58:42 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Article: "In Search of the Swallow" - The Doretti in Design Message-ID: <004c01c81b61$91f32d70$02fea8c0@bjdtr3a> "In Search of the Swallow" 'The Doretti in Design' Thirty years of digging though a mired design history of the Swallow Doretti the chronology of events align and the whole story unfolds. The Doretti adorned with initial design awards and sales success was run-a- muck in part by a suggested conflictive interest clause relative to Swallow Coach Builder's prior ownership. Recorded histories fall short in satisfactorily convincing one of its origin. Primarily due to the rush in which the Doretti and the TR2 get on line to fill the appetite of the USA and World market for sports cars. Sports car fever was jump started by Ferrari's introduction and racing success with the 1948 166mm Bachetta (one of the first being shipped to Southern California). Adding to the Doretti confusion is the secret involvement Sir John Black collaborating in its development and sidestepping an initial commitment to Willy's to distribute the TR2 line. -more- Read the entire article written by T.R. Householder, the Vintage Triumph Register's Swallow Doretti vehicle consultant in VTR's "The Triumph Forum." Included is a photo of Dorothy Deen in the first Swallow Doretti. The direct link: http://www.vintagetriumphregister.org/forum/index.php/topic,213.0.html. From jwolff3 at verizon.net Tue Oct 30 19:48:58 2007 From: jwolff3 at verizon.net (Jason Wolff) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 22:48:58 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Anyone have an extra 1147cc head for a '65 Spitfire they'd be willing to sell? References: <3.0.4.16.20071029180923.1e7743e6@pop.west.cox.net> Message-ID: <005b01c81b68$96345560$0301a8c0@JASON> I just heard from the machine shop that my head is cracked and had been cracked and welded and also shaved in the past (I was aware of it having been shaved, but had assumed to raise compression) and is pretty much trash now. I do have a spare 1500 engine and transmission (minus carbs and intake and exhaust manifolds), but would prefer to stick with the original setup. I'm in Northern VA and the car is in Western MD near Cumberland. Thanks, Jason From mark at bradakis.com Tue Oct 30 10:55:20 2007 From: mark at bradakis.com (Mark J. Bradakis) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 10:55:20 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Naturally, now the message appears!!! In-Reply-To: <3.0.4.16.20071030042150.18f78e46@pop.west.cox.net> References: <3.0.4.16.20071030042150.18f78e46@pop.west.cox.net> Message-ID: <47277008.4080903@bradakis.com> Barry Schwartz wrote: >I apologies in advance but it I just saw the first message about my >miss/backfire I posted almost a week ago appear - right AFTER I post a >message about it not appearing- > > Believe it or not, I don't spend every waking moment doing Team.Net administration, though it seems like it to me sometimes ;-) It can take some time - hours, days, maybe a week before I can get to approving messages that have been held back for various reasons, such as exceeding the size limit. Of course, if everyone on all the lists sent in maybe 5.95 per year for each of their subscriptions, then I probably WOULD spend all my time working on Team.Net! And no doubt there would be more features on the web pages at http://www.team.net/the-local and it would be more up to date, a nicer forum interface, etc. At the moment, though, I get to stuff when I can. mjb. From nmoseley at dccnet.com Tue Oct 30 21:04:18 2007 From: nmoseley at dccnet.com (Nick Moseley) Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 21:04:18 -0700 Subject: [Spits] Naturally, now the message appears!!! In-Reply-To: <47277008.4080903@bradakis.com> Message-ID: <1193803462_120580@mx.dccnet.com> Hi Mark, thanks for your efforts. I've ante-ed up $20 through PayPal (it was so easy, anyone could do it...) and it only cost $19.60 Canadian. What a bargain! Nick Moseley From bdischer at blakedischer.com Wed Oct 31 10:13:23 2007 From: bdischer at blakedischer.com (Blake J. Discher) Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2007 13:13:23 -0400 Subject: [Spits] Darrell Floyd Recuperating Message-ID: <031401c81be1$59ae0ef0$0201a8c0@bjdtr3a> Hi everyone, Many of you know fellow lister and VTR Chief Judge Darrell Floyd. Last week Tuesday he had a small nodule in his left lung (discovered during a routine physical exam) surgically removed. On Sunday he and his wife Beverly got the good news that the doctors got everything and confirmed that there were no signs of anything in the lymph nodes that were removed. (It basically confirms that nothing has spread past the original nodule.) They believe now that he will not need chemo or radiation so that is great news. He's back home and Beverly says he's climbing the walls, so if you have a second, I'm sure he'd enjoy hearing from a bunch of us. His email address is wedgeinfo at aol.com. Cheers, Blake Discher