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Jan 14, 2016 13:25:48 GMT
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I know of a couple of places that do rebores in Leeds but not sure i'd vouch for them !
There are a couple of small garages that work on classics that could be worth ringing to see who they use for machining work.
Irwin Hill in Garforth is a proper old school family garage,works mainly on classic Jags,but i've seen Astons and all sorts there.Fascinating ramshackle timewarp place if you ever visit,loads of old Jags around not to mention a fantastic old Lagonda shoved under a lean to.
Hinchcliffe and Haley on Clarence Rd near the armouries do a lot of classic work as well.I assume they are still there as it's slowly getting redeveloped round that area.
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Jan 14, 2016 23:55:24 GMT
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cheers Paul. you own both of the cars I was tempted by! Thanks! I'll take some pics of the master cylinder area and the carbs when I get the chance. PM me your email address  IIRC, the master is the same as a Frogeye / very early Spridget although there are different bore size variants depending on front disc or drum brakes. Last time I looked, they were still available new. Regarding rebuild vs recon carbs, presumably if you rebuild them, you could keep a more patinated outer appearance to them in keeping with the exterior of your car? That's what happened to the cover on my uncle's car. The P6 cover fits nicely against the remaining cockpit section of the MGA cover, and it looks far more period correct than every brand new generic classic car spare wheel cover that I've seen (no idea about the quality of the repro ones of the correct integral type MGA one though). The shape and fitment of the P6 one also makes removing or refitting a mucky wheel a much cleaner operation - there's quite a few on ebay usually - click here for an ad with decent pics. Boot racks spoil the looks of an A imho - my uncle refuses to fit one for that reason despite the utterly lousy boot space, and due to the boot seal design, I gather that a clip-on rack (as often used on Bs or Spridgets) will not work. Despite being a much smaller car, a Spridget actually has vastly superior luggage capacity to an A. Btw, are you keeping the steels? Unusual to see one, especially a roadster like that, but rather refreshing!  Also, how far off is it from being driveable? I used my uncle's one daily for a summer a few years ago and thought that it was lovely to drive - not hugely fast (my Amazon will easily out run it in a straight line), but they feel fast enough & they handle and stop quite well despite the age. The only thing I didn't like was the lack of an overdrive as it felt very undergeared when on the motorway which was a pity since at 70 there was still plenty more to go. Anyhow, looking forward to reading the next updates |
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Last Edit: Jan 14, 2016 23:56:02 GMT by Paul H
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cheers for the info Paul. yeah - I have a correct master cylinder which as you say is same as Midget, etc. The only difference is that there's an extended reservoir for the MGA 1600 because of the front discs. You can use the normal one but you just have to keep an eye on the fluid level quite keenly apparently as the pad wear doesn't accommodate self adjustment like drums do. The raised reservoir is pricey though! About £60 new. The main issue is the way the previous owner has fitted the MGB master cylinders (separate clutch/brake) - looks like a bit of a bodge and unfortunately cut the heater shelf a bit I think. I'll tidy this up and make it original though as I have the correct pedal box, base plate, etc. Good point on the carbs - I think I'll have a go at it. Bit of a learning curve as I've only rebuilt a lawnmower carb before! How hard can it be?  See what you mean about the spare wheel cover - looks like a good solution. I'll put that on the (growing) list. I kind of agree about the luggage rack, although I did really like the look of this one that was for sale recently:  Yes luggage will be a challenge. Although I've always fancied motorcycle touring so it's probably about equivalent. Particularly if I gamble on no spare wheel! Yes, definitely keeping the steels. I prefer them to wires personally. I read that the MGA designers were quite offended when lots of buyers started ordering wires as an upgrade as it compromised their original design. A very popular upgrade is Sierra 5 speed gearbox and MGB five bearing engine. It's supposed to be amazing and doesn't affect values apparently. and/or change the diff ratio (which was an original option when new). Can't afford either of those unfortunately so will have to just pootle about for a bit. |
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Jan 15, 2016 10:04:54 GMT
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I love this, I've always fancied an MGA, such a beautiful car, May I ask what an MAG sells for these day, I'm guessing it's way out of my budget, but you never know... Following this with interest |
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Jan 15, 2016 16:04:29 GMT
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around £20-30k for a restored shiny one or £4-8k for a project... Parts are relatively cheap and available though...
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Jan 20, 2016 13:47:54 GMT
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Made some progress recently. have had to do a few things to organise my (tiny) garage so I can work better but now have started ripping out the hydraulic system in order to return it to original. The pedal box and master cylinders appear to be from an MGB:  It's proving tricky getting to all the fixings on this! I can get to about half of them but some are just spinning without any obvious way to get anything on the back of them... grrr... I'll get there in the end. The plan is to then get a correct dual master cylinder and replace with the correct pedal box and base plate. This is pretty much the only area of the car which is non-standard (apart from engine, but that's another story), so I'm keen to get it right. Prior to that I'm going to remove the heater too and prime the shelf as it's got the heaviest surface rust. It's totally solid but just doesn't look it (you can see in the photo above where I've easily wire brushed down to shiny metal). After extensive reading I've decided to: physically remove as much rust as possible, treat the whole panel with phosphoric acid, then paint with Bonda Primer (brushed on). This should keep it nice and protected until I eventually paint the whole shell. I'm happy to lose any patina in the engine bay but will try and avoid any primer on the exterior body panels (unless they're visibly deteriorating...) |
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Last Edit: Jan 20, 2016 13:52:34 GMT by catlotion
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Jan 27, 2016 14:03:46 GMT
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A bit more work last night. I've managed to remove the heater and although this appears to be the worst area so far for surface rust I was very pleased to find shiny metal under the sealant (see photo). The heater shelf is very solid all over, even at the edges where it meets the bulkhead. This is very pleasing as I've been used to rusty cars in the past (Land Rover, Stag) and keep expecting the scraping tool to go through to a big crunchy hole. I'm sure there's one somewhere on this car but fortunately haven't come across it yet...  The other thing I noticed is that the Texas Vehicle Inspection Certificate sticker in the windscreen has an expiry date in 1972 (previous page). There's no other evidence of a later one so maybe it has been laid-up since then?! I've also been debating with my colleague about whether to pressure wash the whole car... sounds daft in some ways but there is quite a bit of dirt in some of the body joints (including desert sand!) so would rather get rid of that in case it's harbouring moisture. Of course pressure washing could force water into all sorts of places but hopefully that will dry out... I'd also have to be careful about removing any of the lovely patina... It's not the best time of year to do this though so maybe best to wait for a warm spring day. |
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Jan 27, 2016 18:33:32 GMT
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I do love me some MGA. I think they beggar the Big Healey when it comes to style. If it were in my hands, there is no force that would keep me from tearing it down to the last nut and bolt for a rebuild with a 5 main MGB overdrive drivetrain and front suspension swap. Actually, I am even more of a philistine since this would most likely be the path of pursuit: An MGA Twin Came that actually runs!  |
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Last Edit: Jan 27, 2016 18:36:27 GMT by bjornagn
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The more popular option is 5 main MGB with Sierra gearbox. Adding an overdrive requires transmission tunnel changes... I'll be doing full tear-down but want to drive it first! sounds daft but I know it'll be years until it's ready once I remove the body... good luck finding a twin cam!  |
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Last Edit: Feb 1, 2016 9:36:59 GMT by catlotion
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stevek
Yorkshire and The Humber
Posts: 728
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There was a bit more progress last weekend. The other engine was hoiked out...  It got rained on while we were faffing with the engine so as it was already wet we gave it a proper wash...  We also spent a while T-cutting it but I forgot to get pictures. It brought out some nice colour in the old paint. -Steve- |
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lovely wee motor me likey
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The more popular option is 5 main MGB with Sierra gearbox. Adding an overdrive requires transmission tunnel changes... I'll be doing full tear-down but want to drive it first! sounds daft but I know it'll be years until it's ready once I remove the body... good luck finding a twin cam! Did not realize that my photo did not link. Try this again. When I said "Twin Cam that Runs" this is what I had in mind: No need for luck when you can make your own luck. In case you are interested in the backstory, here is the link to this build. www.mgexp.com/phile/40/342020/2_Miata_into_MGA.jpg |
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stevek
Yorkshire and The Humber
Posts: 728
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Hey bjornagn the MG forum keeps blocking the linked image, this one is linked direct from his photobucket...  The MG forum link (but you might have to copy/paste it): "www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?40,3107418" (its an interesting project) |
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Last Edit: Feb 4, 2016 21:43:50 GMT by stevek
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OK, I will keep that in mind! Good news is that I was not going senile cause I was pretty sure I put the link in last time.
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That white twin cam looks nicely done. Won't sound like an old car though... :-)
A few more updates, cleaned up the MGA engine and it doesn't seem too bad. Bit of surface rust here and there. Have to decide what to do engine-wise. The MGB 3-bearing has quite a ridge on the bores so not sure what to do with it. Might go for re-bore or just re-assemble with new gaskets and see what compression test says...
Been working on the carbs too - there's a few linkages missing but most of the other bits are there. Got to draw up a shopping list and get the service kit too.
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Feb 15, 2016 16:56:11 GMT
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A bit more work at the weekend. Stripped all the muck and paint off the pedals and pedal box... Forgot how effective twist knot wheels on angle grinders are! Although I HATE angle grinders. Horrible noisy dangerous things (gave myself permanent tinnitus years ago with one, which probably has something to do with it!)   |
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Feb 15, 2016 19:17:40 GMT
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And here's the results of Steve's t-cut efforts... :-)   |
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luckygti
Posted a lot
I need to try harder!
Posts: 4,912
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Feb 17, 2016 21:49:34 GMT
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Love this car, and that ^^^^ just looks so right. If it were mine, it'd stay like that forever |
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stevek
Yorkshire and The Humber
Posts: 728
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Apr 11, 2016 23:53:47 GMT
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Hey Toby, how about an update! I know there's been plenty happening. Look I even took a sneaky picture when you weren't looking to prove it...  -Steve- |
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Last Edit: Apr 11, 2016 23:55:05 GMT by stevek
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Apr 14, 2016 13:23:33 GMT
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ok ok. got behind on updating this... So there have been quite a few developments...
First major one relates to the engine. The car came with a MGA 1500 and MGB 3-bearing 1800. Both of which fit fine but I was always a bit frustrated not to have the correct engine for the car (1600). Also, the 1500 is seized (although appears to be in reasonable shape) and the 1800 has pretty bad cylinder ridges.
I managed to find a 1600 engine on Ebay and the description showed it as pretty rough with quite a bit of rust. However, it was described as turning so I gambled on it. Steve and I went over to collect from Liverpool and stuffed it in the boot of my Saab. On getting back and inspecting it - Very pleased is an understatement. It's been totally rebuilt by the looks of it. New pistons, oil pump, valves, etc. etc. Assembly paste is still visible on the camshaft and it's definitely not been run.
I've recently pulled some old newspaper out of it which was being used to block some holes and the scraps are from a Colorado newspaper from 1992... I'm in the process of disassembling it all as there's a fair amount of muck in there after having been stored for years.
First photo is the photo from the Ebay listing...
and on further inspection...
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Last Edit: Apr 14, 2016 13:27:17 GMT by catlotion
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IIRC, the master is the same as a Frogeye / very early Spridget although there are different bore size variants depending on front disc or drum brakes. Last time I looked, they were still available new. Regarding rebuild vs recon carbs, presumably if you rebuild them, you could keep a more patinated outer appearance to them in keeping with the exterior of your car?
Also, how far off is it from being driveable? I used my uncle's one daily for a summer a few years ago and thought that it was lovely to drive - not hugely fast (my Amazon will easily out run it in a straight line), but they feel fast enough & they handle and stop quite well despite the age. The only thing I didn't like was the lack of an overdrive as it felt very undergeared when on the motorway which was a pity since at 70 there was still plenty more to go. Anyhow, looking forward to reading the next updates 
