JF 4238 1933 Minor Saloon

[Ian Grace]

John,

The window channel is a separate felt-covered extrusion and pinned into the ash - the timbers that the sections sit on are plain and flat. You can get the extrusion from all the usual upholstery suspects - just make sure you get the right width for the glass - there are different sizes available.

[Jpallis001]

Oil Pump experts required! should there be a washer in between the drive gear and the casting? Currently have a movement of approx 2mm, although when assembled the oil pump gears would be held down by the cover plate which would prevent movement?

oil pump1.jpg (46.1 KiB) Viewed 2972 times

[Ian Grace]

Hi John,

I'm not aware of a washer in there. I think you are good to go. You'll need a thin oilpaper gasket between the pump body and the engine.

[Jpallis001]

Thanks Ian - last few engine bits should arrive this week, should be able to start to build the engine this weekend if I can remember where everything goes and manage to currectly cut all of the paper gaskets. Are there any good engine assemby drawing available on the Internet? Any Torque settings anywhere? What do you make the exhaust system out of?

John

[Ian Grace]

Nope - no assembly drawings that I know of - other than the exploded diagram in the parts list which isn't a great deal of help. Same goes for torque settings - nothing was published by Morris - just use gumption, ingenuity and native cunning! The only trick I can think of on SV engine assembly is the small grub screw which holds the front main white-metaled sleeve in - if this isn't tight, then it has been known to come out and allow the sleeve to rotate, thus cutting off the oil feed to the crank. You have been warned!

As for the exhaust, you can get the original pattern con-ended silencers from the Cooke Group (0116/2881234). The tailpipe is straight. There should be a hanger from the rear tubular cross-member and another from the rear of the two main cross-members. This one has a bolt – about 3” long that goes thru the cross-member. These two brackets are all that hold it on – aft of the manifold. The original front pipe (which has a bend of slightly more than 90 degrees) had a flange about 1’4” from the top end of the pipe that fits in a recess in the manifold, and then there is a cast clamp ring (and circular copper asbestos gasket) that holds the whole assembly together. This arrangement was changed for the ’34 season cars. The recess in the manifold and circular gasket which fiteds in it were done away with and the clamp plate and gasket were lozenge-shaped and included two holes for the clamp bolts.

[Jpallis001]

Thanks Ian - will go and check that grub screw. Back to the King Pins; which way up does the washer go cross/grooves/grease ways = up?? Should the pin be flush with the top of the upper casting? or should it protrude above? (so that a washer/grease cover can be fitted to top of pin/below swinging brake pulley?

When fitting the washer, if it is 'too tight', and the bushes have been driven fully home, what is the currect procedure?

[Ian Grace]

Hi John,

Regarding which way up the thrust washers should go, that's a good question, and I think I know the answer, but I want to check before I say anything incorrect! Does anyone else have the definitive answer?

As for the pin, the position is more or less determined by the cotter, but there is some up/down play which is very important to get right on the early OHC cars (with pulley under the kingpins - set the pin too high, and the pulley fouls on the axle beam), but unimportant on the later and SV cars. The Minor didn't have any sort of dust cap on the kingpin, so this really isn't critical. I think the later Eights had a groove in the top of the top kingpin bush to accept a cap, but not the Minor. As long as you can get the cotter in, the kingpins and bushes will do their job.

If you find you cannot get the thrust washer in, then I would first check the surfaces of the stub axle for wear or burring and maybe lightly dress them with a file. If that doesn't work, I'd file or grind down the thrust washer very carefully to make sure it remains flat. Having said that, I have never encountered this problem.

[Jpallis001]

Getting quite good at flooding the garage floor with ball bearing! Any experts on Release bearing out there? How do you get the inner and outer bearing races out of the housings? any tricks or is it bought as an assembly?

[attachment=0]release bearing.jpg

[Ian Grace]

Not bought as an assembly, John - the bronze housing, bearing and bearing cover are separate items - or at least they should be!

[Jpallis001]

a few trips between freezer and blowtorch; a reground wood chisel; lots of WD40, and yes they jumped off.

[Jpallis001]

Now that release bearing looks to be an expensive lttle thing! - will try fitting a new set of ball bearing first.

Now to the gearbox; I am not going to take it to bits, every previous attempts at gearboxes provide me with jam-jars full of balls and springs. But there was evidenec of a lot of oil in the bell housing. If I can work out how to remove the brake/clutch pivot shaft, an I remove what looks to be a cover plate shielding/supporting the gearbox input shaft, is there an oil seal or bearing (hope full a cheap one) that would be worth replacing? Any other easy things to check/replace without going inside of the box itself?

[Ian Grace]

I'll defer to others who probably have more experience with Minor gearboxes than I do. I've probably owned over thirty Minors over the past 35 years, but never had to strip a gearbox!

As for getting the cross-shaft out, you need to slide the right-hand bronze bush out of the ali housing - then there will be enough space between the shaft and the casing to angle the shaft out and slide it out to the left - if you see what I mean. Be careful to retain the little washer that goes under the split pin that holds the brake pedal onto the shaft.

[Ronald]

I suspect that even if you remove the housing on the input shaft, all you will find is a worn oil return thread, a very primitive way to stop the oil from coming out, no doubt in 80 yrs this will have worn to the point of not working, besides, a minor without an oil leak is almost like a land rover without one, it means the oil has run out..!!!

[Jpallis001]

You have convinced me that I should just re-fit it and see what is does/does not do. I set out to drain the oil, but there was none in - must be the delux, self draining model that you describe!


Fire wall: originally the fire wall was fitted in front of the bulk head surround panel, having seen some photos where the firewall is fitted from behind the panel, I decided that looked the neatest option. BUT just noticed these images that show the panel forward of the panel i.e. edges of firewall on view.

http://www.prewarminor.com/#/the-chassi ... 4531201442

is there a right and wrong way to position the firewall?

[Ian Grace]

John,

The firewall was fitted inside the OHC scuttle dash, but outside on the SV - don't ask me why!

Ian