Popular Post HKM400 Posted February 16, 2020 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 16, 2020 Have rediscovered a bit of love for this the past few weeks. It's odd revisiting your previous work, I guess I was in a rush to get it running but there have always been numerous untidy things that have annoyed me about the car, so it's quite nice to make some improvement. The main source of annoyance was the wiring and the way it was run/cable tied all over the place, so I recovered the whole loom and rerouted most of it. This turned out to be a good move as there is still a lot of oil coating everything after the filter explosion disaster. The cable routing is better, will never be perfect but it is a lot more tidy. Before And after I also decided to follow some good advice from the discussion thread and got a Davies Craig EWP and controller. It may be slightly overkill for this application but I will be happy if the car runs at a reasonable temperature and I can eliminate the mechanical pump - this will probably require some fabrication as you cannot remove the impeller from the factory pump but I think I can get that sorted. Also wired the controller up and made a hinged bracket so the display can be folded up under the dash. Simple but does the job. Sensors aren't plugged in obviously, as I have no cylinder head. Will tidy the rest of the wiring once the pump and radiator are back in. Have been saving up for a new cylinder head, will probably source one from the UK. Going to be an expensive day but likely cheaper than buying a second hand head here then having it crack tested and built up etc. Time for a beer one thinks.... Cheers 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKM400 Posted April 3, 2020 Author Share Posted April 3, 2020 Some nice things arrived before everything turned to custard The water passage looks like a shocked face :O Repco is also delivering at the moment - I ordered a gasket set with the cylinder head but it was a bit bent and some of the sealing material had come away, so ordered another head gasket locally. Also painted the water pump pulley a stupid colour because why not. Fitting tomorrow - what's the opinion on copper gasket spray on head gaskets? New one is a generic permaseal. Cheers 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKM400 Posted November 14, 2020 Author Share Posted November 14, 2020 Back in April I tried to fit the new head, only to find the dowel sizes from the original head and the new head were different. The head went back on the shelf at this point. Last week I got the head milled so the block and head had the same diameter dowel holes, and made up some new dowels. New gasket in, then bolted it up yesterday, rockers back in, clearances all set etc. A workmate also managed to press the impeller out of the water pump and blank off the end, so now I can run electric water pump only, no thermostat and the controller can take care of everything for me. Need to get a very short alternator drive belt now. Tidied up some other bits, I stripped the rocker cover back to bare metal finish, repainted the exhaust manifold. Looks a bit better. Cowl isn't fitted properly- just sitting on there, the gap isn't that horrendous. Made a little bracket to help support the electric pump, got a bit carried away. Generally the rad hoses are enough to support it, but an extra bracket shouldn't hurt. Speed holes because BOM aspirations... Hopefully the pump will be ok drawing from the bottom hose in this location. The rad hose should allow for some movement as you're not really meant to solid mount these pumps apparently. Time to find some hoses that'll fit. So many things I want to redo. A lot of my previous workmanship (or lack of) is starting to show. Trying to do things properly now. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post HKM400 Posted January 10, 2021 Author Popular Post Share Posted January 10, 2021 Yesterday I made up some radiator hoses and mounted the pump for good. Hacked up an XY falcon hose as it had the right diameter and bends. Had to add the temp sensor for the pump into the top hose, worked better than expected. Quality control cat checked it for structural integrity Did a bit of heat management on the wiring too, bought some sheath for the alternator wiring as it runs right beside the exhaust collector. Still some tidying up to do but it should be ready to start next weekend. V nervous. 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post HKM400 Posted April 1, 2022 Author Popular Post Share Posted April 1, 2022 I did get the engine running shortly after the last post, and then promptly ignored it for another year while focusing on other things. Late last year I decided it was time to make some progress again, so Scott and Mark at mcgregors fitted cycle guards and moved the dash away to give a more comfortable steering reach, it’s so much better now. They also modified the manifold so the carb now sits level, meaning the float isn’t on the piss anymore. Next will be a proper bonnet and windscreen, and fixing all the jobs I half arsed as an 18 year old… 10 years on and it’s still only had 2 wofs 23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post HKM400 Posted December 26, 2022 Author Popular Post Share Posted December 26, 2022 Decided to do my own “over summer refresh” - I suspect it won’t be back together for some time, but I’ve made some progress. Have pulled everything apart, engine out, back to bare chassis minus the diff, brakes and a few bits Terminated everything on the wiring loom so it’s no longer just individual wire connectors, each gauge has its own plug which should make things easy if the dash ever has to come out again. There’s no doubt a better way to do it but I’ve enjoyed the process regardless, is good to actually understand how it works, even though it probably has similar complexity to the wiring loom found on a horse and cart… And yes all that blue wire should be purple for illumination on the gauges but I couldn’t find any purple in stock, so it’s blue. The connectors will go inside a waterproof box along with the main board. Tethered the whole loom to a board so I can map out everything properly this time. The loom itself was for a McGregor 7 and I never bothered to terminate anything at the right length- again I’m trying to do it properly this time. Fuse board had a crack in it so replaced that with one from burnsco. Once the engines back in I’ll fit it and check lengths etc before wrapping it up. Next step is to tidy up the chassis and remove any unnecessary brackets, weld up some holes. Maybe it’ll be back on the road by 2024… 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post HKM400 Posted September 3, 2023 Author Popular Post Share Posted September 3, 2023 Tidied up the chassis early this year, welded up any unnecessary holes and cut off a few redundant brackets. Then the car went off to McGregor Motorsport for a reimagined rear end to be grafted on. The chassis can now sit completely flat on the ground from front to rear, originally it sloped upwards from the rear bulkhead. The new setup is much tidier and stronger, while retaining most of the mounting points. I’ve also gained ground clearance was was previously an issue. Will get a new tunnel soon. The chassis does need to go back to be fully welded, so have disassembled the suspension and this is where it’s at today. Quick center of gravity and weight check, still acceptable. 23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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