SR2’s 1947 Vauxhall “Rigamortice” Build Thread

[sr2]

The initial plan was to replace the Spindles and Spindle Bushes and then re-kit the carbs but I managed to track down 3 new/old stock HS6 carbs for a fraction of the price – sometimes you just get lucky!

The guy I bought them off even threw in a carb balancer and a Colortune Kit to sweeten the deal, there’s some good sorts out there.

[sr2]

Another new/old Trademe score was a late 50’s “Miles Master” fuel pressure regulator, (SU’s need only a few lbs of fuel pressure). I was going to use a modern conventional 3.5 psi regulator but how could you resist both the packaging not to mention the sales pitch; and how could a mere mortal question the 30 day money back guarantee?

Have to point out that both Rigamortice and I were somewhat let-down with the discovery that there was no ‘free set of Ginzu steak knives’ included in the transaction, but we just keep falling in love with this stuff. It’s history.

[sr2]

Finally picked up the finished counterbalance crank; big thanks to Engine Specialties for a not cheap but a hard job well done, good value in my books-thanks guys.

Crack tested, big ends ground 10 thou, main journals reduced to fit the X2 186 block, rear seal converted from rope to neoprene (once more to fit the block) and a full balance. They insisted on supplying their preferred bearing shells and how can you argue with a bunch of guys taking full ownership of their work?

For an old Holden 6 junkie, this is nothing less than pure crankshaft porn!

[sr2]

After making the call to take the block out to 60 thou oversize (hard to argue with an internal micrometer) the hunt was on for suitable pistons. Problem is these motors were designed to run on leaded 100 octane petrol (yes real lead, the stuff pre-millennial ‘real jokers’ used to have in their pencils!) and the best we can buy in our modern times is BP98. To add another problem both the head and block had probably been decked a number of times and I was now planning on pushing 208 CI displacement into a 186 head.

With flat top pistons off the menu I managed to track down a set of ‘new old stock’ .060” over JCC dished pistons in Australia complete with pins and chrome moly rings. You have to love the 30 plus year old tea cup stain on the end of the box, if they could talk I'm sure these ‘new old’ spares  could tell some stories.

[sr2]

Thought it was about time to have a look at my favorite DCD Weber; we go back a long way, purchased new in 1974 it was looking a little 2^nd hand.

 

Stripped it down and on closer inspection the throttle spindles showed little almost no wear and the call was made to give it a good clean and assemble with a new float valve and gaskets.

 

Finally located a rebuild kit from MLP Carbs in Victoria, (don’t you hate it when bloody Aussies turn out to be the good guys……!).

 

After an enjoyable evening in the world famous sr2 man cave rattling the neighbourhood with Pink Floyd playing loud and ½ a bottle of cheap (ish) pinot noir - one more job’s ticked off the list.

 

[sr2]

As always both Rigamortice and myself welcome unsolicited advice, adulation, various forms of verbal abuse (as long as it’s entertaining) and are totally open to most popular forms of bribery and coercion (Wild Turkey works well) on our discussion thread.

 https://oldschool.co.nz/index.php?/topic/49843-sr2%E2%80%99s-1947-vauxhall-%E2%80%9Crigamortice%E2%80%9D-discussion-thread/&page=5

[sr2]

As those who are more familiar with us will know both Rigamortice and myself have a great affinity for the environment and take climate change (i.e. the thing we used to “call global warming” before it got cold again!)  very seriously. Stricken by remorse and overwhelmed by guilt over the tons of negative carbon credits I’ve released on the global economy through years of motor racing, driving cars for the love of it, and behaving like a typically irresponsible older ‘Oldschool’ member I have acquired an EV!

You may scoff at the fact that it’s a clapped out old warehouse sweeper with buggered batteries saved from the scrap heap but to Rigamortice and myself it is a powerful symbol of our indefatigable commitment to a green and politically correct future.

With help from my brother providing advice, encouragement and the Wild Turkey may I present the definitive green, negative carbon credit, EV solution to taking the wheelie bins out when you live down a long driveway, (what could possibly go wrong!).   

Commentary and camera work courtesy of the ever lovely Mrs sr2.

 

[sr2]

Thought it was time to clean up Rigamortice’s vintage Kel-Co manifold to get the DCD Weber back where it belongs. Couldn’t resist the temptation to cut off unwanted bits, file off casting marks and   give it a blast in the new blasting cabinet (only a baby one but all I have is 12 cfm).

 

 

 

Have to say I was pleased with the results.

 

 

I’d been thinking about building an engine start-up cradle for a while, found some old castors, raided the obligatory under bench scrap steel pile and started cutting and welding,……… and cutting and welding,…….

 

 

Once again happy with the end result, particularly the “Hillbilly headers” fabricated from parts saved from the rubbish bin.

 

 

 

I just had to incorporate the “inglorious welding” I found on an old muffler!

 

 

And how could you not love the 1950’s JAP fuel tank.

 

 

As an added bonus you can even run motors up on it! (My favourite Torana 2850cc 9 port, stock standard but what little rever – Brock discovered them before anyone else).

     First 2850 start-up on the new cradle       

 

 

[sr2]

 I’d been keeping any eye on a bloke in Whangerai who had been trying to sell a 186 on TM  while doing his damndest  to scare off any potential buyer by abusing anyone who had the audacity to ask a question on his auction. God I love those grumpy old traders! He was insisting that someone had painted the standard head yellow and refused to post any pictures of the inlet ports. After some months of his relisting I finally put the poor deluded old sod out of his misery by buying it for $300.

An early 2-hour drive had me rolling down his driveway at 8 am in the morning, one look at the inlet ports confirmed it had at least a stage 2 Yellow Terra head. When I suggested that as an honest principled rogue, I felt a moral obligation to throw a little more coin in the pot he started accusing me of being a ‘lying young upstart that was talking through a hole in his f***ing head’. As I beat a hasty retreat up the driveway waiting for him to set the dogs on me (with the booty in the back of the van) I had to admit that at 63 years of age, despite the verbal tirade it was great to be called ‘young’ –  ya gotta love those grumpy old guys!

 

 

 

Couldn’t wait for to to get the head off but work pressure had me waiting for the weekend.

As I said in the 1^st post of this thread ‘sometimes you just get lucky’ - I stuck it in the engine stand, flipped its lid off and discovered a rather virgin stage 3 Yella Terra covered with the type of carbon that only prolonged over rich running can ever produce.

 

Double valve springs and classic 70’s inlet porting.

 

 

And just relish in the vintage YT valves!

 

Once cleaned up the flat top 30 thou over pistons felt firm in the bore so Rigamortice and I made the call that we’ll clean up the head, sort out the appropriate sump/pickup combo and see how it runs.

[sr2]

Time to strip the head down. Suddenly I realised I’d lent my valve spring compressor to that guy we all know who never has his own tools (and we always forget his name), who never returns tools……….grrrrrrr!

As I’ve said before, combining the lack of an appropriate tool with a good mig welder and the obligatory collection of scrap steel under the work bench is the mother of many a good man-cave invention.

Found an old screw Clamp…a bit of cutting and welding.

 

A lick of paint……..

 

And the custom (i.e. beer, bullshit & bad manners) “Oldschool Holden Valve Spring Compressor” makes its debut.

 

[sr2]

Dropped the head off at a local reconditioners for a leisurely soak in the cleaning bath and a very light skim (I suspect 3 & 4 cylinders had been talking to each other). Have to say I was blown away with how good a condition it was in once all the damn black rich running carbon had been dissolved. 

 

 

Cleaned the valves and gave them a light lap.

 

 

Enlisted the help of an  “Oldschool Holden Spring Compressor” I had lying around which made light work of the double valve springs and all it needs now is a fresh coat of the obligatory “Torana Yellow” paint.

 

[sr2]

Had to settle for VHT Yellow; close but not the genuine Yella Terra Torana yellow. Only had some Chev orange rather than Holden ‘rocket red’ for the block but Rigamortice and myself are firmly of the opinion this motor is not an ornament; with a 3” bore, a 3” stroke and a historic 70’s heads to die for this classic 186 bitch needs to run!

[sr2]

One very sexy 186; runs sweet with the Weber on it but needs a bit of a cam to bring it to life. I’ll run it until the the 208 stroker motor is built.

[sr2]

Decided it was about time I focused a little more on the Rigamortice project. It was obvious I needed more space than my meagre suburban garage could provide so storage shed and a small machine shop became a priority. Solved the shed problem with a Bunnings el-cheapo but couldn’t resist building a sturdy base on which I could build something more substantial on in the future.

 

Yes it’s a flimsy piece of junk but hey you get what you pay for!

 

Next step was to cut a hole in the side of my garage block wall (with the help of my son) and build the machine shop I’d been hankering after for a while.

 

 

Still needs a little finishing (and a sub for the sound system) but I’m happy.

 

[sr2]

A few weeks later on old friend arrived on a transporter…

 

 

…and settled into her new/old home…let the games begin!

[sr2]

That evening Rigamortice and myself opened a bottle of 101 Wild Turkey in the new and improved sr2 man cave for a long awaited celebratory drink.

 Much later in the night with ‘Darkside Of The Moon’ cranking on the new man-cave sound system (Sub installed) we both experienced a religious epiphany and……….. saw God.

To be more precise we saw the Great Spaghetti monster in the sky and the following day with fuzzy heads we joined…….. a religion!

 

The day after the following day I had to get a medical and eye test to renew my class C license and took the opportunity to renew my picture while wearing my new religious head wear. (The “ever-lovely” Mrs sr2 has threatened to never travel overseas with me again if I ever do the same with my passport).

 

 

 

Discussion thread….

https://oldschool.co.nz/index.php?/topic/49843-sr2%E2%80%99s-1947-vauxhall-%E2%80%9Crigamortice%E2%80%9D-discussion-thread/

[sr2]

Suddenly level 4 lockdown appeared out of left field and I had a lot more time on my hands and bugger all MIG gas and raw materials to work on the project – that bloody Whuan Flu strikes again. I needed some wheel dollies so I raided the scrap metal pile I was about to take to the recyclers, grabbed some old, worn out castors I’d been hoarding and Barry’d up a pair.

 

 

[sr2]

Removed the front guards, bumper and radiator cowl and store them in the flash new shed. These 30’s designed cars are just one big bolt together Meccano set.

 

 

Motor & box came out real easy, hopefully I’ll find a good home for the mechanicals. (Anyone interested PM me, it’s in very good condition and I’m more interested in finding a good home for it rather than cash).

 

 

This is one very sweet little six cylinder. 1781cc of OHV fire breathing 30’s technology producing a stump pulling 48 bhp  (36 Kw) giving the standard car a blistering top speed of  70 mph (112 Kph) while rocketing it from  0-50 mph (0-80 Kph) in an eye watering, leg wetting 21.6 seconds.

 

 

 

It’s easy to see why these cars were serious “chick magnets” in their day!

 

 

And it was even cool to smoke cigarettes.

 

No one wore seatbelts

 

 

 

 

 

 

[sr2]

God only knows what (or who) this pyscho looking dude was planning to do with his finger in the spacious back seat…..… (1930’s car ads were a little weird).

 

 

 

And sadly none of the above poor buggers knew that in 1940 a thing called WW2 would descend on them to change their and mankind’s world for ever.

[sr2]

Back to the task in hand:

Next step was to remove the steering column/box assembly and then drop the original front suspension. Considered to be state of the art in its time the famous Vauxhall torsion bar “knee action” suspension sort of worked when new but when aging, rapidly descended into a dreadful, wobbly collection of bits that had the car lurching all over the place even when traveling in a straight line.  Bloody terrifying and a little too ahead of its time me thinks.

 

 

 

After some 6 hours of lying on a creeper I managed to remove all the bolts securing the body to the chassis without any mishaps. Resisting the temptation to grab the impact wrench and shear the heads off the frozen little bastards the job was achieved with patience, an old set of Whitworth spanners, CRC, a little heat and lashings of old age and treachery.  Designed in the mid 1930’s Rigamortice sports an innovative semi-monocoque construction where the chassis ends just past the B pillar,  it makes the body/chassis fixing  a little more complicated as it’s all designed to flex.  

The end result of my labours was something like this….