Flash's 1965 Ford Thames

[Flash]

I'll need to fabricate a holding bracket for both ends of the cable and the cable itself may need to be shortened a bit, but its worth a try. The Certifier has confirmed that I can elongate the existing hole in the chassis rail where the gearbox selector needs to poke through as long as I attach a strengthening plate to the rail, so once I've done that I can put the cable through its paces.

But that will have to move to the back burner for now as the steering column fabrication has become top priority .

Thanks for reading.

[Flash]

I promised the Certifier that I would build the lower steering mount out of something more robust than my plywood mock up so I spent the morning doing a bit of metal carving with my small grinder of angles.

Whilst I was on a roll I chipped out the gussets for the engine mounts too.

Looks like tomorrow is going to be a hole drilling day and I can then glue the bits together.

[Flash]

So this morning I managed to poke a few holes in my steel plates with the help of my state of the art Ozito battery drill.

It wasn't as straight forward as it sounds. 

First off I wanted the main vertical plate to attach to the factory mounting holes in the chassis where the original steering box used to reside. I've already learnt the hard way that even although my plywood mock up bolts up perfectly, 6 mm steel plate is not as forgiving and I therefore cannot rely on the accuracy of the holes in the mock up. So I follow a bit of a time consuming process that starts off by drilling one of the required holes to the final diameter required using the plywood mock up as a template and then bolting the plate into place. Luckily this part of the chassis is a C section so with one bolt secured its easy enough to drill a pilot dimple through the factory hole from the back of the chassis leg using the final diameter drill bit. Then its off with the plate and back to the bench to drill the second hole, then bolt it up with two bolts to mark the final hole and rinse and repeat.

With the main plate bolted into final position I turned my attention to the smaller horizontal plate that the original Thames steering column outer will attach to. Again I'm using the factory holes where the column outer originally bolted to the steering box, so accuracy was again a factor. I followed my usual recipe and test fitted the column outer to the plate. Done for now.

I'll still need to fabricate the larger hole in this plate that the steering column will pass through, but I'll need to borrow my mates step bit to achieve this, so I'll leave it for another day.

Thanks for reading. 

[Flash]

Spent a bit of time this morning working out the overall length of the new steering column as the Engineering shop that will be glueing the bottom section of the L300 column to the top section of the Thames column needed to know this. I figured since it is going to cost me a bit to get the welding and subsequent crack testing done, best I get the measurement 100% correct. Followed the old adage of "measure twice, cut once", but in my case "measure thrice"

With that out of the way I drilled a few holes with my mate Snow's step drill bit which I borrowed last night. What a pleasure when you have the right tool for the job.

[Flash]

With the holes completed the two plates that make up the structural piece of the steering column bracket are now ready to be glued together. I bolted the main plate up to the chassis leg and the smaller plate to the steering column. Until the plates are welded together the steering column is able to pivot on it's top bracket, so I made a little jig to stop the upper plate from floating around using some timber off cuts. It's not pretty, but it does the job.

Next step is to tack the plates together and then pull them out for a full weld.

Thanks for reading. 

[Flash]

Today was the perfect day for a bit of welding. The engine mounts are now fully welded up and are sporting their gussets . They still need a proper clean. I test fitted the LHS upper to the mock up engine before remembering to take a pic, but you get the idea.

The steering column mounting plates are tacked together and will get fully welded tomorrow. The mounting brackets for the rear shock absorber units have also been tacked to the HiAce axle.

 

[Flash]

Thought I'd do a bit more metal carving today.

The Certifier has asked me to fit a crush tubes to the strut rod mounting plates, not to act as a crush tube, but just to give the structure a bit of extra integrity. The front portion already has two crush tubes that just happened to be in the chassis bits that I cut out of the Starwagon, so half the job is already done.

[Flash]

So I hacked some existing crush tubes out of the loose front portion of the Starwagon chassis and cleaned them up a bit. I'll fit them to the mounts tomorrow before both mounts get fully welded up. The tubes are longer than needed so I'll trim them off once welded.

[Flash]

Whilst I was on a roll with the grinder I thought I'd progress the lower portion of the gear shift column. You may recall that this is the piece that I cut off the Starwagon column shift a few months back and I'll now need to graft it onto the bottom of the Thames gear shift column.

[Flash]

The cunning plan is to try to increase the I/D of the Starwagon tube so that the "cotton reel" and lever will slide over the Thames shift column and I can then secure it in place using the original through pin that was originally installed in the Thames shift column.

I chucked the thing in my vice and took to the welding with a thin grinder blade. With the welding cut away I gave the lever a tap with my hammer thinking that the lever would break away from the "cotton reel". But as luck would have it the lever and cotton reel slid off the original shaft intact. Winner !

So now I just need to get a new tube turned up to the correct dimensions so that it will push on to the Thames column and then I just need to chuck the through pin back in.

Apologies for the glare in the pics. My shed gets way too much sun.

Thanks for reading.

 

[Flash]

Well that's the first two plates that make up the lower steering mount glued together.

I also managed to poke some holes for the extra crush tubes and the strut brace mounts are now fully welded up. Just need to trim off the excess tubes, clean up the welds a bit more and replace the existing M8 bolts with M10s as per the Certifier's request.

[Flash]

On Monday I dropped off my steering column at the local Engineering Works to have the L300 bottom portion welded to the Thames upper portion. Trevor has a mate who can issue a Dye Penetration report for Cert so he'll arrange that for me at the same time. So while I wait for Trevor to do his magic, I'm ticking a few smaller things off the "to do" list.

For a while I've been giving some thought to how I'm going to power the L300 power steering rack. With real estate around the engine pretty scarce BrownDog suggested I use an electro hydraulic pump like he is using on his MK1 Transit. It is a really neat solution, but the Mercedes unit that BrownDog is using has a built in fluid reservoir which wouldn't work where I need to mount the pump on the Thames. Holden Astra pumps are plentiful and cheap here in Straya, but again has an incorporated reservoir. The earlier generation MR2 pumps were a popular choice a while back as they have a remote reservoir. Problem is they are pretty thin on the ground now and they are pretty pricey. The early 2000 BMW Mini Coopers run a ZF unit that has a remote reservoir. A company here in OZ sells a complete brand new kit for $1400. Way out of my price range. Phoned around the local wreckers (there are only two in town so choice is limited), but no luck on the Cooper front.

Then I had a bit of a think about the donor L300 that I pulled the power rack from. Climbed underneath to suss out the original manual pump and it's a pretty small unit. Thought I'd take a punt and pull it out for a closer look. Threw a few spanners around, gave it a clean up and mocked it up on the 3Y to see if it would fit. Good news is that it tucks up nicely on the side of the engine. Looks like I'll just need to fabricate a small flat adapter plate to bolt the original L300 bracket to the side of the 3Y, so that's another potential win. Was thinking about trying to run a single serpentine belt as the harmonic balancer on the front of the 3Y is a single pulley unit. Asked for some advice on the Tech Forum and it looks like a dual belt system would be the better way to go. So I'm currently trying to chase down a dual pulley balancer for the 3Y. Wish me luck. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks for reading

[Flash]

So in amongst everything else the hunt is on for a double pulley harmonic balancer to drive the L300 power steer pump.

I reached out to my "go to guy" John who is based in the USA. John is an expert on Toyota Service Equipment and since the mighty 3 and 4Y engines were originally designed for forklifts and the like, there isn't much that John doesn't know about these hardy engines. As usual John came through with the goods, confirming that the Toyota Tractor Model number 02 2TG20 was fitted with a dual pulley harmonic balancer. Pic for them that like tractors.

[Flash]

John kindly supplied me with a copy of the appropriate parts schematic.

The part in question is the item marked 41 and it appears to be held on to the main pulley using 4 small bolts. What I don't know at this stage is whether the second pulley is for an older style v belt or for the newer style multi-groove belt. I need the newer style. I also need to ascertain whether all 3 and 4Ys share the same main pulley. So I've got a bit more homework to do.

 

 

[Flash]

While I was in the shed this morning I thought I'd take a closer look at the standard pulley. Yep, sure enough there are 4 threaded holes around the pulley. The bolts that hold the water neck on looked to be the correct diameter so I thought I'd give them a try. Sure enough, despite probably never having been used the threads in the 4 holes feel nice and clean. So it looks like the second pulley can be bolted on.

More investigation required.

[Flash]

Looks like I'm going to have to go to Plan B with the power steer pulley. All of my investigations to date seem to indicate that the factory Toyota "add on" pulley is for a V belt rather than the multi-groove jobbie that I need. The newer 4Ye's came with a 3 pulley setup but its an "all in one" part with a way bigger diameter than my older generation harmonic balancer which I sadly don't have enough room to squeeze in above the power steer rack.

Then @valiant came up with a brilliant suggestion of using a water pump pulley or similar that could be modified to bolt up to the existing harmonic balancer. What a brilliant suggestion Pete, so thanks for that !

So I climbed under the Mitsi Express van and swiped these three beauties off it's engine. The one on the left is the "all in one" main crankshaft pulley. It weights a ton and would take a lot of work to modify, so it's a no for that one. The one on the right has a deep bowl on it that just wont fit inside the lip of the Toyota pulley, but the one in the middle looks promising. I'll just need to open up the centre hole to slip it over the main pulley bolt. The 4 small fixing holes don't line up with the Toyota unit, but a quick poke around with my vernier indicates that I should be able to re-position the holes to suit. 

[Flash]

I'll put the pulley on the back burner until I've got access to the right tools to do the job.

Talking about having the right tools, my mate Lane is home from the gas fields this weekend and lent me his reciprocating saw so I was able to elongate the hole in the side of my chassis leg. The gear selection lever on the gearbox now clears the chassis and moves freely through it's arc, so that's another win.

I just need to tidy up the hole when I next drop the gearbox and at the same time I'll fabricate a strengthening plate as per the Certifier's instructions.

Thanks for reading.

[Flash]

I've been putting off the brakes for a while, so thought why not start the new week off by tackling things head on.

I've never seen anything quite like the standard Thames setup. The floor mounted brake pedal activates a rod that pokes through the floor. There is a pivot point with a second lever that activates the master cylinder. The single circuit master cylinder sits in a fabricated housing which provides the mounting point for the pivot mechanism. Its all pretty tight with very little free space. I took a few pics so you would get an idea of what I am talking about. 

 

[Flash]

The loose plan is to replace the single circuit master cylinder with a dual circuit unit and to fit a remote booster to improve overall braking performance.

I quickly pulled out the original master and then stripped the dual circuit unit out of the Starwagon. Placing the two units side by side revealed the first challenge. The mounting lugs on the original unit sit at 6 and 12 o'clock whereas the Starwagon lugs sit at 3 and 9 o'clock. 

I'm wondering if there is anything preventing me from turning the Starwagon unit on its side. I think I should be able to rotate the plastic fittings that lead up to the reservoir, but I'm not sure what other implications there might be .... Does anyone know ?

[Flash]

Okay, so I rotated the elbows on the inlet ports and quickly clamped the Starwagon master cylinder in place. It fits perfectly in the hole in the mounting plate. I'd just need to create a little spacer with offset mounting holes so that I could bolt it in place. I'd need to lengthen the push rod to suit, but it all looks fairly do able as long as I can run the unit on its side.

I'll post something on the Tech Forum asking the brake gurus for their advice before I go any further.