Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
A couple of things to mention.
Dissimilar metals can, if in electrical contact with each other be subject to galvanic corrosion, especially if they are wet with salt water, as found on UK roads in winter.
Using the tank strap rubber can electrically insulate the two on much of their length, but worth considering along any fixings. Paint will help with electrical insulation.
I would never double layer any metallic surface especially when water could migrate between the two, unless there is a clear air gap between them and a path for any water to reach a drain hole, or the gap between is fully sealed.
Announcement
Collapse
No announcement yet.
Berlinetta build and restoration
Collapse
X
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
The fuel tank arrived today, and it's exactly like the sketch that I supplied. It has two internal baffles which I actually forgot to specify so full marks to OBP. The cost was £200 plus carriage plus VAT, which came to £260. This was at the higher end of the budget for the tank but it is high quality, a one off and was made quickly. There were some universal tanks that were a bit cheaper but each one was compromised in some way from what I really wanted.
976.jpg
991.jpg
The tank is nice and shiny just now but being bare ally it wont stay that way for long, especially mounted under the boot, so I think I will paint it with some robust paint. Any suggestions what to use? I am also toying with the idea of sticking an extra layer of ally on the base and maybe the sides for extra protection from flying stones. The tank is made from 2mm ally so maybe I am being over cautious, what do you think? For mounting the plan is to cradle it on four straps and two straps over the top. The straps will be made of steel, either stainless or galvanized with rubber stuck on to save any damage to the tank. Any ideas where to get such rubber?
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Just had a look, that's a long list! Must have taken a lot of time to sort it out, much appreciated.
Scott
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Guys, I've just put a Berlinetta Pitstop Tech Articles list on the Berlinetta Section - hope it helps
Rgds DC
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Hi Dane, sounds interesting. It would be good to see what you put in pitstop, do you know which issues? Then I could look in the past issue section of this website. My Cortina heater worked well enough with my hardtop fitted, I left small gaps at the side of the rear seat which allowed the air to flow to the boot where there were gaps around the rear shocks. I had to run the fan all the time though as there was no force feed of air but that is just the same as the standard Berli with the recirculated air system. If you have read my build diary you will know that I never got the interior finished but this time around I hope to get it done and I plan to have vents through to the boot so that the airflow is the same as before.
I also bought the plenum chamber, some ducting, a couple of flap valves and ball vents. The plan is to have the two small outlets connected to the demist vents, and the two large outlets connected to the Y shaped flap valves to split each between feet and dash ball vents. So for maximum demist I will set the flap valves to direct the air to the dash vents and close the ball vents so that all the air goes to the screen. These Y valves will be operated by cables as in a production car, that is the plan anyway we will see if I can make it work!
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Hi Scott, I removed Cortina heater from my Berli when I uprated the engine a while back. I used the similar heater as yours which I obtained from CBS. I fitted mine on the engine side of a new steel firewall. I enclosed the heater in an ally box which connects with a scoop in the bonnet for a fresh air feed. I put the details in various Pitstop issues in 2007 and 2009. I fitted the heater outlet panel, also from CBS, which allows convoluted air trunking to supply air to the footwells and demister vents. I generally drive hood down but I'll need to add exhaust air vents to the hard top before I ever fit it to allow through flow of heated air.
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
The gearbox was easily freed off with WD40. There are two small spring loaded plungers that hold the selectors in position and they were a bit stiff through lack of use.
I have been trying to keep this build diary in a logical sequence, tackling one job at a time, but the reality is very different. You have to keep thinking ahead about what parts will be required and how long it will take to get hold of them. For example right now I am trying to concentrate on the bulkhead area but I have to think about what space parts of the engine may require in this area, so I should really get the engine put together. This in turn means I have to get the clutch sorted out. Another thing that I would like to sort out is the fuel tank.
The original fuel tank had a few niggles. The filler was on the side and required a sharp right angle, this meant spitting back when filling so it was a slow job. The sender was mounted on the side and was very difficult to stop leaking as it was submerged in fuel at anything over half a tank. The tank was also quite rusty so I decided to see about getting a new one made. I have been doing a bit of research, looking at web sites and forums on the internet and magazine articles, so I have a good idea of what I want and a couple of companies with good reviews.
For many years I have made an annual visit to the Autosport show at the NEC. So last weekend at the show I spoke to some companies about getting a tank made and I decided to try OBP. They were enthusiastic when I spoke to them and they also have some good reviews. They asked me to email a sketch of what I wanted. So I had a go on my laptop and this is what I came up with.
971.jpg
They got back in touch quickly with a price of £200 plus carriage plus VAT. They say it should be ready in ten days from when I pay for it.
Also when I was at the show I spoke to some people about uprating the brakes on the Berli. I am convinced that one of the reasons for the poor brakes on the Marlin is due to the increase in rolling radius of the wheel / tyre combination compared to the standard Sierra. This puts the standard brakes at a mechanical disadvantage. I think the solution is larger diameter discs with uprated calipers. Rally Design do a kit for the Sierra which I am convinced will result in fantastic brakes, although it is a bit pricey. But what price is worth paying when you need to do an emergency stop?
So getting back to the bulkhead, one of the main components to be mounted here is the heater. The Berli is designed to use a Cortina heater but the one in my car had been modified to occupy less space, the matrix was also corroded and if it was not leaking it soon will be, so it had to be replaced. I didn't fancy fitting another Cortina unit, for a start finding one in good condition would be a challenge. I thought a new one would be a much better idea especially from the point of view of reliability and the availability of spares if it does leak or the fan stop working. To cut a long story short I bought one from Car Builder Solutions, here it is sitting in position.
956.jpg
The plan is to panel the original aperture for the heater with stainless steel and make a section of it box shaped to house the new heater. That way the heater will be in the cabin air space although it sits in the engine bay. This means that if the fresh air feed is not completely sealed there is no chance of drawing in engine fumes, just recirculated cabin air. The heater will draw fresh air from behind the louvered panel in front of the passenger door. This was a modification that some Berlinetta owners, including me, carried out as a solution to the windscreen misting up when the heater just recirculated the air.
Moving to the engine, I decided to take the sump off for a look and I spotted a crack in the cast alloy sump, not good.
961.jpg
At least there was no other obvious problems.
966.jpg
I had previously bought two non running engines with the plan to build one good one, so I will use the sump from one of them. The perils of buying from ebay.
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Got the linkage from Rally Design today.
946.jpg
951.jpg
Unfortunately the gear change was very stiff when I tried it, so I removed it and put the gear lever in the original position and it's the same. The gearbox was donated by a friend who says he got it from a low mileage Sierra, for use in a Mk2 Escort project which he has lost interest in. This is the first time I have tried the gear lever, hopefully some WD40 will sort it. One step forward, one step back.
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
The transmission tunnel and floor were next. With the steering, pedals and bulkhead just temporarily fitted they were easily removed. In an attempt to defy Sod's Law the bulkhead and associated parts will be just trial fitted. This law says that a part can be temporarily fitted and sit there for ages with no problems, until it is given a nice coat of paint and bolted down, often with nyloc nuts and sealer. Then it will suddenly prevent access for the next part and have to be removed again! So final painting and assembly will be delayed for as long as practical.
I decided to gain some extra foot room due to the Ford gearbox being smaller than the original Rover box. Rather than weld to the now galvanized footplate I decided to bolt a couple of offcuts of stainless on. At this point I also decided to invest in some stainless fasteners.
921.jpg
906.jpg
I was also able to reduce the height of the tunnel. The original sides had the top fold straightened then was refolded lower down. Once again I just used the equipment that was available.
911.jpg
916.jpg
926.jpg
Here the original floor board shows the extra room that was gained.
931.jpg
New floors were cut from Marine plywood and fitted. From early on I suspected that the gearlever may end up too far forward, so a bit of searching came up with a bolt on linkage made by Rally Design which moves the gearlever back. I wanted to be sure that I needed it so I fitted the seats and controls again to try it out.
Here you can see the original hole for the lever is just in front of the join in the tunnel.
936.jpg
With the gearbox sitting in position you can see here that the gearlever is well in front of the join in the tunnel. So I think I will need the part to move the lever back.
941.jpg
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Back in the garage after a busy time on the farm. We are not quite finished all of the field work yet but as the year marches on the weather deteriorates, so one way or another I should get more free time.
Tonight after a few minutes to remind myself what I was doing before, I fitted the accelerator pedal.
The pedal came from the same Rover as the brake and clutch pedals. I welded piece of flat bar across the top to provide an additional two mounting bolts to prevent flex. Now that the bulkhead is made of stiffer stainless steel there is maybe not the same need, but it won't hurt so I left it on.
881.jpg
886.jpg
891.jpg
Again there was no cover supplied with the original kit, so I made one up. I did think about making a new one from offcuts of stainless but I decided if it aint broke don't fix it.
896.jpg
901.jpg
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Every cloud has a silver lining, quite literally. The torrential rain yesterday and today has brought the harvest work on the farm to a halt which meant I could have an unexpected evening in the garage.
I have been connecting the brake and clutch pedals to the servo and clutch cable. The pedal box came with the original kit but there were no pedals, I'm not sure if this was a mistake but to cut a long story short I modified the pedals from the Rover SD1 that I had bought for the V8 engine. I spent a lot of time positioning them during the original build, and the only niggle was limited room for my left foot, this should be cured by the wider footwell. The other day I compared the spacing of the brake and clutch pedals to that of my Mondeo and was surprised to find the measurement was the same. So when I found that the brake servo rod and the pedal were out of line I was keen not to move the pedal. I made a bush for the end of the servo rod and attached it to the pedal as in the pics.
856.jpg
A better view with the pedal box upside down.
861.jpg
Next the clutch pedal. The Rover clutch is hydraulic but the bellhousing that I am now using is designed for a cable. I happen to have a spare cable left over from my oval racing days so I plan to use this, it has an eye on one end and an adjuster on the other. It is a Ford part from an early Cortina and is still available, so if it works I will get a spare while I still can.
866.jpg
It's a bit trial and error. I'm not sure how high the cable should be attached above the pedal, the balance is between having enough movement in the cable and the force required to push the pedal. So I have several holes to choose from and the cable guide is on slots to get it to line up. I'm also not sure how long the cable guide tube should be so I will cut it to length when I have the clutch in the car.
871.jpg
876.jpg
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Hi Scott
Great move to widen the footwell - 50mm in mine makes all the difference, and you look like you have even more.
Have you spaced your brake/clutch pedals further apart, to make use of the additional footwell width?
PS - I borrowed the steering column bearing idea from Cameron, who had borrowed it from .........!
MikeLast edited by Mike; 17-07-14, 10:21 PM.
Leave a comment:
-
Re: Berlinetta build and restoration
Time to make a new bulkhead. I asked at the local blacksmith/ engineer for some aluminium and there was bad news then good news, he was out of ally but had an off cut of stainless steel sheet which he folded to the same shape as the original bulkhead, leaving me to cut the sides to the same shape.
801.jpg
With the engine in position I was able to measure up and cut the hole for the transmission tunnel.
811.jpg
With the gearbox and bellhousing being smaller than the original Rover I was able to make the tunnel smaller and so gain some width in the footwell. Here the black foot plate shows the original width.
816.jpg
Hole cut for pedals and steering.
836.jpg
Incedentaly the bulkhead bearing for the steering column was an idea I first saw in Mikes Cabrio build, an improvement on the standard Ford rubber donut.
851.jpg
846.jpg
Leave a comment:
Leave a comment: