The recent discussion on pulling out engine for an
overhaul seems to suggest that an engine puller has
to be rented. I recently rebuilt my Spitfire 1500
and all I did was disconnect the transmission from
the engine, remove the head and accessories and with
help from a friend easily pulled out the block.
Feh. You Spitfire and Midget guys don't know the joy of
working with a gen-you-wine hunk of throbbing British iron
like the one in the MGB. :-) This puppy is BIG and SOLID.
The head alone weighs 67 lb (just under UPS's shipping limit,
which is how I found out). The weight and characteristics
of the B's engine are a big motivating factor in my epigram
about the difference between Italian cars and British cars...
Seriously, though, while the Spitfire 1500 is only 300cc smaller
than the MGB 1800, the block dimensions are quite different, and
remember that you also have those pesky fenders in the way. I'm
not saying that you COULDN'T pull a B engine without a hoist,
but it would help if you had a friend who tosses bears or something
for fun.
I did the valves myself since machining is not necessary
most of the time.
Heh. That's how I started out my four-hundred-dollar "free"
project. "Well, I've GOT the gaskets, and the parts washer
is set up, I'll just clean everything really well and put the
new gasket in and the car will run great!" Then I saw how far
the exhaust valves had sunk into the head, and how uneven the
tops of the valve stems were, and, and, and... So now I have
this nice shiny head with 75 miles on it and it's a joy to
drive. (Of course, just having the car BACK would have made
it a joy to drive.)
The car is running great at 1700 miles, zero blowby
and great throttle response (ok. I played with jet sizes
on the weber).
That's what it's all about, though. The more you do on your car,
the more you make it *yours*, in a way that signing 48 checks and
taking it to the dealer every 7500 miles will never come close to
duplicating.
--
Scott Fisher/sfisher@wsl.pa.dec.com/DEC Western Software Labs/Palo Alto, CA
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