"Happy Birthday to Me"- The Peerless made it's new home at the SLCFWSC
last night. It's certainly going to be every bit as much work as
I've envisioned, with everything needing a complete rework. On the
other hand, the framing underneath is possibly in better shape than
I expected, altho it will probably all get replaced. The whole
front suspension (TR3) would probably be best off being replaced as
well, so I'll definitly be searching for lots of TR3 parts deals, while
I'm getting real good with fibre glass and MIG welding...
Things of interest
- I'm still not sure who's differential it has, but the half-shafts
are a sliding spline design, very similar to the TR4A IRS.
The DeDion tube runs UP, and over the top of the diff! Most I've seen
run either fore or aft. The rear shockers, dual acting hydraulics,
appear to be TR also.
-It has an OD transmission, as evidenced by linkages & plungers visable
on the rear housing. (Previous owner never got far enough underneath
to see that, and it is a bit up in there. Having a lift is handy sometimes.
No, make that most times.)
-It has a Mallory Dual Point distributer, with what appears to be a
cable fitting at the bottom (Cable Tach output?) The coil is a boxy looking
thing with seperate inputs from each set of points, and is labeled
"Mallory" and "MAGSPARK". (Magneto?) Is this a stock or factory TR item?
-The facia is very complete, with lots of switches, knobs, and guages.
It has Oil Pressure, Amps, Temp, Fuel, and Vacumn guages, which all
may need new bezels, (Amp + Vacumn are SW). 6000 RPM tach, (What can
a typical built TR engine get up to?)
-The (Black) interior is mostly complete, and the headliner may even be
usable. The facia is covered with that neat, British, almost woven looking
texture vinyl. Anyone know a source? The seats, door paneling, etc. are
covered with a fairly rich, high quality vinyl, suprisingly intact, but
is quite weathered.
-The seats are interesting- the front buckets have a curved back that
wraps around you comfortably & snugly, with 2 vertical 2"x10" slots
(ventilation?) in them. The whole seat unit pivots at the front of the
base, which allows access to the rear, which is suprisingly spacious
for this class of car. The rear seat is sort of a "bench with buckets"
affair. They lean back a bit, with padding on the sides, and an upholstered
hump between. I haven't sat back there yet, but I think I may fit almost
comfortably. The front footwells are a bit narrow, yet spacious, due to
the 12" (or wider!) sills which cover the petrol tanks on each side.
Yea, I think I've got enough to keep me busy for a while. Oh, yea-
I finally broke down and forked out the dough for a new 3 main MGB
water pump with TRF's current discount, so after installing that, and
making use of a complete front end rebuild kit I've had in stock for
8 years, my 64 B has a chance of being on the road for the rest of the summer.
[Q- why NOW, while the dollar is at it's worst against the pound in years,
did Moss, and therefore TRF come up with their 8-15% summer discounts?
The exchange rate is currently 1 Pound = $1.89 or so.]
Now, do I rebuild/paint the MGB, or the PA, or delve deeply into the
Peerless this winter? I think I'd better finish some more sheetrock
and plumbing in the house real soon, and install the permanant shop
heater, so I can get down to the real stuff!
________________________________________________________
Roger Garnett (Roger_Garnett@cornell.edu)
"The South Lansing Centre For Wayward Sports Cars"
"All donations of stray, orphaned, odd, neglected, etc.
sports cars and bits in need of a good home accepted."
"They'll be in good company"
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