All things considered, it's been a remarkably good summer for us here at
the Hoag's Corners Museum of Oxides (aka Heralds 'R' Us).
Earlier this summer, of course, the Hardly Boys RaceSpit 4 emerged from
a three-year hibernation with an overhauled engine. It actually competed
at the VTR Convention autocross in Albany this past July, with some
success (3rd place) despite a minor problem with valve clearances. The
experience over the past 12 months in redoing that engine and tending to
the other little things to get the car running again inspired me to
start attacking some of the many, many other artifacts in my vast
collection of stray, neglected products of Coventry.
Several weeks ago, I got to looking around in the barn for space to store
the RaceSpit4 over the coming winter. The most likely spot appeared to be
one currently occupied by Joseph, the Amazing Technicolor Dreamboat (aka
my Herald 948 saloon of many body panel colors). This was a good spot
mostly because I've been wanting to dig this car out, put it in the
"main" garage and do some work on it after so many years. Of course, to
access this spot and move the Herald, I'd have to exhume Priscilla, my
Mayflower.
Now, Priscilla had not moved from her spot since 1989, where she had
been parked since the 1989 VTR convention. For a host of reasons, mostly
due to the fact that she'll really need a good engine overhaul to be of
any real use on a public road, she has sat quietly the past seven years.
During that time, she has endured several indignities, including one
winter of an especially leaky roof and debris raining down on her during
the roof's rebuilding, and a particularly nasty but energetic woodchuck
who undermined the primarly dirt floor on which she sits. (No harm to
her, but her buddy Pegasus, the 1951 Chevrolet, actually ended up at a
15 degree angle, said woodchuck having tunneled under the right side of
that car extensively!)
But I digress. Despite a seven-year nap, and despite gasoline in her
tank that by now surely would have turned to pure varnish/garp/icky
stuff, it took only a splash of fuel down her carburetor and about 10
tries of the starter to bring her back to life three weeks ago. She
settled down to her usual smooth (albeit smoky -- from the crankcase,
mostly) idle, I eased the column shift into 1st and drove out of the barn.
This especially thrilled my two children (7 and almost 5), who had seen
pictures of Priscilla in our wedding album and now refer to it as "the
Wedding car." They now have actually gotten to ride in the car, even if
only around our yard.
Anyway, this now freed the Herald...sort of. "Joseph" had sat many, many
years (8.5 to be exact) without moving at all. Tires were all flat; in
fact, none would still hold air, as sidewalls had disintegrated.
Meanwhile, though, I'd occasionally checked to see that the engine was
still free, which it was. I was able to scare up four mounted,
air-holding tires to put on the car, then begin the long, arduous task of
pushing, steering, juggling, jacking, swearing, repositioning, pushing,
etc., to get the car to roll out of the space and make the sharp "L"
turn out the barn door. That done, I was then able to easily tow it up to
the front of the yard to the garage, after a quick hosing/washing to
remove many years of dust, dirt, sawdust, bird stuff, etc.
Keep in mind that this car has not moved under its own power in probably
about 20 years. I was not suprised to find that brakes were gone. I was,
though, very surprised to discover that not only were the clutch
hydraulics still functional, but that the clutch seemed to be free and
functional as well (useful for engine braking whilst pushing the car
around, as the handbrake is none too sound at the moment).
Now for the fun. I tossed on a really good, correct bonnet I'd bought years
ago -- just for looks. It (powder blue) doesn't match the yellow any
better than did the green (originally Signal Red) bonnet that had been
there awhile, but it has almost no rust and it does have the proper
handle on the top. Hmmm, it looks a bit better already, although it's
obvious more than ever that some work is needed to straighten out the
front frame crossmember and extensions.
Now that it was looking good ;-), I decided to toss a good battery in,
which willingly supplied power to most everything still connected.
Apparently, the starter solenoid has surrendered (what? only 35 years old
and the part is worn out already?), but thanks to the magic of Craftsman
screwdrivers, current is supplied to the starter. Having gotten the
engine to crank over for a bit to build oil pressure, I dribbled some gas
down into the Solex, ran some sandpaper through the points and over the
rotor, and spun it again. Considering that this was an engine that had
not actually run since Jimmy Carter took office, I wasn't ready for an
almost immediate start! Another splash of gas. Another immediate start!
Whoa! I'm giddy now. I threw caution to the wind (sparks from the
solenoid and all that sort of you-really-should-know-better stuff) and
hooked up a makeshift gas hose from the fuel pump to a gas can (there
currently is no gas tank in the car), whereupon I was able to keep the
car running as long as I wanted, certainly long enough to finish freeing
up the accelerator and choke linkages and even "test-drive" the car a bit
(1st and reverse only at the moment).
So, what I ended up with was three running Triumphs in one day (as
RaceSpit4, then Priscilla, were placed back in the barn for the winter
earlier in the day). Priscilla in particular was not too happy to go back
into hibernation. Many of you semi-believers might attribute this to the
difficulty of a worn, 38hp-at-best-but-really-too-small-to-begin-with
flathead and a perhaps marginal clutch trying to propel this 2100 lb.
car in reverse up a moderate incline and over a 3 in. high concrete sill
into the barn. I think she was trying to tell me something. (It was
tough for the RaceSpit as well, but that's due mostly to its extremely
small ground clearance and a locked rear end, which made the very sharp
right turn INSIDE the barn somewhat of a chore, especially on bald, hard
Michelins trying to grip the temporary wood floor of the barn.)
I think Priscilla really wanted to stay out a bit longer, bask in the
sun, give my kids another ride or two, maybe even get a little more
mechanical attention. She'll get it soon enough; perhaps next summer.
Now, though, it's Joseph's turn, and that turn is way overdue. Consider
this: a poor Herald saloon was snatched off a VW dealer's back lot in 1970,
then for the sole purpose of surrendering bonnet and radiator for my
newly crashed "Sports" (Herald) 1200 convertible. Later, after the demise
of the Sports 1200, I looked at the saloon and realized for the first
time what it was (a decent, EARLY 948 saloon with almost no rust, not
even in the chassis), and I decided to start putting it back together.
But I got sidetracked with many other Triumphs, and Joseph has sat in one
place or another, mostly neglected, for a good 20 years or more -- until
this past weekend.
But three of my Triumphs running and moving under their own power -- in
one day -- has got to be some kind of modern-day record, at least for
me! :-)
--Andy
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* Andrew Mace e-mail: amace@unix2.nysed.gov *
* *
* Mrs Irrelevant: Oh, is it a jet? *
* Man: Well, no... It's not so much of a jet, it's more your, er, *
* Triumph Herald engine with wings. *
* -- The Cut-price Airline Sketch, Monty Python's Flying Circus *
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