a bit of this and a bit of that.

[mygasser]

we did a test with brake cleaner inside the chassis where it wouldn't show if it reacted with the paint. all good so we set to with clean cloths and got the yellow paint much better looking. we did the chassis and crossmember too, not just the bulkhead because it was easy without the engine in there. i've added before and after pics, it's much brighter now.
then we swung the engine and box into place and that's where we are now. it's all bolted up tight. oh, the headers fitted in with plenty of room so that saved time as well as their gaskets having a much better chance of not ever blowing.
neil.

[jsf55]

It's all colour matching there bulkhead .. chassis ..lift !

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[mygasser]

It's all colour matching there bulkhead .. chassis ..lift !

Sent from my SM-A515F using NSRA mobile app

[mygasser]

we're slowly working through the parts now, getting it all re-installed bit by bit. the worst bit is remembering where all the bolts etc are. it's 2 months now since it arrived and we've stripped 3 engines and built 1 so there's lots of parts here . 'you can't see the wood for the trees' is apt here, an example was 20 minutes looking for the fanbelt only to find it staring us in the face sat in one of the 'pockets' that are part of the bulkhead . it's getting there though, that's the important thing.
neil.

[mygasser]

exhaust is on, inner wings are on, distributor and plug leads fitted, radiator fitted, bottom 3 piece hose sections re-arranged to fit round the full size oil filter we fitted instead of the dinky little one it had before. then with the fluids topped off it was time to connect the battery and see what we had working.
it lives and sounds good, the oil light went out within a couple of seconds due mostly to us having packed the pump with vaseline as you do with rover v8's.
then we saw petrol dribbling onto the floor at the bulkhead area so switched off immediately. the braided fuel line it seems is pre ethanol fuel and is old enough that it's now breathing fuel along it's length. so until i get some new ethanol proof petrol pipe that's that.
neil.

[jsf55]

Lot of positives from that and a plus of finding the hose now rather than at the side of the road

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[mygasser]

exactly what i thought. the 'p' clips holding the fuel pipe go up behind the engine now it's fitted which is a pain. if you schroll back up this page you can see how easy changing the pipe would've been last week, doh!! still i'm sure we can get to them one way or another.
the new ethanol proof pipe will be here tomorrow thanks to amazon's next day prime delivery so it's likely the ute will be done for the weekend (famous last words, lol).
neil.

[mygasser]

the fuel pipe arrived as expected so we swapped both sections which stopped the leaks. now it could be run for longer to bed the new cam and lifters in. i know rod said he'd had it running for a while but we don't know how long so better safe than sorry.it idles nicely now and revs cleanly. we ran the rebuilt box through the gears a couple of times and topped the fluid up to the mark. it engages gears nice and positively, but it should i guess. last job today was to refit the gearbox tunnel access panels and carpets so the inside is ready to go. we'll get the flip front back from over the road and rehang it tomorrow. then it's test drive time to check the 'box changes correctly and the engine stays nice and cool. i'm not completely happy with the rad' fan, it's not blowing as hard through the rad' as i'd like. it also appears to still have the pop' rad', whether it has a better core i'm not sure but we'll see.
neil.

[mygasser]

ash' had a job on after work so the front's not fitted yet.
today we sorted the steering on my cresta so it's easier to move about, important as it's in the way of getting the ute out for a start. we cut the inner and outer of the column part of the box back so it wasn't stuck out from the chassis line as much. then we turned a poly bush to fit in the outer and over the inner. next we cut a tongue groove in the solid inner shaft, cut a splined section and cut a tongue on it's end so they slot together like an oil pump drive. these fit nicely together and once welded are much stronger than just butt welding them. we did the same at the bulkhead where the column pokes through and bolted it all together with new uj's and a complete spline ended shaft. it'll get a stay bracket from the chassis up to the outer tube near the uj but for now at least it steers.
neil.

[taxirod]

Good work Neil.
Enjoy the test drive, and the owner can now enjoy it too.

[mygasser]

the flip front's back on the ute and the multi plugs for the lights are all back together. we just have to move my cresta and transit so the garage doors will open now, lol.
neil.

[mygasser]

scratch that, it's here for a while yet. we're ordering and then fitting a bigger ally rad' and a better also bigger fan. it'll mean new hoses too but what's needed there we'll find out when the rad's sat in place. after much measuring and research we're going for a 38/9 chevy ally rad. it's about 4" taller, almost 3" wider and is a better 3 row core. it means the cr4p cheapy 12" fan can be replaced with a 16" spal fan which is much better.
neil.
ps the rad' choice was down to cost, they looked at the v8 pop' rad's from serck's and they were about £700. this one, the fan and hoses will be half that so.......

[tom.marg]

Colin at creative aluminium is a good place for rads in the future mate

[mygasser]

Colin at creative aluminium is a good place for rads in the future mate

thanks mate, i'll look him up and add the number to my phone.
neil.

[West]

I heard he's very good, think i will get him to do my radiator....

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[mygasser]

rad' and fan ordered now
neil.

[mygasser]

i'm at a stand still at the moment, waiting for parts. the new fan arrived for the ute today so just the rad' to come in from the netherlands (29th oct' to the 4th nov' it said).
so what to do so 'something' gets done. we moved all the cresta front panels over the road so now the tyre changer's accessible. the knackered old slicks (that go flat in 24-36 hrs) on the cresta will be taken off and replaced, we've got a pair of old but nearly new n50x15's so they'll do for now. also the weld draglites on the front look to be 3 1/2 or 4" x15 and don't suit the car, so as the hubs are ford 4 1/5" pcd a pair of the 4" steels off my nash will be swapped over there. the weld's can go in the pile for the swap meet in march, lol. or ash' and me will use one each for spares for our cars. you know me and wheels, lol.
neil.

[mygasser]

ash' popped round earlier and again suggested we keep the cresta and build a cheap drag car from it. he'll buy an engine and box he said as i'll supply the car. his reasoning is he'd rather have issues with the cheap cresta and '****' the wall at the pod than in his zephyr or me in my nash. so it's a good idea theoretically, we'll see what turns up to power it. not a rover as even stripped the car's too heavy, so a yank v8 of any make, big or small block is the plan.
neil.

[mygasser]

today we got the old radiator, fan and all bracketry removed from the pop ute. the new fan is already waiting and the new rad' should be here tomorrow.... hopefully.
neil.

[taxirod]

today we got the old radiator, fan and all bracketry removed from the pop ute. the new fan is already waiting and the new rad' should be here tomorrow.... hopefully.
neil.

While you're waiting you could change your avatar......oh look, you did