Got in the Datty this afternoon, it was dry so I thought I'd warm the car up, have a little pootle about and scrape the rust off the brakes.
Got about 1/4 mile up the road and stops dead. Starter turns over but nothing. At least I'm in the lane and not on the main road, especially as plod might have come along and started asking where I was going. Fuel is reading very low and I'm on a hill. I walk back to my garage, get in Saab and go and fill up a Jerry can. Well that does nowt, so I tip a little straight in carb, nothing. Bollocks. I've got a socket set in back of Datty which has a plug socket, I phone a mate and he comes by and helps turn the engine over, no spark at the plugs.
Must be the coil- it is still on it's original one, I have a new Bosch one in my garage, has no effect. I whip off the distributor cap, big fat spark at the points. So it's either the rotor arm or the cap. They are both near new.
I get to thinking about the rotor arm and how the new one was different looking. I pop off the new rotor arm and put it back on again, the replace the distributor cap; she starts first turn of the key.....OK.
Go back to my lair and dig out the old rotor arm. The old rotor arm is on the right, it has no steel rivets holding the brass arm to the plastic, it's just glued on. Now I reckon the upper of the two rivets on the new rotor arm passes very close to the top of the spindle of the distributor, when the rotor is pushed down firmly onto it. And you do have to push the newer arm down tighter than the old one, so I wondered if the new arm had a hairline crack exposing that rivet to the top of the distributor shaft. Well, I took the distributor cap off, held the coil lead about 1/4" away from it and got my mate to spin the engine over a few times. One time a wee spark leapt from the coil lead to the rotor arm, which should be insulated from earth. That I think is the answer.
What did you do today?
Re: What did you do today?
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'Ever since the young men have owned motorcycles, incest has been dying out, and so has sodomy'.
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
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Re: What did you do today?
Ah yes. The riveted rotor arms. Bain of most classic British cars reliability when they cause a short on the dizzy body. Thankfully Lucas style distributor arms without the rivets are easily come by now.
Do Hitachi still make genuine rotor arms for it?
Do Hitachi still make genuine rotor arms for it?
Re: What did you do today?
The replacement was old stock Lucas, the old one looks like a Bosch logo on it. Hitachi and other Jap parts are readily swappable for British stuff.
'Ever since the young men have owned motorcycles, incest has been dying out, and so has sodomy'.
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
Re: What did you do today?
I will dissect the offending article and see just how close the rivet is to the hollow.
'Ever since the young men have owned motorcycles, incest has been dying out, and so has sodomy'.
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
Re: What did you do today?
Ah ha! It is a Hitachi logo, I don't know whether replacements are available.
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'Ever since the young men have owned motorcycles, incest has been dying out, and so has sodomy'.
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
'Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good."
Thomas Sowell
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Re: What did you do today?
Yes, hence:
Channelling my inner Eddie Honda here by instantly recognising that logo on the rotor arm.
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Re: What did you do today?
You can see that Hitachi did a proper job of attaching the conductor to the arm.
Wouldn't have thought so, but here's a NOS Hitachi arm in a Honda bag:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/131579070923
You just have to keep 'em peeled and hoard them.
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Re: What did you do today?
I put the throttle bodies back on my 14 earlier.
I must have got something right as it runs ok again. The fast idle was still way too high, so as I knew everything was ok this time I adjusted the fast idle screw - the Suzuki workshop manual says not to do this as it's factory set. Fast idle seems ok now & it drops to normal idle in about right sort of time unlike previously with the faulty oil sensor.
I didn't bother test riding it as I also sorted the brakes on a friend's bike that's here. Nice easy one that, just pop the calipers off, clean everything up as they were sticking on their sliding pins, regrease it properly & refit them.
I must have got something right as it runs ok again. The fast idle was still way too high, so as I knew everything was ok this time I adjusted the fast idle screw - the Suzuki workshop manual says not to do this as it's factory set. Fast idle seems ok now & it drops to normal idle in about right sort of time unlike previously with the faulty oil sensor.
I didn't bother test riding it as I also sorted the brakes on a friend's bike that's here. Nice easy one that, just pop the calipers off, clean everything up as they were sticking on their sliding pins, regrease it properly & refit them.
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Re: What did you do today?
Watched some of this guy's stuff
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6JPmJ ... XPWr3EvJnw
It was really funny because I'd wondered ages ago if I could maybe create some of the unobtainable panels I need by welding metal into the required shapes - but I'd discounted it. The I became aware of shrinker/stretchers and thought that was the answer - but as he points out, it'd be hard to do some of the complex repair sections with a shrinker/stretcher as they have too much variation in a single area (he does a video on a 1972 Chevy rear window channel section).
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6JPmJ ... XPWr3EvJnw
It was really funny because I'd wondered ages ago if I could maybe create some of the unobtainable panels I need by welding metal into the required shapes - but I'd discounted it. The I became aware of shrinker/stretchers and thought that was the answer - but as he points out, it'd be hard to do some of the complex repair sections with a shrinker/stretcher as they have too much variation in a single area (he does a video on a 1972 Chevy rear window channel section).
2005 Land Rover Discovery SE Manual
2003 Mercedes E320 Estate
1968 AMC Rebel SST Convertible
1967 AMC Rebel SST Convertible (for parts)
1994 Fleetwood Colchester 1850 EB
Hoping for roffle win
2003 Mercedes E320 Estate
1968 AMC Rebel SST Convertible
1967 AMC Rebel SST Convertible (for parts)
1994 Fleetwood Colchester 1850 EB
Hoping for roffle win