08-06-2020, 04:43 PM
Progress!
I thought about the bent axle problem over the weekend and it seems that I will probably have to build a rear axle for this car in the not too distant future. Having said that, I can at least have a go at fixing the immediate problem so that I can get a few miles on the car when it goes back on the road.
I've checked the sheds and attics and I have enough bits to build a 30-31 axle for the car, which is my preferred course as the early type are difficult to adjust and more difficult to get spares for. The 30-31 axle will take the later 5.25 CWP which is much better than the 4.9 on the road (this car will be a driver) and they're simpler to build and adjust.
In the meantime, I thought, why not have a go at using a jack to bend the axle back to somewhere near straight?
So I set it up this morning, loosening off the chassis ball mounting first. It actually bent very easily, proving how delicate these early cars are.
Yes, I know it's a bodge! No, I know it's not exact but I checked it for straightness with a long piece of box section steel and I reckon it's taken 90 - 95% of the bend out. The CWP is still in poor condition so it will, most likely, be noisy but I do feel a bit better about it now and it should be good for a little while.
The body is finally back on the chassis and bolted down; it seems to be more or less sitting straight now.
So that's it for a while, back to work tomorrow and SWMBO is telling me I have to catch up with gardening, starting with sorting out and using the Rotovator this weekend. Ho Hum!
I thought about the bent axle problem over the weekend and it seems that I will probably have to build a rear axle for this car in the not too distant future. Having said that, I can at least have a go at fixing the immediate problem so that I can get a few miles on the car when it goes back on the road.
I've checked the sheds and attics and I have enough bits to build a 30-31 axle for the car, which is my preferred course as the early type are difficult to adjust and more difficult to get spares for. The 30-31 axle will take the later 5.25 CWP which is much better than the 4.9 on the road (this car will be a driver) and they're simpler to build and adjust.
In the meantime, I thought, why not have a go at using a jack to bend the axle back to somewhere near straight?
So I set it up this morning, loosening off the chassis ball mounting first. It actually bent very easily, proving how delicate these early cars are.
Yes, I know it's a bodge! No, I know it's not exact but I checked it for straightness with a long piece of box section steel and I reckon it's taken 90 - 95% of the bend out. The CWP is still in poor condition so it will, most likely, be noisy but I do feel a bit better about it now and it should be good for a little while.
The body is finally back on the chassis and bolted down; it seems to be more or less sitting straight now.
So that's it for a while, back to work tomorrow and SWMBO is telling me I have to catch up with gardening, starting with sorting out and using the Rotovator this weekend. Ho Hum!