Hi
Been a member on here for some time now and have read thousands of threads to assist with the build so far. This site and others has made research and finding correct answers easier. I thank everyone for there help and advice. As i am slowly moving on with my project i thought I would share some of my pictures. Hopefully someone else may find this useful for there project.
The Project Plan
I spent many years planning how I want my mini to look / drive when its complete. I must admit it has been difficult to not get distracted and go a different route at times. So many options. So the car will be -
Original 1275 GT [RED] 1977 locally sold from new - owned by me for a VERY long time.
Many years ago I stripped the car completely to bare shell. Lost some bits. Sold more bits. But kept the shell. Stored for a long time. Requires a huge amount of work to make this good again. All panels purchased some years back. Still waiting to carry out body work. Boot floor removed - half floor removed. Lots to do..
The engine was sold years ago. This means the car could never be genuine so I have opted to fit a Metro Turbo engine. Found a cheap one years ago on Gumtree and have stored for a long time [in the wardrobe for safe keeping]. The engine was removed and short block and head work done last year.
My plan is to build a very standard Turbo engine. I know this is not the norm. Owned plenty of minis over the years and sure I will be happy with near 100bhp
So I have spent many years researching and finding parts to build a standard Metro Turbo engine. That means as many original components if possible. Years of trawling through Ebay has paid off in the end. I think i have all parts. Well nearly.
My build plan is to only use original Austin / Rover parts for the complete car. Yep. Inside - outside - engine the lot.. There have to be some small allowances - Silicone hoses are not original - Plug leads are not original - cam is not original but thats about it
So here is some details of work so far -
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3 clock set
Clock set was purchased from ebay - already had the bracket - found on close inspection 2 of the circular surrounds were original - 1 was new slightly tapered style with thinner flat at the front.. Luckily had another set - used 3 newer style units that now match. These were not chrome on the front face - some research led me to a chrome marker pen... Used this and gave chrome effect with good finish. Replaced the fuel gauge and the speedometer as I managed to find NOS on ebay. Cleaned and reassembled. only 1 mile and ready for the car - hope it all works
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Rocker cover
The engine i brought came with standard steel rocker cover. Found a used old Metro Turbo cover on ebay £10.. Bit tatty but not damaged just discoloured - Used paint stripper to remove old lacquer - spent quite a few hours polishing this but happy with the final result. Used polishing wheels in a battery drill and autosol with old tooth brush
I have chosen to not lacquer the cover as this looked poor when i got it due to poor lacquer. I have used a protective spray ACF50 that will hopefully keep this looking good
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I placed the bonnet catch that has also been refurbished in front of the cover to give a better example of the finish achieved.
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I would type more but its all just crashed... More to follow later
Edited by Project_1275_GT, 27 September 2020 - 06:28 PM.