Tag: project

Finally an Update on the Triumph

I promised to post an update on my Triumph (named Nigel) just about a month ago. I’ve made some great progress, and this time I remembered to take some pictures.

In the last update, I managed to get the car running, but only with the choke on. This seemed to point towards a vacuum leak, but I couldn’t find a strong one. Using the ol’ spray some carb cleaner all over the place method, I learned the spacers between the carburetors and intake manifold weren’t making an airtight seal. I ordered new spacers and gaskets, and that actually made a big difference. Along the way I also removed the EGR system, disconnected the vacuum retard on the distributor and the bypass valves on the carburetors. I may reinstate the bypass valves after some driving.

If you know what to look for, you’ll notice the absence of an EGR system and the addition of an oil catch can. The heater valve is new, replacing an old leaky one. The stock air filters are on, but I’d like to replace them with something aftermarket. I know this car came with some oval shaped foam ones, but I have to find them, if I didn’t throw them away.

At the same time, I discovered the vent port on the rocker cover was spewing smoke into the carburetors, upsetting the airflow and causing difficulty with keeping the engine running. I rerouted the engine fumes into an oil catch can, but I may try to put this system back to stock in the future. The catch can doesn’t catch everything, and smoke still comes out of it. I think this is probably a sign that the piston rings could use replacement, but we’ll see how it goes. I’d like to kick that can as far down the road as I can. I’ve read that filling the engine oil to the top mark on the dipstick may in fact overfill the engine, so I’m going to try putting somewhat less oil in when I change it.

I also advanced the ignition timing quite a bit, enough to be off the scale on the crank pulley, and that made the biggest difference in the engine’s ability to run normally. Whether the timing is actually about 26° BTDC, I don’t know. The crank pulley may not be correct anymore. I’m hoping the timing works on the road, because the engine has never run this well or been this easy to start before. Reports on the TR6 forums suggest that this timing will probably be fine, but it varies car to car.

Moving to the other side of the engine, you can see the new wiring for the electric fan.

The wires could use a little organization, but they get the job done. The rocker cover leaks of course, but I’m going to leave it and see how bad it is. I may add a bead of RTV silicone under the gasket if it’s too leaky.

The bundle of wires below the radiator are for the fan controller, which works wonderfully. Part (or maybe all) of the reason it wasn’t working was because I had it wired wrong. I may not have needed the new temperature sensor, but it’s a lot more elegant than shoving a probe into the radiator fins. The only problem with it is the fan uses a lot of electrical power. With the engine idling, there’s barely enough power to run the ignition system and the fan, so the engine comes close to stalling. I just had the original alternator (a 40 amp unit I think) rebuilt, so I don’t want to replace it now, but I might next season. There are plenty of higher output options for the TR6.

Today I decided I’d see if a polish and wax would wake up the paint at all. I had mixed results, but no parts are worse than before.

The right front portion and the hood is slightly better, but not great. The right rear is actually not terrible. The trunk has a couple spots I need to grind down and hit with primer soon.

The vertical surfaces of the left side however, came back pretty nicely.

Just like the engine could probably use a rebuild, the body needs a repaint. A good paint job will be out of my budget for the foreseeable future though. Plus I don’t know what color I’d paint it.

The interior isn’t in amazing shape either, but it stays put together. I need to get carpet some day and replace the trim near the center control knobs.

The car just needs a tail light socket and it’ll be ready for inspection. That and an a few other parts should be in tomorrow. I have new engine mounts already that need to be installed in the next couple weeks. My latest order includes new front shocks and wheel bearings, plus parts to help replace the half shaft universal joints. I’ve had the joints themselves for a while now. I need to replace the rear shocks and springs too (especially with the new exhaust, the mufflers hang really low), but they’ll have to wait a little while.

A Plant Update

As promised, I have an update on the aeroponic garden. It took a little longer than I was expecting, but I suppose plants are kind of slow and I’m a bit of a procrastinator. Here’s the new set up in the basement:

I’ve got a shelf that should be able to hold up to six bins total, plus another identical shelf in pieces behind this one. I have unfortunately few plants in the garden currently, thanks to the cats and my own horticultural inexperience. The cats managed to murder a few of the plants I was getting started in the egg carton and glass cups, and the egg carton started decomposing and growing mold. So, note to self, don’t use egg cartons for this thing again. Additionally, I was worried about over-watering the plants, so I accidentally under-watered them causing them to sprout very slowly. I have a second bin that I plan to fill with dirt to start more seeds and grow underground things like carrots, it’s just full of stuff right now. I’ll probably just buy another bin.

The lights are regular LED shop lights, recommended by someone on YouTube. They’re nice and cheap and very bright. The plants seem to be enjoying them so far.

The rosemary and peas up front seemed to stall out in the last week or two, but I’m noticing some more growth on both of them today. They both had brushes with the cats early on. The garlic continues to grow like gangbusters and the other peas are going nicely. I think I need to get something better for them to climb though. I reduced the amount of nutrients in the water this week and I think it’s been helpful.

Roots are looking great!

The reason for the delay in getting this garden in the basement is that there was only one inconveniently placed outlet available, and it’s already fully utilized. I added a new 20 amp circuit and six outlets (12 plugs total) myself. It took me some time to research how to add a new circuit and then wire up the outlets. It was pretty easy, and whether this garden is permanent or not, we needed additional power in the basement.

Some of the outlets I added. The timer controls the lights, and the thick wire goes to a power strip with another timer for the pump.

I’ve also started adding some overhead lighting, which needs its own circuit. I’ve decided to take a break from that for a week or two, and I’ll probably finish it soon. The lights I bought should be able to screw directly to an electrical box, but I couldn’t find the right type, so I’m doing the ye olde string and nails thing. Someone else can fix it in the future.

I’ll continue to update on this project as needed. I hope to start seeing some fruiting in the next month or so, and I’ll be getting more seeds started in the next week or so.