All this talk about cables reminded me of a little problem I have on my
freshly restored Mk I Spitfire. Frankly, I'm stumped. I purchased a new
tach cable, lightly lubed it, and installed it. However, the tach reads
about 700 rpm optimistic. I deduced this by (1) hooking up a dwell/tach
meter that I know is accurate and (2) listening to the idle speed which sure
as heck didn't sound like 1,500 rpm. Sure enough, it is idling at about 800
rpm (I know, that's a wee bit fast and I need to adjust it down slightly).
The tach was cleaned by using a small can of compressed air to blow out any
dust, etc., but was not opened during the resto. Nor was I able to tell if
it worked before the resto. because there was no tach cable attached.
So, any thoughts or ideas on how to slow down a fast tach? BTW, it runs 700
rpm high all the way around the dial, so it is not limited to low engine
speeds only.
Also, I intend to remove the distributor after driving and enjoying the car
for a while to repair the stuck mechanical advance mechanism. I get plenty
of vacuum advance at low speed, but no mechanical advance and I know that'll
probably affect top end performance (I've only driven her around the block a
few times so far - not licensed or registered yet). I am still looking for
a replacement distributor for a Mk I Spitfire/1147cc Herald motor with the
tach drive on it. This will allow me to rebuild it at my leisure and swap
it out in a few minutes. Anyone who knows of a source for a distributor
please advise. Thanks.
Ross D. Vincenti
64 Spitfire 4
64 Porsche 356C Coupe
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