YES! That's what this list is all about. Good man, Les!
As for the carbs: In my experience, any SU that has had gas in it, then has
sat dry for an appreciable period of time, leaks like a sieve. If the
seals stay dry, they're fine, if the seals stay moist, they're fine. Once
you expose them to fuel then dry them out, they're history. Good chance
that you just need a new set of seals.
While you're at it, check the fuel line between the rear and front carbs.
I struggled for a while with an old TC that hadn't run in a while.
Couldn't get the carbs set right. Turned out that the fuel line from the
rear carb to the front was swollen up internally, almost blocked, and the
front carb was always fuel-starved.
Master cylinder ideas:
(1) If you've not done them before, and are uncertain that you'll get it
right, you may want to get pre-rebuilt units. More expensive, but if
you're going to lack confidence in the result of a DIY rebuild, it's worth
it. (>>I<< don't doubt that you can do it, but >>you<< still might. Peace
of mind has $ value.) Also, if there's a chance that the bores are pitted,
you'll be looking at rebuilt units anyway.
(2) Do the wheel cylinders/calipers as well. If the master cylinders are
likely to be history, the slaves aren't likely to be any better. Make sure
the pads are usable and the adjusters work while you're in there.
(3) While you're at it, replace the rubber brake hoses. They tend to do
what the fuel line described above did. Bad news. If you just replace
them, you can put it all back together, bleed it out once, and know that
it's right.
(4) If you've got one of those
dual-braking-circuit-federally-mandated-(expletive deleted)-Pressure
Differential Warning Actuators, better put some new o-rings in there, too.
(You'll only have one if yours is a late-'66 or later 1275cc Sprite).
DON'T spend the money for a rebuilt one of these. It isn't worth it.
(5) While you're in the pedal box mucking around with hydraulics, do the
clutch master and slave cylinders, too. Same reason as the wheel
cylinders, if the brake hydraulics are questionable, so are the clutch
hydraulics.
(6) KEEP BRAKE FLUID AWAY FROM YOUR PAINT!!! That stuff will consume paint
like nobody's business.
(7) Buy a decent set of flare-nut wrenches. (They look like heavy-duty box
end wrenches with a slot cut in the "ring") They're worth twice their cost
in saved time and unbroken brake lines.
Sounds like a LOT of work, but if you have your act together, use copious
amounts of Liquid Wrench or PB Blaster, and have all the parts on hand
ahead of time, it's a long weekend's worth of work at most. Less if you
can talk Les into flying out again <grin>.
Congratulations!
Chris Kotting
ckotting@iwaynet.net
On Monday, March 16, 1998 9:42 AM, Amy Soich [SMTP:casoich@sgi.net] wrote:
> Hi gang,
>
> Les came out this weekend and actually got my sprite started for the
first
> time in at least 15 years! The good news is the engine seems in good
shape,
> the bad news was the carbs. The jets are stuck tight and after tearing
apart
> the carbs to unsucessfully try to unstick them, my carbs are now leaking
gas
> like sieves. So I'm going to take off my gas tank this week and get it
cleaned
> out and then i need to rebuild the carbs or something. After that, she
should
> run. In fact, now she really wants to run :) Les just bumped the key and
she
> started up scaring us both. She wasn't even hooked up to any gas.
>
> Next prob will probably be the master cylinders. Anyone have advice for
that?
>
> I'd like to take a moment here to thank Les for flying out to Pittsburgh
to
> stay with me for the weekend and piss around with my car. You're one hell
of a
> guy Les, thanks!
>
>
> Amy
> 67 MkIV
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