Deni's Miglia Build

[1iTim]

Originally Posted by deni

I just want to make sure I can see above the screen and make the MOT guys happy ....

cusion, or a saw (for the screen, not you!)
T

[deni]

1iTim - ...that's right, one or another.

Cheers, D.

[deni]

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

[deni]

Hi all,

I am finally able to continue with my build and I hope to make some good progress in the next few weekends.
I have started to finalise the steering column installation, and I am still working on it, but here are some photos of the mock up that show what I am trying to achieve.

I have already improved the mounting and bracing of the column bracket and I will post more photos of the finished product shortly.


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I have also refurbished and repainted all parts and shortened inner column shaft, so I can use UJ's to extend the column and to avoid welding it. Also, this way I'm more flexible with the positioning of the steering wheel.


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[deni]

Below are the photos showing shortening of the inner column shaft and grinding off the column surface to be able to lock it in place with the locking bracket.


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That's it for now. It's good to be back...I will post more photos soon.

Cheers, D.

[Paul L]

Deni - Good to see you are back on your car.

Good luck, Paul.

[deni]

Thanks Paul, it’s been a while since I was able to work on the car, but I’m finally able to get back to it, which is great.
I am glad to read that you’re planning to get back on the road and enjoy driving the Swoordfish again.
I hope weight lifting is going well (great idea btw), and you’re on track with loosing another stone before the end of the summer...I’m pretty certain you’re more successful with that than I am 😉.

Cheers, D.

[deni]

Hi all,

A quick update. I have re-addressed my steering column attachment. I thought it could be a bit stronger than the previous one.


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This is how it looks now it's finished. It is not the most elegant solution, but it is quite strong and sturdy.


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I have drilled 4 holes, so I can choose between 2 lateral positions (if necessary).

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...and raise it up a bit if necessary.

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[deni]

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It took me a while to figure out and decide how to do this and I'm happy with the result. It is strong and sturdy, as I said before, and it is easy to remove the column and the whole assembly if necessary.

[Mister Towed]

I wouldn't worry too much about the weight distribution, it's going to be pretty front heavy no matter where you put your tank!

From a safety perspective, behind the seats would put the tank closer to the occupants, which is a bit disconcerting, but it would then be further away from the risk of intrusion damage in a rear-end shunt which is a good thing.

Your choice, really

[deni]

Thank you Mister Towed, much appreciated.

[Mitchelkitman]

Originally Posted by Mister Towed

I wouldn't worry too much about the weight distribution, it's going to be pretty front heavy no matter where you put your tank!

From a safety perspective, behind the seats would put the tank closer to the occupants, which is a bit disconcerting, but it would then be further away from the risk of intrusion damage in a rear-end shunt which is a good thing.

Your choice, really

I believe avoiding locating the fuel tank near to the rear is standard in modern cars for the very reason of rear damage. When I had a GTM (fuel tank in front between front 'axle' and bulkhead), a friend said they'd not like a tank in that position..... I responded "at least with it in front I may have some control in whether it collides with anything". They agreed that was a valid point

[deni]

Mitchelkitman thank you too for your advice. That makes sense, we can't totally control if someone will hit the car from behind.

[Mister Towed]

When I joined up we had (Military spec.) Series 2 Land Rovers, which had the fuel tank and filler cap under the passenger seat. We used to joke that Land Rover put it there to make sure they never had to pay any personal injury claims, just funerals which would work out cheaper in the long run.

You had to lift the seat base up to fill the tank and they always stunk of fuel inside due to the inevitable spillages.

The diesel ones were the worst as the smell never dissipated and the front footwells were like an ice-rink due to a generous coating of fuel-oil, which would instantly transfer itself onto the soles of your boots when you climbed aboard.

That meant that the passenger couldn't brace their feet against the bulkhead in corners (see below) while the driver's feet would regularly slip off the highly polished bare metal clutch and brake pedals.

This would leave you kangarooing away from a standstill and then failing to stop at busy junctions because the driver's right leg was wedged between the clutch and brake pedals with their foot on the bulkhead. I'm fairly sure that Land Rover polished the pedals so they could blame the squaddie behind the wheel rather than their feeble brakes when one of their flagship models crashed, which they often did.

The petrol ones weren't quite as bad - your feet only slipped off the pedals when it rained, which was all the time, but at least the spilled fuel evaporated fairly quickly. This would have left the occupants as high as a kite if Land Rover had not thoughtfully provided plenty of ventilation in the cabin.

Unfortunately, they achieved that by ensuring that none of the panels fitted properly so there were huge gaps around the doors and where the canvas roof 'fitted' (I use the term loosely, which is appropriate given how slack they got after an initial nail-breaking period of too-tightness).

This clever design feature allowed plenty of fresh air to circulate in the cabin, along with rain, sleet, snow and midges, which are wee bitey things if you're nae Scottish.

It also meant things could easily get out, like important documents, dropped magazines (both ammunition and porn), vomit and the occasional passenger as the doors would hilariously pop open when cornering hard and nobody bothered to wear the static seatbelts, which were always a tangled mess hanging out of the door bottoms anyway. In fact I do have an ex-forces acqaintance who gets a war pension because of injuries sutained when he fell out of a Land Rover and went under the back wheels.

Anyway, I hope I haven't diverged too far off topic, and good luck finding a place for your fuel tank. I'd just recommend that you don't put it under the passenger seat...

[deni]

MrT that made me laugh man, thank you.

Reading your story, I can only conclude that if the iconic Land Rover could get away with it, so can I, whatever I decide to do.... but I will definitely cross off the "under the passenger seat" option from my list of possible locations

I hope your build is going ok.

Cheers, D.

[Mister Towed]

Glad I made you laugh, Deni.

I'm getting close to finalising my door apertures at the moment so I should have an update soon

Keep up the good work!

[deni]

Thanks MrT, looking forward to seeing how the doors will turn out. They looked great in your recent post.

Cheers, D

[deni]

Originally Posted by davecymru:
....Additionally to that and with the help of the nice chaps at Merlin Motorsport and the Triumph Owners Club forum, I've been doing a bit of research into the Vitesse Suspension as I'm not happy with how mine is sitting at the front and my local MOT men don't like chopped springs!

Here's an interesting read (with embedded charts) for anyone looking at altering their front suspension that shows you what std springs were fitted and advise for after-market spring rates:

http://club.triumph.org.uk/cgi-bin/f...?m-1294420747/

That shows us is the front spring rates and that the OEM ones are 2 3/4" internal diameter.

Now interestingly.... if you buy the height adjustable GAZ shocks from mssr's Rimmer, those were custom made for Rimmers with a 2 3/4" spring seat so you could fit the std springs!
I know this as the nice man at Merlin Motorsports rang them and asked for me

But... most after-market lowering springs, including the ones i'd bought previously specifically for the Vitesse (although i can't remember where from) are 2 1/2" Internal Diameter!

So, If you alter the spring seats down to 2 1/2" (not too hard i've found!), or buy some 2 1/2" spring seats for your shocks then suddenly the world is your lobster!!

And if you talk to the nice man at Merlin, you can opt for just about any length and rate of 2 1/2" spring that you'd ever want and for not a lot of money at all!!

https://www.merlinmotorsport.co.uk/s...ilover-springs

After my reading and measuring i have now ordered some 2 1/2" x 8" x 325lbs springs and we shall see what we shall see....







Hi,

I need to ask a question please? This is a quote from Dave Cymry's Miglia blog (I hope Dave that you still look at this forum now and then).

I will buy/part exchange the bottom spring seats, but I'm not sure what is the solution for the top plates that are on the original shocks, as they are used with the GAZ absorbers to fix them to the chassis.

Did you modify the original top spring plates in any way to fit the smaller diameter spring?

I know that I could buy springs from Rimmers, but they are longer and stiffer than the ones I would like to buy, and I would prefer not to cut the springs down.

Cheers, D.

[deni]

I'm not sure what happened to the pictures in my blog, as I can see them anymore. Any suggestions please?

Cheers, D.

[Paul L]

Hi Deni, I just checked back a few pages and I can't see the photos either. Perhaps send John/"JG" a PM as he is the forum 'master'. There have been a number of technical problems with posting stuff on here lately, so the photo issue might be linked to that. Good luck, Paul.