papak

That’s what I had done but I stopped by the local Morgan dealer and asked how they install them. They said that they do the reverse and mount them behind the post. I would think that this would add to the tendency to tilt aft under load but what do I know. I was thinking that I might fabricate mounting posts with a third screw position to spread the load a bit. A friend has a CNC setup and we could cut them from round bar stock.

It took two sessions of 15 minutes each of oven cleaner plus finishing with a green Scotch-bright pad to remove the anodizing. This was followed by wet sanding with 600, 1200 and 2000 before polishing with Nuvite G6, coarse and smooth. Now its pretty much indistinguishable from the underlying scuttle. The mirrors are from Speedway ('31 Ford in stainless steel).

Is there a "correct" way to mount these? In front of the mounting post or to the rear? Above or below the pivot?

Thanks

I picked up some .040 aluminum to make a bracket and didn’t realize that was anodized until I pulled off the plastic protective coating. Is there an easy way too remove the anodizing other than sanding?

Sure enough, Whitworth! Go figure.

I tried a gauge for both standard and metric to no avail. I'm running it by a local machine shop this afternoon. Sure has me scratching my head.

Okay, Im getting a little crazy now. I have a new set of Brooklands windscreens from Stafford Components and I am trying to determine the thread size and pitch of the threaded studs that extend from each side of the frame. It's between M8x1.25 and 5/16x24. I need to remove the stud to true the face of the cast frame but the stud doesn't exactly match either pitch. Is there some weird British measurement in between that I haven't discovered in the last 60 years? I am reluctant to run a die down the threads until I am confident that I know what I have. "Don't execute Plan A until you have defined Plan B"! Anyone else run into this?

Thanks

Where did you find the mounting bracket for the Brooklands screens?

The only place I’ve ever seen one on the floor is at Racer Parts Wholesale in Ohio. I happened to be there on business about 10-12 years ago.

I find them very comfortable. If the padding becomes too compressed, you can always add some "backsaver" foam or memory foam under the seat cover. In order to get the fit right, attend an SCCA or PCA event and ask if you can try the seat for fitment. A lot of guys run these and Butlers in the Northeast. Everybody is usually accomodating.

I have been shopping for a set of Brooklands screens for my Birkin and was referred to Stafford Vehicle Components in Staaffordshire, England (s-v-c.co.uk). 89 quid each plus 29 shipping (about $300). I ordered them from LA about 10pm and had them at my door 3 days later! Moss has been out of stock for a while or I would have ordered them there and save a bit but after taxes and shipping, not much. I have no relationship with these folks, just wanted to pass on the remarkable experience.

I have Kirkeys in my Birkin as I have had in previous track cars. I ordered the 17" road race seats and, while the bases fit perfectly, the shoulder supports were too wide to clear the rear fender arches. This was with them sitting in the SS3XS, the 100mm wider Birkin. I ended up cutting them down a bit and having the covers modified as well. Were I to do it over, I would order the Kirkey drag seats in the same size. They are made with the same inclination but don't have the shoulder supports. The covers that come with them should fit fine. Remember, with Kirkeys. all of the padding resides in the seat cover.

Don’t feel bad. It took me a while to think clearly about it and figure it out. Probably wouldn’t have taken so long 30 or 40 years ago.

I finally got to the bottom of my problem. The classic problem that arises when converting from incandescents to LEDs is rapid flashing of the commanded bulb. This is caused by insufficient resistance in the selected circuit. This was not my problem. In my case, when the directional was activated, after switching to LEDs, all four lights would flash simultaneously with the selected directional flashing a bit brighter. When I removed the scuttle today, I discovered that the problem was with the manner in which the indicator light was wired. The first step I took was to disconnect the leads from the indicator light. Everything worked perfectly! It turns out that the Birkin wiring harness and wiring diagram has two wires connecting to the indicator, a combined lead from the left directionals and a combined lead from the right side. The amount of current transferred across the indicator light isn't enough to trigger the offside bulb when using incandescents. There seems to be enough resistance in the circuit to prevent offside flashing. The problem only arises when using LEDs due to their much lower draw. There are two ways to resolve the problem, the first is to wire a resistor into the 12v lead to each rear directional LED. The other solution is to wire a pair of diodes into the leads to the indicator light. I found the necessary parts for both of these at www.superbrightleds.com under LED accessories. The resistors have heatsinks on them. The diodes come fabricated into a "Y" lead (Metric Bike Diode Kit MDK-1, $2.99). The resistors were similarly priced. The other factor to consider is the LEDs themselves. There are a lot of inexpensive ones on the market (mainly Chinese) most with inconsistent voltage requirements. The ones to get are the Philips Ultinon bulbs in 1156 and 1157 sizes. The run about $25 each from Pep Boys and others but they are worth it. The are correctly engineered. They use 12v and produce 42 lumens of brightness at 6000k. They come in white, red and amber and are designed to withstand the vibration levels we experience in these cars. They are also internally ballasted so the current draw works with the standard flasher relay. The front directionals on my car are small LED modules with an internal ballast. These came with the car and didn't contribute to the problem. Hope this helps the next guy who runs into this.

I spoke with Tom Carlin and we determined that the common wire for the directional indictator light is the problem. Disconnect that and all is well. The front indicators on the Birkin are already LEDs with their own integral ballasts. The flasher relay is designed for LEDs. It is a three prong relay while the Painless one is four prong.

I have found that the incandescent rear directional bulbs are melting the plastic lense covers on my Birkin. I naturally switched over to LED 1156 bulbs. The directionals operate normally with the incandesants but flash simultaneously (but at the normal rate) with the LEDs. I am using Phillips LEDs which are supposed to be ballasted to work correctly as retrofits. The flasher relay is labeled for LED use (CF14 JL-02, 12v 0.02A-20A). I see that the common problem is a rapid flashing rate with the retrofits, fixed by either installing ballasts or replacing the flasher relay with an LED compatible one. I'm left a bit perplexed. Any suggestions other than replacing the flasher relay?

I’m looking for a pair of Brooklands screens in decent condition, preferably with a mounting bar. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

The three power tools I have used most in the construction of my car are a Makita cordless drill (with extra battery), a 4" cutoff wheel for HF and a Bosch saber saw. I found a old but lightly used drill press on Craigs list locally the has come in very handy. I have found over the years that cordless drills last about the length of time equal to the construction of a house. By then the clutch is slipping a bit and the batteries are not lasting as long. The saber saw is useful for cutting heavier steel metal and light tubing. The better saws have a decent guide wheel behind the blade that improves accuracy and blade longevity. I have used the cutoff wheel to cut stuff too heavy for the saw and to trim excess bolt lengths.

Tom Carlin has installed an Ecoboost in a Birkin. If you are looking for 270hp, this crate motor is very cost effective. As delivered, it puts out 258hp. The ECU that comes with it from Ford is programmable to around 310hp. It's also shorter than the 2.5 and doesn't need a dry sump. Neither do you have to buy forged pistons, rods and crank, all necessary to get a reliable 270 out of it.

Have you considered rebuilding the engine yourself? Success is mainly related to cleanliness and attention to detail. Clearly that was lacking on your previous rebuilds. Doing it yourself allows you a lot of control plus it’s a great opportunity to learn.

Regular electricians use a grease called "No-corrode" when attaching copper wires to aluminum wires. You don't see this much anymore as most building codes impose restrictions on aluminum wiring in homes. It was quite the fad among low-end builders in the late '70's and early '80's given the price difference between copper and aluminum wire. I still have a tube and use it occasionally. It's a greenish grease similar to standard dielectric grease in consistency. When I was building my Birkin, I was advised of the potential for grounding issues. I use an 8 post grounding strip under the scuttle and a 4 post one at the rear of the car, both grounded directly to the battery for all connections. I have had no problems to date.

I have been considering switching over to the Brooklands. I am most concerned about the width at the windscreen mounts. Caterham offers a Brooklands mounting bracket for the SV. If the dimensions were close, I could probably make it work. I may just end up fabricating one myself. I’m just not sure that I can get it uniform and smooth enough across the scuttle.

Can anyone tell me the width of the scuttle on an SV? I’m trying to determine if it is the same as my wide body Birkin (SS3XS).