20170711 - Brad and I developed the plan. I organized, inventoried and photographed the parts I had and built this website.
20170719 - New Head Surprise
◦ Today after cleaning workbench and laying out parts, I discovered a NEW twin carb head in one of the boxes!! Life is good
20170728 - Jim - From MG Club
◦ Got numbers for a good machine shop
◦ Rustoleum preferred over powder coat
◦ Don't worry about stellite seats, etc. You won't be driving it that hard or that long
◦ Paint each individual piece (scuttle, tub, etc.) Be careful when transporting, but don't let paint shop paint whole car at once.
20170801 - Questions for Brad - the beginning visit
Two hours with my long laundry list of questions and his answers. We have a plan and I’ve got to locate some missing parts like the starter and generator!
20170802 - Rolling frame
◦ Took extra rods, pistons and an extra head to Brad for storage and sorting prep to machine shop
◦ After a night dreaming about all that had to be done AND the missing pieces, I was able to uncover the rolling frame, inflate the tyres, use the jack after a long search for the handle to lower the car off of the cinder blocks, roll it to the center under the deck, power wash everything and rolled the Singer into the garage before the rains came. Located the headlights, gen., starter, all the nuts and bolts, fuel pumps, clutch, etc. Whew!
20170805 - Rolling and Paint
◦ Joined the two appliance dollies I found on the street yesterday, jacked the Singer up on them and cinderblocks plus the large dolly I had for the front end. Now, I can roll the frame sideways as well as in and out of the garage.
◦ Painted the starter, generator and spare tire sheet metal compartment rust-proof black.
20170806 - Swiss Cheese Rear Panel
◦ Badly rusted pan (under rear seat?) fiberglassed.
◦ Starter, generator and spare tire sheet metal compartment moved to darkroom.
◦ Took the frame off of the dollies. Just too unstable.
20170807 - Panic Caps & Garage scour
◦ Brad called this morning saying he was missing two of the crankshaft bearing caps! Yikes! How could they have been missed? Yes, he was sure.
◦ Spent the whole day scouring the garage, every box and shelf. Found lots of stuff we will need down the road, but no caps.
◦ Called Brad at 5. Persuaded him to check the box again. Reluctantly, he did…and found the caps. I took him the nuts and studs needed. Since we weren't absolutely sure the caps for the block and head were the originals, Brad will have Lee's Machine shop check the line bores on each when he takes them in tomorrow.
20170808 - No Machine Shop + tool shop
◦ Went by Brad's to drop off old gaskets. He didn't deliver my engine to Lees. Promise to do so tomorrow.
◦ Went to Harbor Freight, bought $82 of tools and supplies (mostly for body work).
◦ Finished up Sources of parts and services for MG and Singer.
20170809 - Met Bill Kephart. Full racing machine shop.
20170823 - Questions for NASOC
◦ Explain caps issue with my good block
◦ Welding issue with my bad block
◦ Does anyone have a spare engine for a 4AD T?
• If so, how much?
• Where is it located?
• Shipping?
◦ Will a Hunter SM1500 swap in? Other models to pursue?
◦ If not, what have been successful engine swaps?
• Toyota? Honda? Mazda
20170823 - Lee's Machine Shop - Clay
◦ At Brad's suggestion, I took the old trashed block out to Lee's.
◦ Contact Clay, very personable, but shocked at the bad condition of the block. It "may" be possible to weld it (approx. $200) at IAT (It's About Time Welding).
◦ Reason for even trying is that the main caps seem to be specific to each Singer engine and we believe my caps came off of the trashed block. Long explanation, but with pins to guide caps, positioning is essential.
◦ Clay feels the best solution is to find another Singer engine, maybe one from a different model that would fit, maybe a Hunter or other SM1500 car.
◦ If one can't be found, swap a Toyota or Mazda engine.
◦ If it won't fit, buy a scrapped Miata or something, and put the Singer body on it.
◦ Called Martin Willis (S. African) machine shop. He is moving shop.
◦ Stopped at Dale's Automotive Paints and had them print out formula for British Racing Green.
◦ Martin confirmed that the main caps are specific to each block. He said he'd be willing to take a look at the trashed block in about two weeks - call back.
20170824 - Conflicted
◦ Called David Green, in Tucson, NASOC 4AD Spares Register
◦ Dave has an engine with matching caps, but one of the sleeves that had been over-bored slipped down in great heat allowing the top piston ring to hang up and freeze the engine. D. thinks this block could be re-bored properly and then made to work.
◦ The bombshell was when he strongly urged me to CAREFULLY magnaflux and look for a crack in the front journal of the crankshaft. 3 of the 4 cranks he's worked on were cracked here!
20170825 - Back to Clay. Call to Bud
◦ Clay agreed to fit caps on trashed block for fit AND to ck the crank for cracks. If none, we can send trashed block to IAT for evaluation.
◦ Talked to Bud Silvers. He's very much against chopping up this car with Mazda or other engine
◦ New crank "can be made" but cost could be $5000!!
◦ He thinks price could climb for original Singer. But, spending $25K by chopping might result in a $15K sale!
◦ He's willing to accompany me to Lee's for a look next week.
20170826 - Don Chase
◦ Met Donnie Chase. Told him of my Singer issues.
◦ He thinks an engine swap (ala Miata or something) is probably the answer.
◦ He offered help.
20170829 - Black Paint
◦ Fiberglass repairs slow to dry
◦ Rapidly catching up on painting metal parts that won't show gloss black.
◦ Tom back at Lee's Machine shop, but has not sent the crank out to be checked
20170830 - Email to Fred Zampa and Bernie Osborne for leads
20170901 - Clay, Wet Magnaflux Crank
◦ Clay forgot, but is running it up there now. May have results today. If not, Tuesday sure.
20170906 - Clay, Phillip Avis, Martin Willis, Jim Goodwin
◦ Clay still had no news about crank. Promised to check. I paid him $100 and took both blocks to Martin Willis.
◦ Called Phillip Avis in Hudson, Quebec and left a message. I'd like him to sniff for a Singer engine or perhaps a buyer at Stowe this year.
◦ Martin Willis
• Any hope for trashed block? Not much, but he kept the good block with the mismatched main caps. Said he could pull out the broken "easy out" and snapped bolt, plane down the caps and head (.005"), re-pin, line bore, over bore cylinders for .060 over pistons, install them and the rods and bearings for $1200!
• If no Singer engine can be found, what small engine would you recommend for swap? He suggested Jim Goodwin for a MGA engine or Sprite or Midget if the crank is bad for the Singer.
▪ Reasons for not using vintage Singer, Hillman, other Brit engine
• Cost
• Reliability - It will be as reliable as it ever was…not a great deal.
• Parts availability - At least with MG or Austin Healey you have Moss to lean on.
• Don't need speed, will probably give car to son/grandson. Martin said if you don't keep it somewhat vintage and original it will be worthless and a crime.
• I have virgin frame onto which engine, transmission and "maybe" differential can be mounted. Go for all? See above. He is against modern engine swap.
• Chances someone else would want the headache? Guys need projects to keep them feeling young.
◦ Jim Goodwin
• Jim said he had a 57 MGA with the rods knocking before blow up. Would have to be totally rebuilt ($250-300) estimates it would cost $2-4K more to get everything running.
• He has several MGBs, but they are in similar condition. Parts are expensive and you still have a Singer that is not a Singer.
• He is solidly against putting a swap engine (Japanese, German, etc.) in it. Like Martin, he thought such a car would be worthless for resale.
• Selling the project to someone else is his best recommendation.
▪ Have Phillip do some sniffing at Stowe. Maybe buy an ad.
▪ Have Bernie Osborne publish something to the LBC group
▪ Put an ad for Denver and CS on Craigslist.
• He thinks Martin's price is reasonable if I want to pursue the original Singer and have enough parts.
20170911 - Clay, Martin, Brad, Mill Fabric ;>) Crank
◦ Clay called just before I was headed out to collect the parts. They guy he had to wet test my crank took over a week to do what he offered to do in a day. The bottom line is good, however. The crank does not have a crack.
◦ So, I went to Lee's Machine Shop (Clay), got the crank, pistons, rods, bearings and the head with its stripped parts, paid him another $90 (basically just for cleaning).
◦ Off to Martin's with the crank. He mic ed it and found that it needs machining but is within standard tolerance. He will have to send it out (only one guy in town machines cranks!!). Est. another $160-180. He said he could do the head for $360+ but also mentioned he was 2 months behind. Sensing no enthusiasm, I probed about taking the head back to Clay. He was fine with this. So…
◦ Drove to Brad, got rocker arm assemblies and an old head and…
◦ Back to Clay, who was delighted to get the head back. Quoted $260+ more and said he thought he'd have it done in two days! He showed me why the valve seats didn't need sleeves and why the slots were in the valves (so one could use a screwdriver to hone the seats!), how the oiler works with the rockers and the cam (which is in great shape), etc.
◦ Also went to Mill Fabric Outlet. Lots of Marine grade vinyl. Get paint chips from Lowes to compare colors. Use our sewing machine…better than industrial accd the German dude.
20170912 - Jesse, Tiny, Martin, vinyl
◦ Talked to Jesse Medina about chrome. He will give me a card from "Tiny" who works out of Pueblo West. J. claims he will return grill and others like factory new! Wahoo! No California!
◦ Tiny's Custom Polishing & Powder Coating, Pueblo West
20170914 - Clay, Fitzroy, Phillip Avis
◦ Clay called. Valve job is done and ready to pick up. Only 4 of the rocker arms are good enough to reuse. C. is calling a friend to see if he can resurface them. I told him I thought I had another set with Brad and will deliver them tomorrow to see if we can put 16 good ones together.
◦ Fitzroy helped me lower the scuttle and the tub from the garage ceiling where they have been hanging since 1991. Lots of wood needs replacing, but I need to talk to Brad about the aluminum welding that is necessary and how much wood will have to be removed.
◦ Got an email from Phillip Avis in Canada offering any Singer help I need. I'll call him or email again over the weekend.
20171027 - Martin, Clay
◦ Martin wanted clearance numbers, so I printed off the MotorTrader article with all the specs and took it to him. He grumbled and said some of this might do, but he needed absolute factory numbers. I told him I didn't think the Singer factory printed an official manual for this car. He mentioned that English engineers were lazy and probably just used the same clearance specs from earlier engines. So, I took over to him several of my other English repair books and the factory manual from the Singer Nine. He seemed very pleased. I left them with him.
◦ Called Clay. Garage in Oregon who has my rocker arms delayed because they lost his phone #!!! Another delay ensued because Clay had the flu.
20171106 - Clay, got the head
◦ I finally got the head. He barely milled the head and was reticent about going deeper. There are some pits of unknown depth which he said Brad would fill with some kind of copper compound. He also said Brad would have to do the valve lashing after I got him the numbers for the proper clearances. He said he torqued the cam caps to 14 ft. pounds and that Brad should recheck for the proper numbers. $417
• Martin Willis texted and I arrived to witness my crankshaft installed and turning by hand. He will now insert the rods and pistons. He extracted the 3 broken studs and had to put an insert in one of them. Martin says the engine block works will be ready next week. He also has a blind hen walking around the shop like a pet dog!
• Martin said he'd sent the crank out to be shaved a couple of thousands. He's extracted the broken easy out and is working on the broken bolt. He has milled the holes for the new freeze plugs. He thinks the block will be finished in "a week or two".
20171109 - Martin Willis Intro
20171115 - Martin and his Blind Chicken
20171122 - Martin, Open pickup door, Motor is mine, now at Brad's, Rubber Cowl
◦ Martin texted motor ready. Blind chicken blocked my way in. There is a pick up truck parked in front, and for the last four visits, the passenger door has been open. Mystery solved…that's where Martin's dog holds court each day.
◦ The final bill was nearly $500 more than the estimate, but was explained due to having to shave the crank twice to get perfect tolerances.
◦ I've been invited for a whiskey any day after 5 p.m. Hmmmm.
◦ Took the head, manifold, carbs, etc. along with block to Brad to begin assembly.
◦ I've been reassembling the 9 pieces of torn rubber for the gearbox cowl using fiberglass and liquid rubber. Quite nice, actually!
20171215 - Brad, lower engine torques, moving plans
◦ Contacted Brad on 12/12 who asked for two days to finish up other jobs. Today I took him 3 more boxes of parts and tools (BSF tap, die, wrenches, sockets) 3 fuel pumps, generator, starter, fasteners, parts left over from Clay's head job, etc. In addition, I took him the Singer 9 workshop manual, URLs for 2 Singer sites and the torque recommendations.
◦ We agreed that if I could get the tow bar installed on the frame, he would tow the frame to the shop to start assembling the motor, transmission, brakes, muffler etc.
◦ In the meantime, I'd be working on the tub at home and all the wooden frame assembly.
◦ I added new items to the checklist section about my action items.
20171218 - Brad, tow frame, Prius back in the garage!
◦ Yesterday I checked that the wheels were tight and rotating, put on the old tow bar
◦ Lucky break to find the two BSF bolts to attach the angle braces
◦ Today Brad arrived to tow. Wrong ball size. Couldn't adapt. Got the larger tow bar, but it wouldn't fit. B. had to return to shop to drill extra hole.
◦ He also took another three boxes of Singer parts + brake lines and radiator.
◦ Brad can't find a couple of pipes that transfer oil from the sump to the head and others.
◦ Also, can't believe there is no seal at spiral end of crank where end cap bolts on. I may ask Martin Willis or guys at NASOC for an answer.
20171219 - Tiny's Polishing/Chrome, Brad - mystery pipe & crank seal
◦ Got card from Jesse Medina. Called Tiny 406-2482 in Pueblo West. Got his email to send photo for estimate.
◦ Tiny said I should figure 8-10 weeks for a chrome plating job.
◦ Went to Brad's looking for an oil delivery pipe from the bottom on the engine to the head. We both looked at it and dismissed it. Later I tried the threads, and all matched up! B. needs to clear a space for the long-term work on the Singer (est. one week).
◦ New worker due back from Texas next week.
◦ Brad's PC crashed taking all records of work done the last two months. Ouch!
◦ Question about seal or no seal at rear of crank sent to David Green, Jim Goodwin, Martin Willis. All answered "no seal" with more or less back up info.
