2020

20200527 - Accelerator linkage, wings for front fenders, parking brake
First it was the shoulder, and then it was the pandemic…OK, the pandemic goes on. You can tell, because everyone in the shop is wearing a mask!
Today was the first day back with the Singer in almost 6 months. I basically just went by just to find out where to start again. I did make an appointment with Brad, and so he and I picked it up from where we left off in November.
I did some clean up of the trash that had accumulated around the Singer and also organized the large sheet metal parts and radiator together.
Brad claims to have solved the steering gear leak and so set about to finish the accelerator linkage.
He had also previously mounted the electric fuel pump to the firewall.
That led to a discovery that the parking brake lever was on the wrong side of the firewall which had to be dismantled.
That led to a discovery that the rod connecting the lever to the master cylinder and the mechanical linkage to the rear brakes was too long. Brad cut it and rethreaded it with 5/16” BSF 22 (thankfully I left the taps and dies at the shop).
I spent the afternoon attaching the mid-ship wings to the frame which support the front bubble fenders. The holes had become rusted and then full of paint and needed to be retapped. Luckily I found four suitable bolts which also had to be run through the die.
Brad squared up the hole in the firewall where the old linkage came through, cut a new piece of square metal and welded it in the hole, ready to be ground flat and redrilled.
When I left, Brad had flipped the accelerator linkage and was puzzling how to attach the floorboard to the firewall.
The sad part of the afternoon was that neither of us could find the sleeve that encases the actual parking brake lever that lives to the left of the driver.

20200607 - Steering Column support
I cut a relief kerf in wooden section above firewall - not pretty, but eventually enough depth to allow the backing plate to lie flat and allow the pilot holes to be drilled accurately.

After scrounging the necessary bolts, washers and nuts, the support arm for the steering column was bolted to the firewall and to the sliding “U clamp” that grips the column.
Since we can’t locate the sleeve that houses the parking brake, our next chore is to free the large flat head screws that are frozen into the trapped nuts in the upper portion of the floorboard assembly that is common with the firewall.
Then we can thread the clutch and brake pedals through this new floorboard and attach the accelerator pedal assembly above it and attach the rightmost lever to the new accelerator cable.
Bring dashboard and oil sending unit to Brad next visit.

20200620 - Luck of Connections

During the intervening weeks I’ve renewed my dues with NASOC and sent several messages out trying to locate a parking brake sleeve. At one point, I thought Brad and I could fabricate one, but all the stops that the pawl has to ratchet against is just too much.
Needless to mention, I tore the garage apart for a third time looking for it.
I also revisited my photo inventory of the tear down with no mention or image showing the missing part. I came to the conclusion that is was one of those parts Bruce took off way before I bought the car and lost it among his other car parts. How many times have I done that myself??
Brad showed me a similar pull emergency brake on a Toyota Jeep (1995?) and suggested I hit some wrecking yards and be prepared for some serious (read hot and difficult) removal issues.
Two days, out of the blue, I received an email from Fred Zampa in Macon, GA who just happened to have “some” parking brake parts. Last night he messaged that he had the whole assembly and would ship it ($45 + $10 shipping).
I popped the check in the mail this morning.
In the meantime, I took the finished dashboard over to Brad who will try and fit it in preparation to hook up the oil pressure gauge in preparation to move towards starting the engine for the first time. I think we are a long way from that watershed moment, but it is kinda exciting to think about it.

20200701 - Progress in Brackets and Parking Brake

The parking brake from Georgia arrived, and both of our pull levers were warped and twisted. Brad applied some magic and soon the assembly was working as it should (at least from the driver’s perspective).
The next thing to solve was the linkage to the parking brake lever in the engine compartment whose lower arm is connected by clevis and rod to the swing arm which is connected to the rod leading to rear mechanical brakes. I had an old emergency brake sleeve, cable and clevis from another car (possible a VW bug after the cable snapped). We were able to repurpose it to serve double duty: 1. The clevis and cable will connect nicely to the driver-side parts with just a few modifications and 2. The double-nut sleeve fits nicely through the firewall to direct the cable and prevent wear on the sheet metal.
I fashioned a bushing that replaces the silver part above and still have to make another one which will offset the alignment of the cable assembly avoiding sideways wear.
I spent time finding and bolting down bracket which hold first the brake fluid reservoir and then the horn and coil on the passenger side of the engine.
My shopping list for Ace Hardware is long, starting with chrome plated screws and dished out washers which I think were standard for mounting the dash to the newly-found angle brackets which will mount into the new wooden frame

members which naturally have to now be modified to fit the proper angles. I need lots of flat head wood screws of various sizes to screw these brackets tight before bolting the dashboard through them.

20200707 - Homework

Tried to get a duplicate ignition key made at ACE with their amazing computer key operation. Nope. Had to go to Henley’s where the old guy commented that someone had “greatly altered” the only key I had. He made a dupe, but suggested I bring in the whole key assembly so he could make a proper key.
Even though ACE (Circle East Mall) has one of the largest inventories of nuts and bolts, screws, etc., I was much too optimistic. I left with 5 finishing washers!
I tried Springs Fastener Co. where I was sure I could get oval slotted machine screws, but “no cigar”. Nobody uses slotted screws anymore.
Back to the Internet. British Fasteners had some of my hardware, but at RIDICULOUS prices ($3.25 for a $.07 screw, etc., plus giant shipping charges). I ended up making another compromise by finding everything I needed (except the British Standard Threads) at Bolt Depot. It’s one of the sacrifices I am willing to make in order to get the car drivable before I die. I think a bloke in England facing the same choices would go down this road - threads be damned.
I found the horn which I feared had gone missing.
Tomorrow, I will also temporarily mount the bracket which hold the windscreen pending the arrival of the hardware mentioned above.

20200708 - Brackets and tight screws

Mounted the horn outboard on the coil bracket (3 photos out of 4 showed this placement)
Mounted parking brake. All that’s left is for Brad to cut cable and melt ball at end, increase slot at end of handle and drill hole to accommodate the larger cable.
With difficulty, mounted the 4 brackets that hold the dashboard (20 slotted wood screws!)
Temporarily mounted dashboard with random screws and bolts.
Had to sand interior wood, but was able to mount chrome windscreen brackets using the old bolts (awaiting the new oval headed bolts).
Brad used torch to save 3 of the 8 rusted British screws used to hold accelerator floorboard piece. Decided to use ¼-20 slotted flat head screws going forward at less than half the price of BSF equivalents.

20200715 - Small screwings

My screws from Bolt Depot arrived, so took them and the windshield to First Rate.
The windshield doesn’t fit between the the two chrome holders pictured at right. This will involve more wood shaving underneath to correct the angles.
Replaced the temporary bolts holding the dashboard on with the proper oval-headed 10-32 x 1 ¼” screws.
Retapped the fixed nuts in the floorboard to ¼” - 20 threads. It’s now ready for the new plywood floorboard as soon as I get it painted. This will accommodate the accelerator pedal and give us a place to attach the new accelerator cable.
Brad’s Homework:
Drill hole for accelerator cable housing union.
Mount radiator and start the search for hoses.
Cut cable for parking brake and weld knob that will fit in the handbrake assembly.
Mount and thread through the water temperature sender.

20200722 - Front success

Upon arriving, Brad had found one bolt for the fan blade housing and one for the lower radiator mount…out of 4 each that were necessary.
Brad found two hoses that will fit the radiator and also was able to thread the brake fluid reservoir tube back to the master cylinder.
I discovered that the fan housing didn’t take bolts, rather studs with nuts. I retapped the holes and he fitted the studs and mounted the fan blade.
I also retapped the lower radiator holes and found the required bolts, washers, and lock washers.
In trying to figure out why the sheet metal was encroaching on the generator and both sides of the radiator, we decided it had to do with the massive angle iron braces from the frame to the bumper. We both think it should not bend at the point where the bolt attaches to the frame, so I came home and returned with the five bumpers I have. He will sort out how all this fits.
I also located the hand crank which will allow him to turn over the engine by hand for timing, etc.
The temperature gauge will fit nicely and probably will be zip tied to the steering column.

20200812 - Panic and Breakthrough, High Heat

Brad had straightened the heavy metal supports for the front bumper. Repeated towing with different tow bars made these strong elements adapt to different shapes. Using one of my drawings, he heated the pieces to white hot and bent them to shapes which will fit to the holes in the new(ish), maybe Sunbeam chrome bumper I bought decades ago.
I located a pair of metal straps which resembled the ones we installed on the outboard sides of the elevated wooden footrests. I panicked when noticing they fit under these wooden pieces with pre-drilled holes in the middle of each piece (driver and passenger). One side had the nuts welded on the strap like the others and the other did not. I have run out of BSF slotted screws, so will probably retap or bore out to replace with 1”x ¼” 20 screws.
Then I located two more matching straps which looked as if they held up the spare tire pan in the rear, but after consulting several photos, I discovered they wrap from under the dashboard, through the firewall, across underneath the battery pan and form a right angle bracket on the front of the firewall onto which a threaded rod screws and extends down to the frame! This will be fun to fit and might interfere with the wooden piece that fits across and underneath the battery pan
We still need to trim the cable to size for the emergency brake and fit it into the sliding portion and weld a bead on its tip.
I laid out the light metal pan that supports the floorboards and matched each panel that I’d prepared last year. Mounting that in place will happen in conjunction with the piece shown to the right.

20200818 - Floorboard Pattern

Amazed to find that the floorboard pieces under the feet of driver and passenger are missing (another Bruce omission?). Nonetheless, I brought light cardboard and made two patterns. I found a scrap of ½” plywood at home and cut the two pieces so they would hug the gearbox and skirt around the large bolts that fasten the main ash frame to the metal frame. Will custom fit them next time.

20200901 - Floorboards

I discovered right away that the floorboard pieces were never meant to rest on top on the ash frame as I formerly thought. Rather, they fit into a groove routed along the inboard edge of the ash member. Bingo.
I brought a power sander with a new disk and soon had both pieces fit into the frame and the groove.
Next I had to locate the holes in the metal strap that supports the floorboards along the middle of each piece and mark the wood. I used Brad’s drill press to drill the holes a size smaller in case my measurements were off.
I made an erroneous assumption that the holes would be a mirror match. Then I swallowed hard and redid the passenger side properly…
Homework: Countersink and increase size of each hole. Sand each piece and either stain and varnish to match the other floorboard pieces or paint them black to match the firewall pieces.

20200924 - Floorboards, Test seat rails and fit, Emergency Brake, Accelerator Cable

My homework is to find a good photo of how far an original bumper for a ’54 Singer extends beyond the apron, fenders and radiator shell. Bring shell in for a fitting. Brad and I tried to estimate range of bumper, but short of bolting everything up, we need a good photo.
Brad had shortened and attached the accelerator cable through the firewall but will have to remove the pedal assembly, heat and bend it to allow for full throttle. Not a big deal. Works and looks great. Can’t imagine what the former owners were thinking by welding all that complex linkage from the pedal to the carbs!
My new floorboard pieces fit well, and the slotted screws match up to the metal strips below (did not attach washers and nuts as much fitting and access below is needed…don’t forget to fasten them later!).
The rails for the driver and passenger seats appear the same at first, however, the adjustment lever is on the right side of both seats (is that the correct position?) and one pair of the rails have many more slots suggesting this is the adjustment rail. I hope I don’t have to swap the adjustment lever assembly later because it is too close to the driveshaft tunnel. Right now, the circular glides that fit inside the adjustment rail are much too stiff (rust, neglect, paint?) and therefore must be somehow freed up if seat adjustment is to happen. Note: I think it’s important to have the relieved openings at the top of the rails to be mounted towards the rear. That way the seats can be lowered down into the rails and adjusted forward. It might work in the reverse order, but it would be VERY tight.
Brad did the final assembly of the emergency brake which involved reshaping the end of the parking brake handle to receive the cable from the other side of the firewall which now has a MIGed ball on its end.
The final challenge was to find a nut with a pressure flange to connect to the German replica fuel pump topside suppling fuel to the dual carbs (naturally the threads didn’t match anything readily at hand). Bingo. It was hiding inside the “empty” box the pump came in!

20201001 - Pure Poetry

This is normally just a dry journal of what happens on any given trip to the shop to solve a specific piece of the restoration puzzle. However, today I received the following from my old teaching partner:
"The thing I seem to enjoy most about working on a antique car is comparable to the moment that you sign your name to a piece of art work, and you have put so much of yourself into it........then you enjoy the moment of revelation that it has been working on you as well and it has imbued you with humbleness beyond words or product. Someone else may have designed the old car, and legions had their hand in bringing it to market, but that big bucket if bolts, cloth, glass, castings etc., has asked you to tell it’s story, being singularly able to guide your hands, brain and determination to preserve its adventures and sights for continuing individuality. All the frustrations and challenges have once more built a new and more humble you." Rob

20201007 - Radiator

Took the $500 chromed radiator shell to Brad for fitting to adjust the front bumper.
After some head-scratching, Ryan and I determined that the radiator and mounting bracket must tip slightly backwards in order to fit the threaded holes to the frame.
There resulted some adjustment of the rubber buffer washers, both under the radiator and under the mounting bracket. Could there really be that much vibration to these parts?
I left the upholstered seat for fitting next time.
Brad had fitted the fuel delivery line from the fuel pump to the dual carbs.

20201202 - Breather

Home projects mounted and so did the pandemic, but finally some space opened up and I took the driver's seat over to see if it would fit on the rails.
That's a much bigger project than I first imagined. I needed a lot more flathead slotted screws to mount the rails - some long in order to pass through the ash frame and the steel frame, others just through two pieces of sheet metal. In addition, it is obvious that some of the rail positions were only anchored by wood screws!

20201210 - Screw it!

And so I did. The Ace Hardware store in the Bon Shopping Center did a remodel and devoted a whole wall to screws, nuts, bolts, etc. After all that hunting through fastener shops, the answer was two blocks from my house.
Today I redrilled the holes and fastened the four rails through the ash and the frame and the floor boards, but ran out of time and courage to test whether the seats would fit and slide.
An additional complication is that the hardware that secured the seat belts (long lost) fit under and may actually interfere with the rails. Next time I will come armed with seat belts.