Engine Work...More parts cleaning

Time in Garage over the past few days: about 6 hours

I have stripped down the engine to a long block configuration. Today I  purchased a high quality wire brush attachment for my drill and really cleaned up the block and transmission. One final surface prep clean and I should be able to apply some paint. As with a majority of the tasks on this car it has taken me longer than expected to get the work done, as always I am more aptimistic than practical...a majority of the removed parts are cleaned up and wire brushed. A long and tedious process that still needs completion.

I attempted to remove the broken studs on the exhaust manifold. Soaked the studs overnight wnd used a stud remover but the studs were just too brittle after years of use. I ended up having to drill out the remaining portion of the studs and clean up the treads with a tap 3/8 nc cost $9. It took me about a hour to do the job not including the time spent to get the proper tap.

I removed the intake manifold from the exhaust manifold and cleaned it up..it looks much more presentable. Started to clean up the distributor..about another 30 mins left to finish it off.

Finished cleaning up the oil canister housing..looks good and polished off some other clean up jobs.

I am coming to the conclusion one had to be a bit obsessive to take on a project like this and get it finished in a reasonable time frame ....oh well ...live and learn...

Rekindled Project Focus

Time in Garage Friday: 6 hours

I am recently back from a January vacation to the Palm Desert in Southern California, somewhat recharged and refocused and ready to get back to work on my car. Christmas break was a bit challenging health wise as I contracted a fairly serious cold/flu that put Christmas celebrating and working on the Triumph on the back burner. I had to lay low and take it easy...

Yesterday I did the following:

Removed the fan extension from the front engine pulley..interestingly I didn't realize there was a large bolt that had to be removed. After a bit of frustration trying to break the extension free I referenced my manual and read through the instructions...I chuckled to myself around the 15 minutes I wasted that could have been avoided had I read the manual first!!! Arghhh..

While referencing the manual I recorded all the relevant torgue readings on a piece of paper that I put into a clip board...easier to read and doesn't mess up the manual with greasy fingers

I removed the thermostat housing and waterpump housing for clean up and reinstallation with new gaskets..

Removed the distributor and found a large deposit of gunk that needed cleaning out...it has been a while since the distributor has been removed. It will require clean up and a bushing check...

I did another clean of the block in prep for painting. I removed the spark plugs to clean up the head surface and noticed one was broken. Not sure how that happened but it will need to be replaced.

The block is now about 80 percent prepared for paint...yesterday was a great day to work on the car as I could keep the garage door open...record temperatures in our area...felt more like spring than mid winter...also good light and ventilation for parts cleaning...

On Thursday I traded out the remaining after market slotted wheel for the proper rim that I had recently powder coated...now the chassis has all the right rims installed. Cost to do this: $42 for the rim recoat and $22 for tire swap and balancing and a new valve stem...the slotted rim was put into storage...