Hints
Tips
This is a Starter
Page please send in as many as you can.
Can't Get Gears
This sometimes happens
to people, who have laid up their cars during the winter and when
Spring comes the car won't go into gear with the engine running.
Don't Panic! All that's happened is the clutch plate has rusted to the
flywheel, usually because of dampness. The cure is to warm up the
engine to normal temperature (with the garage doors open) and when
warm, switch off the engine and push the car out into the street, pick
a very quiet time.
Next put your car into 1st.Gear and with the handbrake off, and keep
the clutch pedal depressed, start your engine and your car will start
to move, try accelerating and decelerating rapidly, in short bursts.
(as if you were using Kangaroo petrol) and your clutch plate will free
itself in a short distance. About 50 feet or so. Remember take extreme
care, regarding other road users, when doing this and your car must be
road legal.
A Tip from Tam Thomson our resident McComic, sorry Tam, resident
Mechanic.
Bonnet Curves
To get the Top Bonnet skins to follow the curve of the CBU.
Mike used a plastic file handle as a rolling pin exerting gentle
pressure time and time again to get the bonnet curves to match. A tip
from Mike Cushley.
Fuse & Glove Box Where
to fit your Fuse Box and have a larger Glove Box. If you fit your fuse
box on the front of the bulkhead in the engine bay below the battery
box. This gives you more room to have a larger glove box. Plus your
fuse box is very easy to get to. A tip from Nelson Atkinson.
Glove Box
What to use when making a glove box. Try a Really Strong ice cream
tub or a strong tupperware type of tub. (The ones your good lady
uses, she won't miss one. Ha Ha!) Paint the outside of it and line
the inside.
Secure to the rear of the Dashboard. A tip
I received from John Skillen.
Interior Door Panels
A novel way to fit them
instead of using screws. Stick "Velcro" to the doors and also on the
rear of the panels and marry them up. Really professional looking.
Thanks to Bernard Telford.
Plywood Bonnet Support Panel
You
can cover up the wood with fibreglass, sand it down and paint it to
match your car. Gives a nice professional look to your car.
Alternatively you can use aluminium. A tip from Mike Cushley.
Pop Rivets
When using standard pop rivets on fibreglass place a washer behind the
rivet. Helps to spread the load and gives a more secure fixing. There
are also special pop rivets for fibreglass.
Tip from Tam Thomson our resident Mechanic.
Rubber Backing Use rubber behind
various bits on your car where metal meets fibreglass. Get an old
inner tube from a commercial tyre depot such as National Tyres. ATS.
Motorway Tyres. These inner tubes are still used on Plant machinery
Fork Lifts, JCB's etc.
Save on Spare Parts 1.
If the firm
you work for has their own vehicle fleet and the fleet is maintained
in your company's workshops. Ask your mechanic to order your parts. He
will get them cheaper than your company does.
Here is how it works
your company gets a discount on the goods they buy the more they buy
the bigger the discount. The firm supplying them wants your firms
business and they want to keep it. So they keep in with the mechanic,
fleet engineer or stores person and allow him maximum discount on
parts for his own use.
Save on Spare Parts 2.
Join a Local Kit Car Club. They will know of many places in your area
for the best prices.
Tank Straps Always fit rubber or
plastic backing underneath Tank Straps or on the Petrol Tank where it
sits or comes into contact with metal. You can see this if you look at
lorry fuel tanks. Otherwise the tank will hole eventually through
vibration.
Wiper Blades
Try the sweep of the
wiper blades with the hood erected to make sure the blades do not hit
the hood.
Wiper
Blades2 A better
wiper blade than those used by JBA which tend to scratch the screen
when windy, is the "TEX Classic Range" available from Europa.
|
