July - Temple of Triumph

1
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A Chapter of the Vintage Triumph Register
m~.emDst bi6ttn9UtG~.eb OOffit.ers.of~.e Association:
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valvotom@tdo.infi.net
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(85U) fi81-9171
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By Tom Rush, Most Exalted High Potentate
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aprev@tdo.inti.net
(85U) 878-fi4fiU
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June- Watts@dcf.state.fl.us
(85U) 942-2485
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Sutherla@cs.fsu.edu
(85U) 425-192fi
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Wtttt! 1ftamrirk
(85U)fi71-18U8
iRtgintrar
alubU :mil1.er
JodyOO7@AOL.com
(85U) 5fi2-7472
(Note new E-mail addresses for Tom Rush
and Andy Prevelig)
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3Ju1!1. 1998
1998 is the 75th anniversaryof the manufacture
of the first Triumph car as well as the 30th anniversary of the TR-250. Since the first Triumph
was produced in 1923,the Britishmotor industry
has seen many changes, but one fact remains the
same - the name Triumph will always be a timeless reminder of British motor engineering at its
very best.
Around the world Triumph clubs are celebratingthe 75th anniversary.OnWednesday,July 8th,
the Temple will do its part to honor our favorite
marque. The Temple will be hosting a 75th Anniversary Party at Obin's new Triumph restoration facility at 991 Tung Hill Drive.
For those of you who couldn't make it, the
Temple had a nice outing last Saturday. Brian
and June Watts - TR-250, Obin and Marilyn
Hamrick - TR3A, John and Teresa Harris - TR6,
and John and Gena Plott - "TriumphExplorer"
met in the WalMart parkinglot at 7:30. We drove
to Quincy. I followed in the TRIVolvoWagon,
I-
prepared to pick up any bits and pieces that might fall
off the Explorer. We stopped for a great and unique
breakfast at Jack Wingate's Lunker Lodge on Lake
Talquin. Breakfast is served family style: they bring
enough food for the V{holetable artd everyone shares.
Breakfast costs less than $4.00 - What a deal!
John and Gena led us on a tour of the back roads of
Gadsden and Leon Counties, ending up at McClay
Gardens. I tried to stay close, being "navigationally
challenged". I didn't have a clue as to where I was.
~RACING
--
Disney World's Epcot Center in Orlando was the site
of the 1998 B FGoodrich Team T/A SEDIV Solo II
Champion Series on May 16-17. The Temple was
well represented by five of our members driving their
LBCs.
Class
At McClay we were joined by Andy and Rachel
Prevelig - Spitfire, and Barry and Dianne NorthwayTR250. We were treated to a great steak lunch organized by the Temple's Mistress of Debauchery,Terry
Hamrick. Thanks, Terry! Everyone had a great time.
I hope to see more of you at the next outing.
Right now I'm getting ready to go to the Pepsi 400 at
Daytona. It's my first NASCAR race so I'm looking
forward to it. I'm planningthe trip around a visit to
th~JJ:lu~euII1 ami some gQ:-~c:art
tr'lck~,-.
1 want
JO_Q!s::c --,-
~
CORNER
Car
Times
H Stock
3rd Pete Sutherland
TR6
63.613 /65.158
D Street Prepared
2nd J.K.Jackson
3rd Brian Watts
TR6
TR6
60.426/62.254
62.436/63.788
TR6
TR6
60.321/62.160
69.854/67.266
D Street Prepared Ladies
1st Chris Moore
- 3rd -June Watts
cover the thrills oft-boning 12-year-olds. What's the
Temple record for expulsions trom go-cart tracks?
I
II
Maybe it is time to think about what we want to do
to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the TR6. Until
next month. . . ~
Calendar
of Events
VTR National Convention
Hudson,Wisconsin
July21-24. 1998
The Roadster Factory Summer Party
Armagh, Pennsylvania
Augus,t7~911998
2
Six Pack Trials
Princeton, New Jersey
October 1-4, 1998
VTR Southeastern Regional
Ocala, Florida
October 22-24, 1998
Hosted by the Gold Coast Triumph Club
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Go Electric
By Brian Watts
I recently installed an electric fuel pump on
my TR6. Since I'm trying to eke out every bit
of horsepower I can, I figured the time was
right to replace the mechanical pump with a
good reliable electric one. I chose the Facet
electric pump from Racer Wholesale. This
pump came recollllIlended by lK. so I went
with it. The change-over went smoothly.
Before doing anything, I made an aluminum
blanking plate to cover the hole left when the
mechanical fuel pump is removed. I bought
some aluminumplating from the Home Depot
and started shaping and grindingthe plate. The
Roadster Factoryhas thispart listed in the parts
book, but it's been backordered for at least five
years now.
Anyway, once the plate is made, remove the
mechanical pump and plug the fuelline hoses.
Try out your new blanking plate. Be sure to
use a gasket - a fuel pump gasket will do or
just cut one out and make'one. Put plenty of
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gasket seal on the gasket and plate and bolt it
in place. Now, remove the rigid fuel line that
wraps around the engine. It's time to reroute
the fuel line so it is farther aw~yfrom the motor. It mCiYtake some ~ore-thoughtand creativity, but rerouting the. fuel line aw~y from
the motor makes the gas cooler which makes
for better performance. I took a 5/16" hose
and ran it from the rigid pipe that runs along
the frame, reversed the carburetor rigid pipe,
ran the hose againstthe firewall above the battery, then connected everythingtogether.
I installed the electric pump and filter in the
trunk. The mounting kit provided was adequate
to mount the pmnp just about ariywhere in the
trunk; I installed new hose from the tank to
the new pump (using existing plugged holes in
the body around the gas tank).
Be sure to put a good fuel filter between the
tank and the electric pump. Once the fuel mess
was cleaned up, I started running the electric
WIfe.
I used 12 gauge wire starting at the fuse box.
Be sure to pick a circuit that switches off when
the ignition is off. I put an inertia switch in the
engine compartment - this cuts the power if
the car is jolted to a stop. I will also add an on!
off switch on the dash somewhere. There are
many times when I want the ignition on, but
not the fuel pump.
lK. utilized,thedash light switchfor this (the
one on the center console below the gear shifter.
So far that seems the best setup. By replacing
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I!
the fuel pump and rerouting the fuel line it
shouldadd a couplehorsepower and make fuel
delivery more constant and reliable.
Epilogue
Every once in a while everybody has surprises. Some are joyful, some are not. I was
entered in the local autocross a month ago all
worked up and ready to run. The weather was
clear, the course was laid out well. The car
has been running very well. I just completed
the above fuel pump change. I was ready. I
have built up quite a bit of confidence in the
car over the last year or so. Everything was
done right. There has never been any shortcuts and it has run beautifully untiL... last
month's autocross.
~bout 35 seconds into the run, the car began to sputter and try to stall. I' d'lift up on the
gas, ran fme. Press the accelerator, sputters
again. I thought it was perhaps some junk in
the carburetors so I got back in line for another
run. Same thing. 35-40 seconds into it, sputtering. Fit to be tied, I growl off to the pit area
and begin taking the fuel bowl covers off the
SUs. Both carbs are absolutely clean (sparkling even). J.K. comes walking by wondering what I'm fussing with. He said since I
wasn't blowing black smoke out the tailpipe
during the runs, the car was probably starving
for fuel. SinceI couldn't find the problem with
the time and patience I had at the airport parking lot, I depided to be a spectator for the rest
of the day.
4
Once at home, I discollilected the fuel line
from the carbs and turned on the fuel pump. I
noticed the fuel flow seemed a bit slow so I
put the end of the hose in a large jar. I disconnected the line from the fuel pump end and put
my compressor hose to it. Nothing happened!
I turned up the pressure to 95 lbs. And after a
few seconds came one huge burst of fuel and
gunk! I couldn't believe it. There wasn't a
single speck of dirt in the fuel filter or the carburetor bowls. But I had a jar full of mud.
There are several theories as to how the junk
got in the fuel lines. The most popular one is
that I have a low spot or dip in the fuel line
somewhere and over the years the fme deposits slowly built up and ultimately clogged the
flow enough to starve the motor. Since then, I
ran the car in the SCCA Southeast Divisional
in Orla!1do. The car ran great!
Moral of the story: It wouldn't hurt to blow
out your fuel line every once in a while. Our
old gas tanks and lines do rust and collect garbage over the years. ~
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YEAH, I DO KNOCK A FEW CONES DOWN- BUT lYE NEVER ROLLED IT!
WIre Wemple
Wahle!
3Jtt1y. HHJD
LOOKING AROUND
By John M. Plott
Remember the slogan from the 1960's Honda
Motorcycle campaign? "You meet the Nicest
People on a Honda!" Or were you one of the
many who gave truth to TimothyLeary's comment? "If you can remember the '60's you
weren't there."... Oh well, the point of the question and comment is the Honda ad.
I just wanted to direct our collective attention
to the NICEST people that we get to meet or
associate with when our energies are expended
on our LBCs.
Yes... I know that there are a few who represent the other end of the continuum. Like the
person who sold me my TR-3A. He just outright lied to me. But I blame myself... because
I listened... and I soooo wanted for the things
he told me to be true.
The positive side is much more comfortable to
deal with: i.e. John Swauger at the Roadster
Factory.
I did not have side curtains for the road trip
this summer to Hudson, Wisconsin and it is
not my luck to drive from Tallahassee to
Hudson without encountering some sort of inclement weather. However, my first conversation with John Swauger informed me that it
would be 16 to 18 months of waiting before
W~e Wemple Wttbld
3Ju1!1. 199B
rebuilt side curtains would be available. Even
with my summerhabit of non-calendar watching, this would not do for travelingnext m,onth.
So John Swauger went searching. He found a
set of white side curtains. He explained that
they were not from his regular source and that
he did not like the quality compared with his
normal source, but that they would work fme.
Particularly down here in the South when they
would be seldon used anyway. He even offered to take myoId wedge type side curtains
in trade. I now have white side curtains...
maybe a white top instead of the black top I
have??? (The Roadster Factory 1-800-2341104)
When I was removing the drive shaft from'the
transmission all four of the bolts attaching the.,
front of the drive shaft were loosened beyonch;
halfway. Very loose indeed. Not to be out..:'!'
done (or un-done as the case is) the rear four'
bolts were not only as loose, they had dimin:"
ished their munber to two. In addition the "mating" arrows to put the two universal joints in
hme were at ninety (90) degrees to each other.
Something had to give. It turned out to be the
bolts, the pinion shaft bearing, and the pinion
shaft seal in the differential. Consequently the
underside of the rear of the LBC was wearing
the lubricant that should have been helping with
friction reduction inside the differential. Time
to shop again.
I went to the "T" parts section of Hemmings. I
found an ad for transmissions and diffet:entials
in Florence, Alabama. I gave the number a
call and talked with Jim Pe~gton,
the owner
of "Auto Forum". Jim told me that he thought
5
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I
he could find a non-overdrive differential and
rebuild it for me. He called a week later and
told me that he found one but had to drive to
Kentuckyto get it. He said that he had to drive
up there the next week to pick up an engine
and some other parts, so he would get the differential at the same time. At the time of this
writing, he has the differentialin his shop hav-
inghis waywith it.
Temple Celebration
and July 8 Meeting
We will have the July meeting combined with
a celebration of the the 75th anniversary of
the first Standard Trimnph automobile and
the 30th anniversaryof the Trimnph250. Obin
Hamrick has invitedus to his newlyconstructed
large workshop/shed for this event. Libations
at 6:00 p.m., pot luck dinner at 6:30 p.m. and
the meeting at 7:30 p.m.
.
Jim is a fellow who fell in love with LBCs early
in life. Six years old to be exact. A cousin
bought a black TR-3 back in 1959 and young
Jim was enthralled. The same cousin gave him
a model of the TR-3, and that set the mold for
Jim's future. He opened his first repair shop in
1978 and did repair on British cars part time
until 1985 when he went full time. Jim sold
that shop in 1991 but still did British car repair
on the side. In 1993 he opened his present day
shop and mail order business. - Jim actually
started in the mail order and technical advice
business back in 1985. He feels that he has
the skill and the courage to work on any of the
British cars. At present he has a Lotus Torbo
in his shop and he is restoring a 1953MG-TD.
Jim points out that at one time he was crazy
enough to go on the road as a professional
with Saleen Motorsports. Twenty-fourhours
a day, seven days a week is enough to make
you tired. (TheAutoFonun 1-205-767-7057).
There are a lot of stories out there in the real
world. If we listen we can give new life to
that old Honda ad. ~
6
As before, those with last names beginning
with:
A-L
M-Z
bring hot dishes
bring desserts and drinks
Come out and join the celebration!
-
'f-CAPrrAL
CIRCLE N E
MAHAN f 90 EAST
PEDRICK
f---I
TUNG HILL DRIVE--7
[2l 99 I
OBIN'S HOUSE
Map to Obin's house
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Classified Ads
AUTO - CROSS
By Andy Prevelig
Just a reminder: If anyone has a need to advertise
cars or parts, send it in. Ads are free to members
and $15.00for non-members (includes membership).
Wanted:Front bodypanelsfora TR4/250. I am still
looking for a hood, upper valence, bumper and grill
fota TR250 - TR4 panels will do also. Call Brian
Watts (850) 942-2485.
For Sale: 1975 Red MG Midget. New paint, top,
carpet.. Call Carol Sue Register (850) 584-6265.
For Sale: 1974 MGB/GT (chrome bumper), AlC,
WW, old. Everything works, no rust - always garaged. Verypresentable. $3,000. CallWarrenWooton
(407) 860-4577. Deltona.
For Sale: 1975MGB (rubber bumper) in good shape.
New tires, paint, top. $2,500. Call Jody Miller at
(850) 562-7472.
For Sale: 1958 TR-3 for restoration. No rust above
floors. Price reflects new parts purchased. $2,500.
Call Tommy Adams evenings at (912) 377-6307.
'II
I
ACROSS
DOWN
j
Transmission (British)
.h Don't smoke this pipe
Fuel regulator
.
~ Cheap tire
,y/ Clutch "talk"
4 Frequency of fatal
...>f Subdivision of Honda
crash (two words)
10 Pickle additive
..rI British "Prince of
Darkness"
11 Private remark
~ Crams for exams
7 Type of 21 across
v/3 Pre-ignition sound (British) 0'4 You fight it in turns
vf7 Stopper
15 Wishbone pivot
20 Inhumane
/ (anagram of 13 across)
21 Gas leak telltale
-..1$>No-go gear
22 Dazed conditions
V'8 Music to your ears
19 Reduced-size racers
Engine lifter
24 Volatile coals
~
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IfItbpagt!
~
The Temple is on the world wide web! Pete
Sutherland, Minister of Communications and
Templewebmaster,has been updating and expanding the Temple webpage on the internet. Come
see us!
(answers next month)
http://www.freenettlh.fl.us/Temple_oCTriumph!
(remember it is case-sensitive)
answers to last months puzzle
wirewemple wabld
iJuln, 1998
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