Latest Journal Posts

New right side sill in place almost ready to weld in place.

Got the exhaust manifolds back from Jet Hot so intake and exhaust manifolds installed. Rocker shaft and the new rocker arm pedestals on, Just need a used oil feed pipe to finish..

I bought a rear shock. However, when I tried to install it, the length of the shock was too short and I couldn't install it. I bought it because it was for a SPRITE, but after attaching the jig, the end of the shock was only about 40mm short. I attached a metal jig as a temporary measure and installed it, but are there shocks that short for a sprite? When the shock is extended, I need 331mm, but it's only less than 300mm long. I bought it for a 1961 sprite, so I'd like to know what I should be careful of when replacing it. Also, are there any good shops where I can buy it ? from Japan

So now on to restoration. The first step was to remove the interior and dash as seen in the prior post. As an interim to keep everything organized, a temporary dash was fabricated out of grill mats. This way the wiring has a stable ground during testing. I had to buy a new turn signal switch, pigtails for the headlights and a dip switch for the high beams. Turns out the dipswitch wiring emerges from the harness in the engine compartment above the passenger footwell, a confusing turn of events, but not the last! I constructed a 6ft extension set of wires that cross over to the driver side...

Wow, so much time has gone by since the last post, so much work has been done. I'm going to break this up into multiple posts. Ruby spent 3 months at British Auto Works in North Plains Oregon. They replaced the transmission, radiator, fuel tank, pump and sender, new rotors and drums, rebuilt the brakes, master cylinders, new clutch and throw-out, tie-rods, new wheel bearings, all soft rubber hose connections. The Prior Owner (PO) installed a kill switch as well as a myriad of toggle switches. The shop found the wiring harness to be unusable, so they ended up installing a new harness...

So now comes the hard work. I've tasked myself with the rewiring, body work and interior restoration. You can see what she looked like before and after gutting the interior. Rust is present but only a couple thru-metal holes, so I've dodged a bullet! That was my first question to Bill @ BAW, if Ruby was a rust bucket or salvageable. Turns out she's pretty clean, but does have some repaired frame damage. I ripped out the interior, dropped the dash for the inspection. The crash bar is out to be recovered. The cockpit has a lot of thick rust scale. There's a couple thru-metal rust holes in the...

July 12th 2024, Ruby came home. Here I am in the driver seat, backing her away from the flatbed to drive up into the garage. She started on a half crank. No victory laps yet. She has a long way to go.

1966: It was a heady time for this teenager. I had just graduated high school. Todd and Buzz were driving down Route 66 in a Corvette. My best friend’s brother had a 1962 Healey 3000 tri-carb; it was so sexy and made such wonderful sounds. It was our dream car, and we both hoped to own one someday. That summer I purchased this car for $800 from its original owner, Lt DA Flynn, a marine who had driven it all over the country (note the trailer plug in the left rear fender and remnants of a trailer hitch on the frame). It nearly exhausted my savings, but it was a car I’d longed for since...

The stainless steel brake, clutch and fuel lines are in along with the new gas tank so today the engine and transmission went in. Cylinder head on and ARP head bolts ready to tighten.

So, the car is finally built. The interior is now done. The engine bay is complete and dressed. But of course, there’s always more to do before road testing can begin. I need to recheck the end float on the front wheel bearings as the wheels appear a teensy bit loose. I re-bled the clutch and then come the rest of the fluids and final checks. No convertible top or frame fitted for now and that may be something I’ll put off for some time. I don’t intend to drive the car in the rain but it will happen at some point. As is common with the rubber seals, the doors and the boot lid don’t fit...

She looks good, but underneath is a lot of worn out parts. Fortunately, there's no thru metal rust, just some surface rust in all the common places. 'Ruby' has sat for almost 6 years due to transmission failure. All the hydraulics, fuel system, brakes, clutch, wheel berings need to be replaced. That leaves the radiator, guages and full interior in my lap. Oh, and the shop says the wiring harness needs to be replaced. Not intimated! This is my retirement project so one piece at a time. Having British Auto Works up in North Plains doing the mechanics is going to save me about 5 years...

Got started on the actual body work today. Welded new metal into the rust hole in the left rear fender. Started working on the right front fender. I was going to cut out the patch panel and put in a better one but after seeing the inside, I think not. I was able to get a patch panel from AH Spares for the front fender that replaced most of the original patch. I ended up ordering a new fender for the left rear. The car is painted the original blue and white now. I found a place inside the front shroud where the flat black was peeling off and it is the original color.