68 valiant signet 2 door

[MattH]

Great work and speedy progress now. Post the video when it fires up!

[mygasser]

thanks and...... i'll try
neil.

[mygasser]

only had an hour this evening, but i made brackets for the throttle return springs and mounted and wired the new coil along with fitting a bypass wire to the ballast resistor with piggy back connectors so the original wiring is unchanged there. oh and i fitted the air filters as they'd arrived, after all they are shiny so it'd be rude not to
neil.

[mygasser]

i keep saying i'm buying rather than making some parts that will speed up this build, on that basis i just ordered a summit 2.5 inch header back full exhaust system. i have a pair of almost new (swapmeet buy) flowmaster mufflers and may use them instead of the ones in the kit, i'll see how they'll work. i usually make my own using pipe and mandrel bends but this will save a lot of time so.....
the copper sheet arrived today so if it cools down later i'll get my plasma cutter out and have a go at making the header gaskets, how hard can it be?
neil.

[mygasser]

back to the header gaskets and actually it was pretty easy and all it cost me was the copper sheet .
i did the first one this morning while it was cool in the garage (i wasn't allowed to be noisy last night :rolleyes:) and it came out just fine. not cnc accurate but offered against the head it covers all of the sealing area tight to the port shapes so that's all it needs to do. i first offered the supplied gasket up and drew on a pad where the 'alterations' needed to be so when i traced round the gasket i could draw them onto the copper. once the other one's done i can finally bolt the headers up tight.
neil.

[mygasser]

the second gasket was much easier/neater to cut out once i'd fitted new tips to the plasma cutter. nice thin, neat cuts which required a lot less clean up. both sides are now bolted on with just one tweek needed, although they match the outer shape of the supplied gaskets they sit slightly higher than the header where the spark plug access areas are so i can't get a socket on the plugs . i'll have to put some tissue in the plug holes so i can shave them down with my die grinder for clearance, not a bad job. next header area job was clearance on one tube to the steering coupler, which meant removing (cutting off) the metal part that holds the rubber dust cover in place and chamfering the top corners of the coupler. then i trimmed the rubber so it would just push into the coupler and made a split top hat type part that goes against the rubber holding it in place. these halves are secured with a jubbly clip which i then painted black to 'lose' it.
lastly as it was getting late i got out the grant hub and horn push i'd bought and fitted my old superior wood rim steering wheel which polished up nice. nothing like losing power steering then fitting a smaller wheel to make it even heavier .
next...... errrr, will be plug wires i guess then some fluids.
neil.

[Dom66]

Inching closer to fire up

[mygasser]

Inching closer to fire up

i can't wait mate

[mygasser]

not much done today. i 'nibbed' the copper gaskets back with my die grinder and a tungsten bit but still had to reduce the diameter of the plug socket on my lathe. the plugs are all in and tight now ready for making the plug wires.
next i ran the battery cables to the starter, changing the activator wire connector for a spade to suit the new mini starter. then i made a bracket from under the chassis with a rubber sleeve on it to cable tie them to so they can't touch the header tubes either side of them.
as i said not much but it all needs doing so.....
oh, and i filled the engine/rad' with an antifreeze mix and there are currently no drips anywhere. result!
neil.

[Dave999]

getting there...


what did you do to the copper to make it ...gasketty..... other than cut out the shape...

my 6 cylinder with its awkward combined exhaust and inlet interface always had problems with standard gaskets once i moved to headers, (flangetastic nightmare in the making) so i changed to a perforated steel with expanded graphite facings and never looked back. supplier has gone bust so at some point in the future i might need an alternative


Dave

[mygasser]

for what i needed steel would have worked with a smear of silicon each side. the header flanges are unusually almost 1/2" thick so steel would've worked as there's minimal worries about distortion. but copper being that bit softer will compress with any imperfections which along with the silicon will seal just fine.
i know you can anneal copper which makes it softer still so that was an option although i don't think i needed it for my job.
neil.

[mygasser]

another slow day as i had some honey do's in front of me first. i've been holding off putting down the new flooring in our living room so i pulled up the old today and cleaned the tile floor underneath. once it's nice and dry i'll lay the new floor.
so anyway, the car..... i swapped out the last bit of old rubber fuel line at the tank sender for new ethanol safe hose. then i cut a piece of 1/2" plywood to sit in the battery tray as the battery i have is too long so it sat on the lip at the front where the corner of the tray is at an angle. then i made up 2 'j' bolts and fitted them with an alternator bracket across the top of the battery (it's what i had but i did paint it). last job was to check it turned over on the key, i expected to have to bypass some kind of inhibitor wiring from where my car was auto but all i came up against was a dead starter relay. i fitted a new 40 amp relay and the car now spins over just fine, the mini starter not sounding very 'mopar' at all though.
neil.

[mygasser]

New
last night i fitted the new speedo cable, the car didn't have one at all when i bought it. also i ordered all the oils, lsd additive and oil filter. it should all be with me by the weekend.
neil.

[mygasser]

it was like christmas today (sorta) as the new acc carpet set arrived about 2-3 weeks early.
neil.

[mygasser]

the exhaust from summit arrived today along with the oils from ebay, both were due next week. bonus!
the box of exhaust goodies was split open one end but after laying it all out and checking the fittings against the parts list it's all there, phew.
the worst thing now is i don't have time 'til next week, as i've sorted other stuff to do at home over the weekend due to not expecting parts 'til next week :BangHead:
neil.