How thick are the brackets into which the caliper bolts will be threaded, Thorsen? or will the bolts be installed as in this photo you posted above?

 

Greg,
I had the brackets cut from .250" (6.35mm) steel.

 

Thomas
I am still not clear about whether the caliper to bracket will be mounted as per this photo:

in which case all well; or:

If the caliper bolts are to be screwed into a 1/4 inch of threaded bracket, as they appear to be in this photo:


In which case is 1/4 inch of thread enough to withstand the forces?

 

Greg,
It will be like the second picture - the bolts go through the carrier and screw into the bracket I made.
Your question is valid - I just went and measured the "original" bracket and it's 3/8" steel milled down to 1/4" around the wheel hub. My goal is to avoid having anything machined so I will look at a doubling plate that can be welded on.

 

Good plan; another 1/4 inch deep patch, 1 inch square, welded and tapped behind the threaded holes to spread the load into the bracket would make your Anglo-French fans sleep easier!

 

Not to mention one or two of your Mercan fans.
(';')

 

Thorsen: My Mk10 project led me to get an old Bridgeport mill, older than the car. They go for cheap. Incredibly useful, and fun to use. Empowering! Of course, I eventually got a small lathe, too, but I use the Bridgeport much more often.

 

In my market I can pick up used Bridgeports in serviceable condition for about the same price as a new Chinese mini-mill (less than $2k).

The problem comes down to the amount of space I have in my garage. There's just never enough.....

 

At 2300 lbs, a Bridgeport is a serious machine compared to the mini-mills. I like looking at it as much as I do my cars. But yes, garages are always too small. Most Bridgeports have 48" tables, but mine is just 32", which helps.

 

The 1/4" steel brackets from SendCutSend were delivered today. First thing I did was mark up the bracket for the shape of the doubler plate. Everything to the right of the squiggly orange line is where the doubler plate will be located.



I fired up AutoDesk and created the doubler.
I added three .25" ID holes so I can plug weld the doubler plate to the bracket, as well as welding the edges.


Next up was checking alignment. I bolted the bracket to the upright and bolted the pad carrier to the bracket. I added the rotor and the caliper. Things are looking promising.
In this picture the inner brake pad is in place but the outer is not yet installed.


With the assembly transferred to the wheel, I am able to check alignment.


It's hard to get a good picture but there is about 1/8" of space between the caliper and the "bumps" on the inside of the wheel.


Once the doubler plates land I will weld them to the bracket, install everything on the car, and do a final check for clearance with all the bolts torqued to spec. I'm not at the finish line yet with the front brakes, but I can see the finish line from where I am standing.

 

I couldn't sleep last night so I went back out to the garage to look at my brake bracket. I decided that an offset to the design would help align the brake caliper. This morning I designed a two piece bracket that can be bolted together then welded.


Bolts showing the concept. I'll try out this mock up tomorrow.


After that, FedEx Freight stopped by.


I am now in possession of the engine and transmission for the Jaguar.


I separated the transmission and put that on a rolling platform so I could move it out of the way, and the engine went on the stand. I really need a bigger garage.

 

Lovely! It will be great in that huge saloon.

 

You'd have more room in your garage if you drove the MGB down to me and left it. I'm not that far away...

Just kidding, but my second car was a '69 B, which I loved, and I just finished front bushings, mounts and hoses on a blue '79 for a friend (in background of photo below). I was reminded all over again how much I miss my '69. In the foreground is another friend's 1964 Mk. 1 Mini Cooper S race car, which hasn't run in seven years, so you know the kinds of things I'll be doing:



Cheers,

Don

 

Where better to spend sleepless nights than to Get Up and Do Something Productive!? Most people waste entirely Too Much time in bed! 1/3 of their lives, GONE never to be recovered!!

Who of us hasn't said that more than once?!!

 

The goal today was to get the wiring harness off the engine, but before I did that I wanted to make sure I had labeled all the connectors. I'm a big fan of as they stay put - even after running the engine for a couple thousand miles.



And here is the engine before I started.


It only took about 30 minutes to tag and disconnect everything. This will be going in the trunk for safe-keeping.


With the harness out of the way I started stripping the front of the engine. I learned a lot when I put the LT1 in my XJ6 two years ago and I am leveraging those lessons.
This engine is in dire need of a front crank seal but since I am pulling the timing cover I will replace the seal for the distributor drive. You can see the shaft for the water pump drive sticking out the top most hole; that will be removed and the hole covered since I am switching to an electric water pump.


If you are in the market for an engine stand I highly encourage you to spend the extra $$ and pick up one with a crank. It makes rotating the engine so much easier - and safer too.


Here is a closer view of the the timing chain showing the drive for the water pump (top) and the camshaft gear with the distributor drive on the front edge of the gear.
I'll be replacing the timing components while I am here.


I threw the timing cover in the sand blaster to clean it up and gave it two coats of paint to protect it.

 

I had to spend most of the day cleaning up leaves but I did find some time this evening to sneak into the garage.

I've finalized the design for the front brake caliper and will send it out to be cut from steel this week. This ends a long cycle of "this should work" to "I think I can do better" to "let's try this". More to come when the final pieces arrive.

I was also able to remove the water pump drive from the front of the engine (see the open hole just above the the top of the timing chain) and fit the new timing set.



The timing cover after cleaning it up and painting it. I still need to pick up some new seals for the crank shaft (lower opening) and the distributor (middle opening). The top hole is the old water pump drive and I need to plug that as well.


With the holidays coming up this is probably all I will be able to get done for the next few days.

 

Are the timing gears and chain a known wear item, Thorsen?

 

Not per se, Greg. I think lack of frequent oil changes can be rough on them but they usually don't have a change interval like timing belts. I only changed it because I had to remove the cam gear to pull the water pump drive, all 3 pieces come off the engine as a unit, and a new timing set was less than $25.

 

The cost of American car parts never ceases to amaze me.

 

I was telling Greg that I picked up a reground crankshaft for the V8 for $150. I bought it even before the engine was delivered. I don't need a crankshaft but at that price I put it in the back of the closet in case I ever do.

In comparison, to have the Jaguar crank re-ground locally would have been a minimum of $800.