Series 3 109 Six Pot Rebuild Thread

[BikerB]

I didn't stand it, it had apparently been stood in a barn for up to 20 years before I acquired it and was seized when I got it. Other than pouring some diesel down the bores and jumping up and down on the starting handle now and again I hadn't actually touched it until a few weeks ago.
However one seized bore, if thats all it turns out to be and the engine ends up measuring as good as it looks for wear then I am a happy chappy, I was expecting the worst

 

[jamesmartin]

I didn't stand it, it had apparently been stood in a barn for up to 20 years before I acquired it and was seized when I got it. Other than pouring some diesel down the bores and jumping up and down on the starting handle now and again I hadn't actually touched it until a few weeks ago.
However one seized bore, if thats all it turns out to be and the engine ends up measuring as good as it looks for wear then I am a happy chappy, I was expecting the worst

i didnt expect you did,i was offering some friendly advice

 

[auld duffer]

you might have got really lucky. looks like the piston is at the top of its stroke so whatever moisture has got in there wasnt much cylinder area to go bad . Dont know how long you tried soaking it for but it can take a while to loosen things off .. have you tried coca, cola worked for me on a stuck Chrysler hemi , same scenario open valve rouge drip, bad storage and water got in.. it was amazing just how little an area of corrosion managed to lock the motor fast .. My slug was mid bore so I could fill the bore and leave it . I did go in and rock the crank every other day after a week I got back to it giving the top of the piston a few medium taps with a wooden drift and it eventually rocked on the crank.. I worked it back and forward for a bit and it came free.. ended up with a wee scab on the cylinder but with piston intact and reusable ,, unfortunately the rest of the cylinders were well worn,, currently saving for the rebuild ..

 

[BikerB]

Looking in from the bottom I can't see any skirt clearance at all and its been soaked in various substances for some time now but no joy.
What I will do is get a lump of wood and a big hammer next and welly the piston down the bore a bit to see if it will move. its not going up with a rubber mallet from the bottom so far.
It will come out eventually, everything eventually submits to enough force being applied in the correct manner even it if sometimes means it submits in more than one piece.

 

[v8250]

Looking in from the bottom I can't see any skirt clearance at all and its been soaked in various substances for some time now but no joy.
What I will do is get a lump of wood and a big hammer next and welly the piston down the bore a bit to see if it will move. its not going up with a rubber mallet from the bottom so far.
It will come out eventually, everything eventually submits to enough force being applied in the correct manner even it if sometimes means it submits in more than one piece.

@BruceB , really love an old six. A friend has a very early six Safari in original crusty condition. It's glorious

Re' stuck pistons...full fat Coke-Cola will do the trick. You'll need to soak for a good few full days, then rotate engine and soak cylinders from underside. Have used this method many times, it's never failed...even on 6cyl XJ/XK engines...and they have a propensity to seize up when not being used.

 

[BikerB]

Got it moving but not out yet, it won't come over the slight wear ridge at the bore top yet, still its moving and more fiddling will eventually get it out. So far so good and not real nasties found so far that should cause any major heartache.
Having trouble moving the block about due to its ****ing weight, I am more used to A and B series engines which I can manhandle around at least till the head goes on.
I ended up ordering a 700kg engine stand tonight so that I can get it up onto that and into the workshop
I found the remaining big end half shell remains inside the block, its a weird one as the journal looks fine but this particular shell, and only this one, is down to the copper backing and in bits.
Further investigation needed but if the journal checks out then I am stumped about why one single big end would be so badly worn.

 

[BikerB]

Anybody who has an original six pot I would be grateful if they could tell me the first few digits of their chassis/engine numbers and the date of build. My researches seem to have uncovered that mine is an original UK RHD six pot but the V5 is all over the place and the DOM along with plenty of other info is simply wrong.
I think it is a few years older than it seems and is already tax exempt, it looks like it was originally supplied into NI and when re-registered the wrong dates and info were input.
Getting some idea of where the VIN fits into years with others would be a help prior to sending for a heritage certificate to see if I am on the right track.
My feeling is that this is a 79 vehicle rather than an 82 and the engine is original but I need to prove this to the DVLA eventually.

 

[BikerB]

Haven't done anything this week as I have been on holiday and the wife had me doing work around the house all week when it wasn't raining
Anyway rain stopped play altogether today so when out and got the remaining two pistons out.
The bores don't look too bad but the remaining two pistons are scrap, one has a damaged ring groove and the other is heavily scored around the skirt, not too bad and all fixable.
Am awaiting a HD engine stand arriving to get the block into the workshop where I can clean, measure and sort it out ready for rebuilding. Then at least I can stop deconstruction and start reconstruction

 

[BikerB]

Well that was a bit of anti climax, was preparing for an almighty struggle to cut out the steering relay from the chassis remnant. I had cut out out of the chassis so I could do it on the bench rather than outside at my leisure.
Imagine my disappointment when I took out the two top bolts and removed the bottom plate and it just slid out without any drama
The paint is even still intact on the inside of the tube

 

[BikerB]

Managed to pick up a really straight body tub and an overdrive today plus I may have a line on the safari roof I want.
Now if only I could find a capstan winch at the right price.....

 

[BikerB]

Got the motor into the workshop today and up on the engine stand. Pulled the exhaust valves and rocker gear. All looks just about perfect so it looks like a clean and this can all be used again.
Bores have hardly any wear and no significant damage and if it wasn't for the two damaged pistons I would just hone, re-ring and go for it. Will see if I can get pistons and decide whether to hone or rebore.
I haven't the camshaft out yet but looking at it now the rockers are out this looks perfect as well so happy days so far.
Need to get some pictures up but greasy hands don't agree with the phone

 

[BikerB]

That pretty much the block stripped down, just need to try and get out the two water channels if possible to properly clean the block.

Pretty much everything is in good condition apart from the oil and distributor drive which is a relief since I had resort to brutal methods to remove them, in pieces in the end. Heat, drifts and release fluid were unsuccessful so brute force and a blunt instrument were resorted to, and a big hammer. It eventually came out in little bits but without damaging the block or anything else. Luckily enough it was already so worn that it needed replaced anyway
All the bits seem available and other than a couple of the camshaft bearings it looks like most of the ancillary parts can just be cleaned and reused. The camshaft steel gear is fine but the dizzy drive one is Gubbed

Just the bores to be sorted out, looking for pistons art the moment so I can have the block chemically cleaned and rebored then I can sort out rebuilding it to get ready to go back in.

 

[BikerB]

I just realised looking at the parts diagram that a part was missing from the dizzy/oil pump drive. Maybe this explains the severe wear on the bronze drive gear above.
The drive gear should sit on its shaft between two bronze top hat bushes, the bottom one was missing, it can only come out from the top and wasn't there when I drifted out the remains of the dizzy drive tube and I had been wondering why the gear was so loose in its hole at the time. The drive gear is very severely worn but all the rest of the valve gear looks new, I wonder if this has been rebuilt and somebody has forgotten one of the bushes?
The remains of the dizzy bush after brute force met immovable object

 

[BikerB]

Just back from collecting a set of 109 sides with sliding windows, not LR originals but a set of period alloy framed jobbies that look the part and I think seal better. I also picked up a decent Delux dished bonnet complete with all the wheel mounts.
I now have most of the big body parts I need so can start on the rebuild of the oily bits and start on the engine works to get some parts for this and get it rebuilt.

 

[BikerB]

Continued stripping down the block tonight, nearly there. Had a look at the bores and I would probably get away with a hone and new rings, the bores are not really worn and the corrosion is just surface. However I need two new pistons anyway and don't ever want to rebuild this engine when I am older so rebore it is. I took all the core plugs and blanks out to get the block properly cleaned, found a spare core plug inside the block, no idea just how long that has been in there!
Ordered lots of parts today on top of a Blanchard order that arrived today.

Too many projects on the go at the moment, still got the slow progress on the Superdream I am building for the wife and the new tank turned up for my Spitfire which needs to be fitted, tested, removed and sent away for painting.

 

[BikerB]

Seem to be lucky so far getting genuine NOS parts when I spend a bit of time looking for them, even managed to get a pair of NOS front swivels tonight for not a lot more than the Britpart ones.
Having worked on many classic cars and bikes I always try to use genuine NOS parts, they may takes some time to source and sometimes are more expensive but they are definitely better quality, a lot of pattern parts are shockingly poor quality.
Quite impressed by Blanchards so far, lots of genuine parts and mostly not all that expensive.

 

[BikerB]

Got the replacement NOS distributor drive and bushes today, also waiting on a big order from Blanchards for NOS parts. Started stripping the front axle down last night, in pretty good condition and brakes look pretty beefy as they are the same as the V8.
While other parts are progressing in the background I need to get both axles refurbished to get the chassis onto them, most of the parts on their way but time will be the killer.
Still plodding along.

 

[Britcyclerider]

Love A65s and Superdreams (have owned 250s and 400s). You can't beat a Spitfire with a 5 gallon tank for looks. I had one on my A65 and it was a thing if great beauty. Did more miles on that bike than any other I have had over the years. Keep up the great work!

 

[BikerB]

The Superdream is for my wife as she is too frightened now to use any of the larger bikes, she has just lost her bottle as she got older as she used to ride my old 600 Diversion when younger. I am hoping that a smaller 250 which is actually quite large for a 250 with limited power and weight will get her confidence back.
Its also the first bike I was ever on so its a bit of nostalgia for me too. For a long time I only had brit bikes and the controls and lack of indicators put her off, she didn't think she could cope with everything being the wrong way round. I don't normally have a problem no matter what way round or up the pedals are and go from one to the other pretty easily.
I have not had the Spit long, sold my old Matchless G12 and my BGT to buy it and haven't told the wife what it is actually worth yet as it is a pretty rare bike. Still working through the various bugs to get it reliable, everything was done but found the first time I filled it to the brim the tank leaked in three places, hence the new tank.

 

[BikerB]

One axle stripped, one to go