Dave Taylor's Blog (58)

The next meeting of The Northern Duttoneers is this Thursday 9th March 2017

So if you fancy a chat and you're in the area call in and see us. Always a great Northern welcome and proper Northern ale (Southerners can be catered for, let us know you're visiting and we'll get you a can of Courage Best Bitter or Watney's Red barrel in the chiller)

Waggon & Horses

170 Chorley…

Started getting Daisy in shape for the coming year. found the ignition switch fault, the weight of the keys being in the steering lock caused the ignition to cut off if you accelerated to quickly. So decided to bin the lot, steering lock and all. Going to wire in a simple key switch. Already got a kill switch and battery cut off fitted.

Found the bad vibration at 67 mph + rear UJ is knackered, this as also done for the diff seal and rear gearbox seal. thank goodness I don't have to…

I got started on the rebuild today. here a tip for anyone don't use coach bolts to fasten your bumper on, after 10 years they don't want to move, and what made me use a 4" one at the centre of the rear bumper? que angle grinder...

Looks like the rear drivers wheel arch has had a fair old knock. all crazing cut back with Dremmel and diamond tip, then all body wiped down with thinners to shift any trace of polish. first fill with flexible filler. That can have a couple of days to cure…

Thought I had better start a blog to count down the days on the rebuild of Steve's Phaeton. Well tonight the plan started to come together, we now have wipers (2 speeds Whooa), screen washers, a dashboard ready for the clocks and gauges. The to do list just got shorter. 15 days to go...

Decided to have a play this morning with the Phaeton, as she has sat on the drive now for 2 months without even being started.

So after connecting the RAV4 defibulator manged to bring her back to life, and sounding good too.

the plan was to remove the drivers seat to see what mod's I would need to make to get the Westfield seats in. The Westie seats are 350 mm wide on the base and the back, the space I need to squeeze them in is 340 mm Hmmmm! this is going to be a little more…

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You never know, could an electric Dutton be round the corner?

OH! nearly lost the Sierra today, I was finishing the wiring all working well. Then somehow when I moved the the heater fan quadrant there was instant smoke then flame, and I was sitting there watching it happen. Brain in gear and snips at hand I cut the main power line to the heater quadant, but it was still burning, I had to dive under the bonnet and disconnect the battery which meant un-fastening the clamps.

After the smoke had cleared I could check the damaged, and someone up…

Started with oil and filter change on the Phaeton and found a possible cause of low oil pressure on tick over. When I removed the oil filter (Halfords brand for the X Flow) it had a relief valve in the bottom, the Fram 966 I was fitting as no relief valve which is as Original Ford. New oil in and started up Hey Presto oil pressure on tick over.

After that I moved on to the Sierra, deciding that the engine as to come out and sort the core plugs.

Gearbox fitted, Diff fitted, prop shaft fitted, Battery, fuel, IGINTION and she runs, joy of joys a Sierra is reborn. 15 years and now she is back.

Now its a car again, rather than a heap of parts. Yes I'm sat here with the biggest daft smile on my face. The engine fired up after just a few tries and with no exhaust manifold fitted so I now have no hair on my arm as the flames from the head burnt them off, Brilliant or what. fitted the manifold (well pushed it tight against the studs)…

Talking of barn finds, I have just found one on my drive. For the first time since November, I took a look at Daisy Dutton.

There were spiders, rust, oxidised alli and dried on horse muck from the last time out, which when I think back was the Coast to Coast in September.

I was shocked when I opened the bonnet, very sad. That's what a winter does without a garage or without a cover.

I had to do the usual jump start from the RAV4, and even that struggled, when it did fire…

Sorry guy's for late approval on your blogs, I should have been home by teatime, instead I was stuck in Brussels airport after the plane we were on broke down taxiing out to take off.

An engineer came along and hit it with a hammer, then told us it was not safe to fly and we would have to get off.

I offered to have a look, but they said it's not like a Dutton.

Moved the Phaeton today, never easy when she not run in 5 weeks, Jump leads, and the RAV4 to the rescue. Instantly started with help from them. So decided to move her closer to the wall on the drive a matter of 12" I needed to blast round the block, (Note to self "Must do this more often"). Still got the the knock on acceleration, decided to lay a few 11's in the cul de sac to findthe noise, it turns out when the axle tramps the handbrake cable knocks on the fuel tank.

While under the…

Sierra is getting closer, we could do with a weeks worth of good weather, and we'll turn the corner. James ordered to Poly bushes for the front end yesterday on E-bay from Flo-Flex, and they where delivered by 10 am this morning, now that service!!

We picked up an exhaust box at Stafford last week 2" in Twin 2" out, so exhaust will exit from both sides just in front of the rear wheels. Now looking for X-flow exhaust manifold 4-2-1

Just started the second door for the Sierra. new bottom frame welded in place. I still need the Drivers door skin finishing, I think I have got to the point where there are lots of part jobs going on, but this is the problem at this stage of a build. Everything is coming together but nothing is getting to the finish line.

The Apprentice as taken himself off to the Isle of Man for a week, he say's I have taken over. which yes I have, only because it wasn't moving on.

If…

After checking the Phaeton over after the Coast to Coast's 490 miles she is given the all clear. Just a couple of job's to do this weekend, the knocking noise on starting turned out to be the alternator knocking against the chassis bracket for the top wishbone. The body knocking noise is the exhaust clamp come loose on the manifold down pipe.

Perhaps the big job is the steering knock, but that is the rack, I have a new one on the shelf, so I am happy she survived some real hard work.…

Well the sun shone on us today, so I unwrapped the Dutton and we had a blitz over the Rivington tops to Chorley.

It's another world Duttoneering, you don't realise how good it is until the roof's off, and the flies and road grit is between your teeth.

Think I may need to replace the points and condensor for the Coast to Coast, but other than that the old girl is running sweet.

Spoke to Steve K today and he may come up with us on the Saturday, but had to check with she…

You will be able to follow The Northern Duttoneer's blog, as we travel the Coast to Coast route through some of the best country roads in Britain.

At every chance I'll try to update you on the progress we are making. The run starts on the 4th September with the drive to the starting point at St Bee's Head in Cumbria, after an overnight stay there we set off on the Sunday to travel the 189 miles to Robin Hood's Bay on the East coast, visiting Hartside Cafe (highest cafe in the UK) then…

As you will no doubt have noticed from the Events page now disappeared, that The Northern Duttoneer's are doing the Coast to Coast Dutton Drive on the 4th, 5th and 6th September.

We are travelling up to St Bees Head on the Saturday, then Sunday we'll be setting off for Robin Hood's Bay on the East coast, 189 miles of amazing country roads, arriving Sunday late afternoon. Then Monday we're on the way home through Leyburn, Skipton etc.

All we need now is fine weather, a…