Renton Racing

SUNDAY 20TH MARCH

Sunday evening March 20th. Life is good - life is bad. Glass is 1/2
full - glass is 1/2 empty. The horses may be missing but the beat goes
on. Excuse my philosophical ramblings but I've had the best weekend for
some time.
Hampton Down's again for the "Legends of Speed" meeting. But before I
ramble on let me tell you about last Sunday's dyno session. We were
trying to work out reasons for my power loss.We ran BRU up a few times
, new plugs and got a base reading of about 112 HP. I had been
suspecting altered cam timimg. So we pulled the rad and made up a crank
pulley extension to hold the degree wheel and did all those things that
clever men do with dial guages. Bingo // exactly as you wanted Peter.
102 degrees ATDC [this is from memory] Then one of my Guru's...no 1
really in my pecking order . Glenn mumbles something like check all the
valve lifts....and there was the problem or part of it. Very little
lift on no 3 exhaust. What to do ?? no time to airfreight/ rebuild or
change the cam. I decided to put it all back together and run this
weekend. Get our National Pottery Conference over and done with [WORK]
and then perform brain surgery before my next meeting - I have to sadly
miss the next MG only race in a fortnight.
So that brings us to this weekend's racing. Sort of feeling out of
sorts - offhand - should I even bother...15 horses down at least
although the new 48 has picked up 5 of them. Well I'm sure glad I did
..Practice went OK [don't wear it out] and I was 8th fastest, so the
next race which goes on those practice times - scratch race - I really
enjoy. No bunnies to catch and struggle past , just light her up and
go. It launches off very nicely with about 4500 on the clock. End
result, passed 3 cars and finished 5th. Fastest lap getting closer to
last year's best but still one second off though.
Sunday came, dense fog, racing delayed, sun came out and off again. I
had off course been duly punished for my fast lap and started 45
seconds behind No 1 rabbit. I know that sounds bitchy, but he is a bit
of a tourist..exploring interesting routes around the track,not giving
any idea of his route to his followers.. That means I'm no 20 on the
grid - lots of work to do, good start again [getting better] and carved
my way through - end result was 6th , was passed by 2 cars and my best
lap was 1.24.022, faster again.
Onto the 3rd and last race, bright sunshine, remembered to bring large
sunhat today...are you jealous of our weather? Check all vital signs
,found one front tire low pressure..lots of understeer. So race 24, 45
seconds handicap again and 17th on the grid [probably retirements] .
Brilliant start, some may say I jumped the gun but I was confused "yer
Honour". The 8 laps flew by in a blur, a few missed changes here and
there [my fault] A little over keen in the late braking dept but I
squeezed through and was even more confused when I was told I'd come
first. Cars everywhere, passing and repassing after 3 attempts to find
3rd gear [not 5th thankyou] was all a bit much for me.I'm now shitting
myself if the missing horses are recaptured and I continue like this
I'll break the 1min 22 sec barrier and end up being a very small fish
[tadpole] in a very large pond being munted by some real flyers. Oh yes
a best lap time of 1 .23.711 to round of an excellent weekend. I think
I'll keep the car after all. Will keep you posted on camshaft specs and
results. Can I sleep tonight...i doubt it.

Renton's Blog

For the readers. they may be interested.BRU was the MGCC championship
winner in 1980 and second I believe in 1981. Driven by Neville Marriner
and prepared by Roy McCarthy. continuous racing in the UK [ 3 years at
Zolder ] untill exported to New Zealand in 1995.
Renton 5th nov

Ran the hillclimb on Sunday...frightened myself silly,wheelspin out of
nearly every corner,need LSD now.....not much pull below 4 thou,,,,but
didn't have time to eyeball the rev counter....very LOUD....will have
to learn how to handle it. Will be better next weekend on a circuit
that I've driven before once last season.
Tried to get the rev limiter running but not enough time to sort it.
Will try again this week. I need it...7000 comes up very quickly.
Renton 9th November

Hello Peter. I had a very good race meeting. Can't quite catch the V8
B's but was the fastest 4 cylinder B there. It was close, he is the
local B prep guy, and knows the track like the back of his hand. Runs a
fully spec'd engine....roller rockers ,split Webers...etc etc. What
surprised me,was that my B [BRU] is more or less standard in its
suspension, and the others are all triangulated and tramp rodded etc in
the rear. But it seems to handle just as well.
Next time [on the Dyno ] should I try a little more advance than the 28 degrees I'm running, ?? Don't want to do the head gasket in. And you mentioned you thought the [Lambda
?] ratios were a little weak at revs??
Must dash, Got some prep to do for this weekends racing...on the brand new track...about an hours drive away, so not too bad from a convenience point of view. I hope you didn't suffer in the flooding...looked awful.
Bye for now. Renton 24th November
PS what do you know about Limited Slip diff's ?? apart from being
yet another expense........

Good race day...apart from this moment...was holding off Porsche 911 [3
litre...160 bhp] and others....surprising a few people...some urgent
repairs and then dyno tuning...will try with and without air
filter....and then an electronic dizzy...
If you can set the ball rolling I'm sure I could add some comments on a
'blog'...unsure how to start though.
Will you have a white Xmas ?...we are getting very hot now...car
running at 100 C at the end of the 8 lap race...next thing is an alloy
radiator..
Renton 13th December 2009

16th January 2010

Hello Peter,First day of racing in the New Year. Very hot ,over 30 but
with rain threatening....no snow here.
One practice session and a 10 lap race. Two more races tomorrow. Very
eventfull race today....close battle on 1st lap with a V8 BGT,who then
pulled ahead .just . and then had total brake failure,into the kitty
litter and rolled completely. Driver is OK thank heavens but car very
sad. I did have a fright myself when another VERY fast V8 B roadster
wanted to test his brakes after a change from Silicon [hopeless] to DOT
5 fluid. He took me out on the road....2 reasonably quick bursts and
then whammo ..on went the brakes. I have never imagined brakes could be
that good. So another improvement looms. He wants to update even
more,so I could get his setup. BUT in my race today,after putting up my
best lap time yet the car was running about 100 degrees and started
missing. So new bits and bobs tomorrow and hope to cure it. Missing
between 6 and 7 thou. The repairs to last meetings little dingle were
not cheap,so money for the new 48 manifold,dyno tuning,alloy radiator ,
new rear tyres, etc etc will have to be sourced.
The car however was running very sweetly before the missing started.
Half a second lap time improvements are difficult, but todays 1 min
25.3 was encouraging.Cracking the 1.25 is the next target.
We have now a very full schedule. The next 2 weekends are the Bruce
McLaren festival. Lots of cars from overseas are here and my main rival
[no contest if I'm honest] in his MGB roadster will be running. It is a
very quick B, I'd love to see it on your Dyno. But I fear he will be
down around 1 .22 on this track. It will be interesting...I've not
raced with him before, he's been racing for years.
Will let you know more after tomorrow.I just hope a condensor and coil
change will improve things...what plugs would you suggest ??
Don't lose control in all that snow....and keep that Staffi warm, they
don't like to be cold. Cheers Renton

Hi Renton

Thanks for your email, things seem busy on the Race Track. I reckon you should try NGKBP8ES plugs gapped at 35 thou. If you get the car weight down, race tyres and get the carb sorted you might well crack the 1.22.

Take care and good luck for tomorrow.

Peter

PS Toby is nice and warm when he is in the unit, he lays down between two 3.5 kw heaters and gets stereo heating :)

Sunday 17th January 2010

Thank you for quick reply....I will change the plugs. The car is on
race tyres. and the weight is coming down by small amounts.

BUT today....oh what joy what joy.....It was a screamer,,,,1st race in
the morning.colder today, bad start, 10 th on grid [handicap race] but
it flew, got the tyres hot and brakes hot and gave it
heaps.....finished 3rd [my first podium] and managed a best lap of
1.24.750.
So of course next race I was put back to about 20th...there's no
justice. I managed a 9th placing. But improved the lap time to 1.24.315
... So immediate plans are to improve cooling by adding another smaller
radiator behind the apron and taking the water from the rear of the
head and feeding it back into the header tank by adding a small pipe to
the tank. I'd like the alloy option but at present funds are tight,so
we do what we can......
All for today...and what a day. Fanbloodytastic. Renton

January 25th 2010

Hello Peter.
For New Zealand, with only 4 Million inhabitants, that was a good
show. I believe about 130 imported race cars.
From all over the world, here to celebrate our own wonderfull, Bruce
McLaren. It was an excellent race meeting on our new track, some
teething problems perhaps but the facilities just keep getting better
every weekend.
Now the racing bit for BRU....really exciting, Practice session and
qualifying on the Friday and two races on Sat and two on Sunday.
I behaved myself reasonably and kept it largely on the track....funny
thing is it seems to be quicker than the cross country route.
The slightly feared other B did not last. It broke a roller rocker, but
will be up and running for the second three day part of this festival.
But I still had Mr Kern to deal with. He was in his 4 cylinder BGT this
weekend as his B V8 roadster was not eligible. His 1950 B is very
highly spec'd and he is a 'season'd' hard charger.He had distributor
problems earlier [transistor stuff] and changed to points,same as BRU
and had to miss the 1st race on Sat. My best lap was 1.24.694 and then
in the afternoon session I managed a 1. 24.059. And managed to beat the
rival Mr Kern . The weather was not as hot as the last weekend and the
car was now sporting its new small extra radiator,taking water from the
heater outlet and feeding it back into the header tank. The little
extra radiator [from a car heater] is not yet in an ideal position but
it sure has helped. Its running below or just on 90 Centigrade in race
conditions. Also helping is the new 4 inch flexible alloy hose from
the grill,through the rad support panel, [like the works cars] to the
Weber.I also of course followed your advice with the NGK plugs. It all
ran perfectly and the next day was really superb.
Mt Kern was catching me fast, I got terrible starts....too much
wheelspin, he and others roared past me so I had some serious passing
to do. My new engine with your head and cam did the trick and I just
got him and held him off. We both got under the 24 second 'barrier' in
fact he was quicker than me but I was ahead at the line by a bonnet
length. So he moved up the grid two places and with another bad start I
had even more work to do....Well I could wax on lyrically about
opposite locking through the uphill left hander with the front wheel 6
inches in the air with furious wheelspin in 2nd gear and changing into
3rd below 7 thou to try and tame the beast but to keep it short I
managed to get past and get ahead with two further even quicker laps
and beat him again. I ended up with a fastest lap of 1`.23 dead and Mr
Kern 1.23.488, so it's a close battle and we resume next week. It is a
different track. Pukekohe [I bet you can't pronounce that} with a very
long back straight, followed by a killer of a hairpin.I am afraid the
report next week will be different ,without OD,LSD and the 4 pot
calipers and ventilated discs I will be somewhat hampered.
However I will let you know and in the meantime I have two days to
relocate the extra radiator and I still wait for the 48 and Dyno time.
I will also lift the rear of the bonnet to allow some underbonnet air
to escape.
Bye for now....Renton.
PS more photos soon...my Brother has been on the job, he's not bad
with a camera , even though he drives a Morgan plus 8.

Well it was close...I knew it would be. Practice and qualifying
yesterday....OK except for the never before happening of the bonnet
coming undone at high speed....so I stopped and attended to it. Slight
readjust and checkover....but thank heavens for the "Works Style"
bonnet strap. Good English Leather saved the day.
So today and the first race....about 5 laps into it and again it
happened...so I stopped at a safe point..jumped out and reclosed the
damm thing , got back in and did up the harness [gee that takes a
while] and resumed the race...so got a finish,but a lap down.
Now for the second race and into it...not a bad start but Mr Kern got
the better of me. I repassed down the straight...outbraked or at least
held my own ,,,got snotted by a Lola and carried on. Mr Kern got past
but again I managed to do him on the last lap and beat him....fair and
square.. But I do feel sorry for him...his 12 year old Rottie had to be
put down at lunch time...so perhaps that was preying on his mind. But
7000 [on a 3.9 diff] down the long straight feels good,and tomorrow
will bring what tomorrow brings. As long as its not the DOWNPOUR that
happened just after our race I will be happy. More news tomorrow. Renton

Hello Peter, I['m so tired I can hardly think. This racing lark...3 day
weekends especially... with some work in between has me feeling wrung
out.
However Sunday was good in parts...the first race went well. What a
battle with our jousting partner..Mr Kern. We are both having trouble
with a certain Lola Climax. Very pretty little car and fast in parts of
the circuit but in the end is slower on lap times. Mt Kern with the
skill of threading a needle passed us both,I repassed him down the long
straight ,but on the last lap he snuck inside at the hairpin,but 7200
[about] in second gear with the inside line for the next corner saw me
pull ahead. He is very fast over the hill [brave man] but BRU held him
of by .2 of a second...a bonnet length. Wow what a race.
Afternoon...lined up again...and the DOWNPOUR
happened....madness...couldn't see a thing, could only just lean
forward enough to wipe off some of a little patch of mist. The car was
all over the place ...going straight ahead..at the esses and then by
trying just a little too hard to pass the wretched [but beautiful]
LOLA on the inside I managed a lovely 360....so Mr Kern had it all his
own way...I wasn't bothered...6 wins to me over the two weekends and 2
to him [bloody bonnet catch] was a good result.
My 'grinder man' has been on a holiday...gee it's been hot. So he has
only the intake manifold flanges to thickness to match the exhaust
flanges and the 48 will go on, with a little more clearance I hope
between the exhaust and it.
The Murray racing team travel to Lake Taupo this weekend for further
racing in the AES series, but sadly Mr Kern will be in his V8
roadster. He has fixed his gearbox and he will be back in his
preferred mount, but he thoroughly enjoyed our little contest. I most
certainly have. The other V8 [GT] has been repaired after it's complete
roll over 3 weeks ago and is in my class, He was about 1 to 2 seconds
quicker than me at most circuits but I noticed last weekend he was
slower. He was in a different class but this weekend we are back
against each other. So Mr Kern will become Mr Roy and I have a V8 to
outmanouvre.
The weather looks to be more settled,the only snag is where to stay...I
feel too sore to contemplate camping.
Car repairs are minimal.last race puncture to repair and an oil change
I think would be good to do.
Bye for now Renton

10th February 2010

Well Peter...Wednesday morning...I've recovered a bit. Two long days
work after the racing weekend and a bit of a sleep in...unusual for me.
The weekend went extremely well, Practice on Sat morning...OK and then
a race in the afternoon. Very hot conditions at Lake Taupo...35 deg
Cent driving the tow car between those two events...went down to the
Lake for a cooling swim. The car was misfiring after about 4 of the 8
laps....and had to drop of a few hard won places. We later concluded
its fuel vaporisation....The present 45 Weber manifold is very close to
the exhaust centre pipe.
So on Sunday morning we removed the grille completely. and also lowered
the bonnet back down at the rear. I had been trying a gap there to let
hot air out, I ran tell tales [like yacht racing] and they showed
negative lift. I was by the way being cautious and was cable tying the
bonnet after each check over.
The first race of the morning put me about 8th on the grid, behind the
Porsche 944... I do like a close race with someone I can enjoy the duel
with, but I tend to look at racing like a game of golf. Lap times are
my aim....just keep improving the times....striving for the birdies if
you like.
Last year on this track my cracking best time was a 1 min 58.197. I
was so pleased to first crack the 2 min and then to whittle down to
that 1 58.197 was great.
The Sat race gave me a 1.57.811 time and an 11th placing....better but
not wonderfull.
Now back again to Sunday, grille out and very determined to do better.
I tried hard but couldn't get the Porsche ,but I did get past quite a
few and finished 3rd with a best lap of 1 57.057. The winner was an
Escort RS 2000..bored and stroked to 2.2. Incidentally his engine was
also built by Glendene Engine Recond.
His lap time was 1 53.387 to give you an idea. My car by the way
didn't get 'fluffy' and was running about 90 throughout the race. We
changed your plug gap down to 25 thou to help restarting [it certainly
helped] So the grille out was helping in the heat but spoiled it's
lovely appearance. The Porsche by the way did a 1 56.650 and was
then moved behind me in the next race.
I got a good start [almost too good ] and chased the others down like
crazy...I was determined to get a better lap time in the early part of
the race and if the old girl got hot and bothered later...I would be
happy with a good time. Well I passed the opposition and was out the
front getting lonely, keeping a steely eye on the Porsche which didn't
seem to be closing the considerable gap. So to protect myself I eased
of, bad mistake.. The little Escort which I didn't reconise was the
winner from the last race and was suddenly closing fast after it got
past the Porsche...so back to flat out again..I held him of at the last
chicane after the almost too long back straight and went for the
line 7 or more in 3rd, grabbed top almost on the line and won by a
bonnet length.. point 0.241 to be precise.
A win AND a best lap of 1.56.424...Happy ..you bet I am.
I think I only have two more meetings in front now....It's been a
hectic few weeks, I have house chores to manage before Winter arrives.
Reality bites.

28/03/2010 Hello Peter...sorry about the slow news from downunder, but I imagine
you are all busy with the new season which probably has already
started ?
However just to round off my season I'll bring you up to date.
After Taupo it was back to to Hampton Downs for the last 2 events on
my calendar . The first of these was a lower key event and only a one
day event. The car ran well and I managed to hold off the advances of
Paul Madderley in the Porsche 944 in my three races. The tyres are
nearly shot which I think is affecting the times. the TOYO's on the
front are wearing alarmingly quickly and I don't like their grip
levels. So it's pretty much down to enjoying myself and driving as
smoothly as I can. A major spinning moment in practice which resulted
in a solid concrete wall racing past very closely whilst travelling
rapidly backwards was a sobering moment, However the racing was good
without drama.
Now for the last weekend, practice went well with a good time and I
started on the front row [after the fast 4 cars had been moved up a
class]. My starts have got better by the way....4 thou and drop the
clutch seems to be the recipe. So flat out off the start...passed by
two sandbaggers...and then holding 4th place and suddenly no
gears...to be precise only 1st , reverse and second [with difficulty]
but no third or top. so limped back to the pits and home to jack up
,remove side covers etc to find the problem I couldn't find a
selector problem so will soon extract the motor and box and see to it.
I was by the Sunday feeling rotten with a flue / bad cold or whatever
so was in a way relieved not to be driving. The major dissapoinment
was that the other fast B that retired earlier in the season with a
broken roller rocker has been repaired. It was to be our first battle.
However I was very pleased to read his times which weren't quite as
fast as mine and that the Porsche 944 managed to beat him in the
three races, So I can only guess that the B that I have lusted after
for many years may not be any quicker than the trusty BRU.
I've nearly recovered from the cold and today I've fitted two of the
lighweight door hinges...I know a total weight saving of 1.2 Kg seems
like nothing but it makes me feel good.
This will be my last racing BLOG but will keep you in touch when the
new 48 goes on and after roller testing. Good luck to all your racing
customers in the Northern Hemisphere. I hope they all have as much fun
as I have had. Thank you Peter for your advice over the season.
Regards Renton Murray

Welcome to the new racing season of 467BRU OCTOBER 2010

I feel like wishing you all a Happy New Year. The start of a new racing
season and after a really ghastly wet and wild Winter and large
earthquakes 'down the line' [as they say] It was really good to be
towing BRU down to Hampton Downs for the 'Icebreaker" meeting.
Preparation was all a bit hectic and last minute. Lots still to do, the
engine was completely untouched from last season except for fresh oil
and filter of course. So apart from the usual new brake fluid, check
over here and there the only improvements to report on are the fitment
of a 'new' 5 speed g'box. I cut an MGB 3 synchro box to bits and welded
on a heavy alloy plate and fitted a Toyota T50 box to it and then made
up a new driveshaft. I had a close ratio gearset made for it which
mirrors the ratios in the MG box. Readers may be shocked by this
change to another box. but after spending $5000 on the last MGB box
only to have the mainshaft snap in half...I felt it reasonable. I have
repaired the old box and can place it back in any time.I haven't cut
any body work or changed the tunnel at all. The new box fits very
nicely and the gear lever arrives in exactly the same position. I have
used the MG clutch cover and plate [different centre splines] and also
the MGB clutch lever and carbon thrust.
The final last minute update was new tyres...this may sound easy for
you guys over there, but down here in the Colonies life can be
difficult. There WERE no 14 inch tyres available for some
time...Bridgestone aren't bringing any in { I didn't like the TOYO's}
but in the end I got some Dunlop's sent up from Wellington. fitted and
balanced on the old wire wheels [sorry Peter} they smelt terrific in
the wagon bringing them home. I have learnt how to read the dates on
tyres...two of the last ones were ten years //// old...no wonder they
were hard.
So onto the meeting itself...a very large field this year...the track
is now allowed more competitors in each race...Our group. the AES
series had 45 on the grid. Practice was a bit strange as I tried to
sort out the gears....the 'new' 5 gear pattern takes some getting used
to...I hadn't driven the car at all with the new box apart from
bringing it home 3 miles from my mates workshop. So it was a steep
learning as I kept missing 3rd gear [don't push it to the right ].
However race 1 which is always a scratch race was great...a reasonably
clear track ahead. placed 9th and FTime of 1.24.543 almost a second
slower than last year's best.
Sunday had 2 races, weather slightly better and my times came down a
fraction. I was put nearly at the back of the grid...about 35 ish from
memory out of the 40 odd. So lots of work to be done...and apart from
missed gearchanges we went well...finished 10th in the first race of
the day [ 1.24.235 ] and 16th in the last. Getting through that
traffic in an 8 lap race is hectic but great fun. A bit annoying when
slower cars chop in front of you and you either have to drive around or
follow meekly behind. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
The new tyres by the way are lovely...grip...OMG..in fact I noticed
less wheelspin out of the corners...and was wondering what gives ?
I can only put it down to grip...it's a nice thing to have. No LSD yet
and no 48mm Weber. We have about 4 weeks before the next race so their
is much to be done. About 8 weekends of fun in front of the Murray
Racing Team [MGT] and the shoulder although not wonderfull is at least
reattached.Painfull at times but adrenaline and anti-inflammatory pills
do the trick.
I will be in touch very soon Peter with readings from the Dyno...the
engine sounds great...a real crackle...loud but lovely. cheers Renton

SUNDAY28th Nov
I've been waiting for this day , and hoping to tell you lots of good
news. But I feel I've taken 5 large steps backwards.
To bring readers up to date - I've had another one day meeting at the
now 'usual' Hampton Downs track. This meeting had me entered in 2
classes - my usual AES series and the first of the MG only races. We
are hoping to make this into a proper series. I was keen to do well and
had my heart set on being the fastest 4 cylinder B . I was but only
just. The new g'box was a pain in the newly repaired shoulder and
refused to go into most gears at various times. The worst was the
failure of getting into any at the start line after securing fastest
'4' in practice. The 2 V8's are way out of my league. I finally found
5th then 1st and off after all the 15 entrants had left me lonely and
loitering on the line. Well at least I had a clear track between the
red mist in my eyes. I got my 3rd place by some thrusting and pushing
. The new box is horrible at times , but the ratios are fine and it
shows promise when its good, I've also changed the diff to a 4.3 for
this track and that also took a little relearning of change points. The
3.9 will go back in for Pukekohe only. It certainly seems to squirt out
of the corners better. I did another two races with similar results and
then pulled out of the rest. Home with tail between my legs - pulled
out the 'package' and then back in again with the repaired B 3 synchro
box. The T50 has bent selector forks and a 'collapsed' plastic support
cup under the g'lever ball.
Onto last Sunday, all packed up and on my way to the MGCC Hillclimb out
on a coast road, early in the morning, rain fairly steady , worried
about the lack of wet weather grip and the steep drop off the side of
the hill { I mean steep } so aborted the mission
Now to today. I have spent about 6 hours fitting the 123 Distributor
that I got from you Peter. My friends techo son Adam Walmsley did a
nice job of wiring it up, having downloaded the stuff of the web. We
started it up no trouble and then the problems began. So much went on I
cant now work it out. Heat sink again prevented instant restarts and in
desperation we've refitted the old Lucas dinosaur. We swapped new leads
for new leads and old leads, checked plugs , broke a rotor arm and
generally had a bad time,
Then a Mr Des Hamill - also a Speed Pro author [ and a fellow Kiwi }
dropped by to have a looksee...I had been talking to him. We tried to
improve the restarting problem by changing idle jets and air do dahs. I
think it now has better mid range pick up on the runs I took it on but
it still misses badly above 5500. I now have a feeling that perhaps the
gasket failure I know about with centre ex pipe has spread to the
intake sealing.
So I've been given lots of homework ..better cooling [alloy rad ] and
the remachining of the inlet manifold face to increase the angle
upwards away from the dreaded centre pipe heat. And then I may be able
to introduce better heat shielding.
The "bones" are there I'm sure for a leap for the better. The 123 is a
lovely bit of kit and I will try again when some of the basics are
improved. But after a long day of over 30 degrees I'm going to have a
cold beer and be thankfull I'm not a coal miner. We lost 29 brave souls
a week ago in a mine explosion that is still burning or exploding when
the gases build up. they may never retrieve the bodies.
More news soon when i hope to be a touch happier.....48 you are asking
? well that's another chapter...This car has been to more Dyno men than
rabbits my dog has eaten and he had 3 last week.

12/01/11

At last after a rather busy and painful few weeks I feel we are on the
road. The best news Peter is that today we tried again with the 123
Tune. It works, and it really works. We 'got rid" of the rev limiter by
dialling up 9000 max and tried again. We tried both the Lucas sport
coil and the Pertronix...no discernible difference but we have stuck
with Pertronix. The bald facts are 4 extra horses at peak power but a
much extended rev range. The old points developed PP at 6200 and
dropped of quickly the 123 system develops PP at 6450 and doesn't drop
off as much. Good power right up to 6900. The new alloy radiator
really helps.runs significantly cooler. restarts are no problem either.
Part of the improvement could be that I spent lots of time matching the
exhaust manifold to the head. The manifold was much smaller than your
ports, but now if anything is slightly larger so there is no ledge for
the gasses to hit.
Not all is rosy however.the oil cooler [new one ] has developed a leak
and the replaced gearbox is tricky to find the 'slots'. I might try
heavier detent springs but I really can't face another engine out
procedure, particularly as I have spent the last 10 days doped up and
more or less flat on my back with disc problems. But it is coming right
very slowly [keep taking the pills ] however I have to cancel the Taupo
meeting this coming weekend. its a long drive with lots of lying under
the trailer tying on the BRU etc and so in order to be ready for the
Chris Amon festival....two 3 day weekends I thought caution was the
best thing. Old age is terrible...caution wots that ??? So I still
have repairs to finish from the last meetings mishap, painting of front
guard etc tomorrow. And perhaps more ducting for the radiator and new
brake pads and then new front tyres very soon. I would have thought I
could get than 2 meetings from the front tyres.. In amongst the few
spares that came with the car I've found some lowering blocks and as
I've always felt that the rear looks a little "up" I'll try them out.
So Mr Burgess, all good with the 123 at last, it was in the end really
easy to fit. I won't say we've got the most out of it yet, and I know
we are running rich down low, but this will all change when the 48 goes
on which I hope to do between the 2 Amon weekends. I must do some
maintenance around the property before my leave passes are cancelled.

09/02/11

The Chris Amon Festival double weekend extravaganza at Hampton Downs
has been and gone with mixed results. This is Motor Racing I guess.
Good and bad, rough and smooth, you get the idea ?
Chris Amon is the last survivor of the great Kiwi trio who ruled the
motor racing scene in the 60's and 70's. "The Bruce and Denny show" in
the Can Am series...ah those were the days.......
Back to now and the faithfull BRU at Hampton Downs . The festival was
very well attended, lots of overseas entrants,with new facilities at
the track.It just gets better and better. Bur you can't plan for the
weather being as bad as we got. Not just one cyclone for the first
weekend but another for the second as well. Racing was cancelled on the
first Sunday and practice on the 2nd Friday was very very wet.
Times were slower than usual not just for me although I was definitely
behind the 8 ball [ jargon...sorry ] I just couldn't catch our Mr Kerns
in his BGT. Gearbox change problems, so we trailered home and started
to remove [again ] the package [ eng/box ]. I took out the g'lever
and spied a washer where you wouldn't expect to find a washer - a
rubber one at that for god's sake. The g'box rebuilder had packed up
the new nylon cup that the lever moves on with a wide thick rubber
washer. So we measured washer in washer out [ i love polish on polish
off ] and replaced it with a wide nylon packer, a hand basin outlet
sealer. [ 30 cents ] We thought it was that simple.Off to the second
weekend with fingers crossed and relieved that we hadn't had to remove
g'box even though i'd taken time off work. Priorites have to be
maintained.
Practice in the pouring rain of Friday didn't show much - a 360 spin
blew the cobwebs away - the change was better but still nasty at times.
One of the races had me on the grid unable to find any other than 2nd.
Makes a nonsense of a fast practice attempt. So after stuttering away
off the cam in a high 2nd gear I had lots of work again. Managed to
claw back a few places untill I couldn't find 4th, drop back into 2nd
,up to 3rd and hold that for the sweeper.
But the end of the meeting wasn't all bad, I just love driving at the
limit [ or my limit ] and outdragging the other B's up the hill, 7
thou sounds wonderfull.
The car starts hot or cold on the button now and runs at about 75 C
while racing - it was about 24 on the day. So the power is there, the
alloy radiator is excellent and the 123 makes the starting a breeze.
At the end of the meeting we had to push it onto the trailer, could
only find gears by stopping, selecting and restarting. So home again,
eng and box out and lo and behold the pair of ball races that replace
the spigot bearing had collapsed and the input shaft was free to wobble
around where the balls had flown their nest. The Toyota clutch centre
spline is smaller than the MGB , so it's all a bit tight. New bearings
arrive today - looser clearance types and its now all together nicely
awaiting my good and patient helper Tony Lowe...he is very long
suffering... we are called the Hairy Berries...bearded idiots we are..
While waiting for our late start on the last Sunday we accomplished a
diff change, from 4,3 back to the 3.9. It went like clockwork...Tony on
top, me down below beavering away , lying on big stones...our entry fee
level didn't run to concrete floors. We did this to see if I could make
up lost time and also for the next race at Pukekohe which has a long
back straight. 7000 on the 3.9 on OD for the first time should be
fun...I can't wait.
This Friday I hope will be Dyno man no 2 again. 48 tuning attempt. He's
fixed his computer. He had the cheek to think the faithfull BRU had a
problem... turns out that when another B went to him the trouble reared
again and so he's fixed the Mother board. I'm hoping for good results,
he's a carefull worker and I liked his approach the 1st time. The car
is of to a car show on Sunday so its time for some spit and polish. I
have been given BRU's old racing log from the UK 1980 and onwards and
it makes very interesting reading. History does repeat it itself it
seems.

02/03/11

Friday came and it was a bad bad day. Off to Dyno man with 48 carefully
installed and the 1st run was bad, some jet changes some more and then
some more. In the end it was hopeless, 15 horses had fled the stable ,
so back on with 45 and try that...20 horses less than last time on
this Dyno.
But the g'box was still the main worry....in the end easily fixed by
having an old clutch slave cylinder resleeved to a smaller bore [ more
travel ] and an adjustable push rod making up. It now goes into gears
when hot that i was beginning to think were not there.
Now we tried to recapture the missing horses. Peter's book had some
clues we thought, the engine has sounded less "barky' of late so off
with it's old muffler and on with a new one. I have also been really
piling on layers of exhaust wrapping to try and prevent fuel
vapourisation. But with new alloy radiator I thought this may be
counterproductive, so it's all been removed. [clutching at straws here ]
No time for testing so off to the track. Practice and first race saw
times not too far off last year's best. But joy oh joy....up to about
6600 before the kink and snick [ yes snick ] into 5th gear and boogie
off down the straight. It drops to dead on 5000 and then builds to
????? sorry didn't have time to look. It all gets a bit hectic...cars
to try and outbrake and perhaps prevent from snicking inside ...down to
4th [lovely] into 3rd and then second ...throw it around [rumble strips
at times...slow ] and then off and at'em. the change into 3rd has to
be watched, what with a certain amount of attitude 5th is snatched
rather than 3rd. Braking had to be a bit careful as the pads were
nearly finished. New ones [ unbedded ] were in the stores in the
toolbox but we changed to some old Triumph 2000 pads for the remainder
of the meeting...interesting results.
The Sunday morning race did not go well. I was well back in the field
thanks to one good practice lap time. What with a missed change or two
and pretty aggressive driving from some newbies in our group I didn't
get very far up from my starting position. I don't enjoy handicap
races...especially when cars that are 10 seconds a lap slower don't do
the decent thing...It's not yacht racing...buoy room does not apply to
a race track in my humble position.
So with nothing to lose and some spare time over the lunch break, we
swapped carb and manifold to the 48 setup. I don't know what difference
it made but i got a good start and wove in and out of the field to get
a 4th place. Hairy stuff with a BGT up on 2 wheels in the kitty litter
and then poised to cut across the bows....not again I thought....evaded
him and took off to try and catch a 3rd place. Not quite I'm sorry to
say. I was only passed by the one car, not a bad end to the weekend.
I had some nice feedback from a visiting UK person who remembered BRU
racing back in the 80's. I have a strong urge to bring the car back to
the UK and do some of the tracks there. The old girl will probably
still remember the best lines through the corners. it's old logbook has
some interesting details. But the more pressing issue is to get the
power back to where it should be. We have a certain look alike red B in
the sights. I may have got one over him in my last race but I won't be
happy untill I clearly outdrag him in 4th up the hill at at Hampton
Downs.
PS I did try a different timing after the Sat practice..put it back to
28 degrees advance.Very hard to feel any difference.