DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Morecambe and Wise.....Cannon and Ball.....Steptoe and Son.....Milburn and Murphy

Highly entertaining stuff

Great work lads its coming along nicely....happy to see you sharing your mistakes Rich


Have a productive weekend

Cheers
Chris

Great story!

Your tale of using a pressurised brake bleeder reminds me of when doing the brakes on my 914/6. Couldn't work out where the fluid was all coming from - turns out there was a small vent hole in the top of the reservoir...

Fabulous resto, great photos! Well done all.

KS wrote:?...turns out there was a small vent hole in the top of the reservoir...

Been there, done that!

OK - so I really should be working right now....but the sun's shining and its Friday afternoon - let me bring you up to date.

So, humbled by the brake fluids I went into the next day with some trepidation.

Firstly we plumbed in the line from the fuel tank into the front fuel pump. New hoses, new fuel lines through the tunnel.

Check all the connections at the back end - make sure that the hard lines under the arch are connected to the right bits on the fuel filter.

Check the jubilee clips.....we weren't going to get caught out on that one again....all good (pheew)

Put fuel in the tank for the first time in two years. Re-attach battery, turn on ignition (we're not going for a start). Keep an eye on the front pump - the O-rings have a habit of drying out. No leak there. All good.

Then I heard a kind of splashy squirty noise in the engine bay. We've got petrol pi55ing out all over the engine. Bugger. Surely I've not done it again......

Anyway, it turns out that the ends of the hoses that were on the MFI had perished over the last two years. Although they were new when Mike did them, the ends had dried and split. We had to replace all the hoses on the engine, they were all in the same state. Luckily, I had enough new line spare to do this. On a serious note, I was surprised that this had happened. But just goes to show that the rubber lines are something to keep an eye on if the car is off the road for any significant period of time (I'm thinking 12 months plus, but I have no idea when this set in and it was stored in my garage, which is cold and damp and draughty - none of which would have helped preserve the rubber)

Got the fuel filter off, took the top of the stacks off so we could get to the pump, replaced the hoses. Put everything back in order. (And frankly, I'd forgotten how stressful it is taking nuts and washers off around exposed stacks - it just takes a moment's carelessness....) But nothing bad happened.

Re-attach battery. Go for another half ignition. Pumps whirred. Fuel went along. Everything stayed where it needed to be. YAY!!!

Here's a gratuitous engine shot to illustrate the story needlessly. But I do love how the red and green work together Must get a baby wipe to that dust on the air box.....

And thanks for the encouragement Chris & Keith.....really appreciate it And yes Mick - it really is over two years since we blasted round Spa - it will be three years very soon

I think it's good to remind me why I'm doing this. Because I want to do much more of this......my car is going to be driven when it's finished. Eau Rouge. What a corner. And that Orange IB never got close to me

So with the fuel working it was time to go for a start. Drained all the old oil out (we left most of it in the engine during storage to keep it lubed, just drained the tank), the oil tank was new (they're HOW MUCH???) and so was all the rubber, grommets, washers etc. Put about 7 - 8 litres in, new oil filter on and we are ready to go.

SO - here was the moment of truth. 2 years on the garage floor. I'd been turning it over by hand and squirting WD40 down the barrels every couple of months....although less frequently recently and was feeling a bit guilty about that.

I had bought a fire extinguisher from Halfords. It's one of those little ones that bolts onto the front seat frame. John looks at it like someone who works on rigs and understands the dangers of fuel and having the right equipment to fight it and in one look I knew he was thinking that it was about as useful as bringing a dustpan and brush to clear up after an earthquake....but anyway. It was all we had got so it would have to do.

"I'd like to film the start up of this John, it feels like quite a moment"

"I'd rather have you keeping an eye on everything with your fire extinguisher in hand and concentrating"

"OK...."

So we went for it. It started second time. And only not on the first because we didn't blip the throttle or anything. Seriously, sprung back to life. Sounded sweet and smooth and Bainbridged. A bit smoky for a few mins, granted, but no coughing or hesitation or anything. It sounded like it had only been started yesterday.

Anyway, I cheated a bit and had both the fire extinguisher and my phone in hand, so once it felt like there were going to be no pyrotechnics, I clicked on. I didn't get the start of life, but it's about 10s in to the first run in two years.

What do you think? (click pic for vid)

I'm really, really chuffed. The car is coming back to life. The suspension, steering, electrics, brakes, oil, fuel and engine are all in and working.

I've still got to get the heating / ventilation stuff in, finish the lights off (I had a massive fight with the car to get the rear driver's through body connection and socket in - it took nearly three hours of swearing, pleading, FFSking, and physical effort to get the chuffing thing in. Ended up with massive bruises on my wrists too. Poor me)

I also need to put the drive-shafts on, the ARB in place, put the washer bottle and vapour recovery systems in and fit the clutch cable to the gearbox....and then back on it's wheels.

And in two weeks it's going to Alan's for what will be the penultimate stage - interior, seals, trim, targa roof, glass, and most importantly the detailing. Alan's going to be great at that.

But for now a few more photos of where we are up to.







So where to begin on the thanks? Mike B for being brilliant and supportive and truly living up to the Sage of the Lakes reputation. I feel immensely reassured that he has checked everything and put the important bits where they are supposed to be. As tightly as they should be.

And John....Thanks John. You have no idea how important you are to the entire project let alone the re-build of the car. You were there at the beginning, you have got me back into shape again towards the end. And you did get to start it for the first time

So I'm dedicating this section to the legend that is Milburn. Too modest to sign the car. Very talented and sooooooo patient.

Fantastic story - well done - it'll be fantastic to get it back on the road

It's looking so good Richard..well jell.

My mishap with brake fluid was changing the front pads on a motorbike. Forced the pistons back in with the lid removed on the reservoir. The resulting fountain of fluid splashed down all over the fuel tank and stripped the paint to the metal. You live and learn!

Looking forward to seeing it. Oooh a green targa.

Looking good Richard


Now, have you cleaned out those oil lines ?

Looks gorgeous.....can't wait to see this car again.

Great work by all. Well done.

Engine sounds so good!

Is that a new silencer, and if so who made it? Dansk??

Great to see one coming alive, and a heart warming report too, real DDK stuff.

hot66 wrote: Now, have you cleaned out those oil lines ?

Hmm - I think they're all right, but I'm going to talk to Barry to see what he did and Alan to see what he did and take a call from there. If we're a bit unsure, then I'll ask Alan to clear them out for me. I think a couple of hours money spend here would potentially save a £6-7k bill on an engine re-build if they're not right.....

911hillclimber wrote:
Is that a new silencer, and if so who made it? Dansk??

Thanks for the kind words Graham - the engine does sound lovely doesn't it. The silencer is the old one, although it was new for the engine re-build, I think it is a Dansk. I'm running SSI heat exchangers and mild steel back box - I like the combination of sound Actually it's gone a bit scabby, I'll need to repaint that before it gets hidden under the valence....

Great progress, lovely to see it coming together