The MGA With An Attitude
MGA Guru Is GOING MOBILE - (December 1 - December 15, 2022)
Thursday, December 1, 2022:
About that squealing fan belt last night, not only another broken rear bracket for the alternator, but also this time a broken front mounting ear on the alternator. First time I have to retire an alternator for other than an internal regulator failure. Not a warranty exchange this time, so I will have to buy another one. Ran out of rear brackets, because we didn't get the last broken one welded up yet (now two broken brackets at the same time). Also pretty much lost confidence in quality of welding on the sharp corner bend stress riser point. When they break again after welding, it looks like a weak weld. Meanwhile, installed the spare alternator with just the two front mounting bolts and loose fan belt. Note to self, drive easy and no farther than necessary until we get some new brackets.
 Got a parts order together for Moss Motors for a few more alternator brackets, and several more parts from the accumulating wish list, to be shipped to a local friend. Got the order in by 3-pm local time, but not much hope that it would get shipped today. Also made a phone call to a local parts store to order another alternator, to be delivered and picked up tomorrow.
Back to work on transcribing the club newsletter. With all the dead time, not going to be done today. Discovered my licensed copy of MS Publisher went away with the computer crash. I did reinstall the software, but can't find any record of the registration number or access code, so no-go there, get along without it for a while. Start slugging it out with copy and paste from the PDF copy of the new newsletter.
Trouble trying to do any practical image processing with the makeshift free IrfanView image editor software. Found and downloaded a newer copy of the older LView Pro software I was used to using. Pretty much killed the rest of the day learning how to use the newer user interface with menu items in different places, but I think it is going to be okay once I get the hang of it. It actually does look like an improvement over the older issue.
Friday, December 2, 2022:
A bit of trouble finding a good WiFi spot, one with no power outlets, and the second one closing early. Picked up the new alternator early afternoon. More work done on the newsletter transcribing, at least half way through it, and beginning to geting into the swing of it with the different forms of processing. No news on the Moss parts order. Beginning to think it didn't get shipped today either.
Saturday, December 3, 2022:
In process of killing the weekend. At least I found a decent WiFI spot and finished getting the club newsletter on line. Had a few friendly tech questions, catching up on BBS.
Sunday, December 4, 2022:
Start the morning off with a good deed for the day. A Dodge Ram pick up truck had a plastic shell tag lamp falling out of the rear bumper. after the snap barbs broke. My tricks bag came up with a small self tapping screw and matching fender washer to save the day.
Added two new tech pages on recovering the MGA Coupe dash board, and installing the dash bottom stainless steel trim strip.
Monday, December 5, 2022:
Remember parts ordered Thursday? No order confirmation or shipping notice, so I called to check. Report was a problem with "the print", which I think means the order was processed, but the print-out for the warehouse to pick and pack and ship the order didn't happenn. By late night today the order was confirmed shipped with a tracking number, now expect delivery on Wednesday. So now stuck in the Savannah GA area waiting for a couple more days.
Spent way too much time discussing Products Of Combustion, amount of water and possible condensation in the exhaust gas (and crankcase blow-by), more about crankcase ventilation. Not sure when that may ever end.
Late night round of updates for Chicagoland MG Cub web pages, reports on past events,announcements for upcoming events, and creation of new calendar pages for the next year. Just takes a lot of time.
Tuesday, December 6, 2022:
Just email and BBS and a few typical tech questions as we kill another day waiting for parts to arrive.
Wednesday, December 7, 2022:
Parts have arrived early afternoon. Off to visit Frank Chance in Richmond Hill, GA. Been here before (twice before). Frank has been building the MGA Fun Buggy, slowly for several years. Today he was showing off the custom built and Jet Hot Coated exhaust headers to fit the Chevrolet 3.4 V6 engine.
The real reason we were here was to pickup the parts package from Moss Motors and get the rear alternator bracket installed (before something else breaks). That done, we can travel again, so heading south, somewhere in the general direction of Florida.
Thursday, December 8, 2022:
Sitting just across the state line near Jacksonville, Florida this morning. Navigator thought he didn't want to drive six hours in traffic to be in Bonita Springs tomorrow morning. Our next pre-planned appointment then would be a week later on Friday the 15th, so now we have 6 or 7 days to drive 6 or 7 hours. Not my normal style, but now to see what I can find to do to kill a week.
Friday, December 9, 2022:
Still in Jacksonville. Some tech questions about an MGA factory hardtop, cleaning, restoration, and parts sources. Someone else looking for a headrest fairing and a factory style racing windscreen.
Saturday, December 10, 2022:
Gainsville, FL. Got a call from Steven Kerner back in the Carolinas, still working on installation of a PCV valve in his rubber bumper MGB that was converted to a Weber downdraft carburetor.
Sunday, December 11, 2022:
Ocala, FL. Got an email asking for clarification on testing a turn signal flasher unit. Not difficult to do,but most of the time you only need to test the power input and the lamp circuits connected to it to determine if the flasher unit is bad.
Monday, December 12, 2022:
Still in Ocala. Well, it's a pretty big town. Different WiFi spot today. And there is some redeaming social value here, like the nice '57 Chevy we met at breakfast
Tuesday, December 13, 2022:
Morning stop at a Walmart in Lakeland, Florida to pick up a few personal items, some shop towers and a 5-quart jug of oil for next oil change (which could be still a couple weeks away). A few email messages in the past few days from someone organizing the NAMGAR GT-48 in Memphis, Tennessee next June. Sounds like they want me to do a tech session for that event. I recon the last one I did for a GT was 2008 in Silver Springs, Pennsylvania. In the ensuing years they seemed to be pretty independent or well booked, so no one was asking me. Might be fun to do it again.
Wednesday, December 14, 2022:
Arcadia, FL. Back and forth email with a guy in Naples, FL who recently bought an MGA from New England Classic Cars in Stratford, Connecticut. Seems they made a big deal about installing an aluminum radiator, on the basis that it may be needed in Florida. Well, seems it does overheat, but leaking coolant on the right side of the head gasket, and water in one cylinder. Hoping it's only a bad head gasket, and not a cracked cylinder head. I expect we'll get to see this car in another day or two. Question about the thread on the wing bolt used to secure the MGA convertible top to the windscreen post. Easy answer, 5/16-22-BSF, not a typical hardware store part. I should post a new Part Numbers page to show a scale picture with the appropriate information, as that question comes up periodically.
Thursday, December 15, 2022:
Started in North Fort Myers. WiFi facilities not so great here, so ended up in Naples, FL by early afternoon. Had a tentative appointment in Naples today, but never got the call back, so another no-go. Another call from a guy in northeast Florida who just bought a very nice MGA Coupe, waiting for delivery, had some questions about getting it titled in Florida. Had pretty nice weather for the past week, but caught some heavy rain in the evening.
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