Suspension completion

So, I left off with the front suspension taken apart and ready for cleaning, painting, install. It's still quite surprising how easily this car  is coming apart.  Nothing really fancy concerning the cleaning and painting- a wire brush, a wire wheel, and some sandpaper.  I used epoxy spray paint for some parts, and the same paint I used on the floor for other parts (crossmember, driveshaft, etc.)  Here are a few shots of the progress:

front crossmember ready for assembly

steering rack shim- I had to rivet it to the crossmember

flushed, refilled armstrong shock

two of the four pins that bolt the crossmember to the car

coming along

using some RTV glue to hold the pads to the crossmember- the pads go between the crossmember and the car

So- the next step was to  install the crossmember.  Only the shocks are attached prior to install- the other bits go on after it is attached to the car.  Drew helped on this part since this is really not a one man job- the crossmember is heavy and could easily fall off of the jack without someone there to steady it.  There were no problems getting it back in the car.

muscling the crossmember into position

done- not much time or hands for photos during this

another angle- the steering rack is still held up by the rope

Next up was to install the transmission crossmember with it's new poly bushings. I have no earthly idea why the British decided to make this task so complicated.  The transmission crossmember is held to the outside structure of the car with two bolts a side, and then it's held to the trannsmission with 4 bolts through rubber mounts that are in turn bolted the the "butterfly mount" with two more bolts.  All of these pieces can be installed backwards or in the wrong holes (that are there for a car with overdrive).  I took good photos when I took it apart, and it still wasn't simple.

old cruddy butterfly mount cage

test fit of the new bushing and transmission mounts (the two black angled blocks of rubber- those bolt to the sides of the transmission)

painted transmission crossmember without trans mounts

installed on the car- after three hours of trial and mostly error... I was ready for a beer or three after that adventure.

While I was working in the area, I also installed a piece of steel angle I cut and drilled to replace a chunk of structure somebody in the past had removed to take out the transmission. I total hack job done by a lazy mechanic.

cut, drilled, and ready for paint

painted and ready for install

here is where it  is going- seems like that bit of structure MIGHT be important?

installed- you can see the transmission crossmember on the far right in the photo

Next- I installed the remained of the front suspension.  Nothing really complicated here- just bolt it in.  The only tricky bit came with installing the front springs.  They are slightly compressed as you jack up the bottom of the suspension, and pop into place with a little "bang".  I admit I jumped a bit when it first happened.

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spring pan installed

ready for the wheel hub/ brakes, etc.

Finished!

The rear suspension was quite a bit simpler.  I wasn't planning on replacing the rear leaf springs, but I bought a new set from a nice MGB owner down in Massachusetts. I was planning on replacing  the leaf spring pads, replacing the shackle bushings at the rear of the springs, replacing the shock links (one was broken!) and finally replacing the rebound straps. This all went pretty well.  I also flushed and filled the shocks with oil.

old rear springs and pads- the handbrake mechanism on the back of the brake drum is at the top of this photo

interesting photo- the right spring is original, in the center is the new "lowering spring" I bought, and the left one is part of a used set the seller basically threw in. I can only imagine how high the back of the car would sit with those installed!

some paint for the rear leaf parts

installing the new springs and bushings

another angle

finished- with new rebound strap (black nylon) and shock link (the black thing with the ball joint at the end that connects the rear shock to the bottom plate of the leaf spring).

 Finally for this installment- I removed, rebuilt, painted, and installed the driveshaft with new u-joints and fresh grease.  No real problems here as well- other than installing the new u-joints.  They proved tricky because the yolks that hold them to the driveshaft are not parallel with each other- so pressing out the old u-joints was more difficult than it needed to be. A little trial and error with my bench vise and all was well. 

replacing the u-joints

ready for paint

factory alignment mark for the sliding yoke- of course it was not aligned correctly by the last person to have the driveshaft out

the other alignment mark

almost finished

all greased up (red grease)and ready to go back in to the car

Installed.  There are 4 bolts/nuts attaching it on this end to the differential, and 4 at the other end attaching it to the transmission output- of the 8 bolts, 3 were loose and one was gone when I took it apart. Needless to say, I'm glad  I went ahead and pulled this out to rebuild it.

The last quick job was to replace the outer tie-rod ends and align the toe-in for the steering. Pretty simple- aside from the fact that I had never done a toe adjust before.  Basically, I used string to make two parallel measuring points and then measured the front and back of the front tires and adjusted as required to get it within specification.  I'll still take it in to get aligned by a pro, but thought I couldn't hurt to give it a go.

new outer tie-rod end

aligning the front- it's difficult to see the string (actually it's fishing line) attached to the two jack stands. The pieces of urethaned wood under the tires have grease in between them so I could adjust the tie-rods with the weight of the car on the ground.  It actually worked pretty well and the wheels turned very easily.

I also put a little metal polish on the bumper.

 Here is my original list of tasks for the old girl.  Most have been accomplished- so I guess I'll just start a new list.....