The checklist for seeing if “she” starts is getting shorter: Get the scuttle on, with dash in-place, wired and plumbed; secure steering column and cross-scuttle support once the dash position is known; route choke cable; do a static coolant leak test (ie, put coolant in the system); add a fuel filter (I bought one for an MGB and forgot the MG uses a larger diameter fuel line); find and fix prodigious leak on diff; re-hang the exhaust…and once the dash is in place, turn the engine around to pump some fuel and see where that system leaks. And leak it will.
At the very least, I suspect the connection to the pump is going to leak, the stainless line at this diameter just doesn’t give enough for the brass sleeve “crimps” to do their job. I will probably have to flare the end at the pump, I guess. I have a flare kit around here somewhere.
The doors gave me two breaks tonight: They actually fit the widened body without modification, and the original catches will work, so I don’t have to use the cast iron ones I purchased as replacements. So the frames will get some paint starting tomorrow.
In a true Rusty Keep moment, the outer spare wheel fell over when off the car and pancaked the hubcap (!). I think one of the originals will be good enough to use there, and probably is a better choice as they’re about twice as substantial as the purchased replacements, as seen on the other wheels.
The brake master cylinder leaked from the large diameter cap at the front, so I pulled it from the car to see if I could figure out why. Ever have a “duh” moment? This is definitely one of mine, and it’s puzzling to try and figure out what I was thinking when I put it together:
Copper can form to some imperfections, but a couple of gouges right across the sealing surface? No. This will take some zen time to fix, I’ll use a sheet or six of 600 wet/dry paper on the bench with WD-40, and sand them out by spending an hour or so moving the cylinder across the paper. At least the problem was visible!