Page 21 - Feb2023

'
L oves L abour is neither L ost nor Wasted

came up on ebay for a decent price and was
cosmetically in good shape but mechanically a
disaster. It took about 10 months before Maggie?s
car Pearl became roadworthy. I did all the work on it
myself including paint preparation, and had Maaco
do the final pearl finish.
Then it was time to complete the resurrection of
Scarlet, the Spitfire.

I finished it about two years ago and then found the
TR7.
The TR7 (soon to be Jade) was cosmetically sound,
had most of its parts, but has been an electrical
disaster. I?ve completed the engine and suspension
rebuild and finally got (I think) all of the electrical
bugs solved. The engine bay is painted and some of
the interior is done.
When I got to the point (last week) to start it I found
that to get the ignition statically timed I?m going to
have to pull the distributor and move the rotor one
tooth of the drive gear. Once running it will be time
to finish stripping the body and painting, and pick
up some new wheels and tires.
So the long answer is, I guess it is better to fight the
demons you know instead of having to learn a
whole new batch of issues.

I think for the most part it is an advantage to work
on a marque that still has support in the spare parts
industry, although the TR7 has been a challenge
because not too many of the parts houses even
want to acknowledge TR7s exist. I?m constantly
having to tell Moss Motors that they have the parts,
t
but don? know that the TR7 clips that hold on the
door panels are the same as those used on the MG,
or that the carb return springs are the same as
those used on the Volvo. But the Triumphs are
made of solid steel and when necessary I can
always find a work-around when told parts are
unavailable.

I?ve been making good use of my new 3D printer.
This ?sport? (hobby) tests all the skills and I am
constantly learning new ones every day.

Paul Sanguinetti
21