Vintage Viewpoint

The Newsletter of the Vintage MG Car Club of Chicago

Vol. 51, No. 2 February 2017

The Open Cockpit By Bob Lee, President

“Work” continues…

I received my re-manufactured radiator; it looks

good but did not have the brass Morris top tank

plate or the brass patent plate on the fins. I de-

soldered the two plates from my radiator, polished

them and then attached them with some JB Weld. I

believe this is called “over” restoring.

The rear axle “U” bolts were re-visited and are now

very tight. The rubber spring pads are five years

old and are now in a very squished state

I filled the gearbox with oil and shortly afterward

read that the GL5 rated oil is the wrong thing to use.

Almost all the gear oil around today is GL5 which

works well for steel gears because it has 50% more

sulfur and phosphorous additives than GL4 oil. The

higher additive level creates a strong sacrificial

coating which is actually stronger than the surface

of brass or other soft metal. The result is when the

sacrificial coating peels off the gears it removes a

few microns of the yellow metal. I do not want that

happening to the synchronizers in my gear box.

I found Moss carries Millers GL4 80W-90 oil 225-

305 and Amsoil has heavy duty Manual

Transmission & Transaxle Gear Lube 75W-90 GL4

oil. Ray Costa is using 85W-140 Royal Purple Max

gear oil; it has a GL5 rating but specifically states it

will not harm the yellow metal.

When I removed the oil sump, there was a little bit

of black sludge on the bottom and the oil screen had

a quarter sized film of burgundy paint in one spot. I

cleaned the sump with de-greaser, then sprayed the

inside with brake clean and finally wiped it down

with alcohol. When I painted the inside with

Glyptal there were a few spots that formed – my

thinking from oil saturated into the porous

aluminum, maybe you can spot them in the

electronic photo. The paint was more even after the

second coat and I put a third coat on just the bottom.

The next regular meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 8,

beginning at 8:00 p.m., at the Pizza Joynt, 39 W. North Avenue, Northlake, Illinois.

Members' Dinner Saturday, March 25

Great Escape More information inside

I bought an 8MM – 1.0 bolt at the hardware store

and used a cut off wheel to make a slot in the

threads. Running it into the timing chain cover and

sump holes, especially the blind ones, helped clean

out crud.

Talking to Jeff Powell I found that he discovered

the two rear cork seals he purchased from Moss

were different lengths and too wide for the bearing

cap groove. The notch at each end is large enough

to accommodate the original style cork sump gasket

but leaves a gap with the current thinner cardboard

gasket sets. Checking with a Moss tech expert, Jeff

was told the seals meet specifications and

essentially use a copious amount of RTV. I

checked the one that I purchased – very similar –

too wide and with big notches. I contacted Jeff

Zorn at LBC and he is trying to investigate/resolve

it; I sent him some measurements and photos. Jeff

is ordering some seals to check, however, he is

probably being referred to the same tech support

expert.

My new water pump was coming from Doug Pelton

(From the Frame Up) so I added a cork seal to the

order. The photo shows the seal from FTFU on top

and the Moss seal on the bottom. The new FTFU

seal tapers from wide to very wide.

I am thinking the quality control inspector at the

manufacturer has been on the job since the 1950s,

has poor eyesight, and frequently forgets his

glasses.

Using a valve cover gasket for material, I made a

seal for myself that has smaller notches. It fits

snugly into the groove. Mine is slightly longer and

I am contemplating trimming just a little off each

end, the thinking being if it is getting pushed

upward by the sump, maybe a little expansion room

is required and the original length specification is

correct.

Not sure about this idea? I will be piddling around

for a while and am interested in the thoughts of

others. I am looking forward to some good info on

the rear cork seal. Come to our February 8th

meeting and give me some guidance.

Minutes of the January 11, 2017 Meeting of the

Vintage MG Car Club of Chicago

The meeting was called to order by President Bob Lee at

8.00 PM. Twelve members were present.

The Minutes of the December 14, 2016 meeting were

approved with one correction. Win Gould noted that he

will need help with his MG in February and not March,

as published in the Vintage Viewpoint.

Reports:

Treasury – Ric Maitzen – Ric was not present. He is

preparing and end-of-year treasurer’s summary for next

month. Membership – Greg Hoeft (presented by Bob Lee) –

We have 36 paid and three permanent members so far

for 2017. There were 65 members at the end of 2016.

Starting this year, the printed version of the newsletter is

only being mailed to those members who indicated that

they want a printed copy on their membership forms.

All members will receive the newsletter by email. The

website will contain a “full resolution” version of the

newsletter for downloading. Currently 17 members are

email only. Regalia – Lou Louchios – Not present. Driving Events – Reinout was not present. Next event

is the march 19 Swap Meet. Old Business:

Don Ross reported that the Founders Dinner is

scheduled for March 25 at The Great Escape. Drinks

will start at 5:30 and dinner at 6:30. The per person cost

is $27.00 if 40 members attend. After discussion, two

motions were made. The first was to ask members to

pay the full $27. The motion failed. The second

motion was for members to pay $25 and the club to pick

up the difference. This motion passed. Next year Don

will investigate a luncheon instead of an evening dinner. Rick Rausch is recording total “T” mileage for

2016, so please send your total mileage to Rick NOW. New Business

People can download a lubrication chart for

TD/TF MGs at www.plandegraissage.org. It takes

some effort to print this out. This is virtually the same

lubrication chart as is found in the owner’s manual. Following the fictional piece in the January

newsletter, Glenn Grossklags brought in a reprint from a

magazine of a Chevrolet V8-powered snow blower.

This unit can be seen in action on YouTube. Brian Dubin brought an early 1950s Coca Cola

ad featuring an MG. Jake Snyder, a friend of Win Gould’s, donated

MG notepads for members to take home. Robert Weinstein wanted to know if the club can

make the roster available on the web for downloading.

No one else thought this was a good idea. Gerry Risner reported that Jerry Cihak had an

eventful New Year’s event. Jerry and his family (eight

people) were trapped in the elevator of a tall downtown

building. They had to be fished out in harnesses by the

fire department and brought to the roof of a second

elevator car. They were then transferred to a third

elevator car. This was voted not the best way to spend

New Year’s Eve. Jerry then flew to Ft. Lauderdale just

in time to be in the airport when a shooter killed five

tourists. Luckily, Jerry was not in the line of fire.

Technical Topics

Bob Weinstein brought along a box of spare bits

for his TF that came with the car. Members helped him

identify the parts. Doug Clarke brought the 1992 Moss cut-out of

an MG TC. Could we get some for the GOF? Ray

Costa will investigate. Ray Costa asked for thoughts about making up a

logo for our GOF XXXIX, preliminarily called “MGs by

the Lake.” Doug Clarke had a suggestion. Ray will try

to find someone to draw it up. Win Gould needs help on February 11 and 12 to

remove the engine and gear box from his 1964 MGB V8

to replace leaking seals. This will be done at Steve

Skegg’s, in Downers Grove. If necessary, the job will

need additional help to be completed the following

weekend. Program:

Don Ross provided a video of Jay Leno fitting

disk brakes to a V8-powered TD. This brake conversion

is now available commercially. The meeting was adjourned at 8:47 PM. - Ray Costa, Secretary

2018 GOF Central January Update Ray Costa, GOF 2018 Chairman

The VMGCC is hosting the 39th GOF Central June

26 through June 30, 2018. There are a few things

that need to be done during the next few months. It

is traditional for the club hosting the upcoming

year's event to make a presentation at the

concluding banquet of the current year's event. The

38th GOF Central will be in Akron, Ohio, July 11

throught15 this year. You can visit the website at

http://gofcentral.com/next-gof.html.

I brought up the issue of a new logo for our 2018

GOF at the January VMGCC club meeting. A

suggestion from Doug Clarke was offered that I

thought was quite good. I took the idea home and

drew up a rough approximation of what a logo

could look like. It depicted a hand and arm rising

out of the lake holding a Wittworth spanner with an

MG badge in the jaws. I also cajoled my son-in-law

into doing the final art work for free. I circulated

the draft and, to put it politely, it was not well

received. Later I found out why. Neither Doug nor

I had attended the 2003 GOF Central, where the

theme was something like King Arthur and his

Round Table. My draft of a logo with a hand

coming out of the lake holding a spanner is a

reference to King Arthur receiving Excalibur from

the Lady of the Lake. Well it appears that has been

done, so we can't do it again, right?

Jerry Cihak suggested using the same logo that we

have used several times in the past when the

VMGCC hosted the GOF Central. It's a front view

of a TC surrounded by a black octagon with the

proper wording in the border. It's a good looking

logo. So, at the VMGCC meeting on February 8 I

will be seeking answers to some questions:

1) What shall be the theme of the 39th GOF, or

should we even bother with a theme?

2) Should we use the same tried-and-true logo or

forge a new one? Remember that the British motor

industry was conservative in that way.

Once these things are decided we can proceed. I

will be happy to put together a basic PowerPoint

display for the presentation at the 2017 GOF unless

somebody has the skills to do a more creative job.

If you are not planning on attending the next

meeting, and want to get your two cents in, contact

me at rlincoln314159@gmail.com.

Bonnet Struts or How I Learned To Live With a Bifurcated Bonnet Larry Carlson, former VMGCC member and past president

Upon acquiring stewardship of MR TOAD 13 years

ago I immediately discovered that having a bonnet

that is divisible by two can make working inside the

engine bay exponentially more difficult than a

modern pop-up bonnet.

Yes, being able to fold half the bonnet onto the

other (closed) half allows for easy access to the

bottom of the engine bay. This design was adopted,

in one form or another, by almost every car maker

in the world prior to World War II. It is, however, a

dubious distinction, sort of like being the World’s

Tallest Midget. It comes with problems.

Folding the bonnet puts undue stress on the center

piece of chrome and quite often leads to the center

strip coming loose from its chrome holder, either at

the radiator end or the cowling end, or both.

Scratching the paint job on either side of the bonnet

is another. This is particularly nasty since the

bonnet is generally the first part of the car that

people notice. And people do not forget it, sort of

like seeing a person with a third eye. Nothing else

about the car can make up for such a defect. This is

all child’s play compared to the real problem: How

to prop up half of the bonnet in order to work on the

engine. Neither your wife, nor your girlfriend, nor

your grandson, nor your dog will be willing to hold

up half of the bonnet while you run down an

electrical problem, cursing Lucas in three different

languages.

.A common solution is to place a holder on the

engine stay-bar and put a piece of rubber on the end

of the corner of the bonnet. This was the set-up

when I acquired MR TOAD. It works well enough

as long as you need not work on the radiator, the top

hose, an original oil bath air cleaner, the valve

cover, put in fresh oil, take a tool in or out of the

tool box, get to the battery terminals, and a whole

host of projects too numerous to list because it hurts

my brain.

Doug Pelton, owner of From the Frame Up, has

devised a really nice solution to this problem. He

starts with two struts, one for each half, then adds a

small curved piece of aluminum under one of the

bulkhead bolts.

Screw the strut into the aluminum and put the

rubber ball at the other end into the round piece on

the inside of the bonnet lock, and the problem is

solved.

Open both halves at once!! Holy smokes! Now we

can get to everything in the whole darn engine bay.

Author’s note: the little piece of aluminum is

threaded. When I could not stuff the strut through

the hole I reached for my Dremel and I made it fit. I

wound up calling Doug and getting another piece. I

made a mistake. I remember the last time I made a

mistake: it was 1995, and……you do not want to

know.

Over the past 13 years I have seen between 7 and

11 homemade bonnet struts. Most of them involve

blocks of wood and various lengths of a 2x4. Some

are clever and some are cumbersome; none of them

approach the elegance and ease-of-use of Doug

Pelton’s invention. At $47.00 for the pair it is

money well spent. Safety Fast!

A post card From Karel An MG 'Auto'

Biography of History

.

A card from the Black Swan Hotel in

Helmsley, Yorkshire, with an MG

+ZA in the foreground.

Note from Reinout:

Based on the MG ZA, the photo must

be from around the late 1950s. I

checked Google street view and, as

you can see, the cars parked in front

of the hotel have changed: Jaguar,

Peugeot, and a Land Rover. But the

hotel and adjacent buildings are

exactly the same (except for the vine

of the facade). That’s England! Why

would you tear down a century old,

perfectly good, building for a new,

perfectly good, building, right?

Membership Application and Renewal Dues and registration: $25.00 per year

Make your check payable to: Vintage MG Car Club

Mail your payment to: Ric Maitzen, VMGCC Treasurer

2881 Fredric Court

Northbrook, IL 60062

Include the following with your dues. We will use this information to update our membership directory

Name:___________________________________ Spouse or Partner:_______________________________________

Address:___________________________________________ Email: _______________________________________

City, State and Zip:________________________________________________________________________________

Home Phone:_________________________________ Cell Phone: ____________________________________

Send me the newsletter only by email: ____________

Please list your MGs, including Model and Year: Send me a hard copy of the newsletter: ____________

_________________________________________________________________________________________________ OCT2016

The 2017 VMGCC Charter Members' Dinner Saturday, March 25

Join us for a GREAT time with GREAT people at the

NAME(S) _________________________________________________ Phone ____________________

Please mail your check by March 17th made out to the VMGCC @ $25 PER PERSON to:

Ric Maitzen

2881 Fredric Court

Northbrook, IL 60062

9540 Irving Park Road, Schiller Park, IL 60176 www.greatescaperestaurant.com

(Additional parking is available in a public lot 300 ft.

east of the restaurant)

Cocktail Hour (Cash Bar) 5:30–6:30

Buffet Dinner starts at 6:30

Price per Person (Includes Tax & Tip) – $25

The Great Buffet will include

Sirloin of Beef, Lemon Chicken and

Baked Mostaccioli Marinara

Vintage MG Car Club

c/o Editor 1814 Illinois Road

Northbrook, IL 60062

First Class Mail

Officers and Directors – 2017

President: Bob Lee; Vice President: Don Ross; Secretary: Ray Costa; Treasurer: Ric Maitzen; Board of Directors: Jerry Cihak, Brian Dubin, Win Gould

Newsletter: Greg Hoeft- Editor Website: www.vintagemgchicago.com

Email Contact: editor@vintagemgchicago.com

Upcoming Events:

February 2017

8 – VMGCC Meeting, Pizza Joynt, Northlake, IL, 8 p.m

14 - Natter'n'Noggin at Roundheads Pizza Pub

20 - CMGC Annual Business Meeting, Mack's Golden Pheasant, Elmhurst, IL

March 2017

14 Natter 'n Noggin, Finn McCool's, Schaumburg IL 7:00 p.m.

15 VMGCC Meeting, Pizza Joint, Northlake, IL 8:00 p.m.

19 Swap Meet & Autojumble, DuPage County Fairgrounds 8:00 a.m.

20 CMGC Meeting, Mack's Golden Pheasant, Elmhurst IL 8:00 p.m.

25 VMGCC Charter Members' Dinner 5:30p.m.

2017 Dues are now due!

Check the mailing label on this issue of The Vintage Viewpoint.

If the year printed at the top shows 2016, your dues are due.