Tiny bit excited

1. behind the seat bulkhead looking a bit tired and sad, so needed a fresh up

2. this was the panel for the d/side, sorted and glued into position

3. p/side panel cut to measure, ready for paint

4. given a two coat etch primer and out in the sun to dry

5. green paint applied with my small roller, came out really well except when i left it out in the sun to dry (bake) - the wind caused some dust particles to settle on the paint but still looks ok

6. p/side panel glued into position and held in position to set, next will be the brackets for the seat backs and hopefully get the seats back in

7. centre spare wheel brace in position and secured, lots of drilling, measuring etc, so tired was a long day today but happy to proceed to the next stage. tailgate is also almost done, just needs some rivets to finish off. the top capping for the tub was painted today and fitted, rivetted on. just need more time to tighten everything down in the seat department and should be done soon.

1. almost all of the seat back are ready to be bolted into position, all seating brackets secured today and tightened up. Looks really clean and factory spec. hard to tell in the pics

2. close up of the brackets installed and the little rubber grommets to hold seats in position, need to find something for the leather straps to lock in the seat backs having nothing to go with yet...

3. this was a mock up i did temporarily till i found some seat back brackets but have decided to make my own, just need to source some mild steel in a similar dimension to make a near close enough to the original. these were made from alum but originals are steel.

4. here the alum is removed and ready to fit once i find the correct steel.

tailgate is finished off. slow progress...

1. went down to the local bunnings and found some square steel tubing which seemed to be the correct size i was after

2. both sides cut to length 26.5cm long each (however i when cut through the middle made up two sides so only one length required)

3. just placed the steel tubing up against the original to mark the line of cut

4. here you can see the angle grinder at work for the straight cut, either side

5. original on the right, fabricated copy on the left

6. drilled out the two diff size holes, though my holes were not exactly in the middle (should of taken more care in drilling in the centre)

7. here temporarily bolted into position for fitment, just needs the end pieces rounded off where they bolt to the other bracket on bulkhead

8. here getting ready for primer then paint in cold gal. another job ticked off the endless list of jobs to do...

As Madonna would say in her song - strike a pose... her she is in all her glory out in the sun just posing off... enjoy

1. so the rear cross member needed some attention (mainly paint) as it was looking a bit sad

2. then decided to mask the body off for paint even though had done some paint in the middle

3. then realised the two grab handles needed to come off as well so that was done

4. cold gal to the rescue, finished off, grab handles re fitted, tape removed, now allowed to dry

1. As the title says I think (I'm pretty sure) I have stuffed up and need to remove the gearbox once more (more punishment). whilst driving in my driveway up and down to the garage, has a small angle out to the street, I have noticed something not quite right with the old girl.

symptom - engine sounds and is revving but the S1 is not moving as fast as the motor is turning. even with higher revs it seems to take a bit of time (5-10secs) before it begins to move in a normal pace. my idea of the solution (could be wrong here) is that when i removed the old spigot, I had forgot to put a replacement (new) one in so there is no connections between the input shaft of the gearbox and the engine.?

so time to remove the box and check it out further. noticed on ebay they sell Holden 202 spigots for $24 in diff materials, will need to check the inner and outer diameter of the spigot but hope they will fit the series gearbox? Guessing the standard holden spigot will suit the series gearbox?

Question - if my spigot is missing what would be my symptoms (as described ?) or something else? please...

No. Your symptoms point to a slipping clutch* - check the free play on the clutch pedal. Could also be due to oil on the clutch or you failed to tighten the bolts holding the pressure plate properly and they have come loose, or a failure of the driven plate (linings come off), although this is very unlikely.

Missing spigot bush will most likely only show up after some time as a gearbox failure of some sort due to the lack of positive alignment of the input shaft.

If you remove the gearlever support and have a look in the opening at the clutch you may be able to get an idea of issues.

*There are a few other possibilities, including one of the splined joints in the transmission system being completely worn out. If it has a Fairey overdrive, the coupling to this is by far the most likely to have this issue.

Joe , I think you will find it will have something to do with you adjusting the Pressure plate adjustments through the hole under the gear leaver bracket instead of getting the X shaft adjustment rite . The pressure plate adjusters should not ever have to be touched they are set for correct clamping pressure & height of the fingers.

thank you Wayne and John for your replies much appreciated guys.

I have another theory as to why perhaps the clutch is slipping if this is my symptoms then.

A. Not all bolts bw gearbox and engine were tightened up prob 3-5 bolts were missing others tightened up (was missing them since found) particularly along the bottom half missing bolts.
B. small slack between top hat and fingers
C. cross link shaft has some slack as well
D. maybe the adjustment of the clutch pedal is wrong (set to the longest setting)

1. screwdriver pushing back the top hat

2. screwdriver pushing fwd the top hat - its a large long screwdriver and has some slack which I could reduce by adjusting the fingers which may help the slipping clutch YES or NO

3. there are 3 adjusting nuts for the fingers of the press plate here i have numbered them 1. note the amount of thread exposed

4. No 2 same amount of thread as 1.

5. No 3 has a lot less thread exposed then 1 and 2, meaning i can adjust this which could also help slipping clutch YES or NO

I am re thinking the need to remove the gearbox if its just slipping clutch due to adjustments first

The workshop manual gives a maximum of 0.010" (0,25mm) difference in heights between the three levers.
.W.