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Instead of a 3.4 I went with a 2.8 that a friend had just rebuilt. Also, crate 3.4 is no longer available. Anyway, I have some hesitation with my 390 holley. Do you remember what jets and what accel pump you have in your 390? Thanks.
Will check tomorrow morning. Best to continue via email? mjrichaud @ gmail.com If so, please send me a note so I can respond in kind tomorrow.
I like the interior. Nice touches.
Thanks! It is growing on me.
Good to see you back, Mick. Here’s a deadline for you: in the fall some of the Speedster and Spyder people do a Dragon+ weekend. It’d be great if you could make that. Or! Any chance you could be up and running in May? We’d love to see this contraption at the Carlisle show. As for all those little details that seem to eat up time: yeah. building cars is fun, don’t ever let anyone tell ya different.
Thanks, Ed. I made an early decision not to impose a timeline on myself for this, but our local British car club has its annual show the second Saturday in May, so I’ll probably aim for that, as it’s doable at this point. Never been to Carlisle, so maybe…
And a run at the Dragon in the fall would be great!
Thanks, Royal. This has been quite a challenge, but even with the frustration I’m enjoying the process. Guess it’s the masochist in me!
With the MGB engine and transmission, including overdrive on third and fourth gears, and weighing 500-600 lbs. less than a B, this ought to be a blast to drive. Can’t wait to get it out on the roads around here, especially the newly opened portion of the Foothills Parkway. And the Dragon!
Wow! Been a while since I’ve posted, and for that I apologize. I have visited this forum for inspiration, though, and for that I thank all of you!
Though slow, I’m getting there. Had MUCHAS problemas! Not even sure where to start, but here are a couple of pictures to show where I am now.
The grill is finally done and on the car. This thing came with the grill shell and the slats, but no mounting brackets for the slats. The shell was in pretty nice shape, but the slats’ chrome had pitted and needed replating. I had a lot of stiff plated, but the slats were going to cost $90 each (!!!), so I had the platers simply strip them, as they are solid extruded aluminum, and I was pretty sure I could polish them up and then clear coat ’em. Some of the pitting went into the aluminum, so while they’re not pristine, they’ll have to do for now. The mounting brackets were a challenge. I have a friend who’s retired from a metal fab company and still has access to their CAD equipment and machinery. Found a pattern for the upper and lower brackets, but for the original TF grill and slats, which are a bit different from the Victor. We were able to modify them, though the spacing is just a bit off. Again, it’ll do for now. Thinking about stainless steel mesh, but that’s down the road, if I decide to pursue it all.
Interior. SHEESH! OK, the Victor came with a complete black interior – seats, panels, and carpet. I wasn’t thrilled with that, and found a green leather kit on eBay – seats, panels, piping, hidem strips (they cover the screws used to install the panels), and even a pretty large piece of matching bulk green leather. The plan was to install the complete green interior – believe I may have reported on that earlier. And use the black carpet. Anyway, I installed the door panels without too much trouble. But when I tried to install the rear quarter panels and the kick panels, they didn’t line up. (Imagine that!) The quarter panels were close, but a bit too large. The kick panels were way off. And the wheel arch covers were too short. All the black interior bits fit quite well, so I considered taking the green leather off the panels and fitting them on the other panels, but they were so far off that it wasn’t a viable option. I decided to use the black panels, but I wanted more green than just the seats. So, I removed the black hidem strips which were already sewn in to the black panels, and stapled the green hidem strips in their place. Again, not my first choice, but I think it’ll grow on me.
Got the door latches lined up nicely (another fun job!), and had to do some “massaging” to do so. Also had to do the same for the wheel arch covers. Carpeting is in, but not yet permanent. Have to cut a hole in the vinyl for the shift lever. Also have to get some more insulation for the firewall area.
Gas tank is in and plumbed. Fuel sending unit in and working. All gauges working properly. The engine is running quite well, and I’ve shifted through all the gears while it’s running and up on jack stands. No discernible issues with the transmission or clutch, so that box is checked. Brakes seem to be working well, also. While I’ve said that I don’t have a time frame for completion, I have to admit I’m getting a bit antsy.
Left to do: Source glass for the windshield, and assemble and install it. Have to fabricate anchors for the brake and clutch pedal return springs. Install and wire horns and fog lights. And probably another couple dozen items. But it’s close!
Thanks, Bill. It really is well-balanced, with just enough performance for me, and room for us and our “stuff” on trips. And the A/C is a treat in the summer!
Thanks for the welcome! I was a bit hesitant posting here, as the Victor is a bit of an oddball (kinda like me…).
I notice you’re installing a 3.4 and T5 – great combination! I have them in a ’69 MGB GT and it’s a perfect package. I considered doing the TF likewise, but thought it overkill. Plus, I wanted to keep it all MG, and the frame was designed for the MGB drivetrain.
Here’s a write-up of the GT with pictures: http://www.britishv8.org/MG/MickeyRichaud.htm
Thanks, Ed. Only thing I can think of is that the triangular “towers” for the front engine mounts were welded in the wrong spot. The MGB motor mounts bolt directly onto them, and there’s no wiggle room there. I assume the factory used jigs for building their frames, so at first blush it seems unlikely they’d make that mistake. But I really can’t figure any other possibility. I’m going to try to get some measurements from other Victor owners, but not quite sure we can do anything other than what we did to make it all fit. And since Victor is long out of business, there’s no way to get any info from them.
Always an adventure!
We hit a snag. (Imagine that!) When I tried to install the driveshaft, it was too long by about an inch. Did lots of head-scratching, as the Victor was designed to accept all MGB drivetrain as plug-n-play. Checked all measurements, and everything seemed proper – except it wasn’t… Also heard from another Victor owner who’d had two of them; neither one had the issue. Fixed mounting points are the rear axle, cradled in the leaf springs, and the front motor mounting “towers”.
So, it was either shorten the driveshaft, or move the engine/transmission forward. As there was very little clearance between the firewall and the engine backplate, and I wasn’t happy with that, we decided to move the engine and transmission forward. The rear engine/transmission mount bolts onto a crossmember that is in turn bolted onto the frame rails. Front motor mounts are stock MGB, bolted onto brackets that are welded to the frame rails. We welded an inch of matching 1/8″ metal plate to the front of the motor mount brackets that the bonded rubber mounts attach to, and relocated the transmission crossmember one inch forward. Now the driveshaft fits well, with the yoke extended between 1/2 and 3/4 inch, which should give it plenty of fore and aft play. Body, suspension, and drivetrain are all buttoned up, and I’m now waiting for the painter to finish the hood, fenders, side panels and running boards. While that’s going on, I’ll be rebuilding the carburetors and beginning the wiring. Brake and fuel lines are all in place, so may actually fire this thing up in a week or so.
Can’t wait!
Well, it’s been a while since I’ve posted any progress. That’s because until the last few weeks there’s been little to none! The engine was at the machine shop for eight months! But I finally got it back and put together and painted. At the same time, I’d been waiting for an opening at the painter’s. Got the body tub back a couple days ago, so we were able to set it on the frame after installing the engine and transmission. The color is a factory Morgan color, Connaught Green. Really dark; looks black until it’s out in the sun.
I followed the instructions in the how-to post on posting pictures, but the picture’s pretty small. But maybe you can make out some detail…
One of my customers saw my car today for the first time and informed me he has a set of knock off wire wheels from his daughters 1966 MGB. All he has is the wheels. No attaching parts. He says he’ll bring them in for me to photograph. If anyone has interest, stay tuned for photos. He sounds as if he’ll accept any reasonable offer.
Just a heads-up: MGB wheels are 14″ diameter. Won’t look “right” on T-series, replica or original.
Forgot to mention; the red one now lives about an hour away from me! What’re the odds?
Finally got to the dash redo. I found a piece of Curatinga rosewood (never heard of that) at a great resource for different and exotic wood, just south of Knoxville. A woodworker friend planed it down and cut the holes for the gauges, switches and indicator lights, and I sealed and finished it.
Here’s the earlier one:
And here’s the new one:
The two push-button switches above the ignition switch are momentary contact for the turn signals which feed a control box that is pre-programmed for how long the lights flash, depending on how long the switch is depressed – pretty neat design. And the indicator lights in the upper center are off-the-shelf items from Dorman. I pulled the metal arrows from indicators from a ’69 MGB and JB-Welded them over the green lenses – they fit perfectly!
Thinking about mounting the MG logo from a radio blanking plate over on the passenger side for balance, and there will be a grab handle there as well.
The engine is disassembled and waiting to go to the machine shop when they have room for it on their schedule. Found this when I pulled the head:
Yep, that’s corn in number 3 cylinder. No idea how the little bugger got it in there, as both manifolds were on the engine, and the head was bolted down. Tiny valve opening; guess he fed it through somehow… Apart from the future popcorn in number 3, insides of the engine look great; should be a nice candidate for a refresh and maybe a slight boost.
Paint’s gonna have to wait ’til I build the budget up a bit. But it’s gettin’ there!
Many thanks for the welcome messages! I’m very anxious to get this thing on the road; the Tail of the Dragon is indeed nearby and beckons!
As luck would have it, there is another Victor within an hour’s drive from here. The guy bought it from Bruce Clifford in Colorado, mentioned above. Bruce had a couple of them; sold one of his a while back. I’ve been over to visit the guy and his Victor is nice. Pretty surprising to have one so close, as there were so few made. And Bruce is actually the one who “found” the one I bought; posted it on a British car forum and I snatched it up before someone else got it.
Anyway, I’ll be posting progress and may have some questions. I’m currently redesigning the dash layout, as the one that came with it isn’t exactly to my liking, even though the finish on it is really quite good. Bought a piece of curatinga rosewood to make a new one that more closely matches the steering wheel, and will have an extra mahogany dash if anyone’s interested. Otherwise, I might stick some old MGB gauges I have in it and make a wall hanging; the wife will love that!
Many thanks for the welcomes!
Way back in the ’70’s and ’80’s I had a hankering for a TD replica. Drove my wife crazy with all the talk about it, but we really didn’t have the necessary funds, so it didn’t happen. I was a VW nut back then, having a ’63 VW sunroof Beetle, then a ’64 Ghia convertible, both of which I built up with “massaged” powerplants. But I was always enamored with the MG mystique, especially the T series, all the way back to my youth in the ’50’s and ’60’s. Blame that book, The Red Car, which, I’m sure, many of you cut your teeth on, as I did way back in 1960.
Fast forward to a couple of decades ago when I acquired first a ’57 Triumph TR3, then a ’73 MGB roadster which I restored, then a ’69 MGB GT that I converted to a GM 3.4 V6 and 5 speed. Lots more to the story, of course, but won’t bore you with all that. Suffice to say I’ve restored several cars over the years, but have kept the two MG’s.
After retirement, I began thinking about one more project and lo and behold this one presented itself. I’m really excited about building this thing and doing it right. Thought about another 3.4 V6 for it, but that’s truly overkill. This will be all MG and at under 1700 pounds, with 100 +/- hp and overdrive, should be a blast to drive.
Hi, Bob. Good eye on the dash. No, the gauges are from Speedhut. I’ve thought about trying to source some octagonal bezels to go around them, but not sure of the size, and the ones I’ve seen are prohibitive, cost-wise anyway.
The wheels that are on the car now are from an MGB – 14″ wires, and are in pretty sorry shape. The TF came with 48 spoke 15-inchers, and I’ll be putting a set of 60 spoke 15’s on it when I get to that point.
The body will be going to the painter after the first of the year, and I’ll be building the engine then. Will also get the frame finished and ready to put it all together. I don’t have a deadline, but hope to have it done sometime before next fall.
For those who aren’t familiar with the Victor, here’s a reprint of an article about it that Classic Motorsports did a while back: https://classicmotorsports.com/articles/first-class-fiberglass/
