Wow, has it really been over a year? I'm SO ASHAMED. No excuses, but there is progress.
What was supposed to be a spruce-up of a decent chassis and the addition of a high-winding 1-litre has become just shy of a frame-up restoration. I'm working out of a garage, and don't have a lot of spare room, but for a period of time, I was able to turn my 2 1/2 car garage into a 4 car . . .
The black Midget you see here was one I accidentally bought off of eBay.
It was available for "local pickup only", and I dropped by to inspect it. Floors were gone, but the hood, trunk lid and front fenders were in much better shape than mine. As it turns out, the guy was into '60's C-body Chryslers, (as am I - LOVE that Virgil Exner period) had a whole front clip from a '61 Newport and also had a pair of Dodge Poly motors, and enough Hemi parts to convert one of the blocks into a Hemi. We talked for hours - great guy. The bidding started off at $100.00, and because I promised I'd put in a bid on it, I went home and entered a bid of $500.00.
Bingo - went right to reserve.
Well, Thursday comes along and I'm thinking, "Jeez, do I really have the time/space/inclination to completely disassemble ANOTHER Midget? I've got so much to do on this one!" I consoled myself with the fact that my bid was the minimum, and prayed somebody would outbid me.
So the following Tuesday, I rented a U-haul and dragged yet another steaming pile of British tin back to my garage.
The racer is in the background of the picture, sitting on its side. Kate suggested that if this was going to be my approach, perhaps I should build shelves for my cars. I guess I'd rather have her laughing at me than yelling at me.
There was a huge upside to this purchase. The engine was a 1275, NOT the Triumph 1500 that usually comes in a '75 (the owner had converted it), which gives me a spare block, head, and a good spare transmission. Additionally, the rubber bumpers for the Midget (and the MGB, for that matter) are no longer produced, and along with the tonneau cover, helped me recoup about half the investment. Sometimes, e-Bay stings, sometimes, it's a balm.
Jeff Foxworthy once said, "You know you're a Redneck if you have more engine parts in your trunk than under your hood". Here's a picture of my attic - I'll let you draw your own conclusions.
In the end, I saved a lot of scratch over buying individual replacement pieces, and have had to make fewer trips to the hardware store for bolts and fasteners.
Anyway, front and rear suspension, firewall, floor pan, differential, rear hubs, bearings and gaskets, steering rack, gas tank, done. I'm not as far along as I'd like to be, but as long as I'm moving forward, I'll take it.