1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

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67clone
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1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

I bought the Tiger clone a couple of years ago thinking I'll drive it and tinker on it... but mostly drive it. Yes, I was knieve. Within 4 months I upgraded the steering with a BMW Z4 rack, new wheels and tires and got it running reliably enough that I used it as a daily driver... and then blew up the T-10 transmission. This, I thought, was a good time to upgrade to a T-5 trans. As I found out the hard way, there really isn't a good time to do that conversion for a Sunbeam. While I was at it, I rebuilt the floor around the trans because the previous work was, let's say, compromised. Since the engine was out, I rebuilt it too using a carcraft magazine recipe that made 400HP. Since this car was seriously beat up and was not honestly restorable, and since Tiger's are known as a "poor man's Cobras", I cut into the rocker panels to install side pipes. A few weeks ago I painted it and now am putting it back together again.
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by Fifty Six MGA »

Any photos to share?
____________
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by whitebuffalo »

Yes, photos please?
67clone
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

how do you post pictures?
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by Steve Simmons »

Below the reply window, click the "Upload Attachment" tab. Then browse for your photo and select it. Finally, click the "Add File" button and it will be attached to your message. You can also add a caption if you like, and you can attach multiple images as well. You will need to shrink very large images before attaching.
67clone
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

before I installed the top
before I installed the top
. Also, before the newly rebuilt motor burned up... don't use KB pistons!!!
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by whitebuffalo »

My eyes! My eyes! That color is bright! :eek: Ok , just kidding, looks good.
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

I tried to get a bright as possible because I wanted to do everything I could to let the driver of the SUV, whose lower window edge is higher than the roof of my car, see me. The side pipes with only 16 inch long mufflers should help too.
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Power Door Lock

Post by 67clone »

Since I am driving my tiger clone almost daily, I thought I should install an alarm. I thought it would be cool to incorporate power door locks so I can simply push my alarm buttons to lock and arm or unarm and unlock. I have screws that hold the latch in place from the back of the door. I replaced them with longer screws that extended forward of the door latch. I used a piece of cardboard to make a template of the space around the three screws and cut and drill some holes. By adding a perpendicular piece of metal, I fashioned a door lock motor mount. I needed to drill a hole for the connecting link in the tab that holds the outside door lock rod. But that was not enough for the motors to actuate the lock assembly because the over travel spring was too stiff. I cut that spring and installed a plunger screw that rubs against the lock arm in the latch assembly. While drilling the hole through the plate I mounted the plunger screw in, I also put a drill dimple on the lock arm at both the locked and unlocked positions. This created a detent and the screw allowed me to adjust the movement forces. All in all, the locks work nicely, the lock and unlock detents feel crisper using the key, the motor drive the locks adequately and it all fits between the window and outside skin.
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door lock 1.jpg
door lock 1.jpg (22.38 KiB) Viewed 22501 times
door lock 2.jpg
door lock 2.jpg (24.1 KiB) Viewed 22501 times
door lock 3.jpg
door lock 3.jpg (11.22 KiB) Viewed 22501 times
door lock 4.jpg
door lock 4.jpg (18.92 KiB) Viewed 22501 times
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by Larry Kluss »

Nicely done!
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by VWNate1 »

Looks very well done for an unrestorable that might otherwise have been broken for spares .

Good job Sir ! :thumbs: .

? How's the rebuilt engine holding up ? .

? What engine was it ? small block Ford ? .
-Nate
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

Hi Nate, I had a 1972 Ford 302 in it when I bought the car. I rebuilt that engine using KB Pistons and that motor burned up after 32 or 3 hours. If you do a webs search on the problem, you will find it is common problem. I replaced the 302 with a 5.0L Ford with Sealed Power pistons. It is running strong and I find I am often going too fast... it is a real discipline to not speed when you merge on freeways or pull away from a traffic light. The car is so light and the engine sound through the side pipes is intoxicating, especially when you are above 4500 RPM.

I had a little problem that mushroomed into a larger one. Last week I noticed a coolant leak and it turned out my 1972 timing chain cover had corroded and started pulling away from the block. I bought a new timing chain cover and thought it would be a good time to install my new aluminum oil pan too since they share a gasket. But to remove the old pan, I needed to drop the suspension. Well I have a brake light switch that mounts on the front suspension cross member so it seems like a good time to replace that switch since I had to disconnect the brake line anyway.

The good news is, I installed the alternator and filled the radiator this morning. Two things left, fill it with oil and install the brake light switch.
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Ford 5.0L before installing in the Sunbeam
Ford 5.0L before installing in the Sunbeam
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by VWNate1 »

Good deal :thumbs: .

My Morris Minor ground to a halt when I got tangled up and lost in the 'might as wells' during a tranny replacement .

The flip side of course is : when you bother to do all those fiddly little bits you're rewarded with a vehicle that's a good as it looks ;) .

What, specifically 'burned up' on the overhauled engine ? .
-Nate
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by Steve Simmons »

It's a sick man who matches his engine stand to his rockers. My kind of sickness though. :)
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

I built the engine and I am super good about measuring everything while I am building the motor. In fact, measure an record in an Excel spread sheet the dimensions for my records. I know it seams a little anal retentive but I am aerospace engineer... what else can I do with my time?

KB has an equation for the cylinder wall clearance and I measured all 8 clearances and found them at the minimum to .0005 inch bigger. This met KB's requirements. Even though I converted the block to a roller cam and the heads to roller rockers, I did the 30 minute break-in at 2500 RPM using zinc additive in Valvoline detergent oil. I ran it a few more times before getting it on the road. I drove it for a few 10 to 15 minute intervals never getting into it because I wanted to make sure the rings would seat properly.

I finally took it on a midnight (because I wasn't quite street legal yet) jaunt for what would have been about an hour drive. About 10 minutes into the drive I started loosing power so I turn around. The engine stopped running about 5 minutes after but I couldn't understand why because all the vitals were good. I got towed home and, for kick, tried to start it. It started and I though I was on my way but it didn't sound right.

I decided to pull the engine and then pull a head off to see if anything was wrong. All the cylinder heads were scored and all the pistons were discolored. I took the engine apart and what appears to have happened was the pistons expanded under the heat, started rubbing, got hotter, expanded more... until the friction overcame the engine's torque. If you do an internet search, you will find posts like: https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/tech-ge ... nd-my.html which exactly describes my problem. I have built other motors using KB and they worked fine... in fact, they were good. I built the current 5.0L Ford using the same machine shop, recipe but used Sealed Power pistons instead and it runs great. I still don't know why the first 302 motor went wonky.
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Engine Failure

Post by VWNate1 »

THANK YOU for the detailed follow up :thumbs: .

I assume you meant the cylinder walls were scored, not the cylinder heads ? .

The clearances sound too tight for my taste .

I don't think being overly cautious and being 'anal retentive' are bad in any way .

I also do the 3,000 RPM breakin and have never had any problems with it, it beds in the pistons and rings 100 % as well as the cam .
-Nate
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

Hi Nate. I did mean cylinder walls and not heads. I should have mention I built a 440 with KB pistions and it ran great. Maybe someone has trouble with every manufacturer but I have been using TRW/Seal Power pistons for a long time and I never had that problem before. I did build a 2L Ford with Jannes pistons. They recommended .008 inch clearance. Aside from it rattling when it was cold, it ran great too.
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Re: Cheap blue tooth stereo

Post by 67clone »

Hi guys and gals.

I used to be an audiophile... that is until I ran out of money. But I still like monkeying around with different parts and I thought I would share a recent success with you.

I wanted some music in my Tiger clone with side pipes that rattle the car and is louder than the wind noise with the top down. It is nearly deafening. So, I like any car nut thought, If I can only make more noise, my car would be awesome! I set out to have a small stereo system, that didn't cost too much and was small enough that it could be completely concealed. With all the capability of smart phones these days, I thought it would be nice to use my phone to control the volume, song selections and equalization.

I looked on ebay for a cheap amp. I tested a few and the ones less than $30 make a lot of noise when they are on Bluetooth. However, I found one that had only a little buzzing in the Bluetooth mode... little enough that I didn't think I would hear it when the engine was running. The amp is this one: https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-TPA3116-2-5 ... Sw5cNYdJbj. I mounted the amp behind the where the glove box would be if it were not deleted. The antenna swivels so I could adjust it so it is out of sight but hanging down enough to receive my phone signal.

It has three speaker outputs, left, right and sub. When I mount speakers in the doors, I first weld a circular flange recessed to the door surface to allow the speaker to move in and out unrestricted. I installed speakers in the door, cut the door card wood but not the vinyl so you can't see the speaker. I had some 6X9 speakers in boxes, wired them in series and just threw them in the back... more on this later.

The amp does work on 12 volts but the literature says it works better on 24VDC. So I bought a DC/DC converted to get 24V from my 12V system and connected the amp to the converter. In the end, I didn't hear any difference. You do not need 24V for this Bluetooth amp. I also connected the system to my accessory power so the amp is powered after I start the car.

I found an app for my Samsung S6 phone called Neutron. It is a music player with some nifty audiophile applications but the one I was interested in was its good graphic equalizer. I knew I needed an equalizer one because the amp is midrange strong, my door speakers are upper midrange strong and I had no idea how the 6X9 would sound. After a little playing around, I have decent sound controlled from my phone. I really like that you can play music and use your phone map application and the audio directions come through the car speakers. An extra perk is that the phone will give a chirp through the car speakers for when I receive a call, email, or text. People at the local coffee and donuts thought it was cool that I could play, change and stoop music with my phone from 25 to 30 feet away from my car.

The total system cost less than $110 but that does not include the 6X9 speakers I had laying around. I have found some shallow subwoofers that are worth looking at and which I plan to install in my tiger clone. They are from Earthquake sound. I will be using one 12 speaker in the tiger clone. I also have an El Camino where I have installed to 8 inch Earthquake sound speakers in the bottom of the doors and a 4 inch 2 way coaxial speaker in the upper door. I will put speaker grills on top speakers but run the vinyl over the bottom so they are so obvious.

Have a great day
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speaker mounting flange recessed in the door
speaker mounting flange recessed in the door
flange welded in door.jpg (23.11 KiB) Viewed 21800 times
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by VWNate1 »

Interesting .

I've known a few Hot Rods, Lowriders etc. that used original in dash radios with small amps like this coupled to decent quality speakers, they rocked, louder and clearer than I need and I'm deaf .
-Nate
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by Steve Simmons »

My music system cost about $300... ;)
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VWNate1
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Vehicular Music

Post by VWNate1 »

For $300 I hope that's all stainless steel ! .

I was thinking about the exhaust needed on my dead Morris Minor to - day : ? should i just run it open pipe ? (stock 1275CC engine) .

Or maybe find some l o n g muffler that'll give it a deeper note...... Not a glasspack or rough sounding thing like a 42" Smitty's .

I've had good results with my exhaust modifications over the years .
-Nate
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by 67clone »

If you like music and, like me, you are willing to deviate from stock, you could imagine it was only a matter of time before I got the sub-woofer itch. I ran across these shallow sub-woofers I plan on using in the doors of my El Camino project (http://earthquakesound.com/index.php/en ... /item/sws8). In fact I bought them but because it is stalling, I decided I should test them in the Sunbeam. These woofers do not require a large box to sound good and there are only 2 5/8 inches deep. I made a custom fit box which is actually larger than I needed but it was easier to build. I wired the speakers in series because m y cheapo amp cannot drive 2 ohms as I expected.
unfinished box.jpg
unfinished box.jpg (25.95 KiB) Viewed 21326 times
The I covered it in speaker cabinet carpet.
finished box.jpg
finished box.jpg (22.83 KiB) Viewed 21326 times
I get more than enough bass volume for my system. The bass is tight and great for rock/jazz/classical music.

Seams odd to me, I spent over $200 for subs but I couldn't justify more than $100 for a BT amp.
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Steve Simmons
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Re: 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Clone

Post by Steve Simmons »

I liked your previous music system better. :devil:
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