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MG TD TF 1500 - Who's rebuilding?

I'm rebuilding TD 29665 who's been off the road since somewhere around 1988- 89. Seems like there's a LOT of folks rebuilding TD's. Let's hear your stories.

I bought mine a year ago. It was a body tub and frame sitting on some concrete block supports. Came that way with boxes of parts. PO took it apart in the late 80's. My first T series. Mostly B's. Slowly but surely finding where things go. Looking forward to paint day when I can have a red TD.

Tom
TD 29665
Tom

Wow Tom,

That's a late TD. I hope you are having fun. I know I am with TD 15470.

I suffered an illness which has a very low recovery rate. Turns out I have a rare blood disorder, and temporarily lost my license to fly, which is normally my main diversion from other stuff. Took the TD home last April, realized it was time to restore it or stop driving it. So, after 25 years in my possession, and 18 years of ownership, I did what your aren't supposed to do and made a basket case of it.

Right now the car is a rolling chassis with engine, transmission, rear axle rebuilt; all the suspension components including the rear springs and brakes redone, and the engine has successfully been started. I outsourced the tub and paint, but I'll do the interior myself.

That's our story.

http://www.mysteryship.photosite.com/MGTDRebuild/

warmly,
dave
Dave Braun

I'll give you the condensed version, I could write a book. Bought the TF 2 1/2 years ago. Rolling basket case with boxes of stuff and undriveable. Had been parked in a barn since 1978. The only work thats been farmed out is the powder coating on the frame and exhaust manifold, the chrome and cylinder head machine work. An unexpected cracked crank shaft has set the expected launch date back to probably late summer. If you'd like the full version I can send it to you via e-mail or if others want to hear my life story also I can post it here.

LaVerne
LaVerne

Another TF basket case here. Bought in May of '03. PO partially/mostly disassembled it in they early 70s. Only recently have I really started on it. Plan to farm out powdercoating the frame & body work/paint job.

Sure could use an assembly manual for the things that I didn't see come apart.

Hope to have it drive-able by MG 2006 with the old chrome & minus interior.

Great website, Dave.

http://www.britcars.net/FloydC2.html
Carl Floyd

I've been on the TD re-build for many years. Too much travel with my job often gets in the way of the enjoyable MG work but I'm getting closer.

Dave

http://community.webshots.com/user/saloonsam
D Runnings

a message from Europe
Bought TD 16237 in 2002 through e-bay.
Car was in generally good condition with the usual problems of little use and an older respray in the wrong colour. I first renewed everything suspensionwise to make it roadworthy and pass the technical inspection necessary to get a licenceplate.
After two years of driving and getting hooked to this charming little MG I disassembled the car. I am now in progres of a total restoration. No serious rustproblems. But it still is a slow progres. The temptation is strong to buy everything new as parts are so easily obtainable. But the pleasure of fixing and working with all the original parts is much bigger. The BBS is a great help in this. It takes a lot of time and I am happy to spend it.
regards
Frank
F.P. van Geldern

I started mid 2003 to restore a 1951 TD. Previous US owners had taken the car apart. First year to recreate a rolling chassis and every bolt/nut has been cleaned/derusted and some replaced. Brakes, rearaxle, suspension, steeringsystem, it all fixed now! Second year the challenge was to take the engine apart and restore it. It's ready now waiting for an engine startup party as Dave Braun so vividly described in one of these threads. Now I started the woodwork. I bought enough ash and have sawn it into suitable pieces. Now its all about very precise detailed woodworking and I love it. This will keep me busy for the coming months.
Huib Bruijstens, Helmond, Netherlands
Huib Bruijstens

laverne: i'd like to hear THE REST OF THE STORY
my issues on my 51 TD are just an engine fire under the bonnet, sorting out replacing is a big undertaking for a clutz like me. but i'm retired
and time is not of the essence.
garry irwin
berea, kentucky
theirwins@alltel.net
gei irwin 1

Thank you Carl,

There are more pictures, I don't post all of them on the website. Funny thing though, sometimes I work and forget to take some, and sometimes I don't take what I should... the end result is once in a while there is no picture of what I need, either! Let me know if you ever need a picture of a component. I may have it.

dbraun99 at comcast dot net

remove the spaces and replace at and dot, and you can get me.

warmly,
dave
Dave Braun

Here is the short version of my story.

Last July, I recieve a call from my mother-in-law who had been widowed for about 14 years. The family was selling her mother-in-laws house (my wife's praternal grandmother's house) and needed TD 12947 moved from the garage within a week. It had been stored there and partially dissassembled since 1969 when a "restoration" had been started by one of the local "good-ole boy mechanics" in that small Alabama town. No one else in the family wanted it and if I wasn't going to do something with it, the local junk dealer would hall it off.

My son and myself spend all day one very hot July Saturday loading it and all the parts we could find in the garage onto a trailer. (There were literally buckets of rusted nuts and bolts and parts were tucked away in every cabinate and corner of the garage.) It now resides partially in a storage unit, partially in my attic, some in the garage and any pieces upon which I am presently working in my little home office.

Most of my time has been spent reading this bulletin board (an incredible source of knowledge) and a few books trying to learn all that I can about restoration. I can pretty much take anything apart and put it back together but I have never done any kind of automotive work.

I have established a goal of driving the car on my 60th birthday which is now just under 9 years away. Somewhere along the line, I will need to put in some serious time or my goal will need to be adjusted out.

Patrick
D P Earles

Garry, I haven't forgotton you. Some evening when I've got a little time I'll sit down and give you the Paul Harvey. Now that I've got the high speed access at home I might try and get some info from Dave and do my own web site.

LaVerne

LaVerne

Hi, well how about just finished rebuilding..

Wanted to get a little MGB for running around in, when asked a friend if he new were to find an MG, he had one in a storage facility he thought, ..."think it's a TD - 50 something.." Well that got me looking to see what a TD was, when I did a search on the internet, saw some pictures and was sold. I wanted it. It had been in his storage facility for approx 30 - 35 year, dismantled and untouched. Picked it up on a few pallets and a flatbed for the chassis and rolled up my sleeves. Now 2.5 years later. We have 600 miles on her. She is a daily driver and we have alot of fun in her.

http://community.webshots.com/user/apbudd
R & A Budd

26 years in a barn/garage/barn/driveway when I saw it and towed it home...3 months and it was up and running...just about to turn 10,000 miles since a year ago last August 8th.
http://www3.sympatico.ca/gordonblawson/td/td.html
gordon lawson - TD 27667

Great pics, all of you. Dave...yours is so complete it could be a textbook. Much better photography than any of the restoration guides I have, and I have just about all of them. Great finished products, as well, and some of you guys started with nothing but pile of parts and a far away dream. Very encouraging.

I've had my TD for almost 10 years and have yet to finish taking it apart yet. In truth, a few other cars sorta got in the way, as well as a few other non automotive projects, but displays like these remind me that with a little more time and focus, I could be posting finished pictures as well.

We'll get there.

Pete
Peter Whelan

Purchased TF #7427 in April 2000 from ebay sale. Advertized as "100 point car /$33k in restore"....it "wasn't"! (Would have deal of the century if it had been!) What it "was" ...3rd owner car with documented 23k on the clock and a "semi-pro" resort around the late 70's. My "PO's" had spent more time "waxing" than driving so was a good solid car. The "3 day minor paint touch-up to front right wing" of 2001 resulted in 9 1/2 months in bare metal and every piece of the car being run through my friends bead-blasting cabinet and scattered for miles! (thank you God for digital camera!)After retriving my left side door from Kansas (was "left" in a motorhome bunk-bed that was being used to store some parts) "I figued somebody would come lookin' for this....what the heck does it fit on?"....my friend did the paint and she was back on the road. The "complete oil change" of 2004 resulted in engine re-build due to leaking seals & stripped & broken bolts, (still ran great but was leaking like a sive...of course it did not lose a drop when just an engine in a frame in 2002!)New .30 over pistons, balannced & blueprinted crank & cam, 4:33:1 rear, and stage IV tunning, "Izzy" hit the road for 250 miles before "popping" a freeze plug (the "big one behind the exhaust manifold") # 2&3 pistons melted down in short order! Back on the road late last fall due to the vallient efforts of my poor engine mechanic and shop owner who had just learned his partner embezeled $800k from thier company and got this done just before the shop was closed for good...she now has about 500 miles on the 2nd rebuild. There is more (far more!) to the story...but that's the "short version"!
Cheers,
David 55 TF1500 #7427
David Sheward

This thread was discussed between 22/03/2006 and 01/04/2006

MG TD TF 1500 index

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