My lister D Sheep Shear Rig First Resto....

Hi, Collected my first resto project from a farm in carmarthan south wales, the gentleman i had it from said it came as part of an exchange of goods he had done with someone...some pics




have some work to do lol
well..i got the engine home ok, off loaded it into garage, had a quick fiddle, when i turned engine over i had no compression but a lovely sloshy sloshy sound from exhaust, removed spark plug and half a pint of water.....
popped off rocker cover and exhaust valve was stuck open and push rod flapping about, a minor fiddle and valve closed, reset rod and tappet and turned her over....compression there now but not great.....looks like a defo head rebuild.
took a nose in oil filler and all looks good...no water sign oil level normal.
need new HT lead from magneto to plug, points cover rusted as is cover arm, removed dented fuel tank and popped magneto cover off......wow looks old, measuring from pip that feeds HT lead to condensor end i'm getting about 9kohms? is that norm?
minor signs of damp nothing major and points look ok.
contacted that nice Mr Edgington and emailed my engine details....
turns out my Lister D was built 24-12-1943 and was sold to w j cooper of Buckingham on 06-01-1944......coopers went out of business about 20 years ago so i'm told so far, hope to find out more....




this is my first baby, only a common old Lister D but i love it...

bits i'm after so far....will try ebay and stationary parts etc but if anyone has any plz let me know
fuel tank, brass tank straps, brass rocker cover bolts, brass wingnut for oil filler cover, points cover, points cover arm, govenor spring and adjuster, exhaust and a brass hopper drain tap, lots of paint lol

thanks

paul

Very nice mate and its a misconception mate Lister D's aint common everyone of thems diffrent in some way lol, all the bits your after are easily found either via the forums or via ebay, would not worry about the brass tank straps just make your own easy job

hi Paul..
looks nice and original and all the attachments as well
on a proper Lister trolley as well..
most of us started on a Lister or similar,then just progress on from there
good luck with it all
regards..mike....

All looks good Paul, like you say get the head off and do what's necessary, check the bore etc. Most parts can be picked up at a reasonable price on ebay, the paint is just enamal which any paint shop suppliers should stock at about a tenner a litre. I've got some quick drying enamal to try next and I was told to add a few drops of varnish into it before I paint and should give an excellent finish.

Stu.

thx,
first bits arrived....just a condensor new HT lead and end,
just wanted to see if magneto is ok.
took the plug out and cranked her over for about 5 mins to work some oil about.....seemed to turn over easier after a while, replaced HT lead .....noticed some corrosion and pitting on the HT lead screw tip, maybe something to watch for if your getting ignition probs?, cleaned and refitted,
removed old condensor....looks old...


and fitted new one.....



refitted Magneto cover and turned her over, held HT lead near engine body and did see a spark....looks a little weak but yet to clean and check points area, don't see points for sale anywhere? and magneto coil seems to read 9Kohms is this normal.

refitted spark plug and cranked her again....compression seems better, need to check and clean points and carb and she just might start,

just wanted to see if with a little work i can get lumpy running....omg i've named my engine.... before i strip and start with head overhaul...

total noob so any pointers feel free

thx paul

p.s..........how do i sneak a lister L passed the mrs?........want another already lol

Paul the problem you sometimes get is there's a spark coming from the mag and you think all is well but once connected to the plug the spark it's not strong enough in the cylinder to ignite the fuel. So fingers crossed all is ok for you, I normally clean and gap the points first as that tends to be a lot of the problems then see if I can get it to run, sorting carb etc as needed if it will run then strip down to overhaul/paint.

Never tried to sneak anything past wife as she's interested in engines and a few other members are the same on here, so maybe the thought of a day out at a rally is not her cup of tea then getting rid of you might be My wife has her own small engine so that gives her a bit of interest, infact she has a few now but I look after them for her. Just try and say it's a hobby and no matter what hobby you have you have to spend money on it and engines are an investment.
The problem with a Lister L is you can hardy hide something that big or say look I found this in the back of the shed and forgot I had it. So good luck with converting the wife, try taking her to a few shows (bigger the better) so she can see everything that goes on from the entertainment in the ring and on a night in the beer tent down to all the craft stalls where women like to spend money.

Stu.

might try and get her to a rally....was looking at one at the start of august near stroud i think it was?
if craft fair she might, good thing is son is keen and as he is home educated this will form part of it
at the moment i just enjoy fiddling with my engine, no rush to paint and show.....just want to restore her properly, any lister D info....plz send my way

gonna pick up soe gunk and clean the muck off,

should have done this years ago

Paul I enjoy getting them running and messing about more then painting. It's an achevment to get something as old to run, yes they look good all shiney with there new coat of paint, I think it's a great alround hobby.

Stu.

stripping and cleaning carb......boy is it full of crap, i need to replace the fibre washers, are they availible? and the mixture wheel is very loose....and engine vibration would move it....any help plz

ta

paul

Paul, fibre washers you can get from most DIY shops as for your carb needle mixer if you take it out.
Under neith there is a little round plunger that should have a spring under it that pushes on the under side of the wheel. I bet the sping is rusted and the plunger is stuck in.
I hope this makes sence
Jonesey

i'll check that tonight thanks

Hi, with the mag as you have a faint spark id take the coil out and clean all around in the mag i exppect the rotor in there is rusty, you need an air line to blow it all out with if not removing the mag, clean underside of coil where it screws down to mag as well, then check spark against mag body and see how good it is, they have to have a clean surface under the mag to earth for it to work correctly with a good spark through the engine, a few things to try,
Ian

ok, found that thingy under the mixture wheel and it was stuck down, wd40 and a fiddle and its now doing its job thanks for the pointer...

plan is to see if i can get her to run, then strip and scrub, paint etc....

carb was first..mucky



cleaned up float chamber..


and cleaned carb...


next is to clean up magneto and hopefully get a reasonable spark, fuel line from tank to float chamber has an end missing so gonna have to get a replacement, anyone know points gap? was gonna guess about 0.6mm, are replacement points availible?

out side of lumpy looks grubby but all working surfaces and bits so far have been good condition, once start attempt has worked/failed its gonna be a head decoke and rebuild.

if any one has parts plz let me know

thx paul

There doesn't look to be much paint left on your engine to remove, just remember old paint is lead based so wear a mask if your doing any sanding etc to remove the old paint. Not sure where you'd get the fuel pipe ends as I had a few that years old just remember there imperial, try a good motor factors they should sell them.

Stu.

update... refitted carb, and cleaned magneto.

removed lid, condensor, coil brackets and coil, lot of muck under coil,



cleaned it up, a lot of muck between coil core and magneto body, once clean, put it all back together, striped points are and removed bugs , sheep hair and grime, reassemble and set points.

so, filled float chamber with fuel, set mixture and held down air plunger.....with a bit of fiddling.....she ran....woot, had to restrict the air...if i dont hold plunger she stops...but let a bit of air in and she ran.....

really chuffed

next i need to decoke head and reseat valves, do i just need an imperial socket set to strip and does the lister run on unleaded ok?

thanks

paul

Yes to both sounds like you are having fun that's what's it all about glad to her you got it running
Jonesey

Well done, bet that made you smile when she fired up. A lot of engines sold as non runners just need a good clean to get working again. As for a sockect set you'll only need a about 4 sockets so don't go buying expensive sets. Try and pick up just the sockets you need and 2 each of the popular spanners and that should do you ok.

Stu.

Glad you got her running , bsw sockets and spanners is what you will need and unleaded should be fine .... some people add a bit of 2 stroke oil in there .... but only a drop or you could even use red ex fuel additive . Personally i use just unleaded

matt

anyone know what size spanners/ sockets i need....thx

try this set ..... for spanners

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-8-Pce-Quality-Crv-Spanner-Set-BSW-Whitworth-Imperial-Combination-Combo-/110869759569?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item19d05a4651

and a few sockets here on a rail http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1-2-Whitworth-BSW-Socket-Set-8-pc-Sockets-On-Rail-/170854475229?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item27c7b865dd

That should get you started would just need a 1/2" ratchet and a selection of extensions , and 2 largish adjustable spanners for the bigger bolts but on a D type there is not anything that would need adjustables for big bolts .

Hope this helps for starting ideas , matt

Matt were not all loaded with cash like you, if you look about there's some cheaper sets of spanners that will do fine for engine use that will only be used a dozen times at most.

Stu.

been quoted 50 quid for shot blasting engine clean, think i will do head rebuild first, make some tin blanks for exhaust, carb and head and get her ready for paint...once i get my bsw sockets and spanners lol

stationary stu wrote:Matt were not all loaded with cash like you, if you look about there's some cheaper sets of spanners that will do fine for engine use that will only be used a dozen times at most.

Stu.

stu i didnt think you could get much cheaper than that .... but saying that i have loads of bsw odd mspanners in a draw in the shed so i have at least 4 or 5 of the same size spanner .

matt

Biggsy wrote:been quoted 50 quid for shot blasting engine clean, think i will do head rebuild first, make some tin blanks for exhaust, carb and head and get her ready for paint...once i get my bsw sockets and spanners lol

one with when get it blasted , take all the vital parts off and wash the grit off well and prime asap as you will see it start to rust within a day from the moisture in the air

matt

does anyone know what size the bolts are that holdthe cylinder head on and the exhaust flange for a lister d etc?

thanks
paul