As part of the upgrade to the head lamps it was clear we need a bit more power than the Dynamo could provide. The Lucas C45 unit comes complete with fan to cool the engine, the bearings were in need of replacement.
A couple of C45 Alternator upgrades are available, a cheaper option which is the Dynamator or a more expensive option. I've read the 2 units are different inside and one is made to a price point. They both retain the look of an original Dynamo which I wanted and the relative ease of mounting using existing brackets it seemed the easy choice. It doesn't come with a cooling fan so we also upgraded to an electric fan and mechanical thermostat. (see different post)
Wiring is easy with a 6mm cable to the battery and a single wire to the ignition light on the dash. It provides 40A, not a high valve compared to modern cars but covers what we need.
Samuel turned some spacers from 16mm Aluminium bar stock to replace the washers used when aligning.
Crank Pulley
The Crank pulley was out of shape and we tried to straighten the best we can. It is a pressed steel affair which is brazed onto a mounting boss that fits on the crankshaft. I did look a re-manufacturing, again the Rootes Archive Trust came up trumps with the drawings but I can't justify the cost and unsure if I could sell a small batch to recover costs.
The original crank pulley on the Ten is roughly based on an a SPB profile belt. On buying the car a previous owner had fitted a SPA belt which did the job but the wear rate was high as it didn't fit correctly. Dave Bamforth sourced the correct belt but with the change to the Dynamator a different length belt was required.
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Image copyright - www.bearing-king.co.uk/
Image copyright - www.bearing-king.co.uk/
Dynamator Pulley Machining
The Dynamator pulley is fitted with a SPA belt profile which doesn't match the crank pulley. That leaves running the SPA belt and suffer excessive wear or machine the Dynamator pulley to match the Crank pulley.
Not the easiest to machine and on our small Myford not the easiest to hold in the chuck. Using a ground down boring bar we could make the necessary 20 degree cut to remove enough material. Both SPA & SPB profiles have a 40 degree profile.
An advantage of the Hillman Minx Cast Iron cylinder head is a pocket to take a capillary temperature gauge. The gauge will be mounted under the dashboard.
The car was fitted with additional front indicators. Again they had used Halogen spot light bulbs which was totally overkill power wise and being mounted on the front bumper the cables were on show.
The new head lamps are fitted with side lamp which frees up the original front side light to be used as an indicator. As part of the re-wire the Trafficators are back.
Frivolous, quite likely but who cares. Filling the tank via a funnel is tricky as you need 1 hand to hold the funnel and another 2 to hold the jerry can. Not any more!
Custom designed for the Sunbeam Talbot Ten with cut out for the chain. As always, contact Justin if you're interested sales@mindparadox.co.uk
With the loss of the inbuilt fan on the Dynamo we decided on a 12v electric fan fixed to the reverse of the radiator. The fan is fixed with 4 plastic ties that pass though the core of the radiator.
To control the fan we used an adjustable Mechanical Thermostat, to ensure we don't overcool the engine we can adjust when the fan turns on.
The Thermostat uses a Common, Normally Open (NO) and Normally Closed (NC) contact. Once the required temperature is reached the NO contact closes and the NC opens. The stat can switch 10Amps and can therefore control the fan directly however I've installed an additional relay in the new fuse box to allow for a different control in the future.
As is becoming the norm, the 3d printer came into its own and Justin designed a simple enclosure. If you wish to purchase contact sales@mindparadox.co.uk
It is fixed in the front of the engine bay and the sensor is tucked into the top radiator hose under the jubilee clip.
Radiator Fan
The fan is wired in 2mm thin wall cable via 2 pin AMP connector.
While removing the front wheel the stud came out of hub. They screw in the front hubs and the end of the bolt is then split or burred over to act as a locking tab. While removing the front road wheel one of the studs came loose from the hub and the burr on the back looks to have damaged the thread in the hub on the way out. A 1/2 BSF tap thankfully cleaned up the mess.
Seems to be a common problem on the Ten, 80 and 90 cars and often the studs unwind leaving them attached to the wheel at the side of the road making changing a tyre fun.
The wheel nuts (part no. P22369) are the same part number across the Ten, 80 & 90. However the studs are different, the Ten uses (part no. P22368).
With heat and penetrating oil I managed to get some movement on the wheel nut but went tight as soon as the heat was removed. Ended up cutting the nut and splitting it with some damage to the thread. Hopefully sourcing replacements isn't too difficult.
As on the rear of the car it looks like a oil/grease catcher is fitted in the form of a steel cone at the back of the hub. This will need cutting and welding back up as suggested in the manual. Replacement studs and Loctite 270 is looking favourable. Pictures are from a Hillman Minx workshop manual which is generally similar. I'm writing this before taking the hub apart!
Both 1/2 BSF Wheel studs and nuts are a rare beast. Unable to source any I decided on 12.9 Cap Head 1/2 BSF bolts with the head removed and Loctite 270. ebay - Fixball
Wheel nuts weren't readily available either, Red Triangle - Alvis Spares came to the rescue. Part number: TA14
Original lights didn't have a built in indicator, a previous owner had fitted external indicators and removed the functionality of the Trafficators. Although I prefer the look of the original Lucas D-Lamp with stop & tail the indicators were very much an addition. As part of the re-wire the Trafficators will be back in use and we have included an additional circuit for warning hazards.
After spending what can only be described as a silly amount of cash on new rear lights it does allow the indicator to be included within the light. Still not sure why they didn't amend the design to put the indicator on the outer edge of the lens, seems odd seeing it inboard. I originally purchased lights with conventional bulbs however while testing on the bench the hot melt glue used to secure the bulb holders melted and stuck to the clear lens, this prevented the lamp unit from opening. I sent these back and was offered an LED version, something about LED bulbs I don't like, just seem harsh but no other choice.
The quality of the chrome is ok, the water proofing of the lights I'm really not sure about, not convinced the LED panels will survive the UK weather.
As with the headlights we created an assembly that allows the rear panel to be removed from the car if required. It is designed to drop down on flexible wires to allow access to the spare wheel.
The cable is 1mm Thinwall rated at 16amps and sleeved with cable heat shrink and 6-way AMP Econoseal connectors.
With the previous headlamp bodge removed we could make up a new loom for each of the headlamps and spot lights. To help removing the radiator we decide to connect via 2 x 4-pin AMP Econoseal connectors, these are ideal for automotive and waterproof.
The cable is 1mm Thinwall rated at 16amps and sleeved with cable heat shrink
New loom installed with integral side light and H4 bulb holder
Notek Farlite Spot Lamp
This Notek Farlite Spot Lamp was originally fitted to my dad's Sunbeam Talbot Ten, he removed it from the car when he sold it and I remember playing with the lamp as a kid in the garage at home. It is great to see it back on a car. It is in great condition, a new bulb and o-ring was all that was needed.
Another part of the car that was due an upgrade are the headlamps. The Sunbeam Talbot Ten was fitted with Lucas Dipping Reflectors. These lamps are fitted with an anti-dazzle device arranged for operation by a switch mounted on the steering column.
When the switch is moved to the "DIP" position, the nearside headlamp beam is dipped and turned to the near-side of the road, and at the same time the off-side headlamp is switched off.
This solenoid mechanism had long since been removed and the wiring bodged to fit conventional H4 dual-filament bulbs that provide both low and high beams. The wiring was never upgraded to take the additional current needed and the Dynamo is unable to provide sufficient power.
The headlight bowl was taken from a VW Polo MK1 / Audi 50. The front glass removed and then sandwiched between a rubber gasket and the original Sunbeam Talbot Ten headlight glass. The net result was unusable as the light pattern was poor and the car battery discharged during use.
Bodged headlamp bowl from a VW Polo
A quick measure showed approximately 7" diameter replacement needed and not really thinking I ordered a low cost replica Lucas 7" headlights with sidelight and H4 bulb holder. I'd assumed the new light would fit under the chrome outer cover, clip into place and I'm all set. Yeah, good ideas and all that!
The 7" headlight is actually smaller than the Chrome outer cover so I needed some kind of adapter to keep everything in place. Could a 3d printed adapter be an option?
3d Printing If you've not heard of 3d printing it really is a game changer for producing 1 off or even small batches of parts. It all starts on a computer, where you design or find a digital model of the object you want to make.
The computer then "slices" that design into hundreds of super-thin layers—like slicing a loaf of bread. The 3D printer's nozzle, which is like a tiny, hot glue gun, then squeezes out melted plastic, drawing the first flat layer onto a platform. Once that layer is finished, the platform moves down just a tiny bit, and the nozzle draws the second layer right on top of the first. The plastic quickly cools and sticks together.
The printer keeps stacking these flat layers, one by one, very slowly, until all the layers are piled up and you have a solid, three-dimensional object you can hold.
Design Not being the creative type I can't take credit for the next steps but a friend designed the adapter using computer software Autodesk Fusion.
The design uses a simple groove to lock the top and bottom sections and secured with 3 x M4 Allen head screws. The outer edge has 4 grooves to take original Lucas fitting clips. The design allows a small amount of rotation to allow you to position the light vertically, once aligned a small bead of Silicon sealant or sikaflex to hold in place.
Autodesk Fusion render of Sunbeam Talbot Ten Headlight Adapter
Printing A basic 3d printer is relatively inexpensive to purchase and allows you to produce parts at home.
The printing filament is supplied on reels and available in a range of different colours and types. One common type is PLA (Polylactic Acid) which is extremely easy to print with. It has good tensile strength but relatively brittle and low impact resistance. It also has a low heat resistance and can deform in hot environments, like a car on a sunny day.
As the adapter will be exposed heat we chose to print using ASA (Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate) filament. It has excellent UV Resistance and retains its colour and mechanical properties when exposed to sunlight for long periods, making it ideal for outdoor applications. It offers good mechanical strength, rigidity, and high impact resistance. It is also stable in warmer environments and shows good resistance to many chemicals, water, and oil.
Timelapse video of Sunbeam Talbot Ten Headlight adapter ring being 3d printed. The parts are printed in ASA and take around 2 hours to print
Early Sunbeam Talbot Ten Headlamp Adapter Prototype
Fixing The original lights are held in place using a W shaped spring loaded clip. I was missing a couple from one headlamp and the rest were well corroded. The replacement is a Lucas Headlamp OEM 500291.
Left to right. Lucas 500291, Original Lucas, Amazon knock-off greenhouse glass clip.
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Unfortunately the ones I ordered are shorter and according to the supplier the longer version is no longer manufactured. An alternative is to use a clip for supporting glass in greenhouses, they need modifying but the ones I picked up from Amazon didn't have much spring to them and could be bent with your fingers into different shapes, nothing like the quality of the Lucas items.
We also re-printed the top section at a greater depth and moved the clip location upwards a couple of mm but the spring force was then in the wrong direction and the lamp wasn't secure in the front bezel.
Time to improvise with the 3d printer.
Adapter to allow for the shorter length of the Lucas 500291 Clip. The clip is curved to follow the shape of the front bezel
Finished Article The adapters allow you take a Lucas 7" sealed beam conversion unit with modern fluted lens and have a higher quality beam pattern and cut off compared to the original lighting on the Sunbeam Talbot Ten.
You are free to choose a lamp with either a curved or flat lens and between Halogen or LED bulbs assuming an H4 bulb pattern and enough power available from the dynamo or alternator.
Front view - Sunbeam Talbot Ten Headlamp Adapter for 7" headlamp
Main Beam H4 with Notek Spot and Fog Lamps
Total transformation driving at night. The combination of upgrading to an Alternator and modern head lamps with Notek Spot & Fog lights are better than many modern cars.
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