Hi,

Bored out my A+ block to 73.5mm. years ago when living in the UK, they were a dime a dozen in scrap yards at the time...

Bores are now US and I was thing as 1275 blocks are now getting rare rather than bore out to 74mm. can I sleeve it down to original(ish) bore size? thinking I can either re-bore sleeves in future or replace to keep the block alive!

Is this possible/worth doing? A+ blocks are expensive and hard to get over here...

Any advice/experiences would be welcome.

Cheers.

Graham Russell can sleeve it back to standard size.
ring him- 02 9630 2195.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

Any machine shop who can bore should also be able to sleave your block too.

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Like GTMowog said, there are plently of good engine machine shops here in Melbourne, I use Orger engines in Bayswater, they will sleeve your block for you, usually with next day pickup, a much better option than sending it to NSW.

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Have a Nice Day.
If already having a nice day please disregard.

Thanks for these replies, has anyone actually done this? I have 2 concerns:

1) There's not a lot of metal left between 2 and 3 cylinders would sleeving overstress this?
2) To get the large capacities the bores are offset, when I sleeve do I live with the offset or re-bore the sleeves to correct it?

Again any help/experience would be great...

I know Graham Russell has sleeved from 73.5mm bores (offset bored or not) back to standard, lots of times, without any problems.
I also know that (some) other shops say it cannot be done.

So, don't be surprised by some answers you get.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

Hi All
As kevin said very few people want to sleeve 1275 blocks that have been bored out to 73/73.5 mm, i have just re sleeved two 1275 blocks one from Qld and one from Vic both had 73.5mm bores one damaged on no2 the other on no3 they were told it could not be done, and it would distort the bore next to it,i did it no problems every ones happy, i have another block here now A+ 73.5mm a special race block which has to have 4 sleeves and bored back to 73.5mm no body wanted to touch it, i will take photos when i'm doing it and post them on here, i will also take photo of the sonic tester showing you how much difference there is in the wall thickness from one side to the other.
Graham Russell

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"It's better to be not informed than ill-informed"

People will have to face facts , soon enough there will be less and less blocks available and the only way ( apart from people making billet blocks ) for people to continue using A and A+ power in there Mini's/ Moke's will be with sleeving , this will be both small and large bore .

Sleeving with one day be as common an item talked about as Cam's and SU's
.

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I have sleeves in the 1100 that i am rebuilding and the guy at the engine place had no probs boring it or putting in new ones.

I agree with 74snail that sleeving will be the only way to keep minis going now the supply of blocks has stopped... I shudder to think how we used to waste them in the UK in the 90's... Boring to 74mm. and scrapping off after 50K miles. I went through at least three But they were so cheap, 50 pounds would get you a complete Metro engine from a scrapppy so why not!

Graham, would love to see how it goes, you are sleeving back to 73.5? Ignorant here but how thick are the sleeves? 'cos there isn't a lot of metal left between 2 and 3 on a 73.5 mm. rebore... I was thinking sleeving down to original capacities so that there was as much metal left as possible, and maybe a re-bore or two on the sleeves. Accepting that I am sacraficing capacity for logevity of engine parts...

All I need now is a crank...or some +50 bearing...Which do not exist, yet, but may do in the future as cranks get scarcer...

Thanks for replies, keep em coming 'cos sleeving is the future!

Yes, A+ blocks are a bit rare here, but there are still manual A series 1275s about, even std bore ones. And 1275 automatic `doorstops', ripe for conversion. Not hard to do, see my thread at top of this forum.
For most purposes, these blocks are as good as (or better than) an A+ one.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

we have sourced .050 undersized bearings before,, plenty of times,,, but are they for small journal or large journal???

we have just fitted a set of 50s into Matty Archers 1275 in his grey wagon actually

wev`e even used some early datsun 1200 bearings at one stage (in around-about that size i think they were in metric so it was ever so slightly differnt) but we just ground the crank to suit & they also needed a little narrowing (or they were a little narrow already) memory is fading with old age... what were we talking about again? & why am i typing into my microwave oven?

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No offence intended here but--> anyone writing a book about minis 30 years ago may not have experienced such worn or stuffed-with components as we are finding these days.

You should put your heart & soul into everything you do.

Crank is a large journal A+... It's an early turbo one so made of the better steel so would love to keep it alive a bit longer if possible!