With the head off the '32 Minx, it was clear that none of the valves were seating and, as the carbon in the combustion chamber and on top of the pistons was rather muddy, the valve guides were obviously past their best.

Cleaning up was easy before the bit we weren't looking forward to - removing the valves without dropping collets into the crankcase. We made up a cardboard shelf and stuffed the valve chest with rag. The valve lifter - a gift from Learned Counsel a couple of years ago - was identical to the illustration in the Minx's manual....

... and the collets weren't in pairs, but of a horseshoe design - apparently common enough though they were a first for me. Good design made the job so much easier than it might have been.

The Great Collector's spares department produced a set of new valves and springs, though no guides. We elected to go with what we had - a bit of oil on the valve stems wasn't going to hurt, and whatever we did was going to be a vast improvement on the previous state of affairs.

The water jacket and top hose outlet were repainted and new cork gaskets made up.

The rings for the head lifting lugs arrived and will prove useful for most of The Great Collector's stable.

Un-car related jobs during the week included fabricating and welding brackets to a batch of twenty feed pipes...

... and a repair to one of Cook's treasured utensils. I thought about this and decided to do what I imagined an itinerant metal worker would have done in The Olden Days. I cut the copper from a small sheet that Pa had in his workshop and which I remember as a child. The value of a 'come-in-handy' drawer cannot be overstated.

Arrangements for water jetting the bases and legs for two Ferrari styled coffee tables went smoothly (the base and legs support a 308 disc and wheel, and glass sits on top). I got a quote from a firm in Halifax early on Monday, priced the job and got approval by the evening, placed the order on Tuesday morning and they were with me by Thursday. Excellent service.

I was at last able to set about how I was going to make the Special's handbrake mechanism accessible.

I made up a small panel and cut a hole more or less where the hatch might go. I should have anticipated this problem when I positioned the handbrake lever; I might have come up with a better design.