Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing HardChrome Kingpins

+1. A true gent and a Morgan eccentric of the best kind, I wish I could emulate his style. He is much missed

Button was an absolute gent and so knowledgable about all things Morgan, we had several discussions about Plus 8's and I learned a lot from his wisdom.

Yes Rog, Oilites. I agree the reaming could seal the sintered in pirosity.
Button.
Had a few chats with him. A loss to the Mog fraternity.

5 years ago I asked Button for beautiful destinations in the Northwest of the USA. Many emails came from him and it was a pleasure to read them all. Not only did he have the best recommendations for beautiful places like Port Townsend on the Olympic Peninsula at the Manrea Castle Hotel, but all the place descriptions and recommendations were also part of his personal history and partly also of American history. I would like to give you just a small excerpt of the wealth of detail with which Button was able to describe places and locations. He was so friendly and committed and it was one of our most beautiful holidays.
Here is an original excerpt from Button, actually it was just about the place Mount Hood, but Button reads it like this:

If You do happen to go to "Timberline Lodge" at Mt. Hood, look for the "Silver Skis" trophy. Hans Otto Giese won that Trophy in the early 1930's. Otto Giese immigrated from Kiel in about 1929. Married a Norwegian Beauty from Stanwood, Wa. On His Honeymoon Otto went to the 1936 Olympics and also bought a 6 Metre racing yacht from the King of Norway (King Olaf V). It is still in the Giese Family. 6 Children, I went to the University of Washington with Issa Giese the Oldest. Otto was instrumental in getting the sport of Skiing popular in the Pacific Northwest. He was also responsible for the establishment of the "Corinthian Yacht Club" a sailboat racing Club in Seattle. Otto was a Lawyer and Founder of the "German Club". You can believe Me The Giese Family had problems during WW II.

Button


Here is what he wrote to recommend the stay in Port Townsend:

I expanded the Port Angeles area. Lake Crescent, to the West, is a delightful drive. At Sapho You have options, all of the good. Lake Ozette, LaPush, Neah Bay are available. I would not go South of Forks. Nothing to see. At LaPush take a hike South or North on the Ocean beaches. But be forwarned about tides and headlands. Easy to get trapped over night. Hurricane Ridge is just above Port Angeles and again a short Hike is in order. I have hiked the Olympic Peninsula, both ocean and mountains for years. Not for the light hearted but rewarding for sure. The Dungeness Spit (Lighthouse) has beckoned Me home from many a Sail Boat Race on the Straits. Port Townsend was supposed to be the Seattle, but did not make the grade. Take a look at the old buildings. McCurdy is etched in the old Bank Building. Horace McCurdy owned the Shipyard I worked in. My Brother went to Training Camp at Port Hudson when He joined the Coast Guard in 1939. I was 9 Years old. Then down Hood Canal. Another delightful drive. I often test My Morgans on this Run. Spend at least a day in Port Townsend. Lots to see and do. I would stay at Manresa Castle, an old Catholic Home, now a Hotel.


As I said, these are only short excerpts from longer emails. I don't want to divulge private things here but give an impression of how lively his texts were and how well-read and highly educated Button was. I have 15 longer mails with recommendations where to stay in Washington State and all are full of his lifetime experiences. It also becomes apparent that William had a deep friendship with Lorne, and both men with their partners have shared their time with the joy of driving Morgan for decades. It is a great story.
I hope I don't bore you with it. It is so sad that he has passed away and not because he was already very old but very fresh and lively, unfortunately, in a car accident (not his Mog).

For those who are interest in the use of Vesconite Hilube for bushed, then this subject was covered back in 2014 Front suspension longevity

Instead of using a bespoke PTFE wiper I used a standard lipseal, which has proved simple to fit and effective

Brilliant work Owen as always If only the factory had done it like that in the first place…..

When I purchase my second car and got it home I spotted that it had the RS front end. A bit of a surprised but opened up another opportunity. I noticed that it used a little 10mm spacer between the lower spring and hub. Enough room to introduce some sealing perhaps



So now I’ve abandoned the PTFE wipers and have these retro fit able wiper seal housings that replace the 10mm spacers above the bottom springs. There’s enough room to fit 2 proprietary wiper or scraper seals per pin. The seals have a little radial float as the outer of the tubes may not be absolutely concentric with the pins. Haven’t had the opportunity to fit them yet but it should be a case of just removing the bottom springs and attaching them to the lower part of the tubes. Fun to come playing around….

Wonderful post Heinz

+1

With regard to your beautiful lip seal housing, would it be necessary to shorten the rebound spring when fitting ? As I am thinking ( and I may have got this completely wrong) that the lower section of the stub axle, against which the rebound spring would normally locate, now is mounted against the internal shoulder of the housing with the rebound spring now resting upon the face at the end where lip seals are mounted. But I am unsure where the " 10mm spacers" that you remove come into the scheme as there are no spacers fitted to my 4/4

No there should be no reason to shorten the springs. The RS kit is a little difference to the regular arrangement. On this car I have a height adjusting spacer below the stub tube. The plan is to ‘attempt’ to substitute the housings for the spacer, we shall see….

PS - Sorry it’s actually a 20mm tall spacer not 10mm, I posted way too early this morning….!



Having had your Hilubes in for a while, how do you find them?