Mark's hobby car & bike projects - notes accompanying gallery photos
1966 Jaguar Mk2 3.8(return)
Mark imported this 1966 Jaguar Mk2 sedan from the UK, in rough condition, in 1985. Since then, he's had just about every piece of it apart and in his hands. Much of the restoration work was done in the early 1990s. By the way, it started life as a 2.4 model, but Mark happened upon a 3.8 litre engine and made the swap (along with uprated radiator core, correct front springs and Laycock overdrive operating springs). The only giveaway, besides the number on the block, is the choke lever on the dashboard that operated the original Solex carbs in the 2.4.
1983 Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce(return) Mark Lee bought this Alfa Spider in 1995 with a blown head gasket. Since then, it has been through lots of iterations. He took it to bare metal, replaced the left rocker panel, and had the car sprayed metallic blue. Eventually, he treated it to new leather and carpets. He rebuilt a 1974 2.0 engine, adding 34DCOE Webers and Euro intake manifold, 10:1 high compression pistons (first attempt used 10.4:1 pistons but they didn't survive with the lightly shaved head), IAP headers and performance cams, an electric cooling fan, a round-style Facet fuel pump, and an aluminum radiator. There's a narrow-band air-fuel gauge in the cockpit -- not as good as a wide-band one! Mark later rebuilt the gearbox, too. Suspension mods include lowered springs and a chassis stiffener, with slotted/drilled rotors, stainless steel brake hoses. After smashing the front end, Mark welded in a new fender and front end, including a home-fabricated upper radiator support piece, and had the front of the car repainted.
1967 BSA Victor Shooting Star 441(return) Mark bought this 1967 unit single BSA motorcycle in 1978 for $350, and has owned it ever since. He's repainted the frame and done top-end work on it, but the cases have never been apart and all the red paint and chrome are original (except for the handlebars, which were replaced). Though it's a roadster, he used to trail ride it on occasion (it is essentially a Victor scrambler at heart), and his son Garrett sometimes sat between his legs on dirt trails. The bike has an easier life now. He could never sell it, but if he did, Garrett has first dibs. By the way, if you notice that it has 1968 antique plates, that's because it was not registered until 1968 -- apparently, BSA had a tough time selling them.
1939 MG TA Tickford Drophead Coupe(return) Mark's dad bought this tired MG in England in 1964 and gave it to him -- at age 11 -- for a project. The car was built in 1939, and is a rare Tickford-bodied TA (forerunner of the TC). For those unfamiliar, these had proper bucket seats, wind-up windows, and a luxurious, padded top -- complete with a small glass rear window and external "landau" irons. The car was stored for several years while the family lived overseas, and then, during high school, Mark did a light restoration on it. Debt from parts and re-chroming meant he had to sell it soon after it was finished (in 1972 or 1973). He was able to track it down over 30 years later and the current owner kindly keeps him abreast of progress during its extensive, years-long body-off restoration. Incidentally, a very large percentage of all MG TA and TB Tickfords ever built is accounted for by a worldwide enthusiast club.
1974 Norton 850 Commando Mk-IIA(return) Mark bought this 1974 Norton Commando (MkIIa) as a basket case in 1997, and undertook a total restoration. The cylinder barrels are now on their last rebore (0.60"). You may notice that the early photos show the twin-leading-shoe front drum brake, which was on the bike when he bought it, whereas it had left the factory with a front disk. He sourced a fork slider and brake components on eBay. The gearbox rebuild came later, when the layshaft bearing started to come apart. A bit of Commando advice: if the horn needs attention, see to it while the gearbox is out; it's perhaps the single most frustrating part to access on these bikes.
1974 Fiat 128SL Sport Coupe(return) In the early 1980s, Mark bought this Fiat coupe, which had already seen too many Minnesota winters. Not yet a welder, Mark sandblasted the body in his driveway and "fixed" it with fiberglass. After the heavy, battering-ram 1974 U.S. spec bumpers were tossed out, the car sat high on its suspension, so Mark had a bit chopped off the springs. The standard Faza de-smog kit, known to most Fiat enthusiasts of the era, restored driveability. A zippy little car, despite the meager 1290cc displacement.
1960's BSA Victor Scrambler(return) This bike was cobbled up in 2003 from parts Mark had laying around. Originally, it was a parts bike for his Victor Shooting Star (street version). He had stripped it of parts and tossed the frame under the deck out back, but never really needed many of the parts for his "good" 441 Victor. So ... he decided to make it into a BSA scrambler, cutting off all unnecessary frame lugs, etc. He cut down a Shooting Star seat pan to fabricate a shorter, sixties-scrambler style seat. The engine was fine with a top-end freshening and new Amal carb. The wheels and front end came from a Triumph TR25W (essentially a re-badged BSA). He cobbled up a batteryless ignition system, but never bothered to install a kill switch; you can see the green "kill" wires near the handlebars. The giant, aluminum rear sprocket and smaller front sprocket moved the gearing from "street" to off-road. He didn't ride the bike very often, and sold it a few years later to fund a late-model Kawasaki KDX-200 dirt bike instead.