Right then ladies and gents, long story short, she fired!!!! And without fuss.
Fluids added. Being totally paranoid, I took off the rocker cover before cranking to see what cam lube we had and as ever, PMAC's work was spot on with the builder's lube.
Cranked for 15-20 secs without plugs in or pump to fuel rail connected, to ensure we got spark, oil pressure and primed the fuel pump / see the fuel coming through (which pumped with vigour into a collection jar). Oil pressure started raising fast at around 7 secs. Pete had primed the oil pump already.
Then we connected up the fuel rails, added plugs and cranked to fill carbs and see if she catches.
The first video shows the first start. The accelerator was responding weirdly as if stuck half way or not fully returning. Sadly I had the balance bar connected incorrectly and it was holding the rear carb open so the revs rose rapidly to c. 2800RPM but wouldn't drop off. Note to self don't do detailed work when shattered late at night!!! My explanation of the smoke in the video is incorrect and just thinking out loud; it would have been the builders' lube etc coming out.
Once sorted out the second video shows the engine responding better and getting some heat on without idling. The new bearings on the alternator are a little vocal - this was also the case the first time I replaced the alt and it took about 500miles to quieten down. I will have to check tightness of the belt again just to be sure.
Excuse me for sounding like a bad porn movie while getting in and out of the car, I managed to twist my knee badly chasing the children at the weekend, so I couldn't easily bend my accelerator leg/knee [emoji849]
Got the bonnet back on by placing flat with some support bars to take the weight. Put on the top two bolts, then raised to get the other two on.
Spent about half an hour aligning and while the bonnet sits near perfect at the front, the catch is about 5-10mm out and I dare not close it down for obvious reasons.
The catch, the striker plate and bonnet bolts are adjusted to their max positions, so I'm a little stumped as to why bonnet has shrunk [emoji6] any advice is most welcomed. I do have two bonnet catches and I suspect I may have mix and matched them when they came back from the plater's - but need to check.
Bled the clutch M/C and managed to select gears - moved back and forth about a foot or two to test. I couldn't do the same again later when on my own, so no road test yet. Will need more bleeding I suspect as the pedal is loaded up but feels a little softer than when it was working before.
Being wifeless and childless this week I will get the rest of it together in the evenings after work, ready for that first drive with lots of accelerating and backing off + bedding the new clutch / flywheel in. It's nice to see it looking like a car again!
Thankfully, no leaks, no fuel smells or mixing of liquids. Quite pleasing is how clear all fluids look now - had gotten used to orange / rust laden rad juice and dirty oil!
Oh, one other note to self - never get a dipstick plated, it's the same colour as fresh oil and you can't easily see where it is on the stick! [emoji13]