Distributor o ring

[ian theobald]

Gday. My distributor has arrived having been sent away to be refurbished and has come back with an O ring fitted in the groove where set bolt goes.
There wasnt one when removed.
I guessed it could not sit in the groove so rolled it up under the micro adjuster but this prevented me installing the set bolt.
I was in a hurry as my car needed to be driven up my driveway the following morning to be taken away for painting of doors and body.
Does the distributor require such O ring?
Also it came back with a different rotor button but no new cap as currently out of stock and noted cap would not fit over the rotor button so have fitted original back inside.
Timing was set at tdc and points opening by eye sight as time was running out but motor fired instantly.
It seemed a bit raspy at first and thimk was a bit advanced as did not like idle but turned distributor a whisker and good enough and runs smooth but will check later when the car returns.
The reason it was sent away was because of oil finding its way up inside
Interesting reading about others door fitment.
In my case have to work around existing timbers that are not original.
Both doors have equal gaps at the rear and tops almost equal in height to body tub.
However my drivers door is near perfect at front meeting dash but so close that fouls bottom buff rubber.
Passenger side has a much wider clearance but both doors click shut.
My only concern is the upright timber in front of the door on the passenger side protuded further in than sill timber preventing trim from lying flat so have planed away with a multi tool but discovered metal panel not hard against the timber.
At least I can slide a metal plate behind for the striker plate as at the momement held by screws.
Someone has welded metal capping and found was wider from the striker plate down to sill so have used a dremmell with mini cutting disk to cut little cuts and dolly over to similar width to surrounding capping.
I note at rear of doors where not disturbed the capping was spot welded and overlapped so is this how was finnished down from dash to floor as mine was covered level with auto filler/ bog /bondo but inside edge is lower in height.
If this is how should be then Panel shop can imitate perhaps by applying filler and maskkng and apply a 2nd layer to outer half..
Im off to Ireland next week as a 60th birthday present and car now at the Panel shop so will see how it looks when I return.
The body tub brace also arrived nut when fitted has almost 10 to 20 mm clearance in places over the wheel arches
Is this packed with wadding or do I get panel shop to cut and join for a closer fit.
Makes it hard when nothing original remains except a faint outline where nody brace may of been
Thanks ian

[Steve Simmons]

I've never seen an o-ring fitted but maybe others have a better idea about it.

[Tom Lange, MGT Repair]

An o-ring is an attempt to stop oil getting up into the distributor body. The groove is usually the one into which the fixing bolt locks, so its no wonder you could not use it with the o-ring there or under the body! Just leave it off, as you have done, and see if oil gets back into the distributor over time.

Tom Lange
MGT Repair