Picked up a can of Lycoming Grey engine paint (a quart, not a spray bomb, photo below) from Aircraft Spruce (no financial interest, etc.). It is close...well, closer than the powder-light grey that was on there before. Advantages is that it's 1) meant to be applied to alloy surfaces (the engine cases of aircraft engines are AL alloy), 2) it flashes off quickly, hard dry in a few hours, 3) is close enough (based on comments offline from other folks) in shade that unless you have the color chip from an OEM, it will be hard to tell the difference, and 4) is heat/petro resistant.
Putting the new lightweight pulley on with a new woodruff...it kept pushing the key up in its slot whilst tightening the bolt down...so, I took a small tie-wrap, put it around shaft at inner end of the key...put the new pulley on, tapped it gently until it pushed up against the tie-wrap, clipped tie-wrap off, and tightened it down until it just touched the snap ring. (yes, there's a star washer under the head of the bolt.). Measured the distance to the head flange from the center of the groove; same distance as on the car currently. Guess it's where it belongs, so it should line up when I go to reassemble the lump.
I think, all in all, it all came out pretty good. Now, on to the front suspension. I'm pending the engine work till after the British Cars in Bristol show on June 11 in Bristol RI; it's running ok, if not perfectly, and don't want to get behind with the engine exploded around the garage and rushing to get it and the clutch done and have to be a spectator rather than participant. They have a 'diamond in the rough' class...maybe I have a chance there, right?
Thinking of doing the valve cover in crinkle red instead of black, when I get to that stage. Add some color to a dark area of the car.
