Six Cylinders Motoring Notes

[bub2006]

Great shot of lancia with my trike on trailer duties behind sneaking into shot!

[Tadhg Tiogar]

[bub2006]

Bekos daughter was telling me about her daddy cleaning cars. Then discussing wiring colours and finally the 9 times table. Sam,shes a great kid but cant half rattle!

[dozeydustman]

10 minutes ago, bub2006 said:

Great shot of lancia with my trike on trailer duties behind sneaking into shot!

Please send any royalties to the homeless & jobless refuse collectors’ benevolent fund

[bub2006]

Highly unlikely any royalties be forthcoming! At least you find a nice shaded spot for brakes. 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

[Six-cylinder]

34 minutes ago, bub2006 said:

Great shot of lancia with my trike on trailer duties behind sneaking into shot!

 

[bub2006]

That was fully loaded!

[wuvvum]

Can we expect a HubNut video on the trike in the near future then?

[dollywobbler]

It managed to sneak into a video two years ago when I bought my Rover 45V6. Bub shuttled me to meet Mr Bollox in one of the strangest, yet most enjoyable days of my life.

Thanks to everyone for a lovely weekend. New family absolutely loved it and can't wait to visit again. Apols to Slowsilver for the broken spring on the Zafira - shame I wasn't recording when it actually broke free but it was like that when I left the field. Hope you found the wheeltrim and apols for the random can I'd picked up on entering the field and then forgot about. It was eventful!

The GSA also hit trouble within a few miles when a rear window refused to wind up. Quickly solved and we had a lovely non-motorway drive home. Top weekend.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

[Ghosty]

Home and showered, had an uneventful trip back over the M1 then through Sheffield and over the Snake. I saw a blue Dodge 50 going south on the M1 around J30/9pm - @Mr_Bo11ox ???

 

The tent was a bit hot, black isn't an ideal colour... was comfy though. My camping chair slowly fell apart along the course of Friday night, to the point I sat on it and it collapsed... 

and there's also a pic of @Floatylight's @Smoll Floatylight piloting the 205. A very well received car - and one that's prompted 6C to start thinking about a turbocharged diesel Visa - it seems 205 seats aren't quite suited to him. 

That E36 is going to come up lovely - a rather hung over catsinthewelder, smol floatylight and I spent a while properly attaching the wheels, Beko and I hoovered it out, and I gave it a wash with the assistance of Beko's charming kids. It's a nice car, drives well, but impossible to reverse on account of it being all too easy to stall. 

Had a great weekend and it's just what I've needed after the lockdown cycling boom. 
Absolutely wonderful to see everyone again, and catch up with people I haven't seen in far too long. 

Many many thanks to Chris and Claire for hosting us all once again. 

[beko1987]

I thought there was something wrong with the gear selector, reverse just seems hard to push across to. 

I stalled the poor thing loads though, I can lift my foot off all the pedals in the xsara and be doing 5mph before I know it. That thing needed some revs. 

It is clean though! Missing most of the toolkit and we probably should have looked at the brakes

[Tadhg Tiogar]

Yesterday's heroes:

 

[wuvvum]

Highlights of the weekend for me were driving a tractor for the first time in ages, the extended test drive AnthonyG and I took in the Renault 11 down some quite pleasant Bucks roads to check all was well following its fettling session, and my first time seeing a cut-down Honda Melody ridden up and down a field by man in full horseriding gear, complete with riding crop.

As others have said, thanks to the Cylinders for once again hosting a very enjoyable weekend, and I'm already looking forward to the next one.  Hopefully I might have something more interesting than a Mk4 Mondeo on the road by then...

[Tadhg Tiogar]

9 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

.... my first time seeing a cut-down Honda Melody ridden up and down a field by man in full horseriding gear, complete with riding crop.......

I'm honoured to have given you that vision.

 

[LightBulbFun]

19 minutes ago, Tadhg Tiogar said:

Yesterday's heroes:

 

Oh yay! nice to see REV and Dolly some more  (I did see in one of the previous photos that something was going on with the pair so Im hopeful some work was done?)

(nice to see a computer tower will comfortably fit inside a Model 70, handy to know for the future when I use REV to collect old computers for my computer hobby!)

how is REV doing? I see she could do with a good clean but I hope she has not deteriorated too much?

[Tadhg Tiogar]

1 minute ago, LightBulbFun said:

.... I hope she has not deteriorated too much?

If it's any consolation, she's not deteriorating any quicker than the other residents at the FoD.

[chodweaver]

Some great pics of what appears to have been a great weekend. Sorry I couldn't make it this time.

[Six-cylinder]

Thank you to everybody who came to our FoD open weekend. Having our own field is great, but sharing it is even better.

The highlight for me was spouting nonsense about going to fetch fish and chips in a project car, then it coming true! 

[quicksilver]

What a great weekend! It was fantastic to get out of town and do something normal* for the first time since March, and this was one of the best-attended FOD gatherings we've had. Some observations from the weekend's activities:

• Invacars are almost impossible to jack up.
• The gold Gamma is quite amazingly rotten.
• FOD events need noise to get the right atmosphere. It just wasn't the same when all was quiet and no engines were running.
• @mat_the_cat's Stellar still sounds glorious. After he left I just stood in the gateway mesmerised by the noise of it burbling away.
• Everyone fell in love with the Renault. It's no ball of fire but it'll get you around in supreme comfort and handles the potholes like nothing else.
• Glad it wasn't just me who had trouble reversing the BMW. It's not the easiest thing to drive slowly.
• Running a V12 Jag is not for the faint hearted and @Zelandeth is a brave man.
• Kudos to @bub2006 for bringing the craziest machine in a field of crazy machines. That trike is extraordinary!
• These famous YouTube celebrities break other people's cars Seriously though, neither incident was DW's fault - the 20-year old spring had done well to last that long and those potholes are brutal.

Thanks again to Mr and Mrs 6C for their hospitality and to everyone who attended. Hopefully we can do it again before too long, and have a much smoother journey once the lane has been resurfaced.

[beko1987]

15 minutes ago, quicksilver said:

• Everyone fell in love with the Renault. It's no ball of fire but it'll get you around in supreme comfort and handles the potholes like nothing else.

I don't know, when I was letting Eva steer I'd make sure it was pointing straight ahead then floor it, and it don't half take off. I bet it's not too bad at getting away from the lights and what not, get used to how it rolls and steers then commute on the same roads for 6 months and I reckon you could get a decent time out of it, and carry some speed

[LightBulbFun]

10 minutes ago, quicksilver said:

Invacars are almost impossible to jack up.

I bet that gave @dollywobbler some good old fashioned PTSD flash backs to when he first got TWC!

 

to be fair the workshop manual does tell you where the jacking points are  

 

 

happy to hear everyone had a good time, it really looked like fun from the photographs  once again really wish I had someway of getting down their that did not make everyone all twitchy! LOL hopefully the by the time the next FoD gathering roles around I either have some way of avoiding public transport (kind lift from a shitter or such) or it is safe to use it once more!

(as I have said before, the ironic thing is if I had REV on the road id be able to make it, good ol Catch 22! *sigh* )

[bub2006]

Due to my disabilities I've found for 200 plus miles nearly all being motorways I've found the trike isn't the best. I'm suffering rather bad today. Takes some concentration and fighting plus constantly alert for self preservation. next time I'll bring the pug or mini.  When I turned up smoll floaty looked like death asleep outside. Hope hes recovered by now! Thanks to catsinthewelder,chris and mrs6c for the bolts and floaty and ghosty for the tools to reattach exhaust flange back to manifold too. 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

Gratuitous Dollywobbler GSA content:

 

[wuvvum]

1 hour ago, beko1987 said:

I don't know, when I was letting Eva steer I'd make sure it was pointing straight ahead then floor it, and it don't half take off. I bet it's not too bad at getting away from the lights and what not, get used to how it rolls and steers then commute on the same roads for 6 months and I reckon you could get a decent time out of it, and carry some speed

It feels lively off the line, but with the kickdown not working it takes a while to get up to A-road speeds unless you shift the gears manually.  It is quite capable of carrying a decent speed through the bends though, in typical '80s French style - leans like a galleon in a gale but clings gamely on.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

The star of the show. 11/10 - would come again:

 

[Slowsilver]

2 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

I bet that gave @dollywobbler some good old fashioned PTSD flash backs to when he first got TWC!
to be fair the workshop manual does tell you where the jacking points are  

 

Great in theory and probably OK if you are only changing one wheel and only using a jack.
Trying to remove six tyres simultaneously from two Invacars parked immovably in long grass and thistles in a damp field when three of the tyres are completely flat is a different kettle of fish. Long piece of wood under chassis rails was required to even raise them high enough to get a jack under. 
In practice:
Jack up one rear wheel using designated jacking point at extreme rear of chassis leg. Place axle stand as close as possible in front of it. REmoVe* jack.
Jack up other rear wheel in the same way. Insert axle stand as before. Remove jack. Front wheel lifts off the ground and rear wheels go back down.
Try interchanging positions of jack and axle stands. Same thing happens, but this time before the second axle stand can be placed in position. Obviously the centre of gravity of these things is at the very back of the outer chassis rails. It would be so much easier if they could be jacked up behind the rear wheels but there is nothing there that is substantial enough to take the weight. Claire and I eventually managed to work out a method which allowed us to remove both rear wheels on both cars without them falling over. We then decided that attempting to remove the front wheels as well would be a step too far so the four rear wheels were conveyed to the tyre fitters around lunchtime on Thursday and the Silvers retired home for a leisurely lunch. They were collected later on Thursday afternoon and stored safely in the boot of the Maxi. We took them back to the field on Friday morning and refitted them with no real problems, then removed the front wheel from both cars, which was a bit of a pain access wise but eventually successful. These two wheels were then taken to the tyre fitters and we again adjourned for lunch while they were fettled. They were collected immediately after lunch, transported back to the field and refitted with no more dramas.
Estimated time for job: 4 hours. Actual time for job: 2 days.
But we succeeded eventually and the Maxi did sterling (silver) service as a mobile workshop.
 

[LightBulbFun]

23 minutes ago, Slowsilver said:

Great in theory and probably OK if you are only changing one wheel and only using a jack.
Trying to remove six tyres simultaneously from two Invacars parked immovably in long grass and thistles in a damp field when three of the tyres are completely flat is a different kettle of fish. Long piece of wood under chassis rails was required to even raise them high enough to get a jack under. 
In practice:
Jack up one rear wheel using designated jacking point at extreme rear of chassis leg. Place axle stand as close as possible in front of it. REmoVe* jack.
Jack up other rear wheel in the same way. Insert axle stand as before. Remove jack. Front wheel lifts off the ground and rear wheels go back down.
Try interchanging positions of jack and axle stands. Same thing happens, but this time before the second axle stand can be placed in position. Obviously the centre of gravity of these things is at the very back of the outer chassis rails. It would be so much easier if they could be jacked up behind the rear wheels but there is nothing there that is substantial enough to take the weight.Claire and I eventually managed to work out a method which allowed us to remove both rear wheels on both cars without them falling over. We then decided that attempting to remove the front wheels as well would be a step too far so the four rear wheels were conveyed to the tyre fitters around lunchtime on Thursday and the Silvers retired home for a leisurely lunch. They were collected later on Thursday afternoon and stored safely in the boot of the Maxi. We took them back to the field on Friday morning and refitted them with no real problems, then removed the front wheel from both cars, which was a bit of a pain access wise but eventually successful. These two wheels were then taken to the tyre fitters and we again adjourned for lunch while they were fettled. They were collected immediately after lunch, transported back to the field and refitted with no more dramas.
Estimated time for job: 4 hours. Actual time for job: 2 days.
But we succeeded eventually and the Maxi did sterling (silver) service as a mobile workshop.
 

Ohh sorry to hear it turned out to be such a ball ache! I do apologise! but also Oh yay to the success part!

I was reading that getting dismayed that the job would not have been able to have been done!

but thank you (and @Mrs6C )  for persevering through the difficulties and swapping the Tyres out on REV and Dolly!  

it is very much appreciated and is on big step closer to hopefully getting REV and Dolly on the road  

(Im guessing the original plan to get them onto hard standing for the tyre swapping was not possible/feasible then? I do see REV has a key in her ignition in one of the photos was an attempt made to start her and move her?)

just curious where any pictures taken at all?   (I understand if none where due to the difficulty of it all!)

 

and on the same note im guessing due to the unforeseen difficulties that no other work was done to the Model 70s? 

Thank you once more it is very much appreciated! 

[Slowsilver]

No problem. It was an interesting* challenge, and if it was easy anyone could do it.  It's the problem solving that makes it interesting.
With 3 flat tyres and partially seized brakes we decided not to attempt to move them as it would have made much more work for not much advantage, especially as we would have had to move them back again afterwards.
At the time Dolly had no carburettor and REV no petrol tank so we made no attempt to start either.
The ignition key was in REV because I did get to spend a small amount of time checking out the electrics. Unfortunately the problems appear to be more than just corroded bulbs or bulb holders. All the side and rear lights work OK but I was unable to check the headlights as the switch refused to go into the headlamp position and I didn't want to force it and break it. The left-hand front indicator works OK but despite me cleaning up the bulb and the holder contacts the rear just glows very dimly. The right hand rear indicator works OK but the front one does not work at all. The bulb is intact and I again cleaned the contacts, but no joy.
Checking the lights on Dolly showed that the side and rear lights and one headlamp worked OK but the number plate light did not and the other headlamp is also very dim. I did quickly check the voltage at the number plate light socket and there was only about 4.5 volts on it, so I suspect there are problems on both with corroded high-resistance connections elsewhere in the looms.
I didn't take many pictures as I was rather short of spare hands but the random few I did take are below: