The new news 24 thread

[Cord Fourteener]

Tweed and twill.

I've been meaning to wear this tweed jacket with the Volvo, now I feel proper and that. 

No occasion, just a band practice. Normally I dress like a sack of potatoes unless there's a reason, I think enjoying a tweed with the twill seats is reason enough. 

[GrumpiusMaximus]

On 7/25/2022 at 8:49 AM, Cord Fourteener said:

Can one get a double bass in a 740 saloon?

✅

I've seen a double bass fit in a Fiat 500.  Granted it was a 7/8ths but it was quite impressive and clearly well-rehearsed.  Unlike the double-bassist.

[GMcD]

I had a nice conversation this morning with a chap who has agreed to buy the 1100 and has sent me a deposit to hold.

He intends to pick it up in a couple of weeks once his Iveco Beavertail is back from the menders....I think he belongs on here!

Plans are to use it in his upcoming retirement to go to shows and wee jaunts. He has a small workshop that he'll store it alongside a Morris Minor he is restoring. 

Sounds like it's going to the ideal person.

...will give it 10 minutes before sellers remorse kicks in! 

[wuvvum]

4 hours ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

I've seen a double bass fit in a Fiat 500.  Granted it was a 7/8ths but it was quite impressive and clearly well-rehearsed.  Unlike the double-bassist.

I found on a trip to the Czech Republic in 1995 that a full-size 'cello will just fit diagonally in the boot of a Škoda Estelle, with about an inch to spare.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

I did a theatre gig when I was about 20 and over the course of the rehearsal week managed to take more and more kit over.  It started off with my drum kit, then it was a small guitar rig, then it was a second guitar, then percussion.  Then a bass guitar.  It snowballed.

By the end of the show I managed to get it all into my S-reg Ford Ka.  I'm also 6'2".  It was so bad that I couldn't use first and third because my drum stool was in the way - good thing then that the gearing was very short...

At one point when I was at college, a few of the theatre technicians got together and wrote 'CAR TETRIS' on the side of the Ka in duct tape.  I got a bit known for it.

[richardmorris]

11 hours ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

I've seen a double bass fit in a Fiat 500.  Granted it was a 7/8ths but it was quite impressive and clearly well-rehearsed.  Unlike the double-bassist.

Citroen lines in house mag in the 1980s had a bassist with a 2cv featured. She had the rear and passenger seat taken out and it slid in no problem.

[AnnoyingPentium]

19 minutes ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

I did a theatre gig when I was about 20 and over the course of the rehearsal week managed to take more and more kit over.  It started off with my drum kit, then it was a small guitar rig, then it was a second guitar, then percussion.  Then a bass guitar.  It snowballed.

By the end of the show I managed to get it all into my S-reg Ford Ka.  I'm also 6'2".  It was so bad that I couldn't use first and third because my drum stool was in the way - good thing then that the gearing was very short...

At one point when I was at college, a few of the theatre technicians got together and wrote 'CAR TETRIS' on the side of the Ka in duct tape.  I got a bit known for it.

I've had a full-size glockenspiel lengthways in the Fabia, rear door to rear door. Couldn't get a fag paper between either side tho.

Helped get an 88-key electric piano into an Aygo too.

[RayMK]

I used my Tipo for a very enjoyable VMCC Founders Day rally/gathering on Sunday 24th July at Stanford Hall.  It was a hot, sunny day and I am now a bit pink.  I used the Tipo rather than my air conditioned 'modern' because the Tipo with its rear seat folded down easily accommodates my mid size mobility scooter after dismantling it to manageable lumps.  Even the scooter's seat seemed bloody heavy. Perhaps I'm just getting old.  After several hours of trundling around on the scooter admiring and photographing the numerous bikes that caught my interest, I drove home, the Tipo as usual behaving perfectly for the 25 or so miles each way trip.  Unpacking the car on arriving back home did reveal one problem.  The rear seat back, when raised back to its normal position was reluctant to latch on one side.  I gently pulled the plastic release button on the latched side so that I could slam the seat on to the latches properly.  The release button had felt a bit strange and pulled out completely.  I checked the side that had initially resisted latching and that button also just pulled out.  Both button stems appear to have given up in the heat, the ends having broken off.  Fortunately, I can operate the seat back release with a screwdriver fairly easily.  I'll see if I can fabricate something (metal) to replicate the broken stems and then return the buttons to their rightful position.  With my productivity rate I'll optimistically say this will be done before the year ends.  If my photos have not suffered from camera shake I'll post some on the bikeshite thread in due course.  This MacBook Air won't talk to my 2007 digital camera, so downloading has to be done on my old MacBook Pro.

Meanwhile, preparation of my '61 Reliant Regal for its eventual sale has been delayed by the hot weather.  Really it just needs a good clearout of the boot, a wash and polish and a test drive. Being a non-urgent activity, I may still be the owner next year! 

 

[wuvvum]

2 hours ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

I've had a full-size glockenspiel lengthways in the Fabia, rear door to rear door. Couldn't get a fag paper between either side tho.

Helped get an 88-key electric piano into an Aygo too.

While we're on the subject of fitting large instruments into small cars, I once fitted one of these:

into the back of one of these:

The drive home was interesting though - I somewhat resembled this chap:

[GrumpiusMaximus]

2 hours ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

I've had a full-size glockenspiel lengthways in the Fabia, rear door to rear door. Couldn't get a fag paper between either side tho.

Helped get an 88-key electric piano into an Aygo too.

We percussionists have special powers, I swear.

@wuvvum that is exceptional.  I did once take a small electric organ around the M25 from Rickmansworth to Gravesend in a Ford Fiesta.  I bought it for £1 on eBay.  It wasn't a good one but was sufficiently entertaining...

[AnnoyingPentium]

Just now, GrumpiusMaximus said:

We percussionists have special powers, I swear.

It's handy to have. I've managed a Tama (?) drumkit into the back of a Grande Punto as well. That was... interesting.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

Just now, AnnoyingPentium said:

It's handy to have. I've managed a Tama (?) drumkit into the back of a Grande Punto as well. That was... interesting.

I once managed my kit (22" bass drum, 14" floor tom, 12" tom, 14" snare and a couple of cymbals along with stands), a guitar, pedalboard, decent-sized valve amp and three people in my Ford Ka back in 2009.  It felt like getting out of a clown car at the end.

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 minute ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

I once managed my kit (22" bass drum, 14" floor tom, 12" tom, 14" snare and a couple of cymbals along with stands), a guitar, pedalboard, decent-sized valve amp and three people in my Ford Ka back in 2009.  It felt like getting out of a clown car at the end.

Flipping heck. It's coming up on time for me to get my Yamaha leccy organ in the Fabia to get it repaired. Going to hear the mudguards scraping along the road. 😂

[High Jetter]

2 hours ago, richardmorris said:

She had the rear and passenger seat taken out and it slid in no problem.

Um, I bet! Our drummer had his kit and the lighting rig in his Mondeo estate, I had my keyboard rig plus the (bulky) pa in my Carina estate, or Hijet if localish. Seems so lightweight, laptopish these days

[catsinthewelder]

Can't compete with the musical instruments but I did move my kids bunk bed mostly inside a Peugeot 205.

It got exciting when I picked up the hitchhiker!

[High Jetter]

23 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

It got exciting when I picked up the hitchhiker!

Which galaxy did she guide you to?

[davehedgehog31]

Bit of progress on the fleet.

The Z4 I'd bought had a nasty knock from the OSF. Sounded classic ARB noise. Swapped over the drop links to no avail. ARB bushes next as one looked well worn and indeed was;

Double pisser though, as the knock was still there and I also noticed it looks like the sump gasket is leaking, which involves dropping the subframe to replace;

Cleaned that up and will keep an eye on it. Next I suspected something strut related, spring, shock, top mount etc. I managed to get the strut out in no time at all;

And indeed, the top mount is absolutely shagged. I've got a replacement strut coming to go in. Bit annoying as I could have just swapped the top mount, but it saves me risking decapitation by spring compressor. 

This ungrateful fucker also left. Don't think I'd have another;

[Split_Pin]

12 minutes ago, davehedgehog31 said:

This ungrateful fucker also left. Don't think I'd have another;

How did that go from a well running, saleable car to scrap in 2 weeks?

[davehedgehog31]

8 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

How did that go from a well running, saleable car to scrap in 2 weeks?

It wasn't scrapped as such, sold to a well known auction/salvage mob as a going concern.

Got decent money for it that way and was zero hassle. I had hundreds of Gumtree messages, but I didn't want many of them knowing where my collection of catalytic converters lived. 

[barefoot]

After the warm weather last week, it occurred to me that the air conditioning in the Rover although cold, wasn't icy. I took it down to the local place with the  relevant pump this morning. They removed 234g of refrigerant, it held a vacuum for 25 minutes & they replaced 450g of the stuff. It's only marginally colder, but it doesn't get warmer in slow moving traffic like it did previously. I think this is a good result.

[Cord Fourteener]

19 hours ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

I once managed my kit (22" bass drum, 14" floor tom, 12" tom, 14" snare and a couple of cymbals along with stands), a guitar, pedalboard, decent-sized valve amp and three people in my Ford Ka back in 2009.  It felt like getting out of a clown car at the end.

I did something similar with an F reg Polo 1 litre.

It was not legal, but it was funny. 

[stuboy]

Well I decided to swap the alternator and what a fiddly job.. well I wasn't hopefully it was the problem but hey ho give it go...

 

Well it seems the noise has gone away,  4 mile test drive all ok... 

 

 

[Jazoli]

Fitted a new android head unit to the Merc today

 

And very nice it is too with full wireless android auto and carplay

Then the car decided to treat me to this message

Bah, that'll be an SBC pump rebuild then 😕

[Pat Earrings]

6 minutes ago, Jazoli said:

Fitted a new android head unit to the Merc today

 

And very nice it is too with full wireless android auto and carplay

Then the car decided to treat me to this message

Bah, that'll be an SBC pump rebuild then 😕

Liked for the headunit only. That’s shit about the SBC but fairly certain they can be reset due to the counter inside dependant on the code.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/184448584338?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=_xpMR1pWQZC&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=KCW16zwOSD-&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY
 

 

[andy18s]

2 hours ago, stuboy said:

Well I decided to swap the alternator and what a fiddly job.. well I wasn't hopefully it was the problem but hey ho give it go...

 

Well it seems the noise has gone away,  4 mile test drive all ok... 

 

 

Had to do this on my v6 Cougar,2 bolts could only be reached from the passenger wheel well,with a metre or two of extension bars.

[Rust Collector]

1 hour ago, Jazoli said:

Fitted a new android head unit to the Merc today

 

And very nice it is too with full wireless android auto and carplay

Then the car decided to treat me to this message

Bah, that'll be an SBC pump rebuild then 😕

Sorry to hear about the pump. Can I just ask if it's very noisy? My old man's W211 is on 200k+ miles and the pump is bloody noisy, and frequently kicking in...

[stuboy]

1 minute ago, andy18s said:

Had to do this on my v6 Cougar,2 bolts could only be reached from the passenger wheel well,with a metre or two of extension bars.

on the mk3 there held on with 3 bolts all facing backwards, the top bolt is tight against the bulkhead/insulation.

[Jazoli]

3 minutes ago, Rust Collector said:

Sorry to hear about the pump. Can I just ask if it's very noisy? My old man's W211 is on 200k+ miles and the pump is bloody noisy, and frequently kicking in...

Yes it's really noisy and kicks in all the time. 

[trigger]

Sold the Astra Tuesday night. 

It's gone to a local lad who's dream car is a Mk1 Astra so I'm pleased to can make a boys dreams come true. 

Sad to see it go but I never really gelled to it and need the money and space back again, you can't keep them all and it's another one back on the road again. 

[Snake Charmer]

7 hours ago, Jazoli said:

Fitted a new android head unit to the Merc today

 

And very nice it is too with full wireless android auto and carplay

Then the car decided to treat me to this message

Bah, that'll be an SBC pump rebuild then 😕

Head unit looks a neat fit. Bad news about the SBC pump.