Ask a Shiter

[wuvvum]

In a bike MoT test, is it just the dipped beam headlight which is checked for aim, or is the main beam checked too?  The main beam on the Piaggio is way out, but as it's one of these modern bikes where you have to dismantle half the front end to get to the headlight bulbs, I'd rather leave it if I can get away with it.

[cort16]

Farecla G3

 

Cheers Cobblers, it doesn't look to expensive of ebay either

[ShiteRider]

Has the berlin wall gone back up?

Not meaning to cause a ruckus or owt but i was looking at the tank thread from the stupendous threads from other places or whatever it's called and came back and seems to be all change.

I hope it has otherwise, mixing co-codemol and heineken has been a really bad idea.

[castros_bro]

yes

 

This word is not about old cars but 1970s Prog Rock band.

 

Change direction or be sectioned by Mods.

[willswitchengage]

Anyone know about motor bike baffles?

 

New ride has this exhaust and sound (ER5 with Viper can):

 

 

It's too noisy and I hate it.

 

Will any of these ebay products help?

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EXHAUST-SILENCER-BAFFLE-47mm-SLIGHTLY-BENT-TO-FIT-GP-VIPER-SILENCER-DB-KILLER-/271174217751?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&hash=item3f233e3017

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MOTORCYCLE-VIPER-BAFFLE-FOR-4-STROKE-EXHAUSTS-47mm-NOISE-REDUCTION-DB-KILLER-/190688020134?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&hash=item2c65e446a6

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Viper-dBKiller-Motorcycle-Angled-Race-Can-Baffle-for-viper-oval-round-cans-/310735312845?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&hash=item48594497cd

[dollywobbler]

A friend's daughter has just started learning to drive. She was telling me she's taught to do "block changes" when slowing down, i.e, going from 4th to 2nd.

What's the point in that?

I would say don't knock something until you've tried it, but I'm not going to try it. Won't that rip the gear box to shreads if you keeping doing it?

 

I'm surprised by this. I was taught block-changing back in 1995 and thought it'd been utterly replaced by 'just use the brakes' these days. "Brakes to slow, gears to go" is what I got told recently by a driving instructor. I still block change and always have done. So far, I've only broken gearboxes in my 2CV, which is more to do with slamming it into second at 40mph while hooning around a racetrack than anything else.

 

This same instructor told me to block change going UP the gearbox (some of our buses have six speeds). I do this a lot in six-speeders anyway - first, second, sixth is usually fun. I don't tend to bother in the buses though as I just find it smoother to use all of the gears and keep the revs down. I had many arguments with this instructor.

[The Moog]

what is the benefit of bigger wheels? cars used to have 15 inch rims but now are routinely 18 inch. Is it just a style thing or are there practical benefits

[Mr Lobster]

Fed up of getting a flat battery of the 4 so I reckon some sort of trickle charger might be handy for whilst its sat in the garage.

 

Anyone recommend one? 

[dollywobbler]

what is the benefit of bigger wheels? cars used to have 15 inch rims but now are routinely 18 inch. Is it just a style thing or are there practical benefits

 

Style. Wheels were huge in the 1920s, then started shrinking. The Minor was considered revolutionary for having 14" wheels. Then the Mini used 10" ones.

 

Bigger wheels allow the use of bigger brakes, but it is mainly driven by style. There's some truth that a slimmer tyre sidewall makes handling sharper, but as they ruin everything by fitting PAS anyway, all you get is a really crap ride, as the sidewalls have no give in them.

[brickwall]

I used a solar powered caravan one. The same one to heat my student diggs back in the day. Connected to car battery and then to a ciggy lighter fan heater.

[Partridge]

FAO The Lobster

 

My mate uses a CTEK jobbie for his Scooby. I think they're pretty expensive, but he rates it.

http://www.ctek.com/gb/en/page/whycharge/battery-charging

[skattrd]

Lobster -  I've got a couple of motors outside my house that I occasionally leave for a while and I just disconnect the battery. You can get quick release clamps for the battery to make life easier. The rally car has a battery cutoff switch which is handy, I'll likely be fitting one to the Storia, which has a habit of draining it's tiny battery.

[twosmoke300]

Further to Moogs post :- If lower profile tyres are supposed to give better grip/roadholding why do F1 tyres have such high sidewalls?

[Spiny Norman]

A lot of the suspension in an F1 car is in the tyres. Also F1 tyres are utter witchcraft and not meant to be understood by the likes of us.

[John F]

Anyone know about motor bike baffles?

 

New ride has this exhaust and sound (ER5 with Viper can):

 

It's too noisy and I hate it.

 

Will any of these ebay products help?

 

My gut feeling says no, those things seem to be designed for occasional use on track days to get the bike below any DB restrictions at the track... no idea how they'd cope with permanent use, or whether they'd affect carburation. 

 

If it was my bike I'd replace the end can and have the bike re-jetted to suit if necessary. Or wear ear plugs, lol.

[nigel bickle]

I need to convert a clear reversing light into a deep red foglight.  We've done the wiring, and hoped we could get away with a red bulb -but its not good enough, frankly.

 

There used to be a red paint for plastic lenses -anyone remember what its called , or if its still available?

[garbaldy]

Would the plastic light repair sheet not be good enough if not Could also run red bulb aswell.

[Sigmund Fraud]

I need to convert a clear reversing light into a deep red foglight.  We've done the wiring, and hoped we could get away with a red bulb -but its not good enough, frankly.

 

There used to be a red paint for plastic lenses -anyone remember what its called , or if its still available?

 

I know that some MX5-owning master bodgers have used a permanent marker for this purpose, with MoT-able results.

[Spiny Norman]

If there's an 'er indoors' handy, red nail varnish works too.

[KruJoe]

Keep dipping a regular bulb in red hi-temp paint until it shines red enough..?

or

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-1157-BAY15D-Globes-12-LED-Brake-Turn-Stop-Tail-Light-Lamp-Bulb-DC-12v-Red-NEW-/400466817797

or

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/REAR-FOG-LIGHT-CREE-RED-LAMP-LED-CAR-BULB-12V-382-P21W-NISSAN-SERENA-/271052298245

[daveb47]

tinted enamel from model shop will do the job

[saucedoctor]

@Bickle - we used to sell stuff called "Turbolites", a spray for tinting rear lights. Not seen it for years, though.

 

This is the same idea:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RED-Light-Tinting-Spray-Paint-rear-back-light-lens-400ml-/151085353221

[nigel bickle]

Ta. No universal product that everyone recommends, so I'll go the nail varnish or model shop enamel. Bit of experimentation, methinks, to get the tint as similar as poss to  t'others.

 

Cheers all

[cobblers]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/REAR-FOG-LIGHT-CREE-RED-LAMP-LED-CAR-BULB-12V-382-P21W-FORD-FOCUS-MK2-/290770076134?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item43b33f41e6

 

Just put a red LED bulb in. Proper red, and this one will be very bright too (unlike the ones with a load of little individual LEDS in)

[tooSavvy]

Steam Locomotive Content >>>> WARNING.

 

Ok.... anyone explain if merely steam pressure [as seen in cab gauge] is exerting force on piston crown when pulling a load OR it there an 'energy expansion/conversion coefficient' going on, with the superheated steam bursting into the cylinder?

 

I reckon this is the bestplace to get a half honest answer.....

 

tooSavvy

[barefoot]

Ta. No universal product that everyone recommends, so I'll go the nail varnish or model shop enamel. Bit of experimentation, methinks, to get the tint as similar as poss to  t'others.

 

Cheers all

Nail varnish is a bit crappy.

I've not used enamel paint, but it can't be worse than nail polish.

[alf892]

i think halfords sell some 'proper' stuff...........probably expensive nail varnish

[willswitchengage]

XUD7T engine, Lucas CAV, engine not switching off. Is it really so simple as a straight swap with the stop solenoid?

[Sloth in a bowl]

Steam Locomotive Content >>>> WARNING.

 

Ok.... anyone explain if merely steam pressure [as seen in cab gauge] is exerting force on piston crown when pulling a load OR it there an 'energy expansion/conversion coefficient' going on, with the superheated steam bursting into the cylinder?

 

I reckon this is the bestplace to get a half honest answer.....

 

tooSavvy

 

I'm not sure that I understand what you are trying to find out but thinking logically.

 

superheated steam is when the oxygen / hydrogen atom bonds are bust so it tends to get very high pressure and temp.

when it rushes into the cylinder there is nothing to give it more energy if fact unless the cylinder is very hot I assume that the oxygen  and hydrogen will reform into wet steam  and take up less space.

I think it is bonus super heater pressure only and nothing else

 

It's ages since I been on a loco with a superheater but won't they have 2 pressure gauges, one for the boiler and one for the superheated steam chest that should be running a much higher reading.

 

I tried getting finding a footplate image of Sir Drefaldwyn on the Welshpool and Llanfair as that is superheated and was a chod of a steam engine (built by the French for the Germans during WW2) to prove the idea.

 

Hope this helps (and is vaguely true)

[willswitchengage]

superheated steam is when the oxygen / hydrogen atom bonds are bust so it tends to get very high pressure and temp.

when it rushes into the cylinder there is nothing to give it more energy if fact unless the cylinder is very hot I assume that the oxygen  and hydrogen will reform into wet steam  and take up less space.

I think it is bonus super heater pressure only and nothing else

 

Nope, your water molecules remain intact throughout the whole process, ans would do for many thousands more degrees of temperature increase. 

 

A heat engine cycle's efficiency, such as your steam engine, increases with the temperature differential (how much heat added to your working medium (water) in the boiler, then converted into work in the cylinders through expansion), but there's obviously practical limits to this before steam temperature (and therefore pressure) reach dangerous limits. Steam from your kettle for instance will be ~100 degrees, in a modern power plant it will be about 500 before hitting the turbines.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rankine_cycle