The grumpy thread

[The Moog]

Drove back from London village last night back to Accrington.

 

Passed 4 different accidents on the M6 & M65 where people had spun their cars into the barriers. Amazing how people think they are better than the laws of physics especially in RWD German machines. 

 

Horrible weather and loads of standing water means that 90 mph progress is not advisable especially with 20 inch wheels and low profile tyres 

[dollywobbler]

A few points to the charming gentleman in the private plated Audi A6: 

 

M62 eastbound: thank you SO MUCH for blinding me with your full beams in the appalling spray near Birch services. 

Apparently, according to you, I'm not allowed to have my rear fog light on despite the shite visibility (less than 100 metres). Thanks for swerving in front of me and turning yours on and off to make your point. 

 

While you're giving your opinion of my driving (with much gesticulation) can I remind you that: 

 

1. Diving across two lanes in terrible weather to cause me GBH of the optic nerve is really inconsiderate.

2. Then, cruising in the middle lane, eh? Tut, tut. 

3. Doing at least 70 in the pissing rain (in lane 2)  when I ignore you in a speed controlled 50 is a bit thick, soz. Could you see my middle finger? I hope you did. 

 

A very happy new year to you too, road captain boy. Go you. 

 

Actually, to be fair, use of rear fog lights in spray (rather than fog) can be horribly dazzling and not really necessary. Doesn't excuse cuntish behaviour though. A quick flash might have alerted you, but it's easier still to just jog on.

[Parky]

Fucking Royal Mail.

 

(1) Mrs P's Birthday Friday.  Ordered a gift in December which was dispatched on the 15th.  Noticed it hadn't shown up so checked the tracking.  Basically it went to Romford, then Grays, then back to Romford, and then Grays again.  it seems nether depot can work out which one should have it.  Apparently I can collect it from Grays but as I don't have a "while you were out" card on account of no-one attempting a delivery, I cant have it for "security" reasons.  It would seem providing proof of ID and address isn't adequate to prevent ISIS getting hold of some glassware.  Solution?  If not collected, RM will return it to Amazon and I will have to repurchase it.  Arseflaps.

 

(2) Sitting at home, Letterbox clunks.  I get straight up and am at the door ten seconds after hearing the letterbox.  What have I got?  A "while you were out card" for a separate package.  Twat didn't even attempt to ring the bell!  Looked outside only to see a Vauxhall Combo speeding off at 200mph so that's an hour of my life lost tomorrow at the sorting office.

[bub2006]

Volvo being a prick again. No transport and no cheese so no dinner.

[SiC]

MIG Welding course I wanted to go on has filled up on both January and April starts already. Slots were only opened up yesterday too. FFS.

 

A vehicle restoration course is full in January but some availability in April start. Still has some welding but also has more painting+filling+etc. Possibly still worth doing.

[Tickman]

MIG Welding course I wanted to go on has filled up on both January and April starts already. Slots were only opened up yesterday too. FFS.

 

A vehicle restoration course is full in January but some availability in April start. Still has some welding but also has more painting+filling+etc. Possibly still worth doing.

 

Seriously, spend what you would have on the course on the welder and have a go. You will learn more by trying and you won't have to wait your turn to speak to the lecturer.

[Rusty_Rocket]

A vehicle restoration course is full in January but some availability in April start. Still has some welding but also has more painting+filling+etc. Possibly still worth doing.

 

I think that's a great idea, go for it!

[SiC]

Seriously, spend what you would have on the course on the welder and have a go. You will learn more by trying and you won't have to wait your turn to speak to the lecturer.

£150 doesn't seem to buy that great a welder!

 

This did arrive today though so I can fix my dodgy £20 welder I got off Gumtree.

 

[Tickman]

£150 doesn't seem to buy that great a welder!

 

This did arrive today though so I can fix my dodgy £20 welder I got off Gumtree.

 

But it is £150 more in the budget.

[Guest Hooli]

£150 sounds worth it to me. Without someone telling you were you're going wrong I know I'd waste more than that in materials trying to guess how to do it.

[Angrydicky]

I think my welder was £130 secondhand. It's properly knackered, and I had to replace the torch straight away as it had had so much use it was broken, but it's welded up countless cars over the last 7-8 years.

 

But yeah, just teach yourself on some scrap pieces before moving on to the car, use cereal box card for templates. It doesn't take long to pick it up.

 

Oh, and buy an auto-darkening helmet!

[Rusty_Rocket]

The problem is, MiG welding is so much harder with a crap welder.  It's enough to put you off.  You can have an ace technique and years of experience and still produce welds that look like birdshit and prise apart with a screwdriver.

 

My machine is an Oxford and cost close to a grand once I'd bought a pukka torch and a decent helmet.  But it's money well spent in my book.  I can run perfect welds, with no porosity that penetrate as they should.  I can even weld thin crap like the 1970s Avenger that is a friend's on-going project.... and I'm not a top class welder, by any stretch.

 

At least if you do a course at the local college, you will be using a top-spec machine, that feeds wire properly (the biggest downfall of a cheap welder!) and will allow you to build up your confidence.

[SiC]

This is what I was thinking. Unfortunately the welding course is a no-go because its filled up. Daft that they don't do any more - despite it being a very popular course that books up in a day!

 

I think I'll book on to the Vehicle Restoration course. This covers:

You will work on vehicle components with some theory and relevant health and safety procedures. You will cover aspects of body repair, refinishing and welding.

 

Body Repair tasks include the following:-

• Use of body tools and equipment
• Bare metal repair
• Plastic filler repair
• Metal cutting
• Metal grinding
• Mig welding

Paint refinishing tasks include the following:-

• Use of paint refinishing tools and equipment
• Panel preparation
• Application of foundation coats
• Preparation of foundation coats
• Application of top coats
• Rectification of top coats

[BavarianRetro]

The problem is, MiG welding is so much harder with a crap welder.  It's enough to put you off.  You can have an ace technique and years of experience and still produce welds that look like birdshit and prise apart with a screwdriver.

 

My machine is an Oxford and cost close to a grand once I'd bought a pukka torch and a decent helmet.  But it's money well spent in my book.  I can run perfect welds, with no porosity that penetrate as they should.  I can even weld thin crap like the 1970s Avenger that is a friend's on-going project.... and I'm not a top class welder, by any stretch.

 

At least if you do a course at the local college, you will be using a top-spec machine, that feeds wire properly (the biggest downfall of a cheap welder!) and will allow you to build up your confidence.

 

Spot on.

[captain_70s]

Real men do properly properly nasty stick welding outdoors on a BL shit heap with metal like tinfoil...

 

In all seriousness though I course might be handy for simply reducing teh fears of working on your own car even if it doesn't really cover anything in any great detail. I only dared wield welders, grinders and spray cans near my motor once I'd stopped given a solitary shit as to it's appearance at which point any work that was vaguely presentable became a pleasant surprise. Even a brand new but shite quality MiG can have you reaching for the trusty stick welder after a few miserable runs...

[Wack]

Drove back from London village last night back to Accrington.

 

Passed 4 different accidents on the M6 & M65 where people had spun their cars into the barriers. Amazing how people think they are better than the laws of physics especially in RWD German machines. 

 

Horrible weather and loads of standing water means that 90 mph progress is not advisable especially with 20 inch wheels and low profile tyres

 

A few weeks ago after a lot of rain I saw 7 single vehicle crashes on a 300 mile round trip , that was just the 7 that were still being scraped up as I drove past so how many were there, one of the reasons I only ever buy premium tyres is that one time you need them

[Kiltox]

How did you find out about evening classes SiC?

 

I wish I could find something that covers various trades - tiling, plumbing etc to give a basic grounding on how to make repairs / do smaller jobs

 

Loads of free time in the evenings at the moment albeit in London/Croydon

[dollywobbler]

A few weeks ago after a lot of rain I saw 7 single vehicle crashes on a 300 mile round trip , that was just the 7 that were still being scraped up as I drove past so how many were there, one of the reasons I only ever buy premium tyres is that one time you need them

 

I wonder how many people in these situations actually have a decent level of tread? We know cars come into garages with tyres worn down to the canvas. You can have the best brand in the world but if the tread depth is under 3mm, you're not well set for standing water.

[SiC]

How did you find out about evening classes SiC?

 

I wish I could find something that covers various trades - tiling, plumbing etc to give a basic grounding on how to make repairs / do smaller jobs

 

Loads of free time in the evenings at the moment albeit in London/Croydon

I had looked a good couple of months back on our local colleges website but a leaflet came through the door the other day and reminded me.

[Wack]

That leaf owner possibly, he might only have 25% charge. Could always plug him into your ciggy lighter?

Old guy driving it got out after 10 minutes and went for a piss in the bushes , waved at me when he came back , luckily he didn't want to shake hands

 

Luckily I was only about 1/2m from the incident which was a BMW 5 series stuck in the back of a corsa , corsa was a mess, fire brigade had cut the roof off it so somebody was injured unfortunately

[richardthestag]

Seriously, spend what you would have on the course on the welder and have a go. You will learn more by trying and you won't have to wait your turn to speak to the lecturer.

 

what he said. if you fancy a trip to north devonshite i can show you my shite welding skilz

[omegod]

Out trusty fiesta apparently shat it's immobiliser yesterday and wouldn't start, RAC dude eventually found the fuse ( F16 ) had popped so all good, went to work feeling like death and then died even more as the day went on and was happy to get told to bugger off early, cruising home dreaming of sliding onto freshly made bed when, after going over a bump, the twatting immobilser twatted its twatting self again, I swapped several bigger fuses and they all popped instantly so it was a case of calling the RAC back out and sit waiting to reach the next level of death .

 

Fella didn't seem hopeful when he arrived and was hoping to tow me to an electrician for a good bumming, then he found out it was his mate who had been round yesterday, fuse kept blowing until he eventually found a short by chance in the ecu wiring where it hadn't been secured by the shitehawk mechanic who did the clutch last year and had rubbed against the battery tray. 

 

My voice is alternating between Barry White and Barry Gibb and someone is hammering icicles through my joints and bollocks 

[SiC]

what he said. if you fancy a trip to north devonshite i can show you my shite welding skilz

I would definitely be up for that offer if you get a chance!

[clayts450]

There's bugger all evening/part time courses round here for someone wanting to learn stuff/refresh their basic car mechanical skills* (i.e. me)

 

On the other hand if I want to learn how to be a customer service operative, there's more corporate courses than you can shake a stick at. Grandma, eggs, sucking so worse than useless for me.

[Kiltox]

I want to find an evening version of this kind of course - even though it'd take a long time..  https://www.ableskills.co.uk/multiskill-courses/property-development-course/

 

Fuck all out there mind, I guess it's quite difficult to teach plumbing/plastering/etc in 3 hour evening slots.

[M'coli]

It's a shame you weren't up for welding stuff this time last year, I was in Bristol weekdays/nights and bored out of me skull!

[Eddie Honda]

I wish I could find something that covers various trades - tiling, plumbing etc to give a basic grounding on how to make repairs / do smaller jobs

 

Loads of free time in the evenings at the moment albeit in London/Croydon

https://thebtc.co.uk/

 

Find a weekend course / take annual leave / throw a sicky. Apart from evening courses taking 3 times longer than what a 1 day a week course does, it's a wee bit frustrating packing everything away just after you've got it all out.

[myglaren]

I’ve got a bit of work to do that is really rather pressing. So, of course, Windows is updating itself and seems to be stuck on the “Getting Windows Ready” stage. Like it has been for THE LAST TWO HOURS. IT have tried a hard reset but no, this is as far as it gets.

 

FUCK YOU GATES

 

And just to add to the misery, Intel kernel memory leak flaw

[Kiltox]

https://thebtc.co.uk/

 

Find a weekend course / take annual leave / throw a sicky. Apart from evening courses taking 3 times longer than what a 1 day a week course does, it's a wee bit frustrating packing everything away just after you've got it all out.

 

I'm a contractor, annual leave/sickies don't exist and time off is extremely expensive! 

[chaseracer]

And just to add to the misery, Intel kernel memory leak flaw

 

"Forcefully Unmap Complete Kernel With Interrupt Trampolines, aka FUCKWIT..."

 

 

 

​That surely did tickle my ex-IT tech funny bone!