The grumpy thread

[Zelandeth]

9 minutes ago, vulgalour said:

Book says 10w40 for the Princess and I've always used that.  I've tried 20w50 and it just made the gear change very stiff and difficult when cold.  Remember, no separate gearbox on the Princess, gearbox-in-sump so it shares the oil with the engine.  That's why it's a ridiculous quantity of oil when you have to do a change, you're changing the gearbox oil at the same time.  It does have the benefit that the gearboxes tend to outlive the cars because they're always getting fresh oil.  Besides, I doubt a heavier oil would actually help the situation I've got at the moment.

@Zelandeth If I get a replacement engine I'll have to get it pulled apart to check it's okay so I'm not really gaining anything.  Makes more sense to fix the one I've got, it runs well enough that I can't imagine it's beyond the point of no return.

Yeah, if I were in your shoes and could reasonably afford the rebuild that's almost definitely the route I'd go down.  At least if there is anything terminally wrong with it you'd think it would be spotted pretty quickly.

It's difficult to put a price on your own time and stress, but that's why these days I farm out quite a few jobs I know I *could* do myself.  Generally anything that involves taking apart suspension or steering components beyond changing a track rod end if it's really easy to get to will go to a garage.  

I spent enough years without two pennies to rub together so had to deal with jobs like that without the right tools on a gravel driveway on the top of a damned hill, 18 miles from the nearest source of tools/parts if I broke anything.  Then had to deal with the fallout when a critical bolt snapped or rounded off.  Sod that nonsense now I can afford to pay someone to do that work who has a proper lift and a toolbox with several grand worth of decent tools!

I can see rebuilding an engine being quite enjoyable - but not when there's pressure on getting it done.

[Dobloseven]

56 minutes ago, vulgalour said:

Book says 10w40 for the Princess and I've always used that.  I've tried 20w50 and it just made the gear change very stiff and difficult when cold.  Remember, no separate gearbox on the Princess, gearbox-in-sump so it shares the oil with the engine.  That's why it's a ridiculous quantity of oil when you have to do a change, you're changing the gearbox oil at the same time.  It does have the benefit that the gearboxes tend to outlive the cars because they're always getting fresh oil.  Besides, I doubt a heavier oil would actually help the situation I've got at the moment.

@Zelandeth If I get a replacement engine I'll have to get it pulled apart to check it's okay so I'm not really gaining anything.  Makes more sense to fix the one I've got, it runs well enough that I can't imagine it's beyond the point of no return.

Back in the seventies, I had an Austin 1300GT and always put Q20 50 in that. Being an old git I can unfortunately remember when gears in the sump was still a current thing. Must say I wasn't over impressed with the O series engine in the Ital I owned in the eighties. I suppose it was fairly easy to work on though. Still got the camshaft holding down things I made for doing the valve clearances somewhere, I think. Remember changing the timing belt on a Princess in a half hour lunch break at work as well. 

[RoverFolkUs]

12 hours ago, Fumbler said:

Tax rules changed today which I forgot about, so I taxed the BX completely unaware it's now £180 per year.

I remember the <1549cc band being about £120 not so long ago! Sharks  

£10 a year extra for what!? To be told its going to 173 light years before your V62 gets acknowledged!? 

[omegod]

Chasing cables into a wall that is of "No fines construction" Oh the joys ! 

[Zelandeth]

26 minutes ago, omegod said:

Chasing cables into a wall that is of "No fines construction" Oh the joys ! 

Running wiring through this house is right up there with my least favourite jobs ever.  There's no access to the wall voids from the loft and the downstairs floors are concrete so it's a huge faff.  

[New POD]

4 hours ago, omegod said:

Chasing cables into a wall that is of "No fines construction" Oh the joys ! 

I avoided that joy. After I pulled out of a house purchase in 1989, after my uncle who had been in Birmingham city council's housing department in the 1960s, told me NOooooooooooO! 

[omegod]

5 minutes ago, New POD said:

I avoided that joy. After I pulled out of a house purchase in 1989, after my uncle who had been in Birmingham city council's housing department in the 1960s, told me NOooooooooooO! 

I swear this house would withstand a direct nuclear strike, walls are so solid you can't even chop in a socket 

[High Jetter]

They use angry grinders now. Hammer & chissel in my day l

😄

[paulplom]

I remember fitting boilers somewhere down south and coming across poured concrete houses. It would take a full day to do the flue hole. Sds drill bits used to melt.

[reb]

I went to a nightclub for the first time since the pandemic last night, a girl told me I looked like Jeffrey Dahmer (I don't). I think this was supposed to be a good thing. I danced away slowly.

The clutch also started slipping on the Volvo last night, though it seemed to cure itself, so I'll see how it does when I retrieve the car today.

[Remspoor]

For those who live in the UK. This says second hand cars are cheaper that the rest of Europe. No need to feel grumpy about the price of S/H vehicles then

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/03/why-second-hand-british-cars-end-up-on-ukraines-frontline

[Wack]

Decided to go out for a pub lunch yesterday , nothing special, it’s a nice pub but it’s a chain 

a shared starter platter  for 2

sirloin steak meal

beef rib meal

2 large glasses of wine and a pint of shandy

£64 

it wasn’t even that nice , we were going to go to miller and Carter as I do like their steaks , wish I had now as it’d have been worth the  extra £15-£20

the hospitality industry is going to be the first to suffer once people start looking how much money is left after all the ever increasing direct debits have emptied their bank accounts 

 

[New POD]

Hence why you can't beat a *massive Sunday Roast, for value.  Especially if you end up with enough leftovers for a stew on Monday, and Sandwich fillings for a week. 

(In my sandwiches today is Turkey from Christmas, which I froze on the 26th December) 

[paulplom]

Is that to go with your individually wrapped rice krispies?

[chadders]

That reminds me of the Oscar Wilde comment which seems particularly apposite:

‘a man who knows the price of everything and the value of  nothing.

Everyone I know or knew who focused on money was miserable and also useless at dealing with it, they had no sense of proportion or perspective.

 

 

[horriblemercedes]

I hate bleeding brakes. In my experience it rarely seems to improve things (unless the pedal is REALLY bad).

A friend came round to help with some other car work and he has an obsession with bleeding brakes. Now the pedal just goes to the floor although all nipples are closed. I'm going back soon to have another go. I was so pissed off with it on Saturday (when he came over) that I just packed up and left it and didn't do the other jobs I actually needed to do. 

 

Yesterday, the charger port on my phone seems to have broken. I can wirelessly charge it but this isn't a great long term solution, I think.

[cobblers]

On an old motor, about 50% of the time I've bled brakes by pumping the pedal it has fucked the master cylinder - when the pedal goes to the floor the piston wipes over an area on the cylinder bore that isn't usually swept, so muck and corrosion can form which damages the seals.

[horriblemercedes]

12 minutes ago, cobblers said:

On an old motor, about 50% of the time I've bled brakes by pumping the pedal it has fucked the master cylinder - when the pedal goes to the floor the piston wipes over an area on the cylinder bore that isn't usually swept, so muck and corrosion can form which damages the seals.

I'm scared of this. Really hoping it's not the case as that's something I can't do for a while but it needs it by Thursday 

 

The brakes were bled at some point in the winter 

[New POD]

4 hours ago, paulplom said:

Is that to go with your individually wrapped rice krispies?

I dont waste money wrapping them. 

[paulplom]

3 hours ago, horriblemercedes said:

I hate bleeding brakes. In my experience it rarely seems to improve things (unless the pedal is REALLY bad).

A friend came round to help with some other car work and he has an obsession with bleeding brakes. Now the pedal just goes to the floor although all nipples are closed. I'm going back soon to have another go. I was so pissed off with it on Saturday (when he came over) that I just packed up and left it and didn't do the other jobs I actually needed to do. 

 

Yesterday, the charger port on my phone seems to have broken. I can wirelessly charge it but this isn't a great long term solution, I think.

It's usually cheap enough to have a charging port replaced. £30 for my last one.

[horriblemercedes]

Just now, paulplom said:

It's usually cheap enough to have a charging port replaced. £30 for my last one.

I will probably get a quote, but I've had this phone a couple of years and don't like it much so might be best to put the repair money towards a new phone instead

[paulplom]

Invest in an eazibleed. Just don't put in on your van tyre which is inflated to 65psi or it'll blow the seals in your brand new rear cylinders and fuck the shoes while it pisses fluid over them.

20psi is the magic number apparently.

[paulplom]

The speaker's blown in my current phone. I quite like not hearing it ring all the fucking time though.

[horriblemercedes]

Just now, paulplom said:

Invest in an eazibleed. Just don't put in on your van tyre which is inflated to 65psi or it'll blow the seals in your brand new rear cylinders and fuck the shoes while it pisses fluid over them.

20psi is the magic number apparently.

I've borrowed one! Just about to head over and have a go. Fingers are crossed as I just can't find the time really to do a master cylinder by Thursday. I guess I'll find a way if I really have to 

[paulplom]

They're dead easy to use. Just make sure you get a good seal on the brake fluid resevoir.

I think I've got at least two, maybe three of them. I can never find one when I want one so bought new ones each time.

[dozeydustman]

Bloody student house opposite us. 3 cars, 4 parking spaces off road and every time me or the wife goes out they put one of their cars where we were parked. This can any other space we’ve parked in the cul-de-sac. If they had 2 off road spaces I wouldn’t mind but they have a double drive, the front garden is block paved and they have a garage which the landlord lets them use.l for parking.

None of their cars have residential permits and they never seem to catch the attention of the parking wombles.

Tempted to park on their drive.

[AnnoyingPentium]

2 minutes ago, dozeydustman said:

Bloody student house opposite us. 3 cars, 4 parking spaces off road and every time me or the wife goes out they put one of their cars where we were parked. This can any other space we’ve parked in the cul-de-sac. If they had 2 off road spaces I wouldn’t mind but they have a double drive, the front garden is block paved and they have a garage which the landlord lets them use.l for parking.

None of their cars have residential permits and they never seem to catch the attention of the parking wombles.

Tempted to park on their drive.

My neighbour is like this. One Landy, a van, and his OH's SUV thing. There's enough space on the driveway for two of those vehicles at any given moment. But instead he parks directly across from our driveway. Got half a mind to start doing the same thing by parking my car on his driveway so I can get it in and out of a space easier.

[Markeh]

Next door to me at one point had 6 cars. Two on the drive, four on the road, although at least they blocked their own drive with one of them. Was a nightmare for visitors to park outside. Now down to 4 and still two on the drive which makes things a lot more manageable. Admittedly this wouldn't affect me if I just got my drive done so two cars could fit on it as opposed to one!

[Wack]

1 hour ago, paulplom said:

The speaker's blown in my current phone. I quite like not hearing it ring all the fucking time though.

I thought the ear speaker had blown in my phone as voices sounded a bit weird but I lived with it until a long conversation made me switch ears , turns out it’s my ear that’s blown 😀

[twosmoke300]

1 hour ago, paulplom said:

Invest in an eazibleed. Just don't put in on your van tyre which is inflated to 65psi or it'll blow the seals in your brand new rear cylinders and fuck the shoes while it pisses fluid over them.

20psi is the magic number apparently.

If 65psi blows the wheel cylinders then they were fucked already . Brake systems often see 3000psi