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A Grand Day Out - NEC Classic Motor Show


Mr Lobster

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as I drove south on the M42 there were loads of classics

at one point there were more classics than moderns which I thought was fantastic

once I turned onto the M40 there were none

it seems Londoners are not into classics

 

I had a long chat with the lady promoting the African rally with the 504, and I spent ages on the Citroen stand

Also got some leads for spare parts, and a text from a bloke with rear shocks that I need

saw a Saab 95 just like the one my dad had for most of my childhood and got a look at a B280 motor in a Volvo coupe

 

It was also great to spend some time with fellow ASers

 

the 604 used 3/4 a tank to get there and back :shock: but I suppose it got the interior good and dry. I really need to find and stop the rain water leak before it destroys the car

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I'm afraid I couldn't be arsed taking any photos at the show so I'm glad to see that most of the cars I WOULD HAVE taken have already been posted! Apart from the minty mint Renault 12 that was next to the 18...that was near the 20.

 

Drove the Simca up on Thursday in horrible torrential rain...I never usually venture out if theres even a hint of precipitation...but obviously had no choice! Had just turned off the M1 onto the M6, when the drivers-side wiper decided to ping off ! Luckily I was only doing about 50mph in the slow lane so it somehow managed to stay perched on the bonnet til I could pull over and effect a repair! Luckily it hadn't damaged the bodywork, but I didn't dare put the wipers on again so had to do the rest of the trip through blurry glass!

 

It was nice to get to speak to a couple of you lot (Trigger and Dollywobbler) ...sorry if I missed any others...I was probably on the bog after eating one of the Cornish Pasties on sale...ooh, it went right through me did that!!!! :oops:

 

Spent a while chatting to a bloke from Classic Car Weekly who persuaded me to have a picture taken legs akimbo the Simca, saying that it should feature in this weeks edition and could he take my number cos they were thinking of doing an article on them in the near future. So watch this space!!

 

On the whole I thought it was a good show and although not cheap I do think its worth it for a days entertainment! Incidentally, I was chatting to the guys on the Renault stand who were saying that it was their first appearance there for a while as there is a waiting list for available space. NEC tried to charge them £1400 per display car to jump the queue(!!) but had to relent after receiving complaints about the lack of the marque at previous events. Thats why Simca Club always make the effort to attend cos if we missed one, I don't think we'd get in again.

 

There were a few notable absences I thought... no Cambridge/Oxford Farinas, PA/PB/PC Crestas, Maxi's, not many Fiats, but on the whole summat for everyone!!

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the 604 used 3/4 a tank to get there and back :shock: but I suppose it got the interior good and dry. I really need to find and stop the rain water leak before it destroys the car

 

The Jag drank £60 in fuel today. 260 miles (ish). 23 mpg, allegedly.

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The best set of photos I've seen so far are from this chap here http://retrorides.proboards.com/index.c ... 019&page=1

 

I can't get over how clear his are, Mine all come out dark or a bit fuzzy!, I've just finished uploading all mine (only took 2 days) so I'll post a few tomorrow when i can be bothered.

 

The lighting in the NEC is terrible at the best of times, and its perfect for ruining photographs. Your photos are good, Ive seen them on flickr! On my camera I presume there is some mode for that lighting, under scene mode. But you have an SLR, and I know nothing about them.

Looks like it was a great show, its suddenly dawned on me that the next one Im going to is at new years in Brooklands..

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You could be right there, I've been thinking about investing in one as it happens, I saw a lot of other guys with DSLR camera with external flashes and some even had flaps above the flash to stop the light from bouncing.

 

I had the WB set on auto most of the time but i did experiment with it on tungsten for a bit but i don't think it made any difference, It got even harder towards the end of the day as it was dark outside which meant the hall got even darker.

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The best set of photos I've seen so far are from this chap here http://retrorides.proboards.com/index.c ... 019&page=1

 

I can't get over how clear his are, Mine all come out dark or a bit fuzzy!, I've just finished uploading all mine (only took 2 days) so I'll post a few tomorrow when i can be bothered.

 

Here's how he had his camera set up.

 

Camera Maker: NIKON CORPORATION

Camera Model: NIKON D60

Image Date: 2010:11:11 15:42:09

Focal Length: 36.0mm (35mm equivalent: 54mm)

Aperture: f/5.3

Exposure Time: 0.040 s (1/25)

ISO equiv: 1600

Exposure Bias: none

Metering Mode: Matrix

White Balance: Auto

Flash Fired: No

Photographer: Picasa 3.0

 

Not how I would have done it, not that I know anything.

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Hmm, the NEC.

 

I've had rather a lot on since Sunday. I've been through most of my photos and they were pish. They're on Facebook because you don't have to do a lot to get them up. If demand is sufficient, one shall supply.

 

Yes, we went. I was nowhere near 100%. We missed Bollox because after the row at home, the Volvo wouldn't start. 480 running, we missed Bol.

I rang him several times throughout the day in the NEC itself but never got a connection through. So, I'm sorry about that Bol.

I understand Tonka's lad wasn't well at all, and he had to leave the show early because of it. Hope he's on the mend soon.

We did manage to meet pbottomley and DNJ, and view the Gallic onion barge in all of its glory. Unfortunately my flucoughheadachelethargy symptoms really had claimed me by that point and I was not in a good way by the time I got back to the unit. I had Monday off studying and work creaking about like a torpedoed ship.

 

I managed to buy a few more bargainous £1 issues of old CAR, a grey falisa for the Amazon, and a Dutch 480 brochure which I thought was in English. After its initial strop the 480 cruised there and back quite happily on £30, I managed to get the heated driver's seat working and the perished bushes jiggled over rumble strips in a most comedic fashion - just the thing when you're all melty from 1000mg of ibuprofen and more than a bit queasy.

Missed the Tatra stand, which I was gutted about. Did the other halls but not much of it meant anything to me because I felt a bit weird. I do distinctly remember paying £6.85 for a very poor cucumber baguette and drink, and talking to a very amiable gentleman on the VSCC stand. Representatives were a lot chattier in general this year and I thought that made a nice change from the stony faced silence and half arsed stand designs of last year (CCC excepted).

 

Other showgoers were still exceptionally rude though - walking through photographs and slamming into MM5 as if he was invisible. I lost count of how many times that happened latterly. It seems they don't treat stands with any respect either if pbottomley's experiences are anything to go by.

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Sounds like you had a bit of a nightmare WAT. WAT happened to the Volvo, why the non-start?

 

I dont know what happened to the phone line, but dont worry about it anyway.

 

I bought a couple of books, including one of those class japanese 'Car Styling' books from 1977, for £6 which I was well chuffed about.

 

Did anyone clock this? The star of the show in my eyes.

 

P1020274.jpg

 

P1020277.jpg

 

Its a racing mini engine from the 60's. The spec is:

 

Mini gearbox

Specially-cast Aluminium block (!)

Ford 1500 pre-crossflow crankshaft.machined to take a mini clutch and flywheel

Jag 2.4 Conrods

Vincent motorcycle pistons

home-made cams with a coventry climax profile

(The best bit) a Jag 2.4 XK cylinder head, with pots 4 and 5 chopped outand the two pieces welded back together again to make a 4-cyl head!!!!

 

You can even see the welding bead between pots 3 and 4:

 

P1020276.jpg

 

Amazing stuff!!!

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Well, me old mug did make it into this weeks Classic Car Weekly, sitting in the Simca as part of their 4-page NEC Car Show Special. I look really massive in it for some reason! :?

 

They wrote that, apart from two new front wings and a bit of paint here and there, the car is totally original. Errr...not quite...the whole thing has been rebuilt!!

 

But the bit about winning Best Simca 1100 at the International Simca Meeting in Belgium this year IS true...except that I never went to the Awards do so didn't realise til I got home!

 

Huzzah!!

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Sounds like you had a bit of a nightmare WAT. WAT happened to the Volvo, why the non-start?

 

Battery didn't quite have enough in it to turn it over. A weird one really because it looks new.

 

I dont know what happened to the phone line, but dont worry about it anyway.

 

I couldn't get a signal over to speak to you in the NEC. Wouldn't connect at all. I tried speaking to Tonka and could barely hear him.

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