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Hello All I have put dose in the tank and will run it tomorrow to mix it up (think it maybe the wrong stuff!) But I have had another thought I have changed Spitty tank vent from through the filler cap to a pipe to the rear of the car! So I think I will seal this breather then no air/moisture can get in Etc and I do not think I will have to worry about expansion in a cold garge in the Winter! Roger ps thoughts? or am I just a daft old Bugger? Still we are going to book a break to Albert fury Porugal at the start of march for a bit of temperate weather and away from what ever happens here! I recon it will be about £1000 for the week including a couple of trip and self catering(which we like) so about the same as Spain £1000 a week for 2 which in these times seems reasonable? Roger and the Happy Memsahib

So…. Something bad happened to the Triumph gearbox. 3rd gear suddenly go noisy under load. That’ll be that oilite bush spigot bearing bodge we did crying enough. It’s lasted about 12k. So that forced some action….. Old lump coming out. It weighs 151 kgs. Old and new side by side New going in for the first time. First of many one suspects. It weighs 119kg. Fits in the hole, though rather snug in places induction arrangements are under review….. rearmost TB wants to occupy space already claimed by the bulkhead.

Busy weekend. Painted a few bits, pulled the oil pump from the 1500. It's within tolerance, but had some heavy scoring, on the top and bottom faces, so I suspect it's in need of replacing. Also got the transmission tunnel out. That's a fairly awful mix of cardboard components. I'm going to consider just trying to bond it all together with epoxy for the time being, but I think a new tunnel is in order in the not too distant future. Also wiring is a mess under there. I need to neaten it up and look into overdrive wiring. The overdrive is currently wired to a switch on the dash, and it looks like this is because there doesn't seem to be enough space to wire in the switch with the gear lever. Not a big deal, but it would be nice to sort it.

10 years ago I splashed out 2.50 Euro on a small Christmas train. Engine did not start. WD40 solved it. What a quality.

Ever since I started building my engines with as high compression as I could with 99 octane, I put some of this stuff in the tank at season's end. Or I have done since spring starting found a loud knock, that went away as soon as I filled up with fresh fuel. The contents of a stabiliser seem to vary by manufacturer, but a typical list culled from Hazard sheets incudes: "Distillates" - Alkanes (10-13 carbon), Hexanol (6 carbon), naphtha. toluene, benzene or methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (octane raisers) phenylenediamine (anti-'gumming' agent) but I doubt that short list is comprehensive The websites of the makers of stabilisers are completely opaque as to how they work (or if they do!). apart from waffle about "gums", but from my experience above, I think that modern fuel loses some of the octane raising additives that replace tetra-ethyl lead. The above contents of a stabiliser add octane raisers, and some long chain hydrocarbons, that may be chosen to less susceptible to oxidation in stored fuel to produce "gums" that the last inhibits. This has to be a subject for the Common Room of Sideways University! And members of the Department of Chemistry (Petroleum Technology). Anyone in? John

I use generally use battery voltage as a measure of condition on my GT6 and Honda S2000 and also use a Ctek charger. The S2000 has a tiny battery (40Ah and 400ca) and gets drained rather quickly, I think by the alarm. Ultimately using it regularly is the answer. After a reluctance to start, I did take the car to a battery/tyre shop and they checked it with one of those smaller testers, pronouncing it fine but with low charge. I now have a rechargeable lithium/iron jumper pack as a back up. By comparison the 70Ah 600cA on the GT6 is a beast and spins the engine over just fine with a modern starter motor. Ian

My usual rite in the Springtime, when getting the 'BlueRacer' (TR4) out of hibernation, is to spend a couple of hours. cranking, swearing, new plugs, clean float chamber, squirt of Start U Bast*** , more swearing and then she starts.. So this year for the first time I have topped the tank up and used Sta-Bil. This should stabilise the effects of the Ethanol. I'll report back in the Spring. Roger

I have used this millers vspe plus for years - it’s what my dad used in all sorts of vintage and classics so has proved itself over very many years. https://www.frost.co.uk/millers-vsp-e-power-plus-multi-shot-500ml/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_4OIjbWEgwMVEMftCh2F4Qj9EAQYBiABEgLkivD_BwE available from various sources and prices this is the big multi shot bottle. but I confess to not using it for the last 2 seasons on the “new” engine as the valve seats have been done. But I wonder if it’s worth continuing for the octane bootstrap and ethanol benefits ? I hear tooth things about the valve master version too. but I think there are dedicated additives to be used when laying a vehicle up for a few months that may be better suited. i think it could be cheaper than filling the tank with my preferred V power only to find it’s “gone off” over a few months of sitting. but this thread has made me decide to add some millers vspe to what’s left in the tank as I’m ashamed to say the tr hasn’t moved for a couple of months.

Hello Nick I have done that so what the Hell I will put a dose in and run for 15mins which will stir it all up with the return to the tank! Plus it was cheap and i might get even more MPG next year ? We are looking at Spain bookings now(ferry booked) you have to go for it we had a christmas card from old friends and she told us Dave had had a mild stroke!! So that means he can not drive or ride his Motocycles for at least 6 months !!!!!!!!!!!!!! and only a touch older than me! So I say do it while you can before the Grim Reaper comes knocking These daft buggers are going down to Gibraltar again and seeing more castles etc while we can! Plus Spitty is going to live with her pebble dash finish and let us spend the insurance money on travel and Wine(at 78 how long have I got at this level?) plus the kids will have enough unless we go into care(No No No) sorry about the morbid bit Roger and the long suffering Memsahib(but she does like the Daft excursions we we do over Dams etc(back to no pockets in Shrouds) sorry about the ramble Blame the Saturday Vino Again Rogers

My usual technique is to fill the tank before letting the car sit. This minimises condensation space in the tank and thus the amount that fuel absorbs. Has worked so far.

I just had a look. But it isn't clear about what that additive actualluy does, except lubricate the fuel system. I am wondering if it does help with the problems ethanol can cause . (I have a prewar singer so need something for that, and possibly my Vitesse 1600, though I am intending to have some headwork done on that at some point)

Hello All I thought I would add some of this stuff to Spitty's fuel this winter as it must all be E10 by now? So looking for a bargin(Tight a*rse) i have bought some of this as their Synthetic oil has been ok in Spitty this year (5,500+ miles ) and oil pressure is still good when hot! 2x250ml Mannol Ester Petrol Ethanol Additive Stabiliser E10 E15 Fuel Economy | eBay I hope it does the job but it looks to good to be true? Still it may make Spitty run better next year when I add it to the fuel? Roger

Thanks for this. Such nice (and unusual) “fly on the wall” stuff from the pits. The Charterhouse stuff brings back memories. I went there to represent my school (not far from there) in some sporting event at some point in the early 80s. Can’t remember exactly what now….. I didn’t win anything!

Bolex is just where he left it in his study (hence the dust !) and the shelf seemed to have become his small battery storage place. I seem to be like dad if you can’t see it it doesn’t exist

Thank you, Hamish! Horrible evening, in this storm wind cat flap sounds like the bailiffs are here. Bang, bang, bang! with rain to match, so curling up with nice nostalgic video is just the job! I assume that's your Dad's Bolex? I always thought they were clockwork (vide the lever on the side) so why all the batteries? Bests, John

Don't know how accurate these testers are. Returned a big expensive battery correct amparage for my van twice to the suppliers. Their gadget ran a print out, everything fine, nothing wrong with it. As soon as the tempreture dropped it would struggle to turn over the diesel engine fast enough, and quickly go flat. New alternator etc. Out of warrenty now, convinced I bought a duff battery.

Most of the trade folks I know have the £30 version. Though some may have bought them from Snap-off at 4x the price. My test method involves resting voltage an hour after being taken off charge (anything under 12.6v is suspect) and will it start the car easily. The load testers as pictured (week, the first two anyway) only give a meaningful reading if the battery is close to full charge. If applied in a “fail to start” situation after lights have been left on or similar, the battery will inevitably fail the test but may actually be fine once charged. The AA/RAC patrols can be a bit naughty about flogging new batteries to the unwary rather than just giving them the jump they need.

Hi folks it’s been a while since I have added another of dads period films to youtube. I have made this 1964 period film in a YouTube format. Originally 16mm film on this Bolex clockwork camera. lots of car you will recognise, many to be found at Goodwood or million ££ auctions. brush painting an original ERA -!!!! And some faces and names some of you may recognise. i hope you enjoy a nostalgic 1/2 hour.

Is that Makka Pakka's new bicycle? Or Mr.Tumble's? I apologise for my choice of television viewing, but before sentence ask the Court to take into consideration my plea of "Grandchildren", leading to diminished responsibility.

Thank you Rob! I included the last out of wonderment that it was possible. It's clearly a kit, that you would have to make up yourself, with some sort of containment, and heat sink for the resistors? Has anyone got one of the modern type? John

The first two are big for a reason John - they have large robust resistances which pull an appreciable current from the battery which is why they are shielded as they will get hot. The third one is a bit of a joke. Those weedy 5 Ohm 5 Watt resistors just won't pull enough current for a useful test. Assuming they go in parallel that is 2.5 Ohms which on 12V pulls slightly less than 5 Amps. Unfortunately, 5A on 12V is 60 Watts but the resistors are rated for 5 each, so they aren't going to last long.

Hello All you cycling lot. I came across this photo and I thought it might interest you? Roger

Christmas is coming and tools as presents always a possibility. A battery checker might be useful - I have three vehicles, and at least three old batteries that are used for checking wiring etc. The best check of a battery that I know of is the load check, where you discharge it across a known resistance and see if the voltagae drops more than it should. The classic tester: works fine, but is very costly, £150 odd. There are new style testers around that can cost £30ish and even tiny things that cost a couple of quid: Anyone have one of these cheaper versions of the tool? And can give an opinion of value for money? John

Long may that continue, for you and the rest of us who choose to crawl under old and not so old iron.

If TRR aren’t keeping their licensing current, they’ll have no preemptive scanning of spammers, which could be the problem. We also don’t allow a first post until its approved by a mod, which helps with the wheat/chaff ratio. zetec would (I suspect) agree that once the initial setup and config is done, Invision is pretty set and forget. Third party hooks and apps can be finicky, but the core product is well supported and brilliantly stable. I haven’t had an update fail for years, to the point where I often feel I’m wasting time when I run pre update backups. Then again, I’ve never had a jack fail, but I won’t crawl under a car without throwing stands under too…