ibrooks

Yep - those are the ones.

Depends on the UXB man - some of them are car nuts too. Failing that once they'd established that it wasn't an explosive device and were happy to wire-brush the rust/mud off it they may have found a Citroen logo and/or part number. Some years ago a mate of mine found an old shell in the pond in a Park in Blackburn (he's a member of the local sub-aqua club and they were doing a charity event in there). He brought it up from the bottom thinking it was a log and threw it onto the path. On the first bounce all the mud and leaves fell off and as it rolled to a halt people were apparently jumping the fences, climbing trees, anything to get away from it. Fortunately it didn't go off but the park was closed for several months whilst the army guys removed the rest. It seems that after WWII lots of ammo was to be disposed of and squads were sent with batches of shells to be taken to the destruction facility. Unfortunately as there was so much ordnance to be destroyed that the controls weren't what they were supposed to be and some of the squads just dumped the stuff somewhere they thought it wouldn't do any damage and then spent the rest of the alloted time on the beer. They'd turn up back at base a day or two later with a signed sheet saying that the batch had been destroyed but no-one checked the signatures were genuine. Looked like some of this stuff had been dumped in the pond and sat there ever since. An ex-colleague was a bomb disposal officer with the RAF and confirmed that he had been called to such finds several times. He's still trying to find somewhere that sells those t-shirts - I suggested he make one but he wanted the reaction from the shop keeper when he explained it was true. Iain

I'd question that one Piddy as the screen would end up a different shape. It would be possible to cut the frame but making the joint pretty would be the hard part. There are instructions in the "Build your own sportscar for £250" book on making a frame which are easy to follow. Failing that how does it compare sizewise with the Locosts and could you get a frame from one of the Locost suppliers - that way you'd have the current screen complete to sell on to recover some of your costs. Iain

Unfortunately no - I bought the car it's in as a pile of spares for my daily driver. Even if it went in the Hood it would be on the basis that if I needed it I'd rob it to keep the Scimitar on the road. Have you checked the one on EBay that I mentioned in Member Benefits or has it's price gone silly? Cheers Mitch I wasn't aware that Bert Holdings did that sort of tuning. Iain

For the North-West crew really. Anyone know a local place that stocks jets for a Weber DGAS and can tune it. I've Accquired a DGAS which I'm thinking of putting on the 2.1 until the injection is ready but it's jetted for a 3.0 at the mo (in fact it's still attached to it) so I'm guessing it will need fettling and I don't have access to the kit. Failing that it's stick with the 32/36 Iain

Thanks for the suggestions chaps. As it happens my initial suspicion was correct and it's the relay. Fortunately yes it does have a second relay of the same type for the hazards. I now have indicators but no hazards. I'll rob the relay from one of the other cars tonight and replace it at the weekend. Iain

Wotcher folks, OK an urgent one here. Turning into the site I'm working at today the indicators packed up. They were flashing whilst I was wainting at the junction but just stopped whilst I was sat there. I now don't have either direction but I do have hazards. Does anyone know anything about Scimitar wiring (SE6a) do the directions use the same relay as the hazards or are they separate? What else can I check here at work (very basic tools and the manual with the wiring diagram is at home) as I don't relish the idea of the trip home without indicators. Iain

Happy Birthday Mark Iain

Timing is everything - I threw a couple of type-9 five speed boxes in a skip last weekend because I'd advertised them as free to collector once or twice and had no responses. Oh well :boohoo: If you pick a 4x4 donor you will need a different gearbox and no none of the 4x4's came with a Pinto so a different engine as well. This may seem like a tall order but if the 4x4 is cheap enough it may be worth going for and "changing" the engine and box before you break it up for the Hood. You'll get an LSD diff for your trouble though . Iain

If any of you disagree I'll remove the bit from my posting but personally I think it's absolutely true. I haven't been able to put as much back into the club as I think I've taken out due to other comittments but that's part of what makes it so great - I'm still welcome and on the odd occasion I do appear at an event I'm part of the crew. Iain

Tak - I've been able to get the current ones but the first two issues I missed and am having difficulty getting. Thanks for that Gordon I await with great anticipation. Iain

If the Clio is called Zippy. How about Bungle or George (or even Geoffrey) for the Hood. Were the others Rod Jane and Freddy? Iain

Has anyone in the North-West got the first two issues of Practical Perfomance car that I could steal for a few days. Or could anyone anywhere copy the article on throttle-bodies and DIY injection and send it to me somehow. Thanks Iain

Just curious - whilst I was waiting to collect the 2B, one of the newsletters from RHE advertised that they had a single set of mint-green fibreglass for one that the first person to call could have for a little extra (think it was swept wings and since mine was from the first batch probably the full rear arches rather than just the crescents). Did anyone go for it? Is there a car on the road using it? Iain

Nishka welcome to the tribe where can I get a girl like yours? Jim - with all these new lunatics in the area have you still got enough stickers or do I need to make some more? Realised the other night that I foolishly gave you all the ones I'd made and left myself without one for the 2B so I'll be making more anyway. Iain

Getting a garage to do bits for you will definitely be expensive (unless you're related to the owner). There is no reason why you won't be able to build one. There are very few difficult jobs and for the odd bit that needs a specialist tool there are either workarounds or someone in the club will lend you the tool and or come around and help. The club is fairly active in most parts of the country (there are the odd remote outposts but if you are near one of them then it will become a little less remote). The main constraint is time - and lots of it - if you don't put the time in it'll never be finished. Think about everything (twice) before you do it - because it's annoying to have to re-do something and difficult to get rid of unwanted holes. My 2B has taken me ages to build because I couldn't spend the time on it (partly due to me buying the S7 partway through the build - I wanted to be on the road in a Robin Hood and couldn't wait until I'd finished the 2B). Just beware the VISIT if you're in the north-west - it could cost more in tea and biscuits than it would have cost to have it done at the garage (the Phuckawi tribe hunts in packs). Iain

Mild steel isn't as brittle as stainless and will stand more flexing before cracks develop. Basically if you take two pieces of metal the same size but one in stainless and one in mild steel and bend them backwards and forwards. The stainless one will break first but they will both break. MkIV and V Cortinas used to be prone to it at high mileages. It usually started from the aerial hole on the winng top and worked it's way down the outside of the wing - used to amaze me how far some of them got before it either failed an MOT or was fixed. Iain

Number one and let's see if I can beat Jim to it - put your location in your profile. Chances are someone local will invite you to have a look and possibly a ride. Have you actually had quotes for insurance? generally from what i've heard a 1.6 won't make that much difference to a 2.0. Steer clear of the 1.8 - there's nothing intrinsically wrong with them but they were rarer and not so tuneable or easy to get bits for. A 1.6 will go fast but not as fast as a 2.0 E-Bay has a section for kit-cars. I bought one that I'd seen on Findit.co.uk. The kit-car mags usually have a classified section at the back. Oh and I'm selling one at the moment Iain

Well folks it looks like Cabin Boy has his first car. Iain

I'd be interested on the supplier front. I'm planning to go the modified bike bodies route for my Hood. I have the bodies (£4.99 plus postage from EBay) and I've been lurking on the megasquirt Yahoo group where one of the guys imports kits from the US and adds the extras over here to send you a complete kit - but I've been waiting a couple of months now for him to "get some more stock in". Iain

Hi folks, I have replaced my daily driver and so the old one is surplus to requirements. If someone wants it come and take it away - free. It's a 1992 K registered Rover 214i. The body has had one patch of welding on a sill the usual rusty scab where the front wing meets the bumper and a dent in the drivers door (vandals with a stone). The interior is all there and in working order. The engine runs fine (but the water is mucky - possibly oil) there are no signs of mayonnaise in the oil (yet). The gearbox is fine. It's covered nearly 100k miles and has been in the family from new. The MOT expires NEXT July. It'll even come with a fan-belt and a fuel filter which I never got around to fitting at the last service and a set of brake shoes which I bought to cure a squeek - I took the drums off and decided it wasn't necessary to fit them just brush the dust out. It currently has a tax disc (about 5 months left) but I will be claiming that back so if you want the car then you can either buy it from me or you need to get one. I have it insured until next Saturday - if no-one wants it by then it will be driven to the scrap-yard. If someone wants me to deliver it within sensible distance of Darwen I will pending a lift home again and before the insurance is out. Like I say it's free but you need to let me know quickly and collect it or take delivery before the end of the week. Probably worth a few beers in bits if you have the time to break it - I don't have the time inclination or space. Iain

The Mountney wheel should pass on all but the radius of the spokes. The Sierra wheel doesn't have a collapsible element. If you look at the Sierra column there is a telescopic joint at the bottom to protect from any shock which is passed up it from a frontal impact and there is then a collapsible section at the top to protect the driver in the event that they hit it from the wheel end. Your tester has just gone into robot mode and taken the easy route - fail it rather than expend some effort checking whether it is actually compliant or not. As some of the guys have said there are ways to silence your existing system (some permanent, some temporary). You can also retard the ignition to make it quieter (can make it a so-and-so to start though) and then re-set it afterwards. You don't have to spend a fortune (at the moment anyway). Personally I'd do what you have to to get it through as is and then start adding fancy bits later. Iain

We have a Bosch which was keyless but now we need to use a key. The drill's gearbox had some sort of self-locking mechanism such that when not being driven you turned the chuck against the lock. Unfortunately it doesn't self-lock anymore so when you try to turn the chuck the motor spins and the whole lot goes around. Furtunatelt there is a hex on the end of the chuck so with the aid of a 19mm spanner you can still use it. Caused some hilarity at the weekend - my uncle was watching me and dad work and I aksed dad to pass the chuck-key. My uncle creased up when dad passed me a spanner (must have thought he'd lost his hearing-aid) he then stopped as I accepted it and did indeed use it as a chuck-key - dad and I are used to it so it took us a while to work out what he was laughing at but we then had an unofficial break as we were all laughing so hard that we didn't trust ourselves to drill a hole in the right place.

Must admit my old Land-Rover had enough to give the guy coming the other way a sun-tan if he didn't dip his lights - it really irritates me when they won't dip them. There were four square driving lamps along the top of the roll-cage, two Cibie Super oscars above the bumper and two Fireballs below the bumper (with illegal bulbs). They were all on seperate switches that were then fed by the main beam switch so I could select just what came on with the main-beam. Normally the Fireballs and the four high-level lamps were isolated for road use but if I came across a twit they got the lot. I also had four square lamps pointing backwards as reversing lamps - useful when someone came up behind me with their main-beam on. Would love some spots for the Hood but haven't found anything that looks right (or where to put them) yet. Have been thinking of inside the nosecone..... Iain

Joey - you missed the S6 And I thought there were other non-LSIS motors like the Daytona. And it's not nice to make fun of Jim - even if he is old, decrepit and forgetful - we still love him all the same Iain