Unkel Kunkel

There was another similar incident following this 2011 ITU one. This was in the midlands in May 2020 when paramedics attended a 67 year old woman her home with suspected Covid.As the valve of the oxygen cylinder was opened a fire started and quickly engulfed the room and the house burnt down.Although the paramedics and others in the house escaped, tragically, the woman did not. It is likely that the paramedics would be using a similar type “integral valve”light weight cylinder , usually CD size - like the burnt out one in the ITU They are not moly.steel , they are alloy. In one case, the cylinder was horizontal.This is advised against. In both cases there is a description of “sparks” showering out of the opened valve -which may be very relevant. However, millions of oxygen cylinders are in use in UK and are refilled an enormous number of times per year so such terrible incidents are really extremely rare.

“accident-prone” or “careless”? I haven’t been in an explosion since posting my cautionary tale. But I have been fairly close to one last week but more of a mini “ conflagration”. I use one of those MAPP gas blow lamps -yellow cylinder etc.Use it quite a lot. Turned it on. pressed the piezo button to light... At all of the same moment it seemed, as the flame lit, (it seemed a bit smaller than usual) I noticed a curious loud hiss, and the horrible MAPP gas smell.. - Then “”woof” ( or “whoosh” ..I forget if there was a noise),suddenly a bright yellow, smokey cloud of gas and air ignited.I don’t know how big it was because I seemed to be in its centre.The gas had escaped from a leak before the burner from a fractured pipe. The burner head decided to fall off at this point ...This was immediately followed by a long, mini flame thrower, bright yellow flame and lots of thick black smoke as gas escaped out from from the pressurised cylinder through the end of the fractured pipe. I managed to turn off the valve as I ran with it to the door ready to chuck it outside .. but to my great relief it all went out. Apart from the unpleasant and very lingering smell of singed hair on forearms, eyebrow and forehead, all was well. Maybe it had been dropped; perhaps it had been stood on..I don’t know, but it had fractured through the threaded section of the pipe near the “O” ring. The lesson ? - check everything carefully before you use it...

“Silicone brake fluid” . uho.. bound to provoke a response - bit like “Trunnions - oil or grease?” On the basis of no knowledge, I get the impression that the concern re ABS and silicone seems to be based on possible foaming -there is something on Utube where someone puts some in a blender and unsurprisingly it froths up and “proves “ it.Thought that a bit unsound as there is no fluid / air interface in the braking circuit - or shouldn’t once the brakes have been successfully bled. A servo “as far as the fluid is concerned” is just another piston that moves in much the same way as the master or slave cylinder?

This relates to the kit sold by Rimmers or others- The height issue on the bulkhead seems to be related to the servo bracket. By cutting the bracket in two about 15 mm above the lower angle of the bracket as indicated then overlapping the cut edges, the the servo can sit a bit lower yet still clear the deck of the bulkhead - and the two overlapping parts welded up. ( then sprayed to match the mcylinder brackets in non-original colour ...)

It’s more anti-seize rather than lubricant we’re after here, so copper grease would seem best option

From what I can find out so far: There is a case for regularly draining the condensate, and from today I will aim to diligently drain it after each use. - It can build up to eventually reduce the tank volume ( though it could be argued that any explosion would be proportionately less, I suppose) - The condensate aids corrosion so draining and leaving the drain cock open would seem a good measure. -Phosphoric acid ie Jenolite seems acceptable but as the Scrapman points out there are practical issues .. - I am a bit unsure about the idea of spraying any flammable liquid be it oil -(or WD 40 , John ) into the tank - a pressure vessel, and then pressurising it to 150 psi .The temp probably doesn’t rise very high as the pressure is increased but it is considerably pressurised - just a bit uncomfortable with this - could this be an explosion risk in itself? Perhaps rusty drain fluid a sign that a compressor needs replacing? ( I don’t know, that’s why I asked the questions)

Exploding tanks ... not fuel,but moving on to compressor tanks.. A lot of us have compressors. Hands up - I hardly ever look at mine and I neglect to drain it every use. Internal corrosion is the main cause of these explosions and rather like petrol tanks the results can be spectacularly destructive - if you’re lucky but can also result in serious injury and death. Have a look on Utube .It seems this is not rare .Some of the interiors of the of the exploded tanks exposed by the explosions do look seriously rusty. However, this raise a question( bearing in mind these are pressure vessels) how do we ensure our tanks our safe? Daily draining when used is advised, - but what else ? Hydraulic and endoscopy tests seem beyond the amateur’s resources. Does the compressor pump/ motor etc pack up first for most people so they buy new? or is there simply a point reached when, “It’s x years old , better replace it”?

Some wild folk associated with racing. In the 1920-1940s a volatile Yorkshireman TT racer called Freddie Dixon used to regularly have to spend his prize money on the repairs to any unfortunate hotel that hosted his post race parties. The “ explosion “ connection..The Belgian Grand Prix of 1923 was sponsored by the FN manufacturing company, which as you probably know makes ... guns. Apart from the prize money, the company gave podium winners each FN pistols and a quantity of ammunition... Clearly not the best thing for Freddie to have.In celebration mood he proceeded to “loose off” many rounds into the hotel bar ceiling and ornaments causing panic and considerable damage. In the 1930’s he was stopped by the police on suspicion of drink driving. A scuffle broke out. Reinforcements were called.The fight continued until he was eventually subdued. He got 3 months - with hard labour.

I think you’ve got something there. I have never once slipped on a wet floor but have tripped over and gone full length over those blasted yellow “ caution -wet floor “ things loads of times.

In retrospect, I was very fortunate in my adolescent encounters with the Police. I recall being quizzed by red faced sergeant C.on his bike after...well, let’s skip the details , it’s a long time ago. ”Well, off go you , then,” he sighed, adding ,” By the way, do say hello to your Mum and Dad for me, won’t you .” As he got astride his bike, he turned, and fixed me in his his gaze and pointed , “ Now don’t you forget, mind “ We both knew what that meant. For on hearing that sergeant C had, ”Sent his regards”, there would be a look of surprise followed by the inevitable questioning from my mother about what were the circumstances that had led to a conversation with sergeant C .The questioning by my mother would then be followed something even more forensic by my father. They were capable of a more detailed, thorough and quite unrelenting interrogation than anything the local constabulary could ever hope provide. - Sergeant C was well aware of that.

I’m not an Elf and S disciple and didn’t start the topic to be like Fraser in Dad’s Army with a gloomy sort of “ We’ ee re ...Doomed! ..DOOMED ,I Tell ye ! “ Perhaps a bit more the elderly cop in Hill Street Blues, “And...Hey... let’s be careful out there”, sort of thing, I was hoping I might be able prevent someone’s untimely ,but dramatic exit in a loud bang and a puff of smoke. Unexpectedly, though it seems to have resurrected something - an enthusiastic, rather subversive, naughty adolescent trait in many of us. Which (unless we blow ourselves up) can only do us some good in these times.

Well we obviously like explosions ! It is remarkable we lot of hooligans reached adulthood with the full complement of eyes ears fingers etc.! Some of us experimented with nitrogen triiodide N13 Easily made (best skip that bit) and left in tiny wet patches here and there on a school corridor. As it dries it becomes explosive - a very sensitive contact explosive -so much so that even dust settling on it will cause an a very loud, sharp CRACK! (but not very powerful) explosion and a tiny purple puff of iodine. (With something a little of sugary to attract, it is possible to make a very cruel form of flypaper, I understand) A treated lengthy corridor, dried in time for the lesson change, caused havoc. The usual suspects were hauled in.Trying to keep an innocent, yet surprised and slightly puzzled expression as episodic explosions continued to echo from the cordoned-off corridor as interrogation proceeded proved too difficult for me as my brief smile was spotted to escape...

These times are sombre enough, I merely wanted raise awareness. (Must have been one hell of a bloody big bang, Eh?) .. Sorry .. that’s so totally inappropriate.

A battery that can propel a heavy car for more than thirty miles will seem very impressive and treated with caution because of its “stored energy” in way a gallon of petrol which has more potential perhaps would not.

The latest Veteran Car Club of GB mag. details an explosion that happened whilst one of their members was repairing a petrol tank he had removed from a car. It threw him several yards and the mangled tank flew down his garden. He was very lucky to escape with his life, a broken collar bone , two broken ribs and second degree burns to his face and an arm. Apparently, whilst preparing the tank for repair, a hair dryer was used to speed things up... .. Yes, OK , Obviously not a good thing to do- but I think it was very admirable of him to admit this and share it as a warning. - Please don’t underestimate the risk with fuel tanks.They can be welded / soldered but only after a methodical and careful sequence of preparation.

I think your fuel tank investigations are very interesting,Eddy, and thank you for sharing your observations. I had no idea of the construction method. Presumably that was a faulty spot weld right from the outset. Maybe the baffle flange was not fully flush with the tank wall when the weld was made. This could have the effect of thinning the tank wall with a bit of weld bridging the slight gap between the tank and baffle.This could allow a movement between the two and though really tiny would eventually flex the weld off the thinned tank wall and - as you say, there is often a “brittleness” , for want of a better word, surrounding the weld which would aggravate this. Another tank question that puzzles me : Why are some tanks so rusty with lots of pin holes yet others of the same make, model and year - or often much older, can be relatively unscathed?

I expected sills just to fit like a nut on a bolt with the correct thread. They don’t. I can’t explain why, but they don’t. It seems they often need a quite large degree of adjustment -and added metal. The sill may well need expanding outwards by cutting and inserting a fillet of metal: - and the relationship floor/sill isn’t always straightforward as the replacement floor flange can vary in depth and depending on this there may be a variation in sill flange/floor flange as per diag. -Just replacing the parts “as is” and keeping everything wonderfully braced may be fine - but very likely there will result the commonly seen “lower door edge step-out” Take your time ...and Good Luck!

Agreed. She followed Honor Blackman into the part but she quickly made the role of Mrs E. Peel all her own and the most memorable and attractive Avenger partner. - A GT6 association also ..

Be wary.Such an anecdote may be construed as an endorsement of the method or advice. If it worked -fine, but that is far from being accepted practice. I knew of a man with serious chronic chest problems who contrived a method to continue smoking whilst on oxygen.- He smoked a cigarette through a small hole he had made in his high concentration oxygen mask. Apart from being aggrieved that his fags burnt rather fast ( slower than a sparkler but similar ), he came to no direct harm from this.This doesn’t mean it is OK to do it and I would still advise very strongly against it! These petrol tank explosions may be rare, but when they do happen they can be very nasty indeed.

Very pleased that It ended well! The man-with- van from Warrington who returned with some gaffer tape sounds to be one of those nice people who just quietly perform heart- warming, selfless acts of kindness. A society cannot call itself civilised without people who fill this role- vacancies still exist. Boring old nanny stuff , but If you are serious re welding the old petrol tank for barbecue use, please hesitate to consider they can ,very occasionally but rather dramatically, “go bang“ with bad outcomes, unless they are really thoroughly purged of petrol vapour, preferably by steam cleaning... Andrew

For UK spec car it would originally capped by a blind - ended short length of tube( with a vented petrol cap). Inevitably this tube perishes and results in the mysterious petrol smell in the car. Easiest option is to replace with same or a more permanent answer is a brass 8mm micro bore central heating stop end.

U-Pol Tiger Seal seems very good. When purchasing, check the manufacturing date( on the nozzle end), as shelf life is given as 9-12 months.

That’s very interesting. Not bubbles, which I think indicate air being drawn in father than vapourisation but the “ partially filled fuel filter“ is something that I have noticed years ago on two gravity fed petrol mowers as well as a pump fed engine system where the filter is on the inlet side of the fuel pump It makes no difference if vertical or horizontal or which way round the filter is used or if I prime it full first -it soon results in same situation when engine starts. Your thoughts on the filter “wicking” the fuel seem very sound but the full explanation seems elusive. It doesn’t have any effect on function at all (and of course the filter was not transparent we wouldn’t be aware of it!) I have a vacuum pump ( with a spark-proof motor) - if I get a few moments this week I will investigate further by drawing up petrol through a filter...

Cheap body parts fit badly; expensive ones fit less badly.

I encountered this “lower door edge step out “ problem on replacing sills and rear wings.I found it extremely frustrating and time consuming, so I have empathy. My Spitfire had been fitted with replacement sills at some time in the past and perhaps this may have aggravated the problem, I don’t know. I naively thought body parts just slotted into place like a new mechanical bit of of an engine or transmission. They don’t. It’s different; It’s free-hand ; It involves wince- making cutting and bashing. Here is how I tackled and offer it as just something to consider: 1. keep the door in place with braced door gap. Fix the sill edges upper and lower firmly in place with multiple grips. 2.Cut along the upper aspect of the sill - as in drawing. 3.pull out the sill to line up with the lower edge of the door.and fix it in place with a strip of metal -and more grips. 4.Scribe the “gap” onto a flat section of panel steel. The gap ( for mine ) was very little at the bonnet end and around 10mm at the other end) 5.Next “Fill the Gap“ : depending on your welding experience .. butt weld in or using a joggler make a stepped inset and plug weld and then seam weld. 6.Grind and fill. Outer Rear Wing Fitment : Of relevance here is fitting the outer rear wing as it can be associated with sill fitting -and with this problem: If you attempt to put a whole new rear wing in place and expect it to line up with the floor, the new sill and also follow the contour for the inner wheel arch, it won’t.Well mine didn’t! The answer for me was to cut the nice new wing along the horizontal crease that is behind the door and fit the as two separate panels, after trimming the “overlap” Then carefully butt-welding them along the “crease” to allow the angle to disguise the join.This also allows matching of the sill curve to the lower part of the rear wing panel with out twisting the panel to fit the wheel arch. I hope this helps. Andrew