Colin Lindsay

The best comment I remember about them was when two TV commentators were discussing the looks; one said something like: "It's fine if you're inside looking out, but for anyone on the outside.... yuck." To which the other replied: "Just like some people's faces...."

Mine kinked badly on the GT6 until I bought silicone versions from the club; since then they've held a very rigid shape with no signs of collapse or distortion.

At last!! Some reasonable prices... thanks John. All I could find, before, was these:

Well, I'm still debating the fitting of the metal valence. I had a trial fitting today on the restored chassis, after fitting the old and very holy valence and making notes of where and how it fits. Looks nice, but some parts are way out. I can't deny that it's solid, but therefore very inflexible, and the bottom brackets are an inch off the metal which won't bend that far without serious damage. I'm concerned about the unequal sides to the top fittings; one is almost an inch too long. I've tried everything, and thankfully I have another Herald to take reference measurements from, but they're still unequal. This can be clearly seen at the bottom of the grille, where the driver's side is a tight fit, but the passenger side is way out. There's no way that can be reshaped except by taking out metal and rewelding, or else entrusting to a good bodyworker at extra expense. I had thought that maybe if the valence was bent outwards at the outer edge then this would twist round into shape, but with both sides set at an equal distance, and matching the gaps on my other 1200, it still looks bad. The front area round the overriders is too tight to allow them to fit; I have a few pairs of old rusty units which I don't mind getting marked, so tried them as a test, but there's almost half an inch of metal at each side which will need ground back. This is the dilemma; if I cut bits off then I can't return it, but if I return it, is the replacement going to be any better? Once it's painted there's no going back but I don't want to waste time and money having it painted only to find that it never fits properly and spoils the look of the front of the car. Has anyone else bought one of these recently, and how was it?

I was only concerned before... now I'm definitely worried.

I found them interesting; however someone once said that Fait tried to think outside the box, but sadly only by putting wheels on the box... I'd still prefer one to a Ssangyong Rodius, any day.

I have two to contend with - wife and daughter. The way things are done these days is to have about twenty items delivered to the door daily - Asos, Hermes, Topshop, Miss Selfridge and all sorts of trendy names, then try them on, don't like them, and leave them for me to return via the Post Office. It costs them absolutely nothing but I think the Post Office counter staff think I'm a secret cross-dresser. Couldn't we do that with Triumphs? Uprated brake pads, wider tyres, adjustable suspension, brighter bulbs... try them on, don't like them, return them at no cost whatsoever.

That has made me very happy! Twas the end of one of our usual 'endurance' runs, down roads that I doubt traffic has seen since the turn of last century, with potholes to jar the spine and shatter the teeth. I thought at one point I'd caught something round the propshaft, but under the car a few days ago there was no trace of anything. I need to work out what the thump is everytime I select reverse and let the clutch out.

Not to mention supplying the hay for the other mourners...

B-post mounting goes like this: You'll see the two larger holes around the frame; there are lots of smaller ones but they're for the trim clips. Bottom of the b-post, you can fit reinforcing plates and screw an eye through the bodywork: I bought these from Chic Doig many moons ago but will use them on my own Herald when it gets that far. My own Herald had the floor loops but for some reason across the floor, as opposed to along it in the photo of the green tub above. I binned that tub due to corrosion, but the two black rubber grommets in the photo are a mystery; I've seen so many tubs with them and no-one seems to know what they're for, and they're too far along the floor pan to be a seatbelt mounting point.

Nope; just accelerated as normally as you can in a GT6 and when I hit third the wailing began, a real metallic screeching that made me think 3rd gear was eating its' way out. It went away in 4th, when next I tried 3rd it was all as normal and has been ever since. I've a clunk when selecting reverse anyway (when letting the clutch bite) so am back on the lift checking prop and diff mountings anyway.

Oooooh... could be a can of worms, Tony.... this is the second one I replaced the brakes on, the other side was undamaged so only needed shoes and springs. Assuming the same ratio for the front two I'll need to replace one; that's £50 for the backplate and another £40 for shoes. These things are eating into my Triumph money.

Have a look at this one; it shows the small loops in the floorpan for the earlier mountings. There's a small strengthening plate underneath. The bracket on top of the tunnel is not factory-fitted; there would have been a larger curved plate into which both seatbelts would be looped and stitched; it bolts to the bodywork by two bolts into a plate underneath. The third mounting point is top of the B post.

Yes, no nut - the new backplate comes with four brand new bolts so I don't need to save or reuse the old ones. The sledge was used as per Tony's recommendation, a few judicious taps which made a lot of noise and dislodged a lot of rust. The impact wrench was alternated between forward / backward / tighten / loosen for maybe five seconds at a time then held in place for minutes until my entire arms vibrated, and as you can see the sockets gave before the nut did. One huge industrial allen key snapped when I tried to apply torque by inserting it into the nut then jacking it up on a scissor jack, so that the whole weight of the trailer was resting on it; I was hoping to return an hour later to find it had settled but instead it went with a huge bang. It won't defeat me! Can't do it today - village as quiet as any plague-ridden ghost town on Sundays, so they'd all raise disapproving eyebrows if I started things up today, so will have to wait until tomorrow. A bit of sneaky heat-application should go unnoticed, though.

Any recommendations for supplier or brand, John? I've been lamenting tight spaces where my die holder won't turn, and those would be perfect, if I can source Imperial and preferably a small set. I've just had a quick search and all I can find are individual nuts (Goliath brand) at over £30 per nut!

Those were broken by the impact wrench. I used heat, almost glowing red, then cool for half an hour, then lots of penetrating oil, then impact again, then repeat. The head of the last bolt is still sound so I'm very reluctant to damage it while the Allen-key bit still grips. I'll buy two new 10mm socket bits tomorrow - to be sure! - then try again. As the other three are already out, if this one shears then I can remove the backplate and drill it out, but that's a last resort. By the way I've ordered Innotec but it's not arrived yet, after five days or more, so it may get here tomorrow and that'll be more assistance. Maybe I should have paid more for postage? (bought it from your link on eBay which had free postage, this one below was Amazon....)

Not the original shell, nor engine, nor suspension, nor wheels, nor interior, nor diff, nor brakes, nor gearbox... the windscreen might be original... or was it broken? ...but at least it's still the original car. That's a relief.

Never liked those, at least not from the photo; I don't want some huge modern stalk sticking up the side of my seats. I'll order a pair from QuickfitSBS, original chromed or stainless brackets and silver-grey webbing. https://www.quickfitsbs.com/static_lap_diagonals_classic.php

This one subtle enough, Tony? Four hours down and an aching back, I've stopped for lunch. Three bolts out but the fourth.... what a bu$$er. Still hasn't moved and has broken all of my 10mm impact sockets and Allen keys. Will now have to wait until the Autofactors opens on Monday to get more.

Now that's quite interesting, as we tried to apply for a licence - £35 - due to the stable waste, but were told as it was only a domestic house and a pet horse, not a business, we didn't need one. The licence is annual, so covers twelve months and allows for a bigger amount of waste than the domestic dwelling arrangement. I'm halfway between two tips, with another one 12 miles away, so as I'm fed up being checked I've started using the first two with the third in reserve. If they begin collating data I'm in real trouble.

Isn't 5th November coming up? A nice Guy Fawkes-style bonfire, in the dark when no-one can see the thick black smoke rising...

I'll keep an eye on this thread; my own GT6 gearbox (ex-Dolomite 1850) has always been quiet but on our last run, as I moved off from parked, third gear started to screech and I mean screech; a really noisy wail. All other gears were quiet, and any selection of third after that was as normal. Now it's got me paranoid... wonder what the availability of spares for the 1850 box is like?

Locally, to me, there are a few guys who rally Ford Escorts; one of them had a lot of success back in the early 2000s then wrote his car off - I mean, bigstyle. It was mashed beyond recognition. Last year he appeared at an event driving 'the car in which he won the 2003 ***** Rally'... which as far as we know still lies in bits at the rear of his workshop.

You can certainly fit them, as I've seen many times over the years, but there are some versions that can only be fitted vertically. Any tilt will activate the mechanism and so they'll be impossible to use. You need to check which you have so you can be sure they'll work at an angle.

https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/cht302-24-pce-tap-die-set/ This is very close in spec to the set I bought from Machine Mart in Carlisle back in the 1990s (on the way home from Stafford!) It's lasted well, almost 30 years now, cost me about £20 back then and fits all of the studs and bolts on my Triumph.