PeterH

I've got a leak in the bottom corner of the windscreen. It got really wet in the rain yesterday. The rubber seal is in good condition but I fitted it dry with no sealer. What's the best way to seal it, preferably without removing the screen ?

Ah but I do have motorbike licence and you never know........ Also I think there is something - not sure now - about towing. My Passport expired when I stopped travelling for work - not been abroad since.

I'm going to have to work out how to do this this year. I'm still on a paper licence so I've got to get a photo and get it approved - fortunately a neighbour is a retired copper. I've been told to make sure all my permitted groups are included, otherwise you only get the basic car.

I've checked the Mini. It's shown as taxed. But not MOT'd. I'd declared it MOT exempt. It was convenient to do this just to get it taxed as it had been SORN'd. But I will get it MOT'd.

Anybody had any experience of the DVLA recently? I taxed my Mini at the Post Office on 1st April and applied to change the Tax group to historic. The Post Office sent the logbook away. A month later and I've not had it back. I wondered when I should start to worry.

One job I remember was making exhausts for the aircraft towing tractors used on deck when we had aircraft carriers. That was before the standard specified 316 and we were using an even lower grade of stainless: 3CR12. The Navy compained they were rusting and we had to give a 'Life Time' guarantee. The suppliers of 3CR12 (Actually made in South Africa) gave us the corrosion figure and we worked out it would take something like 100+ years before the metal acutally perforated.

409 stainless is ferritic. It will surface rust. It is magnetic and is the grade often used for exhausts. 304 is austenitic - non magnetic and generally won't rust. 316 is even better and used in marine environments.. The company I used to work for make exhaust spark arresters. They have to be made of 316 for safety reasons, but we used to make general industrial exhausts (fork lift trucks, gen sets etc.) and used 409. Incidentally I knew Ron Bell of Bell silencers quite well as a customer of some of our components. He retired before I did so that must be 10 years +

I did try lacquer on a metalic on another car several years ago. Not sure what it was now but not 2 pack. It was lifting and looked awful after a couple of years.

When I rebuilt the Spitfire I sprayed it with cellulose paint. (Did it myself in garage so didn't want to use 2 pack for HSE reasons. ) I'm now finding that water drops are leaving a mark. It's almost as if the water is dissolving the paint as they are almost impossible to polish out. I guess I should have re-waxed more often but has anyone else notice this effect with modern celly ?

What's happened. The forum layout has completely changed.

I've had Maxxis on a car of mine. Had to use the damage guarantee after hitting a rock (Devon Lanes ! ). You pay for the amount of wear.

My Mk3 Spit has copper. Parts list gives 209778. The rubber/plastic end connections are both splitting.

We blew up a lead acid battery at work once - by accident. It was on charge on an electric sack-truck when one of our guys using an angle grinder sent sparks over it. That made quite a bang and wrecked the battery. On the subject of school pranks my father used to tell of the one they did in the chemistry lab. All the Bunsen burners were fed by a pipe running the length of the bench. If you were the first in line and blew into your unlit burner your breath would put all the others out.

Thanks Steve. Very good. I must watch some of his other videos. I don't think my paint standard is anywhere near his.

Thanks for the advice guys. Because the paint is the same so the colour is the same, I thought that feathering out would be the best. I'll let it go hard then try cutting back. It's only the 'powdery' overspray that spoils it. I was going to try very thin paint, just coloured thinners, and see if that helped. I am using 'fast' top coat thinners.

I'm touching up one or two scratches etc. Cellulose paint left over from original respray so colour match is good. I'm using a small 'touch up' spray gun. Anyone know the knack of feathering in the new paint area. If I mask it up I get a hard proud edge up against the masking tape. If I just try to blend in I get visible over spray.

My Mk3 Spitfire - FD engine :- from sealing washer overall length 180mm, min mark 150mm max mark 122mm . like the middle one in photo.

I've read somewhere that there are some new regulations regarding black and white number plates. Does anyone know what is happening.

Found them

Easy enough to make a tool. I put details and photos of mine on the Mini Forum some time ago. I'll see if I've still got the photos. It certainly makes refitting the pin easier, and as Poppyman says use an 'R' clip rather than a split pin, after all it might be you that has to take it out again at some point.

Did my apprenticeship with Massey Ferguson, Banner Lane, so that made me a freeman of that fair (?) city. Still keep an eye on how the Sky Blues are doing.

Apologies for quality of photo - taken in cramped garage.

Looks the same as mine. I'll try to get a photo but the car is shut away for the winter.

I 'Pop' riveted mine. It's so low down you don't notice the rivet heads once they are painted. If you look carefully at my earlier photo you can just see the inner ones on the outside view. The outboard ones are through the horizontal face and aren't visible with the bonnet shut.

Have you been able to check this yet? I will have the same problem with my hardtop. Peter