Adrian Cooper

Hi Derek, Welcome to the forum. I have a 14 inch flat wheel on mine and I'm very happy with it. Regards Adrian

Snap! The same pub and probably around the same time as I think we are of a similar vintage. I had traveled there to visit a friend who was staying in the village and had 2 pints of the very cloudy stuff. It was like being kicked in the head. I had planned to sleep in my car which was parked on the harbour wall, and I did manage to find my way back to it, but I clearly wasn't able to operate the door lock. Some fishermen found me in the morning, fast asleep under the car. Never drunk cider since. Adrian

I've just spotted this on Ebay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/263737404309?ul_noapp=true Are those window frames a Triumph option/prototype or a home made modification? I've never seen anything like them before. Adrian

I'm sure that there are many of us here who know you well from another Triumph place, so you are very welcome. Adrian

Well done Adrian, that is a very special moment. Just over a yer ago I got my Spitfire restarted after a 12 year lay up and you are so right when you talk about it 'living' again. And, like you, I owe a huge debt of gratitude to the many knowledgable, generous, patient and all-round good eggs on this forum. Please keep us posted with your progress. Adrian

2 days after my father died I was back at the school where I work and I was invigilating an English exam. One of the set poems was this one by Tony Harrison. Fortunately the pupils were all too intent on their writing to notice the tears rolling down my face. Adrian Long Distance II Tony Harrison, 1937 Though my mother was already two years dead Dad kept her slippers warming by the gas, put hot water bottles her side of the bed and still went to renew her transport pass. You couldn’t just drop in. You had to phone. He’d put you off an hour to give him time to clear away her things and look alone as though his still raw love were such a crime. He couldn’t risk my blight of disbelief though sure that very soon he’d hear her key scrape in the rusted lock and end his grief. He knew she’d just popped out to get the tea. I believe life ends with death, and that is all. You haven’t both gone shopping; just the same, in my new black leather phone book there’s your name and the disconnected number I still call.

Simon, this is probably a very silly suggestion, but there isn't an old rubber seal from the last filter still stuck to the block is there? I can't think of anything else that would cause the filter to have so few turns before tightening. Adrian

Hi Rob, Welcome. I had a conversation today with a chap who has a rough 1966 Mk2 Spitfire for sale. He thinks it is complete and he is asking £1,250. PM me if you are interested and I will give you his contact details, Adrian

Well said Clive, I have just spent two very happy days with my imperfect Spitfire at the 'Magnificent Motors' show in Eastbourne where I had numerous conversations with people who were ex-spitfire owners with fond memories or just appreciative of its charms. I was parked next to a Shelby Mustang 500 that drew a great crowd and I was bowled over when the owner of this stunning car told me that he thought my Spitfire was possibly the prettiest car he had seen all weekend and would I be interested in selling it! Contrast this with the conversation I had with the owner of a ultra low millage Spitfire 1500 who looked at my dodgy paint job, extra gauges, lengthened gearchange with short stubby lever and MotoLita steering wheel and said "I bet that steering wheel is worth more than the rest of the car" At this same show last year, I was parked next to an immaculate Spitfire and the owner was so scathing about the non-standardness of my car that my son, who helped me to restore our car and took the criticism personally, has refused to come to any more shows. Both these gentlemen are TSSC members. Your second point struck a chord too Clive because it was very noticeable that the vast majority of car owners at the show were my age or older and the youngsters in the crowd were chiefly interested in cars like the Shelby Mustang or the RatRods. Adrian

Wow Colin, Your car is stunning! Well done. I have the first show of the year this coming weekend at Eastbourne's 'Magnificent Motors' show but my Spitfire will look nowhere near as good as your GT6. My car is rust free but it has a certain 'lived in' look, complemented by my comedy DIY respray. However, nobody seems to mind its imperfections and I enjoy going just for the many "oh I used to have one of those" conversations. I do urge those of you who haven't tried showing your car to have a go, on a fine day it's great fun.

I think that must be one of the other Adrians, there are loads of us on here!

John, This is an interesting and well structured piece of research. Do you have any ideas about the design and method for testing dampers? Adrian

Come on Colin, don't tease us, did it pass the MOT?!

Hi Dave, Dynamo or alternator? and if alternator how is the ammeter wired in? Before I changed from a dynamo to an alternator I had an ammeter in my Spitfire and it would show a negative reading with the headlights on only at engine idling speeds, once on the move it would go back into the positive. Does your battery go flat? if not I would suspect that the ammeter is giving a false reading. Adrian

Hi Simon, Darren Groves started a thread on this forum about oil filter options On the strength of this excellent thread I bought one of Clive's adaptors and this allowed me to fit a Mann oil filter to my Spitfire. I don't know about the quality of the filter offered by the club but I was certainly not impressed by the two that I bought from two of the main suppliers. Clive's adaptor solution was a Godsend. I do hope you will reconsider taking a break from the forum Clive, I'm sure that there are many others who value your input as much as I do. Adrian

Hi Grant, That hole needs the rubber flap that Pete described, otherwise you will get engine bay fumes coming through the heater vents. However, you can now eliminate the heater air box as the source of the leak! Adrian

This is what I have on my Mk2 Spitfire but I think that the early MK1s had a metal pipe that ends in a rubber moulding that droops over the horizontal part of the bulkhead (above the bell-housing) This rubber moulding has a thin slot to let the water out and it gets clogged very easily. Do take care if you have this part and try to unblock it, it will be very brittle and is probably one of the rarest parts on any Spitfire. Adrian

Hi Mark, I think that the main beam flash has a separate live feed (purple?) from the fusebox. Could it be that this wire is disconnected? Adrian

Hi Dave, Does your Vitesse have a brake servo fitted? Have you noticed a need to top up the brake master cylinder? I ask because your description rang a faint bell from many years ago when my Morris 2200 started producing a strange smell and slightly coloured smoke. Being a poor and foolish student I ignored it until the reason became apparent when the seal failed completely and the brake fluid got sucked into the inlet manifold, then the smell and smoke became too hard to ignore. Adrian

Hi Leon, I've been using Wins for many years and I think it's a great place. Most recent purchase was a recon wiper motor which was very cheap but is superb. The owner is a good chap who really knows his stuff. Adrian

Hi Tom, Welcome to the forum, you will find this a friendly and informative place. I had a look on the DVLA website and you dad's GT6 hasn't been taxed since 1984 and that is probably a bad sign for its survival. Good luck with finding a car to restore. Adrian

Pete, this seems to be a very good solution. Can you please tell me how to add a profile signature? I couldn't find it on my profile page. Adrian

Hi Karl, You have done such a conscientious job on the rest of the car that it would seem to be a real shame to miss the opportunity to really make sure that you have found and eradicated all the rust and PO's less diligent work. I would take the body off and I suspect you have come to the same conclusion. But I may just be being selfish as I am enjoying your thread! Good luck Adrian

Can I ask, what on earth were you looking for when you found these?

Plenty of sound advice on here. I echo John D's point about thinking of the lighting you need and then doubling it. Those screwfix led battens are excellent and I have just fitted one above my son's workbench. While you are planning the floor finish, how about putting some lighting in the floor too to illuminate the underside of the car? I have fitted led strips into a couple of aluminium channels and set these into my Halfords floor tiles and they give bright, shadowless lighting when I'm working under the Spitfire. Much better than a leadlight that always seems to be shining in your face or casting a shadow on the bit your are trying to work on. Good heating, a vacuum cleaner, a decent sound system and effective sealing around the garage door all make the garage a pleasant place to be. I would like to pretend that my garage is usually tidier than this but, I'm ashamed to say, it isn't. Adrian