mark powell

Ah, punctuation...

The last two years have seen me buying back my J C Midge and nearly completing a ground up rebuild. It came back to me with a rotten plywood body and a terminally rusty chassis. Originally constructed in 1985/6, time had not been kind to it. Now with an 'as new' chassis and proper marine grade plywood body, fully sealed with two pack epoxy, it should last longer than me! I have been posting my progress on The MIdge Owners and Builders Club facebook page. Before and after photos..

The last two years have seen me buying back my J C Midge and nearly completing a ground up rebuild. It came back to me with a rotten plywood body and a terminally rusty chassis. Originally constructed in 1985/6, time had not been kind to it. Now with an 'as new' chassis and proper marine grade plywood body, fully sealed with two pack epoxy, it should last longer than me! I have been posting my progress on The MIdge Owners and Builders Club facebook page. Before and after photos..

Yep, that will do it! Thanks John.

Right, one diagonal is on the cards. Two would be really awkward to install... The whole idea was for a degree for safety / peace of mind. It will not be used in any form of competition. Yes, tombstone MX5 seats, £40 the pair.

I had this mandrel bent out of correct tubing, Floor mounted at the front with strengthening plates under. The rear hoop bolts through the wheel arches with plates behind also. After reading this thread, I feel I ought to install a diagonal. However, because of the seat positions, it would have to run from the top of the front hoop to the base of the rear hoop. Thoughts please. (The hoops are welded together at the top in two places with 4mm steel plates) The car has been completely rebuilt and has no corrosion.

Wow! I have rear floodlights! I'll have to be careful where and when I reverse, as I am now showing more than the legal light intensity, probably....

LED's arrived this morning (1st class service by Classic Car LED's!). Fitted and the difference, even in daylight, is substantial. I'll be checking them out after dark... Tempting now to replace all the rear bulbs with LED's.

I thought about extra lights to the back, but it's long wheel base and the main part is converted to horsebox and would mean disturbing the conversion to hide the wiring. If the LED's don't work, I will look at tapping into the existing reverse light loom.

Are you using standard replacement engine mounts? Modern rubber seems to fail in very short order....

Thanks for all your replies. Lenses and reflectors are ok, it's just that I have to reverse into a really awkward space with light pollution from a neighbours security light. I have spoken to classic car leds and at their advice have ordered a pair of extra bright led's. I will let you know the result.

I reverse park on our driveway and now that I often return after dark, I find that the reverse lights are next to useless... Would super bright (not for road use) LEDs be the answer? The existing bulbs are standard 12v 21w 382.

Thanks for your valued advice! I'll go with the path of least resistance and stamp up with CA...

I have almost completed the rebuild of my J C Midge and am replacing the old and mangled commission plate with a new one. I know the original donor was a GA***** number as is just visible on the old plate. However, on checking the registration doc to confirm the numbers, I see that it is showing CA*****. Both sets of numbers are the same. Should I stamp the new plate with the CA number, or contact DVLA to correct it? I will have to contact them anyway to register a change of colour. Also, it is registered as a Triumph Herald 1200 saloon, as that is what was required by the Local Vehicle Licencing office back in 1986. I may change the body type to Sports but I am tempted to let sleeping dogs lie, as I don't ever intend selling it. It was a different ballgame when I re-registered the Herald estate as a pick-up in 2018, as it was a 'new' build, The Midge has been around for 34 years, with documentation including magazine photos from the 80's. What to do.

Oh, and the family referred to my 13/60 estate as 'The Hearse'

Some while ago, we bought a Series 3 Land Rover. The key fob was leather with the name Henry on it. The name stuck. Green and white Landys have always been 'Henry's'. |

Hmm... Ignore first picture, hit wrong button...

'How to speak Strine', by Afferbeck Lauder, if my memory serves me well.....

No probs with my old SIP 130. Been in use since early 90's, although a new torch was needed after about 20 years.... I've lost count of the cars, trucks, vans and sundry projects that have been rejuvenated by it!

My solution - it is not connected. But it fills a hole. Snap! Old Sony radio / cassette unit fitted but looks good in the hole...

I would only entertain this version...

Scary! Changed from trailer to Renault master conversion 5 years ago, and because it's also my work van, it doesn't get neglected... We used to have a very old extremely heavy Rice trailer in the days when we didn't really care what we towed it with. Clutch smoke from an Opel Record estate was a common occurrence.

I had similar problems with my type 14's on my pick-up conversion. Wedged the pedal down for 24 hours and travel is now acceptable and MOT pass (twice)

I have box section roofing sheets over plastic membrane over OSB board. Concrete sectional walls, no condensation.

Sorry, I missed your question. Without diagonal and looking for £75. ono.