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Andy S

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  • Location
    West Sussex
  • Cars Owned
    Triumph Stag
    Alfa Romeo Spider
    Porsche 944 Cabriolet

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  1. I poignant reminder on why to be careful when working on, or around a petrol tank. How many forget to disconnect the battery when doing a sender, or electric fuel pump?
  2. What an excellent opportunity to fit something a little more interesting. Triple airhorns are loud and sound great. As long as they’re not an alternating tone it’s perfectly legit. In fact the ones I fitted to my Alfa have a switch so they can go from single note to TDF type sound. Childish but amusing. Andy S
  3. As Ian said the head unit is there to give an authentic period look. I wired mine up so it lights up when it is switched on. Totally unnecessary to do this because all music and radio come from my phone via the Bluetooth Amp. Andy S
  4. Volume control is done on your phone. The Caliber comes with setup instructions for setting volume. Essentially you set it up so it starts to distort at 3/4 of the maximum on your phone. Andy S
  5. Hi Ian, Never thought about the security side of it. Having a 70’s mono radio worth just over a tenner will be less attractive to thieves. Please post some pictures when you’ve got it all setup. Andy S
  6. I can’t imagine anyone paying that for one. Beware of the cheaper non-Bluetooth version. Andy S
  7. Thought I would share my solution to the conundrum of wanting modern sounds with period looks. My aim was to try and keep everything period looking, but have Bluetooth connectivity. I also didn’t want to have to cut holes for speakers. Obviously this meant sound quality was never going to be great, but would deliver a nostalgic charm. I started by fitting a 5x7 dual voice speaker that fits very snugly where the original dash speaker was. No modification or cutting required. Next I fitted one of those cheap retro looking Bluetooth Stereo head units from eBay. Cheap and easy to fit, but was never happy with the fake look. Also the sound it produced wasn’t great. Costing less than £20 and having built in hands free it’s a good cheap option though. This retro copy just wasn’t the look I was after so next I went for a converted original Grundig Weltklang radio. A great looking period radio that is converted to pickup FM and has an Aux cable so you can connect your phone. This option has several downsides. It has no Bluetooth connectivity (can be added, but gets expensive), it still only has a low mono output and actually looks out of place in a Stag interior. I ended up putting it in my Alfa Spider where it would have been a Dealer fit option originally. Finally I decided that to get the right look for a modest outlay I would need to get more creative and some compromises were required. BL cars generally didn’t come with radios as standard and were expensive dealer fit options. Looking on eBay I eventually found a Unipart radio which is a rebadged Motorola Model 114. This is the type of radio that would have been offered at BL dealerships in 70’s. It cost me £10.50 and works. It came in it’s original box. Next I purchased a Caliber CA75.2BT. This is a small 2 channel Bluetooth Amplifier. This cost £44 on Amazon. The Amp is small and easily hidden behind the scenes and connects to the dual voice speaker providing stereo sound with sufficient power so it can be heard with the top down. The Unipart Radio is the window dressing and is wired in to merely light up when switched on. I just need to fix the mounting plate properly once I’m confident everything is working as expected. Andy S
  8. Yes, took the Stag for an MOT today. I hadn’t used it for 4 months and was surprised and pleased when it passed. The only prep needed was a new battery. I know it doesn’t need an MOT anymore, but I’m only too happy to have a professional check over my 45 year old car. Andy S
  9. I did wife’s 500 with Autosol. Tried all the others, but they are not as good as Autosol. Put some on a drill mounted polishing pad and they will come up like new. Makes a right mess, so cover up anything you don’t want splattered. Andy S.
  10. If there are no cracks or splits, then no need to go down this route. Alfa dash tops crack and these need to be filled with flexible filler or foam. You then need something tough to cover it that has a textured finish. Cans are usually in black, but when I spoke to my friendly sprayer he said it can be order in other colours. Andy S.
  11. Hi Charlie, A popular option on the Alfa Spider forum is to use bed liner. I can’t vouch for the finish because I haven’t tried it myself. It’s flexible and durable and you can fill any cracks prior to spraying. I guess it really comes down to the condition of the dash you’re starting with. Andy S.
  12. Hi Dave, I was thinking in terms of weeks. The first few times would be very tough, hence why I used clamps. It will never be perfect, but will become easier. In my case, I got fed up of everyone telling me it shouldn’t be a problem and had a new frame and hood fitted. The hood had shrunk and the old frame was bent. Given the expense of a new hood, it’s worth trying a few suggests, especially as hood shrinkage is common to all convertibles. My only caveat would be that you avoid damaging the frame if it’s in good condition. Andy S
  13. Hi Dave, As a Stag owner, I’m only too familiar with hood issues. My old hood was very tight because it had shrunk. It was the original and the previous owner had not used it for years; preferring the hardtop. Anyway, I used to used 2 large trigger clamps to get it to cover those last few inches when closing. Hopefully as we get into spring and it warms up the hood will become easier to close. Andy S.
  14. Thanks for the warm welcome Pete, Nick and Clive. I’m slap bang in the middle of both the Sussex meets, but it’s a good drive out to either. Unfortunately, I’m abroad most of the working week which means I rarely make regular club nights. However, I do try to make weekend events. Andy S
  15. Hi, Have been following the club on Twitter for awhile and decided to join properly. Had the Stag for a few years now. I look forward to attending a few events when we get into the spring. Andy S.
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