That was a year that was..

[Bfg]

On 22/10/2023 at 04:35, ed.h said:

Even at the time of that blog post, I wasn't really happy with that logo on the air box.  It seemed too loud.  I've been through a couple of more sedate iterations since then.  This is where I am now, and even this one may not be the final answer.

Ed

👍  That looks very much better to my old and rather conservative eyes Ed.  Perhaps just a little heavier typeface ..but still a worthy echo of the car's badging. . .

[ed.h]

14 hours ago, Bfg said:

👍  That looks very much better to my old and rather conservative eyes Ed.  Perhaps just a little heavier typeface ..but still a worthy echo of the car's badging. . .

Yeah, I like it better, too.  It's a very close copy of a logo I found online.  One thing I found is that aftermarket badges have slightly different font weight than the originals.

Ed

[Bfg]

"Boing ! " said Zebedee ..

Children should look away because this week's episode sees Zebedee squeezing tightly into his black leather seats

Magic roundabout music plays joyfully out of tune.

"Once upon a time . . . Katie  had really quite ugly and uncomfortable TR4A seats in sweaty black plastic, but then a giant came along and uplifted those into ebay space and replaced them with Mazda seats.   Now said big friendly giant found these seats very much better, and relished the extra legroom he'd made for himself and equally the tilt backrest ('reclining' is a misnomer when there's no tilt space behind the seats). But to be honest he found then rather too firm and really not such good lateral support as he had hoped.  

But then along came a fine upstanding gentleman name Martin, who was offering to all the world a very nice pair of black leather TR6 seats. They are not quite standard insomuch as they had been professionally recovered with beautifully supple leather and their diaphragms and foam had also been replaced.  Alas, as the tale tells us.. it seemed as if very few others really appreciated them.  But then came along the most amicable Bfg    ..who carried them away and took them home to his Katie . . .

However before installing them, he had a few things to sort out, not least was whether they would fit as far back as the Mazda seats and equally if not more importantly whether the Bfg would still be able to get his big fat head into the car. . .

  

Aide memoire, you can see from the headrest just how far back these seats are placed. A measurement from the clutch pedal records 42-1/2". 

  

^ Side by side the TR6 seat look rather diminutive in comparison to those from the Mazda MX5 but, with a squarer backs, their width is very tight when pushed rearwards. Katie doesn't have the fibreglass cover over her drive-shaft tunnel but still it was all a little too tight for her., not least because the TR seat has a pokie-out-the-side tilt-locking mechanism.  On the runners its also sat high in the car, and the headroom already offered nothing to spare when occupied by a Bfg.  This was another one of those five minute jobs that wasn't going to be quite so quick.. Things would have to be re-thought.  

   

^ Firstly these seats tilt's locking mechanism would have to go - the TR4A never had such extravagances anyway. And the seat runners too ..to lower the seat by an inch or more.      ^^ That's better, over an inch further back, and now the Bfg can just about get his head in under the backlight frame.   There's such difference in style between the Triumph and Madza seats.  I do think the Mazda seats look fabulous, but on the other hand I'm content with the look of these TR6 seats in a 1967 sports car.  It's not everyone's choice, but for my use of the car ; adequate driver support together with a comfortable ride outweigh the styling.   

   

^ because Katie's chassis has additional structure (a cross beam aligned to the gearbox mount), which coincided with where I needed a seat fastening, I drilled and tapped into that beam's flange.  And on the underside of the flange I was still able to fit a nut.  The fixed brackets are very simple 90-degree upturned zinc plated steel plate, which allow the seat to pivot forward for easier access to the rear space than the Mazda seats offered.  That was a useful bonus because Katie's Surrey top lid is usually stowed back there.  Another worthwhile advantage is the far easier access for cleaning alongside and under the seat.   Those snozzcumber pips get everywhere. !

  

^ Job done, on the driver's side anyway.  The TR seat measures, from clutch-pedal to seat back, about 1" less than the Mazda MX5 seat, but its cushion gives that much more - so overall my way-back seating position is the same.  For my long legs, the TR seat gives a little better under-thigh support.  Dimensionally its front squab is just 1" higher but, perhaps because that support is further back, it seems more ..and more comfortable to sit in.  Lateral support feels very much better in the TR seat ..perhaps again because I'm now sitting into the upholstery rather than on it.  Getting in and out feels much the same but the 4" more space in front of the seat gives me more room to pull my size twelves back.

- - -

I've just been for a short test drive, avoiding on my way out dozens of little devils and all sorts of ghouls ..out in the evening air searching for tears of the timid and tooth-rotting substances, and found the driver's seat to be comfortable, less draughty around the small of my back, and offering better support when going fast around a broad roundabout. The door padding offers all the bracing I need on that side but a little more on left side, for right handers, might be welcome. So I'll try swinging the seat's left side mounting forward by half-an-inch and also up a little.  As hoped the TR's ride / comfort is improved through the seat's softer suspension (diaphragm) ..which is of course the way Triumph designed the car, but to my mind was compromised when I fitted the firmer MX5 seats.

Mx5 seats may be better than sliced white bread but I prefer crusty doorsteps of wholegrain.   Everyone to their own eh ?

I'll let you know again, after a hundred miles or so, how I get on..  Knowing me, I'm just as likely to swap 'em back again. 

Bidding you all a peaceful evening,

Bfg

p.s. for a further bonus point ; Both in leather, the Maxda seat weighs in at 17kg whereas the Tr6 seats (without runners) is just 11.5kg. Times this weight saving by two seats and its the same as a full week of scrumdiddlyumptious breakfasts at Buckingham Palace

 

 

Edited November 1, 2023 by Bfg

[Bfg]

t'other seat done today. . .

^ I also twisted / moved the driver's seat 1/2" further forward on its left side and up by 1/4" in the same front corner .. That may not seem much but first (static) impressions are that it's improved lateral support on the left side as well as a tad more support under that thigh. The task was easily done, but equally I think.. well worth doing. 

       

That doesn't look too shabby

 

Edited November 1, 2023 by Bfg

[Pete Lewis]

and you still  get the important headrests 

Pete

[Bfg]

On 02/11/2023 at 09:40, Pete Lewis said:

and you still  get the important headrests 

Pete

Unless you can barely see out of the windscreen., the headrests on the TR6 seats are too low to serve their intended function anyway.   Cosmetically I feel they add a little robotic humour to a car with a Surrey-top backlight ..but any car with its soft-top down (depending on one's preferences) may look better without them. 

Pete

Edited November 7, 2023 by Bfg

[Bfg]

Not much happening this week (aside from our local TSSC club meeting tonight at the Sorrel Horse, Barham, IP6 0PG and a breakfast meeting with the TR group at the weekend) but with classic cars it’s impossible not to notice how very insecure they are,  so in addition to my everyday Autolok  handbrake to gearbox lock ..for when the car is being left unattended in a more vulnerable location - I've just bought one of these. . .

This steering wheel immobiliser is the higher security Pro  model of the Stoplock range, which gets good reviews (NB. their Elite model of the same device has a deep offset for fatter steering wheels). After looking on-line, including for a second-hand one, I bought this new (with 2 keys) from Halfords. They presently have them with a £10 off RRP, and then another 10% off when buying on-line and free postage over certain order value. In total it cost just a few pence under £35 delivered.  

  

Either or both is of course only a deterrent, especially when steering wheels on classic cars may be wood rimmed with easily snipped through aluminium spokes, but it is quick n' easy to use, and an obvious nuisance to would be joy-riders, even though you may otherwise have an ignition immobiliser. 

^  It's universal fitment also means that I can use it on other cars. And who knows I might even configure it around the frame and through the spokes of my motorcycle.

Food for thought perhaps ..and a great price from Halfords. 

Pete 

p.s. I’m not telling the insurance company because they’ll insist it’s always on the car when parked.

Edited November 7, 2023 by Bfg

[daverclasper]

2 hours ago, Bfg said:

so in addition to my everyday Autolok  handbrake to gearbox lock

I have one, though if the gear knob is removed, then they appear to be easily removed?

[thescrapman]

12 hours ago, daverclasper said:

I have one, though if the gear knob is removed, then they appear to be easily removed?

There should be a small ring fitted round the gear stick and secured with a grub screw, which is then fully enclosed by the lock.

that way if gearknob is removed it still can’t be lifted off.

[Peter Truman]

Just pull the rotar button out!

[Bfg]

3 hours ago, thescrapman said:

There should be a small ring fitted round the gear stick and secured with a grub screw, which is then fully enclosed by the lock.

that way if gearknob is removed it still can’t be lifted off.

Thanks..   I'd forgotten they had those, and I bought the Autolok secondhand so didn't get the collar.   I'll have to make one, as otherwise the argument of removing it by just unscrewing the gearknob is almost valid.  As it is with the gear lever pushed forward - the angle up from the handbrake is not enough to get the lock off. 

Pete

[Bfg]

2 hours ago, Peter Truman said:

Just pull the rotar button out!

what's a rotar button please ?

[Peter Truman]

Rotar arm! under dist cap!

It's what dad used to remove from mums morrie when they went away from around 1960 to stop me taking it a spin aged around 14!

Didn't work I brought a replacement from the local garage which I still have today in my box of odds 63 years later.

[Bfg]

Thanks Peter, I now understand.. rotor arm.

I'd guess your father soon found out   ..but realising you had the noddle at 14 to work out his deterrant and fix it, thought you were probably wise enough to go for a spin anyway.

[AlanT]

On 31/10/2023 at 20:34, Bfg said:

"Boing ! " said Zebedee ..

Children should look away because this week's episode sees Zebedee squeezing tightly into his black leather seats

Magic roundabout music plays joyfully out of tune.

"Once upon a time . . . Katie  had really quite ugly and uncomfortable TR4A seats in sweaty black plastic, but then a giant came along and uplifted those into ebay space and replaced them with Mazda seats.   Now said big friendly giant found these seats very much better, and relished the extra legroom he'd made for himself and equally the tilt backrest ('reclining' is a misnomer when there's no tilt space behind the seats). But to be honest he found then rather too firm and really not such good lateral support as he had hoped.  

But then along came a fine upstanding gentleman name Martin, who was offering to all the world a very nice pair of black leather TR6 seats. They are not quite standard insomuch as they had been professionally recovered with beautifully supple leather and their diaphragms and foam had also been replaced.  Alas, as the tale tells us.. it seemed as if very few others really appreciated them.  But then came along the most amicable Bfg    ..who carried them away and took them home to his Katie . . .

However before installing them, he had a few things to sort out, not least was whether they would fit as far back as the Mazda seats and equally if not more importantly whether the Bfg would still be able to get his big fat head into the car. . .

  

Aide memoire, you can see from the headrest just how far back these seats are placed. A measurement from the clutch pedal records 42-1/2". 

  

^ Side by side the TR6 seat look rather diminutive in comparison to those from the Mazda MX5 but, with a squarer backs, their width is very tight when pushed rearwards. Katie doesn't have the fibreglass cover over her drive-shaft tunnel but still it was all a little too tight for her., not least because the TR seat has a pokie-out-the-side tilt-locking mechanism.  On the runners its also sat high in the car, and the headroom already offered nothing to spare when occupied by a Bfg.  This was another one of those five minute jobs that wasn't going to be quite so quick.. Things would have to be re-thought.  

   

^ Firstly these seats tilt's locking mechanism would have to go - the TR4A never had such extravagances anyway. And the seat runners too ..to lower the seat by an inch or more.      ^^ That's better, over an inch further back, and now the Bfg can just about get his head in under the backlight frame.   There's such difference in style between the Triumph and Madza seats.  I do think the Mazda seats look fabulous, but on the other hand I'm content with the look of these TR6 seats in a 1967 sports car.  It's not everyone's choice, but for my use of the car ; adequate driver support together with a comfortable ride outweigh the styling.   

   

^ because Katie's chassis has additional structure (a cross beam aligned to the gearbox mount), which coincided with where I needed a seat fastening, I drilled and tapped into that beam's flange.  And on the underside of the flange I was still able to fit a nut.  The fixed brackets are very simple 90-degree upturned zinc plated steel plate, which allow the seat to pivot forward for easier access to the rear space than the Mazda seats offered.  That was a useful bonus because Katie's Surrey top lid is usually stowed back there.  Another worthwhile advantage is the far easier access for cleaning alongside and under the seat.   Those snozzcumber pips get everywhere. !

  

^ Job done, on the driver's side anyway.  The TR seat measures, from clutch-pedal to seat back, about 1" less than the Mazda MX5 seat, but its cushion gives that much more - so overall my way-back seating position is the same.  For my long legs, the TR seat gives a little better under-thigh support.  Dimensionally its front squab is just 1" higher but, perhaps because that support is further back, it seems more ..and more comfortable to sit in.  Lateral support feels very much better in the TR seat ..perhaps again because I'm now sitting into the upholstery rather than on it.  Getting in and out feels much the same but the 4" more space in front of the seat gives me more room to pull my size twelves back.

- - -

I've just been for a short test drive, avoiding on my way out dozens of little devils and all sorts of ghouls ..out in the evening air searching for tears of the timid and tooth-rotting substances, and found the driver's seat to be comfortable, less draughty around the small of my back, and offering better support when going fast around a broad roundabout. The door padding offers all the bracing I need on that side but a little more on left side, for right handers, might be welcome. So I'll try swinging the seat's left side mounting forward by half-an-inch and also up a little.  As hoped the TR's ride / comfort is improved through the seat's softer suspension (diaphragm) ..which is of course the way Triumph designed the car, but to my mind was compromised when I fitted the firmer MX5 seats.

Mx5 seats may be better than sliced white bread but I prefer crusty doorsteps of wholegrain.   Everyone to their own eh ?

I'll let you know again, after a hundred miles or so, how I get on..  Knowing me, I'm just as likely to swap 'em back again. 

Bidding you all a peaceful evening,

Bfg

p.s. for a further bonus point ; Both in leather, the Maxda seat weighs in at 17kg whereas the Tr6 seats (without runners) is just 11.5kg. Times this weight saving by two seats and its the same as a full week of scrumdiddlyumptious breakfasts at Buckingham Palace

 

 

I’ve been looking at MX5 seats for my Morris project, but think I’ll use Alfa GTV seats. Slightly retro and very good to sit on.

[Bfg]

End of Season opportunity to enjoy clearer roads as yesterday I went back across to the Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum, Flixton, Suffolk, NR35 1NZ(which at this time of year is opened only on Sundays). From where I live it's some 35 across country miles away but, since moving home a few months ago, the route is different.

  

I love this museum because it’s a local one and that makes it unpretentious. It might be noted that it’s a volunteer-run museum charity, and lacking the glamorous and glossy exhibits of well funded museums, but perhaps because of that - it is fascinating. In many ways it’s more like an old workshop packed with minute details.

  

East Anglia was of course dotted with airfields throughout the 2nd WW, and the memorabilia and photographs reflects the true grit of it. More depth is found in the stories relayed by airmen, farm workers (who witnessed aircraft crashes of both friend n' foe) and of the air-sea rescued. These do take a time to read, but there’s humanity in there which isn’t reflected in the glossy paint of a restored museum exhibit, however awesome an aircraft style &/or its specs may be. My visiting on Sunday 12th, the day of the National Service of Remembrance, was poignant.

 

     

^ far right, yes behind the curtain in the anson is the .....

  

   

With so many artefacts found in gardens, along the coastline & esturies, and farmland across East Anglian counties - it may to the uninitiated seem to be filled with mangled pieces of metal, cloth or whatever, but to an engineering mind - those same objects are like cutaway illustrations ..or rather sculptures, revealing in life-scale the guts and the craftsmanship in engineering.

Pete