Howdy pard,
I appreciate the note and yes, some of the comments were pretty funny, that one about the lucite block was definitely the best, it caught me off guard and I didn't know quite how to respond to it. It was a well placed punch for sure. When I started this whole thing out, all I wanted to do was to make people think a little bit and to try to remind them that the best thing about an old car is that it IS an old car complete with all its quirks and short comings but things escalated very rapidly and soon got totally out of hand. My own car is far from pristine, I don't use it like I used to but it sure as hell ain't no garage queen either and it has louvers in top the bonnet and a leather hood strap but these are period mods and none of which alter the character of the car and anyways, they were done many, many years ago and I don't think I would do them now. That Datsun box has got to have a very different steering ratio which will have a profound effect on the way the car drives and handles to the point where driving it is no longer like driving a T-MG and re-engineering the block to be cast in a totally different material will make it a different engine and amounts to an engine swop in my book. That's the only point I was trying to make. I wasn't trying to tell people what to do, everyone is the owner of their own car, for sure, and can definitely do whatever they want to with it, if I decide to take my car out into the yard tomorrow and set fire to it, I can do that and nobody can say otherwise ('cept maybe the fire department but what the hell do they know about MGs?). I would just like folks to think about it a little bit from one who has considerable MG experience. It seems to me there are a lot of chips on a lot of shoulders out there and I guess I knocked em all off at once.
I might have bid on the St Christopher/Carry & Lambert badge Keith, it sounds familiar but I don't know what cars Carry & Lambert sold. I don't collect badges (see "me" for mrbadger on ebay) but sometimes one will catch my eye and I bid on it. I have been selling a lot of cars on ebay lately (I have been a dealer in vintage British sportscars for 35, or so, years) and this spring, I will be offering four TCs, a TF 1500, a 1930 18/80 MK-II roadster, a P-type basket case, and many others. Those four TCs are all good old original motorcars just coming out of long storage, they will be sold to the highest bidder but i kinda hope they end up being appreciated for what they are.
That's just about it my friends, if I offended anyone, I do apologize, it's just that I have my opinion and you have yours. To the person who said "we don't need your kind", I will not make a response.
In a little while I will be going on holiday, I'm taking my wife and 10 year old son to Portugal, Spain, Gibraltar, and Morocco and when I return in 2 1/2 weeks, I will be very busy doing the things I enjoy most, selling vintage British sports cars and driving my old TC and you can be certain that when I do, it will be JUST THE WAY THE GOOD LORD, IN ALL HIS WISDOM, INTENDED FOR IT TO BE! (Lord Nuffield, that is).
Cheerio and happy motoring, it's been fun.
Badger
Re: Alloy XPAG blocks...1500 CC
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Geoffrey WHEATLEY
- Posts: 39
- Joined: Thu Nov 25, 1999 12:38 am
Re: Alloy XPAG blocks...1500 CC
You are right Gene, just get the other group to BACK OFF!
Regards Geoff
Regards Geoff
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Andy Bradley
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Fri Jan 07, 2000 3:33 pm
Re: Alloy XPAG blocks...1500 CC
No offense intended on the Lucite bit. (Well, not much at least.) Its just that we went through this same thread a while ago and it got a whole lot of noses out of joint.
I did a frameoff job on a '46 TC a while back, and everything was done right. Steering was as close as modern technology could make it, brobably much tighter than original. And it was a hell of a lot of fun to drive. Until you got into traffic or onto a highway with a good set of ruts. Then the thing handled like one of those Mini-Coopers going through the sewer/tunnel in "The Italian Job". It occurred to me that I might die.
I then drove a friend's car with a Datsun 'box. It is still old mechanical steering, but it took out all of the play that couldn't be measured, but could sure be felt when driven. I then bought a Datsun box and installed it. The original is in the corner, perfect and restored. I can hop in that car and drive anywhere, on any road, street, or highway and feel confident that it will go where I tell it too. Or, in less than an 2 hours, I can have the original in and go to a concours to take home a plaque or two.
To expect that our old cars should be driven, but only as they were intended to, sort of misses the point. When they were built, roads were virtually empty, compared to modern times. 80 miles per hour was near-light-speed. If these things are only fun and safe tootling around back country roads, what is the point? Who will see the treasures that we are the keepers of? A gas station attendant in some back-woods Podunk? Sorry, but I would rather be out there in the scrum, showing the colors and picking bugs out of my teeth on the Interstates at full speeds. Who is to be offended by the swap? Anyone who knows, will know that it is a Datsun steering box. I am not trying to pass it off as original. And no one else cares. It still looks like a black-painted lump of metal with a stick poking out, to the rest of the world.
Times change, and if we do not change, at least we have to bend a bit.
It would be truly sad if our beloved T-types became so outdated that we were afraid to drive them in moden life. We would become like the old fellows who tool around in Model-T's and Locomobiles, who are affraid to venture onto the raod with less than thirty or so of their pals and an escort car or two. Great fun for them on the sunny weekends, I'm sure, but they have been left in a condition where thay cannot drive their cars on a daily basis.
Not one thing I have changed cannot be put back. You will have a harder time erasing those louvers, than I will swaping the steering.
Point is, NOTHING is original. If some fellow wants to put a Shorrock or a Marshal blower in his car, let him. Heck, help him. I have had people in the know drooling over my original "Dealer Option" tappet covers. You know the ones. And they get appreciative nods from concours judges. But the little beggars are not original. Heck, they are FOREIGN! Made in Chicago, as were most of the coveted doo-dads of the time. So the line between what is OK foreign and what isn't is pretty gray.
It is the spirit of the car that is important. Would you scowl at a Deusenberg with a "foreign" Lalique mascot?
So, both Sides, LIGHTEN UP!!!
There are perfect museum pieces out there to represent the cars as they were. I am glad someoone is willing to curate them, but I would rather drive. Beautiful snapshots of a Time Long Past. There are some real odd mosnters out there, with V8's and such. They are called Hot Rods, and don't have a lot of MG left in them. But the vast majority of T-typers, and most sports car folks in general, are somewhere in between. For the most part, gathered much closer to the perfect side, than the monster side than a lot of folks are willing to give credit for.
And now back to your regularly scheduled mailing list......
Cheers....Andy B.
Bradley Restoration
I did a frameoff job on a '46 TC a while back, and everything was done right. Steering was as close as modern technology could make it, brobably much tighter than original. And it was a hell of a lot of fun to drive. Until you got into traffic or onto a highway with a good set of ruts. Then the thing handled like one of those Mini-Coopers going through the sewer/tunnel in "The Italian Job". It occurred to me that I might die.
I then drove a friend's car with a Datsun 'box. It is still old mechanical steering, but it took out all of the play that couldn't be measured, but could sure be felt when driven. I then bought a Datsun box and installed it. The original is in the corner, perfect and restored. I can hop in that car and drive anywhere, on any road, street, or highway and feel confident that it will go where I tell it too. Or, in less than an 2 hours, I can have the original in and go to a concours to take home a plaque or two.
To expect that our old cars should be driven, but only as they were intended to, sort of misses the point. When they were built, roads were virtually empty, compared to modern times. 80 miles per hour was near-light-speed. If these things are only fun and safe tootling around back country roads, what is the point? Who will see the treasures that we are the keepers of? A gas station attendant in some back-woods Podunk? Sorry, but I would rather be out there in the scrum, showing the colors and picking bugs out of my teeth on the Interstates at full speeds. Who is to be offended by the swap? Anyone who knows, will know that it is a Datsun steering box. I am not trying to pass it off as original. And no one else cares. It still looks like a black-painted lump of metal with a stick poking out, to the rest of the world.
Times change, and if we do not change, at least we have to bend a bit.
It would be truly sad if our beloved T-types became so outdated that we were afraid to drive them in moden life. We would become like the old fellows who tool around in Model-T's and Locomobiles, who are affraid to venture onto the raod with less than thirty or so of their pals and an escort car or two. Great fun for them on the sunny weekends, I'm sure, but they have been left in a condition where thay cannot drive their cars on a daily basis.
Not one thing I have changed cannot be put back. You will have a harder time erasing those louvers, than I will swaping the steering.
Point is, NOTHING is original. If some fellow wants to put a Shorrock or a Marshal blower in his car, let him. Heck, help him. I have had people in the know drooling over my original "Dealer Option" tappet covers. You know the ones. And they get appreciative nods from concours judges. But the little beggars are not original. Heck, they are FOREIGN! Made in Chicago, as were most of the coveted doo-dads of the time. So the line between what is OK foreign and what isn't is pretty gray.
It is the spirit of the car that is important. Would you scowl at a Deusenberg with a "foreign" Lalique mascot?
So, both Sides, LIGHTEN UP!!!
There are perfect museum pieces out there to represent the cars as they were. I am glad someoone is willing to curate them, but I would rather drive. Beautiful snapshots of a Time Long Past. There are some real odd mosnters out there, with V8's and such. They are called Hot Rods, and don't have a lot of MG left in them. But the vast majority of T-typers, and most sports car folks in general, are somewhere in between. For the most part, gathered much closer to the perfect side, than the monster side than a lot of folks are willing to give credit for.
And now back to your regularly scheduled mailing list......
Cheers....Andy B.
Bradley Restoration
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Peter Pleitner
- Posts: 141
- Joined: Tue Nov 30, 1999 11:53 pm
Re: Alloy XPAG blocks...1500 CC
Excellent Andy,
Well said. Now may we all say good night to this thread until the next century?
Drive em until the roads wear out, you'll never get another chance.
And mind our motto, "Safety Fast". Your interpretation is PERSONAL..
Cheers, Peter
Well said. Now may we all say good night to this thread until the next century?
Drive em until the roads wear out, you'll never get another chance.
And mind our motto, "Safety Fast". Your interpretation is PERSONAL..
Cheers, Peter
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Alan Moote
- Posts: 35
- Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2000 12:03 pm
Topic: 62 pages
Hello group,
I joined the group about five months ago just prior to the arrival of my TC from Indiana. It might sound corny but I feel as though I know some of you through your posted messages. I have visited some of your personal web sites as well as seeing some of your cars at events or meeting you personnally. I was trying to explain this previous thread to my wife, who's idea of a car is a mini-van, but I had some dificulty putting it into words that she could follow. I decided to print it out for her to read and it was 62 pages in length. In most cases it is not neccessary to repeat the message to which you are responding. Usually, but not always, a reference will suffice.
Let's get to the meat and potatoes of this MG thing. I love my TC. I have wanted one for as long as I can remember. I am 49 years old, 50 the 26th of this month, and was not well informed about TC's or any other MG for that matter. I had an XK-140MC and a Sunbeam Tiger back in the early 70's as well as a few early Fords but no TC's. I saw my TC on Ebay last September. The car did not sell and I contacted the agent after the auction. The car was avilable at the opening bid price. The car was in Indiana and I am in Southern California. I did not have the means to travel 2,000 miles to Indiana as well as buy the car. The agent/dealership had a good reputation and emailed photos of every angle I requested. I heard the car run over the telephone and had to rely on information from the dealer. My TC had been previously owned for 35 years by one gentleman and his wife. He is in his 80's and was looking for a car with more comforts. I think it was a '65 Chevy Impala. Let's cut to the chase, I bought the car SIGHT UNSEEN!
I was very fortunate with my TC. During the time between purchase and delivery, about five weeks, I learned of some of the pitfalls of TC ownership. I read some books as well as intercepted some of the emails of this group. I became a little concerned. I knew that the numbers matched but not much else. What about this wood? I thought cars were made of metal. When the car arrived via enclosed trailer and was offloaded I sat in a TC for the first time. My family and neighbors were surrounding the car as I grasped the starter pull and the car came to life. I could hardly believe that I owned a TC. I drove it around the neighborhood giving rides to all that were there.
In a short time my wife and I drove to a local MG get together where this unknown car was looked-over by the local experts. Aside from the "these screws are wrong son", " the tyres aren't correct (5.75-19)", and "the horn and the fog lamp are incorrect" the car was ok. I overheard people making nice comments about this "Ebay" car. I guess I did Okay. I was lucky!
The car is fairly original. I just recently purchased the correct Dunlops and had the local wheelright, Jim McGhee, rebuild the wheels. I settled for a replica horn and am saving up for a SFT-462 fog lamp. I purchased a Bronze Master Cylinder from Phil Marino and a oil filter adapter from Bob Grunau. Blair Engle rebuilt the distributor and Roger Furneaux informed me that TC7915 was built on February 15, 1949. I will probably maintain what is there and not make any drastic changes unless neccessary.
I enjoy my MG friends weather there car is a bone stock original driver, a museum piece or a "Hot Rod". Treat the cars with some sort of respect and drive 'em till your heart's content.
Regards,
Alan Moote
& TC/7915
Oceanside, CA
Hello group,
I joined the group about five months ago just prior to the arrival of my TC from Indiana. It might sound corny but I feel as though I know some of you through your posted messages. I have visited some of your personal web sites as well as seeing some of your cars at events or meeting you personnally. I was trying to explain this previous thread to my wife, who's idea of a car is a mini-van, but I had some dificulty putting it into words that she could follow. I decided to print it out for her to read and it was 62 pages in length. In most cases it is not neccessary to repeat the message to which you are responding. Usually, but not always, a reference will suffice.
Let's get to the meat and potatoes of this MG thing. I love my TC. I have wanted one for as long as I can remember. I am 49 years old, 50 the 26th of this month, and was not well informed about TC's or any other MG for that matter. I had an XK-140MC and a Sunbeam Tiger back in the early 70's as well as a few early Fords but no TC's. I saw my TC on Ebay last September. The car did not sell and I contacted the agent after the auction. The car was avilable at the opening bid price. The car was in Indiana and I am in Southern California. I did not have the means to travel 2,000 miles to Indiana as well as buy the car. The agent/dealership had a good reputation and emailed photos of every angle I requested. I heard the car run over the telephone and had to rely on information from the dealer. My TC had been previously owned for 35 years by one gentleman and his wife. He is in his 80's and was looking for a car with more comforts. I think it was a '65 Chevy Impala. Let's cut to the chase, I bought the car SIGHT UNSEEN!
I was very fortunate with my TC. During the time between purchase and delivery, about five weeks, I learned of some of the pitfalls of TC ownership. I read some books as well as intercepted some of the emails of this group. I became a little concerned. I knew that the numbers matched but not much else. What about this wood? I thought cars were made of metal. When the car arrived via enclosed trailer and was offloaded I sat in a TC for the first time. My family and neighbors were surrounding the car as I grasped the starter pull and the car came to life. I could hardly believe that I owned a TC. I drove it around the neighborhood giving rides to all that were there.
In a short time my wife and I drove to a local MG get together where this unknown car was looked-over by the local experts. Aside from the "these screws are wrong son", " the tyres aren't correct (5.75-19)", and "the horn and the fog lamp are incorrect" the car was ok. I overheard people making nice comments about this "Ebay" car. I guess I did Okay. I was lucky!
The car is fairly original. I just recently purchased the correct Dunlops and had the local wheelright, Jim McGhee, rebuild the wheels. I settled for a replica horn and am saving up for a SFT-462 fog lamp. I purchased a Bronze Master Cylinder from Phil Marino and a oil filter adapter from Bob Grunau. Blair Engle rebuilt the distributor and Roger Furneaux informed me that TC7915 was built on February 15, 1949. I will probably maintain what is there and not make any drastic changes unless neccessary.
I enjoy my MG friends weather there car is a bone stock original driver, a museum piece or a "Hot Rod". Treat the cars with some sort of respect and drive 'em till your heart's content.
Regards,
Alan Moote
& TC/7915
Oceanside, CA
-
Austin R. Baer
- Posts: 119
- Joined: Wed Dec 22, 1999 1:36 am
Re: Alloy XPAG blocks...1500 CC
For the newer members of the List in particular... this latest duel of the pickle-jar-preservationists versus the Offy-block-and-beyond group (and all the in-between-ers).... heated up a little too fast, largely because of (I think) the earlier exchanges last June. Don't be discouraged. I just went through the earlier soliloquies, and the whole of it really would make an entertaining companion piece to the Mike Sherrell's book, to be read with three fingers of Beefeaters and some Redex. Walter and Jim: we ought to think about publishing the whole of it in a T-ABC's booklet, suitably illustrated with TC photo and cartoon examples from heaven and hell. It would be a great initiation piece to the List, because it really tells what we're all about. We could make it ritual reading before changing the oil. If any of the members, new or old, is looking for punishment, drop me a note - off list - and I'll send along the old stuff that's still on my drive.
Austin
Austin
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Andy Bradley
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Fri Jan 07, 2000 3:33 pm
Re: Alloy XPAG blocks...1500 CC
I really like the idea of the required "resto-partisan" colnflict reading list.
I also like the idea that it only be inflicted upon new members, so as not to bring back horrible visions for those that survived the original ordeals.
"I seen it! It were horrible! We barely escaped with our keyboards...."
Cheers....Andy B.
Bradley Restoration
I also like the idea that it only be inflicted upon new members, so as not to bring back horrible visions for those that survived the original ordeals.
"I seen it! It were horrible! We barely escaped with our keyboards...."
Cheers....Andy B.
Bradley Restoration
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Leclerc, Lawrence A.
- Posts: 10
- Joined: Fri Dec 10, 1999 6:10 am