Darren Sharp

Dear Mr Blackadder be that car be as Rotten as a Rotten thing gone Rotten … yes Baldrick and an encore of Boom, Boom, Boom Boom Boom Boom is in order!

There are actually a few on EBay at the moment. Red Mk1 at M&M motors in Bournemouth looks reasonable. The white 2500s looks remarkably good but the price is high to reflect it. The blue one needs some work .

Hopefully I’ll get more pictures over the rest of this week as bashing and welding continues in leafy Essex …. Then there will be the task of moving The Log North East to Lincolnshire where a paint booth awaits it . Unless someone offers me a Stag this is the last Triumph I will be doing …. Until the next one of course !

Thanks so far to Pete Barrett who prepared her for the Last Round Britain with new brakes and engine tuning , Nick Peskett for Hot Spannering and Sam Clayton for rare body parts .. there will be lots more !

Dear all after a long hiatus , work has re started on The Log ! Given that the front 8” of the car has already been rebuilt in steel (front wings ,apron, valence, headlight support panels and closing panels ) The rest of the car was supposedly ok … not so , the offside chassis leg which mounts to the drivers floor pan didn't survive the slightest of prods and has simply dissolved on close inspection… how she made it round the last RBRR is a mystery . There are several holes in the floor pans and the boot floor , both rear wheel wells have air where steel really would be better and the cills are also a tad frilly . The drivers side rear wing has to be cut off but at least this will allow access to weld up the inner wheel arch and floor ! Once all this is complete there’s just the respray, vinyl roof and new carpets and interior to sort , bottom line though another one will be saved! roll on RBRR 2023 ! Darren

Hi Jack , just a thought mate re your charging problems. Try buying a cheap discarnect device . It’s a battery terminal that has a shut off screw so you can disconnect the battery whenever you leave the vehicle without touching the terminals . This will prevent what’s known as ‘parasitic drain’ . A clock , interior light (even your LED ones) will draw tiny amounts of power . Generators were marginal even back in the day and will struggle to cope with charging the battery when the car is used at night or in cold weather . Even running the car on the driveway will drain the battery on tickover as the generator won’t be charging . Every time you crank it over it’s drawing a huge No of amps and it will flatten the battery very quickly . One way of helping is to fit a trickle charging device which you can plug in when the car is parked up . This will keep your battery in top condition and ready to go .

Hi everyone, well the ‘Big’ show is over for another year . Huge thanks to all of you who took the time out to attend and to Clive and Craig whose use of technology allowed us to record the highest number of pre booked tickets we have ever achieved . This years stand featured modified Triumphs and the cars did not disappoint and created huge interest . We had Alan Chatterton’s Del Lines Stag estate , Sean Daniels Beautiful 13/60 Herald which had all Triumph Mods , Mark Smith’s GitFire which demonstrated popular upgrades through the years . Paul Bagshaw brought along his unmolested all original Herald 12/50 which set the benchmark and we also had Tom Keys outrageous ‘Cosumph’ (Cosworth engined TR6) and the re chassied MX 5 with a Toledo body of Ben Parker . This car is quiet and docile until the 1800 twin cam is on song and features power steering and air con! .. The car only has 2 seats which is just as well as Ben is at least 6’ 5” … I struggled to reach the pedals! Thank you to all the owners and the many , many visitors . CT strives to be a little different every year and this often pays dividends with new members signing up . It was great to see Lesley and Roger being awarded the Harry Webster award from the Standard Triumph Forum for her years of dedicated service as STF Secretary. Lastly my Thanks to Our President Malcolm Warren , Chairman Tim Hunt , RBBR guru Tim Bancroft and all the shows team for another sterling job !

Hi all , dig out your warm clothes for 12th February as the MG and Triumph spares day is back at Stoneleigh Park . Bring your car , Bring your mates and have a meet up with Club buddies . Tea and biscuits on the CT stand as always . Contact Tina in the shop for pre orders and save on postage! This is the show to find those elusive bits from eight track players to overdrive gearboxes . If you have a garage that needs a clear out it’s a great place to sell bits as well .

Entitled to your view John but not all of us need the kind of buzz you clearly seek . You are not alone in your thoughts though so perhaps it is time for a harder core type event although I wonder how many would take it on . I have to say The single track Gavia Pass with switchback corners and steep , steep drops off hairpin bends with snow on the top was plenty challenging enough for me .

Ok well then let’s see, On my 2500 Mk2 converting from Auto to Manual Overdrive was the first big plus , then Electronic Ignition and Alfa Seats . Refreshing the wooden bits was nice especially with the Caerbont Electronic instruments which are much easy to see .

Hi Jack, yep you can fit an electric pump no problem. Buy a good quality pump from ANG or Canley Classics and wire a switch to your dashboard. You need to find a live source in your loom and the best one will probably be on the same in car socket . You will need a ‘chop block’ which is just a plastic electricians joining block (available on line cheap or from Halfords ) cut the red wire to the USB socket and rejoin it with the chop block adding in another wire which will be Ignition live . You can add an inline fuse (5Amp) for extra safety if you wish . Mount your new pump and take your new wire to a switch which you can mount on the dashboard or below it using a switch bracket and then take a wire from the other switch terminal through the bulkhead (there are a couple of useful holes like the choke cable one that you can squeeze a wire through ) to the new pump and then the other terminal need to go direct to earth either via the battery earth terminal or anywhere on the body (under a screw head on the bulkhead is fine even on the new pump itself if it mounted direct . Hey presto electric pump !

Hi all , an update on the log … most of the front is now complete with repairs now being made to the sub frame and chassis extensions . Both have seen previous patches and are being cleaned back a bit to ensure a long lasting and strong repair . Floors look good . The rear wing will be next and then a door skin and repairs to the rear offside door frame . Nick is off on a stunning adventure to the Carrera Panamerica for two weeks where he will be team mechanic for three cars that he has prepared for the rally . The log will be priority on his return he tells me . More news soon

Sarah Johnson’s old Herald Estate has been off the road for decades and tucked in a corner of the garage at home . It’s seriously rotten . Son Luke has decided it will be back on the road in time for the RBRR 2023 . Luke and Andy are busy ripping into the floor pans and boot floor with replacement panels and Wendy and I spent Saturday removing all the remaining running gear from the chassis . I managed to drop a lump of front suspension on the toes of my left foot which was rather painful but eventually we had all the front and rear stripped down . Chassis is extremely good and will be going for powder coating . Amongst Andy’s spares hoard is a complete front suspension that’s already powder coated and ready to go . Will be a great car again but in time for the RBRR? Remains to be seen .

Currently being edited guys should be with you in a couple of days . I have too do two lots at once because of the print run for the magazine so I’ve spread out the myriad of events , shows etc . Busy busy !

Oh Most certainly Amy

Hi everyone. some of you may remember that pre Covid and Brexit I was organising a tour of the WW 1 and 2 memorial sites in Ypres and Normandy . The tour got to the pricing stage before all our plans were put on hold . I am considering reviving it for summer 2023 . It includes the WW1 ceremony of the last post , all five beach heads and the Atlantic Wall defences . Please register your interest and if there is enough people I will then go to Classic and Continental for a revised price . Other Classics will be welcome to join us .

Dear Members if you are considering visiting the NEC for the National Classic please use the code in the Magazine advertisement as in addition to the discount the Club benefits with complimentary tickets for the stand for every 5 sold through the code . This is helpful in reducing the cost of putting on the stand and the number sold is monitored by the promoter which helps with application for the following year. Thank you Darren

Colin’s contact details are 07801 731653 or 01288 321646

Hi all , centre spread in Practical Classics this month is Evie the beautiful Conifer and red leather MK 1 2000 saloon that was formerly mine and previously belonged to the late John Snook . It’s still in superb condition and has the uprated rear suspension fitted by Dale Barker a Dynamator and individually relayed headlights (also fitted by Dale) . Colin Stretton is the current owner and he is slimming down his superb collection of Triumphs and would like ‘ Evie’ to stay in the Club . He is open to sensible offers around £9000. ( but please speak to him) The car is non overdrive and non power steered . It has a CT comps history having completed the C2C when in my ownership . I only sold it when I decided to restore Olaf having bought it with the intention of transferring Olaf’s running gear . When it came to it it was just too nice! It’s not concours but it could quite easily be with some fettling ,it’s a really lovely car . Very smooth engine and the mileage is around low seventies with documentation to substantiate. If you’ve been hankering after a Mk1 you can’t go wrong with Evie . She has now featured in three magazines .

Olaf has been given a good clean up ahead of his date with Just Jayne at the Lincolnshire Aviation museum tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing everyone and some lovely Triumphs .

Chatsworth House are having a Fireworks and Bonfire extravaganza on Friday 28th October and Saturday 29th cost is £17 per adult and £11 for kids . Hoping to visit from West Mids Chatsworth.org/events/bonfire-and-fireworks

We as a Club do have some support from Major suppliers through advertising in Club Torque . Like all businesses our Suppliers have to make profits and some have maximised their earnings by branching out into other areas of supply and are no longer specifically involved with just Triumph . This has diminished their expertise somewhat . Years ago many lines have become deleted because of lack of demand . Re manufacturing was no longer financially possible in the UK . A lot of spares are now sought from abroad and the quality is not always good enough although there is an argument that at least there is some availability ( even if it’s not really up to British Standards) . There are suppliers that have bucked this trend and will only supply quality parts mostly sourced in the UK . The result of this is that they tend to be slightly more expensive but as the old saying goes Caveat emptor - buyer beware . You get what you pay for .. I used to have many discussions with our suppliers and the overriding impression I was left with was that the cost of re tooling simply outweighed the possible profit margins for low volume production. Modern laser printing and CAD CAM can help as it will make it possible to re manufacture some parts without traditional expenses.

See you there Dave