Brexit, for once some facts.

wheeler

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 4, 2016
892
1,774
Scotland
He’d had a section of infected bone removed making one leg 50 CM shorter than the other. He had to wear one of those big clomping shoes (like a Herman Munster boot, but only on one foot) to compensate. I couldn’t stop laughing for a week.

I’ve always wondered about those big shoes
Big shoes? A 50cm build up would need a peg leg.
 

oyster

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 7, 2017
10,422
14,609
West West Wales
  • Like
Reactions: flecc

gw8izr

Pedelecer
Jan 1, 2020
224
240
Indeed they were terrible. The 1979 Allegro was the one with the A plus engine that later went into the Metro.
.
E series 1750 in mine from the maxi, awful.

The changes from hydraulastic in the 1100/1300 to hydrogas in the allegro made a reasonably comfortable small car handle like an awful small car.

Had there been speed bumps back then they would have catapulted the rear passengers into the roof.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: flecc

Danidl

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 29, 2016
8,610
12,256
73
Ireland
A friend of mine at school had a Moulton Deluxe bike. A strange looking small wheeled machine with rubber suspension.
I actually have one. All original fittings, ..except the brake cables. And the mudguardsI are long gone. I have two problems with it. The chrome on the wheel rims is very pitted so grinds brake rubbers in minutes. Also the back wheel with its SA three speed has a number of spokes gone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Barry Shittpeas

oldgroaner

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 15, 2015
23,457
32,608
79
The Anti EU campaign continues on the Daily Mail
"
£5billion jet deal shot down over Saudi Arabia murder: Blow for British jobs as the Germans block sale of parts in Jamal Khashoggi row
  • It is a huge blow for the UK's biggest defence company, BAE Systems
  • The deal was expected to help save thousands of jobs in the north of England
  • Germany, which sells parts for the jets, imposed arms sale ban after the murder
Interestingly the Mail got a mixed response in the reader comments for once, this ploy only worked on the less intelligent readers.
 
  • Informative
Reactions: oyster

oldgroaner

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 15, 2015
23,457
32,608
79
  • Informative
Reactions: oyster

Barry Shittpeas

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 1, 2020
2,325
3,210
how can we "Go global" when we don't make anything?
We seem to have lots of people employed as management consultants, talent delivery officers or educational nourishment secretaries, and many similar sounding posts. Perhaps we could start selling these services around the world? I’m sure someone would want a 22 year old freshly graduated Management Consultant, who’s never managed anything, to advise them on how to manage their business. What’s not to like?
 

oldgroaner

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 15, 2015
23,457
32,608
79
Hydrolastic suspension was a feature of two cars I owned, first an 850 mini and then a Morris 1800 Mark 2

I came to the point of needing the height of both cars adjusted and decided to do it myself by making my own
Pumping system, and yes, you can do this at home (if you are mad enough like me!)
"
You need four 30 inch lengths of dexion to form the top and bottom sections of the foot pump, plus seven four inch cut lengths to form the cross stiffeners
Build the lower fixed arms of the pump by bolting two 30 inch length together at the ends and across at the centre with four inch strips, than bolt on two more of the four inch strips vertically at what will be the fixed end of the pump to act as a a pivot make the tops section in the same way and attach it ensuring it is free to pivot up and down
Source an old mini brake master cylinder from the scrapyard, and at least a six foot length of metal brake pipe , in good condition and with a coupling on one end, cut the coupling off the other end
Bolt the Mini master cylinder across the upper moving park of your "pump" and bolt the cylinder piston to the non moving lower section, you now have a pump capable of several hundred PSI!
Attach the metal Brake line to the top of the master cylinder and after flushing it out fill it with fresh hydrolastic fluid.
Attach a two inch long length of nylon mesh reinforced fuel line firmly fastened with a jubilee clip loosely over the other end.
Remove the shrader valve cap from the hydrolastic inflation point and gently pump fluid to visibly fill the transparent short hose, which you then slip over the inflation point schrader valve and again gently pump till all air is expelled.
At this point tighten the jubilee clips on the clear hose over especially over the schrader valve on the hose over the inflation point and top up the mini master cylinder as you inflate the system. the pump easily overcomes the resistance of the schrader valve.
Keep topping up the master cylinder as you inflate the system
The way you set the suspension height was to measure from the wheel centre to the wheel arch front and rear of the car.
I still have those measurements chalked on the wall of my garage for both a mini and a Morris 1800 mk 2 I used to own.

By the way Hydraulic fluid was expensive so mine was obtained cheaply by milking wrecks in the local scrapyard, all you needed was one of the car tyre foot pump rubber hoses with a turn over end, and the pump end union removed, it was quite safe to put the open end of the pipe into a plastic bottle and attach the other end over the hydrolastic filling point on the donor car and gently press down releasing the pressure in the system, the fluid flowed quite safely and gently into the bottle and you could see if if was good by the fact the it showed all the colours of the rainbow when held up to the light.

The scrapyard owner charged me the equivalent of fifty pence for a full two pint bottle, I think he was tickled by the sheer cheek of what I was doing and insisted on a demonstration, which left him laughing.

And this was one of my more rational inventions, some of the others had unexpected results.
One of my favourits was when the MD decided to enter the top end of the power shower market and decided it needed a trendy name, settting on "Death by shower" and directed me to make the "Worlds most powerful shower!"
I wondered at the time if he realised I always took him at his word, so modelled the cublicle on the jetting system of a car wash.
Come the day of the demo the product manager in swimming trunks t stepped into the cubicle and pressed the button disappearing as spray erupted out of the top of the cublicle and there was a sound of screaming.
The MD turned to me and misquoted Michael Caine's words
"Ah well at least you didn't blow the bloody door off"
The product manager emerged looking sort of red all over
I love it when a project complies with the stated objective.
The MD's secretary confirmed later that he had gone into the privacy of the en suite in his office and laughed for several minutes.
My next effort was boring, but sold very well.
 
Last edited:

oldgroaner

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 15, 2015
23,457
32,608
79
We seem to have lots of people employed as management consultants, talent delivery officers or educational nourishment secretaries, and many similar sounding posts. Perhaps we could start selling these services around the world? I’m sure someone would want a 22 year old freshly graduated Management Consultant, who’s never managed anything, to advise them on how to manage their business. What’s not to like?
Do you think we could ship Cummings out to somewhere far away (Scott base seems about right) under this new scheme of yours?
 
  • :D
Reactions: oyster

oyster

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 7, 2017
10,422
14,609
West West Wales
We seem to have lots of people employed as management consultants, talent delivery officers or educational nourishment secretaries, and many similar sounding posts. Perhaps we could start selling these services around the world? I’m sure someone would want a 22 year old freshly graduated Management Consultant, who’s never managed anything, to advise them on how to manage their business. What’s not to like?
When they get older, and still lack useful experience (other than failed airlines), take them in as government advisers?
 
  • Like
  • :D
Reactions: flecc and Woosh

oyster

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 7, 2017
10,422
14,609
West West Wales
The way you set the suspension height was to measure from the wheel centre to the wheel arch front and rear of the car.
Surely that won't work on typical examples with rusted away arches...

I haven't seen any vehicle with that strange almost crabbing look of hydrolastic cars of that era in such a long time, I'd just about forgotten about it.
 

oldgroaner

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 15, 2015
23,457
32,608
79
Surely that won't work on typical examples with rusted away arches...

I haven't seen any vehicle with that strange almost crabbing look of hydrolastic cars of that era in such a long time, I'd just about forgotten about it.
It was actually the standard way of doing it and there were official quoted figures for each model
 
  • Like
Reactions: oyster

oldgroaner

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 15, 2015
23,457
32,608
79
  • Informative
Reactions: oyster

Zlatan

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 26, 2016
8,086
4,289
Surely that won't work on typical examples with rusted away arches...

I haven't seen any vehicle with that strange almost crabbing look of hydrolastic cars of that era in such a long time, I'd just about forgotten about it.
Think one of their cars (the 1800? Looked like an enlarged 1100 but a bit more angular) had nickname "landcrab".
 
  • Agree
  • Like
Reactions: oyster and flecc

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,807
30,379
Think one of their cars (the 1800? Looked like an enlarged 1100 but a bit more angular) had nickname "landcrab".
I thought the 1800 a horrible car. There was one in a 140 strong mixed model company fleet that I tried a few times but couldn't get to like it. Its wide low Mini like stance just seemed weird in a car that size and it looked odd. I don't think upsizing a successful design works, the Mini was fine, but when upsized to the 1100/1300 it didn't work anything like as well. Trying again to the big 1800, it just got worse.

The Australians had a 2200 six cylinder engine shoehorned into the 1800, and this was later introduced here. Never tried one but I doubt it helped to improve it.
.
 

Advertisers