When I were a lad

[Rudi McAnichal]

My 2CV had a starting handle, but it was only like a piece of bent wire when compared to the one the Field Marshall. Tractor was sold in the early 1950s, when my legs were too short to reach the pedals, so I never had to swing that big handle. Father often used to start it with a 12 bore cartridge instead of hand cranking.

 

[8ob]

They are called Dog's and replace the bottom pulley bolt -

The thick plottens

Landrovers fitted with a capstan engine driven winch had the dog reversed or a straight cut socket to utilise the dog for the winch drive, anyone that thinks they will crank start a landy that has had one of these fitted will be scratching their head. It will either spit the handle out on the reverse type dog or keep spinning on the straight cut version

 

[8ob]

When I were a lad I liberated a bendix spring compressor from my fathers tool box , it got used for a few years on various cars but for the best part of forty years its been in the draw gathering dust. Then yesterday a friend turned up with an old Bedford starter that needed stripping, he was gobsmacked there was such a tool let alone there being one in the draw.

 

[arther dailey]

Cant sell proper tools,see you have some decent pullers as well

 

[WorkshopChris]

The Zephyr had that boat-anchor of a V4 engine which seized somewhere on the M1 en route to Stratford-on-Avon. He put a second-hand engine in (by that time Zephyrs were being scrapped when the ashtray was full) and got rid,

Was that the one with a column shift, i remember a mate had one and we were all on our way to a night out when the linkage started sticking.
Every time we stopped at a junction one of us has to jump out pop the lid fight with the linkage and jump back in.

 

[postie jon]

i remember being at a funeral and the ministers public anouncement /intercom hearing loop thingy picked up a local taxi firms two way conversation , everyone was in histerics, it broke the sombre mood,

 

[GW8IZR]

i remember being at a funeral and the ministers public anouncement /intercom hearing loop thingy picked up a local taxi firms two way conversation , everyone was in histerics, it broke the sombre mood,

Having spent a fair amount of my professional life tracking down and fixing such issues I would love that to happen at mine, assuming anyone that knew me turned up it would make them laugh.

 

[Wendelspanswick]

Having spent a fair amount of my professional life tracking down and fixing such issues I would love that to happen at mine, assuming anyone that knew me turned up it would make them laugh.

I had to take my Mum to the funeral of one of her friends and during the burial we each picked up a handful of soil and dropped it onto the coffin, as the old boy in front of me threw his handful down I heard a clink as something metallic hit the coffin, I tapped him on the shoulder and asked him whether he meant to do that?
"Do what?"
"Chuck the gold ring in on top of the coffin."
"Bugger, that's me wedding ring, I only put it on for special occasions because it keeps falling off."
Give him is due he was all for clambering down to retrieve his ring but the vicar suggested it would be better if the funeral directors retrieved the ring after the ceremony.

 

[mechman]

Was that the one with a column shift, i remember a mate had one and we were all on our way to a night out when the linkage started sticking.
Every time we stopped at a junction one of us has to jump out pop the lid fight with the linkage and jump back in.

I done exactly the same and sometimes underneath the barsteward to get it in reverse, not one of their best ideas.

 

[8ob]

I done exactly the same and sometimes underneath the barsteward to get it in reverse, not one of their best ideas.

A friend drove column shift car for years. His brothers car was blocking him in so he went to move it and got out with the indicator stalk in his hand

Bob

 

[8ob]

When I were a lad an A40 was common, have not seen one of these in years. It was nipping along at 60mph just before this, no smoke and sounded great.

Bob

 

[GW8IZR]

I never had one but always fancied a Dolly Sprint, I passed one a while ago on its way to a show and couldn't believe how tiny it was.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

When I were a lad an A40 was common,

My Dad had one of those. Sills started to rust so he did all the rubbing down, filling, smoothing , painting...then the other side started showing the same symptoms. So he started on that, but by the time he'd got it done the first side had broken out , so he......well, you get the idea. He gave up in the end and sold her.

 

[Cobbler]

I never had one but always fancied a Dolly Sprint, I passed one a while ago on its way to a show and couldn't believe how tiny it was.

Cars have got so much bigger, if you see any of the '60s cars they all look small. Look at an MG Midget, it looks like you'd have to be a politically correct very small person to get in one now.

 

[GW8IZR]

Cars have got so much bigger, if you see any of the '60s cars they all look small. Look at an MG Midget, it looks like you'd have to be a politically correct very small person to get in one now.

Yep, even cars sold as the same model have bloated up.

I drove a girlfriends polo to Blackpool in the seventies and it was tiny, not much bigger than a 500 or a proper mini, I saw an electric version in Sweden a few years ago and thought it was a Golf. I asked the salesdroid and he said 'oh the smaller car is the e-up!' ..... now I then had to explain to my two Serbian colleagues what was so funny about a car called an 'ay up! :-)

 

[graffian]

I picked up my first Harley engine from Fred Warr in an A40.
There were 4 of us sitting in an A40 waiting for Fred and an
SPG Tranny pulls across the road in front of us and they want
to know what we are doing. They thought we were a firm
plotted up to do a blag!

 

[CompoSimmonite]

The A40 was a nice car. When I had my A35 I was given one (with full MOT) to use as spares ! Turned out A40 club found owner had bought a MOT down the pub so he could sell the reg (for £1200) and then being greedy decided to sell the actual car as well. He'd repaired with filler and brush painted so on pictures it looked great but in fact was a "death trap". After several people fell for the sellers advert and went to view club decided to have a word with him. Result was he then got frightened and hence given to me just so it was off his hands. I carefully stripped it down to a bare shell and passed trim etc onto other owners for free as all I wanted was mainly the front brakes. When I jacked up the body to put it on axle stands the rear axle ripped itself out of the body as it was so rotten !

 

[rtbcomp]

They were basically a Morris 1000. We lived in Solihull in 1959 and we all went out in our lodger's A40 to try the M1 out, which had just opened.

 

[8ob]

PM sent.

I never had one but always fancied a Dolly Sprint, I passed one a while ago on its way to a show and couldn't believe how tiny it was.

There is one of these on the road around here , often goes by so must still be a daily driver. Great looking car and way ahead of its time.

Bob

 

[Cobbler]

They were basically a Morris 1000. We lived in Solihull in 1959 and we all went out in our lodger's A40 to try the M1 out, which had just opened.

Closer to a rebodied A35. Braking system, front suspension & I think floor pan was A35.

Front brakes were hydraulic, the rear was half hydraulic & half mechanical with a slave cylinder on the floor which operated a rod system to the back brakes. I think it was changed on the later models to full hydraulics.