Morris Minor Owners Club

My ‘54 seems a lot more solid than my ‘70 having done welding on both, but has possibly been better cared for. It is difficult to compare objectively after decades of rust and additional layers of paint on panels. If anyone has spares to hand it might be interesting to weigh early and late examples ...

The domestic cat is quite likely the biggest killer of Kingfishers. Bearing in mind how many species prey on Kingfishers and what their numbers are it is only to be expected. A slightly bogus use of statistics in my view. I’m not sure if the cat control lobby have any understanding of cat behaviour....

Yes, no one messes with Mister Pussycat! We had an old Labrador until last year but he was the boss.

No moggy is complete without one.

In the normal course of events sagging springs are remedied by fitting a new pair. Unfortunately at the moment there are quality problems with new springs and a pair I fitted are unpleasantly hard. Unless this is really upsetting you personally I would live with the one inch difference.

The options for fitting late pattern front wings to an earlier car are either to make metal plates to bridge the different hole size, or else use the later and larger combined side/indicator lamp. I chose the latter which is much simpler and gives an amber indicator.

The main difference on a modern car is all the electronic stuff which can be damaged by mig welding impulses. Some items may need to be disconnected or removed.

There can be quite a lot of variation between exhausts as different manufacturers pack their silencers differently. In addition stainless ones tend to be noisier as stainless is more brittle and resonant. As a final variant deposits in the system will muffle noise, for example if the engine runs ric...

I believe it is sometimes possible to quieten a diff by altering shimming so the crown and pinion mesh better but this would depend on the degree of wear or damage that is causing the noise in the first place. If you are not willing to try it yourself you would also face the balance of costs between...

Life is full of small annoyances. Roger McGough put it into perspective.

Survivor - Poem by Roger McGough




Everyday,
I think about dying.
About disease, starvation,
violence, terrorism, war,
the end of the world.

It helps
keep my mind off things.

Cycling on the pavement is not a particular problem where I live so maybe it’s a localised issue. The cyclists here are more likely to make a nuisance of themselves in the middle of the road.

To encourage respect on the pavement perhaps carry a substantial walking stick.

If you’ve tried new rubber and used webbing I would suggest a set of new webbing. I have had good durability from this in the past. I’ve also heard of people using lengths of old seat belt, it’s not very springy but lasts forever.

I got it with some other bits and haven’t used it so I can’t vouch for it’s condition, in view of your unfortunate theft you can have it if you collect.

Sorry to hear of the theft. I have a spare 948 box if it is of any use to you. I’m in Hampshire.

Or maybe weld a nut to the jack and wind it with a socket on the drill. It would need smooth running well oiled threads. Perhaps lift each side an inch at a time to reduce stress on the drill.

Will I buy you a new drill? Haha... No!

Myrtles Man wrote: ↑Mon May 11, 2020 7:09 pm I've got a pair of them, bought in the 1970's, but tend only to use them in the one set position as cranking them up with a car sitting on top of them is real donkey work and nearly as bad lowering the blighters when you've finished!

Can they be cranked using a power drill?

Modern radios don’t draw a lot of current. Different perhaps if you fit heated screens or if you’ve found a vintage radio with valves.

Mine arrived yesterday.

Back to the theme of brakes, this time at the rear. A Lambretta owner was off for a camping weekend and stuffed the tent between his knees. This had the effect of pressing the rear brake pedal so it was binding. His answer to this was to disconnect the brake cable and rely on the front brake only. T...

How about seized and leaking front brakes sorted by crimping the front brake pipe shut? This on a Jaguar of all things!

Not by me I hasten to add!