RBRR 2008

We're in! Team 15 for the 2008 RBRR will be Sam & I, in the Yellow 2500S Estate.

Can't wait!

I cannot believe that all 120 places went within a week! It just goes to show what a wonderful event this is.

The charity for this year (RNLI) is an excellent choice.........Lets see how much we can raise!

Bumble................................

As promised, this is the introduction to the Stag............or Bumble as she is called (don't blame I didn't name her, named by the previous owner!)

When I was about 6 years old (1978 ish) my Late God-father Les had an Emerald Green Stag. I remember blasting around Castle Bromwich in it and I vowed that one day I would have a Stag.

Fast forward 28 years later and in February 2007 I agreed to buy VML3M, a White 1974 Automatic Stag. Just goes to prove that somethings are worth waiting for!

It all happened at Stoneleigh at the Triumph show. I mentioned to Andy Roberts (well known CT member and President of the 2000 Register) that this year perhaps I might start looking for a Stag. He then mentioned to me that he was in the process of putting his Stag back together so that he could sell it to make way for the Stag Saloon "Janey" to come home from the bodyshop. Several short conversations later and I agreed to buy Bumble.

I went home, rang Sam at work, got shouted at for quite a long time, then she agreed to come to Reading the next night to look at Bumble and do the deal. Next night Sam agreed that it was the right thing to do.............Board Approval and budget application rubber-stamped!

Andy & I then spent the next 4 months finishing off trimming up and fixing the various problems to get it MOT'd and running. We had a huge saga with the Automatic gearbox (in and out 4 times before we got it right!) but eventually Bumble made the trip up to the Midlands in May.

Since then, I have been spending lots of time driving it, and doing the odd improvement here and there. The seats could do with a re-trim, the soft-top is in shreds and I really fancy one of the nice Burr Walnut Dashboards!

The main problem that I have is that being an Auto it revs quite high at speed (4000rpm at 75mph!) so I would really like one of the ZF 4 speed auto conversions. But, at £2k, it will have to wait!

In the meantime, I just loving driving Bumble.............like I said, it took 28 years to get one and it was worth the wait!

How Dumb can you get?

I have two admissions to make today.

For the first time EVER, I drove the Stag today with the roof on. I am ashamed..................

Having spent the last glorious 7 months blasting around with the roof down, berating the countless new cars I see be driven with soft-tops in place, today I had to! Chucking it down does not do the weather justice. M40, 80mph...............useless soft-top with water flying in through the various holes/rips..........great fun!

Anyway, I was on my way to see Brian Chrimes at Just Classics in Dunchurch. The automatic gearbox on the Stag has been leaking for ages and I just couldn't find the leak. Brian has a proper 4 post ramp lift and a warm workshop so that was were I was headed to try and find the leak.

After about an hour of cleaning up the AFT fluid that was dripping off everything under the car Brian eventually found the culprit.

If you OVERFILL a BW35 autobox by about 1.5litres, it will blow it back up through the vent pipe, soaking the bulkhead insulation which then deposits the sticky stuff evenly under the car.

D'oh!

So, gearbox drained and re-filled to the correct level, no leaks (apart from the stuff still embedded in the bulkhead soundproofing!)

Like I said, how dumb can you get?

RBRR......................We're on!

RBRR (Round Britain Reliability Run for the ill-educated!) fever has hit Triumph-Town again, with the official launch of the 2008 RBRR in aid the the RNLI.

I am exceptionally pleased at next years choice of Charity, as the RNLI is very close to my heart. My Great-Great Grandfather was one of the Founder Members of the RNLI and he, and his Brother and his Son were all RNLI Coxwain's in Barry, Cardiff. My later father's sides of the family are all mariners, and the work of the RNLI crews (who are volunteers, ie don't get paid! for risking their lives to saves others) is a cause well worth supporting. Remembering that the RNLI gets NO funding from this poxy Government and has to be funded solely by Charitable donations. Lets see if we can beat the 2006 total of £50,000 shall we. 100 cars, £600 per car = £60,000................easy init?

Anyway, enough of the flag waiving. Our (that's me and Sam, yes my intrepid co-pilot is my Wonderful Wife!) entry form went in the post yesterday afternoon. Even did it in style and took the Stag out for a blast to post the entry form..............(yes I KNOW the postbox is only 500yds from my house, but for some reason it ended up as a 15 mile blast to the next village to post it!)

So, hopefully, providing Royal Mail doesn't let us down (again!) and the Chin-meister gets back from Delli in once piece to process our application................we're in!

Just got to rebuild the engine, run it in, replace the gearbox, replace the PAS rack and get it through another MOT and the Yellow Peril will be ready to go!

The Yellow thing.................

Well, that's what most people call it!

Time to introduce the first beast. Its a 1976 Triumph 2500 S Estate in an Eye-watering Inca Yellow. Only 7 Estates were built in Inca, and I have never seen another one. This car was responsible for the Yellow glow on the CT stand at the NEC in November. I was privileged to be invited onto the CT stand by Tim Hunt and I loved every minute of it. Even being called "a polisher" by certain CT members...........it was well worth it!

So far the car has had all the chrome and trim work tidied up, all the suspension has been overhauled and uprated (polybushed with Witor suspension) the brakes are now Stag with EBC pads and Goodrich hoses and the gearbox has been replaced with a new Police Spec box with a Canley Classics "special" J type Overdrive on 2/3/4.

Next on the list of things to do is an Engine Rebuild (hopefully over Christmas), a Headlight upgrade and I would love to have a go at re-doing all the wood veneering inside...........

Keep watching!

My first Blogging attempt!

Well hello there! Welcome to my first blog entry.

After reading everyone else's blog (mainly on the Club Triumph Website) I thought it was time I should try doing one myself.

I would love to say that this Blog will be interesting, informative and regularly updated...........but I guess we'll just have to see how that goes won't we!

Please bear with me whilst I get used to this technicalities of this, I'm not exactly a Publishing Guru so it may take me a little time to get this thing together!

So, over time you'll get to know me (why would you!?) the Wife (Sam, Hi Honey!) the Dog (Smartie, Woof woof!) the Cars (Triumph 2500S Estate, Stag and maybe even Sam's Moggie!) and anything else that crops up.

So, welcome and hope you'll come back again soon!