Zel's Fleet Blog - BX, Jag XJ-S, Sinclair C5, Mercedes 208D & 230TE, AC Model 70.

[Hell Razor5543]

Another caption;

"Oi! You are meant to be playing with me, and not that rusty pile of electronix!"

Welcome to your new home, Star. You have landed on your feet with that bunch.

[Zelandeth]

She looks entirely too stressed out I think, doesn't she...

Yep...that's the correct way to respond to this weather I think.

[Hell Razor5543]

For huskies it is WAY too hot. Get yourselves a decent (strong) paddling pool, fill it with water and ice, and see how the canine nutters react!

[Zelandeth]

Thankfully we have air conditioning in three rooms, so they're periodically being herded in there to cool off.

Paddling pool is a good idea save for the fact that Tesla utterly hates water!

Probably has something to do with him launching himself into a reservoir covered in duckweed when chasing a duck at full run when he was a puppy...

[Hell Razor5543]

Well, if you cannot find a strong enough paddling pool (dogs have sharp claws!) how about a second-hand bath in the garden. Maybe Star will like it, and Tesla will wonder why, enough to give it a second look.

These lot looked like they are having fun;

[myglaren]

[Zelandeth]

So it's been???? of?ficially too hot to do much here this last couple of days. It was 32C in our lounge at one point today.

I used to love the hot weather in years gone by until I was put on medication which basically turned the acceptable temperature envelope for me down by about 20C. It's a royal pain in the tail in the summer I tell you that. Anything beyond about 25C ambient and I progressively just start to stop functio?ning.

The high temperature??? though has well suited one job: paintwork.

I've made a decision regarding paint. I'm sticking with the light blue Ford colour I've been using (Bermuda Light Blue if you wondered). I just personally prefer it...I realise that the greener shade is probably closer to h?ow it left the factory but I'm not so keen on it and the paint I've had just hasn't gone on well. The Ford? colour I can get relatively inexpensively in cellulose (not enamel which I'd got in my head from somewhere), which should spray nicely with the equipment I've got here.

My plan here is to get the car painted all one colour and with a half reasonable shine on it, then I'm going to step back and try to leave the bodywork ?alone for the most part and just concentrate on using, enjoying and functionally improving the car for a bit. Next year I'll maybe look to get it into a body shop to be properly stripped back to bare fibreglass and to have a couple of my repairs tidied up by someone who actual?ly knows what they're doing.

My trip over to the Festival of the Unexceptional was quite a revea?ling experience for me, being the first properly real drive in the car rather than just trundling around town. That showed me how well she actually drives...even with a drive belt in need of adjustment, a thoroughly bodged throttle cable and more rattles than you can shake a stick at. Oh, and a carb which periodically still plays up for a few seconds n?ow and then.

I'm really looking forward to getting some proper miles covered and un-bodging some of my bodges. ??

For now though I figured that taking advantage of the warm weather to get a few bits painted made sense. Figured I still had about enough paint in stock to get the engine cover done before I go to get my next stock of paint in next week.

The engine cover aside from a b?it of pitting in a few places wasn't all that bad and I figured would look all right with fresh paint on. ?

Didn't come out half bad actually.



Annoyingly I did get one??? run when my concentration wandered at one point. Luckily it will be covered by the number plate, so I'm not too worried about it.

The lock is also totally seized so will ne?ed to be changed which is why I didn't bother masking it off. ?







I quite like the fact that some???? of the surface fractures are still visible through the paint as I thin?k it suits the honesty of the appearance of the car.

Given the weather forecast for tomorrow I can't see me leaving the house to be honest!

[Zelandeth]

Really quick update to dump most of the photos taken during (and at a gathering after) the Festival of the Unexceptional a few days back... I've not seen these on an actual computer display yet, so apologies if any editing is still required.

These are in no particular order and probably covers about ten percent of which cars were there...there must have been at least a few hundred motors in attendance.

[Gibbo2286]

Nice tidy Lancia Gamma in there Zel.

[myglaren]

Nice tidy Lancia Gamma in there Zel.

It is - the Lancias look the best of the bunch.
The girl in front of the Range Rover looks like my eldest, a month ago. Went to see her last night and didn't recognise her. Gone mad on dieting and exercise. Invisible sideways on.

[NewcastleFalcon]

I think the Toyota Hi-ace deserves a place on the "A collection of interesting/awful campers & motorhomes" thread and I would put it in the interesting category.



Regards Neil

[NewcastleFalcon]

...and you've got this "David and Joanne" Renault 25 amongst the mix

REgards Neil

[Zelandeth]

Nice tidy Lancia Gamma in there Zel.

Aye, I was lucky enough to catch up with the owner after the show and to see the car up close and be taken out for a spin.

It's a car I'd never really seen or given a thought to before but is now very much on my radar. Drop dead gorgeous looks, incredibly comfortable seats, an engine note to die for and ride that's very nearly up there with oliopneumatic Citroens.

Oh...and of course, nobody does a bonkers dash quite like Lancia....

Even the interior door handles are beautifully incorporated into the overall design.

I'd definitely have very happily taken that car home.

Reckon my choice of the day probably would have been the rebadged Ford LTD though... I'm finding myself more and more looking at huge Yank barges (even if the LTD was more commonly known in the Aussie markets if I remember rightly) lately... actually halfway seriously. Especially now we've a second dog where a huge boot would be very welcome...

[Zelandeth]

Nice little present arrived for the van this evening just as I was about to lock up for the night.



These should look rather better than the bargain bin plastic tat on there which is falling apart currently. Looking forward to getting those fitted tomorrow.

[Gibbo2286]

I think I might have mentioned before my experience with a Lancia Gamma, I bought one at Tewkesbury Auction, half a mile down the road it boiled, I got it home by topping up the water umpteen times on the way (about 30 miles)

Two cylinder heads off to fix it, found both the camshafts were worn out, very little left of the lobes, spent an age finding second hand camshafts, (New ones £500 each) but got it up and running and sold on, the buyer loved it.

Timing up those camshafts was interesting, absolutely no markings.

I bought another one later but more carefully, this one was a coupe and much different in appearance. One like this: