"Carl's Lounge" (Off-Topic Discussion, Traditional Knife "Tales & Vignettes")

[Peregrin]

I think @Johnnythefox was talking about MG cars in the Carrying thread, so I thought I'd add a bit to it. MG was a famous marque of English cars- the name is now owned by a Chinese company. It was originally located in Oxford/Abingdon and part of the Nuffield Group. Lord Nuffield was a magnate/ tycoon what would now be termed oligarch and endowed an Oxford college, Nuffield College, I think just before WW II.

MG stood for Morris Garages the sporting arm of the more sedate Morris car company and was renowned for sports cars both pre and post War, also for sporting success and experimental cars on racetracks. See Lt.Colonel Goldie Gardner 1890-1958 exploits

Here in the local car museum I saw a beautiful MGA Hardtop c1961 back in the summer

Germany is of course renowned for its sports cars and innovative models- Mercedes, Porsche, Auto-Union etc. But the car museum had an example of a more humble but I think interesting car VW Karmann Ghia sports car based on the lowly but ingenious Beetle/Kupfer.

Here a 1958 hardtop model, early Porsche in front of it another rear engined masterpiece.

When I was coming of age back in the '60s I really admired the MGs. Never did get one, but in the early 70s I picked up a '68 Triumph GT-6 which I really liked driving. 6 cylinder, dual Stromberg Carbs and weighed just about noting. Man that car would go!

 

[meako]

Y talkin Maxwell Smarts cars...

 

[Will Power]

When I was coming of age back in the '60s I really admired the MGs. Never did get one, but in the early 70s I picked up a '68 Triumph GT-6 which I really liked driving. 6 cylinder, dual Stromberg Carbs and weighed just about noting. Man that car would go!

Funny you should mention your Triumph's GT-6 Gary. Look what the MGA was parked next to...coincidence Burgundy GT-6 with wire wheels! Next to it in lurid reptile green is a 3 wheel 2 seat Messerschmidt micro car c. 1959 not the vehicle for an epic journey, but interesting.

 

[Peregrin]

Funny you should mention your Triumph's GT-6 Gary. Look what the MGA was parked next to...coincidence Burgundy GT-6 with wire wheels! Next to it in lurid reptile green is a 3 wheel 2 seat Messerschmidt micro car c. 1959 not the vehicle for an epic journey, but interesting.

This old Triumph advertisement looks just like the one I had. Yellow, wire wheels and all.

 

[Just Tom.]

This old Triumph advertisement looks just like the one I had. Yellow, wire wheels and all.

I’m pretty sure we have had this conversation here before, but we need practice making our kids’ eyes roll, so here goes my part again:
I owned a 1972 MGB GT (hard top) for a couple of years in my late teens (mid 1980s). I used to be able to slide it around tight curves on backroads, counter-steering and all. It looked just like this image I found:

I bought it off my mother’s employer. When the ignition switch died, I rigged a push-button starter for it using parts from Radio Shack. I eventually sold it and bought a 1967 Plymouth Valiant, which I drove across the continent and back. That thing was bulletproof. It looked just like this, but dark green:

 

[Henry Beige]

Th e first car I bought with my own money was a 1957 MGA 1500 roadster. I thought, and still think that the MGA had the best lines of any contemporary non-Italian sports car. I tried to drive it out to California, but it blew up in Belfield, ND. I later rebuilt it, and eventually traded it for my first motorcycle.
Tom, that MoPar slant six was an awesome power plant. I had stewardship of a Dart for a number of months after my MIL had to give up her license.

 

[Just Tom.]

Tom, that MoPar slant six was an awesome power plant. I had stewardship of a Dart for a number of months after my MIL had to give up her license.

It was indeed. If I recall correctly, mine wasn’t even the 225, but a smaller version. I thought maybe 175, but wikipedia tells me 170 cubic inches.

Over the years my family also had a 1963 Dart and a 1972 dodge van with slant 6s.

 

[mbkr]

Did the wire wheels on the Triumph and MG require tubes?

I had a 1976 Dart in college. It was a Dart Lite designed to maximize fuel mileage. Aluminum hood and deck lid. 225 slant six. Four speed on the floor with fourth being tall, almost like an overdrive. It eventually rusted out really bad. Slant six still ran like new.

 

[Peregrin]

Did the wire wheels on the Triumph and MG require tubes?

I think so, Mike. I could be wrong though. I do know that they had a problem with the threaded wire wheels stripping! I never experienced it, and glad I didn't!

 

[Will Power]

mbkr Somebody I used to know here had a Mark I Jag which he ran for a while on wire-wheels and used octagon 'knock-off' centre caps. He thought they looked very cool, but...you need tubes as the spoke holes on wires guarantee leakage. However, radial tyres are very rough inside and tend to chew the tubes- hence frequent punctures

The other nightmare is cleaning brake dust and dirt out of them, talk about time poor He went back to slotted steel wheels sprayed silver with stainless rim embellishers and nuts, looked much better and a lot less worry

 

[mbkr]

mbkr Somebody I used to know here had a Mark I Jag which he ran for a while on wire-wheels and used octagon 'knock-off' centre caps. He thought they looked very cool, but...you need tubes as the spoke holes on wires guarantee leakage. However, radial tyres are very rough inside and tend to chew the tubes- hence frequent punctures

The other nightmare is cleaning brake dust and dirt out of them, talk about time poor He went back to slotted steel wheels sprayed silver with stainless rim embellishers and nuts, looked much better and a lot less worry

I think so, Mike. I could be wrong though. I do know that they had a problem with the threaded wire wheels stripping! I never experienced it, and glad I didn't!

Thanks guys. I always assumed the wire wheels required tubes. I have tubeless spoked wheels on my 1988 BMW motorcycle. I believe it was the first bike to have this feature. There is a scattering of others now, but most spoked motorcycle wheels still require tubes. I love the looks of those wire wheels, but tubeless is the only way to go imo. And, yeah, spoked wheels are a pain to keep clean.

 

[sf fanatic]

Thanks guys. I always assumed the wire wheels required tubes. I have tubeless spoked wheels on my 1988 BMW motorcycle. I believe it was the first bike to have this feature. There is a scattering of others now, but most spoked motorcycle wheels still require tubes. I love the looks of those wire wheels, but tubeless is the only way to go imo. And, yeah, spoked wheels are a pain to keep clean.

You are correct. BMW was the first to manufacture tubeless spoked rims. It’s actually very clever how they did it. I have them on my R9. If they still make them Fuller made a excellent spoke brush. I’ve been using mine for over 20 years.

 

[Just Tom.]

Boat update for CelloDan et al.
I managed to get a solid 3 uninterrupted hours to work on my boat today. Getting the sides attached to the frames while keeping everything aligned and centered was what I was most concerned about, but it went reasonably well.

(out of focus for some reason…)
Here it is with the temporary bracing in place:

I REALLY could have used an extra pair of hands when attaching the bow, as it was under a lot of tension and difficult to align. I got it a little crooked, and had to use a few extra screws, but wood filler and sandpaper should hide all that.

My Antonini electrician’s knife saw plenty of action, both the blade and the punch. It really has turned out to be quite the carpenter’s helper.

 

[Storm 8593]

Great work, looking forward to further progress shots

 

[knarfeng]

Not as pretty as the view from Gary's house, but I thought an almost full moon rising through pink sunset clouds was still pretty cool.

 

[CelloDan]

Boat update for CelloDan et al.
I managed to get a solid 3 uninterrupted hours to work on my boat today. Getting the sides attached to the frames while keeping everything aligned and centered was what I was most concerned about, but it went reasonably well.

(out of focus for some reason…)
Here it is with the temporary bracing in place:

I REALLY could have used an extra pair of hands when attaching the bow, as it was under a lot of tension and difficult to align. I got it a little crooked, and had to use a few extra screws, but wood filler and sandpaper should hide all that.

My Antonini electrician’s knife saw plenty of action, both the blade and the punch. It really has turned out to be quite the carpenter’s helper.

Looking great Tom
Potomac and Shenandoah rivers prepare
What type of propulsion/motor will you be using ?

I wish I had been there to help ... and also wish that the USPS truck parked in front was bringing you a knife

 

[Just Tom.]

Looking great Tom
Potomac and Shenandoah rivers prepare
What type of propulsion/motor will you be using ?

I wish I had been there to help ... and also wish that the USPS truck parked in front was bringing you a knife

Thanks for the encouragement!
For now I am thinking just paddle and pole for propulsion, same as the one I made with my dad over 50 years ago. If I decide to add a trolling motor later I will have to register the boat.

I wish you had been there to help me yesterday, too , but I somehow managed. The mailman did not bring me any knives, but he didn’t bring me any bills either… FYI you will NEVER see my regular mailman (Joe) park there. If I see the truck parked anywhere besides his usual spot, I know he has the day off.

 

[JB in SC]

Thanks for the encouragement!
For now I am thinking just paddle and pole for propulsion, same as the one I made with my dad over 50 years ago. If I decide to add a trolling motor later I will have to register the boat.

I wish you had been there to help me yesterday, too , but I somehow managed. The mailman did not bring me any knives, but he didn’t bring me any bills either… FYI you will NEVER see my regular mailman (Joe) park there. If I see the truck parked anywhere besides his usual spot, I know he has the day off.

I had an 8 foot cypress jon boat built by a local guy that specialized in building wooden jon boats, I sculled it with a short paddle for fishing creeks and ponds. The narrow front (mine was only 10” wide) made it much easier to handle, I doubt the guy is still living, it was about 1977. He used bronze screws and tongue and groove construction for the bottom. It was $8.00 a foot.

 

[Just Tom.]

I had an 8 foot cypress jon boat built by a local guy that specialized in building wooden jon boats, I sculled it with a short paddle for fishing creeks and ponds. The narrow front (mine was only 10” wide) made it much easier to handle, I doubt the guy is still living, it was about 1977. He used bronze screws and tongue and groove construction for the bottom. It was $8.00 a foot.

My initial model was much narrower than this, but it seemed a little tippy when I attempted to add some scaled (correctly?) weights, so I decided to go a little wider. Looking at it now, I regret the decision, but I’m committed now. I will probably have less than $400 invested in this by the time I am done, so I can always make another in the future if I don’t like the performance or find the weight of that big wide plywood bottom too heavy.

 

[screened porch]

My initial model was much narrower than this, but it seemed a little tippy when I attempted to add some scaled (correctly?) weights, so I decided to go a little wider. Looking at it now, I regret the decision, but I’m committed now. I will probably have less than $400 invested in this by the time I am done, so I can always make another in the future if I don’t like the performance or find the weight of that big wide plywood bottom too heavy.

I think you were right to make it a little wider.