Ian Vincent

I drilled my holes in the sides of the chassis and sealed them with self tapping screws. I also drilled and tapped the front of the inner sill members so that I could insert the Lance in there as well. I didn’t use waxoil, I used the Bilt Hamber equivalent. Rgds Ian

I used a foam tape that is very effective. It did stick in a couple of places when I had to remove the gearbox cover but it wasn’t too bad. It is about 1” wide and self adhesive on one side whilst the other is foam. Rgds Ian

I fell foul of this with a wire wheel extension shortly after I had renovated my TR3a. Fortunately I noticed the strange steering and upon checking found the rear hub was about to part company with the car. It had completely knackered the studs in no time at all. Nowadays it’s belt and braces, I removed all traces of paint and use loctite after tightening to 65lbsft. Rgds Ian

My TR3a was leaded around the scuttle area and at both B posts. Rgds Ian

Hi John, Stone chip is made by a variety of paint manufacturers. You can buy it in aerosols for small areas or in one litre cans and apply it with a schutz gun (and suitable airline) for the complete underbody. Stuart will probably be along shortly to let you know his preferred supplier. Rgds Ian

Hi Jeff, Thks for the compliments; I enjoyed the places we visited so much I wanted some kind of permanent memory jogger that I could look through occasionally. I think I was right in saying that that reason you arrived somewhat later than everyone else in Brescia ws because you had nipped off for lunch somewhere on the way down from either the Stelvio or the Gavia. Rgds Ian

I have the same problem John. I put it down to the build up of heat under the bonnet and the engine breathing that very warm air. I have a duct that feeds cooler air to the engine when I’m driving but obviously that’s not going to work when I’m stationary in traffic. Rgds Ian

Iain, Thanks for the kind remarks. FWIW the comment about FFEV was prompted by a conversation with the navigator from another team (who shall remain nameless). You weren’t the only ones Rgds Ian

Earlier this year my cousin and I participated in the Liège-Brescia-Liège Rally organised by Malcolm McKay and sponsored by the TR Register. When we arrived back, encouraged by my wife and remembering Don Hiscock's Blurb book about his TR3b, I thought I would have a go at creating a photo book of our experiences. It would have been good if I had thought about it before I left, I might have taken some slightly better pictures along the route. But in this regard, I was helped considerably by Malcolm who made his own pictures freely available - as did Wayne Scott. Many thanks to them. For those who are interested the following link will take you to the Blurb website where a preview of the book should be available. I'm not encouraging people to buy it but you can enlarge the preview to full screen by clicking on the arrows. Rgds Ian Liège-Brescia-Liège Rally - The trip of a lifetime

Can't argue with the comment about TR engines being built like the Forth Road Bridge. A world of difference from a modern one. When I rebuilt my engine I removed all ths studs and when I replaced them I gave them a smear of copper grease in an attempt to make them removeable in the future. Incidentally, is there a reason why threads into cast iron are generally UNC? Are they more robust? Rgds Ian

I used to work in a Naval Dockyard and the same sort of stories used to abound of apprentices having snowball fights with asbestos. And washing their hands in the Trike bath before eating thier lunch. Rgds Ian

That’s one benefit of a pusher fan that I hadn’t appreciated until now because I just put a deep socket on the nut and job’s a good one. Rgds Ian

We are off to Regensburg on 9th December. Rgds Ian

When I bought my TR3a the gauges were a mixture. I acquired at various times a correct set of gauges and had them refurbished. When it came to putting it all together the fuel gauge didn't work and after some research I discovered that the the sender was working in reverse to the gauge so I removed the cover on the sender and reversed the connections inside and voilà it worked. To be honest it isn't very accurate - it stays on full for a long time and the needle only starts to move away from full when the tank is about half empty. It then races down to 1/4 tank at which point I know to fill up. Presumably I have one of the hen's teeth early senders. Rgds Ian

Again back in the 70s I had a friend with a Porsche 356. I was working on a construction project in West London near to the then Porsche main dealer and he asked my to purchase a set of suspension bushes so that he could make a note of the VW part number before I returned them next day. I can't remember the price differential but it was significant. Rgds Ian