Beer, banger, cider and burger festival

[Rambo]

The good news is that this event is definitely on next Friday to Sunday at The Smoking Dug, Malmesbury

Even better for the Burton Hill campers as it is less than a 10 minute stagger from canvas to canvas

[clemo]

Yeee haaaa






only thing missing for me is a car ..

[dapinky]

Having spent the last few weeks deliberating the best course of action to get my car to CC, I have finally decided that to trailer it with the campervan is too much trouble (as I haven't got access to a trailer locally), so it will have to be driven.....

..... so it needs to be in a reliable drivable condition.....

..... and as it has been standing outside all winter, it needed some TLC.......

(1) Brake overhall at the very least - with whatever remedial action that reveals
(2) Remove the water from the interior
(3) Remove the 'furry' seat covers which have grown due to the damp conditions
(4) Charge up the battery, top up the fluid levels, cross fingers and turn the key
(5) Drive it a bit to see what else has degenerated during 8 months of non-use due to the house move taking up all my time.

I started 3 weeks ago with removal of the cover to reveal the extent of the work - it took a strong constitution and steely grit to make the decision, but having done so, and opened the door to the inevitable musty smells, I was actually pleasantly surprised. Although the seats were damp, all water which had got as far as the floor had drained away past the closed-cell foam, and through the drilled 6mm drain holes at the lowest levels - no swimming pools!

I didn't have enough water to warrant getting the wet/dry vacuum out, so simply put a couple of 'moisture trap' things inside the car - one on the passenger dash, and one each in the footwells. I used the cheap plastic things designed for caravans etc - just a plastic box with Calcium Chloride flakes in the top which absorbs the water in the air and drops it into the box as a thick brine which just gets chucked away. It works best in warm wet conditions, so not ideal during Winter storage, but great for Spring use.

By yesterday, the interior had dried out enough (1 change of CaCl2 a week ago) to carry on.

on to the list....

(2) - completed
(1) - starting at ROS (which had a sticky handbrake when layed-up, so a known problem to sort) - obviously, all discs were a bit rusty, so whipped the caliper off and disc first. Pleased to find sliders still sliding (but cleaned/regreased them anyway whilst i was there). Also, no sign of any fluid leaks, so removed rear handbrake lever and got a 9/16" spanner on the hex which operates the handbrake (could have used a 14mm, but better to use the correct spanner in my opinion) - it was a bit tight, but with a bit of careful application of turning force it freed off enough to strip the caliper rear seals out and clean everything up. Got bored at that point and grabbed a bag of new rubber seals out of stock and just re-built the caliper! Blead the air out, re-attached it to car, adjusted the piston position etc - all working fine! Obviously, the discs were cleaned (call me an OCD sufferer, but having got the surface clean with a wire brush in angle grinder (actually only a light covering of surface rust) I dropped the whole disc in Phosphoric Acid to give it a nice clean). TBH, I did that whilst I was doing the caliper, otherwise it would have been a 20 minute wait in the wrong order!!!!.
The only real issue is that the handbrake spring which returns the lever to the stop appears to be less 'springy' than it should be - might have to find another one (but it works).
RNS only needed a disc clean and re-grease. Both fronts were the same. Overall, not a hard job, but one that needed doing - oh, and clean the pad surfaces aswell, before they got any rust embedded in them from use.
(4) Battery had been on charge since I started, no oil needed, a bit of brake fluid from the rebuilt caliper job, top-up coolant, air in tyres.
(3) It looked horrible, but a bucket of hot water and a couple of cloths got the worst of it off without soaking the leather. Then another bucket of warm water with Milton sterilising solution in it to clean all interior surfaces. Lots of faff (especially round the dashboard area due to all the nooks and crannys), but eventually it was 'job done'. I had already hoovered the carpets and mats.
(4 and a half) Check everything works - most importantly, tune the radio and set the clock!!!! - Oh, and things like lights, wipers, seat-belts and other unimpotant stuff.

I was impressed (but not actually surprised) that when i turned the key it fired up to a rough idle . It then died again . So I switched the inertia switch back on again - which I had turned off when leaving the car last year - the fuel pump worked up to pressure, and stopped, so turned key a bit more, and it fired up to a nice idle

No leaks visible and it got up to 'fans-kicking-in' temperature.

(5) - oh yes - big smiles again. (window squirters not getting water onto screen is only known issue. Tyre pressures need setting acurately - done with the guage on my airline, but a new battery needed for my accurate tester).

Anyway, the point of this post being that I will be driving it to CC, with camping gear in the boot. No room for lots of food in case I have to pick up Clemo from Bristol train station (hopefully not!) - so nice to know that the pub has got us covered.

[clemo]

Pinky ,
I am sure a moderator will come along soon and move your post to projects minor .

In the mean time i am looking at train tickets to Stafford to collect the car and Bristol should i be minus a motor .

[dapinky]

Nah, can't see any moderators coming past here in the near future.....

... anyway, it was just a long-winded post to say i can collect you en route to the campsite, so it is sort of relevant to this thread......

[Rambo]

And if you get fed up with pub grub or curries, there is a nice Waitrose in the village with a good deli. and BBQ stuff

[Saltire]

Just don’t try the fish & chip shop in Cross Hayes. On the other hand, the fish & chips from the Chinese restaurant (I know) in the High Street is supposed to be very good. Never tried it as we always go to Chippenham (best but busy) or Tetbury.

[epipete]

Can CC postpone this event for a few weeks as I don't get back to the uk til early June and the car doesn't arrive until the end ?

[lotusflasherman]

And if you get fed up with pub grub or curries, there is a nice Waitrose in the village with a good deli. and BBQ stuff

where is this nice waitress in the village ?? Damn, should have gone to Specsavers ...

[Steve A]

Is everyone taking cooking equipment to make a brew etc ?
Just went to get gas for mine and was told they don't make it for my little stove anymore
Might have to get a new one

[lotusflasherman]

Is everyone taking cooking equipment to make a brew etc ?
Just went to get gas for mine and was told they don't make it for my little stove anymore
Might have to get a new one

Have you 'googled' for what you need? Don't let the 'we don't stock' brigade fool you with "they don't make it". What is it?
Never knew my Dad could swear till he took something into a hardware shop to get a match and was told "Nobody has ever made one of those" ... I learnt a lot of 'Army expressions' in the next minute ..
Might have room to shove in my Optimus Petrol Primus stove. Never run out of fuel for that but most friends found an excuse to get as far away as possible when I fired it up ...

Edit: Just fired up the Primus after 40 years of gas cartridges. Works a treat, just can't beat old technology.. Gets mild steel cherry red (we reshaped a squashed exhaust after an off track excursion) but will burn a hole in a dry ali' kettle in seconds if you forget to put water in ..

[Fredjohn]

Is everyone taking cooking equipment to make a brew etc ?
Just went to get gas for mine and was told they don't make it for my little stove anymore
Might have to get a new one

Got plumbed in gas hob in campervan, but will only be there Saturday pm to Sunday am

[Saltire]

Is everyone taking cooking equipment to make a brew etc ?
Just went to get gas for mine and was told they don't make it for my little stove anymore
Might have to get a new one

If all else fails, full cooking facilities available 4 miles from the campsite . . . in my kitchen

[lotusflasherman]

Got plumbed in gas hob in campervan, but will only be there Saturday pm to Sunday am

Part-timer !

[dapinky]

I'll have my (t)rusty petrol stove with me.

[lotusflasherman]

I'll have my (t)rusty petrol stove with me.

Another petrol-head! Can't beat it.. diesel doesn't work.

[Fredjohn]

Got plumbed in gas hob in campervan, but will only be there Saturday pm to Sunday am

Part-timer !

It's only the campervan and it's driver that's part-time.... I'll be there from Saturday am!

[lotusflasherman]

Got plumbed in gas hob in campervan, but will only be there Saturday pm to Sunday am

Part-timer !

It's only the campervan and it's driver that's part-time.... I'll be there from Saturday am!

Rambo & I are in Thursday evening, I'm out Monday, Rambo Tuesday or Wednesday ... may need a few cups of tea/coffee or we'll drink the pub dry ...