Vacation time!!

Happy Vacationing Rod ,Spring Fall here temps dropping stupid Wind is UP ! It just want give us a break right now . Firewood ime is alreay kicking my butt , that wood gets heaver ever year Have Fun look forward to your return. Eric

Thanks for the good wishes guys.  Had a really nice week away.  Weather was about right- not too hot but warm enough to enjoy a stroll along the beach.  Our boys spent a bit of time in the surf but quickly learned that they weren't as good as they thought.

While it was relaxing I made the effort to spend a bit of time each day walking, which I do nowhere near enough of.
The boys took a fishing charter and had a good day, scoring several nice sized Morwongs and a heap of Flatheads.  (I'll let you all search to find out what they are).  





The Morwongs went down a treat for dinner that night.
A bonus was that our apartment was right under the flightpath of the local airport, a negative for many but we enjoyed plane spotting and the happy sounds of aircraft overhead.  I grew up at the end of a strip so it takes me back.
The only exposure to modelling we had was we passed a sign to "Frog Hollow Model Field".  Looked like no-one was there so we kept driving.
Happy to have the chance to finally get away.  I'm self employed so it's hard to go too far from home as the income stops when I stop.  Taking this extra week to try to finish a car project I've been trying to complete for about 3 years.

The relaxed Rod.

Way to go, Rod. Have a great time. I love the beach for rest and relaxation.
Rusty

Good to see you had a relaxed time , Welcome back. Eric

Took an extra week off work following my trip to try to finish a long-term project that I don't spend enough time on.  Picked this up in '99 as it is almost the same as my first road car.  Drove it for a while original and eventually decided to pull it off the road & do a rebuild.  I'm slowly getting there.  1970 Toyota Corolla KE11, with 2 speed "Toyoglide" transmission.  (Miniaturized version of the GM Powerglide).  It's an absolute powerhouse!!  

I always enjoy seeing an engine where there is plenty of room to work on and around it. An engine that can be, to a large extent, DIY serviced and not require specialized equipment, digital readers and computer analysis.

I look at my car (and motorcycle) and there is little that I can do to it myself other than check fluid levels. I then end up paying exorbitant amounts for service and paying notional hourly rates for the use of diagnostic equipment. My motorcycle was serviced last week and I was charged £375 - not cheap, but then again it is a sophisticated beast. My older bikes could be self serviced for the cost of oil, lubrication and a filter. A few adjustments - tappets, brakes, timing and the chain retensioned - a couple of hours and even at todays prices probable no more than £30.

There are lots of posts on this site showing the golden oldies and it does make me more than a little envious. I enjoyed servicing my own machines.

Unfortunately, driving conditions in the UK are not "Golden Oldie" friendly. Keeping a distance behind the car in front to suit older braking systems is almost impossible. You will get cut up as a car fills the gap. The braking on the "Golden Oldies" I have owned cannot match a modern car with ABS and ASC controlled disc braking systems.

Quite a few enthusiasts here tend to upgrade braking systems and swap out drums for discs. Sometimes straight forward but often not!

I'm keeping this one as original as I can, even down to the engine colour and correct fasteners. I have had to compromise on a few minor things and during the engine rebuild I made sure everything was a good as it could be. I upgraded the alloy rocker posts to steel ones as the alloy ones expand & the valves rattle when hot. Measured combustion chambers and adjusted for optimum compression and balance. Only modification I did was, on fitting the "new" transmission, a couple of bell housing bolts were different and the output splines differed from original, meaning I had to source a later model tailshaft front yoke. Other than that, everything is standard, even the tyre size.

Rod.

giday oldengine...yas is not the only aussie on here

<< Dubbo central west slopes NSW

Gazza.
We've managed to pick up another couple along the way recently as well. Heck, it's almost a takeover

we may have to send a few squadrons over to take care off em?

ekitten2 wrote:we may have to send a few squadrons over to take care  off em?

No way!    
They're currently celebrating another holiday   with a major focus on eating, so they're practically Aussies already.