Bush Mechanic

That is interesting, Fred. The 'Blitz' trucks, as we called them were quite common in the station country, either with a Ford V8 or a Chev OHV 6, from memory. The main thing I remember is that none of the several examples I drove had any brakes whatsoever. Quite challenging in thicker bush country. And my apologies to Danritz for wandering off topic.

Good advice above. I wash the shoes in methylated spirits. I believe it's called white spirit in the UK. In the US, I don't know. It evaporates off rapidly. Then in the kitchen oven, occasionally wiping the hot shoes with paper towel, as the oil bleeds out of them with the heat. When the oil stops appearing on the surface, you are good to go. It sounds like Ed gives them plenty of heat and burns off the oil, but my oven is wood fired. 300F is easy to maintain, and that does the trick. Never actually noticed the smell in the kitchen. Just don't bake a cake at the same time. I am currently using the methylated spirits as anti covid 19 hand sanitiser, when I go to town. It's handy stuff, alcohol, with something nasty in it to discourage the drinkers.

Very nice vise, Dandy Dave. Just the thing for bending heavy steel with a 10 lb sledge hammer. Do I see hinged pieces below the jaws? Are these folding supports for the job, or something more specialised? I've not noticed them before.

Radiator and bonnet line on this 1914 Cowey look a lot like the OP car. But the pneumatic suspension is not in evidence. Wheels aren't too dissimilar, either.

Metallurgique cars all had their signature V radiator from 1907, but the top tank was composed of flat planes, with just a small radius at the front below the filler cap. The subject car appears to have some roundness to the top tank. The radiator in the above photo looks close, but not the rest of the car.

My first one was around 1965, chasing wild goats out on the sheep station where I worked, in my road registered '39 Chev Sloper. Going too quickly along a fence-line across a claypan, got sideways on a wet patch, then the tires gripped on dry ground, and it rolled onto it's side. Two lads, two loaded rifles and a round four gallon can of fuel, all lying in a heap on the side window. We jacked it up at the roof line, pulled some wire out of the fence and tried a Spanish windlass off a fence post, but the old girl was just too heavy for us. Worst part was the 10 mile walk across country to the homestead, to borrow the boss's Landrover. Tipped it back on it's wheels, let the oil settle back, and fired it up. We sustained a dent in the rain gutter from the jack, and a broken side mirror. It could have been a lot worse.

In 1972 I was contract fencing in out-back Western Australia. My lady friend lived in Melbourne, so I was 'cruising' back there fairly regularly, in my 1964 Landrover. It was around 2,500 miles each way, at a comfortable cruising speed of 50 mph. While crossing the Nullarbor Plain I would often read a book propped on the steering wheel, watching for the occasional vehicle out of the top of my vision. We did some silly things, when we were young and indestructible. If I shut my eyes now I can still hear the whine of the transfer box gear. I traded a rough Austin Healey Sprite on that Landrover, then rebuilt the engine in my driveway. A very reliable old beast it was, too.

Good to see the TD moving forward again. I haven't had any trouble at all with recently manufactured carbon throw-out bearings. If you are putting them in with a new pressure plate, ie. smoothly finished throw-out bearing seat, they should outlast the clutch. I have 12,000 miles on one, and 20,000 on another. There is usually only around 1/4" of linear travel under pressure, so the scrub effect is minimal. That said, I don't sit at traffic lights with my foot on the clutch, either. Hard to say what the squeal could be, as you have recently put it together with new components, from memory. That would rule out jury rigged components. I once found a roller throw-out bearing with a drilled flange, held roughly in place with tie wire, in an ex US MGB that I bought. Now that one could have squealed! Will be interested in what you find. Keep up the good work.

Mine has always been the Invicta S Type Low Chassis Coupe. Fast continental touring and sports racing car par excellence. I read an article in a sports car magazine about 60 years ago, regarding a high speed dash across Europe in a 30 year old Invicta, and I was hooked, although I have yet to see one in real life. Most of the 77 coupes and drop heads built between 1930-1934 are still out there, many of them still competing in historic racing events. 4.5 litre Meadows engine, in an under-slung chassis, with mostly bespoke coachwork. Their downfall was the high price tag, which kept production numbers down.

Hi, Willy. I emailed a friend who restored one here in Australia many years ago. His reply most likely wont help you very much. "The drive axle with the diff, has an outer tube the drive wheel slideson, and the axles are on the inside of that. The sprockets on the axleends are on keyed tapers and held on with slotted nuts.Although I haven't pulled the axles out of mine, ad it was a new diffassembly when restored, the axles (I have spares) have the sun-wheelsmachined on the ends. To remove the axles, you would have to split thediff housing and remove them from that side.'

Jeff, you ask how to by-pass the starter. If you were able to push start the car, we can assume that it has a manual transmission. As Maok mentioned earlier, you can often start a manual transmission car from the back wheel. But this may be difficult, due to you age, etc. You also said that it has been idling for lengthy periods recently, so we can assume that the timing is set accurately enough to start the car. Here is how I have accomplished it, many times. 1. Chock three wheels so that the car cannot roll. 2. Jack one rear wheel off the ground, and remove the wheel. 3. Screw the wheel nuts part way back onto the studs. Make sure that the parking brake is released. 4. Select second gear 5. Turn ignition on, and set the choke. 6. Now, place a pinch bar or similar across/through the wheel studs, so that the handle protrudes forward of the wheel, ideally at around a 10 o'clock angle. The nuts will stop the bar from slipping off, and protect the threads 7. With your hands resting against the car roof, place one foot on the outer end of the bar, lean in and throw you weight sharply down on the bar. This will flick the engine over compression. The bar can fly off the studs and be a bit scary when the engine fires, but it's mostly just noise. If it wasn't for this trick, my skeleton might still be bleaching out in the desert someplace.

Bob, I sympathise with you. We are a little better off. The supermarkets here in Tasmania have a 7 am to 8 am slot for the 'Elderly and Infirm' only, with guards on the door. I was unaware of this, until I fronted at 7 am. I was a bit put out when they actually let me in without challenge. Few folk inside, all very aware of our 1.5 metre spacing rule, and the shelves had been freshly stocked over-night. A very relaxed experience, followed by a hand-wash at the car with methylated spirits. I'm hitting town each fortnight, when I run out of bolts, steel, bearings, paint, etc. The politicians here are doing a surprisingly good job of both virus control and looking out for those out of work.

This could work as a draw-bar spanner on a milling machine. Small hammer head on the handle, and a hanging hook. I doubt it's deep enough for a plug spanner. Most likely automotive, though.

Would cutting a fresh key-way on the other side weaken the axle too much? Perhaps someone with previous experience of what must be a common problem can enlighten us.

That's a beauty. Perhaps it pre-dates the ratchet type. Just makes you appreciate our battery drills! I don't miss drilling green fence posts with a brace and bit.