What did you do today (2015)

[FMESParticipant @fmes]

Neil, do you think you might get a look at this ? **LINK**

[ChrisHParticipant @chrish]

Mechman and Boiler Bri – like very much both photos, both very nice pieces of work.

Going back to spare wheels for a moment, bought a Dacia Duster last year which was supplied with a tin of goo as standard. Didn't fancy relying on that especially when on trips aboard, could see major problems trying to get sorted if I had a puncture abroad, so had a spare wheel fitted which required a cage thing underneath to hold it as there was no 'spare wheel well' in the boot. I see the new Dusters now do have a spare wheel well in the boot – wonder if that is a result of customer feedback/complaints?

For the record, I have had at least three punctures that trashed the side wall and required a tyre replacement. The goo would've been useless, wouldn't even have tried it, thank goodness I had a proper spare wheel at the time.

Our local garage, which is a rarity, cannot praise it highly enough, always turns out good work at value for money prices, are adamant in their view to avoid the goo like the plague and carry a 'proper' spare wheel! That's good enough for me

Chris

[Nick WheelerParticipant @nickwheeler]

As a recovery driver, my advice is to have a spare if there is room for it. That's not always possible; Minis for example. Ensure you get a jack and wheelbrace.

A full size spare is best, but even a space saver gets you moving. A can of foam and a scrap tyre is a recovery; two recoveries if it's out of hours.

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

Surely all cars have room for a spare wheel? It may not be hidden away but there is room. Wife's car the wheel is in boot and the shopping fits around it. Jack etc. wrapped in old towel and under passenger seat.

[mechman48Participant @mechman48]

Thanks for the comments guys; can't really say how long it took as didn't count the hrs but if you work on an average of a couple of hrs a day for a couple of weeks…28 hrs, or a long weekend.. also forgot to make a pictorial record hence just two pics. Can't seem to get started on major projects as such… Stuart 10V.. Stuart S50.. Stuart Progress (all kits ) as seem to be making stuff to make stuff to make stuff with .. if you get my drift

George.

[Roger HartParticipant @rogerhart88496]

Does anyone have an idea what this item is. The table is 4" by 4" with spring loaded legs 1/2" by 1/2" that stick up about 1/8" above table.

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Roger, it is for holding small and flat objects in the full size bench vice.

[Clive HartlandParticipant @clivehartland94829]

Its a device for holding thin items while you file or dress them, it is clamped in a normal vice to close the two jaws. It was a standard work piece that an apprentice made when i was at the Arborfield school. In fact I made two of them, one to go on an exhibition for recruiting.

Clive

Edited By Clive Hartland on 19/01/2015 13:22:13

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

Gordon, my newish 5-series estate has no room provided even for a space saver. I suspect you'd struggle to get an aerosol and pump into the underfloor compartment alongside the battery. Space is too valuable for mere spare wheels these days. To be fair, they specified run-flat tyres so you shouldn't get stranded.

Murray

[Nick WheelerParticipant @nickwheeler]

Posted by Gordon W on 19/01/2015 12:21:23:

Surely all cars have room for a spare wheel? It may not be hidden away but there is room. Wife's car the wheel is in boot and the shopping fits around it. Jack etc. wrapped in old towel and under passenger seat.

That simply isn't true of a lot of cars. When even a small car like a Fiesta uses 15"wheels(or bigger in a lot of models), you need to find room for a disc almost 20" in diameter and at least 6" thick. Measure the distance forwards of the boot jamb and see how far you get. Well into the backseat in a lot of cars.

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

I don't want to get hung-up on cars, and I am not well up on modern stuff. If there is no room for a spare and a few tools what use is a car? How do you do the shopping ,some people cart golf bags around all the time. I would not dream of buying a car with no room for a spare, even my tiny Legier has a space saver. Must admit I usually run a van of some sort

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

What I did today- As mentioned earlier my workshop roof blew off in the gales. Been checking and measuring today. The corry. steel has all come off in one big piece, held together by the self-drilling roofing screws. These had mostly been driven into 25mm chipboard and had pulled out where the board had got damp and rotted. Got some box section steel sheets with 40mm insulation and cut to length with angle-grinder, filthy job. These cost about £150 to cover 5M x 2.5M. No sign of rust on tools etc. well sprayed with WD40 and covered in bubble-wrap. Remains are covered in thick ice, this will keep out a lot of water, 'till it melts. Bought a cheap wet&dry vac. the carpet inside was very damp ,the vac. removed about a ltr. of water from 1M x 3M of carpet, quite surprised by that. Hope all this may be of help to w/shop builders.

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Lofty76 on 19/01/2015 10:09:19:

Neil, do you think you might get a look at this ? **LINK**

It will depend on the weather and how bright it is. Shame I have to haul all the way down top Southampton to see it…

I expect Sky and Telescope will be giving viewing directions.

Sadly the weather kyboshed my attempts to photograph the recent comet.

Neil

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Pity the LPG car driver – we have huge tanks in our spare tyre wells!

My vectra had a space saver in the boot that I passed on to my Wife for here Zafira (equipped with goo tank). My Astra has a proper spare in the back, sadly only 4-bolt fitting so the Vectra space saver wouldn't fit..

Neil

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Stop moaning about space for spare tyres and stick it on the bonnet.

With a tin roof on the workshop make some of the screws full length bolts and nuts through the beams and thread hammered over to stop theives taking a panel off.

[Ian L2Participant @ianl2]

Posted by Nicholas Wheeler 1 on 19/01/2015 16:02:04:

Posted by Gordon W on 19/01/2015 12:21:23:

Surely all cars have room for a spare wheel? It may not be hidden away but there is room. Wife's car the wheel is in boot and the shopping fits around it. Jack etc. wrapped in old towel and under passenger seat.

That simply isn't true of a lot of cars. When even a small car like a Fiesta uses 15"wheels(or bigger in a lot of models), you need to find room for a disc almost 20" in diameter and at least 6" thick. Measure the distance forwards of the boot jamb and see how far you get. Well into the backseat in a lot of cars.

Even the Smart for 2 has room for spare (altho it does not come with one) it fits on cradle behind front seat. and i have had Fiats in past where spare is on top of engine.

Edited By Ian L2 on 19/01/2015 17:49:27

[Richard MarksParticipant @richardmarks80868]

One reason for purchasing a Honda Jazz 1.4 (actually 1.3 something) was room for a spare wheel, the dealer charged about £170 but for peace of mind it was worth it, my wife's Seat Arosa has a space saver and she knows how to change a tyre so once again peace of mind, mind you I have to run the Jazz on super unleaded as it's gutless what with a mixture of town,lane and hill driving living in the sticks as such..

[NJHParticipant @njh]

My (beloved!) SAAB, which I had new in 1998, came with a " space saving" spare wheel – it' s never been on the car. My wife's little Seat has no spare – just the can of sealant. It's just that I'm a bit unhappy about the prospect of being marooned on a dark winters night in the depths of the country. Experience tells me that this is unlikely but my gut says but what if it does………..

Norman

[alan-lloydParticipant @alan-lloyd]

The fiesta has the spare wheel well, its just got the compressor and tyre goo in it, I bought a wheel and jack to go in there place

[“Bill Hancox”Participant @billhancox]

I have a low speed donut under my Dodge Nitro that I have never had to use. I do carry a kit similar to these **LINK** which are good for small punctures and a 12 V compressor. One of my shooting friends once took his Ford Excursion down range to repair some of our club's 100 M target stands. When he drove back to the range house I was just arriving. As soon as I stepped out of my vehicle I could here a hissing sound. Turned out he had not one but two punctures, one front and one rear caused by driving over all the metal bits on the range; nails screws etc. He was in a bit of a spot given that he had only one spare. He jacked up the truck and I was able to plug both punctures which were luckily in the tread. There is no need to remove the wheel; in fact it makes the search for the air leak easier when you just slowly spin the wheel.. A bit of watery mud from a nearby puddle applied to each tire confirmed the location of one small cut and one imbedded nail. It took a while for the 12 V compressor to inflate both of the very large tires. Despite the delay, he was very thankful for my assistance and has never driven down range since.

Bill

[DMBParticipant @dmb]

Norman,

1. Join a breakdown organisation.

2. Get a mobile (and always take it with you) to call them

3.Pray for a mobile signal @ location of breakdown!

I actually have a very good organisation which has charged me the same premium for at least the last 3 years, £42. Believe this to be much cheaper than AA/RAC.

John.

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

Unless your Honda Jazz is turbocharged and has knock sensor adjusted timing (which it doesn't), there's little benefit running it on super unleaded. The calorific value of the super fuel is pretty much the same but it has enhanced resistance to detonation (that's essentially what the octane rating defines). If you aren't boosting the thing to make use of that, you'd need to increase the compression ratio to get any discernible output from that increased octane rating.

Murray

[wendy jacksonParticipant @wendyjackson]

Worked on my loco build and sevice lift. Fitted the bearings into the lift arms and machined the fittings for the buffer keeps. Michael

[NJHParticipant @njh]

 

Hi John

1. Yep – have been a member of Britannia Rescue for many years. Only times I have called recently was to home when, inexplicably, I was unable to start.

2. Have mobile and (very nearly!) always take it with me.

3. Very relevant – signal coverage very variably in places. Additionally I do wonder if, at night, they would manage to find me. A location description of " on the road between x and y " is not always too useful where there are lots of different roads that could be taken between the locations all of them narrow, unlit, lanes with few reference points, especially after dark!

Ah well – there are many advantages to living here.

Regards

Norman

 

 

 

 

Edited By NJH on 19/01/2015 22:25:40

[Bob RodgersonParticipant @bobrodgerson97362]

Today I got the two fire extinguishers up on the walls in the workshop, managed to get my new muffle furnace to run at a 200 degrees celsius for longer than two minutes and made a bracket so that I could fit a second monitor to the Tormach mill so that I can use the CAM software in the workshop.

A good evenings work.

[Author]

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