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+--- Thread: What have you done today with your Austin Seven (/showthread.php?tid=1921)
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RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - Chris KC - 30-08-2019
Bob, we used to own the 2nd tiny cottage on the right at Aveton Gifford just opposite that turning. The road is tidal and I well remember driving back from a meal at The Dolphin one night in my Lada 1200 with the whole family aboard, to find that the tide had come in while we were dining. Concensus was that we'd probably make it so I drove on - only to conk out when the ignition got wet about 50 yards in. Nil desperandum, I put her in first and drove us out on the starter motor....good old Lada.
My mother and sister still live at Kingsbridge.
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - Bob Culver - 30-08-2019
Hi Chris
Relatives drove me down the tidal road. (They had a courtesy car so did not worry about rust!) The road I attempted was the next up.
it is a very pleasant part of the world (off season!).
Another thing noted was the number of routes with trees almost meeting overhead. In over 50 years of exploring I can recall very few places like that here, and most of those would now be gone. With no historic boundaries, walls, bridges etc when roads are upgraded it is done with a vengeance often to suit milk tankers, logging trucks, tourist buses, inept tourists, and now lifestylers. Britain does seem ideal for vintage type cars. The myriad signposted villages means that can always figure where you are from a map.
A feature of many Brit roads seemed nowhere to pull over; often an abrupt edge high for a modern car.
I also have a photo of an unoccupied free park space in a town...about the only one I found... It was off season but the parking charges and limitations in many seaside places etc was annoying, esp as deserted.
I have read that the sunken lanes of Britain are due dust blowing away over the centuries. I dont know how serious flooding is avoided.
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - Chris KC - 30-08-2019
South Devon is certainly an A7 paradise but for sure go out of season, locals shut the front door and don't go out again between May and September.
I do decry though the general lack of stopping places in the UK, it wasn't always so. On the continent of Europe one seems to have a potential picnic spot every few miles or so.
Don't know about the interior roads Bob, but the Devon coastline is in serious danger, here's a clip filmed following the 2018 storms. Several sections of the coast path have now been forced inland.
https://www.facebook.com/devonlivenews/videos/storm-damage-to-seafront-road-at-slapton/1814401195273201/
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - Bob Culver - 30-08-2019
Thanks Chris. Relatives kindly drove us past Slapton and the US tank fished from the sea. I spotted the storm damage in the news. Also read a book about the little known utterly disastrous pre D day exercise in the area which resulted in hundreds dead.
As a boy a favourite book was a Basset Lowke catalogue from the 1920s. All the parts to construct model railways and the scenes, most of which seemed idealised. Relatives had a photo of a 1950s? railway station near Gara Bridge (where they had lived in a house hundreds of years old and still there). I was amused that the station and buildings looked exactly like a photo from the catalogue.
Peak District well dressing - Tony Griffiths - 31-08-2019
Well dressing - a traditional Peak District craft. One of the last this year is in the village of Foolow, right on the boundary between the southern White Peak (on limestone) and the northern Dark Peak (on gritstone). Only natural materials are used, these being pressed into clay held in a well-soaked wooden frame. A large display takes between three and five days to complete, with an average of four to five people working simultaneously.
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - David Stepney - 01-09-2019
In answer posed by this thread: Washed it!
It has been quite a busy little car this week. Last weekend, I went up to visit the family in Anglesey in it and ended up bringing by 15year old great-granddaughter back with me for a couple of days. On the way, i had hoped to get some photos of the car in the Snowdonia mountains, but there was nowhere to park in the Ogwen Pass. It was 'chokka'! I also ended up in a horrendous traffic jam coming into Betws-y-Coed from Padog. It took over half an hour to get down the bank into the town. I also got stuck at the Brittania Bridge over the Menai Strait, the jam there being caused by a slight traffic collision where an elderly Transit pickup and run into the back of a caravan being towed by an SUV. There appeared to be minimal damage, but the lady from the SUV was giving the poor benighted middle-aged Transit driver a real wigging! The roads were quieter on the way back, and we made a non-stop run from Llanerchymedd to Bala (65miles) in 2 1/4 hours, so not bad. The only complaint from Sarah was that she had a 'numb bum'. I told her this was standard in a Seven!
On bank holiday Monday, we went to the Steam Gala at the light railway in Llanuwchllyn, the other end of the lake from me. The president of the railway showed up in his Bentley Mk. 6, which, I understand, is his daily transport and , just before we left, a very handsome MG J2 showed up. I have included photos taken at the Gala, including one of me having a go at driving one of the engines. The Railway were using an AEC Routemaster bus to ferry visitors from Bala so I had to include this in my photo montage.
On Tuesday, I broke the handbrake cable on my Polo, so used the Seven as personal transport until yesterday, when the new handbrake cable for the VW came and was fitted. So on Wednesday, the Seven went to Oswestry to collect Landrover bits, on Thursday evening it took me over to Llanbrynmair to visit friends and on Friday, over to Wrexham to work.
On the way back from Llanbrynmair, I decided to return the 'quick' way, through Dinas Mawddwy and over Bwlch-y-Groes. I had forgotten just how steep Bwlch-y-Groes was. 2 miles in bottom gear! When i got to the top, the headlamp beams were wreathed in steam, but the car didn't overheat, However, it required nearly 2 pints of water to restore the radiator level the following morning.
Although i have not been keeping count, overall, I have probably done something approaching 500 miles this week in the Seven, using (leaking?) 2 pints of motor oil and about three pints of water (I top up both religiously before setting out) and the little car has behaved impeccably. The fact that it always does never ceases to amaze me for a car 17 years older that me. I wish I was that fit!
The photos taken at Llanuwchllyn were taken by my 'best' Leica digital camera. The last one showing the Seven after its bath was taken by the Kodak DC20.
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - John Mason - 01-09-2019
Since my eyesight has let me down and I have had to stop driving my Austin does not get used to much. Today my son came over and took me out in it we didn't go that far about 20 miles around Nottinghamshire and she didn't miss a beat. Wonderful.
John Mason
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - David Stepney - 01-09-2019
(01-09-2019, 06:36 PM)John Mason Wrote: Since my eyesight has let me down and I have had to stop driving my Austin does not get used to much. Today my son came over and took me out in it we didn't go that far about 20 miles around Nottinghamshire and she didn't miss a beat. Wonderful.
John Mason
John, you have my deepest sympathy! Fortunately, my eyesight has only let me down once, when, recently I had a bad case of double vision (vertically not horizontally) and couldn't drive for about a fortnight. I was bereft!
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - John Mason - 01-09-2019
Yes I do miss driving and have not driven for the past three years. However looking on the best side My vision for about 12 feet is reasonable I can see well enough not to walk into a door. steps can be a problem. On good days I can see well enough to do some jobs on my seven. As for double vision I find that adding a little water to my drink helps.
Yes I do miss driving and have not driven for the past three years. However looking on the best side My vision for about 12 feet is reasonable I can see well enough not to walk into a door. steps can be a problem. On good days I can see well enough to do some jobs on my seven. As for double vision I find that adding a little water to my drink helps.
RE: What have you done today with your Austin Seven - David Stepney - 01-09-2019
John,
As it turned out, my double vision was due to an eye muscle malfunction and not (alas) due to supping single malt with or without water.
With reference to steps, I suffer from arthritis in both knees. When about twelve months ago, it was particularly troublesome, my little great grandson asked me what I had done to my leg. I told him (untruthfully) that I had fallen down the stairs at home. About ten minutes later he came back and said: "How come you fell down stairs? You live in a bungalow!"