Tallow

[Nick Salmon]

Well done David.

[David Stepney]

Thank you gentlemen.

[Hugh Barnes]

I should have that sign written on the bonnet!

[David Stepney]

Reverting back to the original thrust of this thread, I had a similar problem a few weeks ago with my RP saloon. It developed a knocking noise from the rear, which I traced to seriously worn link bushes. On dismantling the links, I found that the rear shock absorbers were almost impossible to move, so I dismantled them, cleaned all the discs (it had modern friction discs fitted) and reassembled them, using a spring balance to set them to 12 lbs preload.

It made the suspension much softer and improved the general handing, provided that the road was reasonably smooth.

However, the state of Welsh roads, even the main A roads, is awful, with potholes and areas where the surface has become abraded everywhere. The car doesn't like these imperfections very much, and there is one bend at Sarnau on the A494 where, originally there was a noisy surface to warn drivers to slow down that has become so rutted that the little jumps about like a frightened rabbit unless taken with some care, much to the annoyance of marauding BMW and Audi drivers. Well there has to be some compensation.....

[David Cochrane]

... the state of Welsh roads, even the main A roads, is awful, with potholes and areas where the surface has become abraded everywhere.

We took the Chummy to mid-Wales at the end of March and were taken aback by how bad the roads were, especially the A44 which is the main road from Worcester to Rhayader and on to Aberystwyth. The state of the road surface would be a disgrace for a B-road, let alone this one.

[Chris Garner]

Having just returned from a 1700 mile trip to the Pyrenees in a vintage car. On a variety, all non motorway, roads, I can report that potholes are virtually unknown. Yes a little bumpy in places but very few holes.

[David Cochrane]

We took the RP to the Netherlands last month and were blown away by the incredible state of the roads. Even in the remote rural back roads of Friesland (sort of equivalent to our Norfolk or Yorkshire) the road surface was superb. We found one pothole during our entire trip, and one short section of roughish road. The down-side is the high number of speed-bumps which vary in severity so you never quite know what you're going to get, the very sharp corners onto & off the roundabouts, and the traffic lights which are usually on a gantry above you so you can't see them unless you lean right forward and get a crick in your neck.

[Tony Griffiths]

I've just been speaking to a company https://www.vintageandclassicshockabsorbers.co.uk that rebuilds a variety of car dampers and learned something interesting about beech discs. The wood used is "steamed beech" - a drying process - sourced from Germany and the UK. The wood is of the highest quality and free from any defects. The discus used to be hand cut from planks and needed considerable work to get dead flat and with the right surface finish. Today, after several abortive attempts, they are made successfully on a CNC machine tool and only require a slight sanding on the edges to remove the sharpness. Oiling is done using a standard 140-grade car lubricant but in a pressure vessel. The discs are piled up on separators and left to soak, under pressure, for 24 hours. The pressure is then released with air, previously trapped within the grain of the wood, allowed to escape as bubbles. After repeating the process for another 24 hours and the discs are ready to use.
A7 discs are 3.25"  in diameter and have a central hole of 1.5". The discs available from VCSA for the Harford Type 289 and 100 models are 3.125" in diameter and perhaps rather too thick, though they do have the correct 1.5" hole. https://www.vintageandclassicshockabsorb...tfordParts  It might be that they would make one-off specials if you asked.

[David Cochrane]

A7 discs are 3.25"  in diameter and have a central hole of 1.5". The discs available from VCSA for the Harford Type 289 and 100 models are 3.125" in diameter and perhaps rather too thick, though they do have the correct 1.5" hole. https://www.vintageandclassicshockabsorb...tfordParts  It might be that they would make one-off specials if you asked.

Wouldn't it be easier & simpler just to get them off the shelf? E.g. BU9 here: www.a7c.co.uk/spares.php#shockabsorber

[Tony Griffiths]

A7 discs are 3.25"  in diameter and have a central hole of 1.5". The discs available from VCSA for the Harford Type 289 and 100 models are 3.125" in diameter and perhaps rather too thick, though they do have the correct 1.5" hole. https://www.vintageandclassicshockabsorb...tfordParts  It might be that they would make one-off specials if you asked.

Wouldn't it be easier & simpler just to get them off the shelf? E.g. BU9 here: www.a7c.co.uk/spares.php#shockabsorber

Certainly - but are these 'pressure lubricated' ones? It might be an idea to ask, I suppose.