Henry where are you?

Henry must now be coming up to seven weeks old,he can tell where we are by the sounds of our voices and often will fly from one room to another as we move about,its clear he likes our company.

This was yesterday evening,Henry often sits on my shoulder and pecks at my hair,I assume he is trying to remove the grey hairs?

This morning Henry flys in to check out what I am doing,he added a few words in his own way.

This evening Henry finds a whole new place to hide,Henry where are you we called and there he was above our heads,he has since taken himself to his room and a wide shelf he likes to sleep on,where will he find to explore tomorrow?

Roy

Charles likes Fluid Film

Charles has had a few days to try a liter of Fluid Film I supplied him,he was telling me yesterday how well it works all around his boat,it sounds as if he has done  his engine,tools and Lewmar deck winches,plus as he says" my hands are nice and smooth now" (as the base product is Lanolin)

Its nice when a customer confirms our products really do work,Charles spent some time and checked the product out on Google and found even more uses for Fluid Film than I was aware of!

Roy

An open and shut case

The Rootes Group were inovators when they released the Hillman Imp,its forgotton history now but back in the days of 1963 when the Morris and Austin Minis were in vouge,they had things like sliding windows and the early Minis came out with an ignition key on the dash and a push button  on the floor to start the engine with! that was an 850 cc motor,The all new Imp engine was an 875cc,made from alloy,it was both light yet powerfull.

Rootes took the moment to introduce features not yet seen on a small car of the budget range an Imp was in,they came out with wind down windows,screen washers (not yet on the Mini?) door and rear passenger space storage compartments and an open rear window with a fold down rear seat, so you can pack your shopping or golf clubs in the rear of the car with ease!There is also storage in the front of the car,under the bonnet and above the 27 litre petrol tank,this car has masses of storage space.

The car shown is a more upmarket trimmed 1967 Singer Chamois,now some 44 years old but it still has the attractive features that made it one of the Rootes Group sellers at that time.

The KD 860 catamaran in 3D

This was supplied by Andrea who is building himself a KD 860 with materials we supplied.

Left click the image to see more details.
Thanks for the image Andrea.

Roy

A Rootes Group Singer Chamois visits the HBYC

We missed the second edition of The Beast drivers and riders HBYC meet on sunday but with our 1967 Singer Chamois now back on the road we are ready for the next one,so bring it on Justin,we will lead the pack!

The design has independent suspension,on coil springs all round,check the car its level but just look at the different ride heights of the rear wheels,the near side passenger wheel is actually in a deep gully yet the car stays level.Left click for a larger view.

For those of you who do not know this car,its a creation of the famous Rootes Group and an attempt to get into the growing small car market in the early sixties,they did too,the car was not a huge commercial success as such but in racing and rallys took some very major prizes,in fact even 49 years on they are still doing this now.

A 1967 Singer Chamois engine bay,with some later sport additions,yes the drive unit is in the back of the car,the transaxle and engine are all made from alloy castings,saving lots of weight and of course supplying weight and power where its needed,who else does this,well Porche and and all F1 cars are a start!

The car has now done over 98,000 miles,thats some 157,000 kms,it is just 875cc by the way (the engine block is not the original) Imp engines and parts are normally in stock should anyone need them,rebuilds and 998cc engines to order.

Teak wood in stock next month

We have an order of quality Teak (tectona grandis) on order,its a quality purchase intended for boat decks which is where some of it is booked for,we can offer as below.

The wood is Kiln Dried. Will be 50mm thick, 4" wide  and wider? Lengths will be 8' and longer with max. 10'. With about 10% less than 8'.

Sizes,100mm wide and wider and 2440mm long and longer,some will be shorter but only 10%,being kiln dried its very stable

Hand laid and finished teak decks can be supplied and laid in the Cape Town area,all timbers are selected and cut for the correct grain orientation.

Alex Whitworths 2010 Blue Water Medal

We are all equal but some are more equal than others,just check the route,the miles and the races Alex did in his yacht Berrimilla to get the OCC Blue Water Medal for 2010!

Roy

OCC port officer for Hout Bay & Cape Town

Ladies of the Liverpool and North West Wales Camping Club section

Seen here having a laugh,there was always some fun going on when we went camping.

This looks like a Hat Party,the event was the annual FOL or tgive it its full name The Feast Of Lanterns,once a year we would dress up the tents and make features of a special type,each tent unit was then voted on by group of judges.

The first lady is Doreen McBride,the tall person with the glasses is,I think, Sandra Jennings my cousin,the lady with the dark top and pendant is Mrs Richards.

The date may have been 1966/7 as Sandra emigrated to Durban,South Africa after that time.

Two man scull kit

This design is Daves,he first prooved the Bombaloza one man scull,then moved on to the two man scull,as before he has bought materials from CKD Boats cc.

The Vuvuzlela two man scull

Heading out to sea,Dave is making a complete boat for a Cape Town customer from the materials we sent him by road last week.

The Vuvuzela two man scull is not at a kit set stage just yet but given a little time and a few orders that will happen soon enough.

Note the building jig to the right of the picture,we will pre cut the jig and the hull panels to shape,plus supply all epoxies and glass tapes/cloth required in our kit.

Camping in Bala,North Wales

Bala is a town next to a very large lake,also named Bala,which can be seen just behind where my parents have pitched their tent.The car is our 1953 (?) Morris Oxford,which was a pale green,front leather seats and vinyl rear seats,with its 1400 cc side valve engine and drum brakes,it was not the fastest of cars but a nice size for the McBride family of three back then. The stylish front grillwas stainless steel. The tent was a French made Marechelle I think?

Picture by Robert Henry McBride.

Left click to see more details,the flags (penants) on the tent are the local area district and club we belonged to.

This was around 1963/4 ? OKC 475,its funny how some car numbers stay with you a long time,that car was a great experiance for the McBride family,we went all over the place,including Germany where it blew its crank bearings but thats a tale for another blog!

Roy

Feast of Lanterns meeting in Garth NW Wales September 1963

We really made the best of our free time back then,we had friends from many walks of life and as a rule met each camping weekend,with winter meetings being on rambles or at bowling alleys.

Photo taken by Robert Henry McBride (ccy youth officer)

From left to right,Pat Williams,Roy McBride,Pam Salthouse,John McKay kneeling up with guitar and funny hat,Ian McEvoy.

The Liverpool and North West Wales CCY

CCY stands for Camping Club Youth,of which I was once a member,you did not have to join but once a member you were expected to bide by the groups rules,which basically followed the main rules of the full club.Youth culture was very much better back then?

Photo taken by Robert Henry McBride,the event was a CCY  weekend,the place is Garth in North Wales,the year was 1964

The van was an old Fordson,which I think was bought by Les for around fifty pounds,Les and I did many miles in that van untill he bought a more modern Ford ldv,being prior to my own purchase of a Mk 1 Hillman Imp.

Names,left to right

Robert (milky bar kid) ,Ian McEvoy,Pat Williams,Pam Salthouse,Roy McBride,Les French with arms out stretched,Carmen,in the van,Peter Hignet,standing at the back of the van,the Mathison boys,anyone having full names please let me know.

Roy