On Your Marque - SVBCC · In This Issue of "On Your Marque" Page ... He was competing with a base...

Shenandoah Valley British Car Club - Founded 1981

The Shenandoah Valley British Car Club Ltd. Official Newsletter

Volume 26, Issue 3

On Your Marque On Your Marque

4 March 2013 Website: www.SVBCC.net

REMINDER—For one reason or another, many of us change our email address and e-mail is

our primary method of keeping you informed of events and what is going on with SVBCC. If you change your email address, please let us know so you will not miss out on any important events. Also, here is our membership renewal link http://svbcc.net/membership.htm Bob Shiflet

In This Issue of "On Your Marque" Page

SVBCC People

Newsletter index and People 1

President’s Letter 2

David & Diane Jordan Profile 3

Where We've Been

Historically Speaking 4

Abacus Weekends 1 & 2 6

Valentines Party 8

Where We're Going

Calendar of Events for 2013 10

IIHS, British on the Green 11

Information for Members

Bob’s Bucket List—Yours? 12

SVBCC Tool Box Discussions 13

Cars for sale 14

Back Editor Page and Mailing Labels 15

Hope you decide to join us in the 21st century. Copy and paste this link

in your browser to check us out http://www.facebook.com/ShenandoahValleyBritishCarClub?fref=ts

2013 SVBCC Officers

President : Mark Harris

V. President: John Sanders

Secretary: Mary Ann Harris

Treasurer: Bill Krzastek

Membership: Bob Shiflet

Website: Michael Fitzgeorge

Newsletter: Danny Leech

Historian: Bob Vitrikas

Car Show: Dave Sanders

http://svbcc.net/membership.htm


March President’s Message—Video Games

I knew nothing about Play Station 2 before visiting our daughter’s home recently. She has two stepchil-

dren, aged 10 and 8, and they had just received a Grand Prix Racer game for their Play Station 2 system. The younger, Tate, either didn’t quite have the hand eye coordination to drive well or just wasn’t into racing. The older boy, Noah, seemed to have all the right moves: brake into the corners, hit the apex and accelerate out of the curves. He was competing with a base model Mazda in an 8-car heat around a NASCAR track (Daytona perhaps). They were “going fast and going left”. The graphic displays were authentic: corndogs, flags, coolers, and RV’s everywhere.

Noah won every heat I watched. Now, it was my turn. If a 10 year old could do it, I reasoned I could too. I asked for the hand controls and Noah gave me a brief tutorial: the small joystick is the steering wheel. You brake and accelerate with different buttons. How hard could this be? Well, the first thing I learned was when you crashed into the wall or hit another car, your hand controls vibrated—just like a real impact. Way cool! We alternated three lap races on the NASCAR track. He took first every time; I struggled to brake in time, to stay off the infield, and to finish above last place. I now knew how Captain Slow must feel during “Top Gear’s” racing episodes: SLOW and CLUMSY! I finally got the hang of it and began finishing up in the pack…well, 7th out of 8 at least.

Noah had won enough races ($10,000 per win) to trade up for a faster, more competitive car. He had $100,000—not quite enough for a Jaguar, Aston Martin or Corvette—but enough for a Lotus Elise. We talked. I recommended he buy it and he chose the color: their very popular two tone yellow & black. Well, as I explained to Noah, you do not want to waste the handling of a Lotus on a NASCAR “oval” so we switched to a European road coarse. Again, Play Station 2 had thought of everything: mountains in the background, ski chalet-like accommodations, Swiss flags, and spectators in lederhosen. My only criticism of the game was that the spectators were too close to the track and had no protection from dangerous mani-acs behind the wheel--like me.

Unlike the 10 year old who sped around the turns, flew over the rises, careened about his competitors, and stayed on the track--I made a mess of it. I was either crawling around the track or accelerating off the asphalt and mowing down spectators. (Think Le Mans 1955 or the Mille Miglia 1957) Thoroughly chas-tened, I hung up my helmet and driving gloves. Noah’s goal is to win $2 million in prize money for the best car in the bunch--a formula 1 Ferrari. I totally believe he will do it!

SVBCC Gears up for 21st Century

You may, or may not, have noticed the banner in our last newsletter, but our club is now on Facebook. What does this mean? I’m sure there are many of you who are not on Facebook, and perhaps have had no desire to be. However, there are some poten-tial benefits for our membership to consider. First of all, you can open an account at no charge, provide only a minimal amount of information, and only ‘become friends’ with the few folks that you wish to be in con-

tact with. The process is relatively painless and only takes a few minutes. Second, it provides us as club members an opportunity to maintain a more time friendly method of

communication to supplement our once a month newsletter. Going to a car show? Taking a drive in the country next weekend? Problems with starting your car? Looking for a spare part? Interested in having friends join you for an adventure? Post it on Facebook and share in the responses to these questions and many more.

Of course, a communication device such as this only works if a good number of us participate. If you


New Member Profile—David and Diane Jordan

I’m David Jordan, a displaced Brit married to a girl from The Valley. She was formally Miss Diane Henkel of Waynesboro, the town where we now reside. We have two daughters – Lisbeth (Married to Rodney Payne) who has two sons - Alexander and Samuel, and Emma (married to Rupert Coles) who is expecting her first child in June. The Paynes live in Greenville N.C, and the Coles in Bicester, Oxfordshire, U.K. I’m mechanical engineer retired from the oil and gas industry, and have been a “gear-head” since I was at school in England. My first car, while I was still at college, was a 1936 Riley Kestrel saloon. Over the years I’ve owned quite a few classic and thoroughbred cars including three or four other pre-WW2 Rileys, 10 hp Austins, big and small Austin Healeys, XKE, XJC, XKR Jaguars, 3 litre and 4 ½ Lagondas, Mini Coopers, Morris Minors, and 401 and 409 Bristols. My present stable comprises a Bristol 409 and a Riley Racing MPH replica. The Bristol was purchased in 1996, and has been almost totally refurbished over the years since, to the ex-tent that it came first in Class at the SVBCC October 2012 Meeting. The first owner was the Earl of Bradford, but sometime later the car came to the USA and I bought it from a chap in Connecticut. The Bristol Car Company started making hand built “Gentleman’s Expresses” in 1946 with their model 400, which was powered by a derivative of the 6 cylinder BMW 328 engine. Development using this power unit continued through the next 20 years until the mid-60’s and the 406 model, by which time the unit was fall-ing behind in the power game. Bristol then brought out a new model (407) that was powered by a Canadian Chrysler 318 Polyspherical V8, with Torqflite transmission. Needless to say performance was transformed, and ever bigger and better Chrysler engines and transmissions were used in all Bristol cars made thereafter, including a 1000hp version of the V10 Viper engine, until the bankruptcy of the Company in 2010. All Bristols are rare birds, e.g.: only an estimated 25-30 of the 409 model were built. The Riley Racing MPH has been a project a long time in the making, since I first saw a photo of one in 1965. As part of their ongoing racing program Riley (Coventry) Ltd built two of these cars, based on their then cur-rent Sports MPH model, to compete in the 1934 Le Mans 24 hrs race. They came 2nd and 3rd overall, behind a blown 2.3 Alfa Romeo, but first in the class for cars of up to 1500cc. Both cars were broken up for parts after the race so, if I wanted one, I’d reckoned that I’d have to make it. After a couple of attempts over the years, the project is now underway through my old friend Ian Gladstone who is the owner of Blue Diamond Services, in Somerset, UK. It’s now almost a rolling chassis, and might even be ready to participate in the

E-85 and Ethanol-free gas stations

Peter Griffin provides this link about ethanol free stations ( http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=VA) and wants people to be aware of E-85 gasoline. One link about E-85 can be found at:

( http://www.motorweek.org/features/goss_garage/ethanol_classic_cars )

don’t join, you can’t check out people’s activities and responses. Likewise, it’s like email; if you don’t check it with some regularity, it doesn’t work.

Thanks to John Sanders for making this possible. Hope you decide to join us in the 21st century. Copy and paste this link in your browser to check us out http://www.facebook.com/

http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=VA

http://www.motorweek.org/features/goss_garage/ethanol_classic_cars


Historically Speaking by Bob Vitrikas The MGC, Timing is Everything

We’ve covered the MGA and the MGB so now it’s time for the MGC. Why all this fuss about MGs? When are we going to get to Triumphs, Jaguars and those other British marques, you ask? Please be patient, there is a method to my madness! The weekend of 17-19 May is the date for the annual Jefferson 500 vintage races at nearby Summit Point Motorsports Park. Every year the MG Vintage Racers group selects a track as their “Focus Event” and this year they picked Summit Point which means there will be over 60 MGs in two race groups roaring around the track on Saturday, 18 May! I will be leading a SVBCC caravan to the track on Satur-day, 18 May. Stay tuned for more news on this exciting event! Now where was I? Oh yes, the MGC. The MGC was born out of necessity and in a very tumultuous time for the British car industry. Ralph Nader was riding roughshod over the Corvair and any other car that came in view for his jaundiced eye. Did you know that good ‘ol Ralph didn’t even have a driver’s license? Smog was an everyday problem in the Los Angeles basin and other metropolitan areas of the country, so in 1968 in came the safety and smog regulations. As a result, out went the much loved Austin Healey and in came the MGC to replace it in the British Mo-tor Company and later British Motor Holdings (BMC + Jaguar) line up. It seemed like a logi-cal idea and the new 3 litre engine seemed to come along at just the right time... Turns out to have been anything but. The engine length and design of the oil pan meant the front crossmember, a key part of the MGB structure, had to be removed and the time test-ed coil spring suspension had to be replaced by a torsion bar front suspension. The engine turned out to be 70 lbs. heavier than expected, a whopping 209 lbs. heavier than the 4 cylinder MGB engine, ne-cessitating a last minute rush to redesign the suspension. All told the MGC weighed 340 pounds more (or 16% more) than the MGB. That would not have been so bad since the heavy six produced 50% more power than the standard MGB, 145 bhp vs 90 bhp. In fact the MGC produced more power than any production MG, even the V8. However, the new engine design had poor air flow through the cylin-der head and employed seven main bearings which introduced considerable friction loss. It also had a very heavy flywheel (32 lbs.) and poor low end ‘grunt’. All of these factors conspired to make the en-gine feel lethargic and reluctant to rev. ‘Autocar’ remarked that “it appears to have been drawn up by an ex-marine diesel designer who was transferred against his wishes to the tractor engine depart-ment”. Ouch! Outwardly the MGC looked very similar to the MGB except for the bulge in the bonnet to clear the taller engine and larger diameter 15 inch wheels which raised it a bit on the suspension effecting the handling. An automatic gearbox was offered as an option, and was also made available on the MGB. Road tests at the time were not very complimentary, lamenting the poor handling and steering compared to the MGB, and the engine that fell short of their expectations. Oh dear....

Ken and Diana Brasfield’s award winning MGC GT


I had the good luck to have driven an MGC roadster while attending an MG meet in South Africa a few years back, putting on about 3,000 miles over a period of two weeks. The driving was a combination of twisty roads through the mountains and long flat stretches where you could let it have its head. This was a completely stock car prepared to concours con-dition so it was representative of what the MGCs were like when they rolled off the assembly line. It was not a car to be flung around corners but on the open road with nothing between you and the horizon it was a very stable and enjoyable grand tourer. At one point in my journey I was left behind when the cara-van took off for our next destination. As I headed out on the highway I had the perfect excuse to let her rip and rip we did. We cruised at 110 mph for about an hour to catch up to the caravan. No drama at all. The MGC made it look and feel easy. This is what the MGC was built for! Despite all that fuss about a lethargic engine and poor handling, the BMC Competitions De-partment was able to work their magic on the MGC. The engine output was raised to over 200 bhp and six aluminum bodied GTs were pro-duced for competition use. The results were impressive! In the 1968 Sebring 12 hour race, an MGC driven by rallye ace Paddy Hopkirk and Andrew Hedges finished first in class, third over-all in the prototype category and 10th among all entries. This was the best ever finish by a BMC car at Sebring. Wow! It wasn’t all work for our lads, they managed to get in some fishing and water skiing while enjoying the warm Florida weather. MGC sales started in October 1967 and production ended in September 1969. A total of 8,999 MGCs were built, evenly split between roadsters and GTs; 55% went to North America. The automatic gear-

box that was offered on MGBs at the same time as the MGC was dropped from the option list when MGC production ceased. But wait, there’s more. The MGC has now attained collector car status and there are ways to amp up the engine’s output and sharpen the handling. Prices are now 2-4 times what you would spend for a comparable MGB. SVBCC members who own MGCs; Ken and Diana Brasfield, Mark and Mary Ann Harris and Robert and Dana Reisse, are all smiling. Looks like the MGC got the last laugh! [Photos, except race car, courtesy of Ken Brasfield]

MGC 3 litre six, a tight squeeze!


Abacus Dynamometer Testing 2/2—Lew Byrd

For the last couple of years I have wanted to test one of my cars on the Dyno at Abacus Racing. Just to see

what it was all about. Three club members drove their cars to Virginia Beach on Saturday Feb. 2nd. Dave

Saunders took his very fine TR6. Bob Reisse a MGC and I had my less than perfect TR6.

Dave and Dennis Gorman left early on Saturday morning something like 4:30 to be there by 8:00. Not

sure what time Bob left but he lives in Yorktown not that far away. I decided to take the easy way and go

down Friday night and spend the night at my mother-in-law’s in Smith- field about an hour from the shop.

I arrived around 9:30 that morning for my appointment and Dave was just finishing up with his car and of

course all things went smooth for him. High torque, good horsepower and just a near perfect car. Bob’s

MGC was next and while we waited for the car to be strapped in place and connected we did what all car

club men do. Stood around and told lies and discussed our cars to see what we could do to make them

better. That’s a lot of talking because it takes awhile to get the car in place and safe. I am not sure how

many runs, as they call them, that Bob had because as I said we were all talking. He did have some carbu-

retor problems and could not fix them there.

My car was next. All strapped in and hooked up. I was really excited to see what the outcome would be. I

was a little disappointed in my first run and also with my second. Seems I have a distributor problem that

is keeping my horsepower down to 65. Oh well, just one more thing to do to my cars. We all decided to

just go home after that. Dave and Dennis left for a long ride to C’ville. Bob left for Yorktown. I had decided

to spend another night in Smithfield but by the time I got to Mom’s and looked at the weather forecast,

got in the car and headed for home. Things went just fine until I got to Louisa when it started to snow

lightly. By time I was to Gordonsville it was snowing hard and beginning to stick. My TR6 windshield wip-

ers are not that great. They kept off the snow chunks but did little to really clear the glass. I made it home

with my skin and my car. I felt good to close the garage door and know I had kept it on the road and made

it home.

All in all it was a good day with good friends and the trip to

Abacus Racing was fun and interesting.

Abacus Dynamometer Testing 2/9 - Mark Harris

Six cars underwent chassis dyno testing at Abacus Racing in Virginia Beach on two successive Saturdays. Ab-acus Racing offers expert prep services for the vintage race circuit, provides high quality collector car resto-rations, and undertakes routine specialty vehicle services. Their service team (headed by Rob) offers week-end dynamometer services for local car clubs to diagnose and treat a variety of motor maladies

Two TR6’s (Dave Sanders and Lew Byrd), two MGC’s (Bob Reisse), one MGC V8 (Mark Harris) and a Jaguar 4.2 XKE (Steve Schmitz) were tested. For additional information, for videos & pictures--please see our web-


site.

Mike Fitzgeorge and I drove to Virginia Beach for the 2nd appointment on 2/9. We arrived just as Bob’s MGC GT was finishing. They had discovered some minor problems, which after correction, resulted in marked improvements. Our MGC V8 was next onto the machine and the baseline pull revealed excessive spark ad-vance (predetonation under load) and an overly rich mixture. The process of tuning a car on the chassis dy-namometer is to make small changes in one variable at a time and repeat the pull. On the V8, we reduced the spark advance by two degrees at a time until power rose. (32 to 28 degrees) Next, following the ratio of air to fuel in the exhaust gasses and viewing real time torque and horsepower output, we leaned out the secondary circuit jets in the Edelbrock 4 bbl carburetor. (The secondary circuit opens under full throttle and provides additional fuel during acceler-ation.) This process took several steps--beginning with 0.095 jets and ending with 0.089’s. Power in-creased significantly with these changes but the fuel mixture was still too rich. The primary circuit is used for steady state cruising but is additive with the secondary for general fuel delivery. According-ly, Rob suggested we lean the primary circuit jets one step (0.100 to 0.098) and change to the next leaner metering rod (needle). The next dyno pull confirmed that we had optimized performance un-der both steady state & full acceleration conditions and had optimized the air/fuel mix over the full us-able rpm range. The torque curve displayed a

broad mid range shoulder with horse-power peaking in the 5200- 5400 rpm range. As Rob noted, exceeding 5500 rpm in this motor offers no appreciable bene-fit.

The ride home pro-vided more “seat of the pants” perfor-mance, more “smiles per mile” and better fuel economy than the trip to Virginia Beach. Sweet!

Mark


Valentines Day Celebration—In the Circle The SVBCC Valentine Party, came 2 days after the rest of America traded cards and ate

chocolate, but we had more food and good times than any old Thursday gathering that fol-lowed the calendar!

There was of course lots of ladies in red as ex-pected, and much more delicious food than could ever be eaten, but the most interesting and memorable part ofo this celebration was sharing of past “Valentine” special photos . See if you know the couples in these photos of some time in the past. Answers are on page 12.

1

2


4 4 3

Nothing to guess here—just 2 old guys telling sto-

ries that provides a filler for this empty spot.

Did no one notice the Jaguar steering wheel placement in

the article of the January Drive about??

Surely the driver would notice if he had to enter on the

passenger side…………. this is a test.

Editor


2013 SVBCC Schedule of Events

March 14—IIHS Tour—Bob Shiflet March 30—Ice Chipper Rally, Ken Brasfield April 12-14—Triumph of the Carolinas Car Show, Dobson, NC, Ken Brasfield April 20—Spring Trash Brash, Bob Shiflet April 20/21—The Gathering, sponsor Ken Brasfield April 27—Vehicle Inspection Tech Session & Party, Will Seay May 2—Mario Andretti Driving Experience, Richmond, Todd Patrick May 12—Royal Baby Shower @ Griffin Tavern, Flint Hill, Dave Sanders May 17-19—Jefferson 500 Vintage Racing, Summit Pt, WV, Bob & Chris Vitirkas June 1-2—“Original British Car Day” Show, Fredrick, MD, Dave Sanders June 8—Pot Luck Picnic, Jim and Ellen Conley June 23—Brunch @ Mimslyn Inn, Luray, Bob & Chris Vitrikas July 4—Party and Fireworks, Chauncey & Hermie Hutter July 20— Wintergreen Picnic, John Sanders August 17— Wild Wolf Brewery Rally, John Sanders & Don Rich August 24— Fox and Hounds Rally, Ken Brasfield September 10—Oak Grove Music Festival, Verona, Wes Maupin September 14-15—CVBCC Car Show, New Kent Winery, Dave Sanders September 21—Trash Bash, Bob Shiflet October 4-5—SVBCC Car Show, Waynesboro October 13—MGCCDC Hunt Country Car Show, Marshall, Dave Sanders October 18-20—Highland County Rally & Cass Railway, Wes Maupin/ Mark Harris October 26—Halloween Party, Michael Brittingham & Rhonda Roebuck November TBA Business Meeting, John Sanders December 7—Christmas Parade, Waynesboro, Mark Harris

2013 Select Automotive Events March 8-12—Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, FL March 15-17—Sebring 12 Hour & Historic Races, FL April 13—Williamsburg British Car Show May 2-5—Pinehurst Concours d’Elegance, Pinehurst, NC May 16-19—Import/Replica Show, Carlisle, PA TBA—Goodwood Festival of Speed, UK June 15-16—Elegance at Hershey Concours, Hershey, PA June 29—Star City Motor Madness, Roanoke July 13-14—Vintage Grand Prix, Beaver Falls, PA July 19-21—Schenley Park Vintage Grand Prix, Pittsburgh, PA August 16-18—Concours d’Elegance, Pebble Beach, CA September TBA—Historic Races, Put-In-Bay, OH September 6-8—Vintage GP, Watkins Glen, NY September 13-15—Goodwood Revival, UK September 20-22—British Invasion Car Show, Stowe, VT September 27-29—Gold Cup Historic Races, VIR, Danville October 10-13—AACA Fall Show, Hershey, PA


SVBCC to Attend IIHS Research Center—Host Bob Shiflet

You have probably seen the crash tests on TV. New cars ramming into walls with crash test dummies being thrown around inside. All of this takes place just north of Charlottesville at the Insurance Institute for High-way Safety Research Center. Funded by the insurance industry, the results of these tests partially deter-mine your car insurance rates. The IIHS is not open to the public, but we have been able to receive permission to tour their facility and watch the crash test of a brand new vehicle. This rare opportunity will take place on Thursday, March 14. On the tour, we will see a few of vehicles that have been used in previous tests and hear what their test told the IIHS and auto industry about ways to improve the safety of the cars we drive today. The tour and test lasts about two hours. I realize this mid-week event will not suit everyone, but they conduct tests only on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We need to arrive at the Research Center by 10:15 a.m. on the 14th. I need to not only tell them how many people will attend, but give them the names of those who will attend. Please email me at [email protected] prior to March 4th if you plan to attend. If you are bringing a guest, I will need to know that persons name also. I hope you will be able to attend. You will not be disappointed. If you would like more information on what they do, check their website at www.iihs.org.

Capital Triumph Register 16th Annual Britain on the Green—April 28th, 2013

The Washington, D.C. area Capital Triumph Register will celebrate its 16th annual Britain on the Green British car show on Sunday, April 28th, 2013 at a new location. The show will be held at Gunston Hall, an 18th century plantation built by George Mason IV, author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights which later inspired the United States Bill of Rights. The plantation’s grounds feature extensive open space for show and spectator parking along with ample shade and sweeping vistas along the Potomac River. Gunston Hall is located just south of Washington in Mason Neck, Virginia, and is easily accessible from I-95. Show hours are from 9:00 AM until 3:00 PM. Britain on the Green regularly attracts 200 registered cars which compete for prizes in over 20 classes. The British car hobby and motor industry are also extremely well represented. Dozens of Triumphs and MGs are joined by Austin Healeys, Jaguars, Rolls and Bentleys, Minis, Lotuses, Land Rovers, and marques you’ve probably never seen before, such as Jensen, Riley, and Wolseley. Attendance at the show, either as a participant or as a spectator, includes admission to the manor house and grounds. British car regalia and food vendors will be available throughout the day. Registration information may be found on the Capital Triumph Register’s website: http://www.capitaltriumphregister.com/ Capital Triumph Register points of contact: Jeff Knepp, 301-765-0727, [email protected] Fred Mittelman, 202-494-4802, [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.iihs.org/

http://www.capitaltriumphregister.com/

http://www.capitaltriumphregister.com/




What’s on Your Bucket List? by Bob & Chris Vitrikas

Last month Mark Harris shared some items on his ‘bucket list’ and urged others to chime in. In reviewing the list provided in the January issue of ‘Classic Motorsports’ magazine, Chris and I were able to check off 27 of the 40 items they suggested should be on every automobile enthusiast’s ‘bucket list’. One of those items we highly recommend is attending a driving school. Chris and I, and both our daughters have attend-ed drivers’ schools at nearby Summit Point Motorsports Park http://www.summitpoint-raceway.com/ and absolutely loved it! They offer a variety of programs including Friday at the Track http://www.summitpointfatt.com/ and Accident Avoidance Highway Safety School http://www.accidentavoidance.com/ . Friday at the Track provides students a high performance driving experi-ence in their car, alternating classroom instruction with track time. The Accident Avoidance course (for this you drive one of their cars) lives up to its name teaching students how to get the most out of their brakes, avoid accident situations, control a car in a skid and many other skills that will make you a better driver eve-ry time you get behind the wheel. We highly recommend this course for new and experienced drivers.

Another event every sports car enthusiast should attend is a vintage sports car race. Vintage sports car rac-ing has grown over the past 30+ years to offer a vintage race experience across the US and Canada. You won’t have far to go, nor long to wait, to check this one off your ‘bucket list’. The Jefferson 500 vintage race http://www.jefferson500.org/ will be held at Summit Point Motorsports Park 17-19 May and is part of our SVBCC events calendar. Chris and I will be leading the caravan to Summit Point on Saturday, 18 May and we guarantee a good time will be had by all! Look for an article on this event in the April and May newsletters.

Keeping with the motorsports theme, Chris and I suggest you attend a U.S. Grand Prix Formula 1 race http://www.formula1.com/ . After several years of not having an F1 race in this country, we will soon have two on the F1 calendar, Austin, Texas and Weehawken, New Jersey planned for 2014. There is also an F1 race in Montreal, Canada which is closer to us than Texas. Formula 1 is the pinnacle of racing with 20 events held around the world. The cars, the drivers, the tracks, the racing and the spectacle should not be missed!

We have watched so many episodes of My Classic Car w/Dennis Gage and now have long list of car shows we want to attend, including Cruising the Coast in Mississippi, British Invasion in Stowe, VT and the Caval-lino Classic in Florida. So many cars to see and so little time.....

Valentine Couples from Long Ago

1. Jim & Ellen Conley

2. Doug & Rebecca Harmon

3. Michael Brittingham & Rhonda Roebuck

4. Mark & Mary Ann Harris

http://www.summitpoint-raceway.com/

http://www.summitpointfatt.com/

http://www.summitpointfatt.com/

http://www.accidentavoidance.com/

http://www.accidentavoidance.com/

http://www.jefferson500.org/

http://www.formula1.com/


SCBCC Tool Box Discussions—The Simple Stuff by Bob Vitrikas

The Simple Stuff by Bob Vitrikas

Say ‘Hello’ to Mr. Cotter Cotter pins, sometimes referred to by the British as a “cotter”, are typically used to hold two pieces of metal together by pushing the cotter pin through a hole in a bolt or shaft. They can also serve the purpose of stopping a fastener from loosening, similar to the lock washer we discussed in last month’s “Simple Stuff” article. Cotter pins come in a variety of designs; split pin, R-clip, bowtie cotter pin, and linchpin.

A split pin is typically made of thick wire with two tines shaped in a half-circular cross section, which are bent to secure the split pin. These come in a variety of sizes and tine designs shown below. Most common are the extended prong type which make it easier to bend the separate tines. The hammer lock split pin is secured by hitting the head sharply with a hammer which drives the shorter tine down onto the L-shaped tip, forcing the tines apart. I’ve never seen one of these but it strikes me as a very good idea going in but I wonder how difficult it would be to remove it? I suppose you would have to cut off the L-shaped end in order to pull the split pin back through the hole. Believe I will stick with the extended prong style.

The R-clip, also known as the R-pin, R-key, hairpin cotter pin, hairpin cot-ter, bridge pin, hitch pin or spring cotter pin (whew!) is made of hardened, springy metal wire in the shape of, you guessed, an “R”. These are typical-ly used to secure wheels on axles or clevis pins used on trailer hitches. Compared to split pins, these are easy to install and remove, and can be reused.

The bowtie cotter pin, patented by Pivot Point, Inc. on March 23, 1999, is a variation on the R-clip which locks in place when installed and cannot acci-dentally fall off or vibrate loose. http://www.pivotpins.com/about.html Pivot Point Inc. is located in the small town of Hustisford, WI, and is owned by the Leitzke Family. Good old American ingenuity at work!

A linchpin, also spelled linch pin, lynchpin, or lynch pin, can be used in place of an R-clip to secure trailer hitch pins or keep a wheel from falling off an axle such as you might find on your lawn mower. Hopefully NOT on your LBC! Taking this English connection a bit further, linchpin is derived from the 14th century Middle English term meaning “axletree pin”. Could this be a part on a Morgan car?

Photos and drawings courtesy of Wikipedia

http://www.pivotpins.com/about.html


Members Buying and Selling (ads will run in 2 Newsletters unless you request an extension) in the

Newsletters. Pictures are welcome. Send ads to the editor, addresses on last page.

Announcement: Classifieds On Line

Due to popular requests, your Webmaster has established a classified section on our club website at http://svbcc.net/Classifieds.htm. Individual members of the club may post Wanted or For Sale items at no charge. The posting will be in place for 60 days unless canceled or renewed. Send ad to the Webmaster at [email protected]. (Jul 12)

Wanted—Artist: At the Moss Motors east coast facility in Petersburg, Virginia, we recently completed

construction of a new showroom. There is a wonderful, large space when you walk in the doors, and we want to deck it out properly. Already in this lobby there are cars on display–some pretty amazing British classics–and this has in-spired us. We are going to surround these vehicles with an atmosphere that will make their crankcases drool. One idea we're considering is having murals painted on two of the walls. Combined, the walls are about 75-feet long and 8.5-feet high. We are wondering if we can find an artist from among our customers (or their friends) who would make the most of this canvas. This email is a request and an invitation. It's a bit of a stab in the dark, but we hope you can help us find the right candidate–an artist willing and capable of a project of this scale and with a particular skill for an automotive theme. If someone comes to mind, please forward this message. We'd love to hear from them, see examples of their work and invite them to submit a proposal. The contact person for this project is Shawn Carlberg. Artists may contact him via email: [email protected].

Car for Sale—I have a 1966 MGB in unrestored condition in SC....it's a hard top not running at the mo-

ment. ..some work has been done

Also have a 1988 Rolls Silver Spur in very good condition..82000 If there would be anyone in your organization who would have any Thanks Gary Bang Staunton 540 886 1329

Car For Sale: 1965 Pontiac GTO hardtop, original, well

maintained, Montero red & Parchment interior, 3 deuces, 4 speed, console, runs & drives perfectly, original documents, $42,000 Mark (434) 295-8469 [email protected]

http://svbcc.net/Classifieds.htm


mailto:[email protected]?subject=Wanted:%20Mural%20artist%20for%20British%20car%20theme%20installation

tel:540%20886%201329


Organ i za t i on Name

On Your Marque is the official publication of the Shenandoah Valley British Car Club, Ltd. Any and all

opinions expressed herein are those of contributing author's and not necessarily those of the SVBCC, its

individual members, or the leaders of the Club. Contributions and comments are enthusiastically en-

couraged. We are always looking for interesting and stories about owning a Classic British Sports Car.

Send your letters, pictures, and articles of interest to: [email protected] or On Your Marque

Newsletter Editor, 1224 Boxwood Circle, Waynesboro, VA 22980

Shenandoah Valley British Car Club, Ltd.

P.O. Box 323

Waynesboro, Virginia 22980

On Your Marque - SVBCC · In This Issue of "On Your Marque" Page ... He was competing with a base...

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