What have you done today with your Austin Seven

[Roger Goldthorpe]

We moved house last year and the RP has been stored in an open barn for 5 months waiting for the garage to be sorted. Having at long last got the garage into some semblance of order I was able to retrieve the RP today.  I was apprehensive as to whether or not the RP would start after its hibernation.  I need not have worried as with the first swing of the handle it fired up into life. Like Malcolm reported it must be the Tesco petrol!

We did Malcolm's run in reverse with the modern the other day on the way to Northallerton, magic.  

Mmmmm...... The Liege would not start after its hibernation. Can't be the petrol.  Job for tomorrow!

Roger

[Tony Griffiths]

While out in a Seven yesterday I detected some vibration at 40 mph so this morning I had a peek underneath & found the fabric coupling on it's last legs so I changed that, it's done less than 300 miles.

Modern fabric couplings do seem to be of indifferent quality - they used to last for 20,000 or 30,000 miles or more. However, as Robin was getting a Hardey Spicer shaft for his Box, I thought I'd have one for Chummy as well. They came, with the necessary modifications, from David Cochrane and both fitted without any snags whatsoever. I'm not sure that I can tell any significant improvement in the smoothness of running - but at least the chances of a 2-hour wrestle at the side of the road have been eliminated. At 20-years of age, it would not have mattered, I'd have stuck with the original part (it was all I could afford in any case) but now I take a more pragmatic view.

[Dave Mann]

With the short life of fabric couplings I became quite proficient at changing them, I think I got it down to 20 minutes at the coffee stop on one of Malcolm Parker's runs. The technique is to park on a slope, remove the cover and first nut, ease the handbrake for the car to move forward to get at the next nut and so on. It works OK till someone parks in front of you as one Seven attempted to do, he soon moved as he saw my car creeping forward. No scrabbling about under the car.

[Steve Jones]

For a long time, I've thought that a Hardy Spicer prop shaft in place of fabric couplings is about the best improvement you can make to a Seven. Maybe 15 or so years ago a friend in Holland, knowing I could get propshafts made at Dunning & Fairbanks in Leeds, asked me how much they were. He told me that in Holland, there was then only one supplier of bespoke shafts left and they were very expensive. In the end, he ordered 6 for himself and his mates and I duly ordered them from D&F. Chatting to chap there when I went to collect them, I mentioned that they were not for me but for friends in Holland. I went on to say that there was now only one supplier in Holland and they were quite expensive. The chap looked up and with a wry smile on his face said "Yes, I know. Where do you think the supplier in Holland gets his propshafts made............?"

Steve

[Steve kay]

   

Drove past queues at Aldi and Morrisons to park in Abergavenny to walk round to the bakery. The benefit of an empty car park on a Saturday morning is to allow very vigorous testing and  radical manoeuvring at speed, just for fun as us Sevens won't be dominating the Autosolo results at Silverstone as the event is cancelled. How rewarding to discover that the many happy hours at the bench with the steering box benefitting from much effort with grinding paste was worth it. What had become stiffer steering the further round the lock has been eradicated,  it is now smooth with even effort required throughout.

[Lowlevelandfast]

Went to garden centre do you know you can easily put 6 x 25kgs bags of compost on the back seat !

[AustinWood]

On Friday I overhauled the starting handle system.
Mine is the early coil design which leaves something to be desired. It uses a sort of dog coupling which, when worn, tends to throw the handle out of mesh when turning the engine. The later peg type is much better. I changed the front crankshaft bolt which is half of the coupling and refaced the handle part. The original system for holding the handle horizontal is long gone. The replacement consists of a bronze bush with a slot in it into which a peg on the shaft fits. This was also worn and I deepened the slot so that it now works correctly.
Yesterday I took the car into Galashiels for petrol and M&S Food.
Driving the Seven in The Borders is a pleasure. The roads suit the car perfectly. Also the population is low, 115,100 for a huge chunk of South-East Scotland. Towns are: Galashiels: 14,994, Hawick: 14,294, Peebles: 8,376, Selkirk: 5,784, Kelso: 5,639.
Shopping is easy with no crowding. The queues I read about just don't happen here. M&S was quiet, the shops in Melrose also. No problem buying supplies. Co-op had no milk or porridge oats but the convenience store had them.
I have use of a garage on the other side of Melrose where I have been keeping the Austin. Today I took my Citroen SM, which was here at my house, to get petrol and exercise it. A drive over the hill to Lauder and back along the A68 in beautiful sun. About 25 miles to get it freed up after very little use.
Put away in the other garage and return home in the Austin.

[Steve kay]

I'd pretty worried about doing that. If  I put bags on the back seat, I'd have to tie the dog onto the luggage rack.

[Alan]

How fast can it run?

[Mike Costigan]

On Friday I overhauled the starting handle system.
Mine is the early coil design which leaves something to be desired. It uses a sort of dog coupling which, when worn, tends to throw the handle out of mesh when turning the engine...

I used to put a slight undercut on the dog-faces which cured the problem and provided a secure engagement.