Just a quickie

Been busy and travelling right now for work, so no blog's. Exciting weekend comming up, nearly time to change the title of my blog, if you know what I mean! "Surprise" party at home on Saturday night, day off on Friday to prepare for it...

Must go know, work calls!

New Radio Base Station

It's not often you get to see a picture from work, but this is the new Radio Base Station photo that I took lunchtime today. It has taken some time to get here, but at last the 3rd party designer has come up with the goods. We have tested eight of them now, and they are off to the customer ASAP. Hopefully they will sell well.

Works perking up a bit, and it is looking quite busy over the next few months. May be taking a few trips into Europe over the next few weeks, as well as anything UK we can think of. Also got some kit to test and ship for exhibitions/demo's etc. Better busy than not!

At home Tash has bought new front tyres for the KA, and Julie has started going to the gym again. Dan is worrying about getting his bursary money, I'm just worried!

Not long now by the way until I have to change the heading on my website, know what I mean.........the big five-ohh is coming up fast!

The Bullet is "sleeping", every morning I consider bringing it to work, but every evening about 5.30pm I am pleased that I didn't. It is still pitch black at that time of day. When I see a chink of daylight maybe then it will come out.

Bye for now....

Well the Mondeo's gone.....

...finally, having sold it last Wednesday, the guy turned up in a BMW with an A frame and towed it away, to either become a taxi if it's fixed or a donor car for other taxi's if it's BER (beyond economic repair). Julie shed a tear or three, I was at work. We first got the Mondeo in August 2002, for 5K, and it has been a very good car, apart from electrical problems with locks. I can only blame myself for not getting the cambelt tensioner and belt changed, otherwise it would still be with us.

I said to the wife what we need now is reliability out of the MG ZR, fingers crossed. It has a bit of a history what with it's replacement engine, and it was not that fast or economical when we went to Kew, but, we hope to settle into life with an MG. Question is, do I now spend out on the Focus so that one does not crunch it's valves!

The blue car is a picture from a hotel I stayed in when I was in Paris, the place used to be a car factory. Had lot's of these pic's on the wall.

Work's awful at the moment, all around people are loosing jobs in manufacturing and service industries and our order book is tiny, it's as if everyone has just stopped buying. I have to ring around and try and see people that don't want to buy and so on. Ho Hum. All I can think about is falling out of work myself, which would be a disaster. Great start to the year of anniversaries that is!

Must go, maybe more later....

Wet, windy and horrid!!

Well the weather has changed from Saturdays frozen winter wonderland to today's pouring with rain. Just been out to Crawley Court and the country roads are filthy and wet. At least I had the car!

Talking of car's the Mondeo is still with us, despite it being "sold" on Ebay last Wednesday. And no monies have changed hands. It was supposed to be collected yesterday but the guy caught flu, and couldn't make it. He is supposed to come today. We will see........

So over the weekend I did my Saturday morning show, then stayed on while Simon Davies did his first live show, which was OK, he warmed to it as he went along. When I got home I started on the kitchen ceiling which was peeling due to the leak from the bathroom, then I went up to the bathroom and started trying to stop the leak in the first place. This carried on into Sunday when I cut out a section of the floor boards (more like crumbled out!) and replaced it. Looks like the worst bit is down the back of the bath, where the water gets trapped from the shower head.

In between all this I replaced the Enfields decompressor cable, and it brought home to me how simple the whole thing is. I was able to change the cable with little more than a screwdriver as a pokey tool and my hands. Turns out that the decompressor plunger was well gummed up, so I sprayed it with oil, which freed it up nicely. I also topped up the engine oil. It still took lot's of kicks to start, but once it ran it seemed to be OK.

So I went out about 3.30 as it was getting duller and did a 20 mile circuit, out to Tidworth, Collingbournes, back to Tidworth and home. Bike seemed to run and tick-over well. Rear wheel was sprayed with oil when I got back. Tried to compression test it, got about 3-4 BAR, not sure if that is good or not. I can still kick it over without the decompressor, just.

Anyway back to rainy, wet and windy today, it's only 1.45pm and it's already dark out!

Bye......

Now it's January.....

Been sort of busy since my last blog, getting back into work mode, and coping with some snow and ice. Tashies KA was fixed for just over 200 quid, including sparkplug's, plug cables and a plug pack, plus an hour's labour. Poor thing still needs tyres and the suspension clonk fixed. I looked around the web for a pic of a black KA, and found this Russian KA-50 Black Shark helicopter. Nice!

Mondeo has "sold" on Ebay for 205.00 pounds, I say "sold" because I am yet to receive any money, or promise of. The "buyer" has asked for my post code and phone number to arrange collection, but still no money. Hope it's not some scam. The guy's name is Imram.....

Work is grim...nothing else I can say really. Ian and I are under pressure to sell products in a rapidly declining market. Ouch! And I had to go to the dentist for the second of three fillings this morning...

Bullet is sitting in the garage, probably all winter. Would like to spend money on it but it's not likely, what with the credit crunch etc. Interest rate is down to 1.5%, so mortgage is low but repayment scheme is crap, and falling well short! Should have changed it years ago. I'm crap at finances, and I think it's all about to come home to roost. I have bought a decompresor cable for it off Ebay, for a couple of quid. Oh, and I got the CD Rom for the MG handbook and had a look at it last night, it's pretty good.

Anyway, I realised recently that this blog has become more like a blow by blow diary, and it must be very booring for anyone else reading it (is there anyone else reading it?). So, in these last few day's before my 50th, I must try and lift everyone's spirit's, as well as mine!!! So here's a pic of the famous Enfield Pin-up girl....

Back to the Enfield via daughters KA!

Picking up on Saturday, my daughter texted me whilst I was on the radio to say her car (the KA) had played her up on the way home the night before. When I got home I drove it 200yds from the layby to our front drive, and it was a bit lumpy. Thought I would check the plugs. Three came out but one sheared off (broke in half)!. Great, just my luck. Went to ask Lillywhites what to do, we are going to tow it down there and they will try and weld a bolt to it to get the other half of the plug out. Let's hope they manage, otherwise it's another wrecked engine, and I've already got one of those!

Then I spent what felt like hours pumping the petrol out of the Mondeo, had to get a hand pump to do it, and pump it from under the rear seat, after taking the petrol pump out. Put most of it in the Focus and some in the MG. Julie took her mum to Andover in the MG, no prob's.

Also took the outside Christmas lights down, and a few other bits and pieces.

Sunday put away more Christmas stuff, cleaned out the garage, had roast dinner, and went cycling with Dan for 40 minutes. Then had a go at the Enfield timing, with the TDC tool. Think I made a mess of it, the top bolt on the timimg disk has lost it's thread. Started and ran it in the garage, moved the timimg around a bit. I think I have low compression and may need to strip the head etc. I can turn it over without decompressing it.

Monday and it has snowed a bit, not too much, off to work soon. Noticed the heating is not working, had to go and increase the water pressure (it was zero). Then had to go out again and reset the boiler trip! The water pressure thing is a regular problem. More money! And I really ought to get new glasses.....

Found this on my US Enfield forum, posted by 72westie, well worth a look:

"Just found this video online from the Barber Vintage Festival this past October. This is from the Bears/Classic 60's race. The Bears class started before us, but I ended up passing the guy with the camera at the 1:35 mark. I have the triangular tailsection. I lead the guy until the end of the clip when he passes me back".

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3LmJ3jhVc4&feature=PlayList&p=E465C0BD2AA2A20B&index=3

http://www.enfieldmotorcycles.com/forum

Cannot work out why my posted links do not work as hyperlinks, will have to look into that.

Bye for now......

Happy New Year!

Well it's hard to tell what day it is (Saturday), and it's nearly the end of the "holiday". On New Years Eve we bought the MG ZR, and we went to the Amesbury Archer for dinner, just the four of us, it was nice. The rest of the evening was uneventful TV.

New Years Day we went to Kew Gardens in London, it was free, and boy was it busy. Had to park on the streets and walk back, It was a good if cold day, went on the walkway in the pic, it was a bit wobbly!

Friday we hang out, I washed the Focus and played with the MG's stereo. Went into Andover, Dan bought another game for his X Box, and we bought mat's and a fuel hand pump thingy to try and empty the Mondeos full fuel tank. It's on Ebay and so far we have one bid for 100.00 pounds (the starting price) and 28 watchers! To be honest I do not believe it will auction without any funny business. Never Ebay'd a car before!

Back to Saturday, will do radio in an hour, and see what the day brings. No RE so far, too busy/cold! Back to work Monday....I wounder what 2009 will bring?