andy couchman

Architect

Yes please on the trunnion. Andy

Great day out - I reckon we had 15 Lotus/Caterhams in total - many in the handicap class. Well done guys and hope you enjoyed it. Well done to to the six car Caterham display group parked up in the paddock to celebrate the 60th too. They looked great. The Lotus/Caterham 7 even had a two page spread in the programme, as the 7's first ever event was in 1957, driven by Edward Lewis. It was great to see so many 7s there and to chat to so many 7 folk. Didn't see a lot of factory presence though... For the main event we were shifted this year from Class C2 (production cars 1401cc-2 litres) or C3 (above 2 litres) to C5 - for unlimited engined low production cars. Too fast to race? Hmmm... Weather was perfect though and a good time was had by most. My little 1700 crossflow fought hard and actually managed an all-time personal best (I first ran in it at Brighton in 1996), beating my previous best of 13.50 secs by a whole 0.01 secs. Not sure how, as my tyres are the same ones I used in 2010 and so a bit old and not so grippy... That left me 7th in class, out of 16. Chuffed with that. However... had we been allowed to run in C2 again, we'd have come second. Another what if... Great day and well done the organisers. What Chis didn't mention is that he still beat a Ferrari F40, a 27 litre Napier-Bentley and a 27 litre Merlin engined Rolls Royce special, among others. Not every day you can say that... Andy

Just acquired an old Triumph (Vitesse) an there's a view in that community that on old engines, you don't really need an additive. Years of use mean the valve seats naturaly harden (as I understand it). Another sufggestion was to use Redex. However, I'm not an engineer so please shoot this down in flames those who are! Andy

Excellent new HWS. See you at Bucklers! Andy (fellow crossflower - red car with chequered front wings)

Any recommendations? Road use only and want good wet grip and comfort. Thanks. Andy

Ah - must visit as I live just a few miles away. Looks good! Andy (Glos AR)

Yup, I spoke to Derek for that interview Colin and it was his son Justin (himself an accomplished sports car racer et al) who drove the car and Alan then created the painting based on that real life drive. A stylised version of Justin is in Alan Fearnley's painting (look carefully and you can see the similarities - although the subject of the pic is the car not its driver) and DB has the original in his home - think he said it was upstairs or in his study as we spoke over the phone. Enjoy your original - great painting and a great artist IMHO. Andy

From memory, the bearing is just an interference fit, so it can work loose. Not sure what the fix is, but Seven Workshop will know! Good luck in getting it sorted. Andy

One other thought - the silencer wadding tried to get loose on my car and ended up blocking a lot of the silencer. Engine lacked power and ran very rough. The inner perforated tube had worked loose and the strands starting coming out of the tailpie and ended up almost bl;ocking it. A longshot but worth adding to the list? Andy

It WILL get sorted HWS, just a question of doing a Sherlock: “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.” Good luck and you'll soon be kissing the sky! Andy

Another thought - do you use rubber fuel pipe? Modern petrol doesn't like it and it could explain some of the problems... Good luck sorting it - sooooo frustrating! Andy (non-Hendrix sunburst Strat)

Have these (club bulk buy) and they're great. However, the top wishbone looks to be able to hit the headlamp stay on full compression. If that happens it puts the headlamps out of alignment a bit. Anyone else experienced this and, if so, what can I do about it? If I bring the headlamps in closer to the body that looks to sort it but the nosecone then absorbs some of the headlamp's light. The car is a standard cockpit live axled car with widetrack front suspension if that makes any difference. Hmmm... Andy

Cross-drilling also saves weight and these have radial grooves too. Is that better/worse? Certainly, cross drilling makes the brakes noisier. Was always under the impression that true ventilated discs tend to be very heavy and add width, neither of which you want or need on a 7 (due to our low weight and good cooling for the discs). But not an expert so happy to be corrected! Andy

Just a further thought Chris - did you accidentally put it in third rather than first? Sounds daft, but I've done it myself and it could explain why it wouldn't hold. Just a thought... Hope all goes well this weekend. Best. Andy

What's a heater? Andy

Have competed there since 1997 (missed 2012 sadly) and love the event. Will be great to recreate Edward Lewis's 1957 run (OK the course is shorter these days but hey) and the idea of a static display is great. Space is always tight though so may be difficult - but hope it will happen. Look forward to seeing you there Tomy. Andy

I used a Ford crossflow engine... Andy

...and I'm after a couple of 8 x 13s, so if anyone has a set of both types we can do a deal! Thanks. Andy

Correct torque? I've hear different figures. Andy

I run two sets of wheels on the car: - 6" fronts and 8" rears for going fast (sprints/hillclimbs/track days and general posing) - 6" all round for touring The car is set up to handle best with the fast set-up. However, the touring set-up gives me a lower final drive ratio plus less ground clearance at the back compared to the fast set-up - both the opposite of what I want. To even things up a bit I'm thinking of running 185 x 60 x 13 fronts on the touring set-up but switching the backs to something like 185 x 70 x 13s. Anyone done it/would it work/would it be rubbish? Just wondrin... Andy

After a couple of rear wheels if anyone has any. These are the 8 spoke Caterham ones, previous generation rather than the brand new design which came in a few months back. Thanks all. Andy

Thanks all. Oliver, is the water outlet between 2 and 3 to feed the heater? If so, luckily not a problem as I don't have a heater! Presumably you got the head from Burtons? Did you use their machining and valves or go elsewhere for that? ​Currently the car is a pretty genuine 150bhp and rev limited to 7000. I'd like to see a bit more power but also to be able to use more revs (8 or 8.5?) and to have a more bulletproof engine. The research continues... Andy

Hi Ian I'll take the Yokohama tyres if they're still available please. Am just over the border in Gloucestershire. Presumably they're 185 x 60 x 13 Yoko A539s? Andy

Looking into the feasibility of going all steel internals for my old crossflow and possibly going for an ali head too. Anyone done this? And is it worth looking for secondhand parts? Burtons list Arrow and Fearndon crankshafts and con rods, with Arrows being a lot more expensive. Again, any views? Car is essentially now a tourer doing the odd sprint/hillclimb/trackday and already has forged pistons, Kent 244 cam and Omex/Jenvey fuel injection. Finally is this doable myself or would you get a professional engine builder to build it and, if so, who would you recommend? In the good ol days it would be Roger King but Roger has moved on. Thanks. Andy