Luke Rainbird

Let's move it on a touch then - when do people think projects might be road legal?

Can always postpone until the summer/whenever folk will be able to do it. Might risk it going the way of almost every other TF event ever though... Would be nice for folk to have their cars all sorted though, given how many people have projects nearing kinda-useable.

Depends what you want to achieve, really. From memory those were fun little bikes and would be a good laugh on streety stuff, but they are relatively dated now of course. The good thing is that with trials being rather behind the times compared to the rest of the MTB world, compatibility won't be a huge issue on the most part. Looks like you're stuck with a rear vee on that frame, which some would be put off by so you'll need to make the call there. If it's for occasional use and just having a bit of fun on, I'd keep it mostly as is and enjoy it as a (presumably) cheap bit of fun. Switch out the contact points (bars/stem, grips, pedals) to tailor to yourself and leave the rest until you've ridden it enough for niggles to present themselves. If you're wanting to get back into trials a little more then ride it as is for a while, until you're able to pick up something a little better specced and you're golden

Just another reminder gents. Still up for it if you lot are

What an utter retard! Presumably you've checked the rest of the setup and will be replacing with meatier cable?

Such a fun road. While I was staying near Brechfa for work for a few months last year I'd detour and drive up and back at least once a week

Getting bummed by an angry TB.

Decent CCTV camera and some Home Alone style vigilante justice. The camera is so we can all watch the live stream.

For a bit of casual playing around and getting a feel for it it'll be fine. Never going to be as suited as a DJ specific bike of course, but to give you a taster or for the occasional session in the sun just get involved

Pffffft. Only a Widowmaker for me thanks. Nothing but the best.

#becauseracecar, right? Extreme weight saving - no engine, no gearbox, no interior, no brakes, no suspension. Not too sold on the extreme rake or 3" front wheels mind... Hopefully have a flatbed w/ crane here late this week or early next to take the shell. Local chap needs a few parts for his car and is keen to take a load of others off my hands to sell on too. Could be a win:win

Mine's faster...

Will be fine driving it on 4/5 for a little while, provided you're not thrashing it around track/similar of course. Youmention that they're nuts rather than bolts so it'd be with checking how they're fitted: factory studs I'd imagine to be pressed in from the rear rather than threaded in which is a shame as else you'd be able to unscrew the offending item and replace. Still potential to grind the head off and drive it out of the hub though not the easiest location to work, especially with the wheel in situ. What shape is the broken nut? Can you hadn't over a sacrificial socket to remove the b*****d?

"What use are numbers when you can't see?" "I love the sound of fun" That's brilliant. I wonder how well received it'd be if it were released today...

Cliff notes: With wife heading up the country to see family at the weekend, I wanted to get her brakes serviced as they were a bit lacking. Uneven disc/pad wear and an increasingly poor handbrake not ideal, so full refresh and sorted out a pair of seized sliders on the rear which explain the issues it was having. One particularly crusty rear splash guard could do with replacing at some point too! Weirdly she wasn't too keen when I offered her a brake upgrade... Old car is now largely ready to disappear. I have some dollies to get it moved as required, just need to book in a collection with a crane to take it away really. In the meantime it's doing a fine job as parts storage (both for those being chucked with the shell and for some of those that are being kept. It's also rather convenient having an oversized "safe place" for parcel deliveries rather than having to visit the DO Garage is now overflowing, sadly. Prior to the shell going I'll try to get in and have a clearout of stuff so I can look to get things more in order. Could do with selling some bits too, really. Haven't done much to LCR due to lack of time. It's in for MOT on Thursday and whilst I don't have any major concerns, there are a few little niggles that will likely crop up: knocking top mount,soon to be replaced with solids on coilovers; broken splitter with ankle-slicing edges, replacement inbound; dead lambda previously mentioned, so clocks and electrical tape may come out this evening... Otherwise it's just been meeting daily duties without batting an eyelid. Even gave it a quick squirt down before @Ash-Kennard's stag do at the weekend.

Soundtrack, hazy video effects and shirtless Pearson. What year is it?! Nicely done gents

Forgot all about it to be honest

I enjoyed it. Yes it was cheesy but overtly so, so I assumed he'd gone over the top with it deliberately. Huge riding regardless, smashed it.

Ride faster.

12 miles from where I used to live in to the nearest town. Summer used to be filled with sunny days of riding in to town, session for a couple of hours, ride another few miles to the skatepark for a bit, 10 miles to the next town for a final session then 11 miles home. Would it have been easier and less effort in a car? Absolutely. Is 2 miles too far to roll in? Absolutely not. Gears and a seat will make your life better, but sounds like your ride in is barely far enough to spin into 2nd and sit down. ...and another thing...

They also run 20" with a decent bit of pressure too, which will feel much nicer than 3" of rubber around your 19" hole, so to speak.

Perhaps a touch narrow, Heath, but certainly not crazy small. Not sure how tall you are/what your ape index is like, but I'd imagine you'd be fine with something a little wider if those feel a little small

Not a particularly productive Saturday this week, which is a bit of a shame. Here's a Rainbird update full of excitement: Totally standard, boring cars and a pile of parts Picked up Soph’s hub from the garage where the new bearing was being pressed in. Bolted it all up, but as I was finishing off I noticed that the ABS sensor was cracked. Bollocks. Down the road to Plymouth to pick up a new sensor, home again to fit it. As anyone who’s changed these will know, they can be a pig to remove cleanly, and this one was no exception. Properly stuck in there, so I went with an assortment of punches and drifted it out in a couple of pieces… Some pretty nasty wear on the rear side of the disc, presumably not helped by the bearing failing. New ones ordered. Hub/sensor sorted, I reset codes via VCDS and went for a quick drive. All nice again but noticed a headlight bulb was out. On checking, a rear bulb had also gone. Swapped the rear, wandered to the front of the car and the bonnet refused to open. Lots of faffing later, bonnet open, broken latch mechanism repaired and everything good again. By the time the Golf was sorted I’d lost a couple of hours I’d hoped to spend on the Leon(s). The grey car has an EML for bank 1 lambda, so I wanted to get a good one in place and began pulling off the charge pipe to make access a little easier. On removal, it’s clear that there’s some oil getting through to the charge route, but until I get my catch can plumbed in I’m not too sure whether this is from the breathers or some iffy seals. With the charge pipe (and bracket) removed, I had reasonable access to the back of the engine. It was immediately obvious where the lambda sensor issue was coming from… I was aware that the cats had been replaced by the previous owner, and that they weren’t an OEM part, neither of which concerned me at the time. With a proper view of the top of the exhaust, however, it was clear that the downpipe had also been replaced, and with neither an OEM part or a decent quality replacement. The tubing isn’t particularly well-sized, which I’m not too worried about at this stage (standard power etc shouldn’t really need much more than this, as much as it’d be nice) however the welds aren’t particularly good and the lambda boss isn’t in the stock location, resulting in the sensor clashing with the exhaust manifold and bending. Not ideal… I could have gone ahead and replaced the sensor regardless, but to physically get it to fit the DP I’d have had to bend it much like the existing one, which would likely kill it again. May as well wait for an upgrade to sort that issue then After bolting the charge pipe back on, I quickly popped the front engine trim back in place. When I got the car this was well and truly seized, so I had to be a little mechanically unsympathetic to remove it. I’d tidied up the metal bracket to defeat the worst of the rust, and replaced the plastic bolts/washers with some M6 cap head bolts and nylon washers. Much better (and yes, the EGT sensor was plugged in before fitting the plastic) I’m trying to chip away at the old car by stripping a bit more each week. By now the interior has been pretty well looted of the parts worth having as spares or selling, so I’ve been chipping away at the exterior. As you’ve seen, I’ve now disconnected a load of the engine and box to a point it’s almost ready to drop out, which I plan on getting done next weekend all being well. Without much time , I opted to pull off the nearside front corner parts - coilover, hub, Brembo etc. I had originally planned on replacing with the stock suspension to keep things rolling, but with scrap prices low at the mo I can probably sell a set of hubs for almost as much as a shell, so that idea is long gone now. I’ll pull the lot off, then just need to figure out a way to keep it mobile enough to get on a flat bed to weigh in… No cars tomorrow, might get lucky one evening next week if the weather plays ball.