THE NEW MODEL

Well it seems that I can't live without a Morgan Three Wheeler, so I have built another one to remind me of Marjorie. Pictures below.

Well of course it is a 1/16 scale model of a 1936 Morgan Super Sport, sprayed to look like Marjorie and built in the sunshine of the South of France.

My real project is languishing in the garage back home in Blighty, on axel stands, awaiting the front suspension to be replaced. Should you be interested in how the rolling restoration of Stella Stag is going. checkout, www.stellastag.blogspot.com.

THE FULL CIRCLE

The day has come to say farewell to Marjorie, a year earlier than I expected it has to be said. The first show that I took Marjorie along to with Jacquie my wife, in this sad summer was the Bromley Pagent, where I introduced her, Jacquie that is, to a friend from the Saturday Classic Car Breakfast Meet. What Russ doesn't know about Triumph Stags isn't worth knowing and he was on the Stag stand as the Tech Guru. Russ said there were a couple of Stags up for sale amongst the many that were displayed.

Jacquie remembered falling in love with the Stag when they first appeared on the streets, over 40 years ago, and now she was tempted by a beautifully restored yellow one that was available for sale. However Russ knowing my need to wield spanners pointed us to a mechanically sound, but rather tired white Mk2 that was also up for sale at a much more affordable price, which should leave plenty of spare cash to bring her up to scratch once I had sold Marjorie.

I made an arrangement to properly view the car the following week at the owners home. Come that day, following a lengthy test drive, the price was agreed and a deposit cheque left with a promise to collect the car in a month's time, hopefully enough time to find a new home for Marge.

After two abortive EBay sales I was contact by John who had been bidding, but with no one bidding against him the sale fizzled out. Anyhow John was keen to come for a test drive and knowing the proper value of such things was willing to pay my asking price, less a small allowance for transporting Marjorie back to Staffordshire from whence John hails.

John was chuffed to bits when a few days later he got to meet Marjorie in the metal and after being taken for a ride, in a positive way, the deal was done. Which brings us to where we are today.

Goodbye Marjorie, Welcome Stella. Jacquie says I am heartless. So as the title said , Full Circle, and  photos show Marjorie, when she was just a twinkle arriving on a trailer, and departing on one as a fully grown lady, bearing a brass plaque showing her provenance and just to proove how heartless I am, a picture of Stella stealing into the garage that was home for Marjorie for just a little over three years

I know that John will use Marjorie to her full potential and with his engineering back ground will have no trouble in looking after her. And although I was quite sad to see her depart down the drive, I am itching to start work on Stella Stag and a long shopping and To Do list has already been drawn up.. Keep Watching this space, because as you might expect I will be setting up a Stella blog and detailing what will probably be another two year project to get her the way I would like to.

STONELEIGH

A near neighbour and kit car enthusiast who introduced himself to me back last June, at Marjorie's first outing to the classic car show in Purley, asked if I was going to go to the Worlds biggest Kit Car show at Stoneleigh in Warwickshire. I hadn't planned to, but as Ken is the membership secretary of the Royale Owners Club and Jacquie was mightily impressed when Ken drove round in a superb example of a Royale Sabre, picture below, I thought it might be a good idea.

It was an bright dry trip around the M25 and up the M40 on Mayday and we got parked up easily as Ken waved his exhibitors pass at the entrance staff. Sadly the journey was undertaken in my regular car as I felt that a couple of hours plus, almost totally on motorways, would be too much to ask of man and machine. I set off to explore and right opposite the ROC stand was an area for three wheelers, Particularly Citroen 2CV powered ones, by Lomax, but a couple of Pembertons turned up and a very nice Guzzi engined one. I have never seen so many three wheelers all in one space, but not one three wheeler kit manufacturer was exhibiting.

 

Inside one of the halls was a very radical, single seater, three wheeler, please don't ask me what it was called, as although I read the blurb I'm afraid I can't remember anything about it.

 Naturally I went back to the Royale Club area to be tempted by the two Sabres that were offered for sale and the other excellent examples that were also on show. Not that I intend to buy one this year, I fully intend to enjoy Marjorie to the maximum now that warmer weather looks as if it about to arrive. A Sabre though. now that just might fulfil all of Jacquie's requirements, a roof, doors, heater, comfortable seats and a shelf behind the seats just big enough for our little dog, we'll see.

Well, lots of photos in this posting and not one of Marjorie, but she is looking good. We were out on Drive it Day and joined a Triumph gathering at Redhill Aerodrome, where she was much admired. 

Spacers have now been made and fitted to both front wheels so that the brake disc now run centrally within the callipers and the only job left to do is to polish the left side, lower aluminium panel. I did the right side last year and a quick rub over the other day had that shining again, so it will be worth the effort to get the left side done.

BOGGED DOWN

Good Friday was as good a day for a ride out in Marjorie as ever there would be and Jacquie was happy to fill the co-pilots seat. So happy in fact that she took several photos from that position.

There was a compromise, naturally, we needed to stop at a local Sainsburys supermarket and then a garden centre before the ride proper could start, fair enough.

However when I went to start Marjorie after visiting the garden centre, she wouldn't until I pulled the choke out, then she roared into life at full throttle. I immediately turned off the ignition and after a little head scratching realised the left carburetter barrel was jammed fully opened, releasing the slotted nuts at the top of the carb with the screw driver blade of my Swiss Army knife allowed the barrel to spring into the closed position and then the car started normally with a steady tickover. I can only think that whilst we were both in the garden centre, somebody had climbed aboard and rammed his foot down on the throttle thus jamming the left carb open, who knows!

Of course by now we had collected a small crowd of interested onlookers, and as we set off we waved goodbye. All was fine now for the next ten miles or so until we reached a stretch of dual carriageway which allowed me to overtake a coach I had been following for a while. Kids waved from the window of the coach as we whizzed by, the only problem was that when I pulled back into the nearside lane and took my foot of the throttle, we just kept going, the left throttle had obviously stuck open again.

I had to pull of the road just before a roundabout, unfortunately onto gravel and I knew this would be problematic, but I had no choice. The carb was sorted in a moment, but when I tried to drive away, we were going nowhere, the back end had sunk down into the gravel, level with the body of the car. I called my breakdown service who said they would organise a truck, but I would have to pay them directly as I wasn't covered for bog down only breakdown.

Fortunately a good Samaritan motor cyclist stopped and was insistent that we would be able to bounce her out. We did, first to the left an inch at a time, until we could fill the hole that Marjorie had dug and then to the right until the back wheel was on the tarmac and I could reverse back on the carriageway. Thank you to the White Knight on the Bike and happily Jacquie was not discouraged by this incident.

The carburetter problem has been resolved and we drove out yesterday to meet some friends at a pub in Reigate, with Duggie this time. We thought we should properly equip him with a pair of goggles as  he loves to have his head out in the airflow as he sits on Jacquie's lap.. I had an in expensive pair of goggles, Jacquie shortened the straps and with one strap under his chin and the other behind his ears they were obviously a very comfortable fit as he didn't try to remove them and very fetching he looks too.

ANNIVERSARY RUN

It was yesterday, Monday 8th Februray 2016, that I remembererd that it was twelve months ago, two days previously. on Saturday 7th February 2015 that Marjorie was launched. A video of the launch was put onto YouTube, that video has now had over four thousand viewings, not all of them mine.

It took another five months before Marjorie was licenced, although she was ready for the road in April and passed her big test in May, but then there was that final, frustrating ten weeks to get DVLA to issue the licence.

Still all that is behind us now and on her 1st birthday (although I didn't realise at the time) I took a nearby chum for a run out, the roads were just about dry, but it was very windy, Imogen was making herself felt, but my chum Richard thoroughly enjoyed the ride and took several short video clips from the passenger seat. So almost exactly one year from the realease of Marjorie's first video, here is the link to her 1st Birthday video.


http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-MhbF7zc3k43jlkfshRMKhzQXTSQX7pv

Should you have nothing better to do then click on the above, if that doesn't work, which is quite possible, I am no expert in these matters, just get into YouTube and search for MACS MORGAN. 
 

BRIGHTON

As I said in my last post, I had a yearning to see the sea, so much so that I spelt seafront with two E's.

My online weather forecast continued to say that last Thursday was going to be bright and sunny with 8 deg temperatures. Normally Thursday in grandchildren day, but that was being changed to Friday this week, to accommodate an  excited little lady who was going to be six on that day. Jacquie had made a luncheon arrangement with some girl friends so it seemed the perfect opportunity.

I decided to stick a minimum tool kit in the hamper, on the basis, if you've got  it, you won't want it, donned my original, padded Belstaff motorbike over trousers, leather jacket, white scarf, Biggles helmet and goggles and off I set. I had decided not to go down the M23, but halfway down the Caterham bypass everything came to a stop. Road works!!!! It took 45 minutes to get to the traffic lights and roundabout. Fortunately I was able to cut the engine, sit in the sunshine and every now and then let the handbrake off and coast down a couple of car lengths. By the time I had reached the roundabout, I had enough poodling about, so I took the entrance onto the M25 and one junction later I was on the M23 heading South into the bluest sky and brightest sunshine I had seen for ages.

Marjorie more than held her own on the motorway, middle lane, speedo showing plus 80 mph all the way, which is nearer a real 75mph and soon a big sign saying BRIGHTON 22  whizzed past. Marjorie still has a tendency to wander at that speed, so no relaxing at the wheel, tyre pressure is 18 psi, maybe I will try it a bit lower, but in truth, I am not often going to be on a motorway and up to an indicated 70 she is very steady.

I parked on Madeira Drive, acknowledging the few pointed fingers, cameras and thumbs up on the way through Brighton Town. Madeira Drive is the traditional end for the London to Brighton Rally and is used for many other car and bike related events, so it seemed appropriate to park there, although the famous Victorian cast iron, fretwork arches were screened off for repair.

 

 

 

There was a surprising number of people on the beach as I walked down to the forlorn remainder of the West Pier, in such contrast to the Brighton Pier, which I always thought used to be called Palace Pier. I lunched in the lanes and after filling Marjorie's tank we headed back home via Lewes and wonderful bendy country roads, untill we joined the A22, the  Eastbourne to London road at Forest Row. The weather was still good, but these roads still held plenty of water from the recent rain and now Marjorie is in need of a serious wash and brushup.

No problems at all except the tacho has worked loose, the speedo did some while back, so I know how to stop that happening again. I was a bit stiff when I climb out, but well chuffed with the longest run todate, not sure that I would want to go much further, but my back and legs straightened out when I took the dog for a walk around the block.

BRRR BRRR

Obviously Marjorie hasn't been out and about much recently, but we did join in the London to Brighton Veternan Car Rally, on Sunday 1st November. With Jacquie by my side I sneaked into the parade at Purley, on a classic misty November morning, but at least it was dry. We planned to meet up with Jacquie's sons inlaws at Hooley, in their lovely red Triumph TR3a, a slight hiccup there, but we got together a bit further up the A23

We rejoined the procession of cars, ancient and modern, acknowledging the cheers, handclaps, smiles and thumbs up, on the way, well  I assumed they were meant for Marjorie and I responded with lots of parp parps from my hooter.

It was very slow going as anybody who had any kind of car that they wanted to show off, had joined the cavalcade and it must have been hard work for the seriously old veterans.

We continued almost to Crawley, before we bailed out and found a pub for lunch, before heading back home. A good day in good company, what fun.

The third Saturday in the month is now sacrascant, there is a breakfast meet at a the Botley Hill Pub, not far from me and gradually a few more cars and drivers show up, about fifteen or so. On the 16th of January it was only the true enthusiast who showed up as the temperature was below freezing, but clad in my ski thermals Marjorie and I ventured out as soon as the sun was above the horozion.

Only about seven cars this day and just one other driver who kept his roof down, at least his car had a heater. Interesting cars and owners and a lively discussion was had over sausage or bacon baps in the Sheep Shed at the side of the car park; the pub not opening for breakfast during January.

 As you can see it was a seriously cold day, but Marjorie fired up on the first jab of the button. I had put a few pounds into each tyre the previous day and considering the state of the road, she felt well planted, I can't wait for more pleasant driving condition and I think Brighton seefront is calling.