The Night Mail

[pH]

8 hours ago, rockershovel said:

I had occasional American cars in my days of "buy a car for the winter", there were quite a few around East Anglia in those days. I never found them to be particularly durable, especially the bodies which rotted rapidly. 

A cousin and I spent the summer working in Ontario in 1968. We wanted a cheap car for our time there. Some of the ones we looked at had been through a few Ontario winters, and showed it. One had a plywood sheet for a floor in the front, and nothing for a floor in the back - you braced your feet on the front seats and watched the road go by below. We ended up with one which had had bodywork done with concrete, which meant the front and back of the car led fairly independent lives. 
 

However, we knew a retired guy who had been a doctor in the Okanagan in southern BC. The weather there is hot and dry in summer and (then) reliably snowy in winter. (Widespread irrigation has changed the climate a bit.) They used grit on the snow, not salt. His big US wagon had 240,000 miles on it and not a sign of rust. On a family holiday to Ontario, where they had some minor work done on it, all the mechanics in the shop were summoned to look at this wonder. 

[AndyID]

7 hours ago, Tony_S said:

They were exported as kits and then built under licence in Iran for quite some time.

 

The body's were made by Pressed Steel at Linwood in Bonnie Scotland, a couple of miles from our house.

[AndyID]

11 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

My BMW X3's 3 litre straight six develops, according to Wiki, 282 hp.

 

Some "superior" Mercedes owners in Germany claim that BMW stands for "Bayerische Mist Wagen"

 

The wee 124 only has a 1.4L four-banger but it's turbocharged and manages to produce 150 bhp which makes it adequately quick without being ridiculous. However "ye canna argue wi the laws o' physics Cap'n" and it's brilliant when it comes to going round corners.

[pH]

3 hours ago, AndyID said:

… it's brilliant when it comes to going round corners.

Isn’t that a fairly basic requirement for a car?

[rockershovel]

7 hours ago, pH said:

A cousin and I spent the summer working in Ontario in 1968. We wanted a cheap car for our time there. Some of the ones we looked at had been through a few Ontario winters, and showed it. One had a plywood sheet for a floor in the front, and nothing for a floor in the back - you braced your feet on the front seats and watched the road go by below. We ended up with one which had had bodywork done with concrete, which meant the front and back of the car led fairly independent lives. 
 

However, we knew a retired guy who had been a doctor in the Okanagan in southern BC. The weather there is hot and dry in summer and (then) reliably snowy in winter. (Widespread irrigation has changed the climate a bit.) They used grit on the snow, not salt. His big US wagon had 240,000 miles on it and not a sign of rust. On a family holiday to Ontario, where they had some minor work done on it, all the mechanics in the shop were summoned to look at this wonder. 

British roads are salted in winter and until the 1970s at least, British cars relied on undersealing to limit the damage this caused. The climate is wet and until another 1970s innovation, the car wash became popular cars were rarely, if ever cleaned underneath. 

[AndyID]

11 hours ago, New Haven Neil said:

We were watching that car auction in Yorkshire prog the other night, guy had a mint really early XR3, totally original, which had 100 horsepower.  My very ordinary Hyundai i30 has 112.  And it's a diesel.....  yes things move on.

 

The thing with the big yank engines is torque - they love torque in the US.  LOL, really though....  A pal has a '72 Oldsmobile Delta Royale with a 455 ci engine - 7.4L - it's not particularly powerful but boy does it have guts.  It has starship mileage on it, engine's never been touched but it has had a transmission rebuild.

 

Most (actually none that I can think of, but someone will now prove me wrong) steam locomotives do not have have alternative gear ratios. (The variable "cutoff" gear varies the amount of energy admitted for every stroke but it is not really a reduction gear). Big honking US car engines were not all that different from steam engines. They could produce a lot of torque over a wide speed range and some US cars only had two-speed transmissions, at the expense of fuel economy.

 

But not just US cars. I knew someone who had a Bentley who would prove the point by driving quite a distance in fourth gear all the way, including stops

[pH]

3 hours ago, AndyID said:

Most (actually none that I can think of, but someone will now prove me wrong) steam locomotives do not have have alternative gear ratios. 

 Very few, but not none.

 

Class A Climax - https://www.climaxlocomotives.com/history/

 

Some Sentinels e.g. LNER Y3 - https://www.lner.info/locos/Y/y1y3.php

 

Some Davenports (see ‘Davenport Locomotive Works’ in ‘Other Types’ section on this page) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geared_steam_locomotive

[New Haven Neil]

4 hours ago, AndyID said:

 

Most (actually none that I can think of, but someone will now prove me wrong) steam locomotives do not have have alternative gear ratios. (The variable "cutoff" gear varies the amount of energy admitted for every stroke but it is not really a reduction gear). Big honking US car engines were not all that different from steam engines. They could produce a lot of torque over a wide speed range and some US cars only had two-speed transmissions, at the expense of fuel economy.

 

But not just US cars. I knew someone who had a Bentley who would prove the point by driving quite a distance in fourth gear all the way, including stops

 

pH beat me to it, some Sentinels had two speeds (slow and slower).  The Powerglide two speed transmission is very popular with drag racers, it is presumably very tough.  Fuel economy is not an issue for these guys and gals.

 

IIRC an electric motor delivers it maximum torque at the instant it begins to turn, certainly the remarkable performance of electric cars is down to the huge torque developed.  Shame the batteries are so crepe 

[Happy Hippo]

I have been tasked with important domestic duties today:

 

Cleaning windows; and there are not the Microsoft variety!

 

 

[Florence Locomotive Works]

2 hours ago, pH said:

 Very few, but not none.

 

Class A Climax - https://www.climaxlocomotives.com/history/

 

Some Sentinels e.g. LNER Y3 - https://www.lner.info/locos/Y/y1y3.php

 

Some Davenports (see ‘Davenport Locomotive Works’ in ‘Other Types’ section on this page) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geared_steam_locomotive

The Bavarian AA 1 might also count.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bavarian_AA_I

[jamie92208]

Several classes of French Diesels  and some electrics had two gear ratios. Driven via dog clutches on the monomotor bogies they couldvonly be changed when the locos were stationary.

 

Jamie

[Happy Hippo]

I finally got around to putting up the Japanese art work in the ex conservatory

 

I also managed to renew our mobile and Internet contracts. Incredibly within minutes of this I had a call from another provider, but they all cry off when they find out I'm on a business contract. 

 

I also had a call offering me a funeral plan. I presume that was because I've applied for my pension. This would tie in with the glut of offers of electric mobility scooters, stair lifts and walk in baths. 

[Northmoor]

15 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

I also managed to renew our mobile and Internet contracts. Incredibly within minutes of this I had a call from another provider, but they all cry off when they find out I'm on a business contract. 

 

I also had a call offering me a funeral plan. I presume that was because I've applied for my pension. This would tie in with the glut of offers of electric mobility scooters, stair lifts and walk in baths. 

This shows how the databases of our information are shared and how fast they are updated.

 

My wife, when she started working mostly from home (about 15 years ago, long before the pandemic) her employer provided a hands-free phone and internet connection linked to her work extension number.  Within 30 minutes of the line going live, she received the first call asking if she'd like to change her service provider.

[SM42]

A work colleague bought his Scooby new 17 years ago. 

It's knocking on the door of 230k now and he is not likely to change it 

Like me  he is struggling to find a newer  car that does what he wants it to do  without a load of unnecessary tech and complexity. 

In his case he wants a workaday 4wd and there aren't many around that don't have luxury interiors and tech he won't use as he bounces across a field.  

Apparently he folded the backseat down the day he bought it and they have only been used as seats once. 

 

In my case I want a handbrake lever  so I can push it if it breaks down, physical buttons to control the fan and heating rather than having to scroll around a touch screen (meaning I have to stop to turn the heater up,) a key to get in and start it,  a reasonable amount of space and comfort for batting across Europe with Mrs SM42 and her luggage and no built in satnav. I've got a map for that. 

 

The car I have has just the right amount of tech and some nice instinctive to use knobs and buttons  so I can adjust things like the heater without taking my eyes off the road.

 

I don't hold out much hope

 

Andy

[Happy Hippo]

I have been taking part in a trial with my energy provider.  Last Friday they asked me to reduce my energy usage by 80% to qualify for a fuel rebate.

 

I achieved 85% which equated to 2.43kWh and my rebate is..............................

 

Wait for it......................................

 

20p!.

 

With savings like that, I'll soon be able to afford a first class stamp.

[Tony_S]

2 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

I have been taking part in a trial with my energy provider.  Last Friday they asked me to reduce my energy usage by 80% to qualify for a fuel rebate.

 

I achieved 85% which equated to 2.43kWh and my rebate is..............................

 

Wait for it......................................

 

20p!.

 

With savings like that, I'll soon be able to afford a first class stamp.

On a few sunny days recently our electricity bill has been only a couple of pence over the standing charge. We haven’t  cut our energy usage though, just haven’t taken it from the grid. When it is sunnier I will heat our water with the immersion heater rather than the gas boiler. We are still waiting for a contract to arrive so we can be paid for any surplus we export to the grid. It isn’t much, probably about the same per kWh you got!

[Florence Locomotive Works]

4 hours ago, SM42 said:

don't hold out much hope

Yes I am afraid there is no vehicle currently variable new that has any of that. If you lived in the USA I would suggest a used early 2000s Toyota 4x4.

[iL Dottore]

9 hours ago, SM42 said:

…I don't hold out much hope

 

Andy

My Škoda Yeti is pretty much what you wish for. It does have a touch screen, but only for the entertainment & navigation system (Bluetooth - so you can have hands free mobile phone use [in effect using the car itself as a phone] and you can also use the Bluetooth to play music from your MP3 player or smart phone; as well as radio and navigation system). All of the rest of the controls in the Yeti are push button/rotary switch (and it has an old fashioned hand brake).

TBH I prefer a quality navigation system over a map, if nothing else because the navigation system will (should?) provide you with updates on the state of traffic. Something that has more than earned its keep in the past, given that we have to drive perilously close to the Gotthard Road Tunnel on the way to the holiday hovel. And the Gotthard Road Tunnel is definitely a major blockage during school holidays and the summer. Sometimes the queues of vehicles waiting to go through the tunnel have a waiting time of up to 4 hours.

 

As a non-parent, I am most thankful that I don’t have to take my holidays when everyone else has to take their holidays - and  all at the same time because of the school holiday system(s). Normally, when we do go away, we tend to go in the so-called “shoulder season“ - when everything is still open but without the crowds, the stuffed aircraft and trains, the long waits for ferries and the like and, of course, not forgetting the summer holidays surcharge (which can, in some places, double or triple the cost of accommodation).

As someone who has spent an awful lot of his career travelling for work,  another advantage of off-season holidays (and one that appeals to the highly trained professional misanthrope in me) is that you tend to avoid the amateur traveller (you know, the ones that turn up at the security gate with a couple of bottles of water and a penknife in their hand luggage and don’t know which way to turn when they finally get on the aircraft [I’m usually a “Left Turn” flyer]).

 

”Amateur travellers”? I could write a book on my experiences tripping over amateur travellers whilst travelling for business. And believe me when I say thar every cliché about the “ugly American“, the “Brit abroad“ or the “sunbed capturing German” is definitely founded in fact! Sadly.

 

Some people really shouldn’t be let out of their home country!

Edited March 8, 2022 by iL Dottore
Typo/clarification

[rockershovel]

1 hour ago, iL Dottore said:

My Škoda Yeti is pretty much what you wish for. It does have a touch screen, but only for the entertainment & navigation system (Bluetooth - so you can have hands free mobile phone use [in effect using the car itself as a phone] and you can also use the Bluetooth to play music from your MP3 player or smart phone; as well as radio and navigation system). All of the rest of the controls in the Yeti are push button/rotary switch (and it has an old fashioned hand brake).

TBH I prefer a quality navigation system over a map, if nothing else because the navigation system will (should?) provide you with updates on the state of traffic. Something that has more than earned its keep in the past, given that we have to drive perilously close to the Gotthard Road Tunnel on the way to the holiday hovel. And the Gotthard Road Tunnel is definitely a major blockage during school holidays and the summer. Sometimes the queues of vehicles waiting to go through the tunnel have a waiting time of up to 4 hours.

 

As a non-parent, I am most thankful that I don’t have to take my holidays when everyone else has to take their holidays - and  all at the same time because of the school holiday system(s). Normally, when we do go away, we tend to go in the so-called “shoulder season“ - when everything is still open but without the crowds, the stuffed aircraft and trains, the long waits for ferries and the like and, of course, not forgetting the summer holidays surcharge (which can, in some places, double or triple the cost of accommodation).

As someone who has spent an awful lot of his career travelling for work,  another advantage of off-season holidays (and one that appeals to the highly trained professional misanthrope in me) is that you tend to avoid the amateur traveller (you know, the ones that turn up at the security gate with a couple of bottles of water and a penknife in their hand luggage and don’t know which way to turn when they finally get on the aircraft [I’m usually a “Left Turn” flyer]).

 

”Amateur travellers”? I could write a book on my experiences tripping over amateur travellers whilst travelling for business. And believe me when I say thar every cliché about the “ugly American“, the “Brit abroad“ or the “sunbed capturing German” is definitely founded in fact! Sadly.

 

Some people really shouldn’t be let out of their home country!

I have a Skoda Scout but I expect most of the controls and gadgets are the same. Good all-round working car with an effective AWD system, plenty of room in the back and comfortable to drive; good towing car, too. 

 

Definitely agree that travelling for work, completely exhausts any patience or tolerance of the idiots to be found at any airport. Anyone who turns up without their documents, overweight luggage or who-knows-what in their carry-on has only themselves to blame. The rules aren't hard to follow. 

 

My main phobia is charter flights. I've occasionally used them as last-minute links when there really was no alternative, even been on package holidays on rare occasions and they are about the most hideous way to travel imaginable, full of people who do not seem to have the slightest idea how to behave, let alone their children.... 

[SM42]

Unfortunately Mrs SM42 works in education so school holidays are our main travelling time but she does have a little flexibility to be able to get a few extra days here and there either side of the hols which helps

 

Overland travel in the motor is not so bad if you don't linger too long in terminals and once across the channel driving is more relaxing IMO.

 

I hate flying, or rather I hate airports. 

 

Like being swilled through a large toilet for 2 hours, surrounded by loads of others who would rather be travelling than milling about.

 

  Never enough, seats at the airport, shops that radiate enough heat to fry an egg, airport layouts that defy logic ( why do I need to go upstairs only to come back down 30 yds later to then go back up so I can go back down to get to the aeroplane? Can't I just stay upstairs or downstairs till I reach the gate?) and just a load of stress until you get to the other end. 

 

They tell you to relax and enjoy the flight once you take off. 

Relax? It'll take a week for my blood pressure to come back down after the airport experience.

And how can I relax when I am whizzing through the stratosphere in an aluminium  tube surrounded by highly flammable aviation fuel barely protected from blazing furnaces?

 

I try not to think about the last bit

 

Actually Poznan Lawice is quite civilised in many respects apart from the security  scrum.

 

If only we could turn up 20 minutes before, get on and go.

 

Anyhow got to go. The chariot is in for repair today. 

Don't start me on the useless and sometimes dangerous tech on the courtesy car.

 

Andy

Feeling better after an early morning moan. 

[TheQ]

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

 

 

Some people really shouldn’t be let out of their home country!

Corrected for you.

[iL Dottore]

44 minutes ago, SM42 said:

…If only we could turn up 20 minutes before, get on and go.

It definitely is a totally different experience. An acquaintance of ours if a former Crossair pilot (rtd) and belongs to a verein that owns a Constellation (one of the few still flying). A few years ago the verein acquired a DC3 and our acquaintance asked if we’d like to take a quick hop to Oporto in Portugal - if we would contribute to the fuel (about SFr 100 each). We duly paid up and turned up at the private aircraft terminal at Geneva airport, walked through scanner (no waiting), bags were x-rayed, collected, we walked up to the aircraft and got on. Flying back was even easier: our taxi drew up to the DC3 on the tarmac at the Oporto aerodrome, we chucked our bags in the hold and boarded. Simples!
 

Kinda spoils you for commercial.

 

Having said that, if you fly business or first class (as I did courtesy of a generous employer who realised the value of a happy and well rested employee at the other end of a flight) then flying isn’t that bad and my airport experiences were generally pretty OK. Having a Gold Frequent Flyer card didn’t hurt, either. Once, however, I travelled with a colleague who was one of the few Swissair Honorary Circle card holders (for high value frequent flyers and by invitation only) - boy were we pampered: departing plane held for us (the connecting flight was delayed), tarmac transfers and before we boarded our first flight: access to a very discreet, very luxurious and very exclusive Hon Circle member’s lounge (with a waiting gift for both of us).

 

Happy Days

[Happy Hippo]

33 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

I

 

Having said that, if you fly business or first class (as I did courtesy of a generous employer who realised the value of a happy and well rested employee at the other end of a flight) then flying isn’t that bad and my airport experiences were generally pretty OK. Having a Gold Frequent Flyer card didn’t hurt, either. Once, however, I travelled with a colleague who was one of the few Swissair Honorary Circle card holders (for high value frequent flyers and by invitation only) - boy were we pampered: departing plane held for us (the connecting flight was delayed), tarmac transfers and before we boarded our first flight: access to a very discreet, very luxurious and very exclusive Hon Circle member’s lounge (with a waiting gift for both of us).

 

Happy Days

I well remember having a flight held for me:  I was delivered to the aircraft, my bags were all carry on with no weight limit.  We took off, the inflight entertainment was first class, a sumptuous meal and lots to drink. I drifted off to sleep.....

 

Only to be rudely awakened and thrown off the flight.

 

The last sensation of that C130 was a quick waft of burnt Avtur as I fell off the tailgate at around 12000 feet.

 

 

[Happy Hippo]

Should we stay inside today?

 

[Compound2632]

5 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

Should we stay inside today?

 

He hasn't quite worked it out yet, has he?