HCCP Spring Show at Linvilla Orchards

Montse at HCCP Spring Show

Sunday was the Historical Car Club of Pennsylvania's Spring Show at Linvilla Orchards.  A little while back I'd gotten a call from one of the club guys, Jim Mooney, asking if I would take pictures at the show for the club.  I agreed on the condition that I might not be able to if it conflicted with Carlisle.  We all know the story of Carlisle so that wasn't a problem.

The show was supposed to start at 08:00 but I was a little confused so I left the house a little late.  Because I left late, I took the more direct route out 252 to 1 and then 352 to the orchard.  It didn't take long and when I got there probably there weren't more than twelve cars in the field.  I picked up my registration from Bill Kinett, with whom Jim Mooney hd asked me to check in, and I headed to my spot at the head of Section 17.

MG TF 1800 number 25 of 25

I spent most of the morning wandering around taking pictures and talking to some people.  I saw Pepe with his 1940 Buick, who I had seen at Downingtown the day before, and a couple of other people I had seen at these shows before.  I also talked to a guy who has a MG TF 1800, the limited edition of 25 made at the end of the British Leyland run, that I had seen at one of these shows a couple of years back.  He has an elaborate setup with a picnic basket and he dresses the part in a suit, bow tie, and boater.  I also ran into a friend from work with her husband and their 1980 'Vette which they were not showing but I took some shots of it anyway.

Spotter's Guide Poster

I didn't stay long at the show but I did take a walk through the flea market and I found two MG related things there.  The first was a gold Micro Machines MG, it looks more like a TF but at 75 cents I wasn't passing it up.  The other was a spotters guide poster to the MG T series.  It looks like a vintage late 70s or early 80s poster and in was in fairly good condition with only some water damage on the lower left corner and pin holes in the upper corners.  As lagniappe, there was a MG TC poster on the back so for 10 bucks it was a hell of a deal.  I got a frame from AC Moore and it's now hanging in my garage. 

By 11:30 I'd had enough of being out in the sun, so I got in the MG and headed home.  Before heading back I made a stop at my gun club to see if I could find a couple of my league guys and see what they were up to with the shooting league since I haven't been in a couple of months.  I ran into Joe N and Bobby V and we chatted for awhile in the club house.   I noticed a dark green Tesla in the parking lot and the guys said that it belongs to one of the pistol guys.

Chrysler on the Corner

From there I went back home via Rose Tree/Bishop Hollow because I wanted to snap a shot of the Chrysler on the corner.  On turning the corner at Rose Hill and Sycamore Mills, where the Chrysler is parked, I came upon a red convertible Ferrari going in the opposite direction, we exchanged waves and kept going.  This route is almost as much fun on the MG as it is on the Bullet.  The twists and hills make it interesting and a little technical in some spots.  I got to remember the stop sign on the turn after Crum Creek because I came around and with the notional breaks on the MG there was no way I was going to stop.  Thankfully there was no one at the intersection so I blew right through but it could have been very very ugly.

After I got home Charlene and I took the MG to go to The Thunderbird for lunch, we like this place because it's an old fashioned place with no pretensions and good food.  We went via Malin were we fell behind a black Maserati making a left onto Bryn Mawr.  On the way back we drove a ways down the Pike and then reversed to go home.

The exotic tally stands at 11 Ferraris, 10 Teslas, 8 Maseratis, 3 Cobras, 2 Bentleys, 2, McLarens,  1 Austin-Healeys, 2 Lambos, 1 Rolls Royce, 1 DeLorean, and 1 Unknown.

The rest of the photos from the show are posted on my Flickr page in the HCCP 2015 Spring Show album.

MG Midge Mascot

In the Section 17 Padock

Montse

Pepe's 1940 Buick

Micro Machines T series MG

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Dixie Picnic, Car Show, and Amish Country

Pepe's 1940 Buick

After my morning ride on Saturday, Charlene and I took a big spin on the MG.  We began by going to breakfast at a place called Dixie Picnic in Frazer.  To get there we just headed up 252 and made a hard left at 30 until we got to Frazer.  The food wasn't bad but it wasn't particularly good either.  I had an omelette that was very eggy, maybe their sandwiches are better but the breakfast was not worth going out of the way for.

From there we just headed West on 30 to get out to Amish Country.  We didn't have any particular destination but Charlene wanted to go to Stolhfuz's Nursery on Newport Road in Intercourse so we headed in that general direction.  We did not take the 30 bypass and drove through Downingtown which turned out to be a good thing because we noticed a small car show going on in front of the VFW.  We pulled over, parked the car, and strolled it.  It was a show sponsored by the Delaware Valley Oldsmobile Club so it was mostly that, Pontiacs, and Buicks.  Mostly newer stuff but there were a couple of interesting cars like a 1940's Caddy and a Sequoia Cream 1940 Buick owned by a guy named Pepe which was amazing.

1956 Dodge in Paradise

After hanging out at the show for a little while we continued on West on 30 and stopped at Paradise Motors, surprisingly enough in Paradise, to check out some of the old cars on the lot.  By this time had already overshot Newport Road but we were unaware that we had done so.  As always, there were some interesting cars in the lot, a '56 Dodge for $9K, a '72 Bug for $8K, a rusted out Valiant, and a nice Corvair among others.  Every time I stop there I find something I like.  I wouldn't mind either the Dodge or the Bug.  When we got back in the car two little boys who were in the lot with their father came over to ooh and aah over the car.  One of them said, "real old school" and asked me where our kids rode.

From there we went on to Cackleberry Farms to do some antiquing.  After leaving there we followed Waze to get to Stolhfuz's but it led us through a wild goose chase all over Amish farmland were we saw countless buggies and Amish bicycles.  It's amazing that even Amish boys wave and give the thumbs up when they see the car.

Eventually I figured out that we were just driving around in circles and I had Waze lead us towards Intercourse because I knew that Newport Rd ran through there.  Once there it was easy enough to just follow Newport Rd until we found Stoolfuz's.  After stopping there we ran back to 30 and went to Gap to fuel up at the Wawa on 30 and 41.  At the Wawa the tank took 6.175 gallons at $3.069 a gallon for $18.95 total.  Since the last refuel we had put 143.7 miles on the odo and it read 3550.  The MG is doing 23.27 mpg which I think it's pretty good for this old car.

1811 Barn

We headed back on 30 this time taking the bypass to 100 and that down to 202 and the West Chester Pike.  While on the bypass, a black Maserati convertible passed us like we were standing still.  We took the Pike to Ellis Rd and that to Strasburg.  At the corner of Ellis and Stasburg we found an antique shop in an old barn and stopped there.  The lady that runs the shop has a cute Old English Sheepdog called Waldo and the barn has a date of 1811 scratched in the stucco.  I think the barn is older, the house is from the 1700s but I think it was stucco'ed in 1811 and that is why the date is there.  We bought an old chair from her that I'll have to go back and get because there was no way it was going to fit on the MG.

We had a great long ride, unfortunately, the sun was brutal.  I ended up pretty sun burned on my arms, neck, and face.  But despite all that we had a wonderful time and we found some nice places to cruise to again.

The exotic tally stands at 10 Ferraris, 9 Teslas, 7 Maseratis, 3 Cobras, 2 Bentleys, 2, McLarens,  1 Austin-Healeys, 2 Lambos, 1 Rolls Royce, 1 DeLorean, and 1 Unknown.

Dixie Picnic in Frazer

Delaware Valley Oldsmobile Club Show in Downingtown

Delaware Valley Oldsmobile Club Show in Downingtown

Delaware Valley Oldsmobile Club Show in Downingtown

Delaware Valley Oldsmobile Club Show in Downingtown

Delaware Valley Oldsmobile Club Show in Downingtown

Paradise Motors

Paradise Motors

Paradise Motors

Paradise Motors

Paradise Motors

  

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Crum Creek at Bishop Hollow Road

Crum Creek at Bishop Hollow Road

I woke up early this morning and took advantage of that to take the Bullet out for a ride.

I had no particular flight plan in mind so I headed up Goshen to see where the road would take me.  Since it was early on a Saturday morning the road was pretty empty and it promised to be a good ride.  Shortly after passing Grubbs Mill Road I noticed a garbage truck out in front of my and I new I did not want to be stuck behind it.  When we reached Providence Rd the truck continued on Goshen and I made a right to avoid it.  There was some activity at the Radnor Hunt Club, it looked that they were setting up for some event but that did not affect the ride.  I continued on to Sugartown and then back to Goshen.

3403.0 at fuel up

From there I continued on up Goshen and I noticed that the odo was getting close to 3402.  I could not remember the last time I fueled up but I did remember having fueled up at 3202 so, as a matter of caution, I took the left at 352 and went to the Wawa.  It turned out that I had only burned .954 gallons since the last fuel up and covered 53.6 miles.  That is 56.18 mpg on this tank, the gas was at $3.279 a gallon, and the refuel cost $3.13.

From there I headed up 352 to Rose Tree Road and followed that to where it meets the end of Bishop Hollow.  That old beat-up  50s Chrysler is still sitting in that yard.  Thought about stopping and getting a photo but by that time I was quite a bit down the road.  I did stop where Bishop Hollow crosses over Crum Creek and got some shots there.

From there I continued on Bishop Hollow and across the West Chester Pike for home.

Bishop Hollow Road in this direction is really good, it mostly climbs from 352 to the Pike and the twists are really noticeable.  This is a ride that I will re-do many times and I know I have to go back to get that photo of the Chrysler.

I left the house at 07:18 with 3381.4 on the odo and returned an hour later with 3420.5 for 39.1 miles on this trip.

Crum Creek at Bishop Hollow Road

3391.4 on departure at 07:18

3420.6 on return at 08:17

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The Culprit

New Bosch voltage regulator

It turns out that something happened to the voltage regulator.  I have been running with the lights on as a safety measure and either that caused the regulator to go feet up or it was on its last legs and the constant strain finally killed it.

At any rate, Harold replaced it and the fuse strip because the heat was causing it to begin to melt.  The second fuse hadn't burned out completely but the heat was getting to it.  The repairs came to $127 and change and the car was ready to be picked up on Friday afternoon at about 14:30.  We had an early day, it was Commencement, and we were done by 14:00 so I headed out to Gene's to pick it up after I got home.  I left the truck at Gene's and took the car out to get a hair cut and for a short drive.  Everything is working great except that the horn has gone out now.  I'm not taking it back for that.  I will leave it as is and when I get the inspection done in September I'll have Harold fix it.

Harold said I should get LED lights which will draw less power and put less strain on the wiring.  I'm looking into it but change will be expensive.  I think I'm going to got with first replacing the sealed beams with Hella H4 Type headlights and then see if I can find LED bulbs to plug in later.  This may not work because of space restrictions in the light bucket but I won't know until I try.  I will, however, stop running the headlights at all times, just when I need them.

New voltage regulator

New voltage regulator

  

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Carlisle... Not!

Got all packed and rolled down the road to our meeting point with Royal and Billnparts (two guys from the MGTDr forum that were also headed to Carlisle) in Denver, PA, at the Turkey Hill just off the Penna Turnpike, Exit 286.  We got there in just over an hour, at 11:00. with no problems or issues.  Pulled in the lot, talked to the guys for a couple of minutes, and then got ready to roll out.

That's when things started going down the Turkey Hill path.  The MG would not turn over.  There was some juice because the gauges would move but no cranking or anything.  So the guys proposed to give us a push, get to Carlisle, and there see if the pool of VW guys at the show could figure it out.  That sounded that a good plan to me.

They gave us the push, the MG kicked over, and we rolled of the lot to the Turnpike.  We got as far as just the other side of the toll both when the MG died on the roll.  I pulled over to the side of the road as I watch those guides sail on to the west.  Billnparts called in a few minutes and offered to turn around to come help me but that would have been a 44 mile trip all told and I did not see the sense in that.  I told him that they should go on and I would follow if I could.

Called AAA.  They put me in contact with the Turnpike Patrol which turned up in less than five minutes to guard my six and told me the tow would be there in 15 to 20 minutes.  I fooled around with what I could, mainly the fuses, and found the second from the left fuse had burned.  This is the same fuse I had problems with before.  I replaced that but that fuse but that did not do any good so it was just time to wait for the tow.

The tow got there and the driver could do no more than I did so I asked him to tow it back to Gene's.  I talked to Harold and he said he would look at it.  That's were it is now.  Harold said he had to track the problem down and he hopes to have it ready for tomorrow.

Carlisle is off the plate this year.  I will try again next year but I may tow the MG instead of trying to drive.  It's a big disappointment, I really enjoyed meeting those guys in person and was looking forward to meeting the others that would be there but there's nothing to be done.  At least the ride out Denver was nice and enjoyable.

Such is life.

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Replacement Tank - Part IV

3407 miles!

In preparation for the trip to Carlisle, I took the MG to the Gulf station on 252 just past the West Chester Pike.  I wanted to fill up the tank to see if it was still leaking.  The tank took 5.729 gallons at $3.499 per gallon for $20.05.

We had run 53.8 miles since the fill-up last Friday but, since Harold took out 2.5 gallons to fix the leak, I can't calculate the mileage.  The odo was at 3407 at the gas station.

The good news is that on the short trip back home there was no leakage or spillage from the tank so I guess I can call this problem solved for now.  That is good thing because the trip to Carlisle would not have been very enjoyable if I had to stop for fuel every 500 feet.

Below are some shots of the clean engine that I neglected to include with the last post.

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Carlisle Prep and Other Adventures

Beauty shot

After a dreary an overcast Saturday morning the afternoon cleared and it was time to get the MG ready for Carlisle.  This was a top to bottom Spring cleaning including the engine.  The whole process started with engine de-greasing and cleaning using Gunk de-greaser and protector.  The de-greasing was easy to do, just remove the air filter, cover the carburetor and distributor cap with plastic bags, spray the Gunk, let it sit for 15 minutes, and hose away.  After applying the protector the engine looked better than I've ever seen it, not pretty but still better.

Then it was the vacuum, wash and wax route, followed by Armor All on the leather and vinyl.  I did not undo the top for this but if we end up going to Carlisle I may have to because the forecast calls for rain on Saturday.  I'll worry about it then.

After I was done with the clean up I wanted to take it out for a spin.  Charlene suggested that we shrink wrap it, put it in a plastic bubble, and push it back in the garage but that might have just been a little ridiculous.  We rolled at around 18:00 with no particular flight plan in mind be we had to stop at the PetSmart to buy His Imperial Highness some food since he was almost running out.  We headed out Malin to the West Chester Pike via James and Ann St.

When we got to the PetSmart I was feeling a little queasy.  I attributed that to the smell of fuel which was still in the car from the leak the previous day.  However when we left the store I was not feeling better and I suggested just going back home.

It all went downhill from there.  On the way back I began losing everything I'd eaten since the night before.  This all happened while moving down the road and projectile vomiting over the side of the car.  Of course, it got all over the running board and the driver's door ruining all the work of the afternoon.  I don't know why I didn't just pull over and get out of the car but when I get sick I lose all ability to reason.  I'm sure it was sight to see.

The vomiting continued for the next two days with other interesting side effects which made me think I might had gotten food poisoning during our jaunt the night before.  Charlene had it as well but not nearly as badly as I did so now we are both pretty puny and might to be going to Carlisle if thing don't improve by tomorrow.  I feel much better now, well enough to go to work, but we'll see how tomorrow turns up.

In the mean time, some more beauty shots of the MG with a cool New Bug in the background.  I liked the juxtaposition of those elements.

New Bug and "Bug"

New Bug and "Bug"

New Bug and "Bug"

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