GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Ross Traders Historic - Saturday 1st February 2020

After a year off, the Ross Traders was back with a new organising team and a completely different format with 9 Tests and 2 Regularities inside Caerwent, and 3 Regularities on the public road.

Just over 40 cars had entered with Carrie and I at Car 7.
I've only been to Caerwent twice before, the last time being 10 years ago, and Carrie had never been so we were looking forward to an interesting day trying not to get lost...
And with the event starting at lunch time, the last third of the route was going to be in the dark!

We started with a loop of 3 Tests, all 2-3 miles long, using reasonably detailed diagrams which showed the roads we were using but no buildings. Test 1 went well (5th quickest) but on Test 2 we went the wrong way at a T junction and nearly ended up back on Test 1 ! We managed to retrace our route and found Car 10 (an early Lotus Elite) coming out of the same T junction so we followed them to the end of the Test. The 3rd Test we started behind a Mk1 Escort with a slipping clutch - we nearly caught him after a mile but then he got going better and wasn't holding us up, so we continued behind as it was clear they knew where they were going better than we did
Next we did the first public road Regularity which started East of Chepstow and cut across to just North of Tintern Abbey. This went well although slightly out at the first 2 controls we were on 1s at the last one so happy with that. Back into Caerwent, we were surprised to be 7th at this stage, helped a lot by the organisers setting the maximum times for the Tests at 20 mph which meant that only 12 cars had beaten the maximum on Test 2 and our 3 minute wrong slot only cost us around 30s



3 more Tests followed with slightly different layouts to the first ones. Test 4 we thought we'd gone the wrong way so lost a bit of time here, then on Test 5 I was getting the handbrake working well when I pulled it a bit too hard and there was a loud crack from the back end and I nearly slid into a kerb. After this the handbrake was non-existent, one of the rear brakes was binding and the brake pedal was getting closer to the floor so I backed off a bit. At the end of the Test there was nothing obviously wrong (no fluid leaks, etc) so we continued sensibly, but still setting top 10 times.
Before the afternoon halt, we had a Regularity in Caerwent which was plot and bash - Carrie was given a map of Caerwent with some buildings highlighted with numbers on and a list of the order which to pass them. This was straightforward although I couldn't drive fast enough to maintain the 30mph average, but after 2 controls we were on the perimeter track at a slower speed so this was fine, almost keeping up with the top crews.
At the afternoon halt we were still 7th and I checked the Scimitar over as well as I could, adjusting the rear brakes but finding one side would not adjust up so maybe the adjuster had broken. The clutch pedal was also on the floor but I wasn't sure I could adjust that in the time I had, and the clutch wasn't slipping, so I left it alone in the hope it wouldn't get any worse!



As darkness fell, we got ready for the next 3 Tests, Test 7 was similar to a previous Test, but Test 8 joined 2 together making over 5 miles and Test 9 was just a bit shorter. They went ok - I turned up a dead end which looked like it went somewhere so had to back out, the brake pedal was getting closer to the floor and becoming less effective, and I was having trouble changing gear, sometimes needing to press the clutch again when in neutral to get the next gear, and when the rear brakes are failing, changing gear helps a lot! I thought briefly about heading home but knew it would be easier once we were out of Caerwent so we carried on.
The last bit in Caerwent was another Plot and Bash Regularity, this time starting on the perimeter track where I drove for 2.5 miles while Carrie plotted tulips onto a map which was printed on the back of the tulips, not an easy task, but she had it done before I'd got to the 2.5 mile mark. The organisers had found some gravel tracks to link the perimeter track to the main area, through the quarry and back up another one, we missed one turning but realised quite quickly, only to miss it again on the way back
Finally we finished this section and headed out through Chepstow to the final 2 Regularities to take us to the finish at Ross on Wye.

The first one we had plotted in the morning and it seemed fine, but we missed a loop in the middle and picked up a 5 minute penalty.
The last one was plot and bash using grid references and Carrie got these down quickly but was unsure about 2 of them. We got to the first control slightly late, then I pulled over after the control to have a quick look - one was near the A40 dual carriageway and I remembered a triangle on a junction we'd used before and the other was on a smaller road where there's an unmarked layby, so we carried on quickly. Right at the end we missed the last turning - we both saw it but decided that it wasn't the one we needed, only to come back later, so this cost us another minute.

We had a quick meal at the finish and headed home as we expected the results would take a while with a lot of crews missing loops and having other queries to sort out!
But after all the issues, we were pleased to finish 6th overall and 2nd in class, not far behind 5th but over 7 minutes behind 4th

All in all it was an enjoyable day, and credit to Ross Motorsports Club for putting on a challenging event

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

My next event is a Historic Tour in April, but I thought it was time I had a quick look to see what had gone wrong on the Ross Traders

The clutch I have just adjusted the pushrod and it seems fine now - I was glad I didn't attempt this on the event as the pushrod was so tight in the clevis so I had to unbolt the clutch cylinder and remove it into the engine bay to loosen this. Once loose, it adjusted easily and now the pedal engagement is back where it should be

Then I dismantled the drivers rear brakes, the side I couldn't adjust on the event, and found that the thread had gone in the adjuster (this failing must have been the loud noise we heard), hence the long pedal travel and non-existent handbrake. Everything else looks fine, no fluid loss from the wheel cylinder so I've ordered a pair of new adjusters and will change the other side too. The adjusters are the only thing in the brake system which I didn't replace when I first built the car, but I'm still surprised it failed so suddenly!

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

When I went to change the adjusters last month, I found the passenger side drum was awkward to get off.
After a few taps it was free, along with the remains of the brake shoe lining
It must have been this side which was binding and got so hot that the lining broke up! I'll have to reduce the rear brake bias as they only lasted 3 events...


I'm not sure when I'll next be doing a historic rally (or any rally) but I have been getting on with fitting a hydraulic handbrake, together with new rear shoes

To meet the new regs, the hydraulic cylinder needs to be actuated by the standard handbrake as that is how it would have been done in the 70's, and the cables still attached underneath

Brackets are available but I wanted one to connect the handbarke and hydraulic cylinder together, for extra strength on the fibreglass tunnel, despite the existing reinforcement plate under the handbrake. Being a SE5a, the tunnel has a recessed section behind the handbrake that looked just the right size for my purpose





With the cylinder offset, it should just fit beside the centre console



I bought the smallest cylinder I could find, a 0.5" bore from Rally Design, along with 1m of Aeroquip and some unions - total cost was £68
I worked out that rather than cutting the pipe to the rear axle, I could disconnect it at the flexi pipe joint and bend it up through the rear footwell to join to the cylinder
Then the new Aeroquip pipe goes from the cylinder to the rear flexi. This also means it is easy to remove the cylinder from the system if there are any problems with the set up

Making a start on the bracket - to offset the cylinder it needs to overhang the tunnel at the back





I also added another tab at the front of the handbrake bracket for extra strength



Bracket taking shape - hole at the back will also bolt through the transmission tunnel





After tidying up and painting everything



Detail of the offset



All installed and plumbed in





The back of the centre console is about 1/2" out of line but this won't cause any problems, and I think I can get it lined up slightly better anyway

No idea if the handbrake works but I will try it out as soon as we're allowed out to play

[mexicotait]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Very smart Gavin

I think finally allowing hydraulic handbrakes is great for historics

It should make a lot of cars more competitive against the escorts and minis

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

I hope so - since sorting out the steering and pedal arrangements early on, I've always been losing time having to "boot" it around cones rather than just handbrake it
Maybe later this year I'll see how much it helps

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

HERO Challenge Three - 10th October 2020



First a bit of background

HERO are the Historic Endurance Rally Organisation and are known for their endurance events such as the Rally of the Tests and Le Jog (Land’s End to John O’Groats), but in recent years have started running one day “Challenge” events to try and encourage newcomers to the sport, and to give more experience to crews wanting to compete on the bigger events. These events run under MSUK Historic Road Rally regulations so the same cars can compete as on the HRCR events.

With most events this year being cancelled due to COVID-19 and the Challenge Three being based an hour away in Taunton it seemed a good one to do as my first HERO event. Georgina Clark was navigating for the first time in 6 years which was handy as it meant we could run in the main field rather than with the Masters at the front!

There were 84 cars taking part with the cars in class and date order with the oldest at the front, including 9 pre-war cars. Our class was for Category 2 cars over 2000cc (1968 to 1974) and had 9 cars, comprising a Triumph Stag, 3 TR6’s, an MGC, a Porsche 914, a 911S, a Ferrari Dino 308GT4 and us in the Scimitar. This is important as on HERO events the Test Times only count against cars in your class, with the fastest car being given 0 seconds penalties, 2nd fastest 2s, 3rd fastest 4s, 4th fastest 5s, with 9th and slower getting 10s. And a wrong Test is scored as 30s.
This works well and allows the older cars to compete against the newer ones, and the Regularities have the same scoring as usual.

There was one Roadbook for the whole event and no maps were required although we did take some in case we got lost! The Roadbook had details of the Tests and the Regularities which were all run as Jogularities where you are given instructions such as Tulip Diagrams or just Turn Left and Turn Right with a distance for each instruction and a time to be there. There are also landmarks given (e.g. Foxlands Farm on left, Footpath sign on right) with times and the controls can be at any of these locations.
It all sounds simple and, like normal Regularities, it is simple enough when it works but mistakes can be very costly – as you are not following the route on a map you don’t always realise when you have gone wrong, or where you are!

We left Taunton at 9:30 for a 150 mile route comprising 7 Regularities and 8 Tests around Somerset and Exmoor National Park. The first Regularity was a few miles up the road and we started steadily, dropping 5s then 1s at the 2 controls. This brought us to Smeatharpe Airfield for the first 3 Tests. These were well laid out using the width of the main runways and plenty of room to throw the Scimitar around! Our penalties were all 0s – equal fastest with the Porsche 914 on the first one, equal fastest with one of the TR6’s on the second, and fastest on the third, so a very good start.

Back out on the road, Regularity 2 headed north towards Wellington over the Blackdown Hills – 3 controls this time and we dropped 0s, 2s then turned off slightly too early making us 17s early at the last control A brief stop in Wellington for fuel, then a drive north through some narrow lanes around Wiveliscombe to Regularity 3.
Another 3 controls and no mistakes this time we dropped 1s, 4s and 4s.
Then it was a short drive to an early lunch at Raleghs Cross Inn, a place that is very familiar to George and I from competing on and organising previous rallies.
Checking the results, we were 8th overall at this point but it was all very close and a long way to go…

Regularity 4 took us over Dunkery Beacon (with a lovely view across to Wales) and across Stoke Pero Common to Porlock. No problems here and roads we’ve rallied on for years so we knew what to expect – very narrow in places with steep hairpins, open over the beacon and common but no sign of any Exmoor ponies, just some Highland cattle spectating! And just 1s dropped at each of the 3 controls was very good.

Driving gently through Porlock brought us to the bottom of Porlock Toll Road for 2 more Tests, each about a mile long. The start marshal assured us it was not that slippery under the trees, but it always is so there was quite a lot of drifting around the corners on the way up the Tests We were beaten easily by the Porsche 914 on both but our times were good enough for 2nd quickest so just a few seconds to add to our penalties.

Regularity 5 started just over a mile before the top of the Toll Road. This allowed the organisers to put the first control at 1 mile (as we were on private land), followed by 2 controls farther apart over Porlock Common to Exford. Once again we were good on time with 5s dropped in total. A long road section took us via Winsford and Dulverton to a brief afternoon halt at Exebridge. As I turned into the car park I saw there was a lovely burgundy SE5a so I parked close by. The owner of the SE5a had come out to see the old cars and gave me some advice on painting Scimitars – he had done his by hand using rollers a few years ago and it looked a lot better than mine does!

Regularity 6 started at the exit of the car park – 4 controls in 12 miles and we dropped 8s in total, 5s of which was caused by me “day-dreaming” and not realising I was a bit behind the schedule! A further road section took us back to Smeatharpe for the final 3 Tests – these were the same as the first 3, just in the opposite direction. We were fastest in class on the first 2 but only second fastest on the last one, not helped by when I lost all gears at one point and couldn’t disengage the clutch. We stalled at the finish but got going by pumping the clutch (very similar to what happened on the Ross Traders back in Feb). After getting our time, we parked up for 10 minutes to let everything cool down as I thought the problem might be the clutch fluid overheating

Regularity 7 was the last one and the clutch felt better. We were very lucky here – having passed a couple of cars heading the other way (which we always try and ignore!) we turned into a junction to be confronted by a herd of cows crossing the road. There was a control there and the marshal gave us a time and as he did so the last cow crossed the road so we could continue. The previous cars had got there earlier and gone back around a loop to bypass the hold up. We dropped 8s in total and had a short drive back to the finish in Taunton for an evening meal.

After catching up with some other crews we knew, we checked the results and were very pleased to see we had finished 5th Overall and 1st in Class
The detailed results showed we were 2nd fastest on the combined Test times (taking our actual times, not the class penalties) and 7th on the Regularities, and only 1s behind 4th overall.
We even won the Best Newcomer award which is presented to the crew doing the best on their first HERO event!

A very enjoyable day and we’ll look at doing some more HERO Challenge events next year. Many thanks to George for a great job navigating.

Unfortunately this will be my last outing this year - I had an event planned for this Saturday in Derbyshire / South Yorkshire, but due to the ongoing restrictions, the organisers have cancelled the event this morning, a sensible move in the current climate.

Some pics, courtesy of Tony Large

Smeatharpe


Smeatharpe


A ford near Cloutsham on the Stoke Pero section

[mexicotait]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Does this mean you will
Be a YouTube start now!

A few friends do the HERO events and always talk very highly about them

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

It was well organised and good fun, not sure if I'll get on the video!
Slightly easier than the usual HRCR events but some tricks to catch people out

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

I seem to be a few years out of date on this one, so will try and catch up...

North Yorkshire Classic Rally – 3rd July 2021

Run by York Motor Club in North Yorkshire, this was a new event for myself and Carrie, but it fitted nicely into my calendar. The event was based in Easingwold and went over the North York Moors with 15 Tests at old airfields and a large disused quarry.
There was a good entry of 60 cars, with Carrie and I seeded at 6.

We started from Easingwold Marketplace and it was straight in to the first Regularity. Three controls and a few early and late penalties. Next was 2 short tests at East Moor airfield, followed by Regularity 2 with 4 controls but only 3 marshals. Slightly better on this one, just 9s total penalties. This took us past Castle Howard and onto the Coffee Halt.
Regularity 3 headed further North, another 3 controls and even better on this one.

Heading towards Appleton-le-Moors we arrived at Spaunton Quarry for 5 Tests, all good fun and well laid out with just the last one being a bit tight and I had to do a 3-point turn.

Regularity 4 was a long section across the North York Moors and back, some of the roads were very open and we could see far enough ahead to see the earlier cars following the same roads, but there were a few steep hills down into valleys and back up again. We went up Rosedale Chimney Bank, one of the steepest hills in the country which Carrie remembered from her family holidays 35 years ago! There were 8 controls and we were within 10s at each one. We returned to Appleton-le-Moors for a very welcome lunch halt.

The afternoon started with 5 slightly different Tests back in the Quarry then onto Regularity 5 over another part of the Moors. This was a tricky “herringbone” piece of navigation but we got it plotted just before the start but were slightly late at every control. A quick stop for fuel in Helmsley then onto Regularity 6 through Caydale Mill Ford and over to Boltby. We had a couple of problems here with a speed change after the Ford which wasn’t clear where it should take place, and we missed a turning after Boltby village which was difficult to see on the map. So 43s late after the speed change and 1m 50s late after turning round to find the correct route dropped us down the order a bit.

The last Regularity was through Byland Abbey and this was our best one of the day, just 5s dropped over 4 controls. The event finished with 3 more tests, one at a Farm where I nearly missed a cone and the last 2 at an airfield with large piles of stone to go around. The final control was in Easingwold Marketplace, then we headed back to Rally HQ for a Roast Dinner.

The whole event was run under COVID restrictions so we knew the results would take a few days and headed home. One rule for this event was a “joker” system where the worst Regularity penalty was ignored which helped us by removing the 1m 50s penalty. I queried the speed change with the organisers as 15 crews had a similar problem, but the penalty stood.
We had a consistent day with very few mistakes and were pleased to finish 5th overall and 2nd in class.

[JimKeogh]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Gavin, how can you remember all that from a year ago! Well done....you and Carrie are a great team.

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Gavin, how can you remember all that from a year ago! Well done....you and Carrie are a great team.

I did an article for my club magazine but forgot to post it on here

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

East Anglian Classic Rally – 18th June 2022

It's been a few years since I've been over to the East Anglian Classic but everything worked out this year and it was good to be back on familiar territory. Run by the usual Chelmsford Motor Club organisers, the event was based in Bury St Edmunds with 5 Regularity sections and 11 Tests at farms and on farm tracks in Suffolk and Norfolk.

I had a new navigator this time, Suze Endean, on her second Historic Rally. Suze has been involved in all kinds of motorsport for 15 years, including driving and navigating on rallies, but only started learning about Historic Rallies when she helped me out on the Cotswold Historic Rally last summer. Her husband, Matt, has been involved with the East Anglian Classic for many years, so it made sense to compete on the event. There were 48 cars competing and we were seeded at 8.
We were given the first 4 Regularities to plot one hour before our start time and got everything plotted with time to spare.



The first test was a few miles from the start, nice and simple with a few cones on a farm track. Onto the first Regularity, going smoothly and thought we were just a few seconds late at the first control but the marshal gave us a time 15s late which caused some confusion. Our mileage was correct so as we continued we had to assume that the marshals clock was wrong and that the organisers would correct the error, so we did the next section 12s quicker to make up for the incorrect clock.
This turned out to be the right decision and the rest of the clocks were showing the right time and we were within 2s at the next controls.
Onto the second Test around a large farm / storage area with a lot of buildings and a nice smooth surface, following by a welcome coffee halt.

The second part of the morning started with 3 Tests, a short one around a building on a loose surface where we were 2nd quickest, then a long one on farm tracks and around fields which was great fun except for a very large hole nearing the end – we went through it quite fast, bounced out the other side then there was a loud crunch as the suspension settled and the chassis scraped the stony ground! We were one of 14 cars to beat the bogey time on that one. The last Test was around some more farm buildings and the edge of a field but I remembered using this a few years ago and we were fine, 8th quickest here.
The second Regularity took us to lunch and we were close at all the controls with a total of 10s dropped. Over lunch it started to rain and we had a good 30 minute break.
Interim results were published and we were happy to be lying 7th at this point, but it was very close throughout the top 10.

The afternoon started with the 3rd Regularity and we got back into the same rhythm, dropping a few seconds here and there. This took us back to the longer farm Test run in the opposite direction. The organisers had added more marshals to slow us down and halfway through the test it felt like the Scimitar started misfiring and we lost a bit of time here. I parked on the road section and checked the plugs leads were attached, then looked underneath and found the exhaust manifold had been flattened and was blowing from one pipe, hence the strange sounds.
We continued onto the next Test which was at the same farm, then effected a temporary repair with a drinks can and some wire to reduce the noise. The 3rd farm test followed and everything was fine on this one, and we were still 7th but on the same time as an MX5 behind us.



The final section started with us going back to the smoother test around the buildings, then the 4th Regularity where everything worked very well and we only dropped 1s at each of the 3 controls.
The final Test was back at the first venue, slightly quicker than the first time, and the event finished with a harder Regularity, 35 tulips for Suze to plot as I was driving along at a steady 26mph (or something similar!)
We were both dreading this section as it can make a lot of difference to the results but Suze got it all plotted in the first few miles, and checked it a few more times. We got slightly confused at one point going through a very large farm / lorry yard, but trusted the map that said there was a public road through there, came out the other side and were spot on at the next control.
Concentrating hard on the right speeds, we were spot on at the 2nd control, then just 2s early at the 3rd control, which was a great way to finish the event.

All of this moved us up one place to 6th overall, just 2s ahead of the MX5.
We had a very good day – except for the exhaust problem, neither of us made any mistakes and we were lucky not to meet anyone in the wrong place out on the roads.
Many thanks to the organisers, marshals and especially Suze who is now keen to do some more.

Photos by Andy Manston / M&H Photography

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

My next outing with the Scimitar was using it as Course Car on the Cotswold Historic which I organise as part of Tavern Motor Club. This year it was on Saturday 2nd July so I had just 2 weeks to sort out the exhaust. I didn't worry about replacing the shock absorber just yet but I ordered 2 new ones from Spax.

A few years ago, I had replaced both exhausts from the manifolds back with a home made system using Jetex universal parts of 2" diameter, so I went to Merlin Motorsport to see what I could use to help modify the manifolds. I could not find anywhere to buy 3-1 flat collectors but discovered a 2-1 Y piece with 2 x 2" inputs was the same width as 3 x 1.1/2" pipes laid side by side, so I ordered a couple of those and some 60 degree bends.



While I waited for these bits to arrive, I spent a few evenings gently working on the manifold bolts to make sure nothing was going to snap off
5 bolts came out of the driver's side quite easily and the 6th was at the back but it is the one bolt where it is possible to get some oil behind the bolt. After a few soakings, that came loose as well. On the passenger side, only 4 bolts came loose easily and the other 2 were being very reluctant, so I decided to leave them and do that side another time (as it is only slightly dented).

Once the manifold was off, I mounted it in the large vice and chopped off the collector and the bent pieces of pipe.



The middle of the Y piece was cut out and I started to mock it up.



All tacked into place - I refitted the manifold a few times while doing this to make sure nothing fouled the steering column or the chassis.



More welding and added a skid plate made from another piece of SS pipe which I flattened in the press.



All welded up and plated over the holes in the Y piece on top and underneath.



Back on the car with the rest of the system fitted - the chassis is now the lowest part of the car which was the point of the exercise

[katana]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Mate - you can't weld rust! If you clean / wire wheel the metal first, the welds on the old will come out as good as the new one's. Fair do's for 'make do & mend' mentality!

[GavinR]

Re: GavinR's Scimitar Historic Rally Car

Don't worry, I've been welding rust for years
It is strong and functional