hill country triumphs ragtop october 2014 hill country triumph club page 2 event that hill country...
TRANSCRIPT
We had great weatherand lots of events inSeptember. It only
gets better in October!
The 2014 Vintage Triumph Reg-ister National Convention washeld on September 9th thru 14th
in Dobson North Carolina. Ourclub had at least four cars at-tending the convention that Iknow about, Mike McPhail, ArtGraves, Benson Tuttle, Clarkand Jane McKinley (in their newTR3A). Hopefully Candy and Iwill be able to go next year.
The Texas All British Car Days wereheld the last weekend in Septemberand they were great. Jim Icenhowerchairs that committee for us. It’s an
In This IssueHill Country Triumphs, by SteveJohnson.......................................Page 1
2014 Texas All British Car Days,by Jim Icenhower....................Page 4
2014 Texas All British Car DaysTriumph Winners...................Page 6
October Tool of the Month, byMike McPhail............................Page 7
Upcoming Events.................Page 12
HCTC Classifieds...................Page 12
Next Meeting..........................Page 12
The Hill Country Triumph Club, the 50th Chapter of the Vintage Triumph Register (VTR), wasfounded in 1990 to bring together the owners of Triumph automobiles in the Central Texasarea surrounding Austin. In 1991, the membership decided to include other British car fansas associates due to lack of other clubs in our area that represent some of the other marques.As owners and lovers of our unique types of cars, we have a special kinship, which draws ustogether. Membership is open to anyone who is a British car enthusiast, with or without a car.Annual dues are just $15.00 per family group or address per year. We have dinner meetingson the 2nd Tuesday of each month and at least one other event each month. We encourageyou to join and support us, even if you don’t drive your car regularly. We also offer technicalassistance if needed. One goal of the club is to help its members keep their cars on the road.Please call one of the club officers listed in the newsletter for more information about clubbenefits and spread the word about our club to others.
The Hill Country Club is a local chapter of the Vintage Triumph Register (VTR)/TriumphSports Owners Association, which is open to all drivers of Triumph motorcars; a chapter ofthe Triumph Register of America, exclusively for TR2 through TR4A sports cars; and achapter of the 6-PACK, dedicated to the enjoyment, preservation, and restoration of theTriumph TR250 and TR6 sports cars. Membership in these national organizations isencouraged. Visit their websites at www.vtr.org, www.triumphregister.com, and www.6-pack.org.The Ragtop is published monthly by the Hill Country Triumph Club. Material within may befreely reproduced providing Ragtop and the authors are credited. Any and all newslettercontributions are welcome. Deadline for submissions is the end of each month. Submissionsmay be emailed to [email protected]. Car related classified ads are free tomembers and will run for three months unless otherwise instructed. Contact editor for otherads.
Hill Country TriumphsBy Steve Johnson
October 2014
The Ragtop October 2014
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 2
event that Hill Country TriumphClub has been putting on sinceits beginning. There are timeswhen we get support from theother clubs, but it’s primarily usand this one was excellent. I’mproud of each and every one ofyou who helped make this one ofthe best TXABCD’s we’re everhad.
The Friday TXABCD welcomeparty was at the Brass TapDowntown Round Rock and Iheard it was very nicely done.Saturday started with registra-tion and a great drive with a new“Bingo” Rallye form that youcompleted along the way as youdiscovered various items.Whether you played Bingo alongthe way or just enjoyed the rideit was wonderful. We ended upat the Sheets’ Longhorn Ranchfor a catered BBQ dinner andgreat fellowship. It’s alwaysgood to see old friends, many ofwhich you only get to visit withat the Sports Car events.
Sunday was the Show. I added aTXABCD picture above of ourTR3 (its first show) next to Beti-na and Dave’s trophy winningTR6. Betina put together ourclub basket again this year to raf-fle off for the event’s charity. Wedefinitely filled the CentennialPlaza and from what I could seewe had around 250 cars which
would be a record. We’ll seewhat Jim says in his article.
It was a very special weekend forour club and for all the SportsCar people you touched. ThankYou.
2014 6-Pack Trials -October 9th through12th
The 6-Pack Trials has always re-ceived excellent reviews and anumber of our club memberswill be going again this year. Ox-ford, the host city is also thehome of Ol’ Miss University. It’salso appreciated for its sophisti-cated shops, excellent restau-rants, sporting events andBroadway caliber musical pro-ductions.
The 6-Pack attendees will appre-ciate miles of clear roads throughsmall towns. And along the waythe will find a number of excel-lent places to take a break for acool beverage and traditionalSouthern delicacies to go withthem. Take a look at their web-site for additional informationand registrationwww.2014trials.com
2014 U.S. VINTAGERACING NATIONALCHAMPIONSHIPOctober 10th through12th
The Sportscar Vintage Racing As-sociation (SVRA) will have theU.S. Vintage Racing NationalChampionship at the Circuit ofThe Americas again this year.The event was open to the publicand was held October 10th
through 12th. A number ofmembers from our club raced.
Over 600 Vintage race cars fromaround the world were expectedto be participating. Plus over 30Historic Trans-Am cars compet-ing at COTA for the first time.This is a must see for fans whofollowed racing years ago, aswell as new fans who have onlyheard about these vintage cars.
MORE INFORMATION -http://circuitoftheamericas.com/vintage/
2014 Lucas-MarelliHill Country Tour - Oc-tober 11th
The Texas Hill Country Alfa Ro-meo Owner’s Club (THC-AROC)hosted the fifth annual Lucas-Marelli Tour on October 11th.While the tour is held as a THC-AROC event, it’s really an oppor-tunity for like-minded gearheadsto enjoy a day of fun driving, in-teresting people, and good food.Accordingly, we encourage awide range of foreign and do-mestic cars to join us.
This year’s event will startedwith coffee and a pot-luck break-fast at Dean & Elizabeth Mericas’home in Hudson Bend. Afterbreakfast we traveled throughabout 130 miles of scenic hillcountry roads to the On theRocks Restaurant in CottonwoodShores on Lake LBJ(http://www.diningontherocks.com/). We had a room set asidefor our group and lunch wasserved with separate checks.They have both excellent foodand a good selection of localbeers and wines.
The Ragtop October 2014
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 3
South Texas All BritishCar Day - Saturday Oc-tober 25th
The Twenty Seventh annualSouth Texas All British Car Daywill be held Saturday, October25th, on the Square in Boerne,Texas, from 10:00 AM to 2 PM.The site is conveniently locatedacross from “Ye Kendall Inn” atMain and Blanco Streets (akaBusiness 87 & FM 474).
This British Sports Car extrava-ganza is sponsored by the SanAntonio British Car Clubs. TheSan Antonio Jaguar Club is thehost club this year. All British Carowners are welcome to registerand participate with their car(s).Please see their attached flyerand entry form.
Participants will vote for theirfavorite cars and awards will bepresented to the most popularvehicles in each class. The entryfee is only $20 for those register-ing by mail before October 17,2014. The fee will be $25 forthose registering at the show. Alimited number of event teeshirts will be available and canbe ordered a head of time on thepreregistration form. Thesehandsome items of apparel areonly $15 for small, medium orlarge sizes. Extra-large is $18.
A registration form follows laterin this Ragtop. Questions? Pleasecall Brian Blackwell @ 210-695-8504 or email:[email protected].
2014 Rolling SculptureCar Show - Sunday Oc-tober 26, 2014It’s a celebration of automotivestyle in all of its forms. Collectorcars, sports & exotics, modernclassics, hot rods, art cars, andother motorized eye candy willbe parked along the streets of theHill Country Galleria on Route 71in Bee Cave. All proceeds benefitthe Bee Cave Public Library.
Bring your own rolling sculptureand enjoy live music, restaurantsand shops. Dean Mericas is tryingto reserve space for our Tri-umphs so that they park togeth-er. Show car parking begins at10:00 am the day of the show.Show decals for the first 150 en-trants / Awards will be present-ed by the show sponsors. TheRolling Sculpture Show will beheld rain or shine.
For more information and toregister for the Rolling SculptureCar Show Visitwww.rollingsculpturecarshow.com or visit us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rolling-Sculpture-Car-Show/112873882091511
Please Pay Your July2014 Dues by October14th
Club dues were due for many ofyou in July. Some people haven’tbeen paid yet. If you plan onpaying your dues or don’t knowwhen your dues should be paid,send me a note now [email protected] .I’ll look it up and let you know.
Dues are only $15 per year sosend a check to Nel McPhail assoon as possible. Checks shouldbe made payable to HCTC andmailed to:
Nel McPhail1105 N. Canyonwood Dr.Dripping Springs TX [email protected]
You can also bring your check orcash to the club meeting on Octo-ber 14th and give it to me. Thosewho haven’t paid dues by Octo-ber 15th will be removed fromour distribution list. Thanks inadvance for your help.
Next Club Meeting - Oc-tober 14th 2014Our October 14th club meetingwill be at 7:00 PM at Rudy’s onRR 620. It’s just North of RM2222 on RM 620. Come early ifyou would like to eat with us.Here’s Rudy’s website with themenu and directions PRESSHERE. Remember, you don’thave to drive your Triumph tothe club meetingto enjoy the ex-citement! Justbe there….
Triumphantly,
Steve JohnsonPresidentHill Country Triumph [email protected] Website -www.hillcountrytriumphclub.org/
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 4Hill Country Triumph Club
Over 200 British cars cameout for the weekend that isthe Texas All British Car
Days (TXABCD) and had a greattime!
This weekend is the culmination ofa lot of work by the committeethat organizes it. The amount ofwork soliciting donations, organiz-ing registration, creating a rallyethat is different from last year’s,laying out the show field for Sun-day and all of the other tasks thatmake this work is really enor-mous. The success can be creditedin large part to the HCTC members
who work so hard to get it done:Barbara Kramer, Bob Skewis, BillWaller, Dan Julien, Phil McKenzie,and Mike Jankowski. Thank themwhen you see them!
FridayThe weekend started with a happyhour in Round Rock at the BrassTap(http://brasstapbeerbar.com/RoundRock). We had a good crowdthere for a casual get-together todiscuss British cars and drinkbeer. A great way to get the week-end started!
Saturday brought registration andcamaraderie in the hospitalityroom at the host hotel. Picturesfrom prior years flashed by on theflat screen TV, folks talked aboutall kinds of things and generallyhad a very pleasant time visiting.
SaturdayThe rallye started at 4 PM on Sat-urday. Creating a rallye that is dif-ferent from any that have beendone in recent years is always achallenge. Mark Barrington of theMG club (and a long time memberof the committee) created a rallye
2014 Texas All British Car DaysBy Jim Icenhower
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 5Hill Country Triumph Club
that involved a drive and bingo us-ing things sighted along the routeas spaces on the bingo card. A 5minute video of the complete rallyis available athttp://youtu.be/owVYwUrK210.One of the drivers in a classic Miniput a GoPro camera on his wing toget that video. There were no ma-jor incidents on the rallye like thetime the Aston Martin rolled into aditch. Everyone was fine and nowwe know that those popup rollbarsreally do work! There’s a video ofthat event on YouTube also:http://youtu.be/vtGcrJOodko.
The rallye ended at a catered BBQdinner at the Sheets’ ranch. Abeautiful private ranch owned by afriend of the show’s. It has to beone of the few places you can driveyour British car through cow, don-key, llama, horse and deer poop onone road!
SundaySunday dawned clear over Centen-nial Plaza in Round Rock as wewere setting up. This was a newvenue for us and the City of RoundRock was very helpful in offering itwhen the Lakeview Pavilion in OldSettlers Park was under construc-tion. Being near business in down-
town Round Rock was nice andconvenient.
Over 200 cars and motorcyclesincluding 54 Triumphs came to theSunday Car Show. This show wason pavement, not grass or dirt asin years past. The cars stayedcleaner and the heat off the pave-ment was not a problem. Wepacked the cars in tight! Therewere almost exactly as many carsas spaces. Parking all of the carswith their classes was a challengebut it actually ended up being al-most perfect. We did have to parka Morris Traveler next to a curbbut the surf board on topturned it in to a featured dis-play!
The winning Triumphs are list-ed on the next page. A com-plete list of winners isavailable from our home pageat www.txabcd.org.
Next YearNext year will be the 25th con-secutive annual show! We’regoing to try to make it specialbut we do need help. If youwant to volunteer to help orhave any ideas about how tomake the rallye, Saturday nightdinner or Sunday show special
for our 25th anniversary, pleasecontact me or one of the othercommittee members.
PhotosThere are some pictures from theshow available at the followinglinks:
· 2014 Texas All British CarDays by Dan Julien
· 2014 Texas All British CarDays Car Show by Jim Icen-hower
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 6Hill Country Triumph Club
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 7Hill Country Triumph Club
Last month I went on and onabout how a fellow could pur-chase a brand new distributor
and retire that old worn out dizzy. Itlooks like the same scenario applies tothe original equipment carburetors.Now don’t get me wrong, I have alwaysbeen a staunch supporter of OE carbs.It’s my opinion that a properly rebuiltSU or Stromberg can be expected togive many years of trouble free ser-vice; however, a few of my conceptionshave changed over time. I was of thebelief that just hanging bigger carbs onan otherwise unmodified engine wastantamount to spitting in the wind. Asof late I’ve had the opportunity to dosome tuning on cars fitted with tripleStrombergs, down draft & side draftWebers. In every case, the modifica-tions have provided a noticeable in-crease in performance. Not only areacceleration and fuel economy im-proved, but often times the enginestarts more easily, warms up morequickly, stops dieseling and idles moresmoothly. Also, some of these conver-sion kits cost no more than a profes-sional rebuild.Adding a third Stromberg CD175 toyour Triumph TR250/TR6 is a verypopular option. www.goodparts.comsells a really slick kit that accomplishesthis nicely. The manifolds and linkagesare first-rate and you can even orderan optional cold air box. If you don’tuse three like-new carburetors withthis arrangement, you’ll be shortchanging yourself. When done proper-ly, this is really the hot setup. Pricewise, I’d say Richard Good’s conver-sion falls somewhere between the twoWeber solutions. The twin Weberdown draft kit for the six-cylinder TRutilizes the original intake manifoldand most of the throttle linkage. I havefound the installation to be verystraight forward and a car equipped
with this setup is transformed to thepoint where the driver might think theengine was made in Japan. The onlydrawback to this upgrade is that itgives the engine compartment a some-what cheesy look as the Webers andtheir budget air cleaners seem to lookout of place. The triple Weber DCOEside draft arrangement barely seemsto fit under the hood and is probablymost well suited for competition work.I’ll have to admit that on an AustinHealey 3000 or Triumph TR6 thosethree big Webers with their six integralvelocity stacks are mighty impressive!Four cylinder engines have similar We-ber options. Anybody with a late modelMGB, Midget, or Spitfire probablyagrees with the conventional wisdomthat the single Stromberg is not goingto cut it. A brand new two barrel We-ber down draft conversion for thesemodels can be had for not much over$300, including the air cleaner and in-take manifold. You can get this carbwith a manual or automatic choke, but,of course, the choice is obvious. AllWebers feature an accelerator pumpand fixed jets, so all you can adjustwith a screwdriver is the idle speed &mixture. Other adjustments requirepurchasing replacement parts.Youwould expect that the people designingand selling these things have installedthe proper jetting, etc. and that youwould never have to fool with it. In re-ality, no two engines have the same re-quirements, and my experience is thatmost of them will have the car runningsomewhat lean, so therefore a swap tobigger jets might be in order.Side draft DCOE Webers are availablefor a little more money, and that race-car look is worth every penny of it. Ihave tried four different carburetorson my Sprite, and the 45DCOE is defi-nitely King. They really sound off whenyou step on it! You can even get dual
DCOE kit for the Spitfire and I don’tthink that you have to have a race en-gine to make good use of it. You willfind a complete assortment of Weberconversion kits for LBCs atwww.piercemanifolds.com. The pricesrange from $315.95 for an MGB 32/36DGV down draft to $1840.85 for triple45DCOE for the Big Healey.I guess a fellow trying to knock theWeber conversions might say that it’stoo easy to flood the engine or thatthere’s nowhere in most cases to con-nect your vacuum hoses. Non-vacuumdistributors with mechanical advanceare designed to make up the differ-ence, and are available brand new, forpeanuts. Flooding shouldn’t be a prob-lem as long as you remember that We-bers have an accelerator pump andthat you should be careful working thegas pedal before starting the car. Sure,you’ll have to get rid of all of that anti-smog plumbing, and you may be inwant of a manifold vacuum connection.In a pinch, the aluminum intake mani-fold can be drilled and tapped for avacuum connection. All Webers arevery well designed and built, and aresomewhat more sophisticated thantheir British counterparts. I think themain reason to keep what you have, isthat we know the original stuff can bemade to work well with little effort,and that some of us actually enjoy theidiosyncrasies of the British carbure-tor!
OCTOBERTOOL OF THE MONTH
By Mike McPhail
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 8Hill Country Triumph Club
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 9Hill Country Triumph Club
FOR SALEI have a set of 1960 Texas plates for sale. . . Asking
$80.00 for the setMike Schubert
H - 512/252-3767C - 512/740-9937
Includes prison rodeo advertisement
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 10
The Ragtop October 2014
Michael [email protected]
210-262-0275
1973 Triumph TR6 with Overdrive
Commissioned April, 1973. Full frame off restoration 11/2001-11/2003. Totally disassembled, sand-blasted and cleared of any rust. Paint job includes two coats etching primer, two coats of standardprimer, 4 coats of color coat (Duco Jet Black) and four coats of Clear Coat. The under carriage is coatedwith POR 15 which is used to protect oil derricks in the Gulf. The car was voted Participant’s Choice atthe 2006 VTR National Competition in Dallas. It has won 1st and 2nd Place in subsequent competitions.It cruises comfortably at 70 mph and has been as far as 1,200 miles round trip on more than one occa-sion. The car is appraised and insured for $22,000. I am offering it for $19,500.
All suspension bushings replaced.Wheels sandblasted and powder coated.5 Yokohama 203 x 5.5 Tubeless TiresAll new rugs and door panelsNew Dash CrownNew Convertible Top
Engine:New Rings and Valves GroundNew Rod Bearings and Crankshaft Bearings andsealsNew Clutch and BearingNew Slave CylinderCarburetors RebuiltDistributor Rebuilt (Advanced Distributors)Modified CamHeadersMonza ExhaustRadiator Rebuilt
Richard Good Triple Manifold with three Strom-berg CarburetorsMSD Multiple Spark Distributor and Heavy CoilNew Master Cylinder and Vacuum BoosterRichard Good HD U-Joints on Drive Shaft and ShortShaftsAll New Discs, ShoesDrums and Rotors TurnedAll Brake and Fuel Lines replaced with StainlessSteel TubingSpin off Oil FilterRear Lever Shocks Replaced with Tube ShocksSet of Four Koenig 15x7 Rims and Goodyear EagleTiresNew WindshieldTourist Trophy Laminated Walnut Steering WheelConvertible Top CoverTonneau Cover
With:
● Surrey Roof
● Over Drive
● Webber Carbs
● ASA Mufflers
● Rear Tub Shock Conversion
● Front Spoiler
● Oil Cooler
● Premium Fuel Pump
● Leather Seats w/ Seat Belts
● AM/FM Radio w/ CD Player
● Auxiliary Power Source
● Leather Rimmed Steering Wheel w/TriumphLogo
● Wood Crested Shift Knob
● Alloy Valve Cover
&
New Tires (5)
New Battery
New Gearbox Cover (Polyethylene)
New Carpet w/Heat Shield
New Window Washer
Rebuilt Radiator
Rebuilt Heater
Pertronix Electronic Ignition w/Coil
Wood Created Shift Knob
Electric Fan Kit (Not Installed)
Sun Visors ( Not Installed)
October 2014The Ragtop
Page 11Hill Country Triumph Club
1972 Triumph TR6 Sports Car(CC75356L)113K Miles
Asking $15,000Complete Engine Rebuild at 86K.
Vince Maggio512-514-0138 H908-240-2514 C
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 12
The Ragtop October 2014
For Sale: TR6 fiberglass hardtop “Snug Top” by Custom Hardtops of Longbeach, CA. Outstanding condi-tion. Located in Dripping Springs. $500 Contact Benson 361-947-7704 [email protected]
Jim Icenhower’s
Wood, Leather and Vinyl Steering Wheels for Classic Cars At Exceptional Prices
Wood Wheels with Hub $219.95Leather Wheels with Hub $119.95Vinyl Wheels with Hub $109.95
I have steering wheels and hubs for almost all British classics as well as accessories like shift knobs, mirrors, light/badgebars and more. Check out my current listings on eBay at http:// stores.ebay.com/specialtypartshop or email me at
[email protected] for more information.
Listing change as I get shipments from the UK so check back often or contact me for any special requests.
The Ragtop October 2014
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 13
Name:__________________________________________________________
Address:________________________________________________________
City/State:___________________________________ Zip:________________
Home Phone:____________________________________________________
Work Phone:____________________________________________________
Email address:_____________________________________________________________________________
Car Make:__________________ Model:_________________ Year:___________ Color:__________________
Car Make:__________________ Model:_________________ Year:___________ Color:__________________
How on earth did you hear about the Hill Country Triumph Club?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Please mail your application and $15 check payable to HCTC to:Nel McPhail, 1105 North Canyonwood Dr, Dripping Springs, TX 78620
Membership Application
The Ragtop October 2014
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 14
HCTC OfficersPresidentSteve [email protected]
ConsigliereElizabeth [email protected]
WebmasterJim [email protected]
TreasurerMike [email protected]
SecretaryBetina [email protected]
MembershipNel [email protected]
Ragtop EditorDan [email protected]
Pay Your Dues!!!!!!!Please check the latest spreadsheet sent out by Nel. It says the monthand year your dues are due. If the year listed next to your name is ear-lier than January 2015, you are past due now. Any quite delinquentmembers who haven’t paid will be dropped from the roster.
Cost is $15 per year per family. If you don’t wish to renew, please no-tify Nel.
Mail your check made out to HCTC to:
Nel McPhail1105 N Canyonwood Dr
Dripping Springs, Tx 78620(512) 656-1456
Back issues of The Ragtop are available on our website:
http://www.hillcountrytriumphclub.org/newsletters.php
The Ragtop October 2014
Hill Country Triumph Club Page 15
HCTC ClassifiedsFOR SALE (in NewMexico)—1961 TriumphHerald Convertible. Thiscar spent most of its life insouthern New Mexico. Ibought it as a project froman estate and it had beengaraged for the past 25
years. It has a 948 cc engine, new tires, new interior,the convertible top is good. It needs door latches.$3,500. Call Ron (575) 531-2193.
Upcoming Events
I am looking for a TR250 or TR4a Bonnet for a vehi-cle I am restoring. If you have one for sale please callme at 512-517-5325 or email me [email protected]. Thank you, Fil Valderrama
I recently bought a project 1965 TR4a…. Any ad-vice, help, parts,would be greatly appreciated
Alan Palmer [email protected]
I am parting out another Spitfire 1500. Some goodbits left. Everything is free.
Robert MacKenzie
Oct. 14 — HCTC Monthly Meeting,. Information be-low.
Oct. 25 — South Texas All British Car Day, Boerne,TX. See www.visitboerne.org/all-british-car-day.
Oct. 25 — Houston British Motor Expo, Houston, TX.See www.houstonmgcc.com.
Oct. 26 — Rolling Sculpture Car Show, Bee Cave, Tx.See www.rollingsculpturecarshow.com.
For Sale: Triumph TR engine parts. One late TR4 en-gine (has aluminum pushrod tubes in head), un-known mileage and condition. Fan and clutch arestill installed, as is valve gear. It's been stored insidebut I can't turn it over by hand. One bare early high-port TR3 head which appears to be uncut and ingood condition. Three used stock Triumph crank-shafts. Three used TR camshafts of unknown specifi-cation. One set of used 83mm pistons and liners. Ifthere is any interest I will check condition andclearances/undersizes for interested parties. Iwould like to buy/trade to obtain two TR6 steelwheels.
Contact Duncan Charlton at 512-965-7583 [email protected]
Next meeting: Tuesday, October 14, 2014, 7:00 PMRudy’s BBQ
7709 Ranch Road 620Austin, TX 78726
www.rudysbbq.com — Phone: 512-250-8002