Scottish McDoorknob

Och Aye ya Oilyracer Sassanaks.

'Ave just completed mi gearshifter.....and it's topped with a Scottish Knob ..

Ah boot it for a quid on ebay. (in fact there was a pair) rummoured to have been found on a scottish beach. Nah I wonder if it was attached to a door ? Maybe from a old wreck ?

Anyhows wi not gonna polish it, it's got years of patina and it would be a shame to remove it.

The shift mechanism took me most of the Bank Holiday weekend to make, and boy did I get in bother from H.W.M.B.O. (her who must be obayed).

Superbly plated in nickel with brass finial I think it was time well spent.

The Blighty Boys are nearly ready.....

Tightly Bound....!

Blighty here...reporting in on final preparations....

As you can imagine there has been increased activity down in 'The Old Sidevalve Bar'. A final push to complete all those last minute jobs before we set sail in 7 days over the seas to Belguim.

Basil K. was in the workshop early yesterday (9.00 a.m. would you believe) and tasked to 'String the Bars'...

No, not singing an old Vera Lynn wartime song but creating our 'vintalookalike' hand grips..

Jolly fine they look too....I can't think of a better use for an old ball of string than to be wound tightly round a pair of much modified BMW R100T handlebars.

Stay tuned for more Blighty updates throughout this final week...

Waiting for the 'Blighty Boys' to dock

Biggest Challenge Yet....continued..

Have no fear.... Basil and Albert are here.......Reporting once again on the latest news.

'The Old Sidevalve Bar' has fallen silent. The 12volt supply is disconnected, the nickel anodes are safely stored until next time and the bulb shines no more.

I can't deny it...this was a tough one....were the Blighty Boys up to nickel plating the fuel tank of their 'Picklington Precision' ? Would the crowning glory of this yet to be built masterpiece be a rusty mess ? would the team be ousted from the 'Brooklands Members Darts and Dominos Club' for ever ?

Nah..

For 2 hours our heros attended to the tanks every need, gently carressing plating solution over its outer surface....never for one second doubting their ability. When Basil was summonded for his supper it was time to put an end to activities and the tank was lifted and rinsed...

Quick rub with Brasso and there it was in all it's glory....

I think it's time for a quick flogon of ale whilst you 'Oilyracer' fans decide whether the effort was worthwhile...

Biggest Challenge Yet

Hello again 'Oilyracer' fans....... News update from 'The Old Sidevalve Bar'

I can report that both Basil K. and myself are very..very...very busy at the moment attempting to Nickel Plate the fuel tank. It had to be done ! A Brough Superior (lookalike) tank couldn't be finished in anything else could it ?

I've spent quite a few evenings of late preparing this wonderful creation ready for dipping. Firstly the welds were carefully filed smooth and then the whole tank was rubbed with emery cloth and finally 'wet and dry'. So far so good but...

But and it was a big BUT, I only had 10 litres of Nickel solution. In the outset I thought I'd purchased enough for 25 litres ? Puzzling but not life threatening.

A plastic storage box was secretly squirreled out of the kitchen and into 'The Old Sidevalve Bar' without 'Her Indoors' noticing. Phew ! After ruining the best casserole dish during the mixing of the nickel solution any mention of 'plating' is a no-no.

I thought the best way to maximise the volume of 10 litres was to use Archimedes principle of objects displacing their own area (or something along those lines) and fill the spare area in the box with water filled lemondade bottles, thus ensuring our dipping box was as deep as possible.

Also fill the fuel tank with water so we weren't fighting buoyency. Stopping the holes in the fuel tap/pipe bosses was easy with cut down wine corks but all we could find for the filler hole was a blown up rubber glove !!!! Sheer Genius !!...

Everything ready ? Lets do it.....

1) Heat the solution to 50 deg C.

2) Thoroughly clean all grease from the surface of the tank.....With my new low cost chemical....

(Cillit Bang...! Recommended by all top quality Nickel Plating Companies......Well it should be)

Obviously risking life and limb by performing this task in the kitchen sink.

3) As we filled the petrol tank with hot water we could see the degreased surface rusting before our eyes...hurry....hurry....

4) Rush to 'The Old Sidevalve Bar' and connect the earth lead to the fuel tank...

5) AAAAAHHHHH! The plating solution only covers half the tank.......

6) No going back now ! I'll keep turning it so it doesn't dry.......

7) Now'ts happening ! Bigger bulb required in the anode lead.....

8) Keep going.....

So thats where we are folks......

Will it end in tears ? Have Basil and Albert met their match ?

Tune in tomorrow...same Oilyracer time...same Oilyracer channel.....

Until then......