2 ‘NEW’ ARTICLES
kindly submitted by Tony Stevens
One is about the Isle of Wight Frogeye marketed
by Keith Brading and the other is
about the ‘Dick Jacobs’ Midget.
Thanks very much Tony.
MANY THANKS TO ALL THOSE WHO SENT IN COLOUR CODES FOR SPEEDWELL BLUE (see below)
Alan Anstead’s car was sprayed by Archers.
Tin is ZK brand
Product no P4/20-3131
Rover 3131 C/o PPG supplies 01449513161
Graham Bish came up with:
BMC Code: BU1
ICI Code: 3131
and 3 useful links:
Link 1 Link 2 Link 3
“Ray English says: “I have the original Formula for Speedwell Blue (BU.1): WTT.1 White – 59½%, BUT.3 Light Blue – 12½%, GRT.1 Light Grey – 26 %, RDT.6 Purple Oxide -2 % [ICI Information – Speedwell Blue-01 ICI – 3131]”. [Neil Anderson] David Puzey came up with the same mix
WER 354 – MONTE 1962
(currently owned by Tom Coulthard) – following an altercation with a telegraph pole. [Jonathan Whitehouse-Bird]
Martin,
Many thanks to you and the Sebring enthusiasts.
I have now ordered the paint, and the car will be painted tomorrow. Best regards Keith (Egar)
LENHAM LE MANS
of Ian Burford
now available at £24,500 ONO as he has bought a TVR Grantura Mk1 Climax. Email
9254 WD at the Nurburgring 1000 kms in 1963 in the hands of Clive Baker and Christabel Carlisle (17th & 2nd in class). [Jonathan Whitehouse-Bird, Facebook]
THURMASTON BODY WORKS seem to have a Sebring Fastback in their workshops. Whose is that I wonder? [Courtesy of Dave Marriott]
HEALEY ARCHIVES AT WARWICK
Gary Collins has recently been appointed as part-time archivist at Warwickshire County Record Office. Warwick recently purchased the remaining Healey records from the Healey family and Gary has invited a number of ‘experts’ to attend meetings to assist him in identifying photographs and other documents in advance of the archive being made generally available for research, etc.
PAINT CODE –
for SPEEDWELL BLUE ?
Keith Egar is looking for the code in order to get his new paint mixed. Can anyone help him with this?
Feedback please
THE FALCON SPRITE – LATEST FROM ROGER SIELING:
“When we brought the Sprite home last week, it had several problems that would affect continued progress. You’ll note in the photo provided by Neil Anderson that the bonnet did not fit properly. The new reinforcements in the new bonnet hit the top duct work to the radiator and also hit the radiator itself. We modified some of the new reinforcements and got the bonnet to fit much better. We had planned to have a dummy engine in the car for Cinci, in actuality, the original XSP LeMans engine, but ran out of time to drop it in. We have now done that so we can check additional fits w/ the bonnet. Brent (not Brett) has been doing some exploration on the internet and perhaps a plasma spray operation may be able to save the bores and the block, so the original engine may get to run again. Regards, Roger”. [Apologies Brent – MEI]
DTA 949C SOLD
for £15,950
a bargain for someone
(but on a Midget base).
PETE TAYLOR’S NEW REP STREAMLINER has been re-fitted with its outer panels and now awaits painting.
JOCHEN SCHMITT’s
DHMC HARDTOP
EXPERIENCE
Hello Martin, Finally, after long years, I managed to finish the restoration of my DHMC hardtop. Attached you will find a couple of pictures. Additionally I would like to share some experiences that might be of interest for other owners of DHMC hardtops:
1) The rear screen of the DHMC hardtop is definitively of the same shape as the BMC one: As my Perspex screen which was in the DHMC was badly ‘milky’ (but not broken), I took my glass one from the BMC top, compared them and finally fitted the glass on to the DHMC top.
2) I found the rear gasket from the MINI Mk1 (14A8744) as a very good replacement for the original rear window seal. Combined with the black (not silver) beading strip, it is very hard to spot the difference. And in addition the length is perfect; you don’t have to cut it!
3) For the side window seal I used the Sprite door draught excluder. One is enough to serve both sides and you have a choice of colors
4) Finally it was quite an effort to make the re-produced Side screens fit: As the screens where much too high, I had to cut all the brackets and weld them for a lover position. And it is still extremely tight.
Kind regards, Jochen.
FULLY GLAZED!
Phil Zamlynski’s Sebring Sprite is home and all the glass is now installed. He says: “The glass looks great, pics attached. The rubber is flush to the roof’s edge at the front and rear. My glass guy never heard of Claytonright rubber. No special work was required to install the rear window. The front glass was cut 1/2″ at the top and from 1/4″ to 3/8″ on each side. The bar-code on the front screen is AO662 and 6651 from Triplex replacement service Ltd. Dated 06.07.96 , 07:47. The other label has the following info: Pick reference 010102, printed 17/07/96, A0662, Y9999 bin Loc from A00B15, Sebring Sprite (restricted) , Modified 1661 (S/0)**, Bed Bir 170796 010102. Regards Phil Z”
An interesting page from Thoroughbred & Classic Cars in 1991 {David Morys]
The Falcon Sprite appears at the Cincinatti Conclave with Roger Sieling and son, Brent. [Neil Anderson]
AND, FROM JAMES THACKER, MORE ON THE CULTRA HILL CLIMB
“Martin, I see you already have some Cultra photos on the web site but here are a few more including Trevor Mcllroy, David Wylie and me on the podium and of our three cars in another. I got on very well with Trevor and David [good ” craic ” as Trevor said in an e-mail ] and it is great that David and I will both be at the Chateau Impney event on July 9th/10th and Trevor is coming to Classic Shelsley on 16th/17th July and I am driving at that event on the 17th too. We really had a wonderful time and the people of N. I . were so friendly both when we were going round as tourists and also by the Thoroughbred Sports Car Club of N.I. before, during and after the hillclimb. In all my very many years of competing it is arguably about the best event I have
taken part in as the club were so very welcoming. I was spoilt for choice after the event as both the group of 14 Sprite /Midget drivers invited Matty and me to a barbecue at the local yacht club and we also had an invitation from some of the organisers and committee of TSCC to another barbecue. Because it was a club committee member, Tony Gregory, who had kindly invited us to come over for the event 11 months ago we naturally went to this and regrettably had to turn down the Sprite/Midget offer. We intended to go there just for a drink but ran out of time having to take the car back to our B&B before going to the second barbecue. An excellent week end which I would like to repeat some time again in the future. Kind regards, James (Thacker)”
P.S. Ulster motorsport is a bit different to ours as they are able to close the public roads once a year for hillclimbs and in theNewtownards area East of Belfast there are about three or four hillclimbs within a few miles of each other. At the TSCC there seem to be a large number of competitive Sprites/Midgets at speed events mostly driven there on the road and some
with a variety of non A series engines. They use the cars for auto tests as well which apparently are often like short sprints around farm buildings etc. A great group of competitive Sprite/Midget drivers; one family, the Briens, Simon, plus his brother Mark, son Jack and daughter Tiffany [ Miss N.Ireland 2012] had four cars with Jack winning the top ten shoot out for Sprites/ Midgets just beating his Father. JT
A MIDGET CALLED NIGEL !
Raced by Randy Zimmerman, an engineer in Texas, he is looking for a supplier of Sebring bonnets to the States. Feedback?
COUPE OR FASTBACK – WHICH IS BEST?
JOHN SPRINZEL: “Just as a matter of interest, I did not ever build a fast back Sebring. Frank Costin and I discussed airflow and agreed you would need a long tail to make a fast back work – current thinking was that “our” shape was more efficient, if not quite as elegant. Peter Clark, who was an early owner, had his top “fast-backed” I believe by Peels, after some damage, and a year or so later, Doug Wilson Spratt, an early Peel Sebring driver, re-designed to his own version which became the fast back WSM in fairly late 1962. Even PMO had damage with a much later owner and became a fast back until Paul Woolmer took over the wreckage and restored it to the original specification”.
HELP – SEBRING WINDSCREEN FITTING PROBLEM!
Phil Zamlynski (USA) is having difficulty fitting the screen to his Sebring Coupe. He says “The glass guy Paul just called and he says the front windshield is too big by about 1/4″ to 3/8″. The rubber fits in to top very well but the glass is just too big. Paul said it can be ground down but there is always a risk that the glass will crack!!!!! The rear window fits very well and is in. I’ll be visiting him tomorrow, Wednesday to see for my self. Is this not fitting normal? Or did I get the wrong glass? Can anyone tell me how to solve this probloem, please.”
I imagine one has to trim some material from the fibreglass, not the glass, but perhaps someone else who has tackled this can help Phil. if so please email him asap. Thanks.
One of Ken Grasing’s 3 Oklahoma-City based project Sprites is this 1959 example, just media-blasted.
Twin-cam Alfa-engined Spridget for sale on ebay, currently at £6,100 expires 19 June
[Thanks to Mark Wilson]
PHIL ZAMLYNSKI‘S SEBRING REP GAINS A ROOF
“Well the roof is finally on the car, pic attached. I have set it up so it can be removed. Note the small black strip at the front cowl; it covers the roof and body seam. It’s a machined stepped part with two small screws. The glass guys are scheduled. The plan is to have the glass put in next week. Hopefully all will go well and as planned”.
CULTRA HILL CLIMB, NORTHERN IRELAND ~ JUNE 2016
Trevor McIlroy’s Sebring leads James Thacker’s TZA
[Photos: thanks to Steve Nugent]
Jonathan Whitehouse-Bird’s restored ex-works Sebring Mk2 and Will Corry’s works-modified 510 DWD with XSP engine.
Christophe Beaudon competing on the streets of Pau last month.
A shot from Sebring in 1963, shows Stirling Moss between Christabel Carlisle and Denise McCluggage who shared an MGB; the Mk.II Sprite (9254 WD) was driven by Pedro Rodriguez. [Jonathan Whitehouse-Bird]
Sebring Sprite replica built by WG British Racing in France – pics taken by JM. Cattenot at Grand Prix de l’Age D’or – Dijon – 4 et 5 Juin 2016 [Kindly sent in by Flavien Lubineau]
“Just back from rolling road, so it’s in tip-top running order. Much sweeter and easier to drive, even with a lumpy scatter cam! 126 bhp @ 6,500 rpm – probably more to come at higher revs, but we held it there!” Email Chris Keeble if interested.
Photo taken by Arthur Senior after he and Bobby Parkes broke down in their Jaguar.
Steve Nash: “My colleague that I used to work with has unearthed a number of slides and some cine film following his father passing away. This is one he has sent me. I guess 1962 Monte as the car is in red”. This is confirmed by John Sprinzel: “62 Monte with Christabel, during the race the crank let go, putting hole in the side of the block, and with just two cylinders working I finished the race. Louis Chiron – who was clerk of the course, tried to black flag me, but there was so much smoke in the cockpit I really couldn’t see him at all. Next morning PMO started first time on the button, and BMC kindly took it back to the Uk for me. By the way, that looks like a great shot of the actual Tabac – the corner is still so named but of course there is so much Armco and barrier that it is no longer visible. cheers JS”.
Robert Visser has kindly supplied photos of the clips used on the early Ashley hardtops for Steve Bell in the States who has lost his.
The ALEXANDER GT, 777 EBH, IN THE PADDOCK
What a smashing period shot this is – showing the Alexander in the foreground – probably at Silverstone (?) in presumably the 60’s. Thanks to Alistair Ross for this one.
I wasn’t able to be at MG Live at Silverstone but David Morys kindly sent in these pictures of Asher Robson’s Sebring Rep, (?) Jim Mackie’s Frogeye racer 132 XUU, and that Italian racing fanatic (Tifosi) !
JONATHAN WHITEHOUSE BIRD’s REQUEST FOR HELP IN IDENTIFYING THE DRIVER AT OULTON (right)
led to Graham Bish suggesting it might be Harry Elwes who is listed as having driven a Sprite at Oulton Park in 1960, but Jonathan has since heard from Pablo Raybould (who he believes is Christabel Carlisle’s brother-in-law) and who sent him the photo – that the driver may be Christopher McLaren. He says: “This would make sense, as Pablo’s just completed a biography on Christabel and was given access to all her old photos”. Many thanks.
COMING UP FOR AUCTION on 18 June. This Sebring Fastback Rep has a guide price of only £12/14,000.
CCA Classic Car Auctions
EARLY ASHLEY HARDTOP WINDSCREEN CLIPS
Steve Bell, a columnist in Healey Marque (AHC of America)
has an early Ashley hardtop but no fixing clips. Can anyone help with dimensions, photos, etc to enable him to make some? Feedback please
FROM ROGER FRIEND, RE: STOLEN CLASSICS “
A quick note to some of your readers. I have noticed on Facebook the amount of Classic cars being stolen and reported on Facebook, everything from Midgets to Alfa Romeo GTA, E Types, Lotus Cortinas even Vespa scooters. I know it’s sometimes not practical to fit an alarm, but any form of security such as a hidden coil switch or electric pump switch, or as I use a bike lock chain through the steering wheel, at least it acts as a deterrent. Once these cars are stolen they are put in a container and shipped out of the country, so no chance of seeing them again, just like works of arts”>
David Scothorn has “seen various cars advertised at bargain prices as classified with a mobile number to call. The Paypal transfer is made outside of Ebay”. Here is some good advice: Link
The Ex-Ian Walker/Stephen Bowen Sprinzel Sebring Coupe is being offered for sale by CCK Historic.
01825 733060
Beware fraudsters about!!
An unfortunate would-be Sprite owner has paid £4,700 for a dark green Frogeye offered on e-bay and registered OCH 713, that turned out to be a complete scam. The e-bay page was fake and the associated Paypal arrangements. “This car may of course exist (!) and some poor unfortunate, but genuine owner, may have to be answering some difficult questions. I wonder whether it had been previously (and genuinely) for sale on e-bay and some ‘low life’ has copied the page?” He has contacted the police, e-bay and Paypal but is concerned that no one else gets caught. So please take care.
[Reported to me by Gordon Elwell – many thanks]
