Autumn 2016 and time for Tillie's winter hibernation


We've had a mild autumn season so far this year in N.W Ohio, and the temptation was to keep driving Tillie. Still, I knew I had more than the usual clean up to do on Tillie due do driving her 100+ miles in the rain for TRials.  Trying to perform a detailed clean up in cold weather is no fun, so mid-October I decided to get started.

I don't normally use water to clean Tillie, but there was quite a bit of road dirt on the under carriage, not to mention horse "stuff", so the best way was to get her up on jacks and carefully use my power washer to clean off the big chunks!


Once the under side was dry, lots of Griot's spray cleaner and micro fiber towels made the under carriage look just as good as it did last spring!


I also used this opportunity to touch up the under carriage paint where stones had chipped things.




After the last drive of the season, while the engine / drive line was still warm, I dropped the engine oil, gearbox lube, and differential lube. They drained over night, and  fresh lube is on the shelf waiting to be added. 


I'm still trying to decide if I want to keep Tillie on jack stands over the winter or put the wheels back on and lower her back on the tires.  I've heard conflicting thoughts on the matter.


As usual, I taped up the exhaust pipes to keep "critters" from making a home in my mufflers.

The custom made Covercraft car cover fits like a glove and should keep the winter dust and dirt on the outside where it belongs.

The months sure do seem to fly by, and before we know it,
2017 will arrive!
Best Wishes to everyone.










Tillie Sings A Sweet Song !

Those of you who have followed this blog know I picked the Bell Sport Exhaust for it's "sweet music".

Well, I finally decided to buy a GoPro Camera, and as part of my camera learning sessions, I recorded a brief "exhaust melody"...enjoy!


Miss Tillie Goes To TRials 2016

Well, you non-6-pack members are probably wondering what a "TRials" is and why is it spelled funny.
"TRials (TR is sometimes short hand for Triumph) is the annual gathering of the TR6/TR250 Car Club of the Americas...a.k.a. "6-Pack", so named because both the TR250 (1968) and the TR6 (1969-1976)  have a 2.5 liter 6 cylinder engine. Prior Triumphs used a 4 cylinder engine, so it was a big deal when Triumph upgraded their roadsters to a six cylinder engine.

The TRials gathering moves to various locations around the country, and this year Ohio was chosen to hold the event. A local 6-Pack club does all the organizing work, and for 2016 The Buckeye Triumph Club did the honors.  Mohican Lodge and Conference Center near Perrysville, Ohio, was the location....a perfect venue for the event. Lots of great roads to explore, great food to eat, and great people who all share a love for old Triumphs.

Mohican is located in central/northern Ohio, and since I live in NW Ohio, the drive for me was just about 125 miles. Other club members traveled from places like Kansas, Mississippi, New York, Illinois, Indiana, and Pennsylvania. Please note that most of the approx. sixty 40+ year- old- cars in attendance were driven to Ohio....not for the faint of heart!

TRials weekend starts with folks arriving on a Thursday and staying until Sunday.  Thursday is registration day with a welcome picnic in the evening where participants greet old friends and make new ones. The organized fun began on Friday with a "poker run"....a 60 mile loop where you picked up a playing card at five locations with the best "poker" hand being the winner.


Triumphs all lined up for the start of the Friday poker run


I have to admit that I left my real camera in the hotel room on Friday so I just have a few phone
photos.


One of the card pickup locations was this cider mill / apple orchard!

The roads on Friday's run were terrific...lots of curves, hills, and all around beautiful. The Buckeye Triumph Club did a great job organizing the whole weekend. THANK YOU !



Saturday morning was car show time.


The cars were placed in various classes....concours (original) & concours (modified) were judged by a team of  experts.  Most other cars were placed in classes based on the year of the car and were judged by"participant choice".



The  Triumphs were amazing to look at....check out these two engine bays!



A big part of TRials is just hanging out and telling stories!




Saturday afternoon was auto cross time...a.k.a "driver's training"  ;-)





Tillie on a one lane bridge!



Let's see, just where am I ?



  My wife and I had to explain to Tillie that is was time to head home!


All packed up in front of the lodge entrance...


There are some Amish folks living in the area, gotta be careful!


Tillie did bring home a first place award for the "modified" class participant choice


At the closing awards banquet on Saturday night, it was announced that the 2017 TRials will be held in Hershey Pennsylvania. Sounds like a sweet venue to me !

Wake Up little Tillie Wake Up.....it's Spring 2016 !

For those of you who are old enough to remember the Everly Brothers and their song, Wake Up  Little Susie, Wake Up, the title to this post may make sense... for the rest of you here is a link !

Ok, enough of the nostalgia... here is what's happening to prepare Tillie for the 2016 driving season.
After the final drive of the 2015 season, I drained the hot oil and dropped the filter. The following day, after all the "mess" connected with an oil change was cleaned up, I installed the new filter and secured the oil drain plug.  Then a 2" wide piece of masking tape was placed across the middle of the windshield where I wrote in large letters "NO OIL IN CRANKCASE".  I'm still debating if leaving the crankcase empty over the winter is a good idea, so if anyone has a thought on the matter please, leave a comment.

My engine builder recommended Brad Penn 20W50 weight oil, so that's what I use. By the way, the local automotive speed shop where I buy this oil orders it by the pallet...must be good stuff!



Last fall, I filled the gas tank with 93 octane fuel and mixed in the Sta-Bil storage additive.The fuel shut off valve was turned to "off" and the engine was run until the carbs were dry, so we'll be good to go this spring.



The Optima battery was pulled out last fall and put on a Optima conditioner / maintainer....fancy words for a battery charger that keeps the battery ready to go to work!


Of course, adding air to the tires, checking the coolant level, and all the other fluids, needs to done before the first ride of the season.



I did splurge on new seat belts for Tillie. The old belts were only two years old, but I found very cool- looking, vintage, race type belts made by Simpson. (And, my wife really liked them,too. :-)) When you snap these bad boys on there is some serious holding power going on !


The Simpson belts are 3" wide vs the "regular" belts that are 1-7/8" wide and just look wimpy next to the larger belts.




 The spring 2016 first engine start was delayed by a fuel pump that decided to "expire" during the winter!



Once I got the fuel pump changed out, Tillie fired right up, but after about 30 seconds I saw smoke coming up out out of the engine bay! Yikes, then I remembered dropping a small amount engine oil on the exhaust manifold which quickly burned off.



Our delayed Mother's day ride ended up being a lot of fun for wife Rhoda, dog Happy, and yours truly.  Happy motoring this summer !