Newark Chic...

This weekend saw the return of the Emergency Services Heritage Show at Newark Showground. The successor to the old Derby Fire Show, last year saw a big show with not a lot of visitors. This year saw a slightly smaller show and who knows how many people.....

A good run up on the Saturday saw 326 running well with the electronic ignition still bedding in. However, the carburettor now squeals on the over-run very loudly so a strip down and re-build will be in order this winter.

The show was slightly re-jigged this year - same arena but the vehicles were parked further down the runway which made sense.

Saturday was relatively quiet - there were fewer vehicles than last year especially with no NFS-AFS fleet and fewer vehicles from the RAF Firefighting Museum, although they did have a very nice LFB 1970s Dennis...... However, there were 5 goddesses on the Saturday - all the better for the goddess rivet counters to compare bodywork by the different body builders!

By 3pm on the Saturday, the heavy rain showers had scared off most punters so a gap in the rain meant a run for home.

Sunday dawned much brighter and drier and there were more vehicles there than the Saturday, with an additional 6th goddess! The crowds were much better too, which was nice, so lots of people looking at the vehicles and wandering around, and watching the arena displays too.

One event this weekend - on the way up to Newark on Sunday, the goddess ticked over 7,000 miles!

A good weekend, the show is moving to late July next year apparently.

It's Show Time...

So, with the refurbished distributor back looking splendid and with the electronic ignition module fitted, it was time to re-fit it along with the new coil and then to sort the timing out before the first show of the season at Rushden.

Sadly, I didn't take a photo of the insides of the distributor which was a bit of an error, as this potentially made the re-fitting a little harder. As the Bedford RL distributor has two equal sized lugs on the end, this means it can fit the correct way or 180 degrees out..... So, with no photo to help, it was off with the rocker cover to see where the cylinders were sat and potentially to have to turn it over by hand to get to the point where the number 1 cylinder valves were both shut. But - a stroke of luck - the engine had stopped in at exactly that point so on went the dizzy. It started with no worries, and once warm the timing was adjusted. Time for a test drive and all was not good - no power, no real top speed. A quick stop changed little until the large number of shocks going into my left hand which was on the distributor adjusting it told me something was up - it was... The lead had come away from the connector on the spark plug, although this did reveal a very good spark! The number 6 lead then fell off.... With those sorted, all went very well and little further adjustment was needed.

The Rushden Cavalcade is a great show, the first of the season for many. It's a good drive from Grantham - about 60 miles - but this does blow a few cobwebs away! Once there, the normal show routine of coffee-wander-eat-wander-snooze-eat-wander began. After a good nights sleep, aided by some very nice beer, I was joined today by PGW 35 which parked alongside.

The weather stayed kind for most of the two days, thankfully. Not much purchased either although some cheap £4 ex-RAF long storage boxes on one stand proved the ideal solution to the under-seat mess of spare parts in the cab:

The drive home went well with 326 running perfectly, although the torrential rain on the A1 demonstrated that the windscreen seal doesn't do what it says on the tin any more, so another job! Driving on a duel carriageway with one hand whilst bailing out with the other isn't recommended....!

Dizzy....

Well, my first visit of the year up to see 326 after a winter of gentle slumber to a) move it backwards so it's sat on a different point on the tyres and b) to get the model number of the distributor so that I can order an electronic ignition kit for it.

When I bought it back in 2011 it ran reasonably well - sort of. However, when it had a load of recommissioning work done on it by Fire Engine Services over in Shropshire they set the engine up so well that literally I haven't touched it at all in 4 years other than to change the oil and, well - that's it really! But towards the end of last summer's show season, it did have the odd hiccough here and there - not running smoothly at speed and on one occasion, conking out altogether on the way to Welland - handily enough just as I rejoined the M6 after a coffee at Corsham Services......!

Having had my Land Rover ambulance running on an electronic kit since I got it nearly 10 years ago, I need no persuading and I did say to myself that even though it had been set up superbly using points, the next time it needed attention that would be the time to 'go electronic'.... Mind you, it was easier to remove the distributor completely to see the model number (and it needs removing anyway to fit the new 'heart' of it) so here we are with the distributor on my desk at home (a Lucas DMZ6A) awaiting a kit....

Not the hardest gap to work in ......

The gap where the distributor should be!