Author Topic: Australian Belly Tank  (Read 3171666 times)

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Offline Geo

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #495 on: September 08, 2008, 11:56:31 PM »
RevH,

Now I know why you need to get away from it all and work on the tank. :wink:

Sorta like one of those immersion things... confined, close the hatch, dark, quiet, dreamy thoughts...

So, Dr. G we know about the Rev now.  What about you?  :-D

Geo

Glad you guys are back with us.  8-)

Offline Reverend Hedgash

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #496 on: September 09, 2008, 12:25:02 AM »
Exactly! You seem to know the pain. It was a 50 hour week locked up inside a black box, just me and the puppet for exactly one year.

My skin looks like the underside of a fish.

rH+


Offline Dr Goggles

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #497 on: September 13, 2008, 07:33:48 PM »
Well we made a start back on the tank yesterday, and it felt good.The lack of posting here has mirrored the lack of time on the 'tank .The Rev' has been filming a feature and I've been otherwise engaged studying ( an AoD diploma or,Alcohol and other Drugs work, yeah thanks everyone but that masters degree doesn't count) and saving my readies to go overseas.

We went to Pendine Sands in Wales thanks to a suggestion from Malcolm UK. This is the place where in 1924 Malcom Campbell set his first land speed record in his Sunbeam Bluebird of 146.16mph, we stayed at the Beach Hotel and visited the Pendine Sands Museum of Speed , it was a beautiful drive from London , perfect weather without a cloud in the sky , wildflowers out everywhere and the countryside was gorgeous , after seeing the beach I kind of regretted not bringing the bellytank....seven miles of hard packed sand....anyway heres a couple of old dungas that they've propped up in the museum...sheesh, get with the times guys  :roll:




In all seriousness these were beautiful pieces and my mate Frank who's got a thing for Broughs reckons that that particular one is the , er , business shall we say.....
The main gig at Pendine is Babs the car that JG Parry Thomas , a welshman, used to up the world LSR to 171.02mph and then 172.331mph in 1926 ,tragically Parry was killed a year later on the beach in a roll over and the car was buried nearby . In the late sixties Owen Wyn Owen requested and was granted permission to exhume the car and subsequently restored it to running condition.It's a curious looking thing.



Thanks again to Malcolm for the suggestion we had a top time.
anyway back to the task at hand....We've made a new seat for the 'tank because as the most sage Jack Dolan pointed out drivers "tend to grow over time"....Now, I weighed the same amount give or take 5% from 16 'til I was 41, it was Jack who said after seeing a photo of me with my "shirt" off that " it seems you've been spending all your lunch money on the car"..... :-D, building the bellytank seemed to be the cue for my metabolism to change and I've , shall we say, begun the middle aged spread( nah not vegemite but I did have some this morning and I'll hear none of your complaints)...the Rev was always a little bigger than me and I'd figured that if I watched my diet then at some point I wouldn't have to share the driving, that didn't work.Both of us were struggling to get into the car and we also thought that we could do a better job on the seat anyway. We made up a cardboard pattern ( as we always do) and found more width , more depth and managed a bit more accurate symmetry. Cut from 3mm Al plate the seat has a single bend ,a modest pad at the base and wider wings than what the last one did.
here it is( roughly tacked and not yet tabbed for attachment points so it ain't sitting exactly square).....

Few understand what I'm trying to do but they vastly outnumber those who understand why...................

http://thespiritofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Current Australian E/GL record holder at 215.041mph

THE LUCKIEST MAN IN SLOW BUSINESS.

Offline grumm441

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #498 on: October 09, 2008, 04:40:19 AM »
So show everyone some new tank stuff
 :mrgreen:
 :cheers:
Chief Motorcycle Steward Dry Lakes Racers Australia Inc
Spirit of Sunshine Bellytank Lakester
https://www.dlra.org.au/rulebook.htm

Offline comp

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #499 on: October 09, 2008, 06:11:47 AM »
waiting to see more  :-D

Offline Reverend Hedgash

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #500 on: October 27, 2008, 10:50:20 PM »
So Dr G and I continued on the interior refitout to improve our fitting into the car last weekend.

The lowering of the seat with our new aluminium version (as pictured above) gives us an extra inch and a half clearance to get in and out.

I have found a new technique to get in, as I don't fold over too well across the middle anymore, so I slide my body towards the pedals a bit then lie down and push into the cockpit. This is easier than trying to bend under the rollbar and is quicker and less freaky.

This weekend was a slow one... Dr Go was more like Dr SloMo as he fought with a monster hangover which didn't necesarrily agree with the pounding of metal. Not just that though, we spent a fair bit of time adjusting the seat mounting so that it was true as it was marginally out at the end of our previous tank-day. It's all good now but it did take a long time and at the end of the day it feels like you did very little.

We did tidy up a few other trim bits and I have taken the padding home ready to cover with a 70's style black vinyl so the interior is starting to look good.

The body work is the major standout item still, need a few good solid days working on that to break its back. Christmas is coming and hopefully that will be the time to make that happen.

Hope all are well.

Reverend H+


Offline Reverend Hedgash

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Is there a doctor in the house?
« Reply #501 on: November 16, 2008, 09:54:07 PM »
Hey all.

Bad news I'm afraid, Dr Goggles has been ploughed into by an unwatching motorist on his motorsickle yesterday.

He has broken his ankle and suffered some nasty cuts too. He is in hospital and will be having an operation tomorrow.

I am sure he would appreciate some club support when he gets connected again, so get those textas out and draw him some pretty pictures as get well cards, write him a song, or blah and send them to me and I'll get them to him:

Dik
co/ studio505
level 1 395 lt Lonsdale st
Melbourne 3000
Australia

Reverend H+
« Last Edit: November 17, 2008, 01:13:16 AM by Reverend Hedgash »

Offline Stainless1

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #502 on: November 16, 2008, 11:01:58 PM »
Rev H,
So sorry to hear about our mate Dr G getting dinged by an inattentive driver.  Hope he is doing well, keep us posted with his condition and tell him we are thinking about him.  Tell  him to hobble to a computer and log on....  :wink:
Get better Dr G....  8-)
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O

Offline Reverend Hedgash

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #503 on: November 16, 2008, 11:31:42 PM »
He is in hospital so might be a while before he logs on, hence the card concept.

rH+

Offline 1212FBGS

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #504 on: November 16, 2008, 11:38:46 PM »
hey rev
is that exactually how we should put the addy on the envelope?
Kent

Offline Geo

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #505 on: November 16, 2008, 11:42:33 PM »
Right!  It's my understanding Dr G will do anything to get where the girls are!  :-D

We should get a pool for the nurses to be sure the best are taking car of him.  That's correct; I didn't say pretty or ugly.  Which will it be?  :evil:

Ask the surgeons if you can drive a tanker after the operation.

Get well soon.  Don't let them mess with your funny bone.

Geo

Offline Reverend Hedgash

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Dr no-go
« Reply #506 on: November 16, 2008, 11:53:11 PM »
The address is real (lt stands for Little) and write it like that and it will get to me.

Nurses shouldn't be a problem... he's got a new missus, that will be a problem!!! Not sure if he'll be allowed to ride again...

We'll know more tomorrow.

rH+


Offline Reverend Hedgash

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #507 on: November 18, 2008, 09:28:12 PM »
Spoke to Stewie this morning, he sounds almost normal(!)

Hasn't had the operation yet but should have it this arvo. Apparently both his tibia and fibia are broken and have "removed themselves from the joint to the foot." He will be annoying a few metal detectors from now on.

eek.

He may also need a skin graft too.

ouch

The story is that he came out of his driveway and turned right. At the first intersection a car came out and T-boned him, the lucky thing was he wasn't fully up to speed so the second impact was light.


Not being a simple break it is currently unknown how long he will be out of action. The good news is it is his right leg so it is only the go-fast button on the car not that  other one which is tricky to push even when you are fully assembled.

We have scheduled the next "tankday" for 2 weeks. He can point at things from a chair for me to do to get ready for March.


I'll let him fill in the details of the driver as he has the gift of the word things.

reverend H+







Offline grumm441

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #508 on: November 20, 2008, 03:43:44 AM »
So Goggles has just come out of surgery and is in the recovery room.
This would be a pic of him just before, the button is for patient controlled analgesia (Morphine button)
Chief Motorcycle Steward Dry Lakes Racers Australia Inc
Spirit of Sunshine Bellytank Lakester
https://www.dlra.org.au/rulebook.htm

Offline Stainless1

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Re: Australian Belly Tank
« Reply #509 on: November 20, 2008, 10:26:09 AM »
He looks good in a dress, he should wear one more often... LOL
Nothing like a little Morphine to lift the spirits, dang Drs usually regulate how much you can give yourself.  Bummer
Good to see he is in good hands, now how about a few pics of the nurses....  :roll:
Stainless
Red Hat 228.039, 2001, 65ci, Bockscar Lakester #1000 with a little N2O