difflock

I knew about Hogweed/giant hogweed and Cow Parsley, but Parsnips! Having some 40 years ago strimmed a roadside verge thck with CP while wearing nowt but shorts and footwear! Not bad, but certainly educational. Fascinating that Sunlight plays a part in the process. I imagine that the projectile nature of the particles helps to break the skin, even if only on a microscopic level, thereby exacerbating the reaction.

It was as much the diabolical decietful lying behavouir by VAG/Skoda(about the DQ200 dry 7 speed DSG) as the poor engineering that left the worst bad taste. If I recall the VAG indy up at Monkstown who replaced the mechatronic told me that VAG asked their wet clutch DSG supplier to develop a more fuel efficient dry clutch version, presumably with cost/packaging/weight constraints, and were told after some study that it could not be done. So VAG went to another supplier(Getrag perhaps?) who claimed they had it sussed. They lied. They also however sold it to Ford, marketed as the Powershift I believe. This effort also failed and cost Ford a fortune in the US market. Marcus

That boat has sailed! And yes, I apreciate the origonal "wet" DSG design was apparently indestructible, if correctly serviced. But the VAG group, via Skoda, have shit in the nest big-time. First the dealer we bought the car off new, made a complete balls of fitting the towbar, shoddily installed bypass relays, not the correct Skoda wiring kit, and I naievly paid up, extra over, to have it rectified, "to build a relationship", then when the wife took the car the 80 odd mile journey to first investigate the DSG issues, the left her sitting in a showroom, and ignored for several hours, then told her the found no fault(despite it throwing a fault code as I only later established) Then the car was off the road for 5 calander months via another dealership, who replaced the clutch packs, then the mechatronic unit, then the entire transmission, all to no effect.(it turned out they were attempting to rectify a cunning VAG software "kludge" installed to protect the underspecced dry clutch packs, which caused these cars to both ignore the throttle pentiometer input and then drop out of gear, entirely without warning) The wife argued without success that it would have been more cost effective to give us another new or very fresh car. Then in months 59 and 60 of the extended 5 year warranty period the service manager lied to my face when I twice took the car up after limp mode and flashing lights(rightly suspecting the troublesome EGR was knackered) No fault codes recorded Sir, he said. The third time I took the car the 40 mile journey I had got a local indy to scan , log and copy the codes onto my laptop beforehand. I got the same rebuff, but this time I produced the Laptop, and they rolled over. Otherwise I would have been caught for paying the £1200.00 bill in month 61 onward. Then later the mechatronic failed. I paid. Now it appears she has lunched on, or otherwise digested one set of selectors. In less than 140,000 miles. Which will eaily render her "beyond economic repair" Plus the dodgy "how-soon-not-if" failure guarenteed Siemens injectors. Fornicaters! So Toyota it is. I must dig out and copy/ post on here my letter from Skoda UK detailing the deal I got after the 5 month repair hiatus.

Thank you Harvey, oddly I had decided this afternoon to go for the Rav4, due to both Toyota's enviable reliability record, backed up by our daughters faultless Yaris ownership over 10 years and 150,000 miles, and the 5 year warranty, with 10 on the hybrid battery, and extendably up to 15 on the hybrid battery. Just need to decide if we go for the 4WD to get the 1800Kg towing capacity, or no towbar and keep the Steyr Puch for the very occassional towing. P.S. Clive, an Ex workmate does a turn at vehicle recovery, recounted a very recent case of a hired Toyota, "broken down" at Carrick-a-reid rope bridge, because the hire company had went truely keyless, using a ph app instead, and where the people who hired the car had parked, had no ph signal, so when the car was switched off, it could not be restarted. He had to skid it onto the transporter with all 4 tyres locked up, then drive to high ground, while looking for ph signal, whereapon it restarted faultlessly! So some ideas are just too smart for their own good. thanks Marcus

Thank you Moose, my criteria was "reliability" and a local dealership (& having coerced Senior Management to accompany me to Belfast yesterday to look at the Honda was dear-bought, so local it shall be) So that boiled down to reasonably local Toyota or Mazda, for reliability. Yes the Honda is plushest, though I would be reluctant to describe the Toyota as plastic-y, and I found the Toyota fine to drive, during our rather short try-out. Mazda's had, and may indeed, still have a problem with the interuppted DPF re-gen dumping diesel into the sump. But stupidly they provide no clear tell-tale that a DPF is running! The local dealer salesperson actually volunteered that they choose to change the engine oil more frequently, (guessing at not more than 5k, though I did not ask) which warmed me to his honesty, but more-so to the likelyhood and scale of the problem! Our retired driving habits would probably suit petrol or hybrid better than a DPF equipped diesel I imagine. 2 other contenders are the Citroen C5 Aircross, or BMW 2 Series Active Tourer, both more local, but both poorer for reliability and warranty. thanks marcus

I suppose the dry weight or density is key? I would use Birch as an example, after the fungus or moulds "eat" the sugary/cellulose goodness out of it, it is much lighter and has less firing value. So does ADB affect the ash wood the same? I figure it must to some effect, else why does the timber become so brittle, when Ash was the go-to timber for tool shafts, when fresh-felled and seasoned. So there must be a difference. Calories are Energy after all. Cheers mth

I had no plans to change, but the Skoda shit hersel for the last time, DSG problems, again, again, again. Thoughts please? I fancy sticking with the diesel Mazda, cos it can tow enought to be moderately useful, while the other 2 hybrids are limited to 750Kg ish. Plus a reasonably local decent independant dealerfor the Mazda. BUT are Mazda diesels still troublesome? Thanks, in anticipation, Marcus The Rav4 is lovely to drive and the CRV is impressive to sit in, (no driving possble just yet, bloody Belfast dealers.)

Go electric, simples!

I would find it odd that there would be anything unusual about belts for a MaConnell sawbench? If there are no belts on there try a few random marked belts to establish the correct "V" section/profile, then measure around the 2 pullies with a tape. There should be plenty of room for the adjustment of tension, which gives wriggle room length wise, but check if the adjuster is at the stops, and which way! Then look online. There are a couple of really good sites/companies. Sorry if that sounds a bit like teaching granny to suck eggs. mth

I was trying to reuse some of the "oodles" of salvaged 3/4" copper, to save me buying any 22mm. Purely to maintain the authentic integrity of the plumbing installation, you understand, nothing to do with being tight fisted at all, at all, at all. I also turn my nose up at push fit fittings, horrible things, well the obtrusive bulky plastic bodied ones anyway. I do like to look of the snazzy copper bodied Yorkshire push-fit fittings though. Cheers again. mth

My father was an advocate of "Boss White" on bigger compression fittings, he figured the lubrication from the linseed oil was as significent in getting them properly torqued up as was the sealing effect of the clay fines. I still got and use an ancient tin, though it needs freshened-up with Linseed oil. P.S. Plumber Mait is a non hardening compound for bedding sanitary ware etc. Not for compression plumbing fittings, at least per the wording on the tub I rescued from a skip! P.P.S. Being still a young man, I never ran across Imperial copper pipe before! Back at it today. Thanks all, mth

I had been aware that the Imperial system was based on internal bore size, and the newer-fangled metric system was OD based. But that very clear explanation was spot-on. Anyway, do the push-fit fittings sealing with "O" rings be intended to be a "one size fits all" solution and the 22mm fitting will work on 3/4 pipe, or is that chancy. I ask because the previous occupant who installed the Charnwood has "Teed" in with modern push fit shit on the 3/4 pipe beneath the floor. They were apparently not leaking, but are unsettlingly slack on the 3/4 pipe. I was in a notion of replacing them with capillary or compression fittings, ***to be sure to be sure. Cheers, Marcus, ***Edit, To say to be sure to use imperial compression rings per your sage advice OSM. Thanks

Gas boiler btw. No idea, it is for the daughter who done the paperwork, for her house, it was presumably a multifuel. She is in the notion of a gas stove though I favour a smaller woodstove for room heat only. Cheers m

Apologies for not beiing Arb related but ah dinny indulge on any other forums. Anyway, I was gutting out a host of crazy convoluted plumbing relating to a monsterous 18kW Charnwood stove that is being removed as a condition of getting a grant aided gas boiler installed, tracing pipes and labelling them for the plumber. I had had to replace the totally siezed stopcock on the 15 mm incoming mains. Ho hum, no worries. Plus stop-ended the 2 No. 28mm pipes coming in(and out!) from the old oil boiler located in the garage. Ho hum, no worries. It was not until I went to re-route a 22mm pipe that I realized it was actually 3/4". Which would probably, in hindsight of course, tally with the 1970's build. So old 1/2" is indestinguishable from 15mm and old 1" is indestinguishable from 28mm. But 3/4" is nearer 21mm than 22mm. Why Why Why . . .

Usual barstewarts! Anyway, IF one has to do a course to run an electric truck at 4250kg. Why does it have to be electric? IF one has to do a course. Barstewarts!

In the exhaust?

Just to say, "it does what it says on the tin", coverage wise. The floors were presumably the original 1970"s softwood, and sanded with 60 grit. As near as I could be arsed to measure 58 m2, so 2 coats just shy of 120 m2. And used a "dreedle" less than 2 tins, so just under 5 litres. Stated coverage was 24m2/litre. So dead on! Very impressive honesty on the part of Osmo.

When you need to feel the Earth move . . .

Smells of "Scratch a hippy and you find a millionaire"(somewhere in the previous generations)

See images from today. First 2 are floors with the 1st coat on. 2nd 2 are of some of the crud I hoked out of the seams. A wonderful collection of fluff, stones, dried in paint and chewing gum, plus quite the collection of nails and hairpins. Yeaugh! Said hoking should have been done prior to sanding, but I was not in charge! However to reiterate, a wonderful product and a pleasure to apply. Getting about 3/4 the quoted coverage with the first coat. Be interesting to see the coverage with subsequent coats. Marcus

Course, being an Ulster lad ah unnerstan the lingo, if no the anachronisms.

A useful guide! Mother of God! All the Line of Duty lingo, jargon and acronyms WWW.BT.COM What’s a CHIS? What's cuckooing? Know your Reg 15 from your OCG? Here’s our quick guide to explain all the acronyms...

Oddly enough, one of my better picks was the bought-new 4 panel doors for the house we got built. Everybody else was picking 6 panel, but the 4 panel looks better in the contemporary/modern/smaller format. Still annoyed I only specced a couple of the internal doorways at 2' 9", when the bloody doors turned out to be the exact same price as 2' 6" ones. Thanks again.

Well seeing as my last enquiry was so helpfully answered. Any recommendations re standard internal doors, or who/what to avoid? Locally all I seem to be able to get is engineered/veneered "shite"(at least in my opinion) Cheers m Btw. She would NOT be replacing but some blaggard took off the good sapale doors that would have been 1970's fitment and fitted shitty cardboard doors that are physically "in bits" with peeling panels and broken bevelled glass.

D-D-D "And a month later, planted a mature birch in its place"? ? ? Curious is all.