MTWC Group Events in April to check with your GO - see contact details 3 April. East Anglia Woolpit. The Bull 12.00 noon. 10 April. Y.N.D. The Bridge Inn, Curbar, 8.00. p.m. 11 April. North West Gp, Lunch, 10.30. a.m. 11 April. West Mids Gp, Fruiterers arms, Ombersley. 8.00. p.m. 12 April. South West Gp, The Huntsman Falfield. 12.00. noon. 15 April. West Mids. Long Mountain Run. 10.30. Powys Arms, Lydbury. 18 April. East Midlands Gp, Royal Oak, Brandon, 6.30. p.m. till late. 22 April. MTWC Opening Run, Prescott. Don’t be late!!! 23 April. Far South West Drive it Day meet at McDonalds car park Hayle. 10.30. a.m. 24 April. Y.N.D. Gp, Dreaming and fondling John Rowlands!!! 12.00. noon.* 24 April. Y.N.D. Gp, Reindeer Inn, Overton, 8.00. p.m. 25 April. West Mids Gp, Clent Club, 8.00. p.m. 27 April. North West Gp, Whipping Stocks evening meeting. 30 April. Oxford Sub Group, The Star, Stanton St John, 8.00. p.m. * Spectators for the dreaming and fondling at John Rowlands are reminded that fondling is strictly by invitation only. See page 35. YND Group Report, for more details. ooooooherr. Please; still check dates with your GO. I’m told I got some wrong last month. Sorry, Ed... Dates for your 2012 diary Saturday 14 April SW Wye Valley Run, Meet Tintern Station, 10.00hrs. a/o website 15 April VMCC Long Mountain Run. Powys Arms, Lydbury. 9.30. am for 10.30 start. 21 April Scandinavian Opening Run. 22 April MTWC OPENING RUN PRESCOTT see page five for full details. 25-28 May Dutch opening Run 17-20 May German Opening Run 8—11 June East Anglia, Worstead Weekend. Contact Tim or Sue, 01692 536790 30 June Curborough Sprint. See page seven for full details. a/o website 3—5 August Scandinavian Viking Run. Contents. Page: 14 Notice board 39 Regalia 3 From the Editor 15 Comp reports 41 Used parts register 4 Chairman’s report 17 American cyclecars 42 Mr Gunn’s Morgan 6 Orkney Holiday 19 Dear John 44 Floggery 7 Curboro’ sprint 22 Mogspares 45 Henry Laird 8 Dash badges 23 Letter from Jake 46 Brooklands test 9 New club badge 25 Committee report Day pikkies 10 Antipodean report 26 Brake tables 48 Parting shot, from 10 Registry rumblings 30 Group reports overseas! 13 French connection 37 Matchless MX3 Cover picture. First production deliveries of the new three-wheeler line up at Melvyn Rutters Morgan Garage. The red car is destined for Barry Davidson. Photo: Melvyn Rutter. 2 VOL 67 April 2012 No 4 THE BULLETIN THE MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF THE MORGAN THREE-WHEELER CLUB Affiliated to the ACU and MSA: non-territorial CLUB WEBSITE www.mtwc.co.uk Spring is here, always my are welcome to attend these favourite season. Already, on From the Editor. meetings should they feel that my daily dog walks, I see the daffodils have their interests are not being served to their replaced the snowdrops in the wood. satisfaction. Of course at the AGM all Likewise, the hedges are beginning to show members are invited to make their points to that green hue that heralds the new growth. I the full membership, even if it is by proxy. am embarrassed to see that I mistakenly I’m still looking for technical articles or at attributed Jowett to the Midlands, when it least members’ approach to those irritating should of course have read Yorkshire. Very problems that are an ongoing occurrence sorry “tha nowst”. It was my memory of with old motors. seeing Jupiter bodies coming out of the Got to get the device polished up now in time Castle Bromwich works that fooled me. But for the Opening Run. I always try to do this as Briggs Motor Bodies who owned Jowett run as one usually meets both new and old had by then been sold by Ford to Fisher and friends, who are sometimes too far away Ludlow, that could possibly explain this. during the course of the year to meet up with. I made it to the last Club night in the trike, I hope you all caught Top Gear as they put only suffering a failed flasher bulb in the the new three-wheeler through its paces. I process, so a good result. Nice evening but I actually enjoyed it, and to be fair, I thought it was grateful for my heater flap behind the held its head up well in the capable hands of radiator. My gearbox seems to have settled ‘The Stig’, the spin at the end of the lap down with its new gears as I get used to the notwithstanding. slightly different gear change timing. I’m I was introduced to a new magazine by the still finding it a novelty to have no second editor recently. ‘Mog’ calls itself the only gear whine. I’m sure it will return during the magazine devoted to Morgans that is next eighty years! supported by the Factory! I don’t know if it Sadly we are to lose our Website Officer. will appeal to us yet, but the lady tells me Our thanks go to Ian Parkinson for his efforts that they have no intention of forgetting the with the site during his tenure. If there are three-wheelers. I hope this means us and not any members out there with the necessary IT just the new order. skills, we now need a replacement for this important post. Do try to help your Club if Members should be aware that as from the you can and contact your GO. Also, we are 1st January 2012 our three-wheelers are to lose Maria who has been a stalwart as required to have a rolling meter (Tapley in Membership Secretary, an extremely hard act old money) test, to establish the secondary to follow. Thank you Maria, we shall all miss brake efficiency. As most testers have grown you both. Replacements are urgently needed. up with ‘parking’ brakes, this may cause There has been mention of the CCM’s not anomalies with some stations’ staff. Be ready necessarily serving the members best with your explanations. See page 26 Ed... interests. Members are reminded that they 3 Hon Chairman - on Safari Brian Clutterbuck I was interested to read about the Harold The photograph of the car on page 43 of the Beart replica “Morgan” in John Lindop’s February magazine was, of course, captioned article in the last Bulletin. After John’s incorrectly in so far as Jowett cars were ownership it came up for sale in Exchange made in Yorkshire not the Midlands. In fact and Mart for £250. A ridiculous price in they were made in Idle, Bradford and the 1962 when few cars had achieved even later flat-twin-engined vans, shooting brakes £100. Jim Baker bought it and at that time it and builders trucks were designated Jowett had an 8 valve Anzani engine which was Bradfords. I have a vision of a seething John then swapped with Dave Shotton for a KMA Thomas in the far South West who owned a Blackburne. I remember that because of the Jowett Bradford for some years. The engine modified chassis, it had a weight problem. was probably the longest running of any Being well over 8cwt and as it had been in used in a car. Advertised as “the little engine the Gloucester area, it came with about with the big pull – 60 mph. 60 mpg.” There seven registrations. (Each time it was was a clue in the registration plate to County licensed it often had to have a weight ticket origin, CP being Halifax, Yorkshire. and Gloucestershire were pretty hot on the legislation). Nick Edwards rebuilt the car The top photograph on the same page was with a replica of the record breaker body and Locks Hill, just before Fromes Hill village, I believe the car is now in Devon. Colin on the B4103. This hill was used in the Wilson unearthed some reputed remains of Herefordshire reliability trials pre-WW1 and the Beart original which has since gone to over the years has been considerably Chris Booth. Successful cars were often realigned and now has a tarmac surface. It made as replicas for those with sufficient was one of the hills that obstructed HFS money and, as John Lindop says, are they Morgan’s direct route to Malvern from Stoke truly original cars? Does it really matter? Lacy. Money is obviously not a problem for April heralds the start of the milder weather, Morgan owners nowadays, especially though most of us in the U K Midlands have according to a survey done in December last seen little Winter. Give your support to your year for the new ‘Mogmag’ magazine’s Group Organisers and let us see you turning publisher. Apparently owners are “affluent, up in force for the Club’s Opening Run. Ian professional and predominantly male with an and Maria have worked hard both for the impressive disposable income; With Club and the Blood Bikers Group to ensure household incomes in the £50,000 to that this worthy charity finds the funds to £100,000 bracket”. A monthly magazine continue its valuable service of transporting price of £3.99 is easily affordable so why blood and body tissue between hospitals. bother with the MTWC when you can spend See you in Ettore’s field at Prescott. another £18 and get “the world’s only national magazine for Morgan enthusiasts”? However, our Club is much more than a magazine I believe.