[manmohanmaan]

Hey Goody,
Diesel is not a problem in Gulbarga, Shahpur, Lingsugur and other major towns though in Jewargi I have had a bad experience. I did most of my fuel stops in Gulbarga as I usually set up base in the District HQ and do day runs to smaller towns or move on to the next DHQ.
Yes one more plant is being commissioned near Sedam and the two you mentioned are still there and the road between them is still hellish. Though being fair there is asphalting work going on on a decent scale, should be good in about six months and back to the same-same in 36 months!!
Yep first jobs are unforgetable, I started mine at Rs.700 PM in Peenya Industrial Estate. You will not believe we designed SPM and Controls when 8086 could be seen only in a lab in IISC !!
Manmohan.

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by manmohanmaan

Hey Goody,
Diesel is not a problem in Gulbarga, Shahpur, Lingsugur and other major towns though in Jewargi I have had a bad experience.

Hey MM, Thanks for the update/s. Shall catch up with you this week to plan out a long due visit to those parts sometime soon.

Hey Amit,
Remember I mentioned that I'll post couple of snaps of some 'rustyish' parts of the Admiral, which is common to all vehicles ? Here they are...

The disck brakes & below/behind them the rest of the assembly (the hub etc which was what you showed) too would be rusty looking:

So nothing to really get worried about y'see !

The mighty engine block. Would have been odd if it wasn't rusty looking !

[Guderian]

Sunday Togo Nama May 28, 2011.

With last Sunday spent in visiting the wonderful folks in Pune and the drive to Lavasa, this Sunday had to do a lot of catching up in the engine bay. Plus with the Monsoons round the corner had a couple of DiYs to be completed too.
So in addition to the normal cleaning etc the morning also saw some action getting the Admiral battle ready for the Mumbai rains which therefore meant an early morning action of almost 4.5 hours getting eveything, well, ship shape - so to say.

But of course life is never mundane. And never a dull moment with the Admiral !

A teeny weeny leaf got into the space behind the headlight cover, God knows how and had to be removed with great dexterity !



I have been mentioning about the poor quality of the design of the roof rails. Lots of gaps - which would indeed be the point from where rain water would drip into the plastic rail end and collect there. Creating problems later on. And wasn't interested in rain water harvesting either.
Decided to do a small DiY. 'Steel Gripped' all the four rail ends to prevent the water from getting in and collecting in the plastic rail ends.



Another point that I noted with some concern was that thanks to the narrow confines of parking at home (meaning stilt parking) and office - the plastic cladding on the door (esp driver's door cladding) was taking a beating:


So went yesterday to my FNAM (OK - Friendly Neighbourhood Accessories Man !). Got Admiral these soft plastic door guards - silver of course. Very handy. And fixed them all. After of course cleaning and touching up the cladding with a little silver paint with my silver paint pen (Dupli-Color).



Front door/s:


Rear Door/s:


So now the strip bears the brunt - and well too.


The front leather seats were begining to look a little, well, used ! So picked up this leather cleaner too from the FNAM:


A spray and a sponge applicator. Just Spray, work it around with the sponge piece and finally wipe off with a clean cloth. Was a little sceptical and apprehensive about its effect on leather - despite the FNAM's assurances and my threats of death to him if anything untoward happened to the leather. Tried it on a small patch - it worked very well. And then cleaned up some patches. Excellent results !


Meanwhile I had asked some assitance from other birds to form an alliance against the terrorist pigeons. The pigeons stay away from crows my intelligence head informed me:


This spunky fellow too dropped in to wish me luck:


While big bro watched the proceeding with a sneer:


Thought of sharing with you some tools I carry currently in the Admiral.

1. Of great value - this folding lug wrench - picked up from Wal-Mart, Mountain View, CA.
Great quality stuff from Dyna Force, USA. Almost 3 years old been through some rough stuff but not a spot of rust or any problem on it yet ! Can handle lugs of 17/19/21(Admiral's lug size)/22 MM sizes.






2. A 5 ton cap tow rope - steel wire.


3. A tubeless tyres' puncture kit.


4. Of course the Leatherman Wave is a constant and steady companion and wouldn't leave home without it !


Of course all the above are in addition to the digital inflator, discussed earlier in the thread, 4 spare Triton valves for the tyres, 2 LED torches etc. Well these are what could be called as permanent on-board residents of the Admiral. On the lookout now for a floor jack and adjustable torque wrench.
Next week or so, shall describe and present all the other tool kits and paraphernalia that the Admiral takes on board for long cruises and war time preparations.

And finally after much shedding of sweat the Admiral is all battle ready !


Worth every minute of the effort, wouldn't you say ?!!

[4x4addict]

Hi HG,

How much was the steel tow cable? Is it available in India?

Thx

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

Hi HG,

How much was the steel tow cable? Is it available in India?

Thx

Hi 4X4A,
The steel tow rope cost me about Rs 900/- 2 years ago. Yes, I had picked it up in Mumbai. Easily available.
I was actually going to pick up, from a factory, a 5T capacity sling line (canvas) with two steel shackles ('D' ends). But then picked up this because of ease of storage.

[4x4addict]

@HG:

The canvas one is better as it puts less strain on the chasis/monocoque frame when towing. But it takes up so much space that I have been looking for the steel cable to keep in my santro.

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

@HG:

The canvas one is better as it puts less strain on the chasis/monocoque frame when towing. But it takes up so much space that I have been looking for the steel cable to keep in my santro.

Hi 4x4a, I think you should be able to get it at a motor tools dealer which was where I picked this up from. Though I would still like to have that canvas sling with the shackles.
From point of practicality too I feel that the canvas sling would be better as the likelyhood of collateral damage to bumpers etc would be much lesser or almost none when using a canvas sling with shackles.

Not to forget what happens when a steel rope snaps and the resultant damage it can cause through the snap lash.

[manmohanmaan]

Hey HG,

the rusting on the break drum and the exhaust manifold is due to the constant heating and cooling of these two areas, additinally both these components are of cast steel that ius susciptible to oxidation. My two bit to the ongoing discussion, and as you have said nothing to worry about.
Manmohan.

[dot]

In the tubeless tyre puncture kit there is a small Allen key, I wonder what it is for.

I have been riding tubeless for several years now and my observations are that unless there is sidewall rupture, they dont deflate for weeks even if a puncture has occurred. For example, once I noted my Ikon's front right was low in pressure. Filled it up and waited for a couple of days. Surely it was deflating again. Went to NPRS (neighborhood puncture repair shop). They found five punctures in that tyre. Decided to check the other one which seemed fine. It had three.

Then they were repaired by tools which are same as your kit, but no allen key was used, or I dont seem to remember.

[F150]

Admiral,
Did you forget buying shoe polish for TOGO ? Or is it already purchased ?
How often does TOGO take bath ?

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by manmohanmaan

Hey HG,

the rusting on the break drum and the exhaust manifold is due to the constant heating and cooling of these two areas, additinally both these components are of cast steel that ius susciptible to oxidation. My two bit to the ongoing discussion, and as you have said nothing to worry about.
Manmohan.

Bingo ! Abso right sir. In the early days of my previous vehicle (Scorp), the sight so bothered me that I did quite a bit of running around on the net to get information on the same and then bugged a few service guys to get me the reason. Suffice to say that the net research was more fruitful and gave me the right info. And the service guys of course gave me the most comforting response - "Kya maloom ! Sab gaadi mein 'aisaich' hai. Dekhna hai to dekh lo !"

Originally Posted by dot

In the tubeless tyre puncture kit there is a small Allen key, I wonder what it is for.

I have been riding tubeless for several years now and my observations are that unless there is sidewall rupture, they dont deflate for weeks even if a puncture has occurred. For example, once I noted my Ikon's front right was low in pressure. Filled it up and waited for a couple of days. Surely it was deflating again. Went to NPRS (neighborhood puncture repair shop). They found five punctures in that tyre. Decided to check the other one which seemed fine. It had three.

Then they were repaired by tools which are same as your kit, but no allen key was used, or I dont seem to remember.

Hi dot, That Allen key or L key as some call it is an integral part of the kit. At times I have seen this key or tool to be used to help the permacure/puncture strip to stay in place as you remove the 'eyed' needle from the puncture hole in the tyre.
Agree with you on the point of the TL tyres' ability to go on and on.

Incidentally the reason why I am carrying the repair kit is, as explained in the piece on stepney change, that incase you have a flat and land up at a shop which doesn't have this stuff, then the kit comes rather handy !

[AvonA7]

Probably a totally OT response, hope you don't mind. I am repeating this again, your ownership thread is one of the unique thread in Team-BHP, the way you write, your presentation skills are brilliant. And some of the information you share are helpful to all type of car owners.

BTW, your profile pic looks like a wwII general, its not bad though, I am sure any good/modern, recent/T-Fort type pics would also be appreciated

Originally Posted by Guderian

Sunday Togo Nama May 28, 2011.

Meanwhile I had asked some assitance from other birds to form an alliance against the terrorist pigeons. The pigeons stay away from crows my intelligence head informed me:

Crows are one species of bird who are far more efficient than some of our city corporations/municipality in keeping clean our urban neighborhood ! Fantastic species and least thanked.

Originally Posted by Guderian

This spunky fellow too dropped in to wish me luck:

This is a nice capture, heard that sparrows are alarmingly declining in nos. due to mobile towers etc. A very cute and friendly bird.

Originally Posted by Guderian

While big bro watched the proceeding with a sneer:

Ha ha, this is called Gola (one of the many different species) Payera (piegon). They are one of the most common species of pigeon and are mostly spotted around FCI (Food Corporation of India) go-downs and ration shops, but then again pigeons are one of the easiest birds to be domesticated and considered to be friendly and bring good luck ! I can understand they can cause some temporary damage to our cars, but we never know, they can bring more good luck to our cars

Originally Posted by Guderian

2. A 5 ton cap tow rope - steel wire.

A very good info., would like to own one and keep it for long drives. Thanks for sharing the detailed info.

Originally Posted by Guderian

Worth every minute of the effort, wouldn't you say ?!!

I, for sure agree. The plastic guard, can you please share the price (is it ~ 150/-), very good and a necessity in our urban cramped parking places.

[amitwlele]

Hey General - Thanks for remembering and sharing the snaps. Now i am totally relieved that the rusting is nothing to worry. Your had earlier assured me that it is not a problem, but as they say a picture says a thousand words.

Thats quite a lot of different stuff that you carry in the Admiral. Wishing you good luck so that you are not required to make use of most of the things and those are kept only for emergencies. Digital Inflator is the only thing common with your goodies that i have been carrying now for the past one month. You know whom i have to thank for that. Another addition that i have made recently is the Jopasu Car Care kit.

[mdsaab]

And after the long trips to Pune and beyond, the Admiral gets to his appointment at the @Guderian Spa.
Those are some extremely handy tools you carry onboard the Admiral. I guess you are prettt much covered to tackle any sort of situation. These LED torches you carry do they have a tripod like stand? I had seen this at hometown and was mighty impressed with the useful stand enabling you to work on your car without having to hold the torch.

The rust on the discs always bugs me no end. And in the civic is quite visible at times.
How much did it cost for the bottle of leather cleaner, a very handy bottle to have in your lineup indeed.
The leaf getting through that tiny gap is not a comforting sight indeed, glad that it was removed successfully. Along with your spa skills seems like you are quite the surgeon too.
Those door guards are very handy especially.in tight parking spots. they look great and blend well.
The Admiral looks impeccable and like i said before newer than new.
Drive safe!

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

@HG:

The canvas one is better as it puts less strain on the chasis/monocoque frame when towing. But it takes up so much space that I have been looking for the steel cable to keep in my santro.

Hi 4X4a, Have sent you a PM. Have a dekko.

Originally Posted by F150

Admiral,
1. Did you forget buying shoe polish for TOGO ? Or is it already purchased ?
2. How often does TOGO take bath ?

Hi F150,
1. After much thought a few years ago I decided not to get the tyre foam or polish as it really doesn't add any value except the looks. If you notice all my stuff is primarily centered around functionality rather than form. Even the was polish is to polish after the F-1 Scratch Out knocks off the offending scratches. Not for general polishing.
2. Togo is bathed by the GDW everyday-almost. But the engine bay is bathed every week on a Sunday or worse once a fortnight. The intervening week seeing a sponge bath.

Originally Posted by AvonA7

1. Probably a totally OT response, hope you don't mind. I am repeating this again, your ownership thread is one of the unique thread in Team-BHP, the way you write, your presentation skills are brilliant. And some of the information you share are helpful to all type of car owners.

2. BTW, your profile pic looks like a wwII general, its not bad though, I am sure any good/modern, recent/T-Fort type pics would also be appreciated



3. Crows are one species of bird who are far more efficient than some of our city corporations/municipality in keeping clean our urban neighborhood ! Fantastic species and least thanked.
This is a nice capture, heard that sparrows are alarmingly declining in nos. due to mobile towers etc. A very cute and friendly bird.

4. I, for sure agree. The plastic guard, can you please share the price (is it ~ 150/-), very good and a necessity in our urban cramped parking places.

Hi AvonA7,
1. Thank you very much for the kind words and continuing patronage of this channel. It is actually unique because of the the multiple contributors like you adding to the fun element ! Many thanks for being around.

2. But I am Generaloberst Heinz Wilhelm Guderian, Iron Cross, Commander Panzergruppe and the architect of blitzkrieg. Ahhh...if you do want to see the snaps of Admiral Togo you could go to my TBHP Garage !

3. Love those crows and sparrows myself. Especially sparrows - takes me back to my childhood in Bangalore and elsewhere when they were so many in number !

4. Those plastic guards are available for Rs 100/-
There is a matched, colour neutral set of 8/10 strips, of different sizes, available too which includes - 2 mirror guards/3 bumper guards and door guards and so on. That is available for Rs 800/- from the same company.

Originally Posted by amitwlele

1. Thanks for remembering and sharing the snaps.
2. Thats quite a lot of different stuff that you carry in the Admiral. Wishing you good luck so that you are not required to make use of most of the things and those are kept only for emergencies.

3. Digital Inflator is the only thing common with your goodies that i have been carrying now for the past one month. You know whom i have to thank for that. Another addition that i have made recently is the Jopasu Car Care kit.

Hi Amit,
1. My pleasure.
2. My fervent hope too ! But these items do give you a sense of security - even if it false. But then half the battles are won with sheer confidence as they say. So when you go on long trips that feeling of having 'something' to take of 'something' untoward is indeed comforting.
3. That Jopasu kit is good. Have been only though using the duster extensively and carry it onboard. Rest of the items are left back at the dockyard and haven't been really used.