Squire's voitures

[panhard65]

I got a solid state regulator from these people. https://www.dynamoregulators.com/dvr2.php. It was for my old Peugeot 204 diesel as you just couldn't get a normal replacement. They were a bit shit by sending me the wrong one to start with which didn't work and sent me off looking for other faults. When I finally got hold of someone who knew what he was doing I got the correct one and it worked perfectly. As usual I sold the car within a year so don't know the long term reliability. As they are quite small you might be able to hide it inside the shell of an original regulator.

[Eddie Honda]

In my book there are some things like seat belts, dual circuit brakes, radial tyres, screen washers and heaters that were either not fitted or not available that are still worth adding or changing. I include an alternator in that.

They can get to fuck for starters. The blue is over yonder.

[SiC]

Dual circuit brakes aren't essential if you look after the brake system. Plus dual circuit brakes still seem perfectly capable of loosing everything when they fail too.

Seat belts are nice to have when you have to brake hard because some idiot pulls out on you in a roundabout. Unless you like to see what the steering wheel/dashboard tastes like.

Radial tyres have been made for automotive use pretty much soon after WWII, so hardly a modern innovation. Given most cross-ply now are going to be very old, the extra softness they would usually have will be negated by the fact that they're all dry rotted to fuck anyway.

Dynamos? The dynamo itself is a robust old thing, but it's those electromechanical regulators that let the side down. I love the idea of little relays switching in and out, based on their resistance and inductance with having no solid state control. But that's on a bench or in a museum. Not when you have a 44t artic up your chuff, despite you doing 40mph in a 40mph limit on a tight A-road with little places to safely stop off the road and your car lights getting dimmer because it's 50+ year old worth of wear has knocked it out of adjustment again...

An alternator anyway is just a dynamo that's wired differently internally with a solid state regulator strapped to the back of it. Given how cheap a decent alternator can be had for and how easily reversible adding one is for most cars, I'd much rather personally strap one on a car and put the dynamo in the plastic crate labeled "Original Parts".

[AMCrebel]

In my book there are some things like seat belts, dual circuit brakes, radial tyres, screen washers and heaters that were either not fitted or not available that are still worth adding or changing. I include an alternator in that.

They can get to fuck for starters. The blue is over yonder.

Eh? I didn't say "slammed in da weeds bruv"

[AMCrebel]

Dual circuit brakes aren't essential if you look after the brake system. Plus dual circuit brakes still seem perfectly capable of loosing everything when they fail too.

I had a moment of terror on my old Commer PB with single circuit brakes. Started the fucker up once and back out of the drive, brake pedal went to the floor.

The seal on a wheel cylinder had failed overnight and pissed all the fluid onto the ground.

I don't fancy that feeling again even though I did manage to stop it with the handbrake.

That wasn't lack of attention on my part, it failed without any warning.

My 56 Chevy is the only car I have with single circuit brakes and they'll be getting changed to dual before it turns a wheel on a public road.

It's true dual circuit can fail totally but I prefer the odds with two (or three - Volvo and RR) circuits.

[AMCrebel]

Radial tyres have been made for automotive use pretty much soon after WWII, so hardly a modern innovation. Given most cross-ply now are going to be very old, the extra softness they would usually have will be negated by the fact that they're all dry rotted to fuck anyway.

Plenty of new cross plies available and in active use by originality devotees and hot-rodders.
None of my American shite had radial originally (in 1956, 1967 or 1968).

[mercrocker]

It is all about what you feel comfortable/safe with. I am well aware of the short margin of safety single circuit brakes give, which is why the Minor is currently in the workshop having lines and master cylinder renewed - they are still working perfectly well enough to pass the MOT but I am concerned about the ageing of some of the circuit. In other words single-circuitry makes me much more aware of the potential for complete failure.

The car had seatbelts fitted by the previous owner which weren't particularly well fitted and I wouldn't have trusted them to do their job in an emergency so I would rather not wear them. The law, being an ass, says I must if they are fitted so out they came. I've driven long enough without seatbelts to not worry. Other people tell me I should but I don't assimilate other people's concerns.

Minors handle perfectly well on crossplies - the only reason I have radials on both my old cars is that they are the cheaper option for the best performance (which is still a consideration even at 50mph). Heaters I can live without - it's easy to keep an old car mist-free if you are prepared to wrap up, wear proper driving gloves and keep windows open as necessary.

It doesn't hurt to have the awareness of sudden brake, clutch or ignition failure in the armoury of one's driving experience and know how best to deal with each situation as I don't think you can ever drive a completely fail-safe automobile.

[Eddie Honda]

Given most cross-ply now are going to be very old, the extra softness they would usually have will be negated by the fact that they're all dry rotted to fuck anyway.

Seat belts: I'm not suggesting they aren't beneficial, but I'm not going to retrofit any to cars that haven't had them.

Cross-plies: They do make new ones strangely enough and again I'm not going to retrofit radials if it didn't have them (or the option) when new.

[Eddie Honda]

In my book there are some things like seat belts, dual circuit brakes, radial tyres, screen washers and heaters that were either not fitted or not available that are still worth adding or changing. I include an alternator in that.

They can get to fuck for starters. The blue is over yonder.

Eh? I didn't say "slammed in da weeds bruv"

It's a slippery slope!

"At first, it was like seat belts, dual circuit brakes and the odd radial tyre. I thought I could handle it...but then I started on the engine swaps and it just got a hold of me. I kept thinking it would be easy to put back to original but rush was too much. Soon I was chopping springs and fitting alloys. My mates kept telling me to get my act together, but I didn't listen. I wanted more. I wanted headlamp peaks. I couldn't help myself at that point."

[SiC]

Given most cross-ply now are going to be very old, the extra softness they would usually have will be negated by the fact that they're all dry rotted to fuck anyway.

Seat belts: I'm not suggesting they aren't beneficial, but I'm not going to retrofit any to cars that haven't had them.

Cross-plies: They do make new ones strangely enough and again I'm not going to retrofit radials if it didn't have them (or the option) when new.

Hence "most Cross-ply". The selection of new cross-ply around is far more minimal than radials. It does seem the Yank stuff has a lot more choice but certainly most common classic British and European car tyre sizes have by far the most choice as a Radial. Certainly any premium brand I'd consider using only offer as Radial too.

Seatbelts I just don't trust other road users enough not to have some form of restraint. Doesn't help that I've grown up only ever wearing seatbelts in a car. So not wearing one feels just wrong when a car is moving.