The Quadraphonic Gremlin Progress report....

[ar surround]

...Here's my backyard right now:
(hidden somewhere in this picture are my '87 Shelby and '73 AMX )

View attachment 74596...

Makes me want to put on my snowshoes and have at it!

 

[Q-Eight]

I wish I had your guys' outlook. After 40 Canadian winters, I've had my fill. Would love to relocate somewhere more "temperate".

 

[Doug G.]

I wish I had your guys' outlook. After 40 Canadian winters, I've had my fill. Would love to relocate somewhere more "temperate".

Same for me and my 69 Minnesota winters.

Doug

 

[ar surround]

I wish I had your guys' outlook. After 40 Canadian winters, I've had my fill. Would love to relocate somewhere more "temperate".

One of the variations of this very popular Canadian winter joke:

Moved to our new home in Canada. I am so excited. It's so beautiful here. The mountains are so majestic. Can hardly wait to see them with snow covering them.

Canada--it is the most beautiful place on earth. The leaves have turned all colors and shades of red and orange. Went for a ride through the beautiful countryside and saw some deer. They are so graceful. Certainly they are the most wonderful animals on earth. How can anyone shoot such magnificient beasts? This must be paradise. I love it here!

It snowed last night. Woke up to find everything blanketed with white. It looks like a postcard. We went outside and shoveled the driveway. When the snow plow came by we had to shovel the driveway again. What a beautiful place. I love Canada!

More snow last night. The snow plow did his trick again to the driveway. I love it here.

Even more snow last night. Couldn't get out of the driveway to get to work. It's beautiful here but I'm exhausted from shoveling. F'n snow plow!

Another eight inches of the white shit fell last night. I've got blisters on my hands and a sore back from shoveling. I think the snow plow hides around the corner until I'm done shoveling the driveway.

Merry F'n Christmas! More frigging snow. If I ever get my hands on the sonovabitch who drives the snow plow I'll...

Even more of the white shit last night. Been inside for three days now except for shoveling out the driveway after that snow plow goes through every time. Can't go anywhere, the car's stuck in a mountain of white shit and it's so frigging cold. The weatherman says to expect another 10 inches of the shit again tonight. Do you know how many shovels full of snow 10 inches is?

That f'n weatherman was wrong. We got 34 inches this time. At this rate it won't melt before summer. The snow plow got stuck up in the road and that sob came to my door and asked to borrow my shovel. After I told him that I had already broken six shovels shoveling out all the shit he had pushed into my driveway, I damn near broke my last one over his f'n head.

Finally got out of the house today. Went to the store to get food and on my way back a damned deer ran in front of the car. Did about $3,000 damage to the car. Those f'ng beasts should be killed. They're everywhere. Wish the hunters had exterminated them all last November.

Moved to Florida. I can't imagine why anyone in their right mind would ever want to live in such a God forsaken place as Canada!

 

[Doug G.]

From somebody who knows exactly what that's like, that is hilarious!

However, we are having an unusual winter so far. Right now, no snow on the ground and it's 43 degrees. And it's almost January. I'm not worried, though, We will be punished.

Doug

 

[ar surround]

From somebody who knows exactly what that's like, that is hilarious!

However, we are having an unusual winter so far. Right now, no snow on the ground and it's 43 degrees. And it's almost January. I'm not worried, though, We will be punished.

Doug

We actually got a half inch this morning...and the town even sent around the bloody plow! LOL

 

[Q-Eight]

Forecast for tonight: Expect up to 12 inches (30cm) or more, and that's on top of the foot + we already have. Temperatures will drop to -22°C on Monday or Tuesday.

Florida sounds amazing right now.

 

[DuncanS]

We've got the best of British Rain! got wet coming back from the pub after a few lunchtime festive of Greene King IPA

 

[MidiMagic]

One of the variations of this very popular Canadian winter joke:

The version I heard was there was a question of where the US-Canadian border was.

One woman who found out her house was in the US instead of Canada was relieved:

"I'm so thankful I don't have to endure any more Canadian winters."

 

[Doug G.]

Duncan, those of us in the tundra feel SO sorry for you..



Doug

 

[roundhousequad]

Forecast for tonight: Expect up to 12 inches (30cm) or more, and that's on top of the foot + we already have. Temperatures will drop to -22°C on Monday or Tuesday.

Florida sounds amazing right now.

I'm right below you and we are hitting -5 tonight by the way I need to go up there to get a frame for my 1961 Impala

 

[Doug G.]

I love the X frames and I used to have a '59 Impala Sport Coupe, white with a red interior. I still hate that I had to sell it to a guy who was restoring another just like it except it was from Arizona and had zero rust on it, even on the bottom. Mine was pretty much gone, bodywise in 1978 and the timing chain had slipped.

We had a '64 station wagon when I was a kid and I know a guy who has a 'white '62 Impala Sport Coupe.

Doug

 

[Q-Eight]

Back in my teenage years, (hahaha -- the 90's! ) a friend of mine had a '59 Impala "Sport" coupe. 283/2-barrel/Powerglide. All original, grandma car; black with red interior. It was by no means a powerhouse. I only got to drive it a few times.... boy was it weird being at like 40 mph and still in first gear. Then somewhere north of 45, the engine would settle down as the little Powerglide found 2nd. I wish I had a picture of the car.... it sort of had a "Rum-Runner Special" look to it. My buddy had two sets of wheels & tires for it.... one were the OE style whitewalls and hubcaps so he could put collector plates on it and get cheap insurance. The other set were these 15x8 black steel wheels that I'd scored him a set of BF Goodrich COMP T/A's with white letters at the tire store I worked part-time at. Made the car look MEAN. White letters OUT, little chrome baby moon hubcaps. Low, wide. Bitchin'.

One night I recall quite vividly, as it was one of those few times I got to drive, it was summer.... school was out.... we were bored so we just drove the yacht around for a few hours, got bored, sun was going down so we figured on calling it an early night. We have to drive across this bridge over the Columbia River to get home and sure as God made little green apples, the local constabulary decided to set up a sobriety check just before the only bridge home. No big deal, neither of us drink; but with small town cops, there's always a sense of dread because if one gets a chip on his shoulder, he can make life very difficult for a young fella.

But thinking we've got nothing to fear, we roll up, figure it'll be the standard question, we'll answer "no" and off we go. So, the flashlights come out.

"Where you headed?"
"Home, sir."
"You boys been drinkin' tonight?"
"No, sir."
"You boys been hitting the REEFER anywhere?"
"No, sir....."

Then there's a bit of a pause as I think this guy was LOOKING to pick a fight.... He leans right in the car..... shines his light around, grins, then asks....
"You boys wearing your SEATBELTS tonight??"
"No sir....."

Well that did it. Pull the car over to the side of the road. Get out. Hands on the hood. Gimme yer licenses. We're having a chat.
We had to wait what felt like an eternity for this older cop to finally saunter over and boy did he lay it on thick. Neither of us wearing seatbelts is a $189-dollar fine EACH, and since they'd just brought in that graduated license BS which, luckily I'd just missed cuz I was a little older than my friend but this cop didn't seem to grasp that concept. My license has a blue band.... my friends' has a green band. HE'S on the graduated program, I am not. But on that program it's zero tolerance, so he's threatening to take BOTH our licenses away, tow the car, fees, fines.... something about "disabling" safety equipment.... just complete BS.

Greg's shitting his pants. He hates confrontation then as much as he does today. But me.... I think my mouth was bigger back then, especially when I'm looking at fines and BS charges. So, when this cop finally spouts "You kids got anything to say for yourself?" my answer was "Supervisor, please. Or I call my mom and she calls her lawyer.... which we might just do regardless." (my mom is actually a well-known; highly regarded woman in our little mountain town but this asshole doesn't know that)

So he brings over the Supervisor, gives him the run down and this Super walks over to me. My first question to him was "Do you know the laws regarding seatbelts?" He replies to the affirmative. I ask when they were mandated by law. He hems and haws for a second until finally answering "1967".

"Have you any idea what model year this car is?"
(and this is when I pull out the phrase that will probably be engraved on my tombstone) "Do you not see the seventeen miles of TAIL FIN following me?"
"If the vehicle pre-dates the mandate, it's exempt. Do your officers NOT understand this?"

Now, there was a time in Canada when cars that pre-dated the federal mandate for seatbelts HAD to be retro-fitted with them. But that law was from the 1970's and was repealed in the 1980's!! The two officers walk away from us and I couldn't recall exactly what they said to each-other but suffice to say, our license were handed back to us and suddenly, miraculously, we were FREE TO GO. Did we get an apology? Hell, no.

But still, even for years after that incident - with the Gremlin, with my Javelin, with my Swinger (all cars that had LAP belts only) I'd get pulled over constantly for them thinking "no seatbelt". I've even got a story of me getting pulled over once in the Gremlin, I'm sitting on the cement railing of the highway while the officer is IN THE GREMLIN trying to figure out how those two-piece, non-inertia reel seat-belts work.


Funny thing is, it's only ever happened here at home in Castleberry. If I take one of the toys to the city, I don't get harassed at all. Hell, I got pulled over once in my Javelin in Spokane, Wa (with my mom, even!) and the officer was cool enough to walk up to the window and just say "Hey, you didn't do anything wrong. I just wanted to check out your car!! Wanna pull into that parking lot and talk about it?"

Anyway..... Happy New Year ev'rybody!

 

[Owen Smith]

We've got the best of British Rain! got wet coming back from the pub after a few lunchtime festive of Greene King IPA

And we're having the warmest New Year's Day on record in the UK. It's like a spring day outside, 14C here in Yorkshire.

 

[Owen Smith]

Hell, I got pulled over once in my Javelin in Spokane, Wa (with my mom, even!) and the officer was cool enough to walk up to the window and just say "Hey, you didn't do anything wrong. I just wanted to check out your car!! Wanna pull into that parking lot and talk about it?"

I used to drive a Renault 5 GT Turbo (1990 last model year), which at one point was the mostly commonly stolen car in the UK. I got pulled over by a traffic cop younger than me, and I was 26 at the time (could barely afford the insurance for the car). All he wanted was a good look at the car, he freely admitted that there was no chance he could afford one.

 

[Doug G.]

Back in my teenage years, (hahaha -- the 90's! ) a friend of mine had a '59 Impala "Sport" coupe. 283/2-barrel/Powerglide. All original, grandma car; black with red interior. It was by no means a powerhouse. I only got to drive it a few times.... boy was it weird being at like 40 mph and still in first gear. Then somewhere north of 45, the engine would settle down as the little Powerglide found 2nd. I wish I had a picture of the car.... it sort of had a "Rum-Runner Special" look to it. My buddy had two sets of wheels & tires for it.... one were the OE style whitewalls and hubcaps so he could put collector plates on it and get cheap insurance. The other set were these 15x8 black steel wheels that I'd scored him a set of BF Goodrich COMP T/A's with white letters at the tire store I worked part-time at. Made the car look MEAN. White letters OUT, little chrome baby moon hubcaps. Low, wide. Bitchin'.

One night I recall quite vividly, as it was one of those few times I got to drive, it was summer.... school was out.... we were bored so we just drove the yacht around for a few hours, got bored, sun was going down so we figured on calling it an early night. We have to drive across this bridge over the Columbia River to get home and sure as God made little green apples, the local constabulary decided to set up a sobriety check just before the only bridge home. No big deal, neither of us drink; but with small town cops, there's always a sense of dread because if one gets a chip on his shoulder, he can make life very difficult for a young fella.

But thinking we've got nothing to fear, we roll up, figure it'll be the standard question, we'll answer "no" and off we go. So, the flashlights come out.

"Where you headed?"
"Home, sir."
"You boys been drinkin' tonight?"
"No, sir."
"You boys been hitting the REEFER anywhere?"
"No, sir....."

Then there's a bit of a pause as I think this guy was LOOKING to pick a fight.... He leans right in the car..... shines his light around, grins, then asks....
"You boys wearing your SEATBELTS tonight??"
"No sir....."

Well that did it. Pull the car over to the side of the road. Get out. Hands on the hood. Gimme yer licenses. We're having a chat.
We had to wait what felt like an eternity for this older cop to finally saunter over and boy did he lay it on thick. Neither of us wearing seatbelts is a $189-dollar fine EACH, and since they'd just brought in that graduated license BS which, luckily I'd just missed cuz I was a little older than my friend but this cop didn't seem to grasp that concept. My license has a blue band.... my friends' has a green band. HE'S on the graduated program, I am not. But on that program it's zero tolerance, so he's threatening to take BOTH our licenses away, tow the car, fees, fines.... something about "disabling" safety equipment.... just complete BS.

Greg's shitting his pants. He hates confrontation then as much as he does today. But me.... I think my mouth was bigger back then, especially when I'm looking at fines and BS charges. So, when this cop finally spouts "You kids got anything to say for yourself?" my answer was "Supervisor, please. Or I call my mom and she calls her lawyer.... which we might just do regardless." (my mom is actually a well-known; highly regarded woman in our little mountain town but this asshole doesn't know that)

So he brings over the Supervisor, gives him the run down and this Super walks over to me. My first question to him was "Do you know the laws regarding seatbelts?" He replies to the affirmative. I ask when they were mandated by law. He hems and haws for a second until finally answering "1967".

"Have you any idea what model year this car is?"
(and this is when I pull out the phrase that will probably be engraved on my tombstone) "Do you not see the seventeen miles of TAIL FIN following me?"
"If the vehicle pre-dates the mandate, it's exempt. Do your officers NOT understand this?"

Now, there was a time in Canada when cars that pre-dated the federal mandate for seatbelts HAD to be retro-fitted with them. But that law was from the 1970's and was repealed in the 1980's!! The two officers walk away from us and I couldn't recall exactly what they said to each-other but suffice to say, our license were handed back to us and suddenly, miraculously, we were FREE TO GO. Did we get an apology? Hell, no.

But still, even for years after that incident - with the Gremlin, with my Javelin, with my Swinger (all cars that had LAP belts only) I'd get pulled over constantly for them thinking "no seatbelt". I've even got a story of me getting pulled over once in the Gremlin, I'm sitting on the cement railing of the highway while the officer is IN THE GREMLIN trying to figure out how those two-piece, non-inertia reel seat-belts work.


Funny thing is, it's only ever happened here at home in Castleberry. If I take one of the toys to the city, I don't get harassed at all. Hell, I got pulled over once in my Javelin in Spokane, Wa (with my mom, even!) and the officer was cool enough to walk up to the window and just say "Hey, you didn't do anything wrong. I just wanted to check out your car!! Wanna pull into that parking lot and talk about it?"

Anyway..... Happy New Year ev'rybody!


View attachment 74852

The ironical thing about all this is my '59 Chevy HAD seat belts! They were an option back then. Sometimes I would get the little 283 up to 120 without me wearing the belt.

Seat belts were a bit of a status symbol for that year car, in the seventies. People would look into the car and see the belts. "Oh, they had seat belts in 1959?"

Doug

 

[par4ken]

My Father was always a proponent of seat belts and so had them installed in our 1957 Rambler (only lap belts at that time). At that time (early 1960's) you didn't need to have seat belts and very few vehicles actually had any. Until the mid seventies you didn't have to use them even if you did have them.

Edit: He had belts installed in the front seats only, he didn't feel that they were needed in the rear as you had the back of the front seat to protect you in a collision!

It feels so free to drive with the belt off (but I seldom ever do) or better still to drive a vintage car that has no belts! As far as I know it has always been the law in Ontario that belts are not required if the vehicle never had any, I never heard of people being forced to put them in. This thread makes me nostalgic for those relics of a much simpler time. Just as I love vintage electronics for much the same reason!

 

[Owen Smith]

I don't like aircraft lapstraps, I want a proper seatbelt over the shoulder. I dislike trains even more, no seatbelts at all on those. Why not? Accidents do happen with trains, and seatbelts would help in them. At least coaches mostly have seatbelts in them now, though again sometimes they're only lapstraps.

 

[par4ken]

I don't like aircraft lapstraps, I want a proper seatbelt over the shoulder. I dislike trains even more, no seatbelts at all on those. Why not? Accidents do happen with trains, and seatbelts would help in them. At least coaches mostly have seatbelts in them now, though again sometimes they're only lapstraps.

I'm the opposite of you I hate shoulder straps, while lap straps are much less intrusive. I do realise that "proper seat belts" are much safer though.

When they were first talking about air bags I assumed that they would replace seatbelts, sadly that was not to be the case!

 

[Q-Eight]

I just wish we had some personal choice in the matter, not just the automatic process of relieving you of cash and then having to prove your innocence. It just sort of makes it a non-sequitur for the affluent class. "It's not illegal to wear your seatbelt, it just costs x amount should you get caught" is their thought process. But that's starting to get political....

On the plus side, the machinist I took the trucks' driveshaft to should be opening this week. However, the weather forecast is more snow, but the weather may warm up in another week. I've got some dash parts coming for the truck, so once they arrive, I will pull the whole cluster, convert the instrument lighting to LED's, install the dash courtesy light that's on the way and maybe I'll get the OE 8-track deck I installed working. I've got the behind-the-seat speakers in the truck, just no door speakers - yet.

I'm really wrestling with this idea in the truck though. I have put in a factory stereo AM/FM 8-track deck. I love the way it looks and it reminds me of my Dads' '80 GMC that had an Audiovox 8-track deck in it. HOWEVER, a friend of mine has a factory AM/FM/CB radio he has had for 25+ years and has never used it. He has no microphone for it. Well, I recently got a microphone for one.

So now, I can't decide.... do I install the AM/FM/CB stereo and put an underdash 8-track in? I mean, I could potentially install one of my QUAD units in the truck.

Or, do I keep the AM/FM/8-track stereo and install an underdash CB radio?? I still have my COBRA CB that used to be in the humpster....

UGH! Decisions!!