PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY THE ALAMO MG ASSOCIATION A BUNCH OF FOLKS WHO ARE ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT ALL THINGS MG

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June Craig
5 years ago
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this case a 1954TF. OK, so it wasn t in a barn, but had been sitting in a garage since 1967. The lady that owned it never moved it after her husband passed away.

1 SECOND QUARTER 2013 alamomg.org PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY THE ALAMO MG ASSOCIATION A BUNCH OF FOLKS WHO ARE ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT ALL THINGS MG Barn Find By Larry Rogers Every once in awhile a car pops up that no one knows about, in this case a 1954TF. OK, so it wasn t in a barn, but had been sitting in a garage since The lady that owned it never moved it after her husband passed away. They had purchased the car in 1961, and had a lot of fun and good memories driving it. When he passed, she parked the car and it never moved again. There s an old saying, It s all in who you know. Well, Mark Rue got a phone call from a neighbor that said she had a friend that had an old MG in her garage she would like to sell. Mark not being interested in a project called me with the ladies number. When I called I had know idea what she had, it was a 54TF, just sitting there not running since 67. The car was complete but needed total restoration. At the time, I had another TF with no engine or trans for sale on Craigslist. This is where Joe Hladek saw it and wanted to take a look. The car was in good shape, but Joe was looking for something more complete, so I proceeded to tell him about the other find. We arranged a time to go look at it at the ladies house. Joe decided that was the car for him and purchased it. Now it has a new home with expectations of being fully restored to its original condition. It sure is nice having MG friends and putting another MG back on the road. Remember, drive fast just don t get caught!! Photo by Larry Rogers

Here we are in summer. It can be a little warm with the top down, but still fun. We have gotten a few more new members, so the cars are still liked by people other than us.

He orders parts for us and helps us save money on the shipping and usually can get you a pretty good discount. July is the Flip Off out at Harvest Hills, August will be the Moonlight Drive.

2 Here we are in summer. It can be a little warm with the top down, but still fun. We have gotten a few more new members, so the cars are still liked by people other than us. It is good to get fresh blood into the club have some fresh ideas. Even some of you that have been in the club for a while have fresh ideas that we can use. Don t be shy about sharing them with us. At the July meeting, I recognized a few people that do a lot for the club- Darian keep the web site up, Pam does the membership, David keeps the newsletter coming and Jim has done a great job raising money to help pay for the trailer renovation. And not at the meeting to get his recognition, but also very deserving, John Setar. In case you did not know it, John is a Moss Motors distributor. He orders parts for us and helps us save money on the shipping and usually can get you a pretty good discount. July is the Flip Off out at Harvest Hills, August will be the Moonlight Drive. October will be busy with the AACOG Hill Country Drive and the ABCD in Boerne. I am still looking for places, prefer north or NW of town, let me know so I can check it out. Get your car ready for these two drives. If you have ideas for a drive, get in touch with Bryan and he will guide you through the process. We need leaders for some more drives. The NAMGB Register is having it s annual meeting in Corvallis, Oregon as I type this. I lived 19 miles north of Corvallis for about 20 years. It is a great area, especially in the summer. Lot of fresh produce and mild climate. Winter can be a little cold and snowy. They picked a great location for the event. Some of our club members are attending and I hope they bring back some good information. That is about it for this issue. Keep your cars in good safe running condition, then drive them to club events an on your own. Photo by David Horton by Brian Martin The Annual Spring Drive was held a little early this year to try to be able to see some more wildflowers along the way. Because of the lack of rain, we did not see a lot, but there were a few areas that had some great bluebonnet viewing. Those that went on the drive were Larry and Pam Rogers, Norm Dick, Brian Martin, Richard Merrill, Peter and Theresa Hottenstein, Bryan and Susie Prindle, Darian Henderson and his friend Alan Wei and Jim Irland and friend Lynn. The Triumph Club joined us with about 5 cars. When we arrived at Elmendorf, the police chief arrived, too. We were wondering what was happening. He was there along with two city council members to greet us and they offered us a wide array of goodies to eat. Next year we will be getting together in the new city hall. From there it was on to La Vernia. The historical society was there with more cookies and coffee and some new information about the area. We then went to Sutherland Springs and had more goodies to eat. The area had been a tourist destination point in the early 1900 s with thousands of people from all over the world coming there for vacation. Then it was a short drive to Stockdale. They had ice cold water for us and several of the members enjoyed the shopping that was available. Then it was time to get serious about food. We headed out on our trek to get to New Berlin for lunch. Again, great countryside along the way. We arrived at the Brietzke Store and had some great food. Brian had a technical quiz prepared and Norm was the winner. From there, it was off on our own via different routes to get home. Photos by Brian Martin

by Brian Martin Our leader promised good weather and we got it. Jim Irland must have done something to get on the good side of the weather people. We started in a Whataburger parking lot.

We also got to see one member that had the license plate on upside down because he was anxious to get to the starting point.

We departed and got everyone together on the road. It was good to see the countryside so green after the last several sessions of rain. We ended up Texas Pride BBQ. The food was good and plentiful.

3 by Brian Martin Our leader promised good weather and we got it. Jim Irland must have done something to get on the good side of the weather people. We started in a Whataburger parking lot. Lots of tire kicking and we got to see Peter and Theresa Hottenstein s new MGB. We also got to see one member that had the license plate on upside down because he was anxious to get to the starting point. The others that were there were Brian and Trish Martin, Tom Stuhldreher, Jim Faut, Richard Merrill, Jim Irland s friend Lynn, Tom Locke and his passenger Allistair, and Joseph Hladek. We departed and got everyone together on the road. It was good to see the countryside so green after the last several sessions of rain. We ended up Texas Pride BBQ. The food was good and plentiful. Jim had a quiz ready for us to take. There were some discussions about 1/2 points and more. At the end, Tom Locke and Trish were tied. The tie breaker proved to be non-conclusive so Jim awarded each of them a prize. We decided that we needed- actually wanted- some ice cream. We headed to Baldy s in Adkins. After some more tire kicking and ice cream, we headed home. Thanks to Jim Irland for setting this up. Photos by Brian Martin AMGA Welcomes New Member MG Driver: Dan Garza - I m a Native of Ohio where I was born and raised and acquired my very first car at 16; a 1967 MGB. At age 18. I joined the Air Force and made my first visit to the Alamo City, followed years later by another stay in S.A. which lasted about 6 years. Serving as a USAF Pararescue specialist (PJ), I logged some 100 parachute jumps leaving me slightly disabled and collecting some of your tax dollars each month (Thank you)...this is just about what I need to pay for the parts that keep my second MG, a 1967 B, on the road. I recently transferred to S.A. (again!) from Houston with Wells Fargo where I act as a Private Mortgage Banker. I ve owned my current LBC for some 7 years now and have enjoyed my share of unexpected adventure events, which comes as little surprise to most Safety Fasters.. I have a grown and married daughter (Elizabeth) who has graced me with 2 grandchildren and I have a son (Garet) who is attending Texas Tech as a premed student. In my free time I m on my Goldwing or in the MG headed somewhere in search of adventure rarely failing in this effort. Thank you all for welcoming me into your really cool club!

by Bryan Prindle As has been the case for the last couple of years I volunteered to make an early trip to Blanco to reserve (it s more like occupy) a covered picnic area at the car show.

The flyer said they didn t open until 8:00 but it sure looked like to me everybody was pretty much already settled in, tents setup, chairs and ice chests ready for use and the polish being slapped on

4 by Bryan Prindle As has been the case for the last couple of years I volunteered to make an early trip to Blanco to reserve (it s more like occupy) a covered picnic area at the car show. I got there at 8:01 and I was already the 16th car. The flyer said they didn t open until 8:00 but it sure looked like to me everybody was pretty much already settled in, tents setup, chairs and ice chests ready for use and the polish being slapped on paint fast and furious. It was hard to see a car that didn t have some type of attention being lavished on it. I quickly moved on down to what has become our usual cabana area and secured it. With the help of Susie, and the approval of the show host, I roped off a space for 6 MG s. I m sure glad I did because the turnout at this year s show was real good. Several of the cars that were trying to find a place to park didn t appreciate my impromptu MG parking only area. Let s put it this way, I m sure the glad the rest of the club got there when they did. With the heavy turnout I was starting to get some ugly glares and comments. This year s Blanco car show was attended by Brenda and Tom Stuhldreher, Debbie and Mark Rue, Joseph Halder, Larry and Pam Rogers, Jude Lester and Jim Faut, and Susie and Bryan Prindle. I have to say though, it was real nice to have all the MG s polished and lined up on display. The cars seemed to get a constant stream of viewers pointing, asking questions and taking pictures. If nothing else it nice to showcase our cars for everybody to view. Without fail you always get those who say, I had one of those in college, or My brother had one, or Oh, they re so cute. Once everybody got comfortable in their folding chairs, got their drinks poured and cigars lit, the woman (only the men were smoking the cigars) decided to head over to The Blanco Market Days in town. As I m watching them disappear up the park trail I m thinking, No telling what they re going to bring back. I hope they realize the trunks on MG s are really small! Once the ladies had made good their escape and my trepidation of Susie draining the bank account had subsided, I decided to go check out the show cars to see how they were handling my favorite subject and sometimes pet peeve of clamps and wire management. To be honest I love to see cars where all the wires are neatly tucked away and are run through one of many types of looms. For modern cars there s everybody s favorite corrugated split loom followed by expanded polypropylene braided sleeving, metal braided sleeving, plastic tube sleeving and that horrible plastic spiral wrap. Of that group the SS metal braided looks to best, followed by the expanded poly sleeving and then split loom. Don t even think of using that spiral junk. On my MG I used the Poly sleeving. I liked it because it s real clean looking and you just don t notice it; just doesn t jump out like the newer modern stuff. I also used heat-shrink tubing on the ends; it makes for a real clean looking end and all the professionals use it. On older cars like MG s and other English cars of course I like the old world look of cloth wrapped wiring harnesses. The only bad thing about them is their durability and the lack of ability to repair them. About all I ve been able to do is to use the tar impregnated cloth tape to wrap around the damaged spots. Looks pretty good and doesn t just jump out at you screaming repair. The other subject I spent a lot of time looking into was Continued Photos by Jim Faut

Blanco Continued the clamps. I am not a fan of the ever popular gear clamp and yes you ll find them on my car too (I have to get rid of them as soon as possible).

Of the modern cars I ve inspected the manufactures use the spring type circular clips on radiator and heater hoses with only air inductions use gear clamps.

Besides not being authentic and not really looking very good, sooner or later they will start to leak.

Once the underlying rubber starts to compress or decay the clamp will get looser and looser until it finally starts to leak.

5 Blanco Continued the clamps. I am not a fan of the ever popular gear clamp and yes you ll find them on my car too (I have to get rid of them as soon as possible). What I like to see is clamps that are period correct for the car model. Of the modern cars I ve inspected the manufactures use the spring type circular clips on radiator and heater hoses with only air inductions use gear clamps. On our MG s I love to see the Corbin or screw clips. To my eye they look real nice. So you re probably saying, So what s the problem with gear clamps? Besides not being authentic and not really looking very good, sooner or later they will start to leak. The reason is once you install and then tighten them down they will never get any tighter like a spring clamp will. Once the underlying rubber starts to compress or decay the clamp will get looser and looser until it finally starts to leak. It s just a matter of time before you find a puddle of antifreeze on the garage floor. With a spring style clamp that will never happen. And finally what I see all the time is plastic cable ties. I really hate to see them on any car older than ten years. Don t get me wrong, I use them all the time in other applications, especially in electronics, they re just too handy, but not on classic cars. I would suggest you use P-clamps, clips, tabs, or some other type of securing system. Anyway you shouldn t need them if you have all the wiring wrapped up and secured with some type of tape. You can always follow another wiring run and secure the two together. A great resource for products, how-to s, and ideas is the internet. Personally, I use it all the time. I just do a Google search on whatever subject I m looking for. All you have to do is just describe the subject, such as wiring loom, cable management or automotive cabling. The search usually finds hundreds of references on whatever you re looking for. Then from there I usually go to YouTube to view how-to s and demos on the subject. I truly couldn t live without it. Well by now my stomach was starting to growl so I headed back to our picnic area for lunch. Now this is one area where everybody excels. What a spread: dips, chips, lunch meat, cheeses, breads, etc. You name it. A lot of smacking going on. Thanks guys! Great lunch. Before I headed up to Blanco for the car show I had checked the weather forecast and they were saying it was going to be an unseasonable hot day in the mid to upper 90 s. So, in light of this I thought I better head home before the heat really set in. Now get this, with Susie it can t hardly get too hot. The girl loves the sun. But all the way home it s, OMG it s so hot! I m about to die. Blah, blah, blah. Oh, give me a break. It s only 93 or so, and we re only driving 30 miles. When I left from the ABCD in Round Rock two years ago, it was 104 and I had to drive something like 130 miles. Now that was really brutal! Today is just a spring drive. Anyway, another fun day in the MG, had a great time. Can t wait for next year. PS: Nobody won anything, but we all went home winners. Photo by Mark Rue by Brian Martin Breakfast is always good. Getting to drive your MG to breakfast is even better. At least that is what a lot of our club members thought. Those that were at the start were Brad Peace, Jim Irland and friend Lynn, John and Chris Setar, David Horton, Tom Stuhldreher, Larry and Pam Rogers, Bryan Prindle, Mark and Debbie Rue, Hank Noble, Brian and Trish Martin, Peter and Theresa Hottenstein, John Cook, Norm Dick, Jim Faut and Jude, and Del and Connie Chambers. The weather was great. We had a little overcast to keep the heat off. After a few minutes of looking at each others cars and catching up with some members we had not seen in a while, we were headed out. We soon got out of the urban area and enjoyed a nice paced drive through the countryside along Cibolo Creek and farmland. It is a great sight to see all those MG s on one road. When we arrived at Picadillo s they had a large area reserved for us. The food was good and the chance to visit with each other even better. Photos by David Horton

Order a new MGBGT From Mat Mateco MGB now in production by Frontline, the long

, suspensions) --- they use a 2 liter Mazda engine --- MGB Heritage body shell --- even has A/C as an option saw a review of the car this week on Fifth Gear --- imagine a Miata that looks like an MGB.

frontlinedevelopments.com/products/le50/le50.shtmlspecifications.shtml Don Morley wins his class in the 1962 Monte Carlo Rally with an MGA 1600 MK II coupe.

Bizarre MG MGA (Monte Carlo Rally 1962) Diecast Model Car 1:43 scale Upcoming Events Sunday July 28th - Larry s Flip-Off Bar-B-Q Picnic Time & Location: 11 am, Harvest Hills, Marion, TX 78124

6 Order a new MGBGT From Mat Mateco MGB now in production by Frontline, the long time makers of high end racing parts for the cars (e.g., suspensions) --- they use a 2 liter Mazda engine --- MGB Heritage body shell --- even has A/C as an option saw a review of the car this week on Fifth Gear --- imagine a Miata that looks like an MGB. Apparently they buy a clunker B GT as the donor for registration purposes. It also has a 2012 Mazda 6 speed aluminium manual transmission. Visit Frontline s page here: Don Morley wins his class in the 1962 Monte Carlo Rally with an MGA 1600 MK II coupe. And how did I find this great looking rally car? Searching for a diecast model of an MGA for the web design art. Bizarre MG MGA (Monte Carlo Rally 1962) Diecast Model Car 1:43 scale Upcoming Events Sunday July 28th - Larry s Flip-Off Bar-B-Q Picnic Time & Location: 11 am, Harvest Hills, Marion, TX Directions: An will be sent out with directions. Hosts: Larry & Pam Rogers Contact: Bring your favorite covered dish or goodies if you would like to share them with everybody. Saturday August 17th - Moonlight Drive Depart from Luby s parking lot at Blanco and 1604 at 6:45. It is in the NE corner of that intersection. We will be going to Hillbillyz s out by Sisterdale on FM473 Saturday & Sunday September 28 & 29th - Texas All British Car Day Round Rock, TX at Settlers Park. Host: Hill Country Triumph Club. Events: Rally and Dinner Saturday, Car show Sunday 8 AM to 3 PM. Info at: or TXDMV Can Help you Buy a Used Car TXDMV Go to Title Check at This free online service from Texas Department of Motor Vehicles can tell you whether the vehicle s Texas title has any value-limiting remarks, such as flood damage or salvage. You will need the Vehicle Identification Number. Consider using a commercial vehicle history company for maintenance, accident repair and out of state title information. Thursday - Sunday October 10-13th - Fall Gathering of the Faithful (GOF) Host: Texas MG Registry, Dallas, Texas. Information & registration form: Saturday October 19th - AACOG 13th Annual Scenic Hills Cruise Time: Meet 8:30 AM, generally this is a prompt departure time, you might want to be early. Location: Rim in front of Bass Pro Shop. Info at: Travel: Boerne, Sisterdale, Fredericksburg, Old Tunnel RD & Wildlife Area This rally is going to be good! Don t miss it! Alamo MG Association Monthly Meeting First Tuesday of the month - Alamo MG Association monthly meeting at the Alamo Cafe U.S :30 PM for dinner - meeting starts at 7:30. Check our website at alamomg.org for other events & updates

President Brian Martin, 210.824.8441 FordA2@aol.com V.P. / Activities Bryan Prindle, 210.

7683 darianhenderson@sbcglobal.net Past President Larry Rogers, 210.497.

7 President Brian Martin, V.P. / Activities Bryan Prindle, bryanp@theisco.com Membership Chairwoman & Treasurer Pam Rogers, mgrollers@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor David Horton, zappageek@mac.com Webmaster Darian Henderson, darianhenderson@sbcglobal.net Past President Larry Rogers, mgrollers@yahoo.com FIRST CLASS TO: Alamo MG Association P.O. Box San Antonio, TX 78259

and led Jimmy to the prison office. There Jimmy was given an important He had been sent to prison to stay for four years.

O. H e n r y p IN THE PRISON SHOE-SHOP, JIMMY VALENTINE was busily at work making shoes. A prison officer came into the shop, and led Jimmy to the prison office. There Jimmy was given an important paper.