Abingdon Rough Rider Review May 2021 Vol. LXIV no.5 President Barry Swackhamer Vice President - Bob Alley Activities Coordinator Howard Shempp Secty/Treas/Newsletter Editor- Allan Chalmers Eminence Gris Bill Traill Web Master Rick Storms West Marin Run Sunday May 16 There was a lack of response for this run in April and then it was also raining, so let’s try again in May to do the Marin coastal run Meet at Larkspur Landing parking area, leave at 10AM Hills should hopefully still be green Please let me know if you will be there Allanchalmers(at)yahoo(dot)com Our web site - abingdonroughriders (dot) org
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Abingdon Rough Rider Review
May 2021 Vol. LXIV no.5
President
Barry Swackhamer
Vice President -
Bob Alley
Activities Coordinator
Howard Shempp
Secty/Treas/Newsletter Editor-
Allan Chalmers
Eminence Gris
Bill Traill
Web Master
Rick Storms
West Marin Run Sunday May 16
There was a lack of response for this run in April and then it was also
raining, so let’s try again in May to do
the Marin coastal run
Meet at Larkspur Landing parking area, leave at 10AM
Hills should hopefully still be green
Please let me know if you will be there
Allanchalmers(at)yahoo(dot)com
Our web site - abingdonroughriders (dot) org
Coming Events
Saturday June 5 Sonoma/Napa Tour, Betz Miller
Sunday July 11 Marin Bodega run, Storms
Sunday August 1 Sausage Run Stobbes
Sunday September 12 Marin Headlands, Tucks
October 2-4 Conclave in Cambria
Sunday November 28 Annual Dinner, Basque Cultural Center, Linda Chalmers
Weekend December 11,12 Holiday Party Healdsburg, Taylors
Other Events
Gathering of the Faithful, Mt Hood Oregon July 26 – 29
See the website for plenty of details
El Presidente
Our beloved leader is gallivanting around in the RV, so we’ll have to wait for his message to the masses
2021 Conclave Conclave 2021 is scheduled for Saturday October 2 to Monday
morning October 4. After several years being in SLO & Morro
Bay, we are returning to Cambria and the Bluebird Inn. Rooms
are being held until August 15th as listed below. Please call and
make your reservation referencing “TC Motoring Guild” for
group rate. I hope by fall we will be comfortable to have a group
Walt Prowell, who has re-joined the ARR after buying Pat Marcotte’s TC, has sold his two other TCs; one to
Daniel Harrison of Woodland Hills, the other to Doug Pelton, of From The Frame Up.
The former was moved out of its long term storage in Antioch, CA, Saturday, April 24. The team of movers
consisted of: Walt, your editor, Norman Tuck, Daniel and his friend, also Daniel, from Woodland Hills in
Southern Cal, Joel Taylor of Reno, Steve and Linda Simmons of thousand Oaks and the TC Motoring Guild.
The whole move went remarkably smoothly. The two Daniels pumped up the tires, the wheels were free and
the parking brake worked, so the car rolled onto Joel’s trailer without incident.
The car had been sitting for about 35 years and was “running when parked” as the saying goes. Daniel got a
nice car, needing “refreshing”. Bob Alley is getting a scuttle.
Steve bought the extra body that Walt had bought to repair the other stored car, which had been seriously t-
boned many years ago. Next month will be the move of that car to Arizona.
Walt says goodbye to “Red”
Joel Taylor and Daniel and Norman
All hands on deck
Its new owner and new home - Oh my, doesn’t it look good?
From Mike Sherrell in OZ: xpag crossflow alloy head
The other day some interesting information arrived from TC owner John Canty, in the UK.
He has an 8 port, alloy, crossflow, XPAG head made by Robert Cowell (later Roberta Cowell!), the origins of
which are unknown to me, but in 1954 Mike Costin acquired one while working with Colin Chapman on the
Lotus 8, Frank Costin’s first streamliner SAR 5. The original heads had a small ‘Cowell’ cast in the side, but the
Chapman ones did not! John came across the head at a motor spares place when he went looking for a pair of SU air rams. We could be
so lucky! His head does not have the ‘Cowell’ cast in, so it might be a Chapman one. John was a TC racer
(TC/1403) back in the days when TCs filled the grids in UK. He could have done with the head then!
The story gets more intriguing: with the letters and photos John sent me, came a photocopy of a letter addressed
to him from Keith Duckworth himself (of Cosworth Engineering) dated 10/05/91. In it he outlines some of the
history of these heads, and it goes like this: “ It was Mike Costin who was with Colin Chapman at the time – 1954 – He had just returned from holiday.
They used a crossflow aluminium head, which was made by Robert Cowell – who incidentally became Roberta
Cowell by the assistance of the odd operation or two. Some heads had a small COWELL cast on the side of the
head. The Lotus had not got the Cowell name (and we all know why!) Had a leak from pushrod hole to exhaust
port, which Mike Costin lined with a copper tube. Mike and I think the heads were very rare… Best wishes
Keith Duckworth” Looking at the photos one can see the spark plugs have been shifted to the off side to be with the four individual
inlets and enter the (minimal) combustion chambers over the inlet valves. There appears to be little or no water
flow block to head and minimal oil drain head to block. One can only guess at the compression ratio (high) and
it would be pretty difficult to blow a head gasket with all that flat area. Exhaust ports are round as are the inlets.
The whole design looks very appealing, pity they are so rare. I believe these heads may be the source of some confusion over the Laystall Lucas alloy heads, sometimes
thought of as crossflow heads, which they were not. I would like to thank John Canty for going to trouble and
expense to share this interesting bit of XPAG history with us. Almost as interesting as the heads themselves is the story of Robert Cowell, who later became Roberta Cowell
after a series of operations, becoming a forerunner in the story of gender change. It’s worth looking up
Robert/Roberta Cowell on line: Spitfire pilot, racing driver, talented engineer and pioneering transgender
person, just a bit ahead of ‘her’ time.
Michael Sherrell
April 2021
(Do look up Robert/Roberta Cowell – Quite a story!)
TA Terry’s TC is still for sale
His son Andrew visited and gave it a once over and a drive. Here are some of the details from the late
Bill Phy who began the restoration:
Another car for sale
After 33 fond years, Mimi and I realized it’s not getting too
old for us, we’re getting too old for it.
It’s not a show car, it’s a venerable driver (original factory
black paint) but with redone interior and top by Joe Namnam
(Jaguar biscuit leather) and matching carpets by Little John,
new chrome, rebuilt wheels (stainless spokes, powder coated
silver-grey rims and hubs) with five new Blockley tyres. Its
cosmetic appearance is top-notch, (except for weathered
driver’s door and bonnet top).
In order to keep up with today’s traffic, I built a second
engine: late parts, bored and sleeved to 1500cc, reusing only
the original crank and rods (the testing lab said they’re fine).
With five new Blockley tyres. Its cosmetic appearance is top-notch, (except for weathered driver’s door and
bonnet top).
In order to keep up with today’s traffic, I built a second engine: late parts, bored and sleeved to 1500cc, reusing
only the original crank and rods (the testing lab said they’re fine). With 9:1 compression, a stock late cam and
many improvements to reduce parasite drag, and to improve safety (Datsun 240Z finned drums.) It is quite
quick.
Included are the original engine parts, MG manuals, and onboard tools. $29,000 fob Newport Beach
(The Glasses are old friends and members of the TC Motoring Guild. His engine is sleeved to 1500 by the
same shop that did mine. Makes quite a difference on the road)
Doug Pelton’s From The Frame Up does a rare TB Tickford
From the Frame Up
completed a fantastic
TB Tickford restoration
and decided to make an
event of the delivery to
the owners at an Open
House.
Bill & Debra Gardner
from Florida were very
surprised to see the
crowd as they took the
keys and heard about
some of the history.
Only 379 TBs were
manufactured and of
those, only 57 bore the
Tickford drophead
body. This TB0264 was
the very first TB
Tickford
A couple of TCs for sale in the Bay Area
In Alameda, a cream and brown TC is being sold by the son of the late owner. Asking $30K
(510) 988 9671
Another son of a late owner is parting with this two tone TC. Bill Raynor 510 557 1502
Lots of cars for sale. We need more young people to carry on! My grandsons hopefully will!
Clark Mason is keeping the
NA! The NA did not meet the reserve,
and he has had a change of heart.
and will hang onto it.
But he is looking for a TC!
Hey look Clark, three listed here!
I can vouch for the one in
Newport Beach and Terry’s–
don’t know about the others.
From Steve Simmons of the TC Motoring Guild A few recent inquiries from another group about the track rod modification I did a couple years ago, as seen in an article I did for our newsletter at the time, have pushed me to finally update the article with more info, part numbers, etc. If interested, it can be found here: