missingsid
-
Posts
3,088 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
9
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Gallery
Blogs
Posts posted by missingsid
-
-
Looks to be in proportion to the vehicle though
-
IIRC Yes towing dolly trailer should only be used to transport to a place of safety or repair, but the AA use them with thier patrol vans to recover cars to members homes or to a garage for repair, they [AA] must have a exemption for that use. this is similar to the latest AA kit http://www.aframes.co.uk/
this may be of interest to all
Interseting thread, but now very confused!
If it is all illegal then how come the link to a company specialising in A frames? If it aint leagal then how do they have a business?
-
I think you might be over-estimating the protection a patent offers!
In any case a patent will only stand up if you have the resources to defend it. There are no "no win no fee" solicitors for IPR disputes! I know of one company who developed a device that many of us own who patented it worldwide. It was copied and they spent almost $100k defending it. They lost - because the copy was a different colour and it was ruled that this was a significant innovation (made it less of a trip hazard).
It may be that they did not draft the original patent sufficiently well - or it may be that if you put your mind to it you can wriggle out of most patents with a few small or cosmetic changes.
It costs roughly £4000 for a UK patent. Considering the above you have to be very sure the market is big enough to get your money back - and in the 4x4 world there are few products, no matter how innovative that are.
I have taken out a few European Design Registrations and registered the odd trade mark which protect the appearance of a product rather than its mechanism. I believe this offers better protection in a lot of cases and only costs a few hundred quid.
Scorpion are not alone in this, but the MO of the company is to buy a few of an item off a manufacturer and see how fast it sells. At the same time, investigate whether it can be manufactured more cheaply. If it passes on both counts, they will continue to sell the original for a cross-over period gradually moving over to their copy. That way, the original manufacturer is unaware and as Steve said Scorpion benefit directly from their marketing.
Also the final order to the manufacturer will be fairly big. They will withold payment for as long as they can on this. The supplier does not want to rock the boat too much in case they loose the money even if they do realise what is happening.
Most of what they sell is copied off other companies or individuals. The things that are not (ARB's & Ashcroft drives for example) are just too specialist and difficult to manufacture to bother with for the sales volume. Others do not have the sales volume or profit margin to make it worthwhile.
You can take a hard nosed "business" attitude and say if they have not protected themselves they deserve it - but I personally do not believe it is ethical.
I think "Iron Goat" who make plastic defender dash inserts and the chap who makes the gas-strut bonnet stays should watch out! But I suspect the die is already cast.
Si
P.S. This way, they can also pass on warranty claims to the original manufacturer - who until they find out what is happening, blindly honours them. "I bought this at a show, there were no instructions, it's broken and I want a new one" kind of thing.
Si,
I agree with your views, a friend of mine made a product that he applied US, UK and european patents to.
Later he found a major US manufacturer copying his product exactly and using his statements around it's benifits. Trouble was he was a small company and whilst he could afford to fight in the UK and maybe Europe it was far to costly to win in the US. This left hin in a position where his loyal supporters would by from him and tell their mates, the rest bought the US product! Sound familiar?
As for the Land-Rover Jeep argument, the whole manufacturing policy for Post War Japan was based on buy one copy it sell lots.
First Kawasaki -BSA A5 / A10 copy, IIRC some early Jeep axle parts will fit a Suzuki 4x4?
-
I'll take a large please if they're still going?
But it will have to be VERY good to make me look cooool
Cheers
-
Wolfrace made a better version with a hex socket in the cap so you can garuntee to get them off again, plus they were not quite flush as they had a hex bolt head on the outside so you could do them up tight.
Looked at the ones shown in the pic above and took them back with out using them they were very poor compaired to the Wolfrace ones.
I ran Wolfrace for 2 years on my M5 BMW with no probs. During fitting I used Loctite on the threads first.
-
Whilst working for RACAL building FFRs and Portable Earth Stations we used Slik Sceen printing for the repeated jobs and Letraset covered with clear lacquer over the top.
Done right it looks preaty much the same.
Looking at photo it does look like it has been Letraset and lacquered, also looks like you are aquiring bits of old telephone exchange!!
-
I guess the moral is avoid the cheapo ones. Buy them from a specialist who is staking their reputation on them being good. Also, Luxon LED's are about as good as it gets technology wise at the moment.
Si
I have been interested in these but just recently i have noticed a number of BMW 3 Series Coupes with a third of the LEDs failed!
As it is unlikely that off road damage is to blame I guess they are flawed as a maintenance free solution?
At the moment I am trying to see what they use now as the new cars do not seem to be LED but also do not have removable fittings to enable bulb changes?
-
Got Wolf/XD wheels on my 110, see picture, they are 6.5jx16x20.6mm available in tube [anr5593] & tubeless [anr4583] form & have replaced the earlier heavy duty wheels as fitted to 127/130's, IIRC these have a inset of 20.6mm.
the earlier 6.5LX16 rims are anr1534 rivetted construction only to be fitted with tubes.
Looking at your photo, the studs look a little short? Were they like that with the other wheels?
Normaly you'd expect them to be longer than the nuts unless they were double ended nuts.
Or is this a LR cost saving by ignoring standard practice of 1 1/2 threads sticking out?
I'm used to RRC steel wheel hubs and Series hubs so maybe i'm out of date!
-
Hmm,
Yes past tense it only got to join two Land Rovers together the once!
It doesn't have any flexy pipe just not attached to the body very well so it floats abit in the middle.
The bit about the bent clutch arm, does this happen often? I know about the chip fat engine problem of the arm breaking through but not that the arm on an LT95 can bend?
Picture of one would be great
Thanks for the help.
-
A month ago I got in my V8 LT95 fitted hybred and the clutch peadal went down to the floor!
I gave it a few pumps and had a clutch again. A week later and the same thing happened, only this time I could not get it back.
My first thought was cylinder seals. So off I went and got new seals, pulled the master cylinder and slave and duely changed them.
No change pedal still goes to the floor!
Next I got a second slightly newer spare master cylinder and pulled out the pedal box etc. to change it, but still using the innards fom the other as it had the new seals.
Guess what pedal still goes to the floor.
Sooo, now I use the Easi Bleed again only this time I forget to take it off when I try the pedal. Hurrah clutch works!!
Oh hang on take the Easi Bleed off, pedal to floor.
Now I put a short blocked pipe on the master cylinder rather than the pipe to the slave cylinder, loads of pressure on the pedal.
Run out of time leave it to next weekend.
Eventually after taking everthing off the landy and trying it on the bench (OK on the bonnet) I notice that the slave piston is only moving 3/4 of the distance of the cylinder and retracting after each stroke.
Having checked the clutch actuating rod on the gearbox I decide that the piston is not getting anyway near far enough to even start moving the clutch!
So after a Litre of brake fluid and two weekends, it wasn't the cylinders it is excessive pedal travel from a worn out clutch.
Short term fix add a second piston (spare after using the seal fix kit) as there is no rod adjustment to the slave cylinder and whoopee the clutch now works again
Long term I need a new clutch soon as the plates are not as thick as they were.
I started to blame LR for poor design that the slave cylinder travel runs out before the clutch is worn out but with more thought and I realise that it is more likely that the problem is due to the mod of making RR Classic pedals fit a Series body!
-
Wot I heard was that an unplugged sensor is not heated and will DIE
As for Brass being easier to drill out isn't it is harder?
-
This is a very interesting thread as I am looking for a low profile servo (ie fits under bonnet) for my series hybred, I have RRC twin pipe 4 pot calipers on the front, will early Def work for this? If so is there a spare set left on this thread after Fridge and how much?
Cheers,
-
Every now and again I get the same vibration in my hybred.
Last time was driving to Billing after stopping to help someone. Got to Billing and thought oops I'm about to lose the gearbox so chose not to drive the offroad course. Going home I realised that it was due to the handbrake. Doh
-
"5 Anything not capable of carrying more than 4 adults"
This would ban my Series 1
-
I suspect the issue was you were not on your way to a pre-booked MOT and just driving it after you had purchased it, all be it you may have been going directly home but that I suspect does not count.
Otherwise if it is a blanket offence you would be stuffed if you SORN a car and it's MOT expires, because you then couldn't tax it because it doesn't have an MOT and you couldn't drive it to an MOT because it wasn't taxed catch 22
Even in 'Blair's barmy Britain' things haven't I don't think gone that bonkers..... have they????
I keep waiting for the day your have to trailer a motor to the MOT, it can't be far awwy
-
When I had a little enforced chat to the boys in blue about my newly purchased car and SORN, the reply was it is an offence to drive a vehicle on the road that is subject to a SORN period!
As I have two vehicles on a SORN that I will wish to return to the road, I am very interested in how this topic comes out?
-
No, i tried that, the trouble is each piston on its own isnt quite enough to lock the wheel, i ended up plumbing both pistons and that works great.
Ah good info cheers that will save me doing that then
Watching motors with fiddles it looks really easy to lock em up, but I guess with big diameter grippy tyres it all makes sense.
What happens if you air down the tyres is there a high risk of losing a tyre?
-
Might be the photo or my eyesight buut, the roof line where the roof meets the side don't look straight to me?
Mind you without a bar you would not have driven it home!
-
Couldn't you use RRC 4 pot front calipers (or is this why 90 fronts was suggsted)?
Then you have one piston for the foot brakes and one for the fiddle brake?
-
The mamual says to use a gas anyliser, I bought one, the range doesn't help set it so I now watch for the smoke.
I keep a small srew driver in the motor so I can change it.
Put a dot or line of paint on the screwheads so you can turn them equally. With out this I could not work out how much I had turned them.
-
what % of drivers does the current 1.6mill represent?
how much will it raise, in yet another gov tax. what % of the population will be paying for the rest to have roads to use their O so great bus service
how many of us will be out of work and on state benifit as a result?
This gov run by Brown and his shadow realy do **** me off
After a couple of years of trying to get work (I live smack bang in he centre for the Telecommunications Industry which was wiped out by T Blair's greed) I have finally managed to, survive Cancer, keep my house and stay sane.
My new job however is 50 miles around the M25 so now my new job is at risk of being uneconomical due to another Blair Tax
-
PI 55 OFF or P 155 OFF always personal favorites, as is PEN 1 S.
Thought of that, this is a legal number (age related) P155 OFF however funnily it has never been issued
-
Some years ago i walked passed a house which had matching identical Capri's (told you it was some time a go) anyway what got my attention was the fact the both identical cars had identical number plates! One car I believe was an old style Irish or Northern Ireland plate that used a Z to match a 2 in the English plate?
Looked really cool though
-
Mighty purdy gluing
Running up a V8 on an engine stand
in International Forum
Posted
Did the same with a Series 1 2.0ltr on the floor.
Mind you that has a very flat and thick sump.
As it had a carb I just poured in some petrol, no water or exhaust connnected.
10 sec or less to show it running.
On the floor it can't go far, on a stand it I guess it needs to be very stable?