Blokko Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 Loire valley, are you going to be staying at Norm Verona's place?Good to finally meet Norman after many years of seeing his posts on BlatChat and conversing with him off list on a couple of different topics. Staying at the former residence of Richard in France of Caterham related carbon fibre accessories fame. This is a nice way to end my Caterham ownership (for now). The 7 goes up for sale as soon as I get back home - who knows what I'll end up running as my weekend fun car when I get out to Boston........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse D Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 I just joined this group, and understand an introduction is in order. Sometime in the winter of 64-65 I stood in the Lotus showroom in Manhattan looking at a Lotus 7 that was mounted sideways on the wall and took home all the literature I could. My efforts to convince my father that letting a fifteen year old assemble a kit car was a great idea completely failed, but the thought of having one of these cars has never gone, and 50 years later circumstances may finally allow me to complete the deal. Basically I'm looking for a car I can drive the back roads of Maine in, and maybe do a little auto crossing. I've spent a few days at Lime Rock with instruction. Targa Newfoundland is a fantasy. I'm working with Chris at Sevens and Elans as (I blame my father here) I'm not real strong at the technical side of these cars. I can fit in any Caterham (6' and 165 lbs.). Sailing is my primary recreation (I sail multihulls, which are the 7s of sailboats). Currently unmarried, but my daughter has no objections and my grandson will think one of these cars is cool (he is only 6, so won't want to drive it for a year or two). Trying to retire, but that means selling a small specific business to a very limited pool of buyers. I'm hoping to be able to get the group's help going forward- take pity on the new guy. I do understand that there is no controversy about the issue of which of these cars is the best- the consensus is Westfields, right? Jesse Deupree Portland Maine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wemtd Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 Welcome aboard Jesse If you haven't already, take a look at Crock's thread of used cars: there are lots of options out there. There is at least one other car in ME (near Bangor I think) so you're not alone. As to the debate, there isn't much controversy: any se7en is the best car. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 Jesse, Welcome to the group! Here amongst the crazy and insane, Westfields are often referred to as Westies; Caterhams, Cats; Birkins, handbags :jester: (sorry guys,couldn't resist); locosts, anything but; Stalkers, Storkers; etc. Lots of great guys on here with an abundance of knowledge and more than willing to help out. Good luck in your search and have fun along the way. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NVP66S Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 I'm not real strong at the technical side of these cars. I'm hoping to be able to get the group's help going forward- take pity on the new guy. I do understand that there is no controversy about the issue of which of these cars is the best- the consensus is Westfields, right? Jesse Deupree Portland Maine Jesse: Welcome to the madhouse. Of course the Westfield owners here agree the consensus is Westfields. :smilielol5:Seriously, there is hardly any consensus here other than any sevenesque car is incredibly fun to drive. One important question is whether you want to buy or build a car. The first statement I copied is your saying you're not real strong at the technical side. That seems to tilt the answer toward buying a car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnCh Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 I'm hoping to be able to get the group's help going forward- take pity on the new guy. I do understand that there is no controversy about the issue of which of these cars is the best- the consensus is Westfields, right? When Jesse was having trouble joining the forum, I helped him under the condition that he makes a post stating that Westfield makes the best se7en. Now before anyone jumps all over me claiming abuse of power (Croc), in my defense, this is the first time in my life that anyone has actually done what I've instructed. No one is more surprised by this post than me :jester: Oh, and welcome to the forum! -John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 LOL, John! Everyone on here knows that the absolute best Seven in the world is the one each of us owns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMike Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 :iagree:True that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusaNostra Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 (edited) "When Jesse was having trouble joining the forum, I helped him under the condition that he makes a post stating that Westfield makes the best se7en" I second to that & I collaborated on the condition ! although I know that Westfield high school has the best band in Massachusetts......lol (is that the right spelling) Edited October 5, 2014 by BusaNostra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Hill Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 Close enough... MA is MA, no matter how you misspell it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 When Jesse was having trouble joining the forum, I helped him under the condition that he makes a post stating that Westfield makes the best se7en. Now before anyone jumps all over me claiming abuse of power (Croc), in my defense, this is the first time in my life that anyone has actually done what I've instructed. No one is more surprised by this post than me :jester: John - They say power corrupts and absolute power is actually pretty neat. I love it! I would have done the same! Hi Jesse - Welcome to the forum! I used to live in Portland in the Old Port downtown and I get back there frequently to see friends. You have a great state in which to enjoy a seven in the 6 weeks that is known as "summer". You will find all of us quite ready to help you spend money on a seven, upgrades, etc! :seeya: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse D Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 Thanks to all for the welcome- it seemed appropriate to follow John's instruction as it seemed so gentle- on the sailing site I frequent the immediate response to anyone posting for the first time is "f** off and show us your wife's . . . ." which either drives people quickly away or gets them used to the nature of some of the talk. I'm expecting to buy a car, not build a kit. I'm trying to build a small boat for the grandsons, because I can handle wood and fiberglass, but two projects would be a bit much. With boats I'm happy sailing or working, with this car I'm focused on driving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted October 5, 2014 Share Posted October 5, 2014 "f** off and show us your wife's . . . ." Hey, if you are volunteering it saves me any impolite language! :jester: Just kidding - we are fairly gentlemanly on this site in spite of women never making an appearance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo MIke Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Thought I would introduce myself for the first post. I'm a technician (auto), and I'm an electrical engineering technology (EET) student, married with a crazy little boy. My plan is to have a seven kit in my garage next summer. Right now I'm trying to decide between a Westfield, GBS, or a Tiger. I want to use a Duratec-Merkur drivetrain, and have not yet found out if you can use Merkur parts in place of Sierra parts. I also plan on getting the wider kit with lowered floor, and need to do some brain picking to see if I can fit into one of these cars. I have size 12.5 foot (US), am 6' 2", and have a 33" inseam. Any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 (edited) Mike, Welcome aboard! You may be more of a purest, but have you considered a Stalker XL? Shane Edited October 14, 2014 by xcarguy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
locost7018 Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Welcome. Stalkers are nice cars. Where is Alden? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NVP66S Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 My plan is to have a seven kit in my garage next summer. Right now I'm trying to decide between a Westfield, GBS, or a Tiger. I want to use a Duratec-Merkur drivetrain, and have not yet found out if you can use Merkur parts in place of Sierra parts. I also plan on getting the wider kit with lowered floor, and need to do some brain picking to see if I can fit into one of these cars. I have size 12.5 foot (US), am 6' 2", and have a 33" inseam. Any thoughts? I have no information on the GBS or Tiger, but I can help on the Westie. Mine is the SEiW, and I'm pretty sure that all Westies come with the wide body now. I have a friend who is 6"1 and he rides to lunch with me most every day. No complaints. He's also driven it with no problems. His size 11 street shoes (OK, sneakers) also work fine. I have size 9.5 shoes and my regular street shoes are fine. Mine has a dropped floor, and it's about as low as you would want. I can put my finger tips on the ground outboard of the exhaust, and the seat retaining bolts bottom onto speed bumps more frequently than the oil sump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo MIke Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 I looked at the Stalker, but I have these visions of a modern British made Lotus 7 with ford power. Right now a Caterham is out of my price range. And I really want to build a car, so used is out of the question. And locost768, Alden is in Western New York. I do a lot of frame replacements at work, and the thought of stripping a donor car, and a big pile of parts, not to mention fairly light parts, has me pretty excited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anaximander Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 (edited) I have been meaning to introduce myself. I am the lucky owner of a blue M-Spec Stalker #000 that was owned by Glen and Scott Minehart. It has a L33 V8 with LS1 heads, 2000 Camaro 6-speed trans, Cadillac CTS rear end (3:42?). I have a wonderfully supportive wife who is tickled for me with the new car. No kids. I have been a hardcore amateur astronomer for the past 14 years with my largest telescope being a 32" f/3.6 Newtonian reflector at a dark site in Northwest Central Florida (Chiefland Astronomy Village). In 1966, I almost bought a 1962 or 1963 Lotus Super 7 but my father talked me out of it and instead offered me his 1964 Triumph TR4. I had a great time carving the canyons of Southern California (Tuna, Topanga, Malibu, Mulholland). Since that time, I have always wanted to get that missing 7. I did briefly own a 1972 Lotus Elan S2 when I was living in the SF Bay Area in 1978. Did do a stint from high-school until now with many high-performance and some lower performance motorcycles (about 90 of them) including such bikes as Yam R1, Hon VTR1000, Duc 748, etc. While looking at Caterhams and Birkins, I came across the Stalkers and found that their manufacturing facility was close by to me in St. Petersburg, Florida. Gave them a call, took a ride in the M-Spec Stalker and was frankly blown away by the performance of the V8 and more importantly the suspension. Long story made short, #000 arrived in my garage this past weekend. Have only had three brief opportunities to drive it but I can tell that there are many smiles/miles ahead of me. It now has a license plate and insurance so I can cruise around the hundreds of miles of country roads in North Florida/Southern Georgia. Plan to join the Dixie Chapter of SCCA and learn how to be a much better driver via x-cross. I have no illusions of taking 3rd in class with it at the Nationals like Scott did when he first built the car. Just want to have fun and enjoy the 7 experience that so many of you are already very familiar with. BTW, this is a great site for learning about all kinds of 7's. As someone said, they are ALL good. Bob Edited October 16, 2014 by Astro Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hey, Bob, Again, welcome to the world of Sevens. If you get a chance, you and Mario need to get together. He's over in Longboat Key and owns #142 with an LS1. X Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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