Just for Kicks: My 100th Post

This is just for kicks, to commemorate my 100th post. I took the photo above and just wanted to share it. Something about the lure of a Police Interceptor is enough to tempt any red-blooded hot rodder. Enjoy! (And yes, I know you know all the words to this movie, and you know who you are!)

Mmmm...cop motor...



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A Day to Myself

I got a lot done in the garage today, because I gave myself the gift of a day without obligations, except to work on the hot rod. Before I rattle off the day's progress, I have to share these pics from this week's military vehicles show. This is apparently the big deal version of the one I attended last September. For just $70(!) you could buzz unsuspecting fishermen in the Delta in this Huey helicopter (model unknown); I suppose you probably could've added the "Ride of the Valkyries" for additional cost, judging by crowd at the show. While it would've been a memorable experience, $70 was a little dear.



Let's see, starting at about 9am and ending about 10pm (with my feet kicked up, as seen above), I got the following done today:

1. Installed the flywheel, clutch disc and pressure plate.


It's a 9-1/2" clutch, from '49-'53 Mercury (maybe Ford, too; not sure). This was easy, and I got to use my torque wrench for maybe the first time (yeah, really; I guess I haven't had to assemble anything to spec so far). Also got to use my safety wire and pliers to wire up the flywheel bolts. I used this tech post at the Jalopy Journal to help me do it right. Compare the before photo with my work. I feel pretty good about mine.



2. Based upon two friends' recommendations, I pried out the (apparently) steel "freeze plugs" or "expansion plugs" (take your pick) from the oil pan rail, and started to drive pennies (pre-'83 only, though, because they're still 95% copper, 5% zinc. After that, they're mostly copper clad zinc.) into the openings, but they were filled with a hard, clay gunky stuff. You can imagine my disappointment when my friend confirmed that, yes, I should remove that junk - it's 68 years' worth of sediment clogging up the bottom of the water jacket, and would likely cause a hot spot if not removed.

So, with picks, and awls, and reamers, I went at the four openings, tipping the motor this way and that, to get probably two cups' worth of crap out of that motor. The weird thing was that, since the flathead has two separate water jackets, one side was dusty, powdery dry rust, and other side was silty, moist mush-like mud. Ugh. To add to my troubles, there was still water in one side of the motor, which poured out when I tipped it forward.



The good news is I can feel guilt free about Permatexing up the pennies and driving them home once I could no longer get stuff out of the water jackets by tool or air pressure (which got a bunch out, too).


3. To round out the day, I finally brazed up the oil pan, and it was easier than I'd been fearing. In fact, it was almost as easy as falling off a log. I just cleaned up the hole (getting that nice flammable oil away), set the torch, and heated and melted in the brass. Alas, safety first, so I didn't try to take any "action" shots with the torch, but you can see the results. Then, for good measure, I got to exercise another tool for the first time: my DA (no, not the haircut, the tool) dual-action or orbital sander, with 80 grit (wasn't sure what to use, but that worked fine for grinding down my (admittedly) lumpy brass and shaping it to the pan. Then I leak-tested it with some solvent and, satisfied that it didn't leak, cleaned up the spot and set the pan aside until I'm ready to install it.



After all that work, I decided it was time to have some pizza and beer, to put my feet up, and read a little bit out in the garage in the very pleasant evening weather we had today.

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For a Friend

Kind of a bittersweet post tonight. Not car related, except it concerns a friend of mine; one of my cranky old man hot rod friends: my friend who lives in Oakieville, from whom I got the double pulley.

He called me the other day ostensibly to let me know about a four banger hill climb coming up this month, but I know he was really looking for a ride as much as a buddy to go see it with. That's OK, he knows I'd dig it, and I don't mind driving us. Unfortunately, I told him, I can't go because I've got a schedule conflict.

But, here's where I feel even more conflicted: later in the conversation, he tells me they've found what might be cancer in him, and he has to get a biopsy next month. My heart dropped. I felt terrible, and am worried the cancer will get him. And he's a great guy, and someone with whom I really get along well. And he's got volumes of car, not just flathead, knowledge rattling around in his brain.

While I was initially concerned, I got even more worried this might be serious when he tells me he had some guys come by his place to take away all the "junk," which included probably a half dozen flathead engines and blocks, including the complete, running-when-pulled motor the pulley came from, and the raised intake block I found. Besides the engines were pulleys, water pumps, pans, you name it, including one or two four banger blocks. I asked if these fellas were gonna go through and sell the stuff. He said, no, they took it all away, about a ton's worth, as scrap. Scrap.

Ugh, I thought, why would he have someone haul all of this away for scrap? Unless, he just needed to get it out of there now. Before it's too late. I don't know what was or is going through his mind, but to get rid of all that stuff in that way seems so unlike him. So you can bet I'll be visiting my friend soon, and seeing if I can't work out my schedule conflict and take him to that banger meet.

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Some Progress to Report

Spent a good part of the day and night in the garage. Got the following done, some with pictures.

1. Mocked up the fan in the chassis with the mock-up block and my intake and generator. Did this mostly for kicks while I was waiting for some advice from my uncle before proceeding with installing the pilot bushing in the flywheel. No pics, but I was able to spin the fan and see it clears by 3/4" at a minimum, and I can center it in the radiator or raise or lower depending upon what I need; plenty of room.


2a. Oakie-honed the clutch release bushings, because they were too tight for the clutch release shaft to rotate easily. Did this by wrapping emory cloth around an undersized shaft (brass drift punch) and spun it in the bushings. Kept checking the shaft until she rotated easily. Reassembled the release shaft and fork, with a bolt and nut, instead of the peened-over pin from the factory. (The bushings are the golden colored bands (bronze?) supporting either end of the shaft; you can barely see the edge of them in the photo.)


2b. Filed the square head on the drain plug, so I can remove it with my "universal" Ford wrench from Vern Tardel. It fit the fill plug, but not the drain plug, so what to do? File it until it fits! (I shot and posted the pic at top of the gears because I'm not sure I ever posted one when I installed the new (to me) cluster gear and low-reverse slider gear months ago.)

3. Mocked up the front shocks with another pair of Ford F-1 pickup truck front shock mounts. These were already bent to be lower by leaning forward. I already have a stock set, but they stand pretty tall. My friend let me borrow these to see how they'd fit. I like the way they look, but not certain how they'll fit around the headlight stands I'm considering. Once mounted this way, though, I had some interference with the castellated nuts on the spring shackle (see second photo).



4. Finally installed the pilot bushing (the bronze bushing in the center of the flywheel). Can't recall if I wrote last week that I polished the flywheel and pressure plate, but you can see that in the photo below, too.


Won't get out to the garage tomorrow, as it's Easter, so church in the morning, and family "brunch" in the afternoon.

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Oil Pan Fix Pt. 1

Unremarkable title tonight. Too bushed from work to be creative. The day job, that is. Good news is I have so much vacation time I'm required to use by the end of the fiscal year that I'm taking every Friday off (alternating with my 9-80 Fridays off) through July 4th weekend. Yeah. "Hot Rod Boot Camp," as my GF says.

Here's the quick update, with just a couple pictures. More coming later. Forgot to take the "after" pictures when the pan was out in the sun. Had beautiful weather last weekend, so dragged the oil pan out and cleaned it up (the little residual oil and sludge that was in it) with some Gunk Engine Brite and Off Oven Cleaner (hey, whatever does the trick). Don't ask where the runoff went.

Here's the hole Pick-n-Pull punched in it to drain the oil. Hard to tell scale here, but I can easily fit the end of my pinkie finger in there.



After cleaning the pan, I proceeded to very clumsily pry and pound away at the puncture with a combination of screwdriver, awl, and eventually pick hammers and a heavy body spoon. Did a halfway decent job of cleaning up the metal and flattening it out from the inside. Next, I'll break out the torch and try to relearn brazing to close up the hole. Will probably practice on some junk metal first, to get the hang of it, then just go for it.

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