Tales Of A Mercenary Mechanic

[Bowtiepower00]

You work on some seriously cool shit. Props to your vast amount of knowledge and ability.

 

[monkeyswrench]

You work on some seriously cool shit. Props to your vast amount of knowledge and ability.

Thank you. I have been real lucky in learning the old car stuff from old guys when I was younger. I liked the stuff, but couldn't afford to pay someone. A lot of the guys that showed me stuff were in their 70s already, but were kind enough to share knowledge.. Over the years, I started amassing tools. Some new, some used...some weird. Over the past few years, I really started "upgrading"...they should outlast me now. The working on farm or heavy stuff, kind of came along by accident. The older stuff, maybe pre-2000, is kind of primitive, like old cars. Bigger wrenches and heavier parts, but same ol' thing.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Recent stuff on 34. Decided to tackle the roof insert. Main reason, never done one, let alone with old school material, and this way I screw up I have some time to figure it out.
First step, old chicken wire. Harvested from one of our coops, because the new stuff is super bright zinc finish

In that perimeter trough, there were still nails from the original. I trimmed out just enough underneath the outer edges to catch the wire. The nails go into something like modern seam sealer...only this stuff's petrified.

This is looking at the roof from the inside after I laid the canvas down. It's been stained with coffee to get it dingy and old.

On top of the canvas would have been jute type padding...I don't have any. I used craft foam, and tapered the edges with a razor.

Now, this is when things get weird...This is a top taken from a car over 80 years old. My buddy in Georgia sent me this for this project.
Up next: profanity, anger, pain...and maybe triumph!

 

[monkeyswrench]

I cut the material larger than I needed, and laid it on, and taped down for it to hopefully take on it's new shape. The tack strip is there just for re checking.

Now came the profanity and anger portion...Remember when I said the stuff was petrified? Well, some nails held, others bent. Not what was needed. This also meant the trim metal needs to both retain the top, and be held in with something other than nails.

So, went and picked up a bunch of 4/40x 1.25 screws with nuts and lock washers. The heads had to be flat sided to fit in the retainer groove. I then drilled holes in the body. Probably less scary than swinging a hammer at it though.

Not show quality, but fits the car as an old hot rod. Definitely something different.

 

[monkeyswrench]

No problems, just solutions:
It would appear Henry was creative, and got a deal on some weird hardware. The fuel fitting into the carb is the equivalent to a 5/16 male flare, compression union deal. BUT, the line is a 1/4"...No one local has them. I have a time issue...

I found these at Ace, 5/16th flare to whatever pipe. The left was the guinea pig. Chopped the pipe end off, counter sank the male to "identify" as a female for a farrel, and drilled the center out to accept 1/4" line.

These are the pieces for the sub assembly.

These end up connecting the inlet on the carbs to the elbow and T fittings that are 1/4" compression, and down to the fuel pump...that has the same weird fitting.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Back at it, but in no particular order. Waiting on plug wire to do my looms, and also a new generator looking alternator. So, filling in blank space here and there.

Got the dash polished, somewhat together and in, along with new pigtails for the cowl lamps. Also found some windshield garnish moldings. Beat them straight and painted them. The header panel, above the windshield, is mostly light surface rust and flecks of black. It looks light tan in the pic though. I decided not to paint it. Originally it would have been cloth covered, and there are still bits underneath the visor mounts. This was a "deluxe" model. 2 horns, cowl lights and two pivoting visors. A standard would have had 1 visor that hinged down, and an optional on for the passenger side.

When rewiring the cowl lamp, had a small issue. A tiny rivet holds the spring steel clip to the retainer. The hook side goes beneath the lip on the rim, the flat side presses against the reflector. When I went to pop this one together, it popped off, shearing the rivet. Luckily, I found the clip! It ended up with a tiny screw and nut, had no rivets close, and the holes proximity to the edges made drilling it larger impossible.

This was quitting time...about 1am Sunday morning. Heater had run out of heat about 10:30, and it was struggling to keep it at 48...it was F'n cold outside! Insulated coveralls, thermals and a beanie...still had to call it. I need to insulate the roll up doors, not that the rest of the building is great, but the doors have nothing.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Ok, need to get the floor in...but still needed to do my chatter rod adapter for the late motor in the early chassis. So, tonight's fun...

What we have here is a piece of 1/4" angle, and a round sleeve/heavy wall tube. I carved a tapered radius in the front edge to give me the angle I needed. I welded it with a few passes to build it up, so I could grind it so it'll look cast when painted.

The early blocks had an ear cast in them that this would pass through. What it does is keep the motor from being pushed forward by the rear-end under acceleration. These cars had a single buggy spring in back, and an enclosed drive shaft attached to the transmission. If it doesn't have something to keep the motor from moving, as you let out the clutch the rear end pushes everything forward, changing the geometry and letting the clutch out faster...thus the "chatter".

 

[monkeyswrench]

Ok, tired, but cruising along. Owner sent a care package of "stuff". Another one shipped today, but I digress. The guy switched from 6v to 12v. Sent a Powermaster generator deal. "Bolt on"...my ass. The intake manifold interfered with placement, as their rear casting was not like the stock one.

The body hit the acorn nut at bottom, and the weird flare rubbed the manifold, keeping it forward. Not to be deterred by some cast aluminum, I reshaped it.

With belt on and tensioned where it should be, just barely!

So, then to the next hurdle. The necks on the radiator had been changed, and the previous owner...probably in the 60's...had flex hoses. Oh hell no, not on this. Needed some formed hose bends, and some pipes. The angles are more extreme than the normal flathead kits and hoses, so had to figure it out. What I've done in the past was use the muffler tubing sticks from an auto parts store. 18" catalytic "deletes". Needed 1.5"

For the bends, I used two sbc lower hoses, cut the ends off of each. Easy peasy... Went to the parts house, and then another, and another...5 stores in total. 0, zip, nada! Well shit. Went to Ace hardware. I usually go with black painted steel, but this doesn't look bad.

Somewhere in there, also made some plug wires and got the looms mounted, and made a coil bracket. On this pic, you can see the factory wiring harness, and how it goes into the plug wire looms. The plug wire is a woven, shellac cover, and the plug ends are actual old Rajah ones. These were from the 40's and 50's, but they reproduce them now.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Well then, my intentions to deliver the car this weekend went to hell in record fashion. I finished wiring the car, and made some modifications. Put everything back together, including putting in an original glove box...90yo fuzzy lined cardboard. Fired up the motor after messing with stuff, got it dialed in a bit...
And then the starter took a dump.
Couldn't be the starter, fresh rebuild, only used for the run stand by the engine builder. Bypassed the factory floor mount starter switch, wired in a solenoid...
Yeah, it was the starter. F' me...found one in my stuff, swapped it out.
Ok, I'll test and load it Sunday afternoon, no problem...

Well, the car likes it here. Running it, heating it up, ready to drive. Put my foot in the clutch, and it sounded like hammers in a blender.

Tore the floor back out, and looked in the inspection cover...

The centrifugal weights contact the housing...Apparently, an early case cannot fit a 10" disc. I've always done 39 boxes, this is a stock 34...
So, dug through more stuff, found some stuff in my personal stash. NOS, and really fairly rare, but for a good cause...

These are Zephyr gears, taller first a second...vintage dry lakes stuff. Found a case and a shift tower too.

Built another transmission tonight, err, last night? My head's about to explode.
Tomorrow I'll swap the trans out, and try this again.
Adapt and overcome...

 

[lenmann]

That's an impressive inventory of "stuff" you have there, not many people that can pull those kind of parts off the shelf.

Endeavor to persevere...

 

[monkeyswrench]

That's an impressive inventory of "stuff" you have there, not many people that can pull those kind of parts off the shelf.

Endeavor to persevere...

My "stockpile" is getting pretty low these days. I sold and hustled stuff over the years, starting in my teens. It was go-fast stuff then. In my 20's, I got into early cars, and started picking up early speed stuff. Over the years, I'd sell stuff to eat or make house payments. As the sun sets with the people who really know what this stuff is, it's doesn't bring the money it would have 10 years ago. Timing was right, and the parts I had helped me survive the last downturn. These parts are going for a good cause now, and this time I'm more prepared for a downturn...it all works out in the end. I'd rather this set of Zephyr gears go into a friends car, than collect dust on a shelf...they've been "resting" the past 80 years. Time they get a job

 

[ltbaney1]

Ok, tired, but cruising along. Owner sent a care package of "stuff". Another one shipped today, but I digress. The guy switched from 6v to 12v. Sent a Powermaster generator deal. "Bolt on"...my ass. The intake manifold interfered with placement, as their rear casting was not like the stock one. View attachment 1080041
The body hit the acorn nut at bottom, and the weird flare rubbed the manifold, keeping it forward. Not to be deterred by some cast aluminum, I reshaped it. View attachment 1080042
With belt on and tensioned where it should be, just barely!

So, then to the next hurdle. The necks on the radiator had been changed, and the previous owner...probably in the 60's...had flex hoses. Oh hell no, not on this. Needed some formed hose bends, and some pipes. The angles are more extreme than the normal flathead kits and hoses, so had to figure it out. What I've done in the past was use the muffler tubing sticks from an auto parts store. 18" catalytic "deletes". Needed 1.5"

For the bends, I used two sbc lower hoses, cut the ends off of each. Easy peasy... Went to the parts house, and then another, and another...5 stores in total. 0, zip, nada! Well shit. Went to Ace hardware. I usually go with black painted steel, but this doesn't look bad. View attachment 1080043
Somewhere in there, also made some plug wires and got the looms mounted, and made a coil bracket. On this pic, you can see the factory wiring harness, and how it goes into the plug wire looms. The plug wire is a woven, shellac cover, and the plug ends are actual old Rajah ones. These were from the 40's and 50's, but they reproduce them now.

is that 1.5" copper or anodized something else? either way i like the look of it.

 

[monkeyswrench]

is that 1.5" copper or anodized something else? either way i like the look of it.

Bought 24" of 1.5" copper pipe from Ace hardware here in town. Cut it in half and polished the hell out of it...shows every fingerprint like a crime scene It's really a bit flashy for the rest of the car, but so is the flathead.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Ok, things went well. Well, as best as could really.

Jack the ass end up, high enough to unbolt the buggy spring and lower the axle assembly. Unbolt the u-joint housing, brake rods and shocks, and roll it back about 8 inches. Pull u-joint, support rear of motor and remove trans through the passenger door.

Then dig through a metric ton of crap to find detent balls and springs for the shift tower, and a shift lever...they're different for different years.

Now, reverse the above process, adjust the clutch play and have a look...
All this, but really the main goal was to change the housing clearances. The fact it ended up with synchos, better gears and a stronger trans are secondary this time. Here's the new space...

Almost a solid 1/4"...woo-hoo!


And now, after more than a half century locked away, she drove herself into the sun for the first time!

She's not going to win any trophies, but she's very cool.

 

[TomD]

Purrr....purr

 

[coolchange]

Don’t worry about that shiny copper. By the time you read this on Tuesday it’ll be dull

 

[monkeyswrench]

Don’t worry about that shiny copper. By the time you read this on Tuesday it’ll be dull

That's what I hoped...but the polish worked too well Stuff hasn't dulled in a week!

 

[RiverDave]

That is awesome!! I can’t believe how fast you pulled that together.. let alone putting together a new trans etc.. much more talented then me!

 

[monkeyswrench]

That is awesome!! I can’t believe how fast you pulled that together.. let alone putting together a new trans etc.. much more talented then me!

Thank you. We all have different "talents"...
I'm pretty good at making stuff work, even if it's not supposed to. Farmers used to do this same stuff with tractors. The trans is just something you get good at after blowing up a few. If all the parts are there, and stuff clean, only takes me about 10 minutes to assemble it. The bitch last night was finding all the parts. The gear set was already in another case, and wouldn't work. I was literally looking through the junk pile for a good case, and a "shift tower", the top with the right forks. Honestly, I was damn lucky to find the actual shift lever...I didn't think I had one.
Right now the shop looks like a cross between a 40's autoshop and a scrap yard. I have no less than 4 pre-1940 Ford transmissions strewn across the floor!

 

[CarolynandBob]

That is cool.

Now we need an update on the Monkey Mover. lol

 

[monkeyswrench]

That is cool.

Now we need an update on the Monkey Mover. lol

Last Monday I dropped by the machine shop...he swore I'll get the head this week. Yes, probably should have taken it to "the big city", but I don't know anyone there. The shop up here is good, but lord knows he isn't in a rush. There are two other machinists up here, both of them do mostly "race" stuff. One is usually 3+months out, and the other does nice work, when he wants, but has a "dependency" problem that effects both his work and his demeanor. Don't worry, it's coming soon

 

[monkeyswrench]

Been one hell of an ass kicker. Last Friday night I rolled out at 8pm, headed to the PRK(Peoples Republic of Kalifornia) Fueled in Ehrenberg about 11 Az time, and hammered down across 10. Rolled in through some winds that had me questioning my decisions in life, and into Glendora about 2am local...3am to me. Slept 4 hours in my Excursion, woke up and rolled into San Dimas. Spent the next few hours BSing with some friends that happened by the Early Ford Store, and unloaded the car. Mike took it around the parking lot...treads nearly slinging off...and then she got some new shoes.

After that, loaded another up, and rolled home. Got home a little after 2am Sunday. Most of this week has been playing catch up. The shop is a mess, and need to clean things up still.
Mike sent me this a little while ago...

She's in a building! She made it for early roll in for the GNRS. It's not the whizz bang buildings, but she's there!

 

[monkeyswrench]

A brief recap of some of the other stuff this week:
Attention big pusher owners, this may come in handy! Most of them are air ride with hydraulic levelers. You are supposed to dump the bags, before hitting the levelers. If you don't, the rams have to travel further to start working. This Freightliner chassis was setup with shocks that won't limit the bags...fair enough, most people remember the order of operations. Well, this drove in on the snubbers.

The owner is a traveling nurse, headed back out in 2 days . I used the manual controls to lift the ass end, and get a look. The bag seats on the lower with a lip, like a tire bead. Due to time and parts availability, I got creative.
I pulled the bag right side out, and got it situated close to where it needed to be. I lowered the chassis until the bag was slightly compressed, and the lip around maybe 75% of the seating area. Tough bag, and fingers only so strong.
Soooo, lowered it a little more, checked alignment again, flipped the air ride to auto and lowered the chassis off the levelers.
In theory, the weight should force the bag to increase diameter before gaining hieght...Right?
Well, the chassis rose about an inch, and then "pop!", the lip seal went back on. Brought it up to ride height, and shut everything off. Listened for leaks and sprayed it with soap water...good deal!

That's how the bag sits at ride height.
New and exciting stuff.

Had a call from a guy that needed a little help trouble shooting his small block Chevy. It was a timing issue, which led to carb adjustment...and he needs to get a vacuum pot for the HEI before any of it can be done. The car is pretty cool though. Dusty, but still one you have to watch the paint!

Boxed and plated frame and A-arms. More chrome and engraving than I've ever seen! His daily is a stock late model Suburban (with massive rims), but also has a beautiful, stock, Bentley two door.

I like most cars. You may not like low riders, but should still appreciate the effort involved!

 

[ltbaney1]

A brief recap of some of the other stuff this week:
Attention big pusher owners, this may come in handy! Most of them are air ride with hydraulic levelers. You are supposed to dump the bags, before hitting the levelers. If you don't, the rams have to travel further to start working. This Freightliner chassis was setup with shocks that won't limit the bags...fair enough, most people remember the order of operations. Well, this drove in on the snubbers.
View attachment 1083205
The owner is a traveling nurse, headed back out in 2 days . I used the manual controls to lift the ass end, and get a look. The bag seats on the lower with a lip, like a tire bead. Due to time and parts availability, I got creative.
I pulled the bag right side out, and got it situated close to where it needed to be. I lowered the chassis until the bag was slightly compressed, and the lip around maybe 75% of the seating area. Tough bag, and fingers only so strong.
Soooo, lowered it a little more, checked alignment again, flipped the air ride to auto and lowered the chassis off the levelers.
In theory, the weight should force the bag to increase diameter before gaining hieght...Right?
Well, the chassis rose about an inch, and then "pop!", the lip seal went back on. Brought it up to ride height, and shut everything off. Listened for leaks and sprayed it with soap water...good deal! View attachment 1083209
That's how the bag sits at ride height.
New and exciting stuff.

Had a call from a guy that needed a little help trouble shooting his small block Chevy. It was a timing issue, which led to carb adjustment...and he needs to get a vacuum pot for the HEI before any of it can be done. The car is pretty cool though. Dusty, but still one you have to watch the paint! View attachment 1083210
Boxed and plated frame and A-arms. More chrome and engraving than I've ever seen! His daily is a stock late model Suburban (with massive rims), but also has a beautiful, stock, Bentley two door.

I like most cars. You may not like low riders, but should still appreciate the effort involved!

the level of detail in some of the lowriders i have seen is mind blowing. might not be my thing but can definantly appreciate the work that goes into them.

 

[rivrrts429]

A brief recap of some of the other stuff this week:
Attention big pusher owners, this may come in handy! Most of them are air ride with hydraulic levelers. You are supposed to dump the bags, before hitting the levelers. If you don't, the rams have to travel further to start working. This Freightliner chassis was setup with shocks that won't limit the bags...fair enough, most people remember the order of operations. Well, this drove in on the snubbers.
View attachment 1083205
The owner is a traveling nurse, headed back out in 2 days . I used the manual controls to lift the ass end, and get a look. The bag seats on the lower with a lip, like a tire bead. Due to time and parts availability, I got creative.
I pulled the bag right side out, and got it situated close to where it needed to be. I lowered the chassis until the bag was slightly compressed, and the lip around maybe 75% of the seating area. Tough bag, and fingers only so strong.
Soooo, lowered it a little more, checked alignment again, flipped the air ride to auto and lowered the chassis off the levelers.
In theory, the weight should force the bag to increase diameter before gaining hieght...Right?
Well, the chassis rose about an inch, and then "pop!", the lip seal went back on. Brought it up to ride height, and shut everything off. Listened for leaks and sprayed it with soap water...good deal! View attachment 1083209
That's how the bag sits at ride height.
New and exciting stuff.

Had a call from a guy that needed a little help trouble shooting his small block Chevy. It was a timing issue, which led to carb adjustment...and he needs to get a vacuum pot for the HEI before any of it can be done. The car is pretty cool though. Dusty, but still one you have to watch the paint! View attachment 1083210
Boxed and plated frame and A-arms. More chrome and engraving than I've ever seen! His daily is a stock late model Suburban (with massive rims), but also has a beautiful, stock, Bentley two door.

I like most cars. You may not like low riders, but should still appreciate the effort involved!

If I had FU money my collection would definitely include a few low lows.

 

[monkeyswrench]

If I had FU money my collection would definitely include a few low lows.

My uncle from Bassett had one when I was real young, late 70's. I remember lots of chrome, and it was called "Chapel of Dreams"...seems to me it was purple or maybe maroon.
Don't know what happened to it when he went to prison

I've had some customs, but no real lowriders. Maybe the Riviera will get some bass boat flake and some candy.

 

[rivrrts429]

My uncle from Bassett had one when I was real young, late 70's. I remember lots of chrome, and it was called "Chapel of Dreams"...seems to me it was purple or maybe maroon.
Don't know what happened to it when he went to prison

I've had some customs, but no real lowriders. Maybe the Riviera will get some bass boat flake and some candy.

Every “Hot Rod”, car or truck, I’ve owned has either been static dropped or bagged. My 66’ caddy is getting bagged soon... hopefully. The shops are a year out.

I think sooner than later, maybe the next car, I’m gonna do on Hydro’s.

Just a white dude that appreciates the custom lowrider car culture lol

 

[warpt71]

Maybe the Riviera will get some bass boat flake and some candy.

Riviera?!?!?!?! do tell more

 

[monkeyswrench]

Riviera?!?!?!?! do tell more

One of my neighbors past away about a year and a half ago. He was a true hermit, made me seem like a social butterfly. We had talked a few times, he was into cars and bikes.
When he past away, I kept an eye on the house...when a truck was there one day, I went over to investigate (with loud options in hand)...it was his daughter and grandson. She's from Cali, but I keep an eye on the place.
To the point, her dad had this Riviera. It ran a few years ago...I saw it move at least. It's been shaved, ant the grille modified, but fairly solid. It sits on air bags, but I believe rodents have now eaten the lines and the wires...going to take a shopvac and a pressure washer. Price was right, and only a 1/4 mile away.

 

[warpt71]

Ah a boat tail.

I have a serious soft spot for a '63 or '64. Ive come close to pulling the trigger a couple of times over the last couple of years. Mark my words, after my boats are finished Ill have a Rivi, maybe sooner lol

 

[monkeyswrench]

Ok, bizarre learning experience. Everyone does the 70s-80s front suspension in square bodies. Now, I'm not much of a Chevy guru. It seems as though 60-63 c10's have different frames...much different
Turns out, they're 1 and 3/8ths inch shorter, and boxed. Normally, these should just drop right on.
Went online, and saw that most people build spacers...ahh, no. Just doesn't look right. So, out came a Sharpie, and then the cutoff wheel.

Seems easy enough, right? Not so much...

Some minor alignment issues.

Metal origami...couple slices, hammer, anvil...welder.

It's going to be painted, so I'm sure not going to metal finish these.

Once they were sitting where they should, I center punched the location for the new holes in the top of the frame. I also marked the driver's mount, and trimmed it around the factory VIN stamping.

 

[CarolynandBob]

On my 65 C-10 I put a 77 Silverado front end on it. Had to elongate 1 hole. Looks like what you are doing will work just fine.

 

[monkeyswrench]

On my 65 C-10 I put a 77 Silverado front end on it. Had to elongate 1 hole. Looks like what you are doing will work just fine.

This has been part of the learning curve. On an early C10, the torsion bar front end is way different! You have to drill out 3 holes on each side, if I remember right.

 

[Jay Dub]

Ok, things went well. Well, as best as could really. View attachment 1081361
Jack the ass end up, high enough to unbolt the buggy spring and lower the axle assembly. Unbolt the u-joint housing, brake rods and shocks, and roll it back about 8 inches. Pull u-joint, support rear of motor and remove trans through the passenger door.

Then dig through a metric ton of crap to find detent balls and springs for the shift tower, and a shift lever...they're different for different years. View attachment 1081362
Now, reverse the above process, adjust the clutch play and have a look...
All this, but really the main goal was to change the housing clearances. The fact it ended up with synchos, better gears and a stronger trans are secondary this time. Here's the new space... View attachment 1081363
Almost a solid 1/4"...woo-hoo!


And now, after more than a half century locked away, she drove herself into the sun for the first time! View attachment 1081364
She's not going to win any trophies, but she's very cool.
View attachment 1081365

damn, you have some mad skills. bravo

 

[monkeyswrench]

damn, you have some mad skills. bravo

Thank you. Not really so much skill as it was necessity for stuff me or my friends owned. Basically, the order of driveline failure was tranny's, U-joints then differential or the dreaded axle.
Stuff like this becomes pretty "normal". An axle though, ugly. Through 1948, the cars didn't have separate side gears in the diff. The side gear was machined as part of the axle. So, to replace it you had to blow apart the whole thing. Not to mention, the axle itself was the only thing holding the hub, drum and wheel combo to the car. If it let loose shifting second, it got real interesting...shifting 3rd
All this stuff is just nuts and bolts. It all makes sense, and very simplistic. People who work on modern stuff have to do some crazy things. Very few specialized tools needed for old cars. Now it seems like you need a 3000$ scanner to see why your radio won't turn on.

 

[69GS]

Monkey Wrench how can my brother get a hold of you ? He lives off of Coyote Springs Rd on Marrow. I told him about you and wants to know if you service John Deere tractors ? I think it's a series 4.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Monkey Wrench how can my brother get a hold of you ? He lives off of Coyote Springs Rd on Marrow. I told him about you and wants to know if you service John Deere tractors ? I think it's a series 4.

PM sent...

 

[monkeyswrench]

So, a lady calls me up a week ago. She is an elderly lady that volunteers in my wife's class, on Social Security. She lost her daughter and her husband many years ago...lady has had some tough times. A few months back, her Honda CRV had a fire...totaled. The only car she could find was a Toyota Matrix.
Well, it's a 5spd, and she hadn't driven a clutch in years.
She called me up, and said here brakes were growling. Well, I went and looked at the brakes, they were fine. Then I drove it. The clutch was so worn, you had to bury your foot to shift. The growling was the trans staying in gear if you didn't pop the shifter into neutral....Fuq!

Well, two shops quoted here 1200-1400$ for a clutch job. She doesn't have the money for that. Soooo, guess what? I got to learn how to do a clutch on a front wheel drive thing. My buddy ordered the parts wholesale, decent kit and flywheel, 165$. The same friend let me use a bay Saturday as well. I hadn't planned on ever needing a two post, but they do come in handy.

This one wasn't too bad they say...could pull the trans without dropping the whole suffrage. Way out of my normal stuff though. 3 of the 4 mounts that hold the drive train in place were on the tranny. This means you have to hold the motor up with a crossbar. Not like a truck or hotrod.

Hard to believe something this size is a 5 speed! Lots of weird stuff in there.

It took me almost 4 hours to get to this point. Another 3 to drive it. Foreign car mechanics earn their money. I'm sure they are a lot faster at it than I am, but not a lot of ways to get it done.

So, Saturday was an ass kicker. She paid for parts and my time...about a 1/3 of what the shops wanted. I learned some new stuff too. I also verified I hate front wheel drives.

 

[LuauLounge]

You are a good guy to do this.....

 

[monkeyswrench]

You are a good guy to do this.....

Thank you. She'd spent a lot of hours in my wife's class, up until covid and such.

Been kind of looking for a CRV like her last one, something that needs a headgasket or something. Try to get her back in one of those. Get it ready and then trade her. With the used car market though, few and far between. Everything is getting fixed and run because cars are so stupid.

 

[monkeyswrench]

From early Fords, to Toyotas...God knows what in between...and finally...










Back to a Monkey
Pretty sure I got all parts needed from the far reaches of the intrawebs. The biggest hold ups were proper valve stem seals and rear main. The stem seals provided were...sub-par we'll say. Even with the guides being good, too much of a risk.
So, onward...tonight I unwrapped the crank, rods, pistons and the abnormal weird crap. Laid parts out on a couple clean donor T-shirts, and got busy. The "abnormal" stuff I spoke of is in reference to the counter balance shafts. Big for the size of motor. Oddly, they take journal bearings, like a cam shaft in normal stuff. The driven gears are bakelite...the distant and ancient cousin to composites. They make them this way to be quieter, no howling gear drive. Always have to inspect them when things are apart. Debris gets stuck in the teeth and game over.

The shortblock is kind of done...there is a front and rear appliance deal for the main seals. For the time being, leaving them off. The counter balance shafts themselves are identical. It matters how they are installed. Single dot to single, double to double. Weird to me. One of them gets a drive gear mated to the driven gear, which in turn spins a driven gear on the oil pump. It does so with a tiny bicycle type chain...also, weird.

Not much, but it is progress. Hopefully be installing it next week.
Car show and fireworks in Havasu this weekend...family time!

 

[Rajobigguy]

From early Fords, to Toyotas...God knows what in between...and finally...


Are you coming to Havasu this weekend?







Back to a Monkey
Pretty sure I got all parts needed from the far reaches of the intrawebs. The biggest hold ups were proper valve stem seals and rear main. The stem seals provided were...sub-par we'll say. Even with the guides being good, too much of a risk.
So, onward...tonight I unwrapped the crank, rods, pistons and the abnormal weird crap. Laid parts out on a couple clean donor T-shirts, and got busy. The "abnormal" stuff I spoke of is in reference to the counter balance shafts. Big for the size of motor. Oddly, they take journal bearings, like a cam shaft in normal stuff. The driven gears are bakelite...the distant and ancient cousin to composites. They make them this way to be quieter, no howling gear drive. Always have to inspect them when things are apart. Debris gets stuck in the teeth and game over. View attachment 1088756
The shortblock is kind of done...there is a front and rear appliance deal for the main seals. For the time being, leaving them off. The counter balance shafts themselves are identical. It matters how they are installed. Single dot to single, double to double. Weird to me. One of them gets a drive gear mated to the driven gear, which in turn spins a driven gear on the oil pump. It does so with a tiny bicycle type chain...also, weird. View attachment 1088757
Not much, but it is progress. Hopefully be installing it next week.
Car show and fireworks in Havasu this weekend...family time!

 

[monkeyswrench]

Past few days have been an exercise in fuckery. A guy I do work for has a big customer. Mostly maintenance and repair on 20+ trucks, but sometimes oddities on equipment they own as well.

Back story: this truck runs a PTO driven insulation blowing machine. It makes good money per day. 2 months ago, it lost the PTO drive shift. I installed a new one, fired it up and said "nope". Gear box was shaking badly. Told them don't run it, have the box replaced. (Had actually told them that 1 month prior, when draining chunks and water from it on a service!) So, 12ish weeks had passed from when I said replace it...

Guess what? Early last week it scattered the driveshaft. In epic fashion, dump the clutch on drag slicks kind of shrapnel.
They never replaced the box....
Didn't want the downtime.
Well, first call to supplier of said box "10-20 weeks out"
Well shit, let's blow it apart, and see what broke.

Need a shaft, a gear...bearings and gaskets would be nice.
Make another hundred phone calls. 10-12 weeks, as these are the key components the manufacturer is waiting for.
Fuck. Me. Running.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Well, manager of company that owns truck is up shop owners ass...shop owner calls a bunch of machine shops, no one wants to touch it. Manager guy mellows a bit when he finds out someone dropped the ball on their end.

No one wanted to try. I figured why not? Looked at it, and said sure, but can't really offer a warranty.
So it started.

The shafts were not hardened like most gear shafts. I guess it's more of an ag type thing? So, I started off by back filling the keyway. "Real" shops have carbon keys to backfill to...I'm not one of them, and couldn't wait. I coated the key stock with Whiteout. Oddly, can weld right to it, but won't "stick".

The worn area on the shaft I brazed with aluminum bronze. It's supposedly stronger than silica bronze. I did that, and then turned the shaft down to the original diameter.
Well, it fit the gear like a hotdog in a hallway
From coming loose, it wore the gear in an irregular fashion. So, added more metal to the shaft, and started to shape. Test fit. Press enough for witness marks, rinse and repeat. No pics of that, was pulling my hair out.

Here it is, light press, and hopefully where it needs to be. At the bottom of the shaft, you can see how much the gear was hogged out. Luckily, the other side and keyway indexed it pretty well.

Please don't laugh at my lathe...Will upgrade again eventually.
Moment of truth. Honestly, I was hoping to end up with run out maybe .010".
I about fell over, ended up with a tad over .0035"...for my equipment and skills, that is some SpaceX kind of stuff! Really just luck, but in this case it was better to be lucky than good.

Here's the setup, in one side out the other. Went old school, coated it with Lubriplate, sat it together and checked the teeth.
When that looked right, I decided to right stuff the thing and call it good. The bearing races determine the preload. I had no gaskets. Decided right stuff would be thinner than the old gasket, but bearings are worn. Preload was still a bit looser than I'd like, but on a time crunch.

I also swapped the input and output. This places the torsional load on the factory machined key slot, and not my repaired area.
The idea is for this to buy some time. The new part is ordered, but will be awhile. The guys who run this truck get paid by the square foot. No truck, no money. Their boss kind of hosed them...but now it effected him since scheduled work gets hammered.

Truck is together and tested, hopefully it lasts "10-20 weeks".

Bidenzuela repairs.

Dirty hands, clean money

 

[CarolynandBob]

Well, manager of company that owns truck is up shop owners ass...shop owner calls a bunch of machine shops, no one wants to touch it. Manager guy mellows a bit when he finds out someone dropped the ball on their end.

No one wanted to try. I figured why not? Looked at it, and said sure, but can't really offer a warranty.
So it started.
View attachment 1094337
The shafts were not hardened like most gear shafts. I guess it's more of an ag type thing? So, I started off by back filling the keyway. "Real" shops have carbon keys to backfill to...I'm not one of them, and couldn't wait. I coated the key stock with Whiteout. Oddly, can weld right to it, but won't "stick".

The worn area on the shaft I brazed with aluminum bronze. It's supposedly stronger than silica bronze. I did that, and then turned the shaft down to the original diameter.
Well, it fit the gear like a hotdog in a hallway
From coming loose, it wore the gear in an irregular fashion. So, added more metal to the shaft, and started to shape. Test fit. Press enough for witness marks, rinse and repeat. No pics of that, was pulling my hair out.
View attachment 1094338
Here it is, light press, and hopefully where it needs to be. At the bottom of the shaft, you can see how much the gear was hogged out. Luckily, the other side and keyway indexed it pretty well.
View attachment 1094339
Please don't laugh at my lathe...Will upgrade again eventually.
Moment of truth. Honestly, I was hoping to end up with run out maybe .010".
I about fell over, ended up with a tad over .0035"...for my equipment and skills, that is some SpaceX kind of stuff! Really just luck, but in this case it was better to be lucky than good.
View attachment 1094340
Here's the setup, in one side out the other. Went old school, coated it with Lubriplate, sat it together and checked the teeth.
When that looked right, I decided to right stuff the thing and call it good. The bearing races determine the preload. I had no gaskets. Decided right stuff would be thinner than the old gasket, but bearings are worn. Preload was still a bit looser than I'd like, but on a time crunch. View attachment 1094341
I also swapped the input and output. This places the torsional load on the factory machined key slot, and not my repaired area.
The idea is for this to buy some time. The new part is ordered, but will be awhile. The guys who run this truck get paid by the square foot. No truck, no money. Their boss kind of hosed them...but now it effected him since scheduled work gets hammered.

Truck is together and tested, hopefully it lasts "10-20 weeks".

Bidenzuela repairs.

Dirty hands, clean money

No one should laugh at your lathe. It is making you money. Nice job.

 

[Nordie]

Almost looks like you could have retrofit a v-drive to get the job done.

 

[Rajobigguy]

Helpful tip to anyone playing with gear boxes (especially worn ones) . It's a good idea to match mark your gears. If the ratio is an odd number it wont make much difference but if the the ratio is an even number then the gears will establish a certain wear pattern and if you change where the gears mesh it can create a nasty gear whine that will never go away.
Tip #2 If you have access to a glass beader you can use C-glass bead to clean the gear teeth and in doing so you will peen the surface of the gear and it will reduce "flecking" of the surface during use and extend the life of the gear box.

Just a couple of nice things to know from someone that has done literally thousands of gear boxes.

 

[monkeyswrench]

Helpful tip to anyone playing with gear boxes (especially worn ones) . It's a good idea to match mark your gears. If the ratio is an odd number it wont make much difference but if the the ratio is an even number then the gears will establish a certain wear pattern and if you change where the gears mesh it can create a nasty gear whine that will never go away.
Tip #2 If you have access to a glass beader you can use C-glass bead to clean the gear teeth and in doing so you will peen the surface of the gear and it will reduce "flecking" of the surface during use and extend the life of the gear box.

Just a couple of nice things to know from someone that has done literally thousands of gear boxes.

I hadn't thought of the matching on the gear teeth...like putting lifters back on the same cam lobe. The good thing, this particular truck is so noisy, the gear drive isn't heard

What's "C-Glass"? The gears themselves were hardened...pretty gnarly. I had fun trying to put match marks on them. Is C-Glass like a shot peen material?

 

[RiverDave]

Almost looks like you could have retrofit a v-drive to get the job done.

Z drive.. I believe they use them in tractors and tractor pull trucks?

Might be able to find a drop in replacement.

 

[RiverDave]

Helpful tip to anyone playing with gear boxes (especially worn ones) . It's a good idea to match mark your gears. If the ratio is an odd number it wont make much difference but if the the ratio is an even number then the gears will establish a certain wear pattern and if you change where the gears mesh it can create a nasty gear whine that will never go away.
Tip #2 If you have access to a glass beader you can use C-glass bead to clean the gear teeth and in doing so you will peen the surface of the gear and it will reduce "flecking" of the surface during use and extend the life of the gear box.

Just a couple of nice things to know from someone that has done literally thousands of gear boxes.

I haven’t done it personally but I have heard of guys running some jewelers rouge through v drives.. it wears in the gears real
Quick..

Then change the bearings and obviously clean the hell out of it and it’s good to go and much quieter