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5/24/02
Got the truck back tonight-absolutely gorgeous.
Nick did a superb job on it. Now to keep it that way. The temp gauge went down,
so we'll need to check that tomorrow. Saul got to drive the Gremlin back, and
loved it. We went to both Bob's and Flames tonight, with lots of interest. Someone
buy it!!! The knee is feeling better on a host of meds, now to hopefully get some
sleep. Nick will come by tomorrow (Sat) about 1:30 PM to check on the FC repairs,
and if good, will set a time to come shoot it. 5/25/02
Did get another
decent night's sleep. Wow! Chris came by with the converter and was knocked out
by the operation here. Nick came by, got his dough, sanded on the nose, and said
for me to prime it and he'd be back tonight or tomorrow to do the painting. Picked
up the trans from Gene, and that marks the end of that era. He is off to Vegas
and Texas for hopefully more gainful employment. 5/26/02
Well last night
was a no-sleeper. Called Nick today and asked if he would do the primer as well,
as I can't seem to get myself in gear today. He agreed, and will come over later
tonight. Meanwhile, I need to go mask off the car for him. Man, Sundays just seem
to be Comatose City for me. Can't get a lot done, I just seem to need to do nothing
and recharge. 5/27/02
Just after midnight, and Nick just left after
primering the areas. So nice to see someone who REALLY knows how to do it! He
will return he says tomorrow to do the sanding and perhaps a little fill work.
It is very interesting to see his lifestyle-extremely simple, totally controlled,
and he still feels victimized. It is so clear that, like CIFCA racing. You just
have to choose to do it, and MAKE the time for it to be accomplished. Nick would
love to work on some slick customs, but of course never sets aside the time to
do so. I'm not complaining, my truck came out great, and I look forward to having
him sweet-out the Tbird once the motor is in. I invited him to come out to LACR
or wherever to see the car run. He claims to be interested, whether he actually
sets the time aside is an entirely different matter. I still haven't gotten him
out to Pomona. And that's a real shame.
I'm doing some clean up around the
property, getting rid of superfluous stuff, putting little clutter away. Once
we get the car back in the trailer, that will allow for some more clean up, and
maybe even a trip to the strip! E2 returns on Thursday, so the cabinet-making
will continue then. I'll do my best to attend to some of the garage clutter before
that, and set a direction for another phase of getting "more organized."
I just gotta get rid of more stuff, simple. There is some room for increased density
in the cabinets, but clearly there is still just too much unused stuff here. 5/28/02
Randy came by, and in his normal and meticulous way, snooped around the engine
compartment of the new dually motor. He adjusted the carburetor idle screws (improved),
and noticed the generator pulley had nearly worn through the new radiator hose
(a common problem with these motors and the accessory configuration). Caught it
JUST in time. I've said it before, this guy is GOOD. 5/30/02
Ordered
the dually radiator hose-just waiting on it. E2 has returned, and we're back at
it (work). Got rid of a major jerk employee yesterday (actually he just sorta
fired himself). The skills were fine, the attitude was horrendous. Nick has not
been back since primering the FC. Hoping for today to continue. Looks like I will
not be taking the FC to the Palisades Show on Sunday at this rate (3 days away).
5/31/02
Well, I unperfected the beautiful and perfect dually paint by
nicking the right rear fender while parking. More paid work for Nick. My sis is
getting married tomorrow (Saturday), and the day after is the big Pacific Palisades
Car Show. Only the Gremlin will go there. E2 has returned, and little by little
things are getting back on track. Having rid myself of the former jerk employee,
my head is clearer and more positive now. 6/1/02
Nick claims to be
very busy-so it appears the FC is on the back burner for a few days. They will
attend to the little ding in the dually fender mid-week.
Today is my sis'
wedding. Amazing. And, the Texas auction for the drug-seized FC, Nova, and Matco
toolbox goes today, with my bids premade with the auctioneers and a cashier's
check already in their hands. We'll see. We are bidding low, so likely we will
not get the toolbox or the FC, maybe the Nova. If so, Randy and I will have a
quick project to turn around. I will TOTALLY defer to his priorities on the projects.
6/2/02
Not to worry-we got nothing. It all went for lots more than
we were willing to pay, too close a margin for our dreams of profitability. Nick
has been drawn to some other social duties today (Sunday), so it looks dire for
another few days on getting the FC touch up completed. My plan is to get a lap
this weekend-kind of a birthday celebration. Did take the Gremlin to the car show,
but apparently no buyer bites, though a Buell biker on the way home expressed
interest and took my phone #. I'm not quite sure why I have been SO tired the
last couple of days, just really knocked out. Hopefully (the update's favorite
reporting word) I'll be perky and strong for tomorrow. Took ten minutes on the
tennis court and tried out the new knee, and it is an improvement over before.
Now to get strong and more flexible. If Nick has not gotten to the paint by the
weekend, I'll take it out anyway. Randy appears interested to make the Fallon
trip. And in an interesting co-incidence, saw long-not-seen John Van Houten and
wife Trish at the car show. The only FC tuning he has done since the McDannel
car was sold has been over the phone with the Dale crew who bought the car. 6/3/02
It appears that Wednesday or Friday night would be the cool time to take the car
out at LACR. So I'm shooting for this Wednesday afternoon to haul it up there,
obviously unpainted in the repair spots. We'll get the CO2 bottles recharged tomorrow,
do some fluid checks, and load the sucker up. 6/4/02
Well, this time
tomorrow (Wednesday) for the bottles. No Nick, so we'll go for Friday test and
tune. May need to try the Cool Suit, as the temp is getting up there. 6/6/02
Been blazing hot (100+), and got overwhelmed, so no bottles. Work is taking a
high priority here. Will pull them out this afternoon for refill in the AM. No
word from Nick. Gonna load the car up tonight or in the morning, and just go for
it. We oiled it up and tried it on the stands a few weeks ago after the car show.
So everything is good to go. So here's hoping. 6/8/02
Well, finally
got out there. I want to thank Ed Turner for getting the car prepped and clean.
Richard Baida and daughter BB went, as well as Saul and BB's boyfriend Van. Baida
is so very good, so energetic and take charge. He has become the main crew guy,
quite by surprise. We got two passes, with the third aborted at the line when
the batteries ran low-shades of St. George in 96 in the semis. The first pass
was weak although complete, at 9.70 and 142 mph, as I think I shut off a bit before
the lights. The car got quite squirrelly about 100 feet out, and had some hesitation
problems off idle. On the second pass it launched well, but then moved HARD to
the center, just barely missing the cones. I had changed the main pill down from
a .145 to a .140, and it was much worse, bucking, and feeling extremely fat. The
fumes in the car at the starting line were significant, and the blower hat was
frosty most of the way back. It seems amazing to me that I could have been running
a .125 on the old 540 motor, and here I'm fat at .145. I changed up to a .150
pill, but the car wouldn't start, so we didn't get a chance to see how that worked.
The 60' times were pathetic, about 1.3 (along with my reaction times), so it's
a bit off somehow. I left on the trans brake at about 3300, and I'm going to go
higher next time out. I am also going to get a shift light. Of course I forgot
several things like the jacks stands, jack, air hose, and to charge the batteries
between passes. But heck, that's what 6 years off the routine does for you, along
with some senior moments. All in all it went well, the car looked good, got a
lot of interest, and it was fun to feel some g-forces again. It is odd that it
is making a hard move to the left, which it NEVER did before. I also need to adjust
the steering wheel as it is at about a 45-degree right turn position when going
straight. Of course the chute loop broke again after we packed it, which we discovered
when we unloaded the car this morning. Same thing happened on the other chute
at Famoso. So little by little it's all coming back together. We had a minor oil
leak out of some loosened rear pan bolts, so we're going to check on that, And
one of the CO2 bottles blew off from being overfilled. Gonna refill that right
now. 6/8/02
Got that done, but failed to get two new washers for the
regulators. Have to wait until Monday for those, as I can't find the tray full
of them I have someone here. Randy came by a little early for my birthday party
tonight, and we lit the car up, and it still hesitates on the .150 pill. He suspects
either plugged nozzles or retarded timing. I'll buzz the mag, and if good, I'll
pull the nozzles and see if there is a problem there. He suggested a fuel filter,
and I will do that, perhaps making use of my old System One filter. I'm also going
to put together a twin battery 24-volt pack with plug in case we ever run into
the low battery thing again. I'm also going to order a one foot extension for
the Parker Pumper hose, as it is a little too restrictive for head movement. 6/10/02
Took the plugs out-all sooty. Took the headers off, lotsa cracks-need to weld
some straps back on the tubes and seal the cracks in the outer tubes up at the
header flanges. Also, I might have the flanges Blanchard ground after all the
welding and before performance-coating them. I found the very expensive and very
cool solid copper exhaust gaskets, which I didn't want to waste on the first few
passes. That was a good call. Checked all the injectors, all clean and open. Took
the hat to Jim at Enderle (along with Randy for help and support), and it flowed
just fine. Jim felt the open primer line (I had removed the check valve ball and
spring) were the culprit, disturbing the pressure and flow. OK, got it back on,
but the starters were lunched. Got one repaired today, and will throw it on tomorrow
and give it a try. Interestingly, I ran it that way the whole last season I raced,
and didn't have this problem. We'll start with the .150 pill and see how it responds.
I have the fuel filter coming as you read this.
I'll need to go get some
fuel fairly soon at Justice Bros. 6/13/02
I emailed the following to
Jim Maher today: Went out to LACR last Friday night and got a pass and half in.
On the third pass attempt it was shades of
St. George, with what I thought
was the batteries going dead in the staging area. Turned out to be a bum starter.
These have been my nemesis from day one. I have one repaired, and the other due
soon. I would like to bring the FC down there to IMI and see just what is what.
Do you have any experience with BBC applications, inasmuch as you are a Hemi guy
who uses a front starter? I was hoping to do it with Monty there to help do some
snooping/clearances with me. Any thoughts? Could I permanently mount a blower
starter? The primer bottle line was apparently leaning out the injector, as I
had gutted the check valve (the pump is a low pressure unit from Mike Obrien,
and I need a HIGH pressure unit to get through the check valve spring-got one?).
I took the hat to Jim at Enderle and we plugged the port, and I'll give it a try
tomorrow. So it appears that we will NOT go to LACR again tomorrow, as
the headers are not repaired, and I still haven't gotten the starter back in (very
bad back this week and hugely busy). Randy has been working on his car for a couple
of days, and will now have to shelve it for a while as he continues making room
for his FC work. Boy, can I relate to that. 6/14/02
As the headers have
not been welded back up (cracking from removing the strap at the bottom), and
no starter in yet, it's looking more like tomorrow just to get the starter in
and possibly fire it up. Woke up this morning in MASSIVE back spasm-just one of
those scream-your-way to the bathroom things. Took lots of meds, saw the chiro,
took more meds, still screwed. Can't see my orthopedist until June 25. Of course,
if it were HIS back, he'd get an appointment in an hour! Just love to have him
call me with a broken water main and tell him I'll see him in about 10 days. Not
going to Fallon, as I have an arbitration the day before (June 21) trying to get
$20K owed me by a real slimeball from several years ago. First things first. I
am NOT going to pull an all-nighter just to get there.
Money is down to REAL
tight, waiting on finishing checks from a couple of jobs. Bidding more now, in
hopes of creating another 3 months of work doing about 4 projects at a time. Takes
a LOT of bids to land those few, and of course they all come in at the same time. 6/15/02
Spent the last two days just going out on bids and tending to the work side, garnering
one check today to keep the flow. Checked out the leaking air shocks on the Gremlin,
and it appears the right rear shock itself is leaking internally, not the lines.
My plan is to take it out to the Pomona Swap Meet tomorrow, park it in about the
spot where I bought it two years ago, and see if I get any action. The problem
is that without the air shocks, the rear wider rear end and tires tend to hit
the fenders rather easily. It hits a little more in the front, too, now that I
got the tighter shocks up front. It may take a little shimming here and there
to get the stance right for the tires I'm running. I'll probably give it a shot,
but may turn around if it gets too bad. The back got better as the day wore on,
with the help of a Velcro corset. Don't know if it is just the Valium and meds,
or what, but it is better as the day goes on. Seems like every morning it is a
nightmare to get going. I'll have to try something different tonight. What I don't
have a clue at this point. Did NOT get to the FC starter, juts not pushing my
luck at this point. As it is approaching 8:20 PM, I think I'm going to hit the
hot tub and see how it goes.
6/17/02
Back is better the last three
days. Able to walk around the Pomona swap meet/LA Roadster show last weekend.
Got one nibble on the Gremlin, nothing further. Have not set the starter in the
FC as yet, perhaps in a few minutes.
6/22/02
Ah, business. Had to spend
two days prepping and doing an arbitration over getting screwed out of $21,000
three years ago. Gotta wait two months for the final decision to come down. At
least I can stop thinking about it. But, that left no time for the FC. Did get
the fuel filter, and literally got my foot in the door Friday at 5 PM at Orme
Bros to get the fittings needed. Got some business to do this morning, then I'll
address the FC. 6/24/02
So I addressed it today, thanks to Randy coming
by. He always spurs me to action. Basically, I welded up the right header, the
most severely cracked of the two sides, after bolting it tight to the heads, and
removing the magneto from the car (welding will discharge the mag). Randy suggested
adding the needed strap to the top side of the headers, as it would allow for
a better fit and easier fabrication, so we did. I then spent some serious time
grinding the welds to more attractive radiuses. We also discovered the expensive
thick copper exhaust gaskets I was saving for now leave precious little contact
area for sealing in some spots, due a lot to the header flanges themselves having
been severely relieved to miss the head studs. There is much less welding to do
on the left side header, and I will do that sometime later. I MAY do some building
back of the flanges with weld material. I also might use some extra flanges Randy
gave me a while back, if I can find them. A search of the garage and trailer have
not found them as yet. Gotta get back to biz now. 6/29/02
Took the FC
to Cruise Night at Flames, as a practice run for loading it up, going through
the check list, etc. With the exception of missing the bleed down hose for the
air lift system, we were all good. Ed and I filled up 3 jugs using a unique way
of getting the alcohol out of the drum (more later), and Randy and I fired it
up 4 times at Flames. We changed the barrel valve about 3 or 4 flats (a little
over a half turn), and it richened it up enough to make a difference. We still
have more work to do there. I'll go another two flats (another 1/3 turn), and
see what that does. It appears to still be leaning out off idle when I crack the
throttle, and it sounds a little blubbery on fuller throttle punches. It will
take some laps to see what is really going on, but we're getting there. We're
going to check the timing with a light, and I may richen it up a bit on the main
pill. We were going to go out to LACR, but the weekend traffic was horrible, and
I did not want to spend precious hours just crawling in ant lines up the hill.
So, a little progress. Nick promises he will come by in the next few days and
do the re-priming and get it painted on the repairs. Sure. I got an email from
Mitchell Wright who wants me to display the car in San Diego (about $800), for
three days in August. Works for me. 6/30/02
Unloaded the car and turned
the barrel valve another two flats (about another 1/3 rotation). Seems to be much
better now. I will change the oil, and do a little other maintenance with Ed Turner
tomorrow. I'll also call IMI Hi Torque and see if the spare starter is ready for
pickup (or shipping overnight). Left a message on the website for Accusump, hoping
to hear from them in the morning about the preoiling system. 7/1/02
Got a response, suggesting their 3-quart manual system. I had more questions,
and am awaiting an answer to the second phase of enlightenment. Randy came by
and we pulled the mag off and did some more header welding, as some of my efforts
at smoothing the first round of welds essentially ground them right out. Redid
them as needed and now they appear solid. We have to remove the mag whenever we
weld on the car, and this time it went back in very close to the original timing.
Did adjust it back to 35 degrees, and it started well. So we're set for Wednesday
to see if we can get a full lap. I'll work on re-torquing the heads and adjusting
the valves tomorrow. It is looking fairly grim for any multiple appearances at
CIFCA events at this rate. I have a 40-year high school reunion on one race weekend
coming up in August. Who knows, maybe we'll still get to one or two this year. 7/3/02
Did not go to LACR today: Randy couldn't make it, the dually tires needing servicing,
it was real hot, and I was just too rushed and tired to go for it. We'll go Friday
with no traffic and a more relaxed time frame.
7/5/02
Got a full
house going today. After about 4 emails, I got a direct call from Mike Harris
of Accusump, who is sending a unit off today. I'll attempt to note my oil pressure
after the burnout and at the end of the run to see if there is any dip. Well,
I was not able to keep my eyes there. The first pass was very soft, a 10.07 at
130 MPH. We found I had put in the .125 pill, and I thought we were going out
with a .150. We changed it to a .140, went back up, and lost fire after the burnout.
Unbeknownst to us all, the shifter cable came of the trans lever, and it remained
in 2nd gear, regardless of where I shifted it, so I could not back up, and I kept
stalling the motor starting it in gear. We fixed it, but it was too late, and
the starter then took a dump, again. We've got to do some serious re-thinking
on the starter situation.
Baida, Randy, Dan, and Jerry came along (Dan left
on his own mid-evening), and nephew Scott and his friend also showed. The car
is quite popular, but disappointing at this point. Now we sure don't want the
nickname to be Disappointing Dick, do we? We are considering some new options
on the starter: one might be to use a snout starter while keeping the on-board
for emergencies, like losing fire after a burnout. The other option is to take
the car down to Hi Torque and let them evaluate just what the heck is happening.
I have a hunch that either the starter is misaligned in depth to the flywheel,
or there is a real problem with 12 volts to the solenoid and 24 volts to the starter
motor. I really don't see why that should be any issue, as we ran it nearly a
whole season before with no big deal. So we're going to investigate these two
thoughts. We had a weird moment trying to lower the body last night. We had put
it up on the manual pole as the winds were pretty intense, and when we went to
take it off the pole in line, the body would not lift, much to the dismay of Randy's
back. Turns out the bleed down hose was still in the side of the body, letting
the pressure out. Once I intuited that, we were good. It was a little tough discerning
that while strapped in the car with the helmet on. Ah yes, the shakedown stuff
after almost 6 years. I definitely want to get it out this week, or else I am
not going to trek to Sacramento on July 19th in an unproven mode. I sure would
like to make it to at least one race this year.
7/8/02
The lot at Hi
Torque is too crowded to allow me to bring the car down. I'll bring the starter,
and Monty is going to mark the other one with white out to see how it engages.
I'll try it here and report to him, Meanwhile, gonna make the trip to Whittier
in a little bit. 7/10/02
Went to Hi Torque, and got both starters freshened.
There was no real explanation for why the newest rebuild just exploded after a
dozen starts. While there I went next door and talked with Jim Maher at CIFCA.
He walked back with me to Hi Torque and insisted I needed a bigger starter-the
existence of which I was completely unaware. Monty surprised Jim with an even
bigger and newer unit, the 2 HP "donut" unit, named because of it circular
rear plate. I had Monty set one up and took it home, so I now have THREE starters.
I suggested trading mine, but they are too old. We set the new one in, after having
to cut down part of the faceplate (the other had that, too) to fit in between
the motor and frame rail. It works fine, engages apparently perfectly, as do the
other two. We tested all three by painting the starter gears with white shoe polish
and noting the impression from the flywheel teeth. One of the starters has a pinch
less depth on the flywheel, and I'm taking all three back tomorrow and having
them inspected for Monty's, Matt's and Chris' opinions. And oddly, all three starters
do not spin the motor at double speed, even with the batteries on the charger
and topped off. Mighty strange. I am suspecting that the 3-way kill switch at
the rear, an NHRA required item, may be losing it, causing a voltage drop to the
starter. Talked with Randy, to whom I suggested bypassing the switch as a test.
He noted I could just disconnect the terminals from the switch and bolt them together-a
good suggestion at that. So tomorrow, after I get the starters viewed, we'll try
the switch bypass. I have both a good feeling this may be the culprit, and a sort
of sick feeling about the whole getting-ready-to-race thing, I reupped with CIFCA
for $200 today, so that I am able to register for the Sacramento race. But to
go there, I have to go out to Palmdale again on this Friday to test and get some
representative runs in-and it's over a hundred in the Valley, not to mention what
Palmdale might be. It's also a thrash to some degree, and I've just not been in
the mood for thrashing, per my voluminous prior updates stating so. Notwithstanding,
I am going to do this. But if I can't get this thing in the seven's Friday, I
may just pass on Sacto. There IS a possibility of going out again next Wednesday,
for one more final tune up shot at it, before I decide. Sacto is a Friday and
Saturday event, so I have to let Jim know ASAP if I'm bailing. I SHOULD leave
Thursday morning, get up there with a night to spare, and have a leisurely morning
before getting to the track for a 5 PM first qualifying run. We'll need to be
at the track by around 2 PM or so the get setup and ready. We also have not set
up our "tent" yet, and I'll need to get some plastic anchors and the
proper asphalt drilling bit, and bolts, to do that whole routine. On a good note,
I got the proper fittings for the Cool Suit, and with some good ideas from Randy
managed to get the fittings to fit in the smaller hoses supplied. So it looks
like I'm going to get to give the Cool Suit a real good test in a couple of days.
7/11/02
Today was both a very good day and a very bad day. The badness
started early with x-rays of my sore right wrist, revealing massive arthritis,
a nearly vanished bone (died due to lack of blood supply), and a near death sentence
for right-handed tennis. I LIVE for tennis. The knee operation was all about returning
to tennis. If I wish to play, it looks like I'll be doing it left-handed. I CAN
do this, but it obviously is going to take a whopping effort to get to where I
got after 37 years with the right hand. I got a thrilling cortisone shot in the
wrist, and we'll see if it does enough for me to last any time with a racket in
my right hand. This eggshell remnant of the "bone that was" could break
easily, so there is some threat here. The solution to all problems with the right
wrist would be a fusion, not conducive to tennis.
It has been over a 100,
so the Garage Mahal and its air conditioning (if you keep the door closed), do
offer some modicum of relief, combined with the big fan. The good news is that
Baida called and said let's get something done tonight, which we did. He came
over about 7:45 PM, and we worked until 11:31 PM. We pulled off the headers, retorqued
the heads, adjusted the valves. Ed got the starter on earlier today and corrected
the loose kill switch connections for the starter feed. I went to Hi Torque and
Monty said our engagements are perfect. He's adjusting the throw on the third
starter about .020" or so. Baida also cut a single cable tie holding the
helmet air hose, giving me about 2 more feet of hose to work with inside the cockpit.
I'll need to fill that Parker Pumper chest with ice tomorrow, along with ice and
water for the Cool Suit system. We will need all the cooling we can get. We also
need fuel. I have Justice Bros decals ready to go on, and I'll need to scramble
tomorrow morning to do that, take a pic for them (to prove they are on the car),
and scamper out to Pomona with the photographic proof and get a fresh barrel at
their sponsor price. Sadly, I have a new barrel, but I don't know if it's good
or not after all these years sitting on the ground (generating condensation).
Still trying to figure a way to verify its quality. I don't want to chance taking
it to Sacto and be wrong! Nick has still not shown, as he says he was out of town.
He says he'll come by tomorrow night and block it in prep for the repaint on the
repair areas. That will work about right, as we should just be unloading it by
the time he gets here around 11:30 PM. If he gets on it this week, we'll look
again finished for Sacto, and have a presentable car for the San Diego display
in August. 7/13/02
Nick canceled for last night, claiming he'll come
today around 6 PM. Our outing to LACR was a mixed blessing: we got three laps,
none of which produced any performance near what we need to be competitive. And
I find today that there are 19 cars entered for Sacto. The track was snot-like,
and I twice came VERY close to tagging the wall, first in the right lane, then
in the left. I'm just overpowering the track, and still fighting the "lean"
condition. I went there with a tune-up that is a little more blower, about 15%,
and what feels like a lean pill. I tried going to a richer setting, only making
things much worse. In speaking with Jimmy Scott, he urged me to check out the
compression in each cylinder to verify the motor is OK, and if so just take it
to Sacto, where he'd help me as he can. The Cool Suit did not function. I don't
know if the battery is bad in it (or even has one). And the trailer generator
refused to restart after running for about 30 minutes. So, got some work to do
here. 7/14/02
Nick showed last night around midnight, and did indeed
block it out. He claims he will return Monday night and do the painting, and I'll
need to do the masking. I was SO exhausted today (Sunday), that I am having reservations
about schlepping to Sacto. I'll need to cure the generator failure to start, erect
the EZ up (actually a Jenkins unit) as a test, and hopefully find another crewmember
besides Jerry to go. He's great, but it's a lot for him to do on a crutch, and
he is not familiar with all the things to do. We'll laugh ourselves silly regardless.
And, I need to hook up the motorcycle battery to the Cool Suit "playmate"
cooler, and have Ed make up a 12-volt connection. 7/15/02
We got our
Accusump by UPS today, and we're going to mount it under the remote oil filter
just behind the blower crosswise to the car. To do so, we're going to have to
relocate the remote filter up about 6". Fortunately, there is plenty of hood
clearance there to do so. Ed will work on a stout bracket tomorrow and eliminate
the one I had fabricated some time back. I'll need to run over to Jim Orme and
get the proper "tee" fitting and hose to plumb it into the filter return
line. This will make a VERY short line and simplify the whole thing dramatically.
We will have to remove the Accusump anytime we take off the tin over the trans,
however. Should be pretty easy with the one hose connection, just loosen the clamps
and swing it out of the way. That's the plan, anyway. Also got our third starter
back, so we're pretty covered for starters right now. As the generator failed
to restart on Friday night after running about 30 minutes, I had Ed check it,
and it fired right up. We suspect it might have vapor locked in the heat. However,
he found the starter solenoid itself to be now bad. So where before it cranked
over fine (but failed to light), now the solenoid is bad. We're going to (well,
Ed is) wire a jumper switch in it to bypass that problem for now (and the future).
I also had Ed make an enclosure to cut the noise and heat in the trailer. We're
mounting an 18" fan on the front of the trailer, cutting a large hole for
it, and removing the side panel near the generator and enlarging it for a vented
grille, all to promote SERIOUS air circulation around the generator and get the
heat out of the trailer. The fan will be plugged into the generator, so it will
run whenever the generator comes on. Onan units have an integral killer squirrel
cage fan that pumps huge air. That's why they can be put in tight boxes in motor
homes, etc. The Coleman has no fan at all. Ed made the front of the enclosure
as a hinged door, and he'll install a side panel on the right side of the generator
under the bench to complete the sealing off the unit. I had this arrangement before,
but took it out when I replaced the 6500-watt Onan with the Coleman. We're going
to use some finished Maple plywood on the exposed panels for a quality look, matching
the cabinets. We're going to chase down some aluminized thermal insulation and
line the interior of the generator enclosure to help further cut down on the heat
in the trailer. He has also extended the starter switch about 4', so that I can
start it without opening the enclosure. Very cool, indeed. He has proven himself
very innovative, and we work very well together. This experience of racing continues
to be improving and innovating just about everything but racing. I am desperately
hoping we hit the tune-up in Sacramento and make all this worth it. I very likely
will not win a round, as my reaction times are massively slow right now. But hey,
if I can qualify and get some good passes, let the fans see a real nice car….
well then we're doing our job. There are 19 cars signed up for a 16-car show,
so it will be competitive. As mentioned umpteen times before, all the refinements
to the operation are in support of stabbing that throttle for seven seconds. That's
the product. Everything else is the process. So we're trying to enjoy the innovation,
fabrication, and process. The Cool Suit did not have an integral battery in the
pump case, so I'm having Ed attach my new motorcycle battery (actually bought
for the generator, which does not need it as it is hardwired to the trailer batteries)
to the cooler. He'll also make a 12-volt jumper cable to run it in case
the generator goes down and the Yuasa battery fails. I sat at the line for about
12 minutes in the car the other night, and that experience reinforced that I could
use some environmental improvement and cooling. The Parker Pumper did not provide
much air, though some. Perhaps I need to run 16 volts to the little sucker to
speed it up. I tried calling Harold Nicks there to see what he thinks about it,
but he's on vacation right now. Doug does the helmet mods and he might have an
idea or two tomorrow. David was there and felt 16 volts would work fine. David
says several air helmets have had problems allowing good circulation. Enjoy that
process…………. 7/16/02
Talked with Doug at Parker
Pumper and he suggests sending my helmet in next week for some possible improvements
in airflow. He doesn't feel good about spinning the motor faster. We'll go with
the helmet first. Ed did a wondrous job on the generator mods. He mounted the
fan, the enlarged side exhaust grille, set the interior side panel, the jumper
starter switch, the on-off key switch, and the swing door. He painted the fan
and side grille with some original red paint I still had for the dually, so it
matches the trailer perfectly. He also doubled up the front grilles on the fan,
so as to make it impossible for any fingers to sneak inside it. The whole setup
looks really sharp, rather than some cobbled together solution. Nice work Ed.
There is a large amount of hot air now emanating from that side grille, wonderful
evidence of good design. And it is dramatically quieter and cooler inside the
trailer. We turned on the AC for the first time and it works well. So if the generator
does not vapor lock or whatever, we'll be good in Sacto on that count. Booked
the motel (got the last room). Sent Justice Bros their required proof of decal
placement on the car and trailer by email for their wonderful deal on alcohol,
and we have a full tank and 4 full jugs, so we should be fairly good. May have
to buy some fuel up there if we go all the way to the finals. I don't now if I
can handle taking the awning or not. May do it and give it a try, as we'll have
a couple of days at the track. 7/18/02
NOT going….crap! Ed did
a lot of work getting many details ready, including remounting the Fram remote
oil filter, and on the way running the fire suit over to Deist for a little widening
overnight, the truck began making nasty noises. We turned around, took the MB,
and Deist did in fact get the suit done for today. Unfortunately, there is some
noise deep inside the brand new dually GM crate motor. We took the truck to Rydell
Chevrolet, and after some researching, they agree they will cover parts only for
one year. We have to do the disassembly and repair, they'll give us the parts.
I suspect a lifter bar (roller lifters) either broke or came off, and the noise
is a lifter or something. If the roller lifter twisted, it could have lunched
the cam and lifter, and hopefully not the lifter bore. It could be a valve, although
we checked all the springs, pushrods, rockers while operating. No slop. And then
again it might be a piston or ring. We're (again, probably will be Ed) going to
take off the intake a have a look tomorrow. Ed mounted the Accusump, we ran over
to Orme and for a mere $40 got two fittings (OUCH!!!!), and found a hose here
that works. We fired up the motor and charged the Accusump, then added three quarts
to the motor. The engine sounds real crisp off idle. There is a chance I might
get the other headers built in time for the next outing at Grand Junction on Aug
17th, if I go. Oops. No, I'm not going to that, as that weekend is my 40th Hollywood
High reunion. I do have a display in San Diego on the 6th through 8th of August,
so I might get them on for that, though certainly not performance coated by then.
Ed also replaced the generator starter solenoid with a new Ford solenoid, and
it starts perfectly. So the chassis is getting more packed with STUFF, although
all of it is quite necessary and works well at this point. It certainly is NOT
like any other funnycar chassis one might see. I am more hot than ever to make
it all very pretty in there. But we've got money to garner, and runs to make to
get the tune-up first. So it looks like Palmdale some more for the next month
or so. I might make it to Grand Junction and the last Sacto race. 7/20/02
Got the dually motor partially apart, that is we pulled off the left head. Disturbing
and strange damage: #5, the third cylinder back on the left side, appeared to
have NEVER been fired. There is no carbon in the cylinder, the piston is bright
aluminum, and appears to have suffered severe detonation, with numerous scratches
and a partial hole in the top. The next cylinder back, #7, fires in order, and
its exhaust valve is very white. The gasket did not seem burned across. How the
hell could that happen? We had the factory plugs in it, the ignition was all fresh,
everything else worked fine. How could one cylinder NEVER fire and detonate? The
oil appeared fairly contaminated with gas as well. Perhaps the dieseling on shutoff
was this cylinder all along. But why, and how? I presume we are going to have
to get a factory rep out here to view this. Man oh man. 7/21/02
Spoke
with Steve at Rydell yesterday who says we'll have to have the parts mgr, Bob
Ash make the decision on Monday. Nick showed up last night at midnight and did
some final filling and minor priming, and will return when I have sanded a larger
area and masked the car, probably on Monday. We have some checking in one area
(minor cracking), but that is to be expected, and we can't get stupid about it
at this point. 7/22/02
Ed started on the masking and I finished it
off. Sanded the area around the repair areas per Nick's instructions. He is purported
to be coming over tonight to shoot it. I'm running out to get some plastic to
mask off the rest of the car. The boys from Chevrolet are supposed to show up
here soon (perhaps tomorrow?) to view the roughed up piston in the dually. Sure
hope they decide to just fork over a new motor, so we can get on with it. 7/23/02
Nick did in fact come last night, shot many coats (the paint is rather translucent,
requiring lots of coats), and will return today to shoot some more around noon.
He is kindly loaning me his Syclone while the Mercedes is getting an $1100 rebuild
on its AC system (OUCH!!!) from good guy Gary Carter. The Syclone is one fast
little truck. Without its front wheel drive connected it is Gremlin-like in its
ability to create tire smoke. Of course, it is vastly more practical, with power
everything, including AIR. I have committed to buy the work truck dually with
the service body (no air), so at least my dually has a chance of surviving. Rick
Guzman from Rydell Chevrolet came today promptly at 11 AM, and made some observations.
He felt very strongly that something got loose inside the cylinder and beat it
up. As the major noise occurred while the air cleaner was firmly attached, it
seems unlikely that something from outside the motor did the banging. I feel strongly
that it was detonating, for whatever reason. Turns out he spotted a rust line
down the side of the cylinder (we had not looked in a couple of days, and had
not wiped down the cylinder). He discovered a nasty crack in the cylinder wall.
That would explain the clean cylinder: water injection. He feels nearly certain
we will be getting a new motor in the mail within a week. He will let me know
tomorrow. That also explains the cruddy-looking oil. I think this thing cracked
long ago, and the dieseling to me is just a symptom of something ill in that hole.
Whatever. Nick did not do any more painting today, but will do so tomorrow around
6 PM, he says. We changed the masking on some areas, and I'll sand some areas
per his instructions tonight or tomorrow. While it is possible we could go to
LACR for their Fox Hunt, it is not looking likely at this point, as I have no
tow vehicle. The work truck does not have the proper hitch system. Webmaster Derek
came over and started the process of transferring data from his (now mine) computer
onto my new 1 gig PC. We will use the older PC for tool tracking once the changeover
is complete. 7/25/02
Crushing news from Chevy-they refuse to cover the
motor, claiming the cracked cylinder wall is the result of some foreign object
getting in the motor. They are refusing to acknowledge this motor was detonating
from day one, and exhibited signs of a cracked cylinder wall long before the banging
noise we heard. They also seem oblivious to the fact that the motor was running
with an air cleaner, so nothing could have gotten in, particularly something like
a nut or whatever they feel damaged the cylinder. We are going to investigate
the exhaust manifold and exhaust on the left side, including the muffler, for
any sign of debris. We are also going to check inside the manifold and look at
the carburetor. Mind you, this is about a three thousand dollar or more repair.
If you count just labor, it's over a thousand. A new block is needed, along with
gaskets, machine work, a pushrod, piston, rings, possibly bearings. And pulling
the motor out, assembling, and putting it back in. We are going to have a few
other engine builders look at this motor, like Barrington and Lambeck, and get
their take on it. If favorable, we'll have them write it up and pursue our case.
Perhaps we'll end up in small claims court. I bought another dually with a service
body as a work truck, so it looks like that will be the dedicated truck for some
time now. Of course, the first time I tried to start it 15 minutes after I drove
it away the starter was dead. The seller offered to pay half, and I said just
take the truck back if you're not paying for the whole thing. He paid. God, I
HATE this crap!!! I gotta get Ed on the Condor and get that project done, so we
don't become completely overwhelmed with non-running vehicles here. I may pull
the tow system I have on the FRONT of the dually (yes front and back) and mount
it on the work truck, as insurance. I don't use the front hitch since I have a
Powercaster. 7/26/02
Talked with Don Barrington who assures
me it is no problem to sleeve the block, as he does it all the time for ocean
racing BBC marine motors. That is good news. This incident has gotten me seriously
depressed, as there are no surplus funds, and……….well……….shit……. 7/27/02
Nick demurred on painting last night, will do it tonight and Sunday. He related
a friend's similar problem, and this guy took Chevy to small claims, and won.
Nick also had a bad engine in a new truck, and it took him nearly two years to
get it replaced. So as mentioned above, I'll gather my evidence and go to court.
I'll file small claims immediately on Monday to get this rolling. 7/29/02
Today is rolling too fast, and no secretary until tomorrow, so the small claims
filing will get done tomorrow. I also have to find the proper entity and address
for the filing. Nick showed last night and got some more base coats on, but my
tenant up front complained of fumes, so he returned today and put on the clear.
He'll come tomorrow to color sand it, and Wednesday to buff it. At that point
we'll clean it up as possible, get it back in the trailer, and organize the area
and clean out the garage again. Getting the trailer back in the garage will allow
me to attack the front yard mess now trapped by the trailer. With that gone, I
will have room to park the other truck. It's a never ending process. Got a call
from George "Road Hog" Wallace who expressed interest on the CIFCA website
about getting hooked up with a FC team. He is purportedly coming by tonight to
view the operation. We can always use more help. Step-son Mike is not much involved
now, BB is in school, and Baida has been really the stalwart as of late. Randy
is always helpful, but has his own schedule to manage. ET has been dramatically
helpful, so he, Baida, and Randy are the real story for a crew. May I say this
is high quality help. We obviously have not gotten moving on the headers, but
that should only take a full day once we go for it. I'll beseech Randy's help
in laying them out, then get Joe Hollingshead over here to do the beautiful tig
welding of the parts. We most certainly won't get them plated before the August
6th display (let alone built). After that, we can get moving on a few things,
dollars permitting. We are finishing up some jobs, about to start two more, and
we certainly need the cash flow to continue. So close, so maddeningly close. Gotta
look at the dually hitch for transplanting to the spare truck as well. 7/30/02
Wallace did show. What a pleasure to meet a guy who not only is REALLY into FC's,
but has done deep homework: two racing schools (including a FC session), and crewed
for Brett Williamson. And, a nice fellow. He is starving for involvement, and
has no illusions about what it takes to actually own a car. He really just wants
to be involved. He stayed for several hours just wiping down the car, and asking
lots of questions. If he does desire to get a car eventually, he will have done
his homework well in start contrast to how I got into it (all at once). He appears
to come close to fitting in my car. We'll have to relocate the steering wheel
a little higher to accommodate him, which actually wouldn't be too bad for me,
either. Otherwise, he looks doable in the seat. Of course, once you suit up and
don the helmet, things get a little tighter. I told him I would license him in
the car if he showed consistency and dedication for a season. I've got to renew
my license next month as it is. Gotta call NHRA and get a renewal form coming.
Nick has not shown yet today to do the color sanding. We are cutting it REAL
close on this repair. If I have some #1200 paper here, I'll go at it myself. We
are to finish it with #2000, and then put the buffer to it. 8/2/02
Nick came by yesterday and did a little sanding and buffing, but his air buffer
just drains my compressor in 30 seconds. He returned today with a friend to give
an opinion on the dually motor. Tim works for Chevy, and suggests I pull it out,
leave it as-is, and haul it around to several shops in the back of my other truck
and get signed statements. Exactly what I was going to do. Nick claims to be returning
later tonight to finish the buffing. George "Road Hog" Wallace is industriously
polishing the wheels on the car in prep for the San Diego display. Again, it's
a real treat to have an interested and passionate and qualified guy on the team.
Road Hog is returning tomorrow to continue cleaning up the car. Once that is done,
I can then load the car up and start working on the spare dually hitch to see
if I can tow it.
It is later, 10 PM to be exact, and I am going back out to
finish the sanding for Nick, and do a little garaginizing. We have WAY too much
going on in there (cabinets, dually repair, FC repair). More importantly, the
guys doing all the cabinet stuff have not been cleaning up and restocking the
tools. Naughty, naughty.
8/3/02
Nick decided to come today mid-day
rather than last night. George has another appointment this morning, so nothing
will get going out there until this afternoon.
Nick did come by, got it buffed
out, and I put a few parts back on it. George just couldn't get it together with
all he had to do getting his semi to a dealer for sale. He'll come tomorrow around
11 AM and we'll get on it. I'm out "garaginizing".
8/5/02
George and I did lotsa detailing on the car Sunday. I purchased the brake controller
for the other truck, but unfortunately ET got his car burgled today ($200 of tools
stolen) out on the street in front, so he left righteously pissed and did not
do the install. Gotta go to Eckhart early and get it installed for another $105
over the $112 I paid for the parts. I continued on in the garage after loading
up the car. Blew LOTS of sawdust, etc. out, have the huge fan going to keep it
out for a while, organized and put away some tools, etc. There is too much stuff
in too little space. I have GOT to get a dust collection system for the saw, and
maybe double up on it for a huge shop vac. I do have a portable shop vac, and
the built-in Nutone system. I am going to get busy on covering all the shelves
with doors to eliminate the dust pockets (and lock stuff up!). I should have taken
the toolbox off the trailer before loading up the car. We'll just have to see
how we live without it for three days. I'll keep the Metrinch set and a couple
of air tools in case we get moving on jerking the dually motor. With the racecar
and trailer out of the way, this is golden opportunity. AND, how about the front
side yard junk. Oh yeah, baby! Nothing here a 40 CY dumpster wouldn't cure in
a day. 8/7/02 Didn't get a thing done on the front yard today. Perhaps
tomorrow before I take off for San Diego again. Mitchell reports the response
to the car has been great. Cool. ET has gotten the dually engine and trans disconnected
and ready to pull out. We might do that in the later morning. 8/9/02
Naww!! Boy, that drive two times a week is a bit too much. The car did its job,
and their stickers looked great on the car. They exceeded their target figure
for interest and leads, including their chief competitor's CEO who posed next
to the car! If it cools off any by next week I'll make a run out to LACR and see
how our tune up is. It is brutally hot (105+), so I'm staying inside or in the
car or garage. Meanwhile I've got a LOT of stuff outside (and in the garage and
elsewhere) to toss. Worked all day today (Saturday) until 9 PM, and landed a cabinet
and painting job for about $10K tonight, which will require quite a bit of careful
work. Let's shoot for a profit this time! The good news is this will bring some
cash in, the bad news is this will take ET away from tasks here, like the dually
and Condor. We'll see if I can balance that to accomplish ALL of it. The dually
motor will come out first thing Monday morning. We're making use of the 4 car
dollies I got at Harbor Freight a while back. They do make it nice, particularly
when you have to move a car sideways! Road Hog George Wallace got a call from
Brett Williamson to help at the Division 7 race this weekend at Pomona, and so
he is enjoying being around some fast hot rods (and it IS hot out there). Road
Hog will be gone on vacation for a while, so he's off the active list for a few
weeks. 8/12/02
Got the dually motor out, transmission off, and pulled
the right head. #2 and #8 have some steam cleaning going on, although I can't
find any cracks in those two cylinders. Took some photos of the cracked #5 and
will send them momentarily to Larry up north by email. He feels Chevy will settle
it out as they don't want bad press on their crate motors. One step at a time.
Got some great news today: I may have mentioned I had taken a former slimeball
client to arbitration for his stiffing me of almost $21000. It has taken over
three years to get a decision on this, and the final judgment just awarded me
about $20K! Now that's good news. I can pay some loans off (though not all), and
take care of a few little things. Sweet. Of course, now I have to get the slime
to part with the money. If he puts me through grief to get it…..well, that
would not be smart on his part, just more costly.
Weatherwise, it has remained
hot, in the triple digits, so we've fired up the air-conditioning in the Garage
Mahal. It certainly helps. The car skates are working well, and allowed us to
maneuver the dually into position for jerking out the motor easily. The enormous
planning over the past years has yielded some nice working systems in there. Now
to clean the thing out! We might just roll the dually out on the driveway or just
over to the other side of the garage, pull the Condor in, and get that motor and
trans in the car. That would at the very least get rid of one more bulky item
of STUFF clogging up the work area.
8/14/02
Got the dually motor
turned over on the stand, pulled a couple of pistons, and the piston in #5 has
a slightly smashed ring groove on one side. The rod bearings have an odd wear
pattern, not concentric. Randy and I looked at each other, like how is that possible?
Tried looking at two piston/rod assemblies to be sure. Quite weird. The pin on
#5 is pretty much jammed, so that piston got righteously flattened. The opposing
cylinder (#6) has a sticky wrist pin, again rather odd. I won't do any more disassembly
until I hear from Larry at ATK. I may run the motor around to some folks early
next week, if I can't get them here to look. I'll call Barrington tomorrow and
plead with him to drop by.
8/15/02
Well, maybe this tomorrow (Friday).
Scrounging for the bucks and work, so gotta keep it cool. Just hate having the
mess in the garage and elsewhere.
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