JV Puleo

Nice job... how did you put the slots in?

I have to devote the next 3 days to catching up on the outside jobs I've offered to do for friends. I don't do outside work as a rule but I know from personal experience how difficult it is to get someone to make unusual or one-of-a-kind parts so I haven't the heart to refuse a friend when they are stuck. But, because I have to set the mill up for another job I thought I'd better drill the last two holes in the bracket and try it. It isn't perfect (but I didn't really expect it to be). It's designed so that the final fitting can be done by machining the casting. That was pretty much inevitable. I think it is just a tiny bit high and the bolts that attach it to the crankcase don't thread in perfectly. I suspect that is due to the irregular holes in the sump since I took the measurement off the threaded holes in the crankcase and the sump is now in between that and the bracket. I will add material to both ends, machine the surface where the 3-way fitting goes and then adjust the height by milling the surface that is bolted to the sump. I always suspected the holes in the sump were slightly off and given the "freehand" methods they appear to have used in drilling and tapping, that is hardly surprising. When I'm done with the solder molds I was making I have to grind an Acme threading tool. I see from my ebay purchase list that the gauge I was waiting for has arrived but it's in the mail box and I don't have the key so I wont see that until Tuesday,. Still, I can now get started. I've also said I'll rebuilt the water pumps on the 1920 Cadillac my friend bought and I'm hoping that doesn't turn into a major undertaking. They aren't leaking badly so I suspect it's just a matter of new shafts - which are probably badly corroded from electrolysis. Aside from a couple of very ham-handed repairs that look to have been done recently (like the electric fuel pump that puts out WAY to much pressure) the car is in astonishingly original condition. Of course the leather seal on the inside of the gas cap is missing which may be why the original pressure system isn't working. I'm always astonished by hack work (even though I shouldn't be). It's the first time I've ever seen an original belly pan for one or the linkage for the tipping head lights. The leather boots are still on the steering, rotted and falling apart but there nevertheless.

The price of chrome plating alone would keep me from ever trying to do a car from the era when it was popular. Despite the headaches of doing earlier cars and the unpopularity of the late teens to early 20s, the lack of chrome is a plus. I prefer earlier cars in any case but not having to deal with chrome is an added attraction.

Perhaps taking a day off was a good idea — my friend did buy the car we went to look at (a 1920 Cadillac) and I have to say I really liked it. It was one of the most "untouched" cars I've seen in a long time. This morning I went back to the bracket/pattern I started on Wednesday. I started by milling some slots. Then a 15/16 hole... I have to turn a radius on the end of this piece so I made an appropriate arbor for the rotary table. And milled the end round centered on the arbor. And pressed the parts together. I'd thought I'd have to glue them but the aluminum flat bar is just enough larger than the milled slots that it pressed together. I then milled two pieces to fit in the slots. These will be reinforcements. And pressed everything together. I still have to drill holes in the bottom. Then I'll mount it on the crankcase to check my measurements. The last step will be to convert this into a pattern so I can have one cast in one piece.

After yesterday's ordeal, today went pretty smoothly. I started by putting the blocks and the intake manifold back on the crankcase. I didn't feel like doing it but I decided the only way I could be sure that the pieces fit was to see it in place. It was good I did because it turns out that the dipstick is located perfectly to just miss both the blocks and the manifold meaning that its length is no longer an issue, allowing me to make it much easier to reach. And from the side... I cut the tubing. And soldered in it's end. It doesn't show very well here but to heat it uniformly I put it in the lathe and ran it at threading speed while holding a propane torch on the seam. I also soldered all the pieces together...and here it is from the bottom And the top. If I can find one that I like, I'll replace the knurled knob with a brass ring which might make it easier to pull up. The last step was to mill a flat on the dipstick. It still has to be regulated and marked but I'll need to have everything in place first so I can pour iol into the sump. With all that done I started on the other bracket. This one will be made as if I was going to use it. After I've verified all the measurements I will add some material and have it cast - then machine the casting. The casting will be stiffer than my assembled version and look much more "period." And I'm off tomorrow, going to Vermont to look at a car with a friend...Its a 3-hour ride each way so I won't be getting to the shop.

Thanks Ed. I'm going to make the bolts for the sump since I want the thick heads with the slight crown. After all this, it would look dumb if I used hardware store bolts.

There are times when what should be a simple job fights back. This little bracket has fought back every inch of the way but I think it'd done now. I managed to get the threaded sleeve in although this was a struggle because I'd threaded the OD to match a gauge I now realize was oversize... Then I drilled two holes and countersunk them for flat head 10-24 screws. The piece was then attached to a 1'x1' square bar which held it in the vice while I milled the surface - reducing the thickness and getting the sleeve perfectly flush on both sides. I got rid of the milling marks by using my bench-mounted belt sander. Then it went back in the mill and I removed the area where the holes were that held it down. Everything was a struggle but it fits and I was able to do a test fitting of the well. The test fitting showed that the threaded piece that connects the well to the bracket was too short so I had to make another. After I'd test fit it again, I soldered the threaded section into the cap. and here it is assembled. There is enough adjustment in the height of the well so that I can get it perfectly aligned with the oil tube on the bottom of the sump.

I had planned to mow my grass today but after spending an hour or more changing toe belt on the mower I discovered I'd bought the wrong one...so I'll have to wait another week by which time the grass might be 8" high. It's a good thing it's a relatively powerful mower and I'm not very fussy about how it comes out. In the meantime I came in to the shop to get at least something done today. I drilled the bracket and set up the boring head. Then bored it out to 1.440 - the hole size for a 1-1/2 - 18 thread. Then threaded it. It isn't much but at least it's something. I have to insert the threaded sleeve and take the thickness down to 3/8". Holding it flat and tight and above the jaws of the chuck might be a trick but I have an idea I'll try out tomorrow.

Today was unscheduled. I had planned to work in the yard if it was nice but it rained last night and we have a minor leak in the roof in the office so I came in to check to see if there was much water in the bucket...and discovered it was completely empty. So, I went down to the shop and made a couple of 1" buttons with a 3/8 hole in the center. These will be used to get the center-to-center measurement for the bolts that will hold the 2nd bracket. I have the measurement for the first bracket 4.108 " so I set it up in the mill in order to use the table advance to get the measurement exact. Then center drilled and drilled the holes. They came out fine so I bolted the bracket to the crankcase and use the little tool I'd made for the pattern to locate the center of the threaded sleeve. I also put the buttons on the rear two holes to get a proper measurement. The distance between centers for the first two is 4.108. The distance on the 2nd two is 4.273. Neither make any sense and you have to wonder how they managed to build cars when their notion of precision was so loose. It certainly illustrates why Cadillac won the Dewar trophy.

I made an effort today to do things in a rational order so I would't have to set the machines up more than necessary. The first step was to thread the ID of the threaded sleeve, then mount it on a fixture and turn it down to 1.5" Rather than finish it, I made two more of the projections for the Banjo fitting. Then turned the Banjo down to 1" thick And put the barrel shape on. Then I set the lathe up for threading and finished the threaded sleeve. In the midst of this my neighbor delivered the casting for the bracket so here we have the sleeve just about where it will go when I've machined the bracket. Then I threaded the two pieces that will go into the Banjo. I can insert one of them but the second one has to go in at an angle and I won't be able to calculate that accurately until I have the 2nd bracket done and mounted. This is the only Banjo that has an unusual angle and the only piece of the system that isn't adjustable so I need everything else in place before finishing it.

This has been one of those days when I worked all day and didn't finish anything...but at least I did get something done. I started by milling flutes in the base of the pattern I'm making. It bolts to the sump here. Then, because I'm waiting on some materials and the casting for the other bracket I decided to make some of the bits I will eventually need. I cut pieces for another banjo... I was going to make a 1-1/2-18 threading gauge but, low and behold, I already had one. I think I made this for the priming pump...I can't even remember now but finding it saved a good two hours work. Last up today was another threaded sleeve – this one for the bracket that is at the foundry. I got the hole bored to size but my back is killing me from standing all day so I'll thread it tomorrow.

Aside from me, and you and a small number of others who would look at a bracket and say "that must have been a week's work."

First thing this morning I milled off the ends of the threaded sleeves in the sump. They are a lot longer than needed...I'm not sure why I did that but there is only about 1/2" of thread in the bottom of the sump and if you screwed these in deeper they would act like a stand pipe and prevent completely draining the sump. I took them down to the point where I was taking about .025 off the cast iron. This makes them perfectly flush and it makes the two bosses on the sump both flat and parallel. I also drilled the cross holes in the Banjo bolt, finished threading the output end and screwed in a flare fitting. The 3-way oil connection finished. It's much too heavy to not have something supporting it and this required some thought. I have to make a pattern for the holding bracket but it has to be sturdy enough to use align everything before I have it cast...this is very much a evolutionary part. I keep changing the design while working on it. The first piece is the base that will bolt to the sump... I then made another piece to fit into the slot. I've a lot more to do on this tomorrow but I need some 3/8" aluminum plate to finish it so I'll go as far as I can until that comes in.

As of this morning I still hadn't worked out how to mount the 3-way oil connection so I roughly assembled it on the engine. It will need a support bracket attached to the engine with the sump bolts and, in order to do a neat job and have everything fit I will have to make another rear Banjo. Since I've already made 5 of them, that doesn't worry me. I finally got some measurements to work with...so I moved on to machining the cast iron sump. In order for the brackets to be secure, I need a flat surface to bolt them to and the edges of the sump are anything but flat. I put it in the mill only to discover I couldn't reach edges so I had to fit the table "extenders" I made when I was working on the crankcase. All this took time but I did eventually get it set up. and milled the edges flat. I did the opposite side as well, only to make them match. Then I set the sum up to fit the threaded sleeves I made for the Banjo bolts. Tapped 1"-16 And screwed the threaded sleeves in with Locktite. I'll machine them flat tomorrow.

I had an unusually productive day...starting with cutting the notches in the lock nut... Then I made an aluminum spacer. This is 3/8" thick and is there to take the place of the mounting bracket I haven't designed yet. Then I cut a piece of 1-1/2" hes stock for the Banjo bolt. Drilled and reamed 7/16" While it was in the chuck I started a 1/4 NPT thread - This arrangement of a chuck-in-a-chuck is not ideal. I don't recommend it unless you have no choice/ In order to face the hex stock off I only dared take a very light cut. In addition to starting the threads I also center drilled it. This is because I am going to turn it on a mandrel but it's so long that the mandrel I have won't go all the way through. so the mandrel is being held in a collet while the live center is up against the work piece. I turned it down to .936... .0015 smalller than 15/16. Then cut a relief 1" from the end and threaded it for the lock nut. This is roughly how it works...it is a 3-way union that will connect the sump to the hand priming pump and to the oil pump. The bolt had to be this large because the lock nut had to be able to fit over the flare fitting. I bolted it all together, with the fiber washer gaskets, and marked the centers of the oil inlet and outlet tubes with a transfer punch. Because the diameter of the bolt is so big, I've decided to put all of the relief for the oil passage in the bolt rather than half in the bolt and half in the Banjo. Today's last step was to take the head of the bolt down to the finished thickness. I still have to put chamfers on it and drill holes through it but it's nearly done and tomorrow I'll get to see what I'll have to do to fit it to the engine.

That was my reaction too...I've never even bought a lottery ticket.

Well, I was going to fix the lawnmower this morning but it was so widy and cold I talked myself out of it and came in to work on the car. First, I threaded the straight pieces for the Banjos. Then I reduced the OD on the lock nut from 1-3/4 to a little more than 1-1/2. It doesn't need the extra width and this might make it easier to design the holding braclet. Then I drilled and tapped the Banjos. Counterbored the straight pieces. And soldered them in place. The last step was to take the holes out to 15/16". This time I did it in the mill. The piece of ground stock you see under the Banjo was there to get the base flat...I pulled it out before the cutter got to it or I'd have had a mess on my hands. They came out well but I confess I'm still having a tough time visualizing this piece in place and a bracket to hold it secure. Making the parts and then figuring out how to attach them is not the way to go about things but in this case I haven't thought of anything better.

There were several early manufacturers that used bronze bearings. Mathewson was one...I have a 1908 or 1909 two volume book on automobile design that lists the specifications for many of the popular makes at the time, including the bearing material for the crankshaft and I was surprised at how many used bronze. So, I don't think it's out of the question that what you have is what it came with. If I were a gambling sort of person I might try it myself...

I think that what is called Brewster Green today - maybe going back to Ford using it – is lighter than the color Brewster used. In any case, I want a very dark green which I think will go well with the polished brass of the lights etc. The chassis and wheels will be a cream color - which is what it was originally. Mitchell offered their cars in either dark blue or a dark maroon - either of which would be satisfactory but I still like green better. The Woonsocket Body Company, the predecessor to Waterhouse (the Waterhouse brothers bought the Woonsocket company when it went bankrupt) was located about a block from my shop. I think the police station is on the site now. Another of my ideas is to make a custom body and add a "Woonsocket Body Company" plate. Did they even make bodies for cars? I don't know...they did eventually. In fact, they made some of the Ruxton bodies. Whether they did it in 1910 is another question but I suspect they would if they had a customer. It's all a bit of a spoof...like my electrical stuff that is marked "Pendleton Manufacturing Company, New London, Connecticut". That was my great-grandfather.

Oddly enough, that is just about the color I plan to paint the Mitchell though I'm not all that fussy as to the exact shade as long as its very dark. Brewster Green - which is, I think, even darker is also good.

Moxie... there was one built on a RR chassis I once saw photos of. Moxie is a soda and some would say it is an acquired taste. I think it's the official soda of Maine.

Well, you are a lot younger than I am so you may have to drive it... Actually, I really do think I'll finish and I'm not upset by how much time it's taking. Like so many jobs, the engine has proved to be much more of an ordeal than I anticipated but that has a lot to do with the fact that it wasn't a very good engine to begin with. That is something I didn't know when I bought it. But, if I'd waited until I could afford something better, I'd still be waiting. If I'd had the wherewithal to buy a much better car, even in this condition, I'd be ahead of the game but at 68, my time for doing this sort of work is limited...at some point I won't be able to shift a 75 lb chuck. A Pierce or a Locomobile or any number of better cars would not have so many of the problems attendant with shoddy original workmanship.

I just want to live long enough to take it for a ride. That said, I think that after this engine the chassis will be a cake walk.

I'm sure you've all heard the old saying "he doesn't know what day it is." This morning I set the alarm off because I didn't know what day it was...I actually thought it was Thursday. Had I realized it was Saturday I might have stayed home, fixed the mower and cut the grass. Instead, I set up the radius tool to turn the barrel shape on the Banjos. Then went on to the lock nut. I thought I had a fixture in this thread but either I don't or I couldn't find it so I made another. I turned the thickness down to 3/8" Then knurled it... The knurling screws it on very tight so I'll leave it on the fixture until I've cut the notches for a hook spanner then use the spanner to remove it. The last bit today was to make the straight pieces that screw into the banjos. I got them to the point of being ready to thread but I really have to go to the market...I'm down to a few potatoes and maybe a jar of pickles. And I noticed that this is my 500th picture post... I've no idea how many pictures that is but it must be several thousand.

I like that... and I like the cars from the "unpopular" years. Heck, if this keeps up I may actually own an open 20's car some day... that was something that was unthinkable for a person of modest means even 40 years ago.