GrahamPaige29

Nice tool. That demonstrates that the spring needs to be STRONG to push the fluid back through the system. The screen door closer spring I have on there now ain't gonna cut it!

Thanks Paul!

Wow you have good eyes. I think you're right... That might make it much easier to get them. Thanks.

I can look the brakes over for markings. I didn't see any when I was cleaning them up. The Graham owner's club might have a guy who knows who made their brakes.

Yeah. If you can spread them easily by hand, they're probably not strong enough. What model is the car you're showing...?

Hi guys. I'm refurbishing my brake system on my 1929 Graham Paige 612. The cylinders have been cleaned and honed etc. but I'm missing the original return springs. I think there was only one on the top portion (as seen in the picture). The spring in the picture is just a "utility spring" from a hardware store but seems pretty weak. Would the original have been a lot stronger? The brake fluid needs to be forced back into the system and I'm not sure how strong these springs should be. This is the dilemma with doing a non-standard car like this. You can't find specs on these kind of parts easily. I measured the distance between the shoe holes and it's about 6.5 inches. Is there a place you guys can recommend that has specs on spring length and strength and not just by car model? Thanks.

Hi guys. My coil for my 1929 Graham is pretty beat up and I'd like to replace it. Even if it is working properly it looks terrible. For a replacement, what am I looking for? I get confused by the talk about resistor/no resistor/voltage/external capacitor etc. It's a 6 volt system, positive ground, external resistor on the distributor. Do you guys have a recommendation for a reasonably priced model?

Very interesting.

Hey Puleo. I did find a guy who is parting out a Graham and he has some of these bolts. My worry is that if I use the used bolts, they could either strip again or shear. Is my fear justified? It seems like these bolts and nuts were pretty weak by modern standards anyways. Rrrgh. I hate when something as simple as this is holding up my rebuild.

Does this tool seem appropriate? http://www.traverscanada.com/high-speed-steel-special-decimal-size-chucking-reamers/p/06-004-350/

I guess if it's not feasible, then my only choice would be to have custom bolts cut. That might be very expensive.

I did call ARP and the tech guy says they have nothing close to that diameter (.405") . I told him about my plan to enlarge the holes to accept a 7/16" cat bolt and he thought it seemed valid. The only issue I have is that the holes are close to the inside edge of the cap. I guess if I'm only taking off a bit it will be ok but I'm going to show them to a machinist first to see if it's feasible.

I will write to Arp before I cut bigger holes. I'm skeptical they'll have this odd size but it's worth a try.

I was torquing them to fifty. It should have been able to handle it fine but the metal seems soft.

I'm actually glad my original blots stripped. It shows how weak the metal was. I wouldn't trust these to last. If one of the connecting rod caps gives way, you're talking about massive failure and engine damage.

"This is why I suggested that Mr. GP29 get a special reamer for his 7/16" bolts as the clearance between bolt & hole for a true 7/16 hole, even reamed, will be larger. " I bought a few category 8 7/16" bolts and they are indeed .4335" diameter. If the holes are drilled out and reamed to accept this size, it should solve the problem. It's a lot cheaper to buy standard cat 8 bolts that try to match the odd size originals by machining something else.

That's right. They fit up against a flat edge to prevent them from spinning.

Good question. I believe it keeps the bolt from rotating so you don't have to try to get a wrench on the head while in the engine. That would be impossible.

Haha I love that my car is different. Graham Paige was a good company and the car is very solid. It'll be great when done. Thanks again sncerely for the assistance! Geoff

Thanks Puleo! I'm going to go with your plan. I'll get the tools an let a machinist drill/ream them. This car is driving me nuts with all the odd size parts but at least I'll have something "unique" when it's done. Thanks again!

JV Puleo thanks I'm going to explore your idea. If I can get cat 8 bolts and nuts and ream out the holes to fit them, I think it's a good option. Excuse my ignorance but what type of reamer am I looking for and do I use it in a drill press? Is it tapered to allow it to enter the hole? Thanks.

One things for sure. I'm going to pull ALL of the bolts and replace the,. If two of them have already stripped out, there done!

Oops I meant "ream".

Oh man even the pre made ones are expensive. It think you guys are right that turning down a bolt may be a bad expensive option. I'm thinking now that I should buy existing bolts and team the holes to proper size.

Hi guys. My latest frustration. My connecting rod caps are held on with "bolts" but when I was tightening them on to spec, the nuts stripped on several of them. You can see that in the pictures. These are not standard size bolts. They're more like pins with threading. Since it's a Graham Paige 612 and parts are scarce, I'm thinking my only solution is to take slightly larger diameter category 5 bolts (in picture 4) and get a machinist to turn the shaft to diameter, then cut new threads. Do you think this is the best option? The shaft diameter is .404 by the way.