Angelfish
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Posts posted by Angelfish
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Let’s pretend I live in an old neighborhood that once was on the outside of town, but has since been surrounded by urban sprawl and has become a quiet oasis in the urban landscape. The gravel street is a loop and does not lead anywhere else. If you’re in here, you’re a resident, a visitor, or lost. Or in the more recent years, a criminal. The house across the street was broken into last year. Could have just as easily been mine.
So we keep an eye out for cars we don’t recognize. Today a black Cadillac Eldorado stopped in front of our house on the opposite side of the street. There is a fence right next to the street so there’s really no room to park, just stop on the street. A guy in pajamas and a teenage girl get out and open the trunk. This is 12:30 in the afternoon, broad daylight, as they say.
The girl grabs a Milwaukee tool backpack and a Bosch tool box that was probably a jigsaw. Both of these look new. She tried unsuccessfully to stuff the Bosch box into the backpack. The guy gets back in the car and drives off. The girl starts walking down the street the same direction as the car and carrying the tools. She walks past six houses before we lose sight of her. Ten minutes or so later, she’s walking back this direction, and while walking she stuffs the Bosch box into the backpack. She walks past the point she was dropped off and turns the corner.
I’m on a corner lot so I have gravel street on two sides with front and back entrances to the property. I take a walk out back and discover that the black Cadillac is parked near my back gate, which is always open. The door of the car is cracked open so I walk over to it. There are two guys in the front but the windows are so dark I can’t see if the girl or anyone else is in the back. I ask if he need any help, they ask if this is Echo, which it is, and explain that they’re looking for their buddy’s place. Then he says “I don’t want my daughter walking around like a dumb***.” and the gold chain wearing passenger says, “thank you for your hospitality.”
By the time I’m back in the house they have driven up, turned around and are exiting the neighborhood.
SO, all you logical people: what the heck just happened?
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On 5/30/2024 at 7:47 AM, EmTee said:
Where did that come from - is it leftover from the original casting process? If so, it's hard to imagine it will cause trouble if it's already been there for 100K miles. I'd try rinsing, blowing or vacuuming whatever is loose and probably leave it at that. You can always install a Gano filter (or ankle-high stocking) in the upper radiator hose to trap any particles headed for the radiator. That might not be a bad idea anyway...
I assume it’s a mix of incompatible antifreeze? And well water used to dilute it? I did take a garden hose to the inside of the block and it came out better than expected. I’ll get some pictures up later.
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Heads are clogged up and looks like it may have experienced some valve on piston violence. Don’t know if I have any bent valves, I need the valve train tool before I can start pulling it apart.
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Now we have the waxy pieces inside the cooling jacket. A number of these fell out when I flipped the block upside down and a number still remain. How do I clean this out before I put the heads back on?
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7 hours ago, dustycrusty said:
"Any other opinions?"
Yeah, I think the reel mower between the car and the sidewalk is a Jacobsen, or maybe a David Bradley...
Looks like it had the bolt in the center of the handle. Perfectly placed so when you got a stick wedged in the blades you get the bolt head right into your belly button.
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Heads and oil pan are off. Inside looks pretty good. ATF on top of the pistons to see if it leaks down.
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If you like working on the cars it’s a fun way to learn. If you’re in it for the money you will be disappointed.
The less money you put into it the better your margin will be. If the engine turns, your best bet is to drop the oil pan, clean it, rebuild the carburetor and see if you can make it run reliably. And that’s it. You may be able to sell it as a running car for a little bit more than you have into it.
Please PLEASE do not rat rod it, it will have limited appeal and anyone who would have been interested in the original car will no longer consider it.
My brother and I had about 20 old motorcycles, we’d buy them out of someone’s back yard, clean them up, rebuild the carburetors, ride them for a while and sell them. We pretty much broke even. A hobby that pays for itself is a good thing, but it was not a money maker.
i restored a 1949 Ford truck. If I were to sell it now I’d be lucky to get half what I have into it. I’m on 1957 Buick right now and I expect about the same. $50,000 or more to restore, maybe a $30,000 car on a very good day. And the engine was already rebuilt when I got it.
Could be a fun driver, maybe see what you can do mechanically and run it for a while.-
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Sour Spot:
This is for sale locally but I didn’t bother posting it on the Not Mine section. Asking price $15,000.
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Roomba charging dock. Had a charging contact stuck and wasn’t charging the vacuum.
Based on what was posted ahead of this, I think that’s where the term “generation gap” comes from.
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3 hours ago, EmTee said:
Daily Driver! (Which you could drive to Dunkin' Donuts...)
I’ll dust off my Manuel Noriega uniform for the occasion.
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14 hours ago, EmTee said:
That could be you new "DD"...
Dunkin Donuts?
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$15 at the car wash and the engine looks pretty good. And after 35 years of engine stand ownership, I figured out that if you bolt the bracket to engine first, it’s much easier than trying to do it than with the engine dangling from the hoist.
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It’s good to have useful activities to occupy your time. There’s a beautiful 420SEL that they can’t get to run right and are pretty much giving away. I’d really like to save it but you have to stop somewhere.
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I’m almost afraid to ask how the engine rebuild was “resolved.” I was put off by a paint shop for two years, as you say it does sap the motivation.
This will be a fantastic car and it’s always good to see a rough one brought back, not just anyone is willing to make the effort.
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I’ve had a table at the gun show a few times. I always tried to have three price ranges, good deals, fair deals and things I would sell if they wanted to pay the price.
Naturally the good deals would sell pretty well. Then I started noticing that my good deals were turning up on other sellers’ tables for 3-4 times what I had been asking. One example was a little rimfire scope that I sold for $15. It was two tables over for $45. I had paid $40 for it brand new.
I quit going to gun shows.
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On 5/9/2024 at 11:38 AM, Rivguy said:
About the seats, they do appear to be leather. I would try to clean them gently and carefully. Then I would apply a slightly thinned down (with a bit of water) coat of Lexol, then cover with cloths that are wet with the same mixture. I'd keep the cloths damp and let them sit for a couple of days. The hope would be that the leather will absorb some of the Lexol over time. My XJS had a drivers seat that was cracked, and the leather was like beef jerky, it never did soften up. Good luck with your project.
Thank you.
I’ve been meaning to follow up on the seats. I got some saddle soap from the feed store and have been going over the seats once or twice a week. So far they a looking really nice. I'll need to repair the piece I cracked in the back seat but I think it will turn out well.
I do like the idea of soaking the cloths, I'll give that a try.
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Growing up we had a 1979 Audi 5000. In 20+ years of ownership it blew the head gasket 3 times (aluminum head, iron block), every time in the driveway. First time it went we just rolled in from a 3000 mile road trip, it started blowing steam about a block from home. Never left us stranded.
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18 hours ago, Steve_Mack_CT said:
@alsancle well glad it worked out. On these guys we carry bear spray but wonder sometimes if that would just piss them off..
That said, we had a bit of an adrenaline shot last night - a bat got inside somehow. 30 minutes of following it and trying to contain it during which times it went upstairs twice but kept gravitating toward the dining room. Got a couple screens opened while dodging it and finally managed to shoo it out of a window.
The bat has dethroned the bobcat as scariest animal encounter to date...
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On 4/9/2024 at 8:14 AM, EmTee said:
They are sharp-looking cars; particularly the coupe. I think the coupe looks better than the roadster with the top up. Keep your eyes peeled for a set of euro-spec headlights...
I just wanted to thank you for all your input and you’ve also helped with my 57 Buick. The paint shop expects to have it done in September, with any luck the SLC will move under its own power by then and maybe I can get the Buick well along over the winter. Best laid plans and all that.
I’m almost afraid to admit that I like the American headlights (not so much the bumpers), I think it goes back to 1979 when my Dad bought a new Audi 5000, alpine white with the blue interior.
We drove that car to California, Alaska, Washington, Arizona, Canada, the Midwest. My Mom had a 50 mile round trip commute every day through deer infested roads and 55” of annual snowfall. Did hit a couple deer but always got it fixed. She adored that car and credits it with saving her life a few times on some very bad roads. Finally sold it in 2000, good running and cosmetic condition all original one owner with almost 400,000 miles. Always used Arco graphite oil.
It had the American round headlights.
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There is a reasonable chance that I’m making this harder than it needs to be. Engine 12 was complete but had gotten water down the throttle body and fuel distributor. The intake from 50 was in very nice condition but I also have to consider that it may have been warped when it overheated.
If I were to have 12’s intake soda blasted, the only parts I’d need from 50 are the fuel distributor, fuel lines and throttle body. I can have the heads done, buttoned up and bolted down before I need to do anything with the intake.
You have to get up pretty early in the morning to put one past me.
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Big brother, little sister.
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2 minutes ago, Steve_Mack_CT said:
Fish assume your asking the BW 107 crew the same questions? Looks like a good approach - discard nothing at this time, you never know..
Yup, and once again the AACA guys have been more helpful than the MB guys. I was hoping to learn if I’m going to run into compatibility problems between the two engines before I get too carried away. They’re both M117 450s so I assume Im ok, but it would be nice to know for sure.
I need more shelf space but so far all parts are accounted for.
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OT: Sleuths, Retirees and Busybodies: SUSPICIOUS CAR!
in General Discussion
Posted · Edited by Angelfish (see edit history)
And thats another thing. There’s always a clapped out Ford Tempo with a trunk load of cats whenever I haul the scrap metal to recycle.
I have a picture of the car, no license plate. Didn’t call 911, I hope they have better things to worry about.
The suspicious car was a mid 90s Eldorado, it qualifies.
Like this one but with dark tinted windows and a colorful history of white trash owners.