unimogjohn

It is Tuesday, AM, January 21st. Cold here this morning, 17 degrees. And Greg has a report for us. "As one of those who chose to celebrate today by being productive, it didn't turn out as hoped. The cast iron sleeve ordered last week with next day service should have been in today's mail. Therefore the Matheson time was spent torquing the three connecting rod bearing fasteners, installing the cotter pins and safety wires. So that's three of the four. The Studebaker department is also delayed. The additional power steering hoses were ordered last night, and I got confirmation that they'd go out in today's mail because he knew I was in a hurry for them with frigid weather approaching. Hope he didn't make a special trip to the Post Office. Maybe tomorrow will be up to speed again."

Chris, it is actually kinda fun to see all your work on the inside of the car, a little been there, done that sort of feeling. Things are really starting to look up with some of the mold and mildew removed. Each thing you accomplish makes the car look a little bit better. I did read too that the mineral oil is a good softening agent for vinyl. Maybe it will take a few more applications? On the carpet, you will find that most of it is either glued down or held in place by a couple of little screws for support. So have a good bit of clear glue/contact cement when you start. Mine came out well so drop on over if you want to see how it went down. I have yet to do my kick panels, but I did buy new kick plate backing on Ebay. It is just pressed cardboard with your vinyl and carpeting glued to it. While you a thinking of kick panels, remember to buy some of the vent plate rubber from SI or others. I am sure yours are non-existent like mine were. Without the rubber you vents will pass lots of cold air, all of the time. My Avanti is still in hibernation, but am anxious to get her out of the barn and back on the road. We are all still enjoying your adventure and pics. Keep them coming. Sure glad the car is in the garage, lots of action, but I know you are getting tired since there is so much to accomplish. But you are having fun, right?

Oh, forgot. I have been following the car auctions on TV and on the net. Gooding and Company had an auction in Scottsdale CA on Fri/Sat. They had a very early Avanti, 10004 (fourth produced) and a Jaguar XK 120 FHC. Gooding is know for their high end auctions and deep pocket clients. Of course I wanted to know what they went for as I have one of each. Well, the Avanti went for $74,88 and the Jaguar for $132,000. Both must have been spectacular. 1963 Studebaker Avanti R2 | Gooding and Company 1952 Jaguar XK120 Fixed-Head Coupe | Gooding and Company

It is Monday, January 21st, AM. Got up to a bright red sky this morning, it was like the sky was on fire. Beautiful. Yesterday I was able to get out to the trailer and pulled out the Jaguar. She started right up. I let it her get nice and warm. She was ready to hit the road, but alas, the pasture was muddy so she and I had to be content to just hear her purr. Oh, but I did go out with Steve to see his 67 Camaro at the shop. They have completed all the mechanical work to declare her road worthy. Steve told them to order an interior kit (carpet and seats), respray the dash in the correct color and put in new seat belts. So it looks to be another month before she comes home. But as usual Greg put me to shame. Here is his report. "It's been a good one again. Even got some Studebaker work in.....on two of them in fact. The black 5054 has been up on stands since the great transmission escapade. I devoted some time to finishing the back brakes and getting the rear drums back on. Then with the addition of the wheels I rolled it out of the tin shed, but just long enough to clean up the debris that was under it. Now it's on the wheels again. Then with the crispness out of the air, I decided to look under Seabiscuit. It's been laid up with a bad power steering hose that I couldn't reach. After looking for the easy way, and there wasn't one, I tore into it. It did require more trips to Sears to get more wrenches to heat and mangle (I needed an old time starter wrench), I proceeded to loosen and drop the left exhaust pipe, pull the starter down and out, and then after running my pickle fork through the band saw, I was able to loosen and drop the pitman arm. This allows me access to the inaccessible hose connections. I'd ordered two new hoses of the four, but now that I've gone this far, I might as well replace the others while I can. This is also a great opportunity to take care of the leaking steering pump seal. I've a newly rebuilt one in a box somewhere, so today I got the old one off. Can't put the new one on until the: 1. Hoses arrive 2. Find the rebuilt pump Matheson engine: My trip to Lee's last week for consultation should have some cast iron sleeve stock on it's way. GREG."

Chris, great job, 100% better. Every bit refreshed really makes her sparkle. That grill should be a piece of cake now.

It is Saturday, January 19th, AM and 24 degrees. Nice blue sky with high white willowy clouds. Suppose to hit 50 degrees, we will see. Roger, sent your question to Greg. Greg often talks about the forum with is other car guys so I know that he does appreciate everyone's input. Here, is Greg's response to Roger's question of "Why not hard chrome that skirt?" John and Roger, Hard chrome never entered my mind. I've not really been exposed to it. These would be my thoughts on that process in this case. However, I might get a nasty note from the Hard Chroming Society. *Cast iron is porous like a sponge. Likely the acid baths that are a part of the plating process would permeate the piston. Probably leech out of it forever (and/or eat it) like a car body that won't ever retain paint after being dipped in a tank of rust remover. It would sweat corrosives forever. *I don't know how well chrome would adhere to iron, even if it was copper flashed first. *Don't know how the chrome would react to the heat expansion of the piston skirt. It might try to resist the swelling - either retard it or crack, or possibly expand more and separate. *After finding a firm that would do the job to my specifications ie, mask off the pin bores, ring grooves, deck, interior, etc to keep the plating off, then I'd have to find a firm to regrind the plated skirt to the desired diameter and finish. Too much to expect. *The skirt would then be harder than the times of 2009 and would promote rapid wear of the cylinder bore. *Cast iron itself is a great bearing material with graphite in it's makeup and is porous to retain oil. *So why not sleeve the skirt with similar cast iron like the piston? Not only will it be a good bearing material, it will have the same rate of expansion; and if I do it right, no one will ever see that I did it. And I'd keep it in house without trusting it to UPS, countless hands. It will be all up to me. GREG."

It is now Friday morning, January 18th. The big snow storm missed us completely. Not even one flake. The front dove to our south. Greg has some new for us on the Matheson engine. Not good, but catch a problem early rather than later is the best rule. Here is his report. "Cincinnati, we have a problem..... A life of restorations leave you with some advice from others with the same affliction. A Temple Baldwinism: There's always time for that last minute awshit. Mitch Sine: We do this because we like pain. They're both right. The night I got the four Matheson rod assemblies in place, when I would turn the engine over by hand, I thought I could hear a faint noise. A little .....tick...... and there shouldn't be any. A slight tick would turn into a knock when running. Last night I looked into the matter. I found a problem. The one cylinder that had been repaired did show a slight taper , but it was only four thousandths oversize. I can get away with that in this slow mover, or so I thought. What I was hearing was piston slap, the piston was loose enough to rock in the bore. Upon removal of that piston for inspection and measurements, it became evident that not only was the bore a little tapered, it was a bit oversize to begin with and the piston was undersize by about ten thousandths. Clearance of .023 at it's widest. Not good. With few options to choose from, and none of them good, it was a restless night. However, I have come up with a fix that should work fine. Unorthodox and tricky, but I think the best plan. One of those hold your breath the whole time kindof jobs. Option #1. Hone this cylinder and the others to an oversize and have new pistons, rings, wrist pins made and fitted. After having an expensive set of rings made for these pistons as well as an expensive set of wrist pins? Besides, I'd like to be able to provide someone the chance in the distant future , should this thing ever be torn down again, to be just as astonished at the nine pound cast iron slugs that are in this thing. Option #2. Replace the cylinder. There is one available , a repro, but it is visibly different . The Matheson uses three different cylinder castings for the four required. It's the wrong one. Plus it would need to be prepped, painted, cylinders swapped, etc. Option #3. Try to knurl the piston to oversize the skirt. We've had good luck using Mitch's "knurlizer", but that was on aluminum pistons. They are much softer than these cast iron ones that wouldn't take to being abused as well. Plus the fact that these pistons are rather thin in the area to knurl (less than a quarter inch thick). We could easily break it by trying. Or Option #4. Why not try sleeving the piston skirt to oversize? The area below that fourth ring groove would lend itself to that. I'd need to machine it slightly undersize (can't take much, it's thin) to give the sleeve some wall thickness. Mitch says that Ford 8N tractor sleeves are .040" wall thickness, so if I use that as a standard, I'd have a piston skirt that is just under 3/16" thick. Should work. Machine the piston and the sleeve for a slight interference fit, heat the sleeve to expand it and let it shrink in place.....and if I do it right, you won't even be able to tell. That's the plan as long as I can find some cast iron stock. And as that old dog Fred Hock tells me ....Four steps forward, one step back. It's a dance." =

It is Thursday, PM, January 17th. Sitting here waiting for it to start snowing. Nothing so far. A slow night on the weather front and it seems on the forums too. Then I get a call from John Lee from Australia. John is a good friend from across the pond. Last year he came to the US to go to Hershey. So he spent a few days with us in VA. We had a great time wandering through the various Hershey fields. John owns a number of 20's Buicks and McLaughlin Buicks. I think that his garage is full so to speak so I was surprised when he told me that he just bought another Buick. A 1929 Buick, model 54. He told me that it is 90% complete and should be an easy restore, kinda like a kit car. Most things have been refurbished or rebuilt. So here is his "kit" Buick. Oh, John is the one in the red shirt. The other gentleman beside the car is the previous owner. He is picking it up and taking it home. He also said that it is hot, like 40 degrees C. Also include in the pics are a couple of ads for the car. John said that only parts he believes he needs are the bumpers, a three bar set. So if anyone knows of a set, just let me know and I will give you his email address.

Chris, can hardly wait until it is fitted back in the car. The old girl is starting to look good now. Great job!

It is Wednesday, January 16th. Rained hard last night and still coming down. Cold too. But Greg has been in his workshop and sent me his report titled "News Flash". Here is his report. "Another Matheson engine milestone. After carefully scrubbing the cylinder bores with automatic transmission fluid and paper toweling (Lee taught me that), the evening was spent carefully readying the piston and rod assemblies for installation. Rings were aligned with the pins in their grooves, everything oiled , the crank journals painted with my usual assembly lube (a mixture of motor oil and STP), and one by one the rods and pistons were lowered into the bores. As the rings were compressed, they went without complaint. As of now all four are resting comfortably, the rod caps in place and their retaining bolts snugged. Tomorrow I'll get some help to invert the engine on its stand so that I can torque and secure the hardware, fill the main bearing wells and get them plugged. A good night's work."

It is Tuesday, PM, January 15th. A very cold rain all day today. Not much fun working outside. But I did get the Kubota tractor tires mounted. Here is what they look like on the tractor and then on the ground. You can see the impression it makes in the soft ground. Great for the farm. We also took the 2003 VW Passat W8 wagon in for its yearly safety and operational inspection. Passed with flying colors. But I also asked them for an estimate to change the serpentine belt, which is now just starting to check at 95,000 miles. How about $400, and I have the belt. The belt cost was $130. So passed on their offer and went home to read the service manual and see a couple of Youtube videos. Yes, you have to remove the entire front of the car to include the bumper cover, bumper, radiator and its supporting structure to get enough room to replace the belt. But the engineers thought of a solution. Why not be able to just keep most of the components in place and pull the front end off the car and onto two support braces that are attached to the front of the car. That was all the electrical and physical connections such as the radiator hoses and AC lines can be pulled away from the front of the car by about six inches. Sounds like a good plan. So I have ordered from the UK the radiator support rod tools. So for about $60 I should have everything necessary to do the job myself. The manual says that the front end can be moved forward in about two hour, replace the belt in 15 minutes, and then an hour to put everything back together. So it sounds like a day job. If you want to see how the extensions work you can take a look at this video. It is at about one minute in. You can see the technician insert the long rod with the wooden end or stop. I also want to replace a couple of coolant sensors on the car that are keeping the fans running all the time. One is located in the front by the radiator, which will be easy to replace, and other is on the backside of the engine, which will require some finesse to get to and replace. I already have the sensors. They only cost $6 each so hopefully they will cure my fan running issue. Will keep you posted on the Passat belt issue. Will probably not do it until a nice spring day.

On the 23 McLaughlin Buick, it is #63. And of course, 6v.

It is Monday, January 14th. It is a soggy and foggy day this morning. Heading out of town this morning for the day so no car or farm stuff for me. Sure glad that Greg is around to keep us updated. Here is his report from the weekend, and a very interesting one. "Well, Sunday evening again. Not a lot of physical progress to report, nothing that warrants a photograph. The maroon Avanti is sidelined until I change out a power steering hose. With what I hope is the right hose on hand, new in the box, I can't be sure until I get the old one off. Sounds easy, but I haven't yet. The conglomeration of hoses converge in a very small and inacessible place. The control valve on the steering arm. I'm able to position the arm so that I can see the fitting to loosen, but even though I spent a day modifying wrenches, I still cannot get the wrench on it. I might have to submit to the workshop manual and follow the instructions. Remove the starter, the exhaust, find or make a puller to free the steering arm and drop it down. ugh. Didn't happen this weekend even though the weather was warm enough. Saturday was a break for a little adventure. Barb and I meandered through the back ways to Harpers Ferry, walked around a bit, then caught the train to Union Station in DC. Found some lunch, walked a bit, then caught the train back to HF for the drive home. A pleasant day. Today brought an unexpected surprise. As I was about to open the shop and maybe work on Seabiscuit's plumbing, I was met in the parking lot by a couple guys in a pickup truck. Turned out to be father and son who had arranged to meet another group and tour the shop. I noticed the PU had a Distinguished Flying Cross license plate and that led to stories of flying in Viet Nam. He'd been to the same airfield that I'd called home, but not at the same time. So I felt a connection with him even though I wasn't a very highly decorated aviator like he is. I also explained how I felt that I was a party to the end of the "good old days" of wartime aviation. Recips. Aircraft, some of them right out of WWII that had engines with carburetors and pistons. To start and operate them required skill and finesse. Always a cross your fingers and hold your breath until it's purring. Unlike modern turbines that start at the push of a button like a clothes dryer. Then three more guys, father and sons, arrived. I was a spectator to the two fathers having a thirty year reunion. They had been close friends during their college days and then separated. But followed similar paths. Test pilots, one a shuttle commander, maybe both. They had decided to forego the the shop tour, didn't want to bother the boss on his day off. I wasn't about to pass up spending time with real time heroes. I had just been watching a TV documentary on our development of space flight and these guys come grinding to a halt. Unreal. Maybe I should name drop. Jim Adamson and Dave Anhalt. And sons. So I walked them through the complex. It's especially satisfying to share what I've learned about the origin of manned flight with men like these. And to have them share with me what they see from their perspective. It brings home the remarkable feats that have been accomplished by intelligent and brave men in the last hundred years. It was interesting to hear from these pilot/engineers, how after my description of the Wrights doing everything on paper first, did the math before they cut wood or metal and then tested their result, my guests explained that the Wrights used intuition and then backed it up with math unlike today's engineers allowing the computer to solve the problem. Because I was having such a good time with them I decided to pull our original Wright vertical four engine #20 to the outside, fuel and oil it up and give them a few minutes of "feeling the heat" as it started and ran. Then goodbyes were said. I was left with a strange feeling of me meeting with these men on a common ground. We were looking for answers and explanations from each other.... Real life heroes and guys that you'd like to meet every Wednesday for lunch. So they drove off, Barb fixed dinner and then drove off and I was left to my own devices. That's when I decided to drive up to the tin shed and pick at Seabiscuit. Jumped in the shop Land Cruiser, hit the key and flooded it. (Remember the skill and finesse part?) It does that every once in a while. Just have to let it sit overnight and be more careful with it tomorrow. I might want to go somewhere."

Here is a nice short video from Youtube on the XK120 beginnings.

January 13th Sunday PM. Still doing farm stuff. My little Kubota tractor needs new front shoes. The other tires are cracking badly and loosing air so time to replace them. Here are some pics. I also had a note from a forum reader who told me that he had just purchased a Jaguary XK 120 SE OTS (open two seater) in PA. It was owned by his best man early in the 50's. He does not quite know what he is going to do once he gets it home. Just wanted to let you know what a garage find looks like and what you may be up against.

Pat, I have no idea. It is half buried. It looks to be well built, but home made. I will see how difficult it will be to try to dig out without damage. I think that the small bucket like thing is an electric water troth.

Saturday, January 12th. We have been busy with family and have had zero opportunity for any car activities. But today we were home and the weather was decent, but I had farm chores to do. I have been keeping the llamas out of a pasture as I have not checked the fencing since the last couple of storms. So I had to walk the line and do my inspection. All was good. But then I remember that I had posted a few weeks ago that I saw something in a far reaches of our property that looked like a truck. Seems like the previous owner buried some equipment under debris. When we bought the property I saw the big lump of old wood fencing and wood debris. But it was too deep and steep to get to it. After 12 years the wood debris is breaking down and has uncovered a long lost treasure. So headed down the hillside with the camera. I pulled some debris off it it and behold it is the rear of a pick-up, an International. I have no idea of the year. With a little more digging I determined that it had been made into a trailer at some point in its life. It is full of debris and way down the hill. It would take a big tractor to bring it out of there. I think I will leave it for now. There is other stuff buried there too. Here are some pics.

Wes, glad to see you finally posting. What is the current condition of the car today? Is it up and running down the road? Beautiful, big car, and super rare with that AC.

Bernie, congratulations on your first start. You must have had a great smile on your face for sure. What did she sound like? I am sure that with your tinkering and adjustments she will run just fine. Looking forward to pics seeing you heading down the lane.

Chris, my package shelf is Fawn, the same as on the door panels. Unless you go radical on me, your car is a driver so I would just pick something close and go with that. Just make sure that you buy enough of the stuff to do the entire car. At least it will be all one color/lot.

It is Wednesday, January 9th. I have been working on the modern cars as they all have to be inspected yearly. Three are due this month. So the 03 Passat W8 wagon got the once over yesterday, some electrical repairs and then off to the shop for new tires. Today we get to pick her up with her new shoes and safety inspection sticker. Greg has a report for us too. "So far so good. Cliff brought his heavy duty snap ring pliers for me to try on the rings of the Matheson engine. Initially I didn't think they'd work either. Using them as intended, they wouldn't open the ring far enough to slip it over the piston. However, with some experimentation (desperation is the mother of invention) , I found that if I slipped the ring farther up the nose of the pliers I could then slip a length of steel keystock inside the ring to hold it open enough to allow me to get the ring started over the piston. Then I was able to spring each open end of the ring over too. A conglomeration of steel strips (as seen in the 1911 Dykes Auto Encyclopedia) then allowed me to slip the rings over the gaping ring gaps until the right one. Tonight I was able to install the first four rings without breaking any. So far. Ps. I reweighed the assemby with the rings and locknut. 19 Lbs even. For those of you interested in the squirrel saga, I was joined by a couple during my lunch. Didn't score very well with my catcher . Must have been off it's game. Pitching the nut isn't the easiest. You've got to put it right in the zone and it isn't very big. But I did bounce it of it's nose a few times. And as you can see, it's friend wasn't interested in working to be fed. Handouts are fashionable these days." =

Pat, it just goes to show you that the old can become the new. Now these are all the rage in Japan. Of course, highly automated. And Greg has another reports and story for us too for Tuesday, January 8th. "NUTS! Monday night wrestling match with the Matheson. Held up on the ring installation until I get a suitable ring expander. Cliff here at work thinks he might have some pliers that will work, should bring them from home tomorrow. Meanwhile, I realized that even though it's a chore, now would be a good time to verify that my rod bearing adjustment technique actually works in real life. Without ring drag to interfere, I've inserted the #4 rod and piston assembly in the bore and hooked it up to the crankshaft. With everything snug and the journal oiled, it's a go. Things turn. (sigh of relief). Also now I understand why they used that unusual through bolt to retain the lower cap. With a nine pound rod and a nine pound piston to keep inside the engine, that bolt in shear makes more sense to me. More so than relying on the treads of a nut and bolt. On other matters, things here aren't always deadly serious. I do have some fun. Squirrels. Most people hate them for their ability to decimate bird feeders like little Mosby Raiders. Or they like to eat them. With roasted and unsalted peanuts I've got some cheap entertainment. A number of them come around to be fed. Hard to tell apart visually (although one has a torn ear), they do each have a personality. Although a few of them will peer into the plate glass door to see if anyone is in the apartment, when you open it, they react differently. One is really agressive. Sticks his head inside and demands to be fed. Kindof like the IRS. Puts it's cold paws on you and snatches it's due. After it's gone (he chases the others off and then stands guard), another (with the torn ear) will stick it's head in the door, rest it's paws on my hand and gently take his. There's the one that Barb calls Timmy . He waits timidly out of reach and hopes you'll toss one at his feet. But there's another one that just cracks me up. When it first appeared, it would keep it's distance . You could always recognize it though, it would stand up and wave. Really. You've got to reward that . Now it comes much closer but won't take it from my hand. It likes to play catch. The darned thing will stand there , paws outstretched, and if the peanut is tossed to him, he'll catch it. I gotta get this on film. Not a fluke, so far it's snatched about ten nuts on the fly. Even Barb has not only watched, but he's caught some from her. Today the thing met me as I approached the apartment for lunch. (They know my schedule) and since I had one in my pocket, it nailed another. This one deserves a name. Not being much of a sports fan, I'm not sure what to call it. I do have one friend who was a pro ball player. And actually it does remind me of Frank Gable. We could call him Frankie. I don't think we could teach him Frank's other trick however. Doubt the squirrel could reach the pedals of a Model T. " =

Joe, they must have had a corn lobby in Washington DC even back then. Probably had deep pockets too. And Greg has a report for us this Monday morning, January 7th, AM. "Not much to talk about. This weekend was devoted mainly to the Matheson engine project. I've spent some time learning how to set up the connecting rod bearings. Sort of makes sense now. Since the components have to be dismantled prior to assembly to the crankshaft, I made some tests utilizing a torque wrench, snap gauge and micrometer. I'm pleased that the bearing adjustment is repeatable. I've also prepped the pistons and now they are hung on the rods, the wrist pin bolts are saftied, waiting on the piston rings. That was my snag. Being copies of the original type plain rings, they are so large that I'm unable to spring them open with my bare hands so that they can be stretched over the pistons. I'll check with Lee to see if he has any stout snap ring pliers that will hold them open. Enclosed is photo evidence that this thing is a real brute. The rod and piston assembly weighs in at eighteen and a quarter pounds. This is without the rings. Not as far as I wanted to go this weekend, but there is progress." =

I usually don't publish links to other sites, but these pics are special. Brought memories of my youth. http://hipspics.freewebspace.com/gas/gas.html

It is still Friday. We headed out this morning and took a look at where Stephanie ran off the road. She is one very lucky woman. According to Henry the car did a 360 when it hit the ground as it slopes away from the road. I am sure that it was starting its rotation as it left the road. The car took out several small trees. Good thing, it cut the speed of the car and it did not go down into the creek bed. I would say that it went in about 100 ft off the road. Henry said that the car was totaled. Lots of plastic parts still in the field. Here are a couple of pics. You can see where it left the road. About Henry. He is one of our local fixtures in the "hood". He raises about 80 head of Angus cattle and hay. He is a former crew dispatcher with United Airlines. He few his own little airplane into work when the weather was good. Mind you this was at a time when you could fly your private plane into Dulles International AP. He does not fly any more but still has a grass airfield on his property, which other still use. It even has its own FAA designation, AICP. One day we asked Henry what AICP meant? He said Ayers International Cow Pasture. That is Henry. Well, Henry has a lot of junk, I mean stuff. Henry calls his collection of stuff, spare parts. About 1980 Henry had a chance to purchase a 1937 Ford for $2,200. Seems the engine had blown, but the body and interior was in good shape and all original. So Henry pulled the engine, sent it off for a rebuild and kinda forgot about it. Until now. Well the engine was long gone. The shop went belly up and by the time Henry heard about it, the engine was sold as scrap. That was thirty years ago. So the old Ford sat in his mom's house garage for decades. Unloved for sure. This summer his mom passed and the house was sold so the Ford had to come to the farm. Henry has vowed to get it running again and if off on the quest. Last week he sourced an engine in upstate PA and drug it home. Did I say that Henry never buys retail and is tight as drum. He figures that he can get the car back on the road for less than $1000. The Ford has been sitting outside for a few months while Henry makes room in one of his farm garages, which are crammed full of "spares". So now that he has the engine he can start on his quest. The body is in great shape, no rust. The interior with the exception of the headliner is presentable. The paint is OK too. Lots of work to do. So I saw the car for the first time today and its new/old engine. He is missing a starter and flywheel, but figures that he can source those easily. Here are a couple of pics. I will update his quest when permitted to check on him. Oh, Henry is 78.