Avanti R2, 1963, refresh

[unimogjohn]

It is Tuesday, July 17th. Not much new to report. I did spend some time on the Jaguar before it just got too hot. I was reviewing the maintenance section of the operator manual, and it mention that there were two grease fitting on the water pump and fan hub that were often overlooked during normal servicing. So I went out to find and grease them. Now I know why they were often overlooked. They are tucked way in there and hardly any room to get your grease nipple on them. But I was successful so they are now done.

I then checked the PM mail and behold, the 1996 program for the Meadow Brook Hall Concours arrived. And in the 1995 results page I spied the Jaguar 120. It was award 2nd place in class J. So now I have proper documentation that it did receive an award. Here are the pics.

Edited July 17, 2012 by unimogjohn (see edit history)

[unimogjohn]

It is Wednesday, July 18th. One good thing about Greg's posts is that he pens them late in the evening, so I get to have them with my morning coffee too. Me, I am usually up early, as the cats begin gnawing on my feet so I will get up and feed them. So, here is Greg's report from last night, as I sip away at my coffee.

"Well, an advantage of living at your place of work, like I do, is that your boss knows where you sleep.

Another early morning, a road trip with Ken took us into Pennsylvania, almost to New York. Made us late getting back, but I've still managed to mix and spray some red on more engine components. The various pulleys are being installed on the rotisserie and sprayed one at a time. Studying the existing photos carefully documents that the Granatellis certainly painted most everything red.

My plan for this evening was to also get the stand supports cut and welded, but at this point in time, think I might search out and cut a couple pieces of steel, clean the paint gun, and call it a day."

[unimogjohn]

It is Thursday, July 19th. Even in this heat, Greg presses ahead. He is working in the shop, but it is still warm. Here is his report from last night.

"Pushing hard on the night shift.

Shot more paint tonight. Doesn't look like much, three pieces, but when you have to make the adapter to mount the pulley on the rotisserie, prep and prime the other parts, it all takes time.

In between coats I worked on those support struts for the stand. Now cut, adjusted and welded, they can be prepped and readied for paint. Haven't decided what color use on the stand itself. Something businesslike but won't distract from the subject.

Now I can start hanging parts on the engine itself.

I am carefully studying existing black and white photographs to accurately capture each color and detail.

Don't ask me why they painted the pulleys themselves.

Mustn't forget to clean the paint gun."

[unimogjohn]

It is Friday, July 20th. Rain coming in today, and not as hot. Yahoo!

And Greg is hopping around trying to get the R3 display engine completed. He told me that he wants to take it to South Bend, IN for the Studebaker Nationals at the end of the month. He says it is "iffy". But he is trying. Here is his report.

'By the hardware store before work, picked out some paint for the engine stand.

During lunch I prepped and painted the struts I made so that they could be installed after work.

With them in place, I started hanging parts, heads and gaskets, coolant manifold, right side blower bracket, etc.

I'll finish painting the stand another day. More important things first. Pages are flying off of the calendar like in an old movie.

So with space to fill , more photos for your viewing pleasure.

*Two old guys tooling around in Eldon Eby's Cutting.

*Greg hops a ride.

*Dan Miller out for a spin.

That Miller Meet sure was a good time."

=

[unimogjohn]

It is Sunday, July 22nd. A few days ago I sent an email to a person I thought might be the son of the original owner of the Jaguar. To my surprise I received a call this afternoon from Jack. Turns out that Jack was the owner and not his dad; and was the fourth owner. He purchased the car in 1965 for $650 and sold it in 1979. When he bought the Jag from a used car lot, it was not running as it had some engine issues. Jack said that he and his dad quickly diagnosed the problem in the vale train, pulled the head and had it fixed. When he sold the car it has 20,260 miles on the odometer. Jack is 76 years old. Oh, and the car has only 25,650 miles today.

He also told me that he believed the original owner to be Mark Stephens of Port St. Ritchie, FL. Mark was the director of the Arthur Murray Dance Studio there. The next owner had the car repainted in the original color as he wanted to remove the dance studio advertisement that was painted on the front wings/fender of the car.

Jack said that he had a binder full of pictures and historical information on all the owners. He said that he would make copies of everything and send them off. He said that he was sorry that the car is missing its tools and jack. He said that those were all there at one point. He was very happy that I had contacted him, and was more than pleased that the car survives today. We talked for about two hours.

I am sure their more tales to tell in the future. All this is so exciting.

[unimogjohn]

It is Monday, July 23rd. I did get the Avanti out yesterday and gave her a bath too. Looks great glistening in the sun.

But Greg is doing real work. Here is his report. I think he is going to go to the Studebaker meet in South Bend at the end of the month. I have offered the use of the truck and trailer (since he still has it) to haul up his Avanti and the engine he is preparing.

"Sunday night and where did the weekend go?

Friday night I'd planned to make a fast trip to Rob's to fetch some parts, but a driving rainstorm turned us around. Instant replay Saturday morining was successful.

With plenty of work to do to meet an upcoming deadline, there wasn't much time for playing. And so that's pretty much the tale.

Photo enclosed of my day spent in uncharted territory. Plumbing."

=

Edited July 23, 2012 by unimogjohn (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Good news on the history of the Jag, John.

Ben

[avantey]

John- I don't want to steal your's or Seventh son's thunder but I could use some help with my Avanti and figure your audience is a good place to ask! So I started a thread on the Technical section with my questions and would appreciate anyone flipping over there and looking at it. I also begged on Chris's thread for help.

Like you I was thrilled to hear my car run for the first time in two years last nite! And now I want to get it finished up and home, been gone too long!! I have enjoyed both threads from the start and even used pics from here (pg 11-13) in the shop last nite trying to figure out the ignition electric. The pics helped a lot!

So if anyone can jump over and offer ideas I would appreciate the help-

[unimogjohn]

It is Wednesday, July 25th, PM. Just got back from a round trip to upstate PA to pick up a huge portable fan for the llamas. It is called a Heat Buster. Does a great job of making wind. We have one and it just so happened that the motor for it burned up yesterday. Anyway, a motor is on order. But I won the new one on Ebay for less than 1/3 of the cost of a new one, a new one runs about $1000. So it was worth it to go up and get it. Cost about $65 in gas.

When I got back I got an email from Greg, and he said that he is going to take my truck and trailer to South Bend next week. Leaving on Monday so he can set up the display R5 engine. So he is going to put the engine and his Maroon Avanti in the trailer and head up for the week.

Meanwhile back at my place I have decided to enter the Jag in the National Capital Jaguar Club concours in early October. It will be an official judged event so I took a look at the judging standards for the champion and driver divisions. No way can I compete in the champion division so will enter the driver competition. Even that will be a difficult event. Just too many things incorrect on my car that will add deductions like crazy. But then again it is worth the attempt just for the sake of doing it. It would probably cost me about $5000 just to qualify for the champion level anyway so the driver entry is the way to go. So I will start with the most inexpensive things and move up from there, and see how far I can go without going crazy.

So today I received two little handles for my heater vents under the dash. One of mine is missing and of course the judge's manual says look to make sure both are there. The other thing is that the car is suppose to have metal caps on the tire valves. I have modern rubber ones. So I got the correct ones and put them on tonight to include the spare.

For sure I will get major deductions for not have a complete tool roll, I only have a mallet. I am missing all the tools so a big deduction. A correct and complete tool roll is about $1000. I am not going to that for sure. I also have a modern alternator versus a generator, not going to change that out either. I also have two modern speakers mounted in the wrong place, so "ka-ching", another deduction. And my exhaust headers, the glass coating is starting to flake off so will take a hit there. A new coating, which may last only a season or two, will cost $1200 or so. So will do what I can do, and just enjoy the experience. I will report here what I am doing. And how much I have spent. Right now I am at $35.

Edited July 26, 2012 by unimogjohn
added pics (see edit history)

[unimogjohn]

It is Thursday, July 26th. The heat is on. Going up to 105 today. The barn fans are going to get a workout today. My biggest job will be to keep the llamas hosed down.

And Greg is getting ready for the big reveal. He still has a lot of hanging of to do on the engine, but all the piece parts are rebuilt, referbushed or NOS. Will be great to see the engine all complete. But here is his report from last night.

"Trying to get this engine ready for show and tell. It's to be loaded on the trailer coming Monday and I've got most of a legal tablet page of things yet to be done. Spent tonight doing things most of which I'd forgotten to list, like drill the stand and install lthe bolts in the support struts, paint the stand, etc.

I'm making every effort to make a good showing. I guess this South Bend debut will the the first time this R-5 stuff has been seen in public since the Due Cento Avanti was displayed at an auto show (Los Angeles I think) about the time of the Bonneville runs in '63.

Stay tuned."

=

[unimogjohn]

It is Friday, July 27th, PM. It has been so hot here the past few days you cannot work outside for any duration. Just not fun. But today I did start the repair of the big barn fan. I took everything apart and tomorrow will wash and clean it. It is starting to rust so will do some rust removal and paint work to bring it back to new.

Yesterday we had Larry and Joan (dibarlaw on the forum) drop by for a visit. Larry and I worked on the 1922 Buick model 45 up in Baltimore, MD. He has 1922 and 1937 Buicks. Anyway, I was showing him the cars, and I went to start the Jaguar for him and maybe even take a spin. Turned the key and nothing. The battery was stone cold dead.

After they departed I went out to the Jaguar with the battery charger. So I hooked it up and it immediately went off with a little green light showing, which meant that the battery was fully charged. So ??????????????. Well the car has a shut off switch in the battery compartment. I never used it except once or twice just to see if it worked. Well it decided to give out, and in both the on and off position it is off. I can jiggle it and it makes a connection.

Just so happens that I have a new switch that I bought off Ebay a month ago. Was going to put it in the Avanti, but now it looks like it will probably go into the Jag.

No news from Greg. He is either getting ready for the Studebaker show in South Bend or already on his way.

So as I depart I leave you with a few pics, the fan, new motor, and then the switches.

Opps, just got a note from Greg. He is working hard on the Avanti R5 race motor. Almost done. He plans on loading on Monday and heading out on Tuesday. Hopes to be in South Bend Wednesday morning. He has folks lined up to help him unload and move the motor to the display area. And he get to go around the Studebaker proving ground track in his Avanti on Saturday. He is going to have a great time.

Edited July 28, 2012 by unimogjohn
added info on Greg status (see edit history)

[Guest GaWajn]

This is such an awesome thread ... keep it going! I love it!

[unimogjohn]

It is Sunday, July 29th, early PM. Nothing from Greg in the past couple of days. He must be too busy to report.

Yesterday was a hot one. We were out on a farm visit and recorded this outside temperature on the Passat's instrument cluster.

Decided to work on the Jaguar this morning and replace that cut-off switch. Got it out and found the problem. The pot metal case had started to separate from age and allowed the mechanism to basically fall apart. Had to drill out the bracket for the larger switch and then had to mount it sideways to enable the car's back enclosure to close properly. All this sounds simple, but a lot of work both on the topside and under the car. Took about four hours.

While I was under the car I took a look at the exhaust clamps. they were pointing down, so I loosened them up and turned them 45 degrees. Easy job as the exhaust system and brackets are new and have not had a chance to rust up.

Now the pooch and I can go and take a ride.

[Landman]

John, possibly a dumb question. What is the purpose of turning the exhaust clamps?

[Bill Stoneberg]

I don't like mine pointing down as anytime I am under a car, I catch and scrape my arm, leg, head etc.etc.etc....

Pointing sideway avoids this problem.

[unimogjohn]

Pat, what Bill wrote is exactly my experience. In addition, if you looked at the car from the rear, the clamp ends were the lowest part of the car and would not be too much trouble catching one on some obstruction and damaging the exhaust system. And I guess more importantly I just did not like the "look" of the dangling ends.

[Scotts_DG8]

And I guess more importantly I just did not like the "look" of the dangling ends.

I understand that type of thinking, Scott...

[Landman]

Thank you makes sense. And here I was going through great pains to make sure mine were pointed straight down.

[unimogjohn]

It is Monday, July 30th, PM. I did get a report from Greg, the Studebaker R5 engine is complete. By this time tomorrow it will be in South Bend. I have pics from Greg, but he asked me not to release them until he arrives at the show. So will post them Wednesday morning.

I finished sanding the barn fan and then prepped it for painting. Put on two coats of Eastwood's black rust encapsulator paint. I like the stuff as it is strong as iron when dried and keeps the dreaded rust away. Tomorrow I am going to paint the inside of the fan light gray and the outside with a black pick-up bed spray on material from Rustoleum. Why these colors? Because I have them sitting around so I will not have to spend another dime on the fan.

Oh, in reading the Jaguar judging manual it says you must have a front license plate holder and plate. It does not need to be on the car, but must be displayed with the car. I have a plate, and now I have a holder compliments of Ebay. Nice piece and very good quality.

I was done with the fan so started mowing the back yard. Bam! Ouch! Got stung on my hand. See the pics of the result, right and left hand. Notice any difference? Gave up for the day. My hand hurts.

And now a big thunder and wind storm just blew through, and we are without power. The generator kicked on immediately. Best investment I have ever made.

Edited July 31, 2012 by unimogjohn (see edit history)

[unimogjohn]

It is Tuesday, July 31st. If you are on the west coast this is for your morning coffee, east coast is lunch time. Got done with my projects this morning and now the storms are fast approaching. The one last night knocked out power for four hours.

I got an early start this morning, but Greg started earlier. At 4 AM I got a note that he and Barb were on their way to South Bend. He said that he has the engine straped down at the front of the trailer and the maroon Avanti behind it. He did not say, but I wonder if he might leave the R5 engine at the Studebaker Museum for a bit. If they asked him I bet he would do it.

I decided to paint the farm fan, and she came out pretty good. I will let the paint dry for a few hours and then start putting everything back together. Should only take about an hour or so. Then the fan should be good for at least the next five years or so.

I then looked at how the license plate attached to the bumper of the Jaguar. I decided to paint the plate (as long as I had the black paint out for the fan) and then mounted the plate. It was pretty easy to take off a couple of bumper bolts and put on the plate holder. Does not looks too bad so will leave it on for now. At least I will avoid a ticket. With vintage plates and old cars the local police do not seem to mind not having a front plate, but then again it only takes one rookie looking to write that first ticket.

And my hand itched like hell all last night. It is still swollen this morning. Damn wasps. This is what it looked like at about midnight last night. Still looks about the same at noon today.

[unimogjohn]

It is still Tuesday, but PM. Greg called about an hour ago. They are motoring along. For a second I thought he was going to tell me that the truck engine or transmission blew up. Nope, he just wanted to check in. The are passing through Columbus, Ohio. Only about six hours to go until they hit the hotel. That puts them in about 9 PM. They will check in and get some dinner, and then unload in the morning. Greg wants to attend as many "how to" Avanti seminars he can find.

After I got the license plate installed I grabbed the pooch and we headed out for a ride. Was only going to go a few miles, but ended up going about 25. The car was running really sweet.

After that the paint was dry enough and I installed the motor, hooked up the electrics and grates, and fired up the big fan. She is alive!

Here she is. Summertime, nothing better than a big fan for a hot llama. Divine.

[SeventhSon]

That hand - ouch!!

[unimogjohn]

Chris, just call me Popeye.

It is Wednesday, August 1st. Here is the report that Greg sent me on Monday about the R5 engine.

"Hey John,

It's been very busy these past weeks, but it looks like I've made my deadline. I'm putting the finishing touches on the Studebaker R-5. I'm enclosing a brief summary of the project and some photos.

Please don't share them until Wednesday. I'd like for it to make it's debut there at the South Bend show.

Meanwhile, I'll be working in and around the shop tomorrow, trying to get things ready for the trip.

oooo0000OOOO0000oooo

As I've said before, I'm old enough now to finish projects I started as far back as high school. This is one of those long term projects. That's when I started writing to Paxton Products in regard to one of their prototype engines. The Studebaker R-5.

It had been built in 1963 for one purpose. A modified Studebaker R-3 304 cu. in. V8 , a special order option for Avantis as well as the other models, this one was to push a highly modified engineering protoype Avanti to the 200 mph mark. The Granatellis had been acquired by Studebaker to be their performance department. With their extensive background in all fields of racing, they were quick to adapt some of the methods used in their Novi Indy car program. A second supercharger was added and a Bendix aircraft fuel injection unit was borrowed from their Novi pile. One source claims the R-5 produced 638 hp. Whatever the figure, the engine was installed in one of the Bonneville Salt Flat

team Avantis.

This car received all the bells and whistles. Belly pan, fairings, skirts, parachute pack.....every trick they could .

But, it was a bad year on the salt. Slippery conditions held the "Due Cento" Avanti to 196 mph. I'm told the car made just a few runs, after all they had a full team of Studebakers to press and maintain. Other records to break. After their return to their Santa Monica facility, the R-5 was soon cannibalized. Various tales as to the whereabouts of some components have been difficult to trace.

As for my involvement, I had been on a letter writing campaign while in the military with little success. The Granatellis weren't in the information business, and it was only luck that one of my letters arrived when they had decided to liquidate their leftover Studebaker components, R-5 parts included.

So now, forty-five years later, here's another check mark on my big list.

oooo0000OOOO0000oooo"

[unimogjohn]

Still Wednesday, AM. Well Greg and Barb made it to South Bend. Even an adventure getting there. Here is his report. The pics he sent were the ones in my previous post so will not re-post them.

"Greetings from beautifully Moonlit South Bend, Indiana.

Got an early start hauling the newly restored Studebaker engine and also the maroon Avanti. Studebaker National Meet. Haven't been here since '74 I think.

It was an uneventful trip that was highlighted by my sidekick Barbara who, with her GPS, was navigating. I, of course, hadn't taken the time to familiarize myself with the route using a good, old fashioned road map. Needless to say, who or whatever laid out our route had a perverse sense of humor. We were directed to take some backroads that degenerated into cowpath status, one incident found us jackknifed at a country intersection without an exit. Did I mention we were dragging a car hauler about the size of the the thing that Luci and Dezi used for that old movie. Anyway, we made it in and now to prepare to unload the engine in the morning. It will be on display at the Singer Building for the duration of the show.

Here at the satellite motel there are a number of Studies. Looking forward to an overdose of them."

[Landman]

That engine would have looked good in my GT Hawk.

[SeventhSon]

Pat, it'll look even better in my Avanti!

[SeventhSon]

John, my compliments to Greg - he is a master of his craft. What an engine!

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

r:e maps versus gps, maps win out everytime.

Ben

[unimogjohn]

It is Thursday, August 2nd, PM. I have not heard anything from Greg. Just too busy I guess. But I did see the R5 engine over on the Studebaker forum. Here is the link. Pix from SB '12

We had another storm last night. This is what it looked like at sunset. Just an awesome sight.

.

[unimogjohn]

It is Friday, August 3rd, AM. Here is a report from Greg for your morning coffee. His first report from South Bend.

"From South Bend. The past few days have been busy and good. Weather cooperating so far, lots of Studebakers, and the best surprise is the number of old friends that I haven't seen in almost forty years.

Steve, not just the Dick Bennetts, but Bruce Slifer and family, and even Truett Ray from North Carolina. When bringing up our old days, I'm surprised at the number who remember my black Avanti, one conversation even recalled the meet at Indianapolis in '76. With great delight I was told that they recalled how when they were ushered onto the Indy track for a parade lap, we were given a speed limit of sixty. So with total disregard, they let'r rip. Another bystander was called over , as a young man he was in the back seat. When he recognized me he added that they were doing ninety and he look out the back to see me and old Blackie, Steve in his Seabiscuit closing the gap. That was just before we were flagged off the track. No sense of humor I guess.

I even met the guy who sold me that recent set of Halibrand wheels, in for the weekend from England.

Yesterday was setup for the engine display and a couple Avanti seminars, today was the show. I'd heard over five hundred cars, a major number of them Avantis.

Tomorrow's plans are for our visit to the Studebaker Museum, a shopping trip to the Studebaker International parts supermarket, So it's been nonstop Studebaker cars and people.

Saturday we hopefully get some time on the Studebaker Proving Grounds track. We got kicked off of that one too.

Yes, it's been a special event. Barb has taken some photos, she'll have to process and post them later.

GREG"

=

[unimogjohn]

It is Saturday, August 4th. Heading our in the heat of the day to haul a ton of wood pellets. But Greg sent me a quick report.

Just a note to document that we have had a good morning. Just got back from the old Proving Grounds track. Although they had published that it would be available from 9 - 1, we got there at 9:30 and were among the last ones allowed onto the track. We had signed a form that specified a forty mile per hour speed limit and no passing.

Steve, you'd be proud of me. I didn't read it. It didn't take us long to catch up with the pack, surely I doubled the limit and might have passed a few.:} They allowed two laps.

Oh yeah,, and there were some people who had positioned themselves around the infield with their video camera. I'd sure like to have some of one guy's footage, especially the part where I dove down from the outside of the high banking to almost run over his feet.

We all parked on the infield for a few minutes, group photos taken and some good byes.

Seabiscuit , even in these temperatures and running on ethanol, has done exceptionally well this week, today the highlight,.

But all good things must come to an end. Car is loaded on the trailer with the R-5, we're heading out. Time to get home and back to work.

There will be some video of today's track time coming your way sometime.

Studebakerly,

GREG.

=

[unimogjohn]

It is Tuesday, August 7th. The dog days of summer. Just plain hot, but not as bad as the midwest. And what did we do. Big sale of pre-season wood pellets for the stove. So we made a couple of trips with the horse trailer and picked up two tons. That is 100 40lb bags. Then we loaded them into the tractor bucket, 10 at a time, drove to the rear of the house, unloaded and stacked them. Let winter come!

Oh, got a note from Greg. All he said that he is too tired to write a report, but they made it back safely. Expect we will get a report later on in the week.

I also received a preliminary Jaguar Heritage report for review before they send me the final certificate. This report is great basic information and if you are going to have your car judged at any Jaguar show you must have it to document your car for authenticity.

The report reveals that the car is a Special Equipment Model and was painted Pastel Green with a red interior (check, check, check). It was built on the December 29th, 1952 and dispatched to the shipping company on January 3rd, 1953. It was delivered to the US distributor, Chas. Hornburg, Los Angeles, California. There is no record of the first owner.

According to oral history the first owner was a gentleman in Florida. I am waiting for some documentation from a previous owner so will see what that says.

I have spent some time over the past few days working on the Jag. Mainly cleaning and gluing. A number of interior parts are starting to loosen over time and require some tucking and gluing. Just piddly work, but it does make the interior more clean looking.

When I bought the car I told myself that I was not going to start collecting spare parts. Well, I guess I lied. Three SU carbs came up on Ebay for not much money. These came of a 1953 Jaguar in the early 70s according to the owner. Missing a few bits, but basically complete and sound. I am not going to do anything with them right now as my carbs are great. But you never know. I guess now I will have to start a Jaguar "box" in the garage. It will go next to the Buick boxes (about 15), Avanti (about 4) and Ford Taurus SHO (about 10). I need more room.

And here is a pic of the carbs.

[unimogjohn]

It is Wednesday, August 8th, and we have a report from Greg.

"Car 5054, where are you?

Even though Barbara has begun relaying trip photos, tonight I'll send current news.

While I was off to South Bend playing, my paint guy Jason has been working. I had dropped off the paint he needed to do the hood, doors and deck lid for old Blackie 5054 (Avanti). First thing Monday morning he called , I was to pick them up and bring the big piece! Although I'd been waiting since last October, I wasn't ready. Yesterday evening/night, I got more work done on the body. Used a cutoff wheel to gnaw the exhaust system off, struggled with removing the gas cap door, some other prep to have it ready to transport to his shop today. As of now the painted parts are temporarily stored in the main hangar

Covered up with things to do, I finally am taking the time to scrub the Miller Mile asphalt off the Stoddard's allwhites . I've been trying to get to this job for over a month now. You might think I'm wasting my time, it takes about an hour a tire, but everything in life has a cost, and I really like all whites on a pre-WWI car. They really make the difference.

Well, tires 3 , 1 to go."

=

[unimogjohn]

Still Wednesday, but PM. Driving the Jaguar at speed always bothered me as we felt naked without seat belts. A few weeks ago I bought a set of period style seat belts without the "Leaping Jaguar" on the buckle. The emblem will get you a deduction when being judged. Besides they were less expensive.

So with a bit of clouds to take the sting of the heat, I decided to see if I could install them. I pulled back the carpet and to my surprise I could see holes where seat belts must have been attached sometime in the past. So I decided to use the same holes, and all I had to do was to drill them larger for the brackets. A couple of the holes bumped up against the frame, but there was enough room to get on the big washers, lock washer and the big nut. So we now have seat belts, and I feel much more secure and a bit more safe.

Here are the pics.

[unimogjohn]

It is Thursday, August 9th, PM. Was on an airplane for six hours, not the most fun. But here is Greg's report from Wednesday.

"Still recovering from the trip. The Avanti body is out for paint, but there's a few pieces yet to go. I could paint them myself, but since they are exterior items, I'd rather Jason do them. I like the way he lays the paint down. Those items, cowl vents and the gas cap door needed to be cleaned and primed, so I took a few minutes to blast them with sand, hang them up and blow on a coat of epoxy primer.

Maybe tomorrow I'll drop them off.

Otherwise, my plan for this one is to keep it moving without a deadline , no express line. I really intend to get back on the long lost Matheson project. And did I mention that during the scramble to get ready for the Milwaukee and S. Bend meets, I really tore this place up. I've got a lot of cleaning and sorting to do around here.

That reminds me, I need to clean up the blast cabinet.

And if you were wondering if I still had my day job, enclosed is a pic of fixturing the Wright 8-60 for line boring the main bearing babbitts.

Seeya."

[unimogjohn]

It is Sunday, August 13th. We are in Seattle, WA visiting family and friends, great weather too. And Greg just sent me his weekend report. Too late for the east coast readers, but the west coasters are still up.

"Nice weekend with some things accomplished.

A little joyriding in the '21 Dodge too.

Enclosed photo of the hinges for Avanti 5054.

The door hinges have been disassembled for new pins and bushings, they, along with the hood and trunk lid hinges have been sandblasted, coated with epoxy primer. I'll order the repair parts. I could machine them, but they are available. I'm using the theory.......Time is money, but money buys time.

Speaking of time, it's time to clean the paint gun so it will be able to spray these parts with gloss black in a few days."

[unimogjohn]

It is Wednesday, August 15th. Oh boy! Our little vacation is about out and now we get to head home tomorrow. Having a great time, but do miss the farm. And Greg is back in the thick of it. Here is his report from last night.

"Tonight is a dark and stormy night, power was out for a while, so not much got done in the shop. However, here are some pics of another project in the works. Our own Bill Hadden has been enlisted to apply his talents in sorting out the decorations that were applied to the Due Cento Avanti. Using skills he's developed in the research of our Wright aircraft, he's computer analyzing some photos supplied by Dick Bennett.

Bill takes the photo, overlays a line drawing, and then using a program that determines where the lens was located that took that original photograph, he's using Old Seabiscuit as a full scale model to for dimensioning. He's applied a graph to the car, a grid of two inch squares. You'll notice that his tripod wasn't tall enough to duplicate the shot, we had to improvise.

The goal is to provide Dick with full scale templates and placement data for his restoration of the car.

Also is a pic showing that the large STP decal on the rear window was crooked.

Lots more to go, to be continued."

[unimogjohn]

It is Friday, August 17th. Arrived home last night from a week in Seattle. Had a great time seeing old friends from high school and college. Had two reunions. We also were able to visit the Chihuly glass exhibit. I was in awe of the colors and the size of the glass works. Here are a few pics.

And today I received the Jaguar's certificate. Also a couple of pics.

I also picked up the truck and trailer from its two month stay with Greg. I set the computer when I gave it to him so here are the results. Greg went 4,511 miles and used 474 gallons of fuel for an average of 9.5 mpg. He also averaged 43 miles per hours. Greg said that he had a great time.

[SeventhSon]

Welcome back John! It's been kind of quiet on here since you've been away.

[unimogjohn]

Chris, I know. Have received several emails wanted to know if everything was OK.

But it is early Saturday morning, like 1 AM. Cannot sleep, jet leg. But Greg is still working. Here is his report.

"After the Fesers stopped by this morning to retrieve their truck and trailer (he clocked me at 4511 miles and 474 gallons of gas for the two trips), I took a few minutes to check on 5054 progress. It's been sanded again, then the coat of epoxy primer I specified , and he's applied the first coat of his preferred sanding primer. With the application of color coats as soon as next week, he's asked me to get more of the gloss black and hardener. He used a half gallon on the doors, hood, trunk lid. So I'll run to Winchester tomorrow to get it. Don't want him to run out in the middle of the last coat.

It's looking good.

And your bonus photo for tonight. As of quitting time today, I've gotten another big chunk of the Wright 8-60 done. The main bearing have been align bored, now I've cut the many thrust faces of the bearings in the block iteself. I'm now able to lay the crankshaft in it's bearings for the first time. Next week I'll fit the caps and their bearings, perhaps mount the assembly in the Webb lathe and run them in.

This engine may actually appear out of thin air."