unimogjohn Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 It is Monday morning so it must be a weekend report from from Greg, October 26th. " Got some stuff done this weekend, guess I'm settling in to this winter routine. Got word from David (trimacar) Coco's Cut and Cover where my Dodge Brothers is to get a new top. He says that the front and rear bows are suffering from tack and staple damage, cracks, missing chunks and some wood rot. Pretty much toast. Barb and I were dispatched to fetch them for evaluation. Repair was scheduled for today. Actually not bad for ninety-four year old woodwork, I opted not to replace them, just fix them up. Liberal use of Quick Poly penetrating epoxy sometimes mixed with sawdust and the occasional inletting of a wooden patch was adequate. Not wanting to keep the fun to myself, I was very happy to see my son Nathan come by to help get these things done for a quick turnaround. With his assistance both bows are now ready for David when he wants to resume. Not ready to go home, he was also hoping to get more done on the Avanti's R3 engine re-asssembly. We dug out the oil pump which he then disassembled for inspection and cleaning. Pristine inside, he hosed and blew it out before dropping in the gears and securing the cover. Bagged and tagged, oil pump is now a check mark on the list of things done. Thanks Nate! Ps. Mr. Erb.....opted not to go with the high output pump as per your recommendation." = Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 Another quick update from Greg. "Late breaking news! Our very own Paul Rose, champion of the unrestored, has bagged another wonderful addition to his fleet. A virtually unmolested 1911 Ford. Some may recognize this as the pride of former owner Dave Plank and then Mark Durst. A 'fifties repaint, Paul intends to perform mechanical maintenance and further preservation. Congratulations Paul!" = Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted October 29, 2015 Author Share Posted October 29, 2015 (edited) It is Thursday, October 29th. Back from a week near Seattle, a mini-vacation to see family and friends. On arrival back home I had received a couple of packages. The AACA Third Place Trophy arrived for the Jaguar, and a new shop vacuum from Eastwood. The vacuum is very good quality and lots of suction too. A great deal at $39 plus $8 for shipping, or you might snag a free shipping offer or coupon. No interest in Eastwood, but do seem to buy a lot of stuff from them. Maybe I should buy stock? Oh buy a set of extra dry bags, about $5 for 5 at the same time. http://www.eastwood.com/rockwood-shop-vacuum.html On a very funny note: We seem to get a lot of calls asking for us by first name. It is hard to tell who it is, but usually it is folks asking for something. When they call for me Alice says "Sorry, he is not with us anymore. Fell into the mud and the pigs ate him." I chuckle every time she answers the phone. Edited October 29, 2015 by unimogjohn (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted October 30, 2015 Author Share Posted October 30, 2015 (edited) It is Friday, October 30th. Alice and I are going to host another Cars and Coffee event. It will be on Sunday, November 1st from 10 AM until Noon, in Marshall, VA. We will be parking in the now closed IGA grocery store on Main Street. We have a new bakery in town, The Red Truck Bakery, which will be open for us. We will be taking both the Jaguar and the Avanti. We are hoping for a good turnout from the locals. Please come if you are in the area. And we have a little report from Greg about David Coco's top work on his Dodge. Looks like David has the bows lined and ready to put on the top. Per Greg - Progress at Coco's Tops R Us. This shot shows the wooden bows covered with bow drill and the front one with leather as found. Per David - The front piece is done. Not installed until I fix leather, just hanging there. Per David - And now ...you have rear storage...the stripes are shadows. Edited October 30, 2015 by unimogjohn (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 Maybe all Dodges had these storage flaps, that fold up toward the top and attach with Murphy fasteners to the four front/back straps that hold bows in place. Greg says the front pocket (which only goes to edge of windshield) is great for getting rid of things, put a piece of paper in it, and soon it will find it's way to the side of the road! There's one pocket from windshield back, above driver and front seat passenger, then one between the rearmost bows above rear passengers heads. Interesting detail, only takes about a day to fit and fabricate... And yes, in the first picture, the leather got away from me as it tried to wrap around the front bow and I'll be fixing that.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 1, 2015 Author Share Posted November 1, 2015 It is Sunday, PM, on November 1st. Of course it rained early this morning, but by 9 AM it had passed. But the roads were wet, I got into the Jaguar and headed into town for our Cars and Coffee event. It was very lonely for a bit, but slowly some cars came. We had about a dozen. Met some new folks and we all had a good time. The rain in the morning I am sure scared off a few folks. It was good to get the Jaguar out and about. It sure handles much better with new tires and shocks. Like a different car. This afternoon, I put the Jaguar on the four post lift. One of the latching mechanism was not working on one post, it would not lock. After some adjustments it did, and now all locks work and the carriage goes up and down equally. So I raised the Jaguar up and down a few times just to make sure all was good. It was. Now I am comfortable with putting the Avanti under the Jaguar for winter storage. And here are a few pics of the Cars and Coffee event for your enjoyment. Do you see anything interesting on the dash of the 1937 Hudson? Oh, and got word that Camaro Steve's engine will be done by the end of this week. Steve has been busy prepping the engine bay to receive the rebuilt engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfre Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Interesting radioAl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grimy Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Methinks that's a speedometer reading in kilometers. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 Methinks that's a speedometer reading in kilometers. And counter clockwise Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Zimmermann Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 And counter clockwise BenNo Ben, it's not! However, the scale is unusual: normally the zero is at 7 o'clock; on this one it's at 1 o'clock 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landman Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 No Ben, it's not! However, the scale is unusual: normally the zero is at 7 o'clock; on this one it's at 1 o'clockWhich make me think it may have been RHD at one time. Lots of Hudsons in England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 No Ben, it's not! However, the scale is unusual: normally the zero is at 7 o'clock; on this one it's at 1 o'clock I stand corrected!! Roger, you are correct. My senior moment for the day. Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Zimmermann Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 Don't worry Ben, at first I thought like you. At a second view of that picture, I saw that I was wrong... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 2, 2015 Author Share Posted November 2, 2015 You are right, it's is in kilometers, but it does not say that. Everything things that it is 200 mph. Funny. I will have to ask Jon on that speedo. He has owned the car since college, many, many years ago. Maybe it's original home was Canada? But it is Monday, November 2nd. And we have a report from Greg. "Golly, can't believe that we're into the month of November already. Year is almost shot. You sure couldn't tell that by the project progress reports. Haven't got a thing done on the '10 Overland, but then again the '21 Dodge is out for a new top and that's going well. And also the R-3 is coming back together. Having my son Nate help me with it has been a real joy. Even though he's not an old hand at this, he has jumped right into it, wielding ring compressor, plastigage and torque wrench. He's also made some observations that led me to say "Oh yeah, didn't think of that". As of tonight we were able to drive home some core plugs, press the timing gear on, degree the cam, install and secure it, get the rods pistons and bearings installed and torqued, even mount the oil pump and its baffle. Definite progress. Otherwise, this morning Barb and I made a brief appearance at Unimog's Cars and Coffee gathering in Marshall. Overnight rain squalls kept attendance down, but better luck next time. Can't forget to set my internal clock back." = Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 2, 2015 Author Share Posted November 2, 2015 Still Monday. The first thing I did was pull the Avanti out of the garage, and hit the country roads for about thirty miles. Ran great and was just a super ride. The car is such a nice cruiser. I then put the Avanti under the Jaguar. This will be their winter positions in the garage. I unloaded the Trailblazer from the trailer, and Alice and I used the little John Deere tractor to pull it into the garage. I am going to replace the fuel pump that is in the tank. When it died, it was struggling to start, it was not getting fuel. The fuel pump relay is good so odds are the fuel pump gave up. Also looking at the starter, the wires going to it are crusty/rusty. Going to get the truck on the lift and clean them up. Hopefully, this is the cause of the no crank issue. Also the battery was dead in the truck. This should not be after only three weeks so may pull it and take it back to Wally Mart. It is only a year old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeventhSon Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 Wow, those starter wires look familiar! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 Hmmmm....Jaguar on top, Avanti underneath.....shouldn't the cover be UNDER the Jaguar? Just sayin'.......! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 3, 2015 Author Share Posted November 3, 2015 David, I do have drip panels under the Jaguar. I am watching closely to make sure that nothing touches the Avanti. I have a cover for the Avanti for the winter, but plan on driving it more over the next few weeks. And speaking of David aka Trimacar on the forum. Greg just sent me some pics of top construction that David is doing on his Dodge. I will let David comment on what is going on and how things are progressing. I think that Greg is very happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avantey Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 John- Those wires are not crusty/rusty by our standards! Here in upstate NY they look 'have never seen a winter" almost new! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 (edited) OK, John, I figured you'd protect the Avanti, just teasing on the leaking Jaguar of course! Greg's top is coming along. The rear curtain gets six "cathedral" windows, each pre-bound (black binding), then sewn to curtain (see old one and pattern in picture, 12 inches high, 4 inches wide). It's going to be a neat hat trick, so put them aside for now, then fit and sewed the top pads, which are made out of top material so that the underside matches the underside of the top. Loosely hanging on the car in picture, they'll get nailed to bows, then reinforcement straps, then padding, and finally the covering bowdrill hand sewed together to seal. The padding will be old style materials, not foam. This is where a lot of upholstery guys make a mistake on the old tops, putting a thin foam pad (as is used on more modern cars), and the result is a top that looks like a starved horse with ribs showing. Look at period pictures of open cars and note the tops, you'll see that the correct padding makes a huge difference, giving a nice line to the finished top. Greg had a top put on this car over 30 years ago, and at the time had to have the grained top material specially made with the tan back side. He was smart enough to think that he might own the car a long time (he rarely sells a car, only one that I know of, and that was only to buy a much, much better car at the same price), so he had enough material made back then to put two tops on the car. That's the material I'm now using for the top. Edited November 6, 2015 by trimacar (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 6, 2015 Author Share Posted November 6, 2015 David, thanks for the update. Keep them coming. I see that you also made repairs to the hidem welting around the top plate of the seating area. Looks very nice indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Yes, it was a little ugly under the old, torn, trim piece. Looks a little better now, that's why they call it Hidem! The snaps were mainly being held in place by the fabric and leather, as they were too short to make it all the way to the wood underneath. It now has snaps with longer screws, and the studs on the rear iron (for top and side curtain fastening) have be reseated also. Greg's Dodge is a great old car, that he doesn't plan to further restore at this point, so we're trying to make repairs as needed without it turning into a major project. The top had lost it's pads, though, so something had to be done.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 8, 2015 Author Share Posted November 8, 2015 (edited) I have to get one of these for the farm. Very impressive work. And Roger Zimmermann could do this with his model build too. Edited November 8, 2015 by unimogjohn (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 There must have been some serious recreational drugs making the rounds of the Studios in 1930, that is one of the craziest things you'll ever see. Neat how they used black drapes over parts of the car to simulate the "hatching"..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Zimmermann Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Funny! I just cannot lay eggs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 8, 2015 Author Share Posted November 8, 2015 It is Sunday morning, November 8th. Spent the morning over at Corvette Wayne's place with Camaro Steve. Started the build of Steve's original 350 engine. It now has been bored .40 over. Looks nice. Wayne and Steve did the hard work, I just took pics and supervised. Got the crankshaft and all 8 pistons in. Will meet again on Wednesday and continue the build when more parts arrive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Zimmermann Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 What is that white product on the bearing shells? I'm using pre-lube; obviously, on the pictures, there is something different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 8, 2015 Author Share Posted November 8, 2015 Roger, I thought that Wayne would use an assembly lube of some sort also. But he uses a premium lithium grease. I asked him about it, and he said that it "sticks" to the bearing surfaces longer than assembly lube and less prone to wash out during the initial start and run in. He only uses it on the crank and rod bearings. He uses something different on the cam and lifters. Stay tuned for that. He has built over a 100 engines without a failure so I figure that he must know his stuff. He did say that there would be some comments on his choice of lube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 9, 2015 Author Share Posted November 9, 2015 It is Monday, November 9th. It was at freezing this morning outside and 45 degrees in the garage. So turned on the heat to 65 degrees. Within twenty minutes or so it was nice and comfy. I then figured I would use my new 18 foot pole to see if I could push insulation into the ridge cap. So I cut 10 inch sections and climbed a 6 ft ladder to get a few more feet. Bit by bit I was able to push insulation into the ridge. I did one complete section of ten feet; it took about an hour. Only five more sections to go. The insulation is holding and I made every attempt to push it up and behind the framing so it would stay and not drop. So far, so good. Of course I forgot to take a pic of the completed section, I will do that tomorrow. But I did do one little piece at the end of the building so you can get the idea of what it looks like. This will seal up the last of my major heat exit points, and if I have gone too far in sealing the building I can easily pop out a few insulation blocks. I then started on the Trailblazer's starter. It is so much better working with it on the lift, I have the truck shoulder high so I can get my hand in the side of the engine bay to reach it. So crusty. I did get the solenoid wire off. Then decided that since the starter is about ten years old I would just go ahead and replace it, why do all this work to just have it fail. So for $70 I have a new one coming. It will be here on Wednesday. Tomorrow I hope to have the old one out. One nut is easy to get to, the other is in a blind spot behind the engine so you cannot see it. Everything is by feel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 10, 2015 Author Share Posted November 10, 2015 It looks like David, Trimacar, Coco is almost done with Greg's Dodge top. Looking pretty neat. I am sure that David will add details as Greg's comments were nil. But sometimes that is a good thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 10, 2015 Author Share Posted November 10, 2015 Corvette Wayne has been rebuilding a 60s pickup. The other day he ran across a running chassis with all upgraded running gear, brakes, power steering, etc. So he decided to swap frames and some of the components. He plan to sell the engine, but keep the transmission as it has overdrive and use it on another future project. He stripped the frame, did some minor repairs and had it power coated. He now is in the process of putting everything back on. Just put on the front spindles and next will be the front rotors, pads, and splash shields. I know that it is a modified truck, but the work is interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 10, 2015 Author Share Posted November 10, 2015 Still Tuesday, but early PM. Headed out to garage to see if I could remove the starter from the Trailblazer. I did get off the main power lead without much difficulty, but I am stopped trying to remove the upper back nut from the threaded stud holding the starter. I need a deep 15mm socket. I have everything else but the socket. So Alice is going to pick one up this afternoon while she is in town. So I put up a section and a half of ridge line insulation in the roof. I did manage to finally take a pic of a completed section. Only three and a half sections to go. And I pulled out all the old car covers and put them on all the cars. The 23 McLaughln Buick even has two. The covers are well used, but they will keep the dust off the cars over the winter. The only car I might still use is the Avanti, the others are put to bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted November 11, 2015 Share Posted November 11, 2015 Yep, all the underwear on the Dodge is done, pads and pockets and straps and bowdrill and...whew, all that. First fit of main top (as is shown in pictures), I use a piece of cording to define where the seam will be, and it's marked in a manner that allows sewing of the main seam to progress, easy to show and hard to explain. I then lay the top over the car (as is shown) before the final seam top stitch, to make sure I'm happy with fit. Will then make adjustments, sew top stitch on seam, and then mark/cut/fit/sew side reinforcement for outside edges of top. I enjoy doing tops for early cars, a very logical progression of tasks that fits well within my sometimes orderly mind....and this one is very satisfying, knowing that it's for a friend who appreciates it, and there's no pressure to finish, just a nice daily talk about what did or did not get done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 11, 2015 Author Share Posted November 11, 2015 (edited) It is Wednesday, Veterans Day, November 11th. And what do three old Veterans do? Well, we get together, told stories of our youth and built an engine. Everything was going good when the vibration damper hung up on the crankshaft. Tried a could of times to get it to press on, but it was a no go. Tried an old one from Wayne's junk pile, and it went right on. So we decided to give up for the day, and Wayne is going to take the damper into the engine shop and see what is up with it. The shop purchased the damper for the engine. Here is what we accomplished today in pictures. Everything else went just fine. We even talked Camaro Steve in to having his automatic transmission rebuild during our story telling. We only what do do this once, and Steve did admit that he thought it "might be" slipping. Edited November 11, 2015 by unimogjohn (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 12, 2015 Author Share Posted November 12, 2015 We all should be so lucky. https://player.vimeo.com/video/139358538 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacerman Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 It was nice to see Hudson's, Nashes and AMC's represented in the collection. He was working on a 64 Rambler Classic V8 in one scene. I didn't see any Studebakers though. Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 12, 2015 Author Share Posted November 12, 2015 (edited) It is Thursday, November 12th. Well I got the new starter for the Trailblazer last evening via FedEx. So this morning I decided that I better put it in. So after a few hours of work the new starter is in and hooked up. With great hope I turned the key. Nothing! I then decided to check every fuse in the car. All OK. So I guess now the only thing I can do now is change out the fuel pump, which I have on hand. If that does not work. Then I give up, off to the local Chevrolet dealer. Edited November 12, 2015 by unimogjohn (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dalef62 Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 John, If you have a no crank you need to see if you have power to the starter. Check to see if you have 12v. on the main cable, then see if you have 12v. on the ignition wire coming to the starter when the key is turned to start. It does not sound like a fuel pump problem. It could be that the battery terminal wire is corroded inside the terminal and not feeding power to the cable. I had that happen on a Ford Ranger, replaced started before I checked for power at the starter, replaced the battery terminal and it started right up. Dale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unimogjohn Posted November 12, 2015 Author Share Posted November 12, 2015 Dale, I can jump across the relay tabs for 12 volts and it does engage the solenoid and the starter spins. I am just not getting any power to the ignition and start circuits. The relays for both circuits are new. These are both controlled by the engine management computer, which I replaced. Before I drop the gas tank I am going to pull the ignition switch, which I replaced, and check that I did it correctly. This should only take me a couple of hours. There is a little wheel with cogs on it that moves various plates within the switch that goes "off, accessories, run and start", maybe I have one cog off which does not allow it to go to the start position? The key turns a lever that engages the cogs on the ignition switch. Oh, and I just replaced the fuel filter. Had not done that in several years. I could still blow though it, but it was restricted. The new one was way better. On a farm side note, Shadow, our pooch of some 16 years, is starting to have some issues with his back legs. So Alice has him going to a holistic vet for acupuncture, laser and massage therapy. Me, I have the same aces and pains, but get the "just keep moving treatment" or "you are such a baby". Shadow goes first class. This is what he looks like when getting prepared for laser therapy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeventhSon Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Hahaha - yep, it's a dog's life. Now get moving buster! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now