:: Diary - May 2017 ::

:: Monday, May 1, 2017 ::

I go in to see the American Car man up the road, to book a service - well, more of a check-over really, because I’m going to change the oil myself, and also the spark plugs to see if that cures this misfire. I suspect it will.

This is the 1978 Indy 500 pace car that I mentioned last time I was in!

He also recommends that I don’t spend too much time faffing around with the windscreen wiper cables - he says he’ll have a look, but he recommends converting the wipers to more conventional linkage rods - you can buy a kit from the specialists (in America) and although it’s expensive, he says it’s worth it for the peace of mind of knowing that your wipers aren’t going to fall to bits if someone spits on the windscreen. He has a 55 Bel Air with one wiper, and a 58 truck with one wiper. He had a 57 and that only had one working wiper as well. He says he’s thinking of ordering a kit for his 55, and I think he wants me to be the “test run”.

The supplier is good for putting their instructions on-line, so I check later, and it doesn’t look too hard. Famous last words!

:: Wednesday, May 3, 2017 ::

With the assistance of a big spark plug socket and a “stubby” socket handle, I manage to change all 8 sparks plugs in about half an hour. Try that in a Cerbera!

Here’s the plugs I took out. Chevy small blocks have cylinder no 1 at the front left (driver’s side> and then are numbered right-left-right-left backwards.

Most of the plugs are ok, although plug no 6 is a bit too black. Plug no 7, though, is black and oily, and also rusty. Not good! I’ve noticed that the left exhaust is sootier than the right one (the marks on my garage door testify to that) so there’s something up at the back of that bank - maybe a leaky head gasket.

I also find that all the plug gaps are around 28 thou (0.7mm) to 32 thou (0.8mm) but the book for a 67 Camaro says that they should be 35 thou (0.9mm) which is what I have set mine at. Oh well, we’ll see!

Anyway, I start it up and it’s running as sweet as ever.

Inspired by this unexpected mechanical progress, I start to the Porsche exhaust, by jacking its arse up in the air so that I can get my fat carcass under. We’ve already established that the bolts aren’t going to come out with spanners, grips, or anything delicate.

So I fire up the compressor, and crank up the operating pressure as high as it will go. Then I connect up the air chisel.

Right ya bastard! Safety gloves and glasses on (see, I’m not daft) and then I start with the bottom bolt, because it’s the most accessible and I can see what I’m doing. First I chisel parallel to the flange (as if I’m trying to cut the whole nut off) and then turn the chisel sideways and hammer through the flat of the nut till it splits. Another wee chisel underneath the nut, and it flies off. That sounds easy, but it still took ages.

I put a new nut and bolt in, to hold everything in place so that I don’t put too much strain on the last bolt when I cut the second one off.

This top one is hard to get to, or even to see, so it takes ages again - but eventually the nut splits, bolt out, new nut and bolt in, and on to the last one.

All this practice means that the third one almost drops off.

I wedge the silencer into place behind the engine with a bit of wood, and take the other two bolts back out, so that I can remove the old gasket - which removes itself because all this air-chiselling has apparently vibrated the old gasket to dust (if there was ever one there). I put a new gasket in, and then refit all the new bolts loosely, so that I can still move the silencer around to get the mounting bands over it. All in place!

It’s sunny, and the Chevy is just sitting there gleaming in the sun, and the force is strong. So I clean up, and go for a wee Chevy run. It’s running perfectly!

When I get back, I manage to waggle the bands to fit over the bracket in the engine compartment, and get them bent into shape so that I can get the clamp bolt in. It’s fiddly, you need about 5 hands to hold everything in place at the same time, but I get there. I’m struggling to tighten the clamp bolts though, because they are recessed up between the silencer and the rear valance, and I can’t find my Allen key sockets. I had two complete sets, and can’t find either of them. God knows when I last used them, no idea where they are. I tighten the clamps with an ordinary allen key “end-on”, with a ring spanner on the short bit to give me leverage.

Then I tighten up the exhaust joint but notice that even although the bolts are tight, the gasket is loose. The bolts have shanks which are too long, and even with a couple of washers on each, they are still too long. New bolts (or set screws with no shanks) required!

:: Friday, May 5, 2017 ::

Went into Screwfix yesterday and bought a packet of stainless bolts, the right size for the exhaust. I also bought another set of Allen key sockets after hunting high and low for one of the two sets I already have.

So today, boys and girls, we’re going to finish getting this Porsche and exhaust re-united. I take out each of the old bolts, one at a time, and put a new one in, so that everything is still held in place.

Then I loosen the clamps on the bands, so that the silencer can move if it has to, and tighten up the three bolts in the joint. Then re-tighten the mounting clamp bolts and it’s done! See when you do it right, it’s easy…

:: Wednesday, May 9, 2017 ::

Had a lovely wee run in the Chevy on Saturday, everything going good!

Anyway - today I’m going to change the oil. I can almost get under the car without lifting it up at all, but let’s make a bit of room here. I put a trolley jack under the chassis rail on each side (yes, it has a separate chassis, obviously) and lift it up until I can get a couple of axle stands in.

With that done, I get underneath with my new filter, a filter wrench, a 9/16ths socket for the drain plug, and a catch tray. These engines originally had bolt-on filters with paper elements, but you can buy a kit to convert it to the later spin-off cartridge filter, and this car has already had that done!

So. The filter is a tight as my grip on a 50p piece, so it takes a bit of shifting to get started - but it starts and it’s off. It looks like it’s filled with treacle though… a wee touch of oil on the new filter seal, half-fill it with oil just to prime it, and then fit it and tighten up by hand

Drip tray under, drain plug out, leave to empty - which takes ages. The drained oil is really thick!

Drain plug back in (don’t forget that bit!) and then funnel into the filler, and empty 4 litres of oil in, to see where that takes us. As it turns out, the whole 5 litres takes us exactly to the “full” mark on the dipstick.

Start her up! I pull off the distributor lead on the coil, and crank it over until the old pressure light goes out - then lead back on, and fire it up! It sounds like a 5.7-litre V8 sewing machine. Lovely!

Of course, you can’t resist a wee test drive, can you? It all sounds good.

I don’t know how long that old oil had been in there - it was supposed to have been serviced just before I got it, but it doesn’t look like it, not when you look at thick black oil and rusty spark plugs, eh? This is why it’s always a good idea to check over a car of unknown provenance after you get it. Maybe I should have done it sooner, but I wanted it right before I start taking people out for Sporting Bears Dream Rides and stuff. I have it booked in with the American Car garage up the road for a check-over on Tuesday, but wanted to do what I could myself in advance.

Mileage is 24,200 just for the record (probably more like 124,000 or 224,000 to be honest, but at least it’s recorded!

While I’m putting my tools away, I find a little ancient sweetie tin in the corner of a toolbag, and recognise it immediately. Yes, it’s full of Allen key sockets that I have been looking for, for a fortnight. I’ve got 2 sets now (there’s still another set hiding somewhere!)

:: Sunday, May 14, 2017 ::

Well, lots of plans for today - but when I get up in the morning, the sun is shining so I decide to go to a car show at Bridge of Allan near Stirling. I’ve never been to it before, but I hear it’s good. I haven’t booked a car in to the display but I decide to go in the Chevy anyway just for a nice run - I’ll park it in the public car park if I have to.

I have a nice we run through, just cruising along, watching people training their necks as they drive past, or holding camera phones up to the windows.

When I get there, I am waved into the show ground, despite pointing out that I haven’t booked and don’t have a ticket. One side of the field is for clubs, but I am directed into the other side of the field for “private entries”, where there two categories seem to be “pre-1970” and “1970 onwards”. I am parked between an orange Vauxhall Cavalier and a 1956 MGA.

I give the car a quick detailer spray and clean and thats it!

I watch this arrive - a 1957 (I think) pink Cadillac...

And this - a 1957 Buick. Both lovely!

I go over to speak to these two owners, and exchange various stories. While I am there, another guy wanders up, who says his name is Nick and he owns a 57 Chevy - I recognise his profile from pistonheads. We are all talking about the imperfections in each car - the paint marks, rusty bits, etc that add a “shabby-chic” patina that suits cars this age. None of these cars are sheds, but they’re far from concours at the same time!

We go out to look at his car in the public car park (he was too late to get in). He knows a lot about 57 Chevys, and is also a photographer for one or two of the custom car and hot rod magazines. His car is lovely, except that he had a carburettor fire 2 weeks ago, but has painted over it temporarily.

This Cadillac stretch limo used to belong to Englebert Humperdinck (don’t say “who?” - I know how old you are).

A Vauxhall Cresta.

A Ford Corsair 2000E - I passed my test in one of these. I tried to speak to the owner but he was too busy sitting on his own doing nothing. Don’t see the point in going to a car show if you’re not going to show your car!

By contrast, the Chevy had people around it all day, wanting to be photographed beside it or inside it, or to see under the “hood”. Fantastic, it’s nice to see people interested - not just in my car, but in old cars in general. So what if you tell the same story a dozen times - they’ve only heard it once!

Another picture of the Chevy.

I get the chance to wander around the show a couple of times though - I find a wee stall where I buy a short-handled spark plug box spanner for 50p. Perfect to carry to replace any oiled-up plugs!

I also get invited to an all-American show in July, the day after a Sporting Bears event.

Great day, great guys, I’m really glad I made that last-minute decision to come.

All too soon it’s time to go, for the journey home. Everything goes as normal, until I get 3 junctions from the house, and then the horn starts to toot intermittently on right-hand bends. And when I’m reversing into my drive…

I’ll leave it until another day, but I’ll just check what’s wrong. I take off the horn bezel and take off the horn ring and the horn contacts. It still toots when you turn the wheel. A quick check with a light shows that the horn ring has come out of the top of the column, and is brushing against the (earthed) column when the wheel is in certain positions. Well, if I just take off this nut, I might be able to get the steering wheel off and see closer.

Yep, the ring has come loose. I bend the tangs and push it back in. Then I refit the wheel, and reassemble the horn button mechanism so that I don’t lose any of these tiny bits.

Oh. I seem to have repaired it. What time is it? Oh…

:: Tuesday, May 16, 2017 ::

I take the car up to Bob Main’s garage in Broxburn for a check-over. When he’s done, he says he can’t find any sign of a leaking heater (sometimes you get an antifreeze smell inside), and he hasn’t been able to fix the wiper without taking the heater ducting out. He says they are pretty fragile even when they are new, so any repair isn’t likely to last long unless it never rains. That works in California, but not in Scotland.

Everything else is good though, he says it’s in good nick overall.

I was invited onto a closed facebook group for tri-chevy owners. It only has 219 members, including a few around here. One of them is absolutely identical to mine, based in Grangemouth. There are a few nice local 55s and 56s as well.

Later on in the evening, after a couple of nice refreshing whiskys, I decide “bugger it” and I go in American eBay, to find anybody selling the “Raingear” kit to replace the original cable system with rods and linkages, which should guarantee a bit more reliability. I order it from a company near Portland, Oregon. It’s not cheap, but cheaper than ordering it retail, and cheaper than fixing the car after you have’t been able to see where you are going.

I also order another set of spark plugs to carry around with me in case I get the oily-up misfire again.

:: Wednesday, May 24, 2017 ::

I’ve been looking how to fit this wiper mechanism kit (it’s not here yet but I’ve seen the video!). The only bit that looks hard, is getting the wiper arms off the spindles - i.e. step 1. The supplier emailed me on the day that I ordered the kit and asked me if I wanted new arms, but seeing as you have to get the old ones off whether your replace them or not (to get the spindles out of the scuttle) I’ll give it a go.

Apparently you need a special tool. A bit of research shows that it’s just a bit of bent metal strip, with a rubber handle for people with soft hands.

Once I’ve figured out what that tool actually does, I have a go at one of mine with a cloth (to protect the paint), a fag-packet-size bit of wood (to act as a lever point) and a broken screwdriver. Takes about 10 seconds…

So I put it back together for now (that wiper doesn’t work anyway but at least I won’t lose it =if it’s stuck on the spindle!) and settle back to await the pony express from the USA.

:: Saturday, May 27, 2017 ::

The sun is shining so I decide to take the car out for a wee run, which involves going through Edinburgh. Now I don’t know if you know Edinburgh, but due to ever-improving traffic management, the imposition of blanket 20mph speed limits, and the use of the latest technology in traffic control, they have managed to get the average speed in the city up to about 3 mph less than the speed of a crippled chihuahua pulling the Lusitania on wooden rollers. It’s shite.

Anyway, as a result of all that idling, I detect the start of a slight misfire (or maybe it’s my autochondria kicking in, I don’t know). It clears when I get moving again, so I try not to worry too much about it.

After I get home though, and the car (more particularly, the exhaust) has had a chance to cool down a bit, I take out that no 7 spark plug that was fouled before, and sure enough, it’s manky already. I’m not going to replace it though, because I’ve only just bought it, and money doesn’t grow on trees, so I fire up the blow lamp, hold the plug in some molegrips (because they get awfully hot and burn your delicate little piggies), and burn all the oil and carbon off. It’s a long time since I did this, and I had forgotten how therapeutic man’s red (well, pointy blue) fire is, to a tortured soul, so I dig out the 8 old plugs and clean those up too.

A wee brush with a brass brush, and they are all good to go. Well, one of them still has some grey deposits sticking to the insulator, so I fire up the compressor and the blast cabinet. A few wee swooshes of glass beads cleans the last of the ash off, but this, too, is so therapeutic that I blast the other 7 as well, then put all 8 in a jiffy bag in the boot, to be used as spares.

I put the cleaned-up new plug back in the car and it’s running nice again.

That cylinder either has bad bore wear (which is unlikely if the rest are mostly ok), a broken or sticking piston ring, or badly worn have guide sucking oil in at idle vacuum. I need to look at it, but in the meantime (i.e. until it’s terminal) I could try a hotter grade of spark plug, so that it keeps itself clean better. I look up the heat range of the new plugs I put in, and find that they are colder than the ones I took out. That’s certainly not helping! A bit more research required on heat ranges and equivalent brands (without ordering the same Autolite ones which, if you haven’t already guessed, seem to be available only in the USA).