[Scarebird]

On one of the trips it rained pretty good - the wipers worked but made a lot of racket. I figure 6 months in NM and another 4 in a metal box did not do them any good so new ones are needed.

A short trip to a local chain NorAuto revealed a pretty good selection of blades. Of course no refills offered. They had one of those electronics parts finder doo-dads which DID have Pontiac but only back to 1974... Being the EU all is in metric, so 400mm are needed. 3 classes of blades were on offer: no-name low group at €2,49* then €12,99 for the mid range and top shelf Bosch around €39,99 (eep!)

Mid range it is. These all come in non-sealed cardboard boxes so I could examine them for fitment. The Bosch midrange had an identical body to my existing set; all I needed to do was swap out the little adapter clips on the new ones (bayonet style) for the OEM post style clips. The original OEM units were always a real pain in the ass to swap so the Bosch units with the little release tab are wonderful - other than they do not look stock. For this I care not.

*one wonders what sort of rubber you get for this price point? :X

[dstryr]

Today I opened the hood to pull the master cylinder for a rebuild. Man, I've been having terrible luck and hardly driving the ol' wreck b/c the parts store MCs keep fading and leaving me without brakes.
On the fun side, I found an NOS 2-shaft stereo cassette deck, an NOS 80s eq/amp and a set of JL Audio 3-ways to put in. I've had this car since '03 with a dead aftermarket stereo and no tunes. The dash plate has been cut so no worries on adding this for now.

[Jimbobeast]

Detailed the trunk, painting over all the nicks, adjusted the clutch rod and the reverse lock-out, adjusted the exhaust splitters and rear valance panel.

[Verdoro 68]

Painted and installed the repro dash pad. I used adhesion promoter and vinyl primer under the top coat...hope it holds up. This was a repro I got from Jegs that's pretty close to the original with a metal backing. It fit really well, although it needed some trimming in a few places.

Started reinstalling the cluster. We installed LEDs to replace the old 194 bulbs. Not sure if they're going to stay.

We're held up on the rest of the dash waiting for Cole's new stereo, speakers and a few other things from Classic Industries. I hate ordering from them because the quality is variable, they tend to be expensive, and they take forever to ship, but they have a decent selection for X-bodies.

We've had the build sheet soaking in lacquer thinner for a few weeks now. It's much more readable now. The thinner isn't getting as dark as it was, so we might be into diminishing returns.





Before:


After:

[gtospieg]

Verdoro...Pete Serio told me not to use LED's in the dash...they won't dim with the dimmer switch. There may have been other reasons too...can't remember.

[Verdoro 68]

These dimmed, they just didn't look good. I prefer the warm color of incandescents in an old car.

[OCMDGTO]

First track day of the year today. Got my best ever ET

[Verdoro 68]

Originally Posted by OCMDGTO

First track day of the year today. Got my best ever ET

I'm in the market for a set of drag tires - what size and kind of M/Ts are you running?

We got most of the dash back together on the Ventura. Got the gauges reinstalled ( with incandescent bulbs) and the tach hooked up and working. Installed few little odds and ends like new pedal pads, glove box and bumpers. Also installed a new arrowhead on the front of the car which is apparently one year only.

USPS botched the delivery of the stereo so now we've hung up waiting on that.

Took the cover off the goat, re routed the vacuum hoses for the distributor and started cleaning it up for GoodGuys next week.

[OCMDGTO]

MT Pro Bracket radial slicks. These are on 15x8 Rally 2s and are 26x8.5. Next set will be 28x9, I went shorter this time trying to add some gear but it didn't change et at all. I had a set of Hoosier radial slicks that were great, too.

[Jack Gifford]

Only trivial stuff today. Added a clip to the turn signal wiring on the '26 to keep it away from the exhaust pipe.
Still waiting for warmer weather to test-run the lakester's two cylinder hemi. Fired it up briefly but it wanted to walk around and fall off the wood blocks. "Bit the bullet" and sank an expanding anchor into the concrete floor. Spent some time today trying to memorize the logging procedure for the air/fuel ratio meter, to avoid reading the manual during testing.

[Scarebird]

Drove in to Lisboa today to set up the registration process with an agent. Fiscally painful. Not quite as painful was missing a turn and getting lost. These streets are silly narrow and all manner of hazards dart out.

Had a little transponder doodad for the tolls here (Via Verde) pirated from the Peugeot. Evidented that is a no-no as the reader hooted at me even though I got a yellow light. Agent told me that the readers can measure the vehicle so trucks doe not use car tolls.


Did get there fine. Crossing the 25 de Abril bridge. Big Jesus off to the left, toll gizmo on dash.

[67drake]

Nothing.
BUT the first box came from my Rockauto order from a few days back. The rings were the only item on back order, and they showed up first???
I always forget to order from RA. I made a list of all the parts I needed for my 400 build, then put them all in my cart at Summit. Then remembered RA and found all the exact same parts, put them in my cart, then compared. After the discount code was entered, I saved over $150 using RA over Summit, shipping included.
I have no complaints with Summit, and their shipping is always fast, but I didn’t get what I have by throwing money in a hole either.

[Scarebird]

The Tubarao Azul (Blue Shark) has a new house!

We had a breezeway converted into something more useful, like a small garage for the Pontiac. Eventually a shop will be built and equipped.

[PAUL K]

Originally Posted by OCMDGTO

First track day of the year today. Got my best ever ET

Very nice!

[7t4mula]

Originally Posted by Scarebird

The Tubarao Azul (Blue Shark) has a new house!

We had a breezeway converted into something more useful, like a small garage for the Pontiac. Eventually a shop will be built and equipped.

Wow! That is so nice!

I think I’m going to need to do this eventually also, covert our open slab parking spot for the travel trailer into a safe-spot for the Firebird to prevent door dings, etc…

[b-man]

Received this ‘71-‘72 Olds 8.5 corporate 10-bolt housing and axles today, for my ‘64 Le Mans convertible.

It’s an upgrade over my current BOP 8.2” 10-bolt with 2.56 gears. I’m having 3.08 GM gears installed in the 8.5 along with a factory 28-spline posi unit.

The 421 scoots along pretty well already with the 2.56 rear but with mechanical secondary Tri-Power it really could use some lower gears so in goes the 8.5 3.08 rear that can also better withstand some abuse.

Huge shoutout to Drake (67drake) who really wasn’t actively looking to sell this rear. I inquired after seeing him mention here on the forums a while back that he had a couple of these special Olds/Buick ‘71-‘72 8.5 rear ends stashed away.

Drake was kind enough to go the extra mile (several miles actually) to properly wrap the housing and axles up for safe shipment.

Thank you again my friend.

[67drake]

Well, my 400 rebuild parts came in.
I screwed up while ordering and ordered 1 rod bearing, not 1 SET. No biggie, a set is on is way now.
Now to get back out in the shop.
Funny thing is, since I took this maintenance/public works job late last summer, I just don’t have the itch to wrench on things like I did before. I spend 8 hours a day at work fixing, wrenching, and problem solving, so it scratches that itch. Now I just want to drive!
I’m serious. I’ve mentioned in the past that I enjoyed being in the shop and working sometimes as much as driving, not these days.

[kingbuzzo]

I've never had an itch to wench but here I am...driving does it for me lol

[67drake]

Got out in the shop yesterday and put a coat of primer and paint on the back of the block. This way I don’t have to paint my engine stand along with the block when it’s assembled.
Nice thing about having a muscle head teenager around is he can help me lift the engine to the stand, as I’m too lazy to dig the cherry picker out, as it’s buried. In my younger days, I would do it, but kinda tricky with one of these tippy 3 wheel stands.
The bad thing about teenagers is they’re never home.
Rockauto box came today with the rest of my rod bearings.
It’s a start

[67drake]

Well, waiting 2 days for my son to be home to help me put the block up on the engine stand. I texted him today again, and said when he gets home to tell me so that we can get the block up.
He gets home and walks inside and says “Done”. He picked the block up, steadied it, and slipped it onto the stand by himself. I wouldn’t even try this as the stand would want to roll across the floor. Lol
So how much does a bare block weigh BTW? I could lift it if needed, but not lift it and put it on a stand. I did a search and couldn’t find the weight.

Anyway, NOW I can start getting something done!