#81  
Old 02-19-2021, 08:53 PM
cdrookie cdrookie is offline
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Badassery right there. I need to get my car painted, I need to get my car painted...

  #82  
Old 02-20-2021, 12:47 PM
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Appreciate the positive comments sir! I totally understand the hesitation on paint. If what you see was any more than $75 in paint materials, the car would still be 7 different primer shades. Biting the bullet on real paint will always be big commitment, but then again, you only live once.

You comment makes me look to the semi near future (5 years?) when I tear the car down to the frame and put it back together with the NOS panels in my basement. Considering Ive never welded a panel to another and that I'll likely have to fab up a lot pieces that may not exist or I cant find (trunk extensions, inner wheel houses etc) it should be pretty entertaining. I'll paint it then with real paint.

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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #83  
Old 02-20-2021, 01:12 PM
cdrookie cdrookie is offline
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My problem is finding someone to paint it. Apparently, the first thing they teach you in auto body class is to tell the client you will stop over, in a week or 2, and look at the car. The 2nd thing they teach you is to not show up or I make any sort of contact with the potential client.

I live in a rural area so my choices are limited. The last place I talked to, the guy lives a few miles away. He can literally drive right past my house without going out of his way. He said the obligatory week or 2, it’s been a month.

I have 1 more place to check. If they aren’t interested, it’s either bite the bullet and go with the guy farthest away and the highest quote, or order more Seymour paint and do finger exercises.

  #84  
Old 02-22-2021, 11:38 PM
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Default Insert punny joke about studs here

Time to get to gettin on removing the axles for stud replacement. Good thing the 9" has a short axle on this side, huh?



Its tight, but I'm feeling pretty lucky about this positioning. I'm even going to move that chain fall bucket to the floor and use as a seat. Bonus!



Last picture of the 1/2" studs before they go away.



Move on over little dog, the mean old dog is movin' in!



5/8 studs overkill? Yup.
More unsprung weight. Yup.
Do I ever have to buy lugnuts for the rear wheels ever again? Nope.

I just love stuff that can be beaten on time and time again and still look this good.





While I call them studs, these 1/2" "studs" are really bolts. Axles had to come out to get these out the easy way....with a 1/2" impact gun.



Easy peasy.



And with the right tool, I can get to installing.



50 ft/lbs of torque on the nylon stop nut on the backside and we're done here.



Final step to completing all of this is to drill out the drum. I know, I know... who else is using a beadlock wheel with drums?? Admittedly, probably not many. As mentioned earlier, I may move to a disk setup, but for now, I need to reassemble the car 100%. My memory is so bad and I see the car so little, I may try driving it with literally, no rear brakes if I don't do this now.

Speaking of the right tool for the job, this one gets a A+. I give you one drum fully clearanced for 5/8 studs.



From here you just need to trust me that I put all the rear brakes back together without needing the service manual. (Does the actuating link go on the pin before or after the return spring?....hmmm). Its before btw, and no I didn't need the book! You know, come to think of it, the last time I fully disassembled a drum brake may have been close to 15 years ago!

Man I'm old.

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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #85  
Old 02-23-2021, 01:37 AM
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Brian Baker Brian Baker is offline
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Wow...I've got one of those stud removing tools in my box that was handed down to me by my father (he bought it sometime in the 60's) and this is the first time I've ever seen anyone use one.

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  #86  
Old 02-23-2021, 02:40 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Baker View Post
Wow...I've got one of those stud removing tools in my box that was handed down to me by my father (he bought it sometime in the 60's) and this is the first time I've ever seen anyone use one.
lol..where do you think I got that one? Not sure its vintage, but it was definitely a gift from dear old Dad!

I actually tried a stud with one of the 15/16 wheel nuts before I remembered I had it. It was awkward handling the two wrenches at vice height and attempting to get an accurate click from the 2 foot long torque wrench. (I have none shorter) The installer allowed me to get in closer to the flange and gave a better grip than my crappy chrome 12 point was giving me.

Thanks Dad!

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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #87  
Old 02-23-2021, 02:41 AM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default I'll "spare" no detail on these wheels and tires!

Tires came in early! They arrived last Saturday in the middle of the stud replacement.



Considering Summit treated each tire as an individual sale for some reason, I was ready for at least one to be so out of date, it wouldn't be worth using. I got separate emails and separate delivery dates even, but believe it or not, both look to be in excellent condition. Both are born the same week (5th of 2021) and both weigh in about the same, where the slight difference might actually be the shipping label and stickers on them. I'm a proud Papa!! Well done Mr. Thompson. (I think hes talking to you)





But lets not get ahead of ourselves. Instead, lets get in the Wayback machine and"roll" back to the wheel arrival.


This is definitely coming on vacation. I'm on hold with the travel agency as we speak.





This is per wheel, as its a DBL rim -


The only drawback were these buggers.



All coated for corrosion but apparently they were allowed to become friends a bit too early. As is good practice (and this sealed the deal), I decided I'd run a die down each of these bolts by hand....all 80 of them...to make sure they don't cross thread and ruin the Aruba trip I just booked.

Small army coming together here -



Best 2 hours of my life getting the whole platoon done. NOT. I think I now know why they call it a die.



Nice thing about soft sidewall tires is you need no machine to mount them. A bit of soap and water, some muscle and BLAMO, you got yourself a mounted tire. Good thing my wife was around for the muscle.

================================================== ==============
Tip#18 - Don't get so excited about new wheels and tires that you forget to pay attention to the tire rotation before mounting the tire. They are not the same from side to side and removing a tire is harder than mounting one.....so I'm told.)
================================================== ==============

BTW - even though Summit only has one valve stem listing for the Weld beadlock wheel, and just because the description clearly says "Fit Weld Beadlock Wheels Only"....



...doesn't really mean they'll fit your Weld wheels. Ask me how I know. And why are there 5 to a friggin package? Where is that O'Reillys???

Still not deprived of courage or confidence and not disheartened in the least, (undiscouraged you could say) I was determined to forge ahead. (a little wheel joke there for ya).

Assembling these wheels is....ahem.. interesting, to say the least. Here is what is written for proper assembly.

1. Begin tightening each bolt with a speed wrench in a crisscross pattern until they are fingertip tight.
2. Continue tightening with the speed wrench in a crisscross pattern until each bolt is hand tight.
3. Torque each bolt in the crisscross pattern to 50 in-lb
4. then 100 in-lb
5. then 150 in-lb
6. Begin torquing each bolt in a clockwise or counterclockwise pattern to 175 in-lb
7. Then to a final torque of 221 in-lb (18 ft-lb)


That's 40 bolts visited 7x per wheel. Allow me to do the math for ya........give me a minute.....carry the 9......minus 27.6..... bear with me..... divide by a factor of Pi.....times the radius.... That's 280 visits to a bolt head for one wheel. 560 if you are doing both in the same weekend, which I now do not recommend. Please understand, power tools and me don't normally get along. I screw up things with less speed when I use hand tools, so its with those I stick, especially for something as soft as aluminum.


Does anyone else balance their drag wheels? With the old Prostars and M/T radial, each wheel took a ton of weight - about 6oz -



I was hoping these new units would be somewhat better than that. They aren't. They took the same amount - 6oz. Well, at least one of them did. The other wheel just showed a straight line on my friends Hunter 700 System balancer. Neither one of us knows what it means. I'd love to believe it was perfectly balanced combo, but the machine would have returned a rdy indicator, so we know THAT didn't happen. (one can dream!) We even threw the "good wheel" back on and the machine sure as heck came back normally. There are no runout dots on these wheels or tires, so I'm at a loss.

The advice? Take it apart, rotate the wheel 180 degrees, put it back together and come back. 40 bolts....undone, then redone 7x. Fun times!!!

Well, at least we can see what they look like on the car, right?



I'm sure it wont be noticed here, but I can see how much more inboard this wheel sits compared to the ProStar. Amazing how much difference 1/2" of backspacing can make.




You think they'll rub?







A bit tight, Id say. Passenger side hits the exhaust - (ignore the sock)



As mentioned previously, a disk brake setup tends to push wheels out a bit...maybe 1/8", maybe a tad more. If I don't pull the trigger on that, some wheel spacers will be in order. Not for the exhaust, but for the frame. Anyone happen know how much growth an M/T Radial R will see during a run? I cant imagine much being a radial.

Guess you know what my search history will look like for the next week.

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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #88  
Old 02-23-2021, 05:14 AM
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OZZIEVILLE 67 2 door OZZIEVILLE 67 2 door is offline
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Just found your thread, what a great read, and I like the way describe it, " I did it my way "
The pro tips are fantastic for a rough bush mechanic like me , I'm up to post 20 , after starting at end. Thanks again mate
John L.

Sent from my SM-T585 using Tapatalk

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  #89  
Old 02-24-2021, 01:15 AM
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Brian Baker Brian Baker is offline
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Fore safety concerns, you may want to duct tape over those wheel weights to keep them from coming off the rim. I bubble balanced the tires on my funny car and taped them as such, as was recommended by everyone I spoke to who did the same. The tape won't throw off the bubble balance.

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  #90  
Old 03-01-2021, 07:09 PM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Baker View Post
Fore safety concerns, you may want to duct tape over those wheel weights to keep them from coming off the rim. I bubble balanced the tires on my funny car and taped them as such, as was recommended by everyone I spoke to who did the same. The tape won't throw off the bubble balance.
Very good advice! I have seen this on many heavy hitting cars and always thought it was a good idea. I will definitely be doing that with these.

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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #91  
Old 03-01-2021, 07:32 PM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default I gotta vent, so here goes.

Yesterday, I took apart the rear wheel that wouldn't balance. 40 bolts, all taken off by hand, in stages.

I spun the wheel 180 degrees on the tire and reassembled....all 40 bolts, by hand, in stages. To the balancer I went.

Hold the phone. That cant be right, can it? 9.25....oz???



Ive had 22-inch truck wheels that took less weight than that!

It certainly explains the machines inability to register last week...must have been over 10oz.....but cmon now. I'm annoyed that a wheel and tire that's going to see a lot of wheel speed is going to have to try to hang on to 9.25 oz. There is no way I'm sticking that much weight on here.

Since Im here I break the wheel down again. It cant get much worse. 40 bolts all taken off, by hand, in stages.

I spin the wheel only 90 degrees this time and reassemble...all 40 bolts, by hand, in stages. To the balancer I went.



Not good enough.

Which piece is causing this to be so far out of shape? The wheel? The rings? All 3 together? The tire?? Let me try to narrow it down.

40 bolts, all taken off with an impact gun this time, in stages (because I'm thoroughly annoyed annoyed and my patience has run out - get it, runout?). To the balancer I went.

Wheel only.



(hint - it ain't the wheel!)


Add in a beadlock. Spin.



(hint - it aint this beadlock)

Add in the other beadlock. Spin.


(hint - it aint this beadlock either!)

Anyone want to venture a guess where the blame lies? If you said tire, you get a gold star! Well done!

Disclaimer - I'm not blaming M/T for what is potentially a slightly our of round tire. Melting off a few 16ths will probably get this back in line just fine. Heck, with solid motor mounts and solid body mounts its not like I'll ever feel an out of balance situation anyway but always best to get it "right" prior to letting nature take its course.

Upon disassembly, there is a very faded green dot on the tire bead...not on the sidewall as is typical, but on the bead....obviously didn't see it the first time....presumably a run-out dot? This pic makes it a look a lot better than it is, trust me.




I was too annoyed to stick it all back together. I guess I'll find out next week. I'll mount that portion of the tire l opposite the stem and see how it goes.

Geeze, 6oz is looking pretty good right now.

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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #92  
Old 03-02-2021, 10:51 AM
cdrookie cdrookie is offline
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I went to Summit and bought new wheels and MT front tires, they said they mount/balance free with purchase. They did that, but said they couldn't get them balanced, trying with different wheels... Of course my wife is with me and she hates Summit about as much as I hate the shoe store... Long story short they finally got them balanced with "the last wheels in stock" but I read the reviews of the tires while waiting and there was a few saying they couldn't get them to balance...

Also, I use a bead of clear silicone around the weights to hold them in place, looks better than duct tape(not that I have a problem with duct tape).

  #93  
Old 03-02-2021, 05:43 PM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default This one will have to go back...

From the Mickey Thompson Website -

================================================== ===============
WHAT DO THE COLORED DOTS MEAN ON MY DRAG TIRES?
These are simply inspection dots that are used when the tires come out of the mold. These are not to line up the valves stem or high and low spots.
================================================== ===============


Bryan - I read somewhere else that Summit mounts and balances free with purchase. Nice! I bought both wheels and tires on the same order hoping that would happen here....until they indicated the wheels were in NV and tires were in GA.

I took a look at the Summit reviews for M/T and saw the complaints you were talking about. I imagine, at least with the soft sidewall tires, soft compound tires are probably prone to getting out of shape. Not sure why the fronts wouldn't be workable though.

However, good news I guess, if you like shipping tires all over the country.

Also from the M/T website -

================================================== ===============
What is the maximum weight it should take to balance my tire?

The industry standard is approx. 2% of the tire weight. Our standard is approx. 1% of the tire weight. Tires with excessive balance weight can be replaced under our adjustment policy within the first 10% of tread wear.
================================================== ===============


Heck at 1% of the tire weight. I might be sending both tires back. I just gotta make sure M/T does it on their dime. I'll be reaching out to see what they say.

__________________
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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #94  
Old 03-21-2021, 01:27 AM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default Its about timing!

Some may look at these pictures and only see a distributor. (or a steel braided line that really should be switched to black)

I see a culmination of dedicated Pontiac guys willing to help each other out.




045s with a new lease on life -


...composite gear....



....and a much better dust cover than before.



Behold the HEI's sexiness -



Locked down in the car, I've got 20 degrees of initial timing and by 3000 RPM, I end up right on the money -



Car starts great, idles great, and revs to kingdom come. Its awesome.

Distributor Guy and I surmise that the distributor took some heat damage when I cooked the bottom end in 2014. (stupid donuts) The shaft was quite worn (.005") shows a lot of wear, as evidenced below, and is ever so slightly out of round. We figure this to have been the root of my timing woes.



Its a good thing I sent up those extra parts. It took a combination of HEIs coming together for this one to exist.

If I told you I've been dealing with this timing problem since Sept, you shouldn't be surprised. As we all know, in an effort to find the best way out of situation, be it practically, financially etc, sometimes you find what you had is still exactly what you need. Big shout out to the folks on FB who helped out and to my kickass Distributor Guy for having the patience to deal with me in getting a tired old HEI back to good.

================================================== ================================================== =========================
Tip#19 - When texting with your distributor guy, don't ask about buying ammo in the same text you're telling him you're coming over to pick up the distributor. It will likely end with a quick phone call asking if you're mad. (.."cuz you sounded mad.")
================================================== ================================================== =========================

And before I forget... Mark @ Mickey Thompson authorized my 'slightly out of balance' tire to be returned with no problem. Here's the thing...their warehouse is empty...as is Summits, Jegs and my local speed shop's who deemed a "Galactic back order" of that tire.

Summit says it'll ship on the 26th, but they also said that about the 17th. Time (get it? Thread about timing? ) will tell.


Rear brakes get figured out on the other side of my sleep. Will post what I find. And rear disks will be here in May....

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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #95  
Old 04-09-2021, 11:32 PM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default Stop. Please stop.

Fear not, I did not sleep the entire time between this post and my last! Ive just been lazy in updating results. For that I apologize to any readers that may still be with me hoping this car someday sees the road.

With the car on stands and not running, I could overcome the brakes by hand at the rear axle. This is with a pal stepping on the pedal, no vacuum assist obviously, and prop valve adjusted fully for "More Brake".

I may have mentioned it in a previous post, but I'm thinking this problem is too short a rod length between the master and the pedal, so I'm starting there.

A 3/8 fine threaded rod connects the master to the brake pedal. It does so via a threaded female union connected to a threaded clevis connected to the pedal. (In this case, the top hole on the pedal (rather than the 2nd) due to the angle of the cylinder through the firewall. Wilwood wants no more than 5° here)



To be sure it wasn't limiting travel, I removed the metal bracket that holds the brake light switch, just in case. You can see the rod and the bracket in this picture -



A few adjustments to lengthen the rod and it seems the rear brakes were getting harder to overcome now. A few more times and its to a point where its now impossible for me to move the wheels by hand with moderate pressure on the pedal. Yeah its a good thing, but it took a lot of adjusting. It could also lead to two other conditions with which I need to be concerned -

- With this rod length, I could be very close to engaging the front brakes without even stepping on the brake. That would be bad. The wheels don't feel tight, but then again, there is always drag on a disk setup, so its hard to tell. Will keep an eye on that.
- I need to make sure any adjustments I made, didn't back my threads so far out of the clevis I only have a few engaged. That too would be bad. This made the list of final "to do's".

Firing up the car, putting it in gear (on stands still) and stepping on the brake will actually stop rear axle rotation while in gear now. That's an improvement for sure, but its not happening with any sort of urgency. With the prop valve fully set for "More Brake", these should be locking up very quickly if you ask me and it ain't happening.

They work better than they did before, but I'll have to see how it is on the road. I may have a few more rounds of adjustment to go here.

__________________
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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread

Last edited by 73LeMans; 04-10-2021 at 12:03 AM.
  #96  
Old 04-10-2021, 12:00 AM
73LeMans's Avatar
73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default New Tire!

After many different due dates came and went, I finally have a replacement M/T R. Damned if I can get the shipping label off of it though. Stupid stickers.





Weighed in the same. Thats good.



Now I gotta mount it - (40 bolts, in stages...blah blah blah....)



The excitement came when I thought my inch/lbs torque wrench gave up its ghost. (who could blame it?) I put all 40 bolts on with the speed wrench, but when I went to torque, the wrench would slip and sounded like internal teeth were sheared. I thought I was going to have to break out another one of dear ol Dads tools (this thing is brand new btw, probably never used...I've got 3 of them)



Turns out I just grabbed the star socket instead of the 12 point I meant to. Seems like a good time for a tip.

================================================== ==================
Tip#20 Don't be stupid.
================================================== ==================

The tire measured out the same as the other once mounted and filled. (C=88.5") Yet to balance, but its on the car.

Friggin shipping label....


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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread

Last edited by 73LeMans; 04-10-2021 at 12:35 AM.
  #97  
Old 04-10-2021, 12:33 AM
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Default Wiper Motor

I hate my windshield wiper motor. Its ugly, I use it once a year to get an inspection sticker, and it really clutters up an otherwise purposeful firewall. But, as much street as this car will see, I have to look like I'm following Massachusetts state rules for safety. Plus if you've ever been in the rain without wipers, you know it sucks.

My old wiper motor was purple. Plum Crazy to be exact. Way back when, I splashed it like I did the firewall in hopes that it would just go away. I still have it and it still works...its just purple. Upon this rebuild, I said ""there is no way I'm spending the time to clean that up. I'll just buy a new one." So that's what I did.

Wiper motor ordered and received. Got it from Ames. Its a Cardone unit. Eh.

Not sure why I thought it would be better than what I had. I suppose its nice because its new...and not purple....but after looking at it, I decided I'm not giving up my working ACDelco as a core to send back. And if Im not going to give up my core, it means I overpaid for the same unit I can get at a local auto parts place around me. I'll likely send it back.

So I guess that means I gotta clean this one up. I'm embarrassed at how many hours Ive got into this stupid thing that is still ugly, and still clutters up an otherwise purposeful firewall, but here it is. I think Id rather look at the hole where this goes then to see this monstrosity.




So I got to cleaning....


Paint stripper would have been nice here, but I was afraid to damage any of the plastic components. Laquer thinner worked, but was very s l o w to act. Brake Kleen was only slightly better. (you can see how my tools of choice get more aggressive as I run out of patience)

Some wire brushes, a wire wheel, a drill, some sandpaper and a ton of time, and this is what you get - slightly less ugly


Some tape and some small part removal later and yup, still ugly.



Add in some paint, a few runs, place small parts back, and you get this -




Oh look, there it is on the firewall.....oh yay.


__________________
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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #98  
Old 04-11-2021, 02:38 AM
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73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Default All stsyesm go!

Today was a good day.

After all the errors, mishaps, oversights, blunders, gaffes, flubs, faults, screw ups, slip-ups and foul ups, fumbles, snafus, missteps, bloopers, omissions and glitches, the day has arrived where I finally get to see this car move under its own power again.

I'm not keeping track or anything, but its been approximately 2438 days since I last drove this car. In other words, 6 years, 8 months, and 3 days... Or if you like, 80 months and 3 days....or
210,643,200 seconds
3,510,720 minutes
58,512 hours
348 weeks (and 2 days)
or 667.95% of a common year (@365 days). Take your pick.

Either way, thought you might like to enjoy the experience with me. Boring video links below. No crazy burnouts, no real getting on it, just some lame drive around town to make sure the car, me, and my cameras all know what we're supposed to be doing.

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https://youtu.be/hrGnlEc7R0s?t=10
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https://youtu.be/aU1F9CjwEK8
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Some new snaps to go with it....






All went well. Sunny 70 degree day. With one fan going, temps never went beyond 160. Oil pressure was solid as a rock and the car accelerated, stopped and did everything I asked it to. Hmm...Imagine that?

__________________
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Mark S
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Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
  #99  
Old 04-11-2021, 09:52 PM
cdrookie cdrookie is offline
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Slow internet sucks, but the car looks and sounds great from the limited footage I got to see! I would be worried that everything worked as it should though... In my case that'd be a precursor to an epic failure.

  #100  
Old 04-12-2021, 01:05 AM
73LeMans's Avatar
73LeMans 73LeMans is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cdrookie View Post
Slow internet sucks, but the car looks and sounds great from the limited footage I got to see! I would be worried that everything worked as it should though... In my case that'd be a precursor to an epic failure.
Haha, thanks man. Those vids are pretty boring. You're not missing much. I'll post more interesting footage once I go through the car to make sure everything is where I left it. (suspension bolts, lash, etc)

I do truly believe you captured the feeling of all DIYers with your statement though. We've all had things fail when we thought there was no way they could. That has a way of sticking with you, regardless of how many times you've done it without issue.

I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't waiting for something bad to happen. It was a shakedown run after all, with an exceptionally long period of being off the road. It's not a lack of confidence to feel that way IMO, its just being a realist. Its a mechanical thing with a ton of parts that have been removed, replaced, and put back together over a long period of time. In addition, sometimes $#^& happens through no fault of your own.

For now, its got 3 separate trips and 16 miles under its belt. All is well. A few more runs, leaning on it harder each time, and we'll see what happens.

What the worst that could go wrong?? Drop a lifter and take 6 years to bring it back?

__________________
.
Mark S
.
Who needs nice and pretty, when you can have mean and nasty?
KRE Aluminum headed 463CID 73 LeMans. Used to run 10.6x @ 124.55. 3700lbs
.
So much for 2020...shootin for 9s in 2021...and in 2022 apparently.....looks like 2023 as well.
>>My 73 Build thread
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