Hot Rods Nature Abhors a Vacuum, Or, The Hemi A Roadster fills a void.

Christmas in July! Radiator support rods in polished stainless, and a beautiful '32 radiator cap and bezel arrived, and of course I got them unboxed and on the car. I like how the radiator cap and it's bezel compliment the peak on the windshield. It looks great.

In other news, the overflow tank is buttoned down, and I took care of the awkward terminal strips and wires on the radiator shell I tucked in a little better. I made gas tank retainer clips from conduit clamps and some little bits of rubber fuel line. The tank sets on a wood riser on the wood floor, resting on the tank lip. It looks tidy, although I'm now thinking that straps made of polished stainless might look nice on the painted tank, and be a little more secure in the event of a collision.

 

^^^^^For a minute there I thought it was hovering!, the stands sorta blend in. Nice work by the way.

 

Haha, they do, don't they? I made those things at least 45 years ago, they've been pretty handy.

 

Why does the front of your car look like Marty Feldman?

 

Not really.......

 

I polished the windshield frame this morning. Now I can get glass cut and get the thing mounted, which means I have to drill holes in the cowl to bolt it in. Which means I'll probably drill holes in the wrong place...

 

I would have thought you would have drilled them before you painted it.

 

One would think, wouldn't one? On the plus side, there's a reveal on the cowl that I had to make to meet the w/s frame, the mounting studs in the frame will go through that, so, unless I'm REALLY off, a wrong one will be covered by the frame and the little gasket between body and w/s frame.

 

Lots done today! Front end alignment done, and the front and rear axles squared to the frame and each other. They were about 1/4" out from each other. I gave it 3/16" toe, and clocked the wheel where I want it. Still can't see the gauges through it, a 3 spoke wheel would have been better for that, but oh well. I got the air cleaner finished, decided to use the small chrome one I bought last summer at a swap meet that looks like a Snellings and Hellings, still had to make some relief holes to clear the radiator support rods, but it looks really cool.

 

I FINALLY got the fuel filler hose made and connected the tank to the Crafty B gas cap. I ended up having to braze the filler pipe pieces together, I had to butt them together after trimming each to get the angle right. It's made from a scrap of exhaust tubing bend I had and 2" to 2 1/2" adaptor. The rubber hose has a wire reinforcement which made it very difficult to clamp onto the tank neck, as it was a little less than 2 1/2" OD, but I got it. I'd thought I'd get the brakes bled, but this, and correcting the mount for the coolant recovery tank (the fan would have hit it the way I had it) took all afternoon.

 

https://www.facebook.com/1312132558/videos/pcb.10229363057323545/3175422032731947
Oh, it starts too...

 

Looking good Brian! You make fast progress when you get to it. Love that Crafty B cap. He does nice work.

 

I realized when I set it on there that the bracing for the body (3/4" plywood), installed after the cap was initially mounted, covers the holes for mounting bolts. So I've got to get some bolts long enough to go through the plywood and be able to access them from inside the trunk.
Duh...

 

Looking good Brian. Hoping to see you and the roadster at Relix Riot in two weeks.

 

My goal is to have it there, even if I have to winch it on the trailer! I think it'll be drivable by then, but we have a REALLY busy week between now and then!

 

Todays project was to muck out the shop, put away tools and parts I've left laying around since late April when we got back from Florida and I started working on the roadster again, so I could walk around the shop without tripping over stuff. I did pretty good at that, but stopped before I got to the benches to work on the car again. I got the brakes bled, which was easy once I tightened all the fitting up so there were no more leaks, finished up a few loose ends and greased the chassis. 50/50 coolant in the radiator, everything good to go. Then I dumped what little gas I had, maybe two gallons, in the tank and tried to fire it up. Fires instantly on a little gas squirted the carb, but never picked up any fuel from the tank. I took the line off at the fuel pump and could blow through it with no "bubbles", and couldn't siphon any from the tank, so I think it just needs more in it.
I can't blow back towards the fuel pump from the in line filter just ahead of the tank, and can't siphon any there either. Tomorrow I'll get some more fuel and we should have smoke and noise.

 

The fuel tank turns out to have a pinhole in the bottom, as the bottom of the tank got wet after overnight with gas in it. The distributor rotor fit was VERY sloppy on the shaft (how didn't I notice that?) which probably explain why it ran so erratically and poorly. So, new tank on the way from Tanks Inc., and a Pertronix ignition system. Both should be be here tomorrow so I think I'll make Relix.

 

Yay! All my new stuff is here! Gas tank, filler, proper ohm sender, Pertronx, coil, rotor that fits the dizzy shaft. I'm tickled pink.

 

No stupid leaky gas tank is gonna defeat me, no sir! Tomorrow I'll get a hose barb to push the fuel line onto, make some straps from some stainless steel I have, and get the Pertronix unit in.

 

I'm gonna try to make it to Relix, I'll be looking for you. I wanna see this car in person finally!

 

Listen up! https://www.facebook.com/1312132558/videos/pcb.10229403184046688/579334940398747

 

Here it is, in repose. I changed the oil, topped off the trans fluid, it moves under it's own power, starts instantly and sounds great with the 2 1/2" straight pipes. I'm happy.

 

Hope to meet you! We have good friends who just bought a place in Rives Junction, the meat market there is great!

 

This was totally worth 2 years hard work.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=751567459289873

 

Congratulations Brian it looks and sounds awesome...you certainly are a motivated Hamber and have a great eye for detail and quality. Have a whole lot of fun with it...

 

Oh and nice race track...

I liked the old coupe in the distance...next project?

 

Brian curious in an interesting way...I have a similar squeak in the front WW Backing plate to Buick drum area...you have those don't you?...it's usually after a bit of driving...I think it may be the drum to the backing plate...or it may be a shoe to the drum too...a mechanic mentioned a lip/step worn on the shoe perhaps it something internal...I've read about it here...

It might not be that on your ride but it sure sounds the same...

 

Good question. I THOUGHT it was a brake dragging, a shoe against the drum, because I noticed it only after it'd been driven a couple miles, and I found the master cylinder pushrod needed to be adjusted. The pedal got hard after a couple miles as well. So, I adjusted the pushrod, and it now has what feels like the proper amount of free travel but I still have the "squeak".
With the front wheels off the ground, there's a spot where rolling the wheel back and forth I get the same noise at the right front wheel. I think it is indeed the Buick drum contacting the backing plate in that spot. Tomorrow I'll pull the wheel, drum, and see if there's a shiny spot on the backing plate where the drum might be touching it. They do run VERY close to the backing plate. We'll see. I can live with it if it's something that a little work with a grinding wheel won't cure.
Note that the "squeak" disappears when the brakes are applied.

 

You know, I’m almost embarrassed to admit this but I did not care for the color or car in the shop. But out in the wild that thing knocks my socks off. One hell of a job.

 

Cool! And that's a nifty racetrack to test drive on.