It may be spring time. I think. Anyway many of us are waking the old cars up. I took my 51 Coupe out. I was going to fill it up and go see my dad. My gas gauge is not working and I “should” have had about a 1/2 a tank of gas. I keep up with the mileage. So I’m zipping along going over the little roller coaster hills on my road. I’m listening Kisses Sweeter than Wine as I top one of those hills. I notice, my coupe not responding..... I’m coasting. My engine is dead. I have to find a good spot to pull over so find a nice spot to ease off the shoulder. I’m glad I found a spot where the road was straight and flat. It would have sucked to be amidst those roller coaster hills. This is the first time my ‘51 has broke down. My fuel pump bowl was full..... I should have gas. Maybe I have a blocked fuel line. It should not but maybe. Long story short...... A friend brings me some gas..... We put some gas in the tank and she fires up. I’m in business. He follows me to the gas station and I top off his can and buy him drink and a snack. He did not leave until I started up at the pump. I’m thinking of heading south to my dads. A little voice says Nope! You have had trouble.... Go Home! This is the voice of experience. If something ain’t right.....go home. Sometimes it’s not your day....go home. Even if everything seems OK....go home. I turn north to the house. The coupe drives like a million bucks until I’m approaching my mailbox. I realize I’m coasting again. This is the second break down fortunately it’s in my drive way. Had I went South...... It would have sucked. OK.....What’s going on? I go up up to the garage and get some gas. I give it a splash down the carburetor. No dice. It sat about 1/2 an hour. I started it and I drove it to the garage door. It’s running like crap. I have to feather it to keep it going. It will not idle. It will not run well at all. Then something different happened...., Throttle response??? ^^^ OK..... This is new problem. My linkage fell apart. The 75 year old adjustment sleeve finally gave it up or someone put the wrong pitch thread throttle end on. That stuff was tight and seemed really good when I put it on. I had to add some throttle springs since the Shoebox firewall spring was too tired. Any I’ll have to repair that linkage. I’ll have to go through the usual suspects to see what’s going on. My point of all of this..... When things are not going right....Go Home. It’s better to solve this at the garage door than to be on the side of the road.
When I get the boat out on the lake(Superior) for the first few times, I always say"Don't shut it off". It's easier to keep it going, than to try and get it going. Head home, if it doesn't feel/sound right.
Linkage aside, I think my Dennis Carpenter Amerasian Ford 94 has rolled over and floated to the top of the bowl. Old gas.... Maybe it’s dirty. Maybe my oil bath let too much trash in.. Float adjustment.... Tune it and set it again.... Anyway I’m going to open it up give it a cleaning. I have a carburetor kit unopened I ordered from Shoebox Central 3 years ago. I can’t find it. I’m really stubborn because I know if I order a new kit, I’ll find the old one. Also I may not need a kit at all if carburetor comes apart ok without ruing the gaskets. Eventually I found the kit. It was Where I put it in a basket on top of the fridge in the garage. I grab it. A couple of days later I decide to start on the coupe. I can’t find my carburetor kit. I lost it. I found it. I’m going to start on the car. I have lost it again. Search everywhere. I’m like making plaster casts of boot prints to figure where it went. The next step is a wall, a map, thumbtacks and yarn. I look everywhere. Poof be gone!!!! WTF...
One of the good things about buying new, because you can't find the old, & then finding old, is you now have the proper replacement part(s) for next times' "entertainment(s)". Marcus...
After the car sits over the winter the gremlins move in and mess with everything mechanical, just check everything out before you drive the car to your dad's, then take him to lunch and hopefully he wont have to get out a push! HRP
This is especially true on the lake. Always have a paddle. The following is tragic..... 3 years ago a dad, his son and another boy from school went over the spillway of Pickawick Dam on Tennessee River. It was a high school bass tournament. There was a video of them going over the spillway. The man was last seen by tournament goers trying to start his boat The motor was not running right. You know how boys are. They probably fussed. What I think happened..... The dad decided to take the boys out and just use the trolling motor. The battery died. The River current got them and they went through the flood gates. The River was at flood stage.... It might as well had been Niagara Falls. The lesson Go Home!!!! What if the kids fuss? Go Home!!!! What if we miss the car show.... Go Home!!!!
I spend most of time looking for stuff. I can’t understand how a wrench I had in my hand 3 seconds ago can disappear without me getting out from under the car. Poof be gone.
I hear ya on the losing parts and tools. Somehow I lost the starter for my van engine after I tore it down. Looked everywhere, no joy. Bought a new one hoping surely then I'd find it..... Nothing! Gotta be a black hole or something
I knew a guy who SWORE someone stole one Ford Y block aluminum valve cover out of his garage. I couldn't convince him that if someone was going to go to that much trouble, they'd steal both of them. About a year later, he moved a cardboard box, and guess what was under it?
A tool bag with some duct tape and mechanic's wire could have gotten you home in style! I never leave home in my old cars without an emergency repair kit in the trunk. Saved my bacon more than once!
I was just going through the same dilemma in my shop looking for the Weber 3838 I bought last fall for my 60 Ranchero with the later 200. I looked everywhere, no dice. I haven’t thrown anything away since then, so it’s gotta be somewhere!! But I did find some treasures that will soon show up in the classifieds here.
The Jalopy Journal
