Breakdowns to Lead Ain't Dead 2020

In my road trip thread, I got several requests for carnage (Karnage?) pictures. Trip thread:

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...-lead-aint-dead-via-rt-666-and-rt-66.1204741/

This is a new thread - partially because the "Unofficial Tradition Police" sniped my build thread

Part 1 Trip prep

Did the usual oil change, etc. Was losing the screws to the spun aluminum wheel disks (generic Moon disks). Used medium thread locker on all the screws. Seats got vented cushions (wire spring type) and fresh seat covers. Installed a fire extinguisher while I was at it. The air conditioner was cooling my right ear - remounted it to blow on my face.

Speedometer would not work below 20 MPH - Not good with 15 MPH school zones... Went from 2 driveshaft magnets to 4 driveshaft magnets, it now works down to 10 MPH.

Spare fuel: "Trufuel" sold at Lowes for lawn mowers (ethanol free).

Left the locking gas cap behind in the first day out. It was Monday, Labor Day, got heavy duty aluminum foil from Safeway and a bag of light duty rubber bands from a dollar store. Upgraded to a NAPA radiator hose clam in the morning.

The fuel system bit me again on Saturday.

Fuel line (1/4" nylon air brake line) was rubbing against the driveshaft.

Short term solution, replace the fuel filter on the left with the fuel filter on the right. And a a shout out for all the help I got from the Kool Kats.

New fuel return line now goes thru a 3/8" metal brake line installed in the drive shaft tunnel.

More to follow

Russ

 

Windshield wiper stuff:

Texas Panhandle, cold, windy and rainy. The Allen set screws worked loose. Note the tiny tool kit sitting on the cooler. Got lucky, it had Allen wrenches. When I tried to re-install the wiper arm, there was a wire spring retainer that jammed in the set screw hole. Got lucky, there was a small jewelers screwdriver in the tool kit - picked the spring free and pounded the arm down with a big screwdriver handle. Took a couple of tries to summon up enough coordination...

Actually quite grateful for:
1. The day had warmed up some
2. The rain had slacked off to a slight drizzle.
3. The still wind was blowing the truck tire spray away from me.


The wiper blades were a minor problem - too long, any adjustment hit either the vertical edge of the bottom edge. Added bonus, the very center did not clear well - DEAD CENTER in my line of vision. The obvious solution was to be 2 inches shorter or 2 inches taller... Just drove a "little twisted" - somehow that sounds appropriate...

Today, I installed 2 inch shorter blades - p***es the water spray test - need to test at 75 MPH in a good rain - this is Arizona - maybe some rain this winter...

Russ

 

Random broken and loose stuff

The Volvo came stock with a 1.8 Liter (B18) engine. I'm a hot rodder, it "grew" an aluminum intake with a 2 barrel Weber progressive carb, header (singular) and a wonderful sounding Smithy muffler. Distributor comes from the Netherlands (deep off topic).

Current engine is a bolt-in 2.0 Liter (B20) engine with an unknown stroker crank (Ebay find...). 75 MPH is 4,000 RPM. Lots of high frequency vibration. It will run at 75 MPH, up hill, on the cruise control).

High speed idle solenoid for the air conditioner. Turns out an aluminum bracket was a dumb idea - need to make a "Real Steel" bracket


Speaking of dumb stuff, this was over-tightened.

The fuel pump bolts were loose on the engine block - applied medium thread locker.

The carb base nuts keep backing off - I "think" the studs are backing out of the aluminum intake manifold. On my DO-LIST to re-set the studs with medium thread locker.


This in-line fuel gauge (quarter sized) is flooded with fuel and dripping. I "think" its guts vibrated apart - got removed and replaced with fresh hose.

 

Unintended consequences and driveability issues

Doubling the driveshaft magnets to improve the speedometer accuracy put the cruise control at the edge of it's operating range. Maximum set speed was 73 MPH.


Fix required setting the DIP switches.

Tools required:
Bi-focals
Magnifying gl***
Small flashlight
Itty-bitty screwdriver
AND the factory instructions

I lived with it until I got home


Almost made it home. Actually in Arizona - heard a different noise when the air conditioner made a different noise when it cycled on. Fortunately, it had not jumped - might take out the radiator...


The problem was the wrong width belt. The 17mm belt rides high on the pulleys and eventually eats the belt teeth - Home made installation - belt alignment might be a little off. Note that the 15 mm wide belt seats into the pulley groove.

The used Volvo AC compressor mounting hardware came with the 17mm belt - If I was "awake", I should have caught the belt fit. That is what happens when electrical guys do mechanical stuff.

And I had a bit of excitement when loading for the trip.

DIAMONDBACK!

Second look showed an 18 inch, skinny snake - with a pointy tail and a tiny head. Authentic looking diamondback pattern. Wonderful protection in nature, maybe not so good here in rural Arizona where almost everyone carries a side arm out on the range.

Let him keep going.

Russ

 

One final picture - worth several thousand words.


This is really about the car folks. When gas was smelled, I had instant help, and they stuck by me intil it was fixed.

p.s. I am the belly on the left.

Russ McLean

 

Well , if you are an adventurous soul , you got your soulful.

 

Always an adventure, gives you something to look back on. Several years ago a friend said he would drive a Model A pickup that was unrestored and had been sitting for 25 years 200 miles to a car show if we could help get it running. We got it running and took off, 45 miles later we rebuilt the carb on the side of the road, ran into pouring rain and the distributor kept drowning out so drying it out in the rain. Stopped and bought a case of oil since it took 9 quarts to get there, a pan gasket and distributor parts from a Model A vendor. Nine hours later we made it, next morning we pulled the pan without draining the oil and put the pan gasket in. Drove to the show and pulled the distributor and rebuilt it on a picnic table. Took five hours and two quarts of oil to get home. We laugh about that trip now, was a battle but we still had a lot of fun.

 

Thanks for even more of the story Russ. My kind of trip for sure.

 

A good friend of mine says that the difference between Adventure and Ordeal is At***ude.

 

Still got a smile on my face.

The at***ude got a little sketchy when I had to work on the wipers for the 2nd time (cold, light rain, stiff wind and Cl*** 8 trucks zipping by). Quickly got thankful that I had the tools, the day had warmed some, not much rain and the wind was blowing the wheel spray away from me - Actually began to feel quite lucky.

 

Thanks Russ for posting your adventure, it was a kool read.

 

Thanks, it was a kool adventure.

Stolen line form a late night informational: WAIT, WAIT, THERE IS MORE !!!!


Gas pedal was hanging up, engine would not return to an idle - really messed-up the cruise control operation.
Discovered that the bell crank for the gas pedal linkage was set too tight into pivot bushing. The shiny area of the weld was pushed deep into the pivot bushing (Mechanic head-space error...). To steal a line from a blues song: NOBODY TO BLAME BUT ME.

And a THANK YOU to Travis (TooTallOkie) for providing the needed 3rd hand at the critical moment.

 

You are using nylon air line as fuel line? WTF?

 

Correct, 1/4" nylon air line as a return fuel line (not pressurized). Eaton 4247-041, meets SAE J844 TYPE A and DOT 1913

I have Dorman #800-074 5/16" "Nylon Fuel Line" in stock in my home shop. Decided not to use 5/16" because both the fuel filter spigot and the fuel return spigot are 1/4" - requiring making 1/4" to 5/16" adapters for both ends.

 

You are braver than I. I see that airline have issues all the time in our fleet. I wouldn't run something flamable through it.

 

Noted.

Personally, I trust it more than copper line - The initial failure was an error on my part. This week's installation accounts for vibration and securing to fixed surfaces.

 

Well, life had "Other Plans" for a while and the Volvo got ignored. Repairs eventually got made, but, not many pictures (so maybe it did not happen...).

I replaced the 1/4" nylon fuel return line with another 1/4" nylon line. This time, I fastened a 3/8 steel brake line in the driveshaft tunnel and ran the return line through it. Both ends of the brake line were flared to eliminate stress points on the nylon line.

I fabricated another bracket for the high idle solenoid (steel this time). While setting the idle speed, I walked around the car and encountered a 4 foot diameter puddle of gas!


Picture "borrowed" from the internet. The fuel pump that came on my Ebay engine appears to be made in a 3rd world country (maybe a copy of a Chinese knockoff?). The 6 screws, holding the pump halves together, had rattled loose. A quick internet search showed this pump was not available at NAPA and the other local chain stores. The usual Volvo spe******ts take a week or more.

Plan B - Replace the Phillips head screws (looked like they were made in the jungle by monkeys - the Phillips slots were not well formed) with Allen head cap screws. Calipers confirmed that they were Metric, and the thread gauge confirmed the monkey theory. Bought the cap screws at Lowes. The thread pitch between the original screws and the new screws was "almost close". Medium thread locker, stainless lock washers and a light force fit guaranteed that the screws would not rattle loose.

A total of 3 gas leaks:
1. Fuel line rubbing against the drive shaft
2. Inline fuel pressure gauge internally rupturing
3. Fuel pump

I think I forgot to mention the m***ive air leak on the front of the door. Very cold in the Texas Panhandle. The temporary fix was to stuff a large print Rand-McNally between the door and my leg. I've applied lots of weather strip foam in the gap and around the hinges - an ongoing process.

I spent several days trying to design a radiator shroud - nothing worked, the Air conditioner compressor clutch and the idler pulleys were too close to the radiator.

Sent the car to a good muffler shop to eliminate the under-the-axle-tailpipe. Then header wrapped the tail pipe to keep the heat away from the gas tank.

While I was under the car, I discovered a worn out link bushing on the rear axle. Fortunately, I had a urethane bushing in stock.

Finally found the wind whistle - it was the mirrors on the door - stuffed foam in the pivot housing and the whistle went away.

The engine is at 4,000 RPM at 75 MPH (Redline on a stock engine is 6,500 RPM). This is a stroker Ebay engine with no do***ented history, I would like to cruise at a lower RPM. First attempt was to re-gear the differential. The only gears that I could find were Jeep off road ratios. Second attempt was to buy a "core" overdrive transmission. Not one of my better purchases. It was missing parts and 3rd gear is jammed - I did not attempt to open and inspect the overdrive unit.

Looks like am destined to "BUZZ" down the road - All that sound deadening keeps it down to a dull roar - and the Smithy sounds great.

And one last modification:

I am going to better prepared for parts rattling loose.

LEAD AIN'T DEAD 2021 !

Russ

 

Thank you for sharing your repairs. You had a heck of a ride out to the Midwest. Proof that they are made to be driven and sometimes it ain't easy.

Years ago, somewhere in Iowa. Right after I filled up I noticed strong gas fumes. Looked under the Merc no puddle, popped the trunk and found a huge gap in the floor board. I had lost the rubber boot that was around my gas neck and the floor boards. The small town had a hardware store so I bought a bottle a foam and started working on my bee hive. I hadn't used spray foam before, I over did it, a lot.... It worked and I went on down the road. sad to say I forgot about it and fixed it a couple of years later... Lol!

Good luck getting ready for Lead Ain't Dead 2021

 

September 2021 - Brake fluid this time... I got almost 6 years out of the brake master cylinder. This happened overnight. I ended up buying another complete dual chamber remote mount kit - because Summit had a replacement in stock and could get it here in 3 days.

Also spent a very long time chasing a rattle that turned out to be the cell phone holder. <sigh> If this is an IQ test, I don't want to know my score.

Unfortunately, I will not be able to make Lead Ain't Dead 2021, some health issues have come up in my extended family. I'll send Mick a note to convert my registration to a donation - we need to keep this show alive.

On 2nd thought - make that FORTUNATELY - I am almost 77 years old and I can still help others.

Russ

 

[QUOTE="TrailerTrashToo, post: 14190526, member: 320570"
Unfortunately, I will not be able to make Lead Ain't Dead 2021, some health issues have come up in my extended family. I'll send Mick a note to convert my registration to a donation - we need to keep this show alive.

Sorry to hear this...

 

I recall reading this thread last year thinking “I’ve had that happen to me”.

Take care of the family and get back next year.

 

Bummer! Was hoping to get to meet you this coming weekend. Missed meeting you last year when everyone was under your car helping you get it fixed up. Maybe next year! Take care of the loved ones. Much more important for sure!

 

Sorry you are not able to make it. Your adventure last year was a good thread, you are were persistent and a hard core car guy. We will be praying for your family..

 

Sorry to hear you won't be making it. Praying for your family!

 

Sorry to hear Russ, but can definitely understand. Praying for you and your family. I still appreciate meeting you last year and all your generosity toward me in a rough time in my life. Hope to see you again soon.

 

Enjoyed the read Russ thank you, sorry to hear about the Volvo, happy your okay, God is Great...
God Bless you and the family my friend...

1Nimrod
(Dustin, S)

 

What the heck?!?! When did this happen?

 

Some time in the past four years, looks like.
Fess up, Russ

Ben

 

I’m guessing real recently? Looks like the tag on the car is good until October of next year.

 

about a month ago.