IAC in IA

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Hippie
IAC Addict!
Location: 41º 35' 27" N, 93º 37' 15" W
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IAC in IA

Post by Hippie » Sun Jul 03, 2011 1:39 am

Colin actually showed up the day before to try to adjust the BobD engine's "at rest position. That was way cool because we had some extra time to visit.
I had my engine out because I blew a spark plug out of cylinder #1 the previous Friday, so I was still diddling with that...and my heater boxes. I had to re-weld the little flappers onto the shafts so I can regulate the heat again. I already had an oversize spark plug insert and tap ordered but they weren't there yet on IAC day. That plug had been repaired before and was already tapped oversize in the cylinder head, so it makes for a tricky repair. Anyway I ended up pulling the cylinder head and found cracks, so I ordered a new, rebuilt head. Single port 1600 heads are no longer available new, AFAIK.
But I digress.

We stuck to the original plan of repacking the CV joints with grease and putting on new rubber boots and clamps. That stuff I did have on hand already. That was a greasy-ass job, but not too difficult, technically, once shown how. Boy, I was glad to be shown how the first time or I would have screwed something up. We very carefully made noted of bevel directions on the cage part of the CVs and all pieces so we could get them back exactly right. Also, there is a bit of an art to getting the little ball bearing type balls in and out. It took me forever the first one, but the second was much easier.
The new boots are also a bit of a squeeze, and the shaft needs some grease on it so they can be worked on over the hills and dales of the axle shafts. A small screwdriver to work around under the leading lip of the boot helps get it over the first edge of the axle shaft.

The old boots might have been original. Cracked but not cracked through. They were holding grease and keeping out water and dirt just fine. The old grease had kind of liquefied into something between grease and gear lube though. The CV joint parts cleaned up nicely for me in some Super Clean® followed by a hot water rinse, but Colin stuck to the old-school pail o’ gasoline.

I have nice balls. Anyway my balls aren’t blue.

Blue indicates heat discoloration, so you definitely do not want to have a case of the blue balls. My CVs actually showed little wear anywhere, so we packed them up with grease and put the axles back in such a way that the forward thrust surfaces will be the old reverse surfaces, so they are basically like running new CVs. Colin has pictures, and hopefully will post them up here.

That took up most of the day, and was worth it because now I know what I got back there. You know if any one of the four comes apart on the road, you ain’t going anywhere without a tow truck.
Then we got out my Horrible Freight dial gauge and spent some time setting endplay from about .006” back to .003”. We still had a little time to look at my rats’ nest turn signal wiring, but I was pooped out by then. We didn’t do dinner on the second evening because he needed to fly, and neither of us were hungry after working in the sun all day.
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BellePlaine
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by BellePlaine » Sun Jul 03, 2011 6:59 am

Dude! I wish that I would have known, I could have sent my Timeserts down to you. I guess it didn't matter after all. Nice write up, Hippie.
1975 Riviera we call "Spider-Man"

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Hippie
IAC Addict!
Location: 41º 35' 27" N, 93º 37' 15" W
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by Hippie » Sun Jul 03, 2011 5:59 pm

Thanks, Chis, but the thing already had a Time Sert, and I needed (I thought) an oversuze version and special tap. But it will end up getting a rebuilt head...without the cracks I hope.

Now just for giggles, I did grind and aluminum braze over the cracks and the old threads. I am curious as to whether I can fix this as a spare. If it looks promising, I'll post a write-up with the caution that the results are as yet untried on an engine.

We're actually in Oklahoma right now. Hope the head is waiting when we get back home.
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Amskeptic
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by Amskeptic » Sun Jul 03, 2011 10:48 pm

Hippie wrote:Thanks, Chis, but the thing already had a Time Sert, and I needed (I thought) an oversuze version and special tap. But it will end up getting a rebuilt head...without the cracks I hope.

Now just for giggles, I did grind and aluminum braze over the cracks and the old threads. I am curious as to whether I can fix this as a spare. If it looks promising, I'll post a write-up with the caution that the results are as yet untried on an engine.

We're actually in Oklahoma right now. Hope the head is waiting when we get back home.
A Man Ministrates To His Engine:
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And puzzles his way through reversing relentless mechanical entropy:
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Cracked head, huh? Anything to do with the lean lean main jet you once had? Anything to do with the whitish plugs I think I remember noting, was that you?

What amazing quality in those early CVs with those beautiful dust caps. Original 160,000 mile CVs . . . still nicely greased:
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I told Hippie that I had to photograph those original boots, those soldiers of history:
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Upon leaving Des Moines, I stopped for gas at the Nebraska border and was perusing the map when a long drawn out skid got my attention with that ol Road Warrior reflex dread. A beautiful old clean white Dodge Dart slant-six driven by a TeenAged Moron First Class was hooking a wide wide right turn and crashed head-on into a new Honda Accord waiting in the center lane with two empty lanes to either side of her. The Honda crumpled because it was designed to do so, the Dodge caved in its left front which bucked back through the driver's door. That kid could have missed her by unwinding the steering wheel just a little, he never even tried braking. After the impact, he tried to drive away, but the left front wheel was done. She was crying hysterically, and this kid must have heard her better than me, he was right there ... trying to get away. I think it might have been his dad's prized classic car. He was utterly without affect, without remorse, just a dumb wrecking ball of stupidity.
Anyways, the next day I saw two more crashes, one was a fatal Ford pick-up rollover that blew up his travel trailer into fiberglass fluff and twisted aluminum, the other was a non-injury Kia Sportage roll-over. I am a little rattled by my fellow drivers. Distraction is getting worse out here.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Hippie
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Location: 41º 35' 27" N, 93º 37' 15" W
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by Hippie » Mon Jul 04, 2011 5:37 am

Hey thanks for posting the pictures. I never knew anybody that drew wreckage near as you. Just stay out of it please. You paid your dues.
The understeer Dodge is a midwest classic. No one here can apex a curve or a simple 90 degree corner without first going the opposite way, then spilling into the oncoming lane as if they were towing a long trailer with little experience.

The head: This head was in after I rejetted to a 127 size. I really don't know what to do about this lean condition at running speed.
Try a bigger main jet? I know there are no vacuum leaks, and I check that frequently.
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Amskeptic
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by Amskeptic » Mon Jul 04, 2011 6:40 am

Hippie wrote:Hey thanks for posting the pictures. I never knew anybody that drew wreckage near as you. Just stay out of it please. You paid your dues.
The understeer Dodge is a midwest classic. No one here can apex a curve or a simple 90 degree corner without first going the opposite way, then spilling into the oncoming lane as if they were towing a long trailer with little experience.

The head: This head was in after I rejetted to a 127 size. I really don't know what to do about this lean condition at running speed.
Try a bigger main jet? I know there are no vacuum leaks, and I check that frequently.
Well, heck, hippie, on an Exposure To Stupidity Per Mile basis, I am in the middle of the bell curve with all of this driving around. 448,000 people got injured in 2009 due to cell phone/texting distraction ... I was one of them ... and 5,089 got killed that year. It was influenza that we had to dodge in 1918.
:geek:

The Understeer Dodge was a testament to Mopar's dinky dorky dumb front suspension design. Even a big-ass Monaco would lay its front wheels over in a painful-to-see positive camber on the outside wheel and a looks-like-the-wheels-are-falling-off negative camber on the inside wheel. I do not know why they did that, but they sure did look lumbering in comparison to a tidy Volkswagen scampering around corners.

Absolutely try a bigger main jet. I have been reading this Brooklands Volkswagen bus compilation of new car reviews and they all mention worse fuel economy than we expect. 15-19 is what they seem to complain about the most on the late model buses, a 1970 review mentioned 17mpg with the 1600 engine in real world driving conditions. The ads purr about 23 mpg, which you will get if you drive at "3/4 top speed" 45 mph? I don't think we all hang at that speed. I get suspicious when my fuel economy is too good.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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hambone
Post-Industrial Non-Secular Mennonite
Location: Portland, Ore.
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by hambone » Tue Jul 05, 2011 1:06 pm

NEW s/p heads are available, but only bare.
Early bays do have very good fuel economy, at least on long trips to wilderness - some freeway, some lower gear stuff. I often come home with 1/2 tank o' gas.
60-65 MPH top speed (Colin, can you IMAGINE?!!?!? O the HORRORS)

I think those old American cars are designed to feel like you're on a hydraulic cloud. Long trip to Suburbia 1975. It's kind of cool with those huge engines and boatlike feel.
http://greencascadia.blogspot.com
http://pdxvolksfolks.blogspot.com
it balances on your head just like a mattress balances on a bottle of wine
your brand new leopard skin pillbox hat

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Hippie
IAC Addict!
Location: 41º 35' 27" N, 93º 37' 15" W
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Re: IAC in IA

Post by Hippie » Tue Jul 05, 2011 6:31 pm

Well that's it then. Bigger main jet.
Bare head would be OK. I have a machinist that could do the fitment if needed.
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