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This is great stuff! Congrats on the progress! As for the distributor, if it=
=E2=80=99s a Pertronix, there=E2=80=99s a good chance the dog drive isn=E2=80=
=99t quite right. I have seen 3 or 4, most recently Billy Zoom, who have had=
to put an old dog gear in. The dog is not the same geometry and the dizzy w=
on=E2=80=99t quite seat right and will sort of ratchet and pop out. Bizarrel=
y, there will be enough friction to wear it might start but not run.=20
Ron Soave
> On May 30, 2022, at 10:12 AM, Greg Gowins via Spridgets <spridgets@autox.t=
eam.net> wrote:
>=20
> =EF=BB=BF
> Hello fellow Spridgeteers,
>=20
> We last left off with ordering a bunch of parts last Sunday, based on what=
we discovered over the weekend. I had to work during the day, so wasn't av=
ailable as much as I liked Monday to Wednesday. =20
>=20
> On Monday, my Dad proceeded to finish the removal of the interior on his c=
ar. He had a couple of stubborn bolts for the seat rails, both with the bol=
t in the captive nuts, as well as the two through nuts. He was able to grin=
d the heads down and got them out. While this was going on Mark worked on p=
repping the engines for the installation of the parts we ordered. Once I wa=
s done with work I joined in for a couple of hours of work that evening. Af=
ter much PB Blaster and continuous application of the impact wrench and gent=
le persuasion from a BFH, the crank pulley finally came off of my Dad's engi=
ne. =20
>=20
> Tuesday ended up being more of the same, doing prep work in anticipation o=
f the parts arriving. I painted my gas tank with truck bed liner, and we go=
t it installed along with the ancillary bits. I was missing a couple of ite=
ms, so I borrowed (stole) them from the cache of parts my Dad had previously=
ordered for his Sprite. That evening, Jack and Kathy Orkin arrived from A=
tlanta, and swung by to see what kind of progress we'd made, and what to exp=
ect over the next three days.
>=20
> On Wednesday, we anticipated the arrival of the parts. I had 7 boxes of s=
tuff arriving from three different carriers. Usually UPS and FedEx arrive m=
id-morning, but today I was at the end of the delivery line. Most of the st=
uff arrived around 3pm. Once the parts arrived, there was a flurry of activ=
ity. Mark started on getting the Vernier timing gear set installed on my en=
gine. We discovered that the coolant bypass on the bottom of the Pierce alu=
minum head was tapped differently than the bypass on the cast iron head. G=
ot a hold of Pierce, and it was tapped 1/4 NPT, so just had to find the righ=
t fitting at a home improvement or auto parts store.
>=20
> On Thursday, there was more work getting the parts installed. Mark and Ja=
ck worked on my engine, getting the head re-installed, the new serpentine pu=
lley put on the crank, the timing gear and sump gaskets in place. I took o=
ff work in the early afternoon, and started on the pieces for the VW Rabbit r=
adiator conversion. I got the radiator in the general spot, and started to p=
lan out where mounts needed to be fabricated to get it into place. My Dad w=
orked on fabricating the mounts for the tensioners out of 1 x 1.5 aluminum b=
ar. That was slow going with the tool we had, and the thickness of the mat=
erial. After a long day of work, we ate as a group at The Salt Lick BBQ res=
taurant in Driftwood. =20
>=20
> Waking up on Friday, our goal was to get my engine in place and to get it t=
o fire by the end of the day.. We got the Datsun 5 speed mated to the rear o=
f the engine, then spent quite a bit of time getting the serpentine pulleys t=
o align. The alternator ended up being the difficult child, and we spent a c=
ouple of hours grinding and filing surfaces, finally getting it to line up. =
Got the serpentine belt installed, then got the drive train back into the c=
ar. After we got the drivetrain back in, I then started working on plumbin=
g the new radiator. My setup was just enough different from the examples on=
Creative Spridgets that I had to deviate quite a bit. But we got it in pla=
ce. Mark double checked the torque on the head bolts, and we then proceeded=
to get oil into the transmission and engine. Unfortunately we discovered t=
hat the fuel pump would not come back to life, so we used a "Jack Tank", whi=
ch was Jack Orkin holding a bottle with fuel and squeezing it to deliver fue=
l to the carb. Here was what happened: =20
>=20
> https://wx.greggowins.com/weewx/videos/index.html
>=20
> The first time the engine had fired since end of 2000/beginning of 2001! D=
idn't have to do anything to the Weber carb even after it was sitting all th=
at time. We then had a celebratory beer, followed by another group dinne=
r at the Hays City Store (try the onion rings). After dinner we said our g=
oodbyes to Jack and Kathy, who were heading back to Georgia the next morning=
.
>=20
> On Saturday, the plan was to do the work to dial in the engine and get the=
radiator fully working. Here is where Lord Lucas reared his head. There i=
s some kind of demon that possesses the timing of my engine. We got the pul=
ley mark to TDC, and then pulled the valve cover to confirm that yes, the en=
gine was at TDC. The engine would not fire at all. We move the distributor=
around, and get it back to a spot where the engine would start and run. Get=
the timing light down there, and the mark was nearly 90 degrees off of wher=
e it should have been. Rock the mark back to TDC, pull the valve cover, che=
cked the valve position, and verified we had the plug wires connected as exp=
ected. The engine would only run at the bizarre marking. Not sure if anyon=
e else has experienced anything like this, all we could figure is that there=
was something really strange going on with the dog on the distributor. So=
from that point we fine tuned the timing and got the carbs dialed in. The e=
ngine will fire on the first crank, and instantly responds to throttle input=
. That evening, we took Mark to his first pro rugby match, and the hometow=
n Austin team beat San Diego. =20
>=20
> Sunday morning we took Mark to the airport for his flight home, then we he=
aded to a pick-a-part to find some stuff for my Dad's Sprite. He wants to p=
ut Miata seats in his, as well as the Creative Spridgets rear disc brake con=
version. We completely struck out. None the Miatas had seats, and all of t=
he Sentras had rear drums. I poked around to see if there was a SLK with an=
Eaton Supercharger, but none of those were to be found either. =20
>=20
> Thanks to Mark and Jack for coming out to help get these projects going, a=
fter both cars have been sitting so long. I'm planning to get mine reassem=
bled and inspected within the next couple of weeks. It will be ugly, but a=
ble to be on the road. My Dad is planning to spend quite a bit of time her=
e in July getting body work done on his, and treating the rust that we've fo=
und. We've buttoned his engine back up, and it will be ready to reinstall w=
hen we get to that point.
>=20
> It was an eventful 10 days! Always great to spend time with fellow Spridg=
et folks and work on these cars. There were many mentions of Frank during t=
he time we were working on these, and I have one of the stickers to put on t=
he glass once the project is finished.
>=20
> Greg Gowins
> Driftwood, TX
> ------------------------
>=20
> spridgets@autox.team.net
>=20
> Donate: http://www.team.net/donate.html
> Suggested annual donation: $12.75
>=20
> Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/spridgets http://autox.team.net/ar=
chive
>=20
> Unsubscribe/Manage: http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/spridgets/soaver=
o@yahoo.com
--Apple-Mail-F4680F4D-0C27-43BE-B2E8-11BF660CF9B4
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Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<html><head><meta http-equiv=3D"content-type" content=3D"text/html; charset=3D=
utf-8"></head><body dir=3D"auto">This is great stuff! Congrats on the progre=
ss! As for the distributor, if it=E2=80=99s a Pertronix, there=E2=80=99s a g=
ood chance the dog drive isn=E2=80=99t quite right. I have seen 3 or 4, most=
recently Billy Zoom, who have had to put an old dog gear in. The dog is not=
the same geometry and the dizzy won=E2=80=99t quite seat right and will sor=
t of ratchet and pop out. Bizarrely, there will be enough friction to wear i=
t might start but not run. <br><br><div dir=3D"ltr">Ron Soave</div><div=
dir=3D"ltr"><br><blockquote type=3D"cite">On May 30, 2022, at 10:12 AM, Gre=
g Gowins via Spridgets <spridgets@autox.team.net> wrote:<br><br></bloc=
kquote></div><blockquote type=3D"cite"><div dir=3D"ltr">=EF=BB=BF<div dir=3D=
"ltr">Hello fellow Spridgeteers,<div><br></div><div>We last left off with or=
dering a bunch of parts last Sunday, based on what we discovered over the we=
ekend. I had to work during the day, so wasn't available as much as I l=
iked Monday to Wednesday. </div><div><br></div><div>On Monday, my=
Dad proceeded to finish the removal of the interior on his car. He ha=
d a couple of stubborn bolts for the seat rails, both with the bolt in the c=
aptive nuts, as well as the two through nuts. He was able to grind the=
heads down and got them out. While this was going on Mark worked on p=
repping the engines for the installation of the parts we ordered. Once=
I was done with work I joined in for a couple of hours of work that evening=
. After much PB Blaster and continuous application of the impact wrenc=
h and gentle persuasion from a BFH, the crank pulley finally came off o=
f my Dad's engine. </div><div><br></div><div>Tuesday ended up bei=
ng more of the same, doing prep work in anticipation of the parts arriving.&=
nbsp; I painted my gas tank with truck bed liner, and we got it installed al=
ong with the ancillary bits. I was missing a couple of items, so I bor=
rowed (stole) them from the cache of parts my Dad had previously ordered for=
his Sprite. That evening, Jack and Kathy Orkin arrived from At=
lanta, and swung by to see what kind of progress we'd made, and what to expe=
ct over the next three days.</div><div><br></div><div>On Wednesday, we antic=
ipated the arrival of the parts. I had 7 boxes of stuff arriving from t=
hree different carriers. Usually UPS and FedEx arrive mid-mornin=
g, but today I was at the end of the delivery line. Most of the stuff a=
rrived around 3pm. Once the parts arrived, there was a flurry of activ=
ity. Mark started on getting the Vernier timing gear set installed on m=
y engine. We discovered that the coolant bypass on the bottom of the P=
ierce aluminum head was tapped differently than the bypass on the cast iron h=
ead. Got a hold of Pierce, and it was tapped 1/4 NPT, so just ha=
d to find the right fitting at a home improvement or auto parts store.</div>=
<div><br></div><div>On Thursday, there was more work getting the parts insta=
lled. Mark and Jack worked on my engine, getting the head re-installed=
, the new serpentine pulley put on the crank, the timing gear and sump gaske=
ts in place. I took off work in the early afternoon, and started=
on the pieces for the VW Rabbit radiator conversion. I got the radiat=
or in the general spot, and started to plan out where mounts needed to be fa=
bricated to get it into place. My Dad worked on fabricating the m=
ounts for the tensioners out of 1 x 1.5 aluminum bar. That was s=
low going with the tool we had, and the thickness of the material. Aft=
er a long day of work, we ate as a group at The Salt Lick BBQ restaurant in D=
riftwood. </div><div><br></div><div>Waking up on Friday, our goal=
was to get my engine in place and to get it to fire by the end of the day..=
We got the Datsun 5 speed mated to the rear of the engine, then spent quite=
a bit of time getting the serpentine pulleys to align. The alternator=
ended up being the difficult child, and we spent a couple of hours grinding=
and filing surfaces, finally getting it to line up. Got the serpentin=
e belt installed, then got the drive train back into the car. Af=
ter we got the drivetrain back in, I then started working on plumbing the ne=
w radiator. My setup was just enough different from the examples on Cr=
eative Spridgets that I had to deviate quite a bit. But we got it in p=
lace. Mark double checked the torque on the head bolts, and we then pr=
oceeded to get oil into the transmission and engine. Unfortunately we d=
iscovered that the fuel pump would not come back to life, so we used a "Jack=
Tank", which was Jack Orkin holding a bottle with fuel and squeezing it to d=
eliver fuel to the carb. Here was what happened: </d=
iv><div><br></div><div><a href=3D"https://wx.greggowins.com/weewx/videos/ind=
ex.html">https://wx.greggowins.com/weewx/videos/index.html</a></div><div><br=
></div><div>The first time the engine had fired since end of 2000/beginning o=
f 2001! Didn't have to do anything to the Weber carb even after it was=
sitting all that time. We then had a celebratory beer, f=
ollowed by another group dinner at the Hays City Store (try the onion rings)=
. After dinner we said our goodbyes to Jack and Kathy, who were h=
eading back to Georgia the next morning.</div><div><br></div><div>On Saturda=
y, the plan was to do the work to dial in the engine and get the radiator fu=
lly working. Here is where Lord Lucas reared his head. There is s=
ome kind of demon that possesses the timing of my engine. We got the p=
ulley mark to TDC, and then pulled the valve cover to confirm that yes, the e=
ngine was at TDC. The engine would not fire at all. We move the d=
istributor around, and get it back to a spot where the engine would start an=
d run. Get the timing light down there, and the mark was nearly 90 degrees o=
ff of where it should have been. Rock the mark back to TDC, pull the v=
alve cover, checked the valve position, and verified we had the plug wires c=
onnected as expected. The engine would only run at the bizarre marking=
. Not sure if anyone else has experienced anything like this, all we c=
ould figure is that there was something really strange going on with the dog=
on the distributor. So from that point we fine tuned the timing=
and got the carbs dialed in. The engine will fire on the first crank,=
and instantly responds to throttle input. That evening, we took=
Mark to his first pro rugby match, and the hometown Austin team beat San Di=
ego. </div><div><br></div><div>Sunday morning we took Mark to the=
airport for his flight home, then we headed to a pick-a-part to find some s=
tuff for my Dad's Sprite. He wants to put Miata seats in his, as well a=
s the Creative Spridgets rear disc brake conversion. We completely str=
uck out. None the Miatas had seats, and all of the Sentras had rear dr=
ums. I poked around to see if there was a SLK with an Eaton Supercharg=
er, but none of those were to be found either. </div><div><br></d=
iv><div>Thanks to Mark and Jack for coming out to help get these projects go=
ing, after both cars have been sitting so long. I'm planning to g=
et mine reassembled and inspected within the next couple of weeks. &nb=
sp;It will be ugly, but able to be on the road. My Dad is planni=
ng to spend quite a bit of time here in July getting body work done on his, a=
nd treating the rust that we've found. We've buttoned his engine back u=
p, and it will be ready to reinstall when we get to that point.</div><div><b=
r></div><div>It was an eventful 10 days! Always great to spend time wi=
th fellow Spridget folks and work on these cars. There were many=
mentions of Frank during the time we were working on these, and I have one o=
f the stickers to put on the glass once the project is finished.</div><div><=
br></div><div>Greg Gowins</div><div>Driftwood, TX</div></div>
<span>------------------------</span><br><span></span><br><span>spridgets@au=
tox.team.net</span><br><span></span><br><span>Donate: http://www.team.net/do=
nate.html</span><br><span>Suggested annual donation: $12.75</span><br><span>=
</span><br><span>Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/spridgets http=
://autox.team.net/archive</span><br><span></span><br><span>Unsubscribe/Manag=
e: http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/spridgets/soavero@yahoo.com</span><=
br></div></blockquote></body></html>=
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------------------------
spridgets@autox.team.net
Archive: http://www.team.net/pipermail/spridgets http://autox.team.net/archive
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