Cookie Monster

[JohnS]

I'm a big fan of Pertronix...  simple and has worked for me for many years...

 

Old devices are cool to understand.  I think the Judson is looking to solve the age old problem of burnt points similar to other early CD units (Delta Mark, etc.)  Paging @Mike Self  😊

 

Edited August 26 by JohnS

[DieselOx]

I'm having a bit of angst as I transition from archeologist to restoration mode.

 

I'm really appreciating this car just as a time capsule, even with a pretty major and poorly executed repair to the front left corner.

 

Right next to a bad bondo job on the fender, these labels survive and tell me the nose is original. I need to get them off and repair a couple rust bubbles under them. Then the labels will be gone forever. 

 

 

You can see the old yellowed paint vs the new crappy paint on the fender.

 

Also, I love these little screw point protectors, never saw those before. (yellowed plastic caps on the tips of the reservoir screws)

 

 

Then theres nonsense like this. What is the point of this vacuum line to the neck of the breather on the valve cover?

 

 

OK, back to it. Just motor/trans mounts to undo, then the engine should come right out.

 

Been lucky so far, everything is coming apart pretty well, not as many frozen bolts as I expected. And stuff is really not worn much at all. For example, the distributor has no wear, seems perfect. 

 

Edited September 2 by DieselOx

[DieselOx]

OK, decision made: used enough patience, isopropyl, and a fresh xacto blade, and got the first decal off in one piece.

 

learned something about the paint too: it's totally failed. Even if I wanted to preserve some patina for history, it's not possible. Makes decisions about whether to strip it or not moot. It's all coming off to bare metal.

[DieselOx]

Engine out. Taking it apart.

 

 

Water pump came right out. BIL says if I soak it in vinegar, it will clean right up, lol.

 

 

I'm a bit concerned about the chip in the block on the fin. Thinking I'll just remove sharp edges and live with it, maybe a slight reduction in coolant flow? 

 

 

Maybe I'll grind it down square, and the add the missing fin bit to a water pump. Should be able to machine a pocket for it and press in/screw in a new piece to fill the gap.

 

Just thinking out loud, still digging around.

 

Otherwise engine and transmission feel great. Both turn over fine, everything feels smooth, no excess play anywhere so far. 

[jimk]

The engine side is the lower timing chain cover and it is aluminum.  The notch is on a functional part of the pump volute and leave is as is or have it weld built up to match the adjacent edge.  If the area is ground away it will affect pumping performance.  The cover is not a throw away part.

[DieselOx]

Oh, right! Thanks (duh). I should he able to fix it.

Edited Friday at 06:26 PM by DieselOx

[RichenFamous]

Super cool project! What are the plans? Total rotisserie? Keep the patina? 
If you’re keeping beloved patina, I have some headlight grills that I’d love to donate to the Cookie Monster. 
Your excitement makes me excited. Love it. 
🍻

[DieselOx]

 

 

21 minutes ago, RichenFamous said:

Super cool project! What are the plans? Total rotisserie? Keep the patina? 
If you’re keeping beloved patina, I have some headlight grills that I’d love to donate to the Cookie Monster. 
Your excitement makes me excited. Love it. 
🍻

Thanks! I have nice used grills but no kidney center piece. Not looking for perfect, just complete (I can straighten grills, got a lot of practice with Volvo Amazon grilles, pretty easy to fix them up).

 

It's going to be a total rotisserie to get the body sorted and paint right everywhere. None of the paint can be saved, it's all just falling off, over cooked after 36 years in the Central Valley sun. (plus a bad re-spray at some point, so none of the exterior paint is original anyway).

 

When it comes to putting it all back together, I hope to use as many original parts as possible, or period replacements. I'm not planning on making every part show room perfect, but just get everything savable cleaned up and as nice as possible, and let some of the age show.

 

So far as I can tell, I'm outright missing the grills (found a pair minus the center kidney) dark blue headrests and speedo does not seem right.

 

Has the original all black tach and fuel gauge but a silver dollar broken speedo. Original owner swears it's the original speedo, and it broke in the 70's, but that makes no sense, should be all black I think.

 

I've been collecting some bits as I come across them. Found a nice lower dash, better door cards and handles, and found a full chassis with a lot of good steel I can harvest for almost all the rusty patches.

 

I don't want a perfect interior, just decent and functional, like a well cared for old car. I'll get new carpets and probably seats redone (but the seats are not that bad! Currently soaking in mineral oil to see if I can soften up the vinyl a bit.)

 

So thats the plan. Let the car sort of tell me what is right along the way. Get all the steel and paint perfect, all the broken bits fixed or replaced, basically to the point where if one of my kids wants to make it perfect, they won't have to strip it again, just refresh whatever needs refreshing.

 

I'm cautiously optimistic about the engine and transmission. So far seems like they have less wear than I expected. I can't wait to get the head off and pistons out, see what the heck is going on. Almost ready to, maybe this week.

[RichenFamous]

Great plan. 
I’ll see what I’ve got out in the bin, there may be an early center grill out there that needs some work. 
Pretty sure I’ve got an all black speedo too. Send me a pic of your silver dollar, I may be able to use some parts to fix mine, perhaps a trade? I’ll send a few pics tomorrow. 
Interested in grey carpet? I have a brand new carpet kit (esty carpet, high quality) that I may not use. 
PM me with a list and I’ll see what I’ve got to fill! 
The pic of what’s underneath the valve cover is amazing and unbelievably clean!