Out And About

The boot if not Chinese or freezing cold, easily slips over the ball on the lower end of the shift lever .

Some years back I bought a long abandoned 1959 VW Beetle, as soon as I slid behind the wheel and began driving (I had to $pend a couple months & $eriou$ denero) it felt like 1972 again ~ no, I didn't feel young nor care & pain free but rolling down the road with all those same visceral sounds, smells, vibrations and so on, really took me back and made me VERY happy .

I used the same tranny filling trick to fill the gear box on my 1960 Morris Minor.....

Don't forget the small rare earth disc magnet on the drain and filler plugs ! .

 

School me on those rare earth magnets -- again being I read where
you has shared that on another topic/thread -- hidden now from my
memory -- (smile ) Started reading old topics here and thought WOW
You and some other members Shine ! -
I appreciate Your sharing Nate -
And the Great Way you Look at Life---

 

RE :

Using magnets in machinery .

Long before I was born it was common practice to include magnets inside the engine, gearbox and final drive for two reasons :

One, to collect up any left over bits of metal from the machining process when making the various parts, this is called "SWARF" and can cause significant damage .

Two, as metal parts work and rub, they create fine metal particles that if not removed mix with the lubricating oil and cause increased wear .

It used to be that cheap magnets were every where but then for a long time not readily available and 'Rare Earth' magnets have *much* stronger pull and so work better even when very small in size .

Enter China's sort of abandonment of values and enter the desire to earn scandalous amounts of money by selling things to capitalists, then came Harbor Fright, er, Freight and you now have a wonderful solution here : Search Results For "Rare Earth Magnets"

Amazingly, they've lowered the price and raised the amount of magnets ! .

You simply put on on the tip of each and ever drain and fill plug and presto ! you're golden .

The lower plugs will collect the heavier & larger SWARF , the upper plugs will collect the finer particles .

All you needs do is wipe them clean at every HOT OIL CHANGE .

I hope this answered your question ? .

 

Another well written / concise explanation Nate
Bravo- Thank You again , Surely have appreciated your help.!
Ernie

 

I was working on a thirty seven year old Mercedes station wagon to - day, it turns out the slushbox does indeed have a drain plug so after draining it and the torque converter (yep, that has a drain plug too !) and cleaning the pan (pretty clean in spite of almost black ATF that smelled like burnt coffee) , I added another rare earth disc magnet to it's drain plug, installed a new filter (it's a real paper element filter, not a screen like American slushboxes) and buttoned it all back up, I only had one gallon jug of ATF and will go back to - morrow (assuming I don't ache too much to get out of bed) and add the rest (bought more after I was cleaned up plus gunk degreaser on sale) and top it off then go back underneath and spend a few hours de greasing and washing the underside of the engine and chassis ~ the hydraulic hose that blew spewed hydraulic oil every where and it's been years since it was properly washed anyways .

I hate this cleaning job because I wind up looking like a bum soaking wet and covered in old grease, oil and road munge...

Demarkis went to the job with me he likes to watch and learn, play with my dogs etc., in the morning when we went out to my truck he discovered some @$$hole had broken both taillights on my truck When I was all finished and cleaned up I went on line and found a pair of N.O.S. taillights for the dealer price of one....

Gotta love the internet, E-Bay, Amazon etc., etc.

I decided to buy new ball joints too because the originals don't have Zerk fittings and the rubber boots rotted away, last time I was in Death Valley I encountered a seriously bad wind / dust storm and I'm sure some sugar sand blew into one of the open joint as I heard that old groan/squeak sound, might as well replace all four with MOOG and other brand joints that have Zerk fittings ~ 'lifetime lubrication' my narrow white bum .

Life goes on and for me is good : no more pulling tits and shoveling s#its .

 

A Picture only a Old Fart could enjoy !..
Dropped the Old Spare Tire-out from the underside cradle..
Feeling rather old and STRANGE - hate being well--not as
strong and I once was and talk about ! being "thinned skinned" ?.......
> Bloody Elbows < crawling around in the dirt --
Always said--- Build the Barn First ! then the house..
Golly how I would loved to had a Big SHOP ! -LOL......
When the Rim is wet it takes on
``` Magical Glitter like
```` A Beautiful !---Mahi Mahi---Fish !....
Has sat underneath the burb -all of the near
--- 40 years I have had the burb.

 

Gates Cargo "HD" -
Any---Tire Code Talkers ?....
That Old Bias Tire has a tread depth
`` like a bottomless ocean`````````

 

"Still has the tits on it!"

 

That's an "N.O.S." tire ! .

The date code is the older one with letters that I no longer remember .

I assume it still holds air ? .

I'd get it dismounted and that rim de rusted A.S.A.P. ~ yes there are still scads of old original 16" rims out there but you really have to beat the bushes these days most throw them out, a few shave them and then want $$! for them .

I remember when finding a tire like this in the junkyard was cause for rejoicing ~ they rubber compounds were *VERY* different thirty years ago so they'd still be safe .

Nowadays I sometimes have to replace tires with good tread after 7 years because the side walls are all cracked up and leak air....

 

Haha !
Nates reply above ended with

"Life goes on and for me is good :
no more pulling tits and shoveling s#its . ".......



In the past 50 plus years running bias ply tires
on my long list of work < play 1953 Chevy's..
Firestone- Cooper- Good Year mix and matched...
Never came across a Gates Tire ? And check out those
Little Star Burst Spikes close to the rim..
" Trippy" eh.......

 

Well Nate--after going around and around with my
Tire Dealer -" Discount Tire" and trying to convince
them the Nate Perfect Tire Size << haha would fit..
And being told no ! .. Long story short--
I'm cleaning up-sanding -rattle can spraying
the 4 old rims on the burb...... Running down to
have them dismounted --running home with them
and have 2 mounted - on the burb --And 2 on a bench
outside waiting for me to tackle them tomorrow..
Darn doing just this much is Kicking my Butt..!
And I am amazed how I could swap out a rear end..
going through the process -cross member drop-
open the torque tube-remove the u-joints -etc..
Did I mention or was it YOU ?---
---------------" Age is Gaining on ME " --------

 

I got called away by some B.S. 'emergency' by S.W.M.B.O., one of the Foster boys made a watery mess in the kitchen then just walked away from it... .

Anyway, my big brother has a 1979 Dodge D200 crew cab service bed beast of a truck, we've driven it all across America and guess who always get to fix it when it clatters to a halt because he didn't do some basic maintenance thing I'd told him to do months before .

Anyway, It's an old "CalTrans" freeway sprinkler service truck and had a bed mounted spare right in side the tailgate where it was in the way...

I eventually hunted down a factory underbed spare tire carrier, bolt and lock for it plus a 16.6" wheel of course the 10 year old properly inflated tire exploded in Death Valley last year and I've been tinkering it back to health since, I found him a 5 year old Firestone ('maypop') 16.6" E rated N.O.S. tire and he had it mounted then couldn't get the carrier back into place...

As you said : old men know things but are often to beat up (or old & fat) to do those things....

I guess I'll have to take my monkey suit over there and put the carrier on my chest and install it whew, not an easy job unless you're a working ma I'm retired, he's a lawyer .

Carry on then don't neglect to get that rusty old rim de rusted and re painted, don't powder coat it, paint it of have it properly painted .

If you just drive 'round town that spare will prolly be fine and get you home / to the tire shop O.K. .

 

I hope to Christ you didn't buy any Firestone tires ! .

Somewhere else deep in older threads I posted he *exact* radial size crossover, the tire shops never want to sell you want -you- want, just when they have in stock or is the biggest profit margin .

I hope you took the time to de rust those old rims ~ when a rim gets *too* rusty they'll split with out any warning, usually as you make a turn ~ BT & DT I hope never again because I almost died (and had to wash my undies) .

 

With the burb lifted on "precarious" blocks..
resting on the unlevel dirt slanted drive --
Man Nate how I know it's " not good" but..
Yep the but < can get you dead.. Amen !

Anyway in
the process to break down-dismount
the tires one axel -2 tires at a time - what
I did with the front two rims was sand -prime and paint.
Rattle Can Rustoleum !

The rear two are a bit more rusted and I am going to hit
them with the Drill mounted Wire Brush --then prime-
lightly sand and paint....

Before I bought the 225/75-16 Radials
the inside of the rims looked GREAT - but
one year later the rims
started "slow leaks" and I was told
I had to buy radial tubes for them..

Long story-- kind of pooped tonight...
Sure Wish I had a better
spot to work on the burb...
and a Hydraulic Lift would
BE GREAT !......
Bought Tubeless
Radials again.. this time
215/85/16's

Love the Look-
They Fill The Fender Welds..
And make the burb look like a truck.
~~~~ But -- we'll see eh..........

COKERS are----- IN-$ANE$$$$$$$$$$

 

coker also doesn't honor any warranty claims so they're out .

General tires used to make the proper size .

I too have worked on and under poorly or improperly supported vehicles, when I had my VW shop we'd go under the car when only a Hein - Warner trolly jack was holding it up the foolish things one does when they're young and / or ignorant .

 

Our host has an interior paint for AD's they call "champagne", part #31-014. Some of the older trucks had what was called "Taupe". We make mistakes, especially on dashes, so we use a base coat/clear coat that is near dead on and is from a Mitsubishi. The bc/cc can be spotted in almost like old lacquer could so chips and scratches aren't a catastrophe.

 

Even on younger "looking" rims ..eh
50 Years ago while driving home from work
Was crossing the Bonsall Bridge just out of Fallbrook CA.......

Was driving on that narrow bridge with an
oncoming Semi-Truck-- when the front end started shaking ?..
W ell after we passed *whew* and I made
it over the bridge I pulled over onto the dirt
shoulder off the pavement..
Vehicles were zipping past and I took a
gander at my front end..
Good God Gertie.. the passenger side
front rim was SPLIT Open
and the " Chaffing Ring " and part of
the Tube was STICKING OUT

I guess being focused on the Semi- and not having an
explosive BLOW OUT --- my undies were OK !... Butt..OMG !..

How that rim got that bad ? is still a mystery to me...
Today I wish someone would start making new stock rims
with the clips etc.....

As far as my De-Rusting Job--I would hardly
give it a - C Used the Drill Wire Brush and a lot of hand sanding-
Shoulda- Woulda- Coulda --spent more time and used POR-15
on the insides.. Sorry for the run-on story Nate.

So Glad to have her sitting back down on solid ground..
Last but not least --- Like my Uncle Arnie (R.I.P ) use to
say -- Never Use - Never Buy Old Painted Ladders !.....
Cheap Way to Hide-- Those ----Cracks and Splits..

 

On the Seat platform -
it being rather hidden I used some
Rustoleum " Warm Chestnut"
but it was a far cry off in being
even close to the original " Pecan Brown".

What I need or want ! is the stock
Wicker Brown and Pecan Brown
colors in Rattle Cans ! <<
I Know- You Can't Always Get What
You Want ! --uhh ----Rolling Stones ?
Rattle Ball Cans ! ---LOL
Jim Carter :
Old Chevytrucks Classic Truck Parts - Shopping Cart -

 

If you go to the Rustoleum site and dig, you'll find a nifty color chart, they have way more colors available then any hardware store stocks .

The stories are good and why I'm still here .

In.....?1967? we were coming back from the town dump in East Rindge, New Hampshire in our light blue 1962 Chevrolet K10, turned left off the raised highway and the right front rim split and the tire flew off, we went wide and plummeted down the steep embankment .

No seat belts in old truck back then, no one was seriously hurt and the fender damage was minimal so another old rim and tire from the pasture full of rusty old junkers and back into service .

Pucker time for sure .

Loosing a tire on a narrow bridge makes me wince just thinking about it .

 

Do a search for "refillable aerosol spray can" and you can put any color paint in it you need. A bit pricey ($50??) but does away with guessing with an off the shelf color. We use them where there is danger of dragging an air hose across a fresh painted surface to use a touch up gun.