Uno mas!

 I HATE giving up. I try sometimes to just step away, to say 'let it go'. But I am WAY to type "A".
 It's hard to admit that b/c I like to think of myself as laid back and easy going but.....ahhhh reality sucks.
 So Monday this week was a bad day. I don't often have bad days, I have stressful days, I have busy days, hell I even have frustrating days. But this was a bad day!
 I won't bore you with too many details about the crappy work day, pun fully intended, but lets just say sh** flows downhill. A little plumbing problem in the office quickly snowballed into a catastrophic F%# -Up.
On the bus front, a realization that a previous action (removing the ram air chute) compromised the structural integrity of the bus, and now my back end was sagging. No not my back end- although at 42 there is an argument to be made on that- but Fillmore.
In my last post I was contemplating whether to mount the rad to the side and leave the chute out. I decided to consult with a gent in Texas( at least I think that's where he is). He quickly set me straight, the chute is part of the monocoque construction http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monocoque
 As such he recommended I jack up the rear end and support it until such time that I can redo the chute. He was 100% right. I had noticed a few rivet holes that had been drilled out didn't line up anymore. I found that odd but in my ignorance didn't connect the dots.
Soooo after I jacked up the rear end and blocked it, I had enough. I put Fillmore to bed and
said 'screw it!'
I had hit the wall. A couple of days later after having time to cool, I couldn't let it beat me. I didn't need to fix everything right now but I did need to leave on a high note, I needed a small victory!

 So I decided to cut stuff up! I finally cut up and move the last of the donor frame out of the way

 Dewalt heavy duty grinder, sledge,pry bar, and a farm jack and I was in business.

Wrestling these pieces onto the trailer by myself was a chore but it felt good.
Now I can rest.

Good night!

Well time has come again to take a wee bit of a hiatus. Just as well really, I ran into a few barriers that sent my blood pressure through the roof. I need time to problem solve and decompress. So Fillmore is put to sleep for a few weeks. Enjoy the sun everyone. We'll see you in August!

I'm so confused....

 So when word gets out that you have the capability to weld....as limited as your ability is, you become a popular guy. One of my neighbors brought by  his son's dirt bike for a frame repair....just add it to the list.

 So last time I left you with the making of the rad stand, the "blue print" and the final product!
Not to bad really, I was quite happy with how things turned out.

 Today was a bus day, it was supposed to be a fishing with my brother in law day but...well life gets busy. So we're trying for a day later in the summer! John came over and we did some planning. A shopping list really. Things that I have to get to be ready for the next step. Fuel lines, air lines for the throttle, etc etc. Well one thing led to another and we started to chat about some of the upcoming challenges. One of John's major concerns was the rad. The radiator is a big momma, heavy to be all when it's empty so she's going to have some heft when it is full of coolant. The concern is two fold the potential rocking of the rad on the stand and second the efficiency of the pumps pumping the coolant that high. We mused for some time about thinking outside the Flxible box . Specifically why does the rad have to be up above the engine?
The application of the rad in the donor vehicle had the rad on the side of the vehicle, aside from the fact that the ram air is part of the Flxy mystique why not consider an alternative location?

 So after John left I sat down with lunch and a beer and did some sketches.

 Moving the dummy rad to the passenger side, it is possible. As you can see on the left a small funneling of the rad of about 4" would be required, and I would either have to cut the SS side panel or flute it.

 I decide to give it a try, build a stand and see which one I like better.

 A test fit...

Floor supports and both side stands....hmmm....I'm so confused.....

Make believe

You know as a child the years that you spend allowing your imagination to run free is more than just something to occupy your time. It has many benefit for later in life. Like when you need to put a rad in a '49 Flx after you've changed the engine!!

 Well you saw the dummy rad last post, now I have to put it into the position I want. So I had to pretend that it was mounted where I need it to be. I know this isn't rocket science but I like trying new things and forcing myself to problem solve. To be quite honest I think the thing I love the most about this project is the way it makes me try new things and think in new ways!

 At Christmas time my little bro did a sketch just like this https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1fKOAJpD_IFPx5u5FDoLPIEFjNoVMQngGmCM2S9MP-mPc002I8Jr9RXHJ_5dYqJhpCgjIl_-gIRTDwQVYCy_sdJ00uDajFuDEpWEizhogbiAWWysCPYOwAQFNQeRYU9AkYG1DeJvj-hs/s1600/DSC01161.JPG
To be honest I forgot about it until just now when I saw the picture and siad..."Hmmm that looks familiar!" Great minds think alike I guess.

 

Well after some playing around I finally came to rest on a frame design I liked. Here once again is my wood prototype.

After the frame type was set I then started doing some little mods to the rad. Removal of the hydraulic rad from the big unit first of all.

This picture was from this morning. I had to sing down at the stampede parade this morning. No, Will and Kate didn't stop to hear a song, as a matter of fact they went by so fast you almost didn't see the car let alone them. Didn't much matter to me but I got to tell you the people who camped out over night to have a royal brush were sure disappointed!
Anyway, the picture... after the sing I took an hour or so to grab some supplies since I was in town anyway. I got a good chuckle out of the guy at Federal Metals. I bought 4- 10' length of 1.5x1.5x.125" square tubing and some plate steel. When I pulled up to pick up the materials this stuff above was already in the trunk. The guy snickered and said...." You sure gotta love when Volkswagen came out with these half tonne Jettas!"

Rad man, totally Rad!

 Sorry I think I left you hangin' WRT the outcome of the booty work. The door closes nicely now. I will have to figure out a new way to latch the door but I have a few ideas. With the door fully closed you can really see how much the engine cradle sits back, but not to fear the skirt and bumper will cover most of it!!

 So on to the next job. Now that the engine is in, the next step is mounting the radiator. Some time ago I made a frame for the rad to sit on ( http://49clipper.blogspot.com/2010/12/oh-weather-outside-is-frightful.html  )  Buuuuuuuuut, as you can see by the look on my face I wasn't totally enamored with it.

I felt the angle was to flat, if I had the room I should try to idealize the angle of the rad to allow for max coolant flow and air coverage.

Problem with this wee beast is that I can't just pick it up and play with the angle while holding above the engine in the engine room.
Well, let me rephrase that, I could if I wanted to.... I mean I'm man enough to do it....but I choose not to...ya that's it, I CHOOSE not to!!

In all seriousness, that sucker out weighs me, so I had an idea...

 What not make a dummy rad!!

Does this engine make my butt look fat?

 Well another day in God's country....I suppose I should be careful, I might spark one hell of an argument in the Flxible community if I bring religion into the same sentence as Flxible. So lets just say it's another beautiful day in Fillmore country!
Now I'm not under illusions of grandeur in thinking that I have oodles of followers of this blog. I have a few die hards, mostly family and the occasional person who must hit it on a google search, but I have to say I was a little disappointed that I didn't get one remark after my last post. I think it's a sign of age. The older I get the funnier I think I am and the more puzzled are the looks I get from my kids when I crack a joke.

Well today I started by a little site clean up. I am bound and determined to get rid of all the frame from the donor vehicle, even if I have to do it 100lbs at a time!





 

 Then it was time to tackle on 'FAT' rear end. The early model Clipper is a foot or two shorter than the Starliner, so dropping the 8.3L Cummins into it proved to be a spacial challenge. I had to move the engine as far back as I possible could. Actually I went to the drive line guys and said what is the shortest drive shaft you can make me with what I have. That then determined where the engine had to go. As a result the rear door won't close.

So a little mods are called for. I had to remove the latch that was on the door, then cut back some of the flange at the bottom support.

Anna was my official photographer today... I have to say she's got a pretty good eye!

What a wonderful weekend...