Project Resurrection: Running Log
09-11-09, 03:24 AM
#126
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska
09-11-09, 11:20 AM
#127
Heh, thanks... Some of it is out of necessity, some of it is out of unique opportunity. I got used to making things I couldn't afford to buy. Now that I can afford many things I want (within reason, of course) The habit is still with me.
Now, all I have to do is fix this:
https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/oh-no-bizzarre-electrical-issue-862500/
... and do some touchups.
Now, all I have to do is fix this:
https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/oh-no-bizzarre-electrical-issue-862500/
... and do some touchups.
09-13-09, 12:46 AM
#129
Gremlins fixed (details in the above thread - - it were a weird one!).
Now I got two weeks to try to chase down that damnable flood-after-shutdown. That, and a wash and wax, is all that's left.
Stu, I wish you were coming, too - - I'd love to shake your hand.
Your praise for my half-assed wire support made me feel all guilty about it being just taped together, so I did a more competent job of it just in your honor:
And here's the finished Mark I version of "Son of Precious":
I custom-made this mounting bracket by making a silicone mold of an 80 LS mirror-control bracket that Stu loaned me, and then casting a duplicate out of rigid polyurethane. Took over a month to perfect the process and wait for mail-ordered mold materials to arrive.
My fine-looking Fauge Lites & cleanly-stripped grille:
And a couple out-in-the-sun-and-running engine bay shots:
Now I got two weeks to try to chase down that damnable flood-after-shutdown. That, and a wash and wax, is all that's left.
Stu, I wish you were coming, too - - I'd love to shake your hand.
Your praise for my half-assed wire support made me feel all guilty about it being just taped together, so I did a more competent job of it just in your honor:
And here's the finished Mark I version of "Son of Precious":
I custom-made this mounting bracket by making a silicone mold of an 80 LS mirror-control bracket that Stu loaned me, and then casting a duplicate out of rigid polyurethane. Took over a month to perfect the process and wait for mail-ordered mold materials to arrive.
My fine-looking Fauge Lites & cleanly-stripped grille:
And a couple out-in-the-sun-and-running engine bay shots:
09-15-09, 11:38 AM
#132
Day 425
How do you spell "Danger, Will Robinson!!"?
Like this:
My first encounter with "modern" automotive finishes that don't come from a rattlecan; I hold in my hand an airbrush loaded with 2-part spray urethane clearcoat which the state of California swears will make me keel over dead after it makes all my chromosomes spin backwards.
I had to learn (on the first try) how to fix two-layer paint, after an unfortunate run-in with some overly-sticky blue masking tape peeled loose about two square inches of less-than-perfectly prepped paint that isn't quite a perfect match for the "factory" touch-up paints.
So far, it's not looking too bad; I have yet to polish it out but it's down, reasonably smoothly, and the color and flake is a surprisingly good match; so much so that it was hard to tell where I was spraying past the damaged area.
I had to pay an obscene amount for supplies, though, as the smallest quantity of paint I could get mixed was a pint (I needed maybe an ounce), and the reducer and clearcoat only comes in quarts. Plus the activator for the clear.
I learned a useful skill, and didn't manage to blow up the garage or gas myself in the process, so I'm counting it as a win.
How do you spell "Danger, Will Robinson!!"?
Like this:
My first encounter with "modern" automotive finishes that don't come from a rattlecan; I hold in my hand an airbrush loaded with 2-part spray urethane clearcoat which the state of California swears will make me keel over dead after it makes all my chromosomes spin backwards.
I had to learn (on the first try) how to fix two-layer paint, after an unfortunate run-in with some overly-sticky blue masking tape peeled loose about two square inches of less-than-perfectly prepped paint that isn't quite a perfect match for the "factory" touch-up paints.
So far, it's not looking too bad; I have yet to polish it out but it's down, reasonably smoothly, and the color and flake is a surprisingly good match; so much so that it was hard to tell where I was spraying past the damaged area.
I had to pay an obscene amount for supplies, though, as the smallest quantity of paint I could get mixed was a pint (I needed maybe an ounce), and the reducer and clearcoat only comes in quarts. Plus the activator for the clear.
I learned a useful skill, and didn't manage to blow up the garage or gas myself in the process, so I'm counting it as a win.
09-23-09, 11:54 PM
#134
Day 433
The end of the long road to SevenStock is near... The event is day after tomorrow, and the car is about as ready as it can be, short of a wash and wax and vacuum it gets tomorrow. It's looking splendid, and is in far better condition overall than it was when this thread started, 16 months ago.
In the last week, I've taken the caburetor back off and gone thru it with a fine-toothed comb, checking all the jets & bleeds (proper number, correctly tight, right holes, nothing blocked) and all the electric valves (vent, coasting, richer) and yet I don't seem to be any closer to discovering cause of my after-shutdown flood. All seem to be right. Float levels are perfect. Opening the vent line doesn't seem to make a difference so I dont't see it as a venting problem.
I did notice the carb base-to-throttle-body bolts seemed a bit loose, and retorqued them. It MIGHT just be possible that the accel pump inlet weight and ball were un opside-down (ball on top) but I can't prove it as I didn't see the order that they actually came out. I do know that they are in properly now.
I haven't had any chance to do any real testing of the flood issue as it requires that I have time to drive the car, shut it down, and then restart it after 45 minutes or more, and events over the last couple days haven't allowed that. So, I may have dealt with the problem, and I may not have. Have to see.
If it's not gone, I'm willing to admit that it may not be a carburetor problem... but I don't see where else I can get the symptoms I see. Perhaps fuel return line, but that would seem like it would cause the bowls to overfill, not to unfill themselves after shutdown.
I may try to find an out-of-the-way place that I can drive to and pour some seafoam down the carb neck. That's harder to do than it sounds in my neck of the woods; not a lot of open country nearby, and with "red flag" fire danger in SoCal just now, a huge plume of smoke might attract unwanted attention.
I'll be taking abundant pictures at SS, and will update the thread with them probably Sunday or a few days later.
I still have a dozen things I want to do to the car, but they have to wait until after the show. No time to start new work.
The end of the long road to SevenStock is near... The event is day after tomorrow, and the car is about as ready as it can be, short of a wash and wax and vacuum it gets tomorrow. It's looking splendid, and is in far better condition overall than it was when this thread started, 16 months ago.
In the last week, I've taken the caburetor back off and gone thru it with a fine-toothed comb, checking all the jets & bleeds (proper number, correctly tight, right holes, nothing blocked) and all the electric valves (vent, coasting, richer) and yet I don't seem to be any closer to discovering cause of my after-shutdown flood. All seem to be right. Float levels are perfect. Opening the vent line doesn't seem to make a difference so I dont't see it as a venting problem.
I did notice the carb base-to-throttle-body bolts seemed a bit loose, and retorqued them. It MIGHT just be possible that the accel pump inlet weight and ball were un opside-down (ball on top) but I can't prove it as I didn't see the order that they actually came out. I do know that they are in properly now.
I haven't had any chance to do any real testing of the flood issue as it requires that I have time to drive the car, shut it down, and then restart it after 45 minutes or more, and events over the last couple days haven't allowed that. So, I may have dealt with the problem, and I may not have. Have to see.
If it's not gone, I'm willing to admit that it may not be a carburetor problem... but I don't see where else I can get the symptoms I see. Perhaps fuel return line, but that would seem like it would cause the bowls to overfill, not to unfill themselves after shutdown.
I may try to find an out-of-the-way place that I can drive to and pour some seafoam down the carb neck. That's harder to do than it sounds in my neck of the woods; not a lot of open country nearby, and with "red flag" fire danger in SoCal just now, a huge plume of smoke might attract unwanted attention.
I'll be taking abundant pictures at SS, and will update the thread with them probably Sunday or a few days later.
I still have a dozen things I want to do to the car, but they have to wait until after the show. No time to start new work.
09-27-09, 05:24 PM
#135
Day 437
So, I missed SevenStock. Again. 18 months work, and I missed all the fun.
I ended up in the hospital Friday night, having worked my silly *** into severe dehydration and electrolyte loss - - trying to get my damn car ready for the show!
Finished the car about 9:30pm after hammering at it all day in the 98-deg garage:
Washing, clay-barring, waxing, vacuuming, the whole nine yards.
She was looking perfect, and I got her all loaded; I went upstairs to shower and shave.
I got out of the shower feeling a bit wobbly; nothing serious, just really spent by a hard day's work. So I laid down on the bed for half an hour until I felt better, then went into my 'office' to log in to the site and get final maps and route info for the meetup early Saturday morning.
I sat down in front of the computer, and my vision started going all bright white - - like the screen was 10 times too bright to see - - and I started getting seriously dizzy. I bent down to get my head low (felt like I'd stood up too sudden after a workout, you know? So I figured getting more blood to the noggin was a good move).
Next thing you know, I'm lying flat on the floor, hit with a half-dozen bone-breaker muscle cramps; legs, arms, back, all locked up like a bitch. Cramps in my feet, even; toes pointing all funny directions!
I called out to my wife, and she tried to rub them out for me, but they just kept getting worse, not letting up at all. I've had cramps before (pretty common for cold-water divers), but nothing like this. I didn't dare try to move or the muscles would just sieze up like a rock.
After about a half hour of this, me gasping through clenched teeth (seriously hurtin'!) & knotted up like an old rope, we decided to call the paramedics, as there's no way I could have made it down the stairs to the car, and my wife being about half my size, there's no way she could have got me there without just dragging me.
Long story short: even though I'd been pounding water all day long in the garage, and took meal breaks, my electrolyte balance was totally hosed (potassium and sodium dangerously low), and I was seriously dehydrated too, kidneys starting to shut down the docs said. Even though I was drinking water all day long, I was just washing minerals out.
Over the last two days, they pushed 10 liters of IV saline into me. Hell of a way to gain 10 pounds in 48 hours.
So, there's my car, looking the best it's ever looked... sitting in the garage.
Spotless and perfect engine bay:
And there I am, laying in an open-backed man-dress in a hospital bed, watching Animal Planet.
Bummed. Seriously bummed, to have missed my goal for a second year running... but it's not worth actually dying for, you know?
So, I missed SevenStock. Again. 18 months work, and I missed all the fun.
I ended up in the hospital Friday night, having worked my silly *** into severe dehydration and electrolyte loss - - trying to get my damn car ready for the show!
Finished the car about 9:30pm after hammering at it all day in the 98-deg garage:
Washing, clay-barring, waxing, vacuuming, the whole nine yards.
She was looking perfect, and I got her all loaded; I went upstairs to shower and shave.
I got out of the shower feeling a bit wobbly; nothing serious, just really spent by a hard day's work. So I laid down on the bed for half an hour until I felt better, then went into my 'office' to log in to the site and get final maps and route info for the meetup early Saturday morning.
I sat down in front of the computer, and my vision started going all bright white - - like the screen was 10 times too bright to see - - and I started getting seriously dizzy. I bent down to get my head low (felt like I'd stood up too sudden after a workout, you know? So I figured getting more blood to the noggin was a good move).
Next thing you know, I'm lying flat on the floor, hit with a half-dozen bone-breaker muscle cramps; legs, arms, back, all locked up like a bitch. Cramps in my feet, even; toes pointing all funny directions!
I called out to my wife, and she tried to rub them out for me, but they just kept getting worse, not letting up at all. I've had cramps before (pretty common for cold-water divers), but nothing like this. I didn't dare try to move or the muscles would just sieze up like a rock.
After about a half hour of this, me gasping through clenched teeth (seriously hurtin'!) & knotted up like an old rope, we decided to call the paramedics, as there's no way I could have made it down the stairs to the car, and my wife being about half my size, there's no way she could have got me there without just dragging me.
Long story short: even though I'd been pounding water all day long in the garage, and took meal breaks, my electrolyte balance was totally hosed (potassium and sodium dangerously low), and I was seriously dehydrated too, kidneys starting to shut down the docs said. Even though I was drinking water all day long, I was just washing minerals out.
Over the last two days, they pushed 10 liters of IV saline into me. Hell of a way to gain 10 pounds in 48 hours.
So, there's my car, looking the best it's ever looked... sitting in the garage.
Spotless and perfect engine bay:
And there I am, laying in an open-backed man-dress in a hospital bed, watching Animal Planet.
Bummed. Seriously bummed, to have missed my goal for a second year running... but it's not worth actually dying for, you know?
09-27-09, 06:31 PM
#136
common sense prevails....
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Glen, good lord....I hope you are OK. My father has had dehydration problems several times in the past. When we lived in the Inland Empire he got dehydrated bad and ended up in the hospitol in Loma Linda for 4 days!!! The air is so dry where you live....you sweat badly and don't even know it!!
Sucks that you missed Seven Stock....there will always be next year....the most important thing is your health!!
Sucks that you missed Seven Stock....there will always be next year....the most important thing is your health!!
09-27-09, 09:40 PM
#137
I'm right as rain now, thanks... and yeah, there'll be other shows. I just hate missing goals, especially when I was THAT close. If I just skipped claybarring and re-waxing it, I'd have been fine. It was just too much to cram into one hot day.
In fact, I've got an invite to go to the JCCS show next weekend. And this way, the car even stayed clean.
In fact, I've got an invite to go to the JCCS show next weekend. And this way, the car even stayed clean.
09-27-09, 09:55 PM
#138
common sense prevails....
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Well JCCS will be cool.... I wish I was able to go to both of them. Hopefully next year they will have 7 stock and the JCCS one week apart also... and....hopefully I will be able to make that!!
Hang in there Glen....we are not young bucks anymore....
Hang in there Glen....we are not young bucks anymore....
10-01-09, 11:37 PM
#139
Day 441
It's gone?
As any who have followed this mess through to here know, I've been fighting a really confusing carb issue for almost a year now; a couple months after my last carb rebuild, the carb started inexplicably draining down the bowl levels after being shut down, leading to a near-flood on restart if started while still hot enough to skip choking, and an occasionally amazing amount of smoke.
I'd checked everything that would seem to make sense, and a few things that didn't. The problem seemed to stem mainly from the rear bowl, but not always.
Checked the following, some multiple times:
Vent solenoid - fine
Tank vent lines - fine
Return fuel line restrictor - fine and in right way
Coasting valve - fine
Charcoal canister (in the airbox lid on 80's) - was fine and flowed freely
Vent check valve - fine
Richer Solenoid valve - a little worn, but fine
Vacuum Power valve - fine
The weekend prior to SevenStock, I was so concerned about making a big embarrassing white cloud and chokey-sputtery noises, that I yanked off the carb and partially diassembled it, hoping perhaps to find a blocked air bleed, leaking jet, corroded power pump ball, or some other problem that could be tied to
letting fuel leak out of what should be tightly sealed bowls & into the intake.
I didn't find anything that I was looking for.
The only off-normal things I found were:
1) My main-jet access plugs were leaking slighty, and had dirtied up things around the bowl bottoms. I cleaned them up and re-torqued them.
2) The four bolts that hold the main body to the throttle body seemed a bit looser than would be healthy. I gave them a good tightening.
3) I SLIGHTLY adjusted my front float to close a bit earlier (I know, Sterling... I know). It had run a bit high (maybe 1/8th inch above perfect) and since I was in there, I danced it a bit.
I've restarted the car hot a half-dozen times since I got everything back together, and my flood condition appears to be gone. I get a little bit (just a haze) of dark smoke, which says I'm a little rich on start, but it's gone in 3 or 4 seconds. The mosquito-killing, sun-hiding, I've-elected-a-pope cloud is gone.
Problem is, I can't connect A to B; I can't make the one resolve as a cause of the other. The bowls aren't sealed by the gasket involved.
Confused. Happy, but confused.
Oh, and I had a little friend show up tonight, to help me inspect my shiny, shiny hood.
It's gone?
As any who have followed this mess through to here know, I've been fighting a really confusing carb issue for almost a year now; a couple months after my last carb rebuild, the carb started inexplicably draining down the bowl levels after being shut down, leading to a near-flood on restart if started while still hot enough to skip choking, and an occasionally amazing amount of smoke.
I'd checked everything that would seem to make sense, and a few things that didn't. The problem seemed to stem mainly from the rear bowl, but not always.
Checked the following, some multiple times:
Vent solenoid - fine
Tank vent lines - fine
Return fuel line restrictor - fine and in right way
Coasting valve - fine
Charcoal canister (in the airbox lid on 80's) - was fine and flowed freely
Vent check valve - fine
Richer Solenoid valve - a little worn, but fine
Vacuum Power valve - fine
The weekend prior to SevenStock, I was so concerned about making a big embarrassing white cloud and chokey-sputtery noises, that I yanked off the carb and partially diassembled it, hoping perhaps to find a blocked air bleed, leaking jet, corroded power pump ball, or some other problem that could be tied to
letting fuel leak out of what should be tightly sealed bowls & into the intake.
I didn't find anything that I was looking for.
The only off-normal things I found were:
1) My main-jet access plugs were leaking slighty, and had dirtied up things around the bowl bottoms. I cleaned them up and re-torqued them.
2) The four bolts that hold the main body to the throttle body seemed a bit looser than would be healthy. I gave them a good tightening.
3) I SLIGHTLY adjusted my front float to close a bit earlier (I know, Sterling... I know). It had run a bit high (maybe 1/8th inch above perfect) and since I was in there, I danced it a bit.
I've restarted the car hot a half-dozen times since I got everything back together, and my flood condition appears to be gone. I get a little bit (just a haze) of dark smoke, which says I'm a little rich on start, but it's gone in 3 or 4 seconds. The mosquito-killing, sun-hiding, I've-elected-a-pope cloud is gone.
Problem is, I can't connect A to B; I can't make the one resolve as a cause of the other. The bowls aren't sealed by the gasket involved.
Confused. Happy, but confused.
Oh, and I had a little friend show up tonight, to help me inspect my shiny, shiny hood.
10-02-09, 12:23 PM
#141
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Day 441
It's gone?
As any who have followed this mess through to here know, I've been fighting a really confusing carb issue for almost a year now; a couple months after my last carb rebuild, the carb started inexplicably draining down the bowl levels after being shut down, leading to a near-flood on restart if started while still hot enough to skip choking, and an occasionally amazing amount of smoke.
It's gone?
As any who have followed this mess through to here know, I've been fighting a really confusing carb issue for almost a year now; a couple months after my last carb rebuild, the carb started inexplicably draining down the bowl levels after being shut down, leading to a near-flood on restart if started while still hot enough to skip choking, and an occasionally amazing amount of smoke.
10-02-09, 01:45 PM
#142
Nikki-Modder Rex-Rodder
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Trying to convince some clown not to put a Holley 600 on his 12a.
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I don't know which disturbs me more, the fact that you know how many days it's been, or that I don't have an explanation for this. This is not the first time I've heard of this, and I have had Sterlings returned to try to troubleshoot this. Because I yank the FBVS plunger on Sterlings, there's nothing sealed when the engine shuts off. Normally, when the FBVS seals the carb up, it makes perfect sense that if the fuel tank vent isn't breathing, the still expanding tank vapors would increase the preasure over the fuel in the carb bowls, blowing the fuel up and out of the boosters. But without the carb sealed, that isn't possible.
Lemme ask you this:
Are there one or two brass valves in the bottoms of the fuel bowls in your carb? These are richer or power valves. I get these on ocassion as 78-80 Nikkis, usually with only one, but sometimes a valve in both bowls. I still can't figure out exactly when these come into play. But the circuit drilled for these does link both the main circuits on that side up with the idle circuit, which might account for you losing fuel into the manifold if the carb was not snugged down tight enough. Let me know!
Lemme ask you this:
Are there one or two brass valves in the bottoms of the fuel bowls in your carb? These are richer or power valves. I get these on ocassion as 78-80 Nikkis, usually with only one, but sometimes a valve in both bowls. I still can't figure out exactly when these come into play. But the circuit drilled for these does link both the main circuits on that side up with the idle circuit, which might account for you losing fuel into the manifold if the carb was not snugged down tight enough. Let me know!
10-02-09, 01:58 PM
#143
sucks that you didn't make it Seven Stock, but your efforts are still not in vain. your car is gorgeous! i remain VERY impressed with your work as i'm sure are everyone that sees it and can truly appreciate it. anyone that can't is grossly obtuse. 
on a sidenote, i'm glad things worked out with your electrolyte episode. for the future, make sure to get some Gatorade (or similar product) in you while plugging away in hot days. don't overdo it as too much Na+ or K+ is just as bad as too little, but maybe alternate it with your water intake.
i love your work. i love your car.
on a sidenote, i'm glad things worked out with your electrolyte episode. for the future, make sure to get some Gatorade (or similar product) in you while plugging away in hot days. don't overdo it as too much Na+ or K+ is just as bad as too little, but maybe alternate it with your water intake.
i love your work. i love your car.
10-02-09, 02:46 PM
#144
I don't know which disturbs me more, the fact that you know how many days it's been, or that I don't have an explanation for this. This is not the first time I've heard of this, and I have had Sterlings returned to try to troubleshoot this. Because I yank the FBVS plunger on Sterlings, there's nothing sealed when the engine shuts off. Normally, when the FBVS seals the carb up, it makes perfect sense that if the fuel tank vent isn't breathing, the still expanding tank vapors would increase the preasure over the fuel in the carb bowls, blowing the fuel up and out of the boosters. But without the carb sealed, that isn't possible.
Lemme ask you this:
Are there one or two brass valves in the bottoms of the fuel bowls in your carb? These are richer or power valves. I get these on ocassion as 78-80 Nikkis, usually with only one, but sometimes a valve in both bowls. I still can't figure out exactly when these come into play. But the circuit drilled for these does link both the main circuits on that side up with the idle circuit, which might account for you losing fuel into the manifold if the carb was not snugged down tight enough. Let me know!
Lemme ask you this:
Are there one or two brass valves in the bottoms of the fuel bowls in your carb? These are richer or power valves. I get these on ocassion as 78-80 Nikkis, usually with only one, but sometimes a valve in both bowls. I still can't figure out exactly when these come into play. But the circuit drilled for these does link both the main circuits on that side up with the idle circuit, which might account for you losing fuel into the manifold if the carb was not snugged down tight enough. Let me know!
The only SA's with manual transmissions that had these, were the California builds; they were also used in the SA's with automatic transmissions. Which makes them a minority build.
The brass valve is a combination valve and jet (a very small jet, too) that is opened when vacuum at a port in the carb throat drops below a certain level. The vacuum is applied to a chamber above a pair of spring-loaded pistons in the top cover:
The pistons are pulled up by normal engine vacuum, which lets the valves close. When vacuum drops, the pistons push on tiny valve stems on the tops of the valves, opening them.
On the 80 California SA's, there is also a third solenoid valve (Power Valve Solenoid Valve), below the richer solenoid on the right-hand side of the carb, which is also part of the control system:
It's controlled by the ECU, and used to cut off vacuum to the pistons and force the PV's open during warmup and a couple other conditions, to rich up the mix and better feed the thermal reactor to cut NOX.
I'd checked this system carefully, and couldn't find any faults (the pistons responded to a hand vacuum pump, the valves closed properly, and the solenoid worked fine, the ECU signal matched the conditions in the FSM) but without a flow bench you can't really tell if the valves are actually "opening" at the right time, as no part of the system is visible on a running car.
By the way, Stirling, if you run into any "spare" carb covers with the vacuum PV pistons in them that you don't want, I have a couple spares that don't have them that I would happily trade.
One other thing I remember noticing on this last repair attempt, a couple weeks ago; when I pulled the center stud out of the carb, the bottom third of it was wet with partially-evaporated gasoline "varnish." I had to use a dozen q-tips to clean the goop out of the well that the stud screws into. Puzzled me, but I didn't think about it too much at the time.
That would also be a strong argument for a throttle-body-to-main-body gasket leak, wouldn't it? Fuel should not normally be able to get into that well!
10-03-09, 09:24 AM
#145
Nikki-Modder Rex-Rodder
Join Date: Feb 2001
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Yes, that would. The other thing is that even if the power valves were sealing (-and I do use 'sealing" as a relative term because they are simply spring-loaded brass on brass...), as long as the gasket was not sealing below the circuit, it would give the opportunity to "test" the integrity of the powervalve seals. And as you know, the internal springs are so light, there's just no way they are not going to leak.
Is the nipple on the back corner of your airhorn plugged? This is the port for the power valve actuator pistons.
Is the nipple on the back corner of your airhorn plugged? This is the port for the power valve actuator pistons.
Last edited by Sterling; 10-03-09 at 09:30 AM.
10-03-09, 07:42 PM
#146
Day 443
May have spoke too soon; Had some smoking this AM and after the JCCS show, but neither were hot starts; both stone cold.
I'll have to check and see if those bolts loosened up under operation. Too tired now - - all day at the show.
Car ran well, though I think I need to look to my secondaries; seemed to lack a little pull in hilll-climbing compared to memory.
More later, including pix; rest now.
May have spoke too soon; Had some smoking this AM and after the JCCS show, but neither were hot starts; both stone cold.
I'll have to check and see if those bolts loosened up under operation. Too tired now - - all day at the show.
Car ran well, though I think I need to look to my secondaries; seemed to lack a little pull in hilll-climbing compared to memory.
More later, including pix; rest now.
10-24-09, 09:27 PM
#147
Day 464
Show pix actually went into the "JCCS" thread, so I'm only gonna duplicate one here:
Car's mostly sat since the show, as I had a pile of honeydews a mile high to clear, but I did this weekend get a chance to finally finish up an item for my upholstery that I've been seeking for years.
Rotary13B1 was selling parts at JCCS, and one of his nicer items is a epitrochoid shaped chrome gauge surround. Turns out is was nearly the perfect size for the door trim emblem I've always wanted to do. I stitched a rotor-shaped pattern in the door panel when I first did it, years ago. It was centered on the hole for the original manual mirrors, in case I ever switched back, but the panel always felt a little blank to me:
After modifying the pieces to mount 4-40 brass studs on the back, then mounting them, I'm pretty happy with the results:
Nice and shiny!
Show pix actually went into the "JCCS" thread, so I'm only gonna duplicate one here:
Car's mostly sat since the show, as I had a pile of honeydews a mile high to clear, but I did this weekend get a chance to finally finish up an item for my upholstery that I've been seeking for years.
Rotary13B1 was selling parts at JCCS, and one of his nicer items is a epitrochoid shaped chrome gauge surround. Turns out is was nearly the perfect size for the door trim emblem I've always wanted to do. I stitched a rotor-shaped pattern in the door panel when I first did it, years ago. It was centered on the hole for the original manual mirrors, in case I ever switched back, but the panel always felt a little blank to me:
After modifying the pieces to mount 4-40 brass studs on the back, then mounting them, I'm pretty happy with the results:
Nice and shiny!
03-06-10, 12:17 AM
#148
Anatomy of a Failure??
Day 596
As mentioned several times over the course of this thread, I've had a recurring problem with my carb flooding the engine after a hot shutdown. But it's an unusual flood; instead of the normal case with a flooded carb where the carb bowls fill completely and then overwhelm the jets, in this case, the bowls were EMPTYING after the car sat for around 20 mintues to an hour; you could see the levels drop in the sight glasses, and the fuel would end up in the carb barrels. This would flood the engine on re-start, requiring a lot of cranking and eventually producing a huge cloud of fuel smoke when she'd finally light. Annoying, embarrassing, and over time excess flooding can cause your oil seals to wear, as the gas washes off the oil layer on the side housings.
I've tested the carb every way I could think of, or that others could suggest, and found nothing wrong. Theoretically, it should be impossible for the bowls to drain without a pressure differential between the bowl and the throat; there's no gravity path from the bowl to the throat.
The obvious suspect was the bowl vent valve, since it not opening after shutdown would allow vapor pressue to build up in the top of the bowls, forcing fuel out the jets, but it has tested perfect a dozen times.
Checked my vent lines, my vent and check valve, my fuel return line, my tank vent line, my crankcase vent lines, my carbon canister... nothing. All fine. Fully within spec.
However, based on a lead from Stirling's forum, from a guy who had a similar problem on an FB, I may have found the culprit. I say "may," because the flood doesnt happen all the time, and I've only got one successful shutdown by way of test so far, but I'm hopeful.
Under the rear of the car, behind the fuel pump and in front of the gas tank, is a plastic valve called the "Check and Cut Valve" (not to be confused with the "Fuel Check Valve," which is in-line with the fuel pump).
This dingus does two things:
1) It relieves overpressures in the gas tank to prevent damage if the emissions-mandated vapor vent line gets clogged, and.
2) It has a rollover valve in it, to cut it's own vent off should the car flip.
It doesn't connect to anything else; gas tank, to this valve, to atmosphere. It takes a tank pressure of at least 0.78 to 1.0 PSI to make it open, which shouldn't happen if the vapor system is OK. So mostly it does absolutely nothing.
Mine has failed. Blowing into it produced no flow, well past 3PSI. Failure of this part was reported as causing a similar problem to mine, by one person on Sterling's forum, back in September.
Strangely enough, I had a spare; actual New-Old Stock, that I had bought in 2003 and for some reason never put on the car.
It's on the car now, and after one test, so far, no problems. The bowl levels didn't drop after shutdown, this time.
Curious as to whet might have gone wrong, I hacksawed the old valve in half. Here's what I found:
See that little blob of goop around the small ball valve at the base? Yep; that's the failure.
If it turns out that I've spent the better part of a year chasing that little blob of goo, I think I'll put it in a display case and hang it on the wall.
Stay tuned for updates; I've got a smog test in 10 days, so I'm motivated to solve this dilemma!
As mentioned several times over the course of this thread, I've had a recurring problem with my carb flooding the engine after a hot shutdown. But it's an unusual flood; instead of the normal case with a flooded carb where the carb bowls fill completely and then overwhelm the jets, in this case, the bowls were EMPTYING after the car sat for around 20 mintues to an hour; you could see the levels drop in the sight glasses, and the fuel would end up in the carb barrels. This would flood the engine on re-start, requiring a lot of cranking and eventually producing a huge cloud of fuel smoke when she'd finally light. Annoying, embarrassing, and over time excess flooding can cause your oil seals to wear, as the gas washes off the oil layer on the side housings.
I've tested the carb every way I could think of, or that others could suggest, and found nothing wrong. Theoretically, it should be impossible for the bowls to drain without a pressure differential between the bowl and the throat; there's no gravity path from the bowl to the throat.
The obvious suspect was the bowl vent valve, since it not opening after shutdown would allow vapor pressue to build up in the top of the bowls, forcing fuel out the jets, but it has tested perfect a dozen times.
Checked my vent lines, my vent and check valve, my fuel return line, my tank vent line, my crankcase vent lines, my carbon canister... nothing. All fine. Fully within spec.
However, based on a lead from Stirling's forum, from a guy who had a similar problem on an FB, I may have found the culprit. I say "may," because the flood doesnt happen all the time, and I've only got one successful shutdown by way of test so far, but I'm hopeful.
Under the rear of the car, behind the fuel pump and in front of the gas tank, is a plastic valve called the "Check and Cut Valve" (not to be confused with the "Fuel Check Valve," which is in-line with the fuel pump).
This dingus does two things:
1) It relieves overpressures in the gas tank to prevent damage if the emissions-mandated vapor vent line gets clogged, and.
2) It has a rollover valve in it, to cut it's own vent off should the car flip.
It doesn't connect to anything else; gas tank, to this valve, to atmosphere. It takes a tank pressure of at least 0.78 to 1.0 PSI to make it open, which shouldn't happen if the vapor system is OK. So mostly it does absolutely nothing.
Mine has failed. Blowing into it produced no flow, well past 3PSI. Failure of this part was reported as causing a similar problem to mine, by one person on Sterling's forum, back in September.
Strangely enough, I had a spare; actual New-Old Stock, that I had bought in 2003 and for some reason never put on the car.
It's on the car now, and after one test, so far, no problems. The bowl levels didn't drop after shutdown, this time.
Curious as to whet might have gone wrong, I hacksawed the old valve in half. Here's what I found:
See that little blob of goop around the small ball valve at the base? Yep; that's the failure.
If it turns out that I've spent the better part of a year chasing that little blob of goo, I think I'll put it in a display case and hang it on the wall.
Stay tuned for updates; I've got a smog test in 10 days, so I'm motivated to solve this dilemma!
03-06-10, 11:05 AM
#149
Day 597
After sitting all night, the front bowl level was absolutely normal. The rear bowl level had dropped slightly, fuel still fisible above the edge of the sight glass.
Turn key on, wait 5, pull choke, hit start... car started in less than 2 secs of rotation without touching the gas pedal, no smoke, virtually no exhaust smell on startup. Continnued through the warmup cycle completely normal, shut down. smooth. Now waiting to see what the bowl levels do as it cools down.
Hopeful.
After sitting all night, the front bowl level was absolutely normal. The rear bowl level had dropped slightly, fuel still fisible above the edge of the sight glass.
Turn key on, wait 5, pull choke, hit start... car started in less than 2 secs of rotation without touching the gas pedal, no smoke, virtually no exhaust smell on startup. Continnued through the warmup cycle completely normal, shut down. smooth. Now waiting to see what the bowl levels do as it cools down.
Hopeful.
09-19-10, 12:41 AM
#150
Day 801
Nirvana has been achieved, and the holy grail is now mine... some 114 weeks after this latest resurrection project was begun; I have had the most stunningly successful week in my...ever.
Starting last Sunday with my attending JCCS 6, which was awesome:
Where I was greatly surprised to come home with 3rd place among RX-7's from that show:
The week capped off today when finally, after 2 1/2 years and two failed attempts, I realized and then exceeded my goal as laid out when I started this thread:
Not only did I finally and at long last get my car and myself to SevenStock in one piece (primary goal)
I got a coveted courtyard parking pass (hoped-for but considered unlikely outcome)
And then, coming completely out of these blue, This crew of guys in "EVENT" shirts come up and puts THIS on my windshield! (Totally unexpected surprise)
Folks, I kid you not - - I'm still in shock. Flabbergasted. Gobsmacked.
And really, really happy.
I gotta go sleep now. I can't wait to see what happens in my dreams tonight!
Nirvana has been achieved, and the holy grail is now mine... some 114 weeks after this latest resurrection project was begun; I have had the most stunningly successful week in my...ever.
Starting last Sunday with my attending JCCS 6, which was awesome:
Where I was greatly surprised to come home with 3rd place among RX-7's from that show:
The week capped off today when finally, after 2 1/2 years and two failed attempts, I realized and then exceeded my goal as laid out when I started this thread:
Not only did I finally and at long last get my car and myself to SevenStock in one piece (primary goal)
I got a coveted courtyard parking pass (hoped-for but considered unlikely outcome)
And then, coming completely out of these blue, This crew of guys in "EVENT" shirts come up and puts THIS on my windshield! (Totally unexpected surprise)
Folks, I kid you not - - I'm still in shock. Flabbergasted. Gobsmacked.
And really, really happy.
I gotta go sleep now. I can't wait to see what happens in my dreams tonight!