Ethan's running!!!

[Boondox]

Spent all day working on Ethan, that stubborn old 57 Dodge truck. Got the new exhaust manifolds bolted in place and properly torqued down. Hooked up the exhaust pipe. Fired it up and...

Huge GIGANTIC billowing clouds of sweet smelling white smoke billowed out the exhaust pipe!!! [img]/forums/images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] Got so bad a couple of volunteer firefighters pulled over to see what was burning! [img]/forums/images/icons/blush.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/blush.gif[/img]

Turns out that time I was pulling the manifold studs out -- not knowing they penetrated the water jacket -- in the gushing of antifreeze some of it ran into the disconnected exhaust pipe. All that antifreeze was burning off, and what a fog bank it made! Couldn't see more than two feet!

Anyway, it runs. It goes forward. It goes backward. It lays down an excellent smokescreen. I took some measurements and fabricated an alternator bracket. Will try to install that and the alternator tomorrow, figure out what size belt is needed to reach the alternator/fan/waterpump.

Can you tell I really want to drive this thing before the snow starts falling again..? [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

Pete

[egon]

Is it going to require a Fog Horn ?

Egon

[Boondox]

Has one! The part of my wife's family that settled as lobstermen on the Maine coast made sure we were all set in the horn department! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Pete

[egon]

You be up and running Pete.

Egon

[bgott]

Now, since that truck has sat up for a long time, you need to warm it up, run it at about 1500 RPM and slowly pour a quart of automatic transmission fluid down the carburator to lube the valve guides so you don't have a valve sticking problem.

I was just going to leave it at that for the sh%ts and giggles but I figured I better be nice. It works and I've done it frequently, but, it puts out a smokescreen that'll beat antifreeze burning off any day of the week. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[egon]

It used to work if you just poured it in the gas tank too. Straight into the carb one has to be carefull that you do it slowly.

In fact , with an engine designed to be lubricated by the lead in gasoline adding something to the gas for upper lubrication wouldn't be a bad idea.

Egon

[Boondox]

Egon and Bgott -- How about those lead additives?

Pete

[s1120]

<font color="red">How about those lead additives </font color>

I have had a lot of problem with that stuff foweling the plugs. Also if you are not going to be driving it a lot, and not racing it, or using it real hard, I would not worry about it. The leaded gas just lubed the valve seats, and over time the valve closing on it would wear it down, but this does take awile. With lite use, you will be many years away from a valve job.

[egon]

Pete:

I am not familiar with the lead additives. Chances are a note to the sales deptatment of one of the major refiners of gasoline would give you an answere.

Egon

[bgott]

When unleaded gas first became prevalent you needed the additives to raise the octane. Back in those days the octane was so low cars with low compression wouldn't even run on the gas they had. That truck engine should be low compression unless someone dropped a car engine in it as a replacement. You can buy gas with acceptable octane these days and the valve seat recession problems everyone forecast back then never came to pass. You have to remember, when that truck was a current model everything needed a valve job every other year anyway.