Please share a trick,tip,short cut to help restore or maintain our 53 to 67 vettes

[67HEAVEN]

Re: moisture is the enemy of your restoration.

Originally posted by Tom Bryant
1. I have a home dehumidifier that I leave on all summer......(I've got a spare one......I'll use it)

2. In the winter keep your heat in the garage set around 55. It won't run that often but will run enough to keep the humidity out of the garage...... (I've been keeping mine in the high 40's, but I'll warm it up.)

3. Put a cheap humidity gauge (like you will find in dept stores) on the wall to monitor things. (I'll get one.)

Oh, I like these.

 

[Tom Bryant]

Off topic '67 but where in ON do you live? I come up to Sarnia about once a week.

Tom

 

[67HEAVEN]

Off topic '67 but where in ON do you live? I come up to Sarnia about once a week.

Tom

In the Durham Region about 3/4 hour east of Scarborough (east Toronto). From downtown Sarnia, approximately 3-3/4 hours by car.

P.S. How many of you guys realize how large Ontario is? It's a 21 hour road trip from Ontario's SE border with Quebec to the border with Manitoba. You just keep driving......and driving....and driving :crazy

 

[Mart]

This is great info guys, it's just hard to keep a garage warm in Ontario.

Hi there 67, I'm in Pickering not too far from you.

Mart

 

[Tom Bryant]

I used to run London, Toronto and Monteal but now all I ever do is Sarnia. Some runs to Windsor and north but that's about it. I have relatives in Toronto. Say for me. :L

Tom

 

[magicv8]

more....

The easy way to get a wheel alignment that will cope with radial tires is to ask the shop to dial up the specs for a 1976 corvette - same suspension - but radial tires.

If you power shift and the car changes lanes to the left, set the thrust angle of the rear wheels 1 to 3 degrees to the left - works for me.

To set the rear wheel camber with a carpenter level - adjust - then drop the car onto a couple of pieces of one foot square sheet metal with oil or grease between them. When you bounce the back bumper up and down, the rear will "settle" properly for a new reading. I set my camber to zero.

Old Chevy and GMC pickup trucks used the same "rams horn" manifolds as Corvettes. Happy junk yard shopping...

A piece of cloth or aluminum window screen in front of your radiator or A-C heat exchanger keeps the bugs out of the cooling fins.

A-C cars benefit from inexpensive aftermarket (or junk yard) solonoids that hold the idle at the same rpm when the A-C is running. Make/modify a bracket to bolt to the carb mounting stud and hook the 12volt wire to the A-C clutch wire.

more later.....

 

[67HEAVEN]

A piece of cloth or aluminum window screen in front of your radiator or A-C heat exchanger keeps the bugs out of the cooling fins.

I like this. My new Dewitts rad will thank you after the first drive.

 

[IH2LOSE]

more later.....

Ill be waiting

Great stuff dave I knew you had some other tricks up your sleave

 

[396 RAT]

After you pull the hood latch, push it back in.
my little tip.

 

[67HEAVEN]

After you pull the hood latch, push it back in.
my little tip.

 

[youwish2bme]

How about always just let the front of the vert top rest in the holes, secure the rear, then latch the front. Dave..

 

[JohnZ]

I use this "saddle" to jack up the engine so I don't damage the (irreplaceable) original oil pan (base is a 2x6, sides are 1x6); lifts on the oil pan rail, the notch is for the dipstick tube:

I use this pallet with motormounts and casters on it to fully dress out the complete engine, bellhousing, clutch and transmission (including linkage) before installation - you can't do that with the block on an engine stand, and I can roll it out of the way when I'm not working on it:

 

[66427-450]

John Z -

You install the shifter on the trans, and put the whole works in at once? (water pump to trans w/shifter). That would be nice, get the linkage all adjusted, and then just install the complete unit.

How high do you typically have to raise the car to have clearance to slide all that in, in one piece? ......... I just may try that when i put my new BB in. in the past i always added the trans/shifter, after the engine was in. I've removed the radiator, for engine removal, but never the rad support.

 

[Tom Bryant]

I think I need one of those pan saddles.

I also think John was referring to installing the completely dressed out engine/trans in a restored chassis with the body still off.

Tom

 

[JohnZ]

Yup, the shifter has to be off when you load the engine/trans as a unit with the body on the frame, but you can set up and adjust the linkage ahead of time on the pallet; if you don't disturb it, the adjustment will be on the money when you install the shifter after loading the engine/trans. On a body-off, you can put it all in as a unit and drop the body with the shifter and linkage installed.

 

[JohnZ]

Here's what I use when I pull or install a transmission - the orange plastic thing takes the place of the yoke and seals the back of the tranny so it doesn't dribble, and the 1/2"-13 studs (bolts with the heads cut off, rounded, screwdriver slots added) replace the upper two trans-to-bellhousing bolts to support the weight of the trans while pulling it out (to avoid damaging the clutch disc) and while installing it (to simplify getting the input shaft into the pilot bushing). When it's in, just remove the studs and replace with the tranny bolts.

 

[JohnZ]

I use these molded plastic drawer organizers in all my rollaways and tool chests - keeps things neat, and they let you know if any of your tools are still floating around loose in your work area instead of where they belong - here's one of the socket organizers:

And here's one of the wrench drawer organizers:

Both are available from Eastwood and many other mail-order houses - about fifteen bucks each the last time I bought some.

 

[IH2LOSE]

Hey John are you vacuming that out?
For sure I know you use your tools how do you keep them so clean?

 

[67HEAVEN]

JohnZ,

You are every backyard mechanic's dream and nightmare.

Dream? Hell yeah. You've worked with Zora; you've had a career working on some of the best examples of automotive engineering and legend; you have a tremendous grasp of the hobby and the knowledge to back it up; you've built and restored some amazing cars; and you've got a dream garage with an organized toolbox. Which of us wouldn't envy all that?

Nightmare? For me, at least, when I look at all you've experienced and accomplished........and then I look at my short little list.......well.......... :cry

If JohnZ didn't exist, guys, we'd have to invent him.

Here's to you John.

 

[Sams '66]

You Rock........johnZ