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BUILD Quarter Life Crisis. It's a thing. v.GN
- Thread starter v6buicks
- Start date
With a couple little tweaks and biting my lip just right, the GN lives! It fucking rips too. I swear I can feel how badly this air box is holding it back but I don't care I'm just happy to be spooling again.
It wasn't ready for a trip though. I emptied my entire coolant reservoir onto the firewall and windshield due to a loose heater hose clamp. Oops. That's and easy fix, but a big mess to clean. I still have a power steering leak, cracked radiator, oil leak, and tiny hesitation to figure out before I'm ready to barrel down I-65 next week, but I should be able to make it happen.
On a semi-related note, the wife and baby are doing well. Wife needed an emergency gall bladder removal which ultra sucks when pregnant due to the lack of pain medicine you can take! She's a trooper and finally able to get around pretty good without wild pains which means I can start getting more of my own projects done. My insurance adjuster came out and assessed my tornado damage too. Sounds like I'll be getting fat check to have my entire house resided very soon.
It felt like my world started falling apart a couple weeks ago, but the pieces are now getting picked up.
Sorry for the lack of car pictures, I filled up my google storage at Cleetus and Cars. lol
It wasn't ready for a trip though. I emptied my entire coolant reservoir onto the firewall and windshield due to a loose heater hose clamp. Oops. That's and easy fix, but a big mess to clean. I still have a power steering leak, cracked radiator, oil leak, and tiny hesitation to figure out before I'm ready to barrel down I-65 next week, but I should be able to make it happen.
On a semi-related note, the wife and baby are doing well. Wife needed an emergency gall bladder removal which ultra sucks when pregnant due to the lack of pain medicine you can take! She's a trooper and finally able to get around pretty good without wild pains which means I can start getting more of my own projects done. My insurance adjuster came out and assessed my tornado damage too. Sounds like I'll be getting fat check to have my entire house resided very soon.
It felt like my world started falling apart a couple weeks ago, but the pieces are now getting picked up.Sorry for the lack of car pictures, I filled up my google storage at Cleetus and Cars. lol
Motivation is officially back.
Upper neck is cracked as you can tell by the stains.
Lower neck actually appears to have been repaired before me. I thought it was just corroded or something.
The crack is worse than I thought!
The lower was definitely repaired. Interesting! Glad they at least went this route instead of replacing the radiator. I can get a lot of that excess solder off with the wire wheel.
My flux has seen better days, so I mowed the lawn instead of starting the repair. Anybody in here with brass soldering tips? I hear it's just like sweating pipe which sucks because I'm terrible at sweating pipe.
Lower neck actually appears to have been repaired before me. I thought it was just corroded or something.
The crack is worse than I thought!
The lower was definitely repaired. Interesting! Glad they at least went this route instead of replacing the radiator. I can get a lot of that excess solder off with the wire wheel.
My flux has seen better days, so I mowed the lawn instead of starting the repair. Anybody in here with brass soldering tips? I hear it's just like sweating pipe which sucks because I'm terrible at sweating pipe.
When I can fix it for $3? No way!
That was simpler than expected. Just like sweating pipe. Getting some acetone in there would've been helpful, but I have no doubt that this will hold.
That was simpler than expected. Just like sweating pipe. Getting some acetone in there would've been helpful, but I have no doubt that this will hold.
I was told by a radiator repair guy that you're best heating up a big heavy chunk of copper and using that as the flame tends to burn the rosin away instead of using it to clean the surface by boiling it away.... I have a big 1000W vintage soldering iron with a huge copper flat n chisel tip sets from an old radiator guy...
I tell you what whatever you touch it to heats up real f****** quick
I tell you what whatever you touch it to heats up real f****** quick
If it holds for a few years I'll be happy. There's a shop by my work with one old guy in there who does radiators. It would cost almost $900 to have them recore and repair this one which seems fair but also no thank you. I'd rather teach myself the process. If I fail, the TA radiator is almost an exact replica but aluminum.
If you can find em get some rubber plumbing couplers, add a cap on one end, adapt down to a schrader valve on the ohter and pressure test before install.
I confirmed that the only leak was the one in the video, so I tried doing the repair in the car. I really didn't want to make the three fluid mess again.
After wiping down with acetone and applying a bit more flux, the solder went on without a fuss.
The paint is going to need another scuff and coat tomorrow, but I should be able to check for leaks again after that.
It wouldn't be a night of fixing shit on the GN without nonsensical breakage though. Somehow the shifter linkage is once again out of adjustment. I know everything got tight so I'm thoroughly confused.
After wiping down with acetone and applying a bit more flux, the solder went on without a fuss.
The paint is going to need another scuff and coat tomorrow, but I should be able to check for leaks again after that.
It wouldn't be a night of fixing shit on the GN without nonsensical breakage though. Somehow the shifter linkage is once again out of adjustment. I know everything got tight so I'm thoroughly confused.
I do this with a cap, a tractor tire valve stem, and an air nipple that hooks straight into the line off a regulator. Sometimes the flow of a Schrader isn't enough to find your leak.
If I remember right didn't you build a diy smoke machine? Kinda the same concept just use soapy water instead of smoke.
I've had a hell of a day, but I refused to quit and ended victorious.
First of all. That in car radiator fix? No good. I just moved the problem elsewhere, and also found that the bottom neck which I didn't touch other than knocking paint off was also leaking.
No more fucking around. The radiator came back out again, and it wasn't going back in without being tested somehow.
Here's the lower leak.
Heres the upper leak.
What I ended up learning is that these dimples form after everything hardens because of impurities. I need to do more cleaning and use more flux. I also need to clean AFTER soldering so that I can see these dimples.
I ran around looking for parts and supplies. I tried getting an AC Delco battery from Menards, but that didn't work out...long story. I guess I'll try again in another 7 years.
. Then I tried going to Lowe's for radiator caps. As usual, they had everything except what I was looking for. I had to make them out of multiple pieces. Then I found that the PVC was so shitty that the glue wouldn't seal them together. I was super pissed at that point and said screw it. I wrapped them in electrical tape hoping it would hold a few psi.
Then there was this shit. Thanks G-body Parts once again. That's a nice radiator cap. I thought they were supposed to hold more than 0 psi.
I'm fucking fuming at this point. This radiator should have been done in a night along with everything else. I'm on day 5. However, I refuse to quit. This bitch of an automobile was getting fixed by brute force even if god himself was against me.
Radiator is sealed.
I cleaned it as best as I could, painted it again, dropped it in the car, started it without the jump pack, let it get up to temp, and finally observed no leaks. Now I'm ready for a big meal and some beers.
First of all. That in car radiator fix? No good. I just moved the problem elsewhere, and also found that the bottom neck which I didn't touch other than knocking paint off was also leaking.
No more fucking around. The radiator came back out again, and it wasn't going back in without being tested somehow.
Here's the lower leak.
I ran around looking for parts and supplies. I tried getting an AC Delco battery from Menards, but that didn't work out...long story. I guess I'll try again in another 7 years.
. Then I tried going to Lowe's for radiator caps. As usual, they had everything except what I was looking for. I had to make them out of multiple pieces. Then I found that the PVC was so shitty that the glue wouldn't seal them together. I was super pissed at that point and said screw it. I wrapped them in electrical tape hoping it would hold a few psi.Then there was this shit. Thanks G-body Parts once again. That's a nice radiator cap.
I thought they were supposed to hold more than 0 psi.I'm fucking fuming at this point. This radiator should have been done in a night along with everything else. I'm on day 5. However, I refuse to quit. This bitch of an automobile was getting fixed by brute force even if god himself was against me.
Radiator is sealed.
I cleaned it as best as I could, painted it again, dropped it in the car, started it without the jump pack, let it get up to temp, and finally observed no leaks. Now I'm ready for a big meal and some beers.
I hooked up my gauges in preparation for recharging the AC. As I sort of expected, the system once again had no vacuum in it.im not surprised because of how held the lines out of the way with bungee chords while trying to fix the radiator. They never liked that position.
It's holding a vacuum, and I hope it continues to do so overnight. If so, it will get 2.6 lbs of r134a.
While sucking the system down I reinstalled the radiator top plate. This was something I decided to play with while paint was drying on the radiator. I scuffed it and repainted it with a different can. It looks mich better now. I was happy enough with it to put the new caution sticker on. I probably wouldn't have done it if residue from the original sticker wasn't showing. That would have bugged me more than I would have liked that all black appearance.
It's holding a vacuum, and I hope it continues to do so overnight. If so, it will get 2.6 lbs of r134a.
While sucking the system down I reinstalled the radiator top plate. This was something I decided to play with while paint was drying on the radiator. I scuffed it and repainted it with a different can. It looks mich better now. I was happy enough with it to put the new caution sticker on. I probably wouldn't have done it if residue from the original sticker wasn't showing. That would have bugged me more than I would have liked that all black appearance.
As far as ac I totally understand why you'd wanna let it sit overnight. But I've found it's a lot more efficient to vac it down and if it holds for 10 minutes I'll fill it and load it with dye. Yeah you run the risk of wasting some refrigerant but the dye makes it so easy to find even a minute issue it's not even funny.
I charged the AC, popped the steering shaft off the box, and relocked the steering wheel. Then I took the car for a long drive and had a great time. There are some minor goofy rattles and the shifter is still messed up, but I'm going to chalk most of that up to the bad body bushings. I don't have time to replace them at this point. I need to disconnect the column linkage so that it will stay in drive. The car actually popped into neutral a couple times which would have really sucked if I was at WOT. Otherwise, this thing is friggin dialed. It felt nice taking the car out and getting stuck in conversation with strangers again. Lol
Here goes nothing.
I planned to sell a whole bunch of junk don there.
I made it, but I lost AC. I'm like 90% sure that I popped the evaporator, because there's a nice stain on the down pipe right under the box. I also saw a little cloud coming out my vents.
\
No worries. AC would turn out to be unnecessary for this trip anyway.
Onto the event! RJC's twin turbo V6 dune buggy is a badass work of art.
As is Dave Fiscus's newest GN build.
Anyone looking to become a badass?
Beautiful T with an HVAC box that very much reminds me of what I'm trying to do in the Camaro.
Look at all that space! Amazing work.
Rare beast. Buick 350 swapped.
Oh look. Another GN go kart!
I wish I was able to grab a video of Leroy Brown thing going down the track because it was a mind fucker. This full interior, white walled, hub capped, CB whipped land yacht was running consistent 11s. He was exchanging a few revs with a C7 while I took this picture.
Day 2
Ever seen a rail with a blown V6 in it? This is the goofiest sounding dragster I've ever heard in person. It never made a complete pass, but I did watch it coast into the mid 7s.
The AN lines hooked up to the crapsman vacuum made me chuckle a bit.
Leroy Brown again.
I should buy this.
My buddy and I were trying hard to motivate each other up until the Nationals. My modest goal of driving the car to the event was successful, but racing his would prove to be daunting task. A supplier who he assumed to be in good graces with had continually dropped the ball to the point where we were wrenching on his car at the track and scrambling to find parts. A seemingly simple valve spring swap turned out to be a two-day beotch. The supplier (who's owner was actually at the track) overnighted the springs to my buddy's house in Ft. Wayne instead of the track as requested. Buddy called his daughter to have the springs overnighted to the Bowling Green on his own dime only to find out that the supplier also sent the wrong friggen shims.
The install height of the new springs is not the same either so, we were soon on the hunt for Buick V6 valve spring shims. Nobody had them at the track.
We ran to the local Napa where we got a few tools, and an O2 sensor for my car. They didn't have shims, but the guy behind the counter knew of a machine shop that might be able to help us. He was right. The owner of that cleanest engine machine shop I had ever seen gifted them to us.
I brought my spring tool knowing that he only had a universal tool, but we quickly learned that it is not made for in-car service. One bolt was way too long to fit under the AC box and didn't need that many threads anyway. We borrowed a saw from another racer and chopped it down. This made service possible on #6 but the allen head was really stupid, but we made that work too. Then with over 300 lbs of spring pressure on the tool, this happened.
I'm lucky to still have my face, and the maker of this tool is a real cheap ass for putting grade 0 bolts in this application. Oh well. That concludes day 2.
I planned to sell a whole bunch of junk don there.
I made it, but I lost AC. I'm like 90% sure that I popped the evaporator, because there's a nice stain on the down pipe right under the box. I also saw a little cloud coming out my vents.
No worries. AC would turn out to be unnecessary for this trip anyway.
Onto the event! RJC's twin turbo V6 dune buggy is a badass work of art.
As is Dave Fiscus's newest GN build.
Anyone looking to become a badass?
Beautiful T with an HVAC box that very much reminds me of what I'm trying to do in the Camaro.
Look at all that space! Amazing work.
Rare beast. Buick 350 swapped.
Oh look. Another GN go kart!
I wish I was able to grab a video of Leroy Brown thing going down the track because it was a mind fucker.
This full interior, white walled, hub capped, CB whipped land yacht was running consistent 11s. He was exchanging a few revs with a C7 while I took this picture.Day 2
Ever seen a rail with a blown V6 in it? This is the goofiest sounding dragster I've ever heard in person. It never made a complete pass, but I did watch it coast into the mid 7s.
The AN lines hooked up to the crapsman vacuum made me chuckle a bit.
Leroy Brown again.
I should buy this.
My buddy and I were trying hard to motivate each other up until the Nationals. My modest goal of driving the car to the event was successful, but racing his would prove to be daunting task. A supplier who he assumed to be in good graces with had continually dropped the ball to the point where we were wrenching on his car at the track and scrambling to find parts. A seemingly simple valve spring swap turned out to be a two-day beotch. The supplier (who's owner was actually at the track) overnighted the springs to my buddy's house in Ft. Wayne instead of the track as requested. Buddy called his daughter to have the springs overnighted to the Bowling Green on his own dime only to find out that the supplier also sent the wrong friggen shims.
The install height of the new springs is not the same either so, we were soon on the hunt for Buick V6 valve spring shims. Nobody had them at the track.We ran to the local Napa where we got a few tools, and an O2 sensor for my car. They didn't have shims, but the guy behind the counter knew of a machine shop that might be able to help us. He was right. The owner of that cleanest engine machine shop I had ever seen gifted them to us.
I brought my spring tool knowing that he only had a universal tool, but we quickly learned that it is not made for in-car service. One bolt was way too long to fit under the AC box and didn't need that many threads anyway. We borrowed a saw from another racer and chopped it down. This made service possible on #6 but the allen head was really stupid, but we made that work too. Then with over 300 lbs of spring pressure on the tool, this happened.
I'm lucky to still have my face, and the maker of this tool is a real cheap ass for putting grade 0 bolts in this application. Oh well. That concludes day 2.
Friday: Race qualifying and car show. Car show participation was very high this year. I didn't get nearly as many pictures as I would have liked.
I think this was my favorite car in the show. '73 Gran Sport Stage 1 4-speed in pearl blue with AC and white interior. It was perfefect too.
Concours field
Four Xs
I learned something very interesting this year. Here is a beautifully restored '70 GS Stage 1. But there's one little feature that makes this car incredibly rare. It has a 3-speed manual on the floor. When buying a GS brand new from the dealer you had to fill out your options sheet with check marks. Under the transmission section you only had two boxes to pick from. One was the three speed auto (TH400) and the other was the 4-speed manual. However, if you just left that section of the sheet blank it would default to a 3-speed on the floor like you see here. WTF GM! Apparently there were only 6 or so made, and this may be the only living example. How strange!
I get so excited to see a built hot air car.
That's a hell of a down pipe!
Can you tell that I'm a big fan of Leeroy Brown? lmao
Paul Marchi made an appearance! I wish I could have met him in person. I've only conversed with him on the 3800 facebook pages a billion times lol
I've never seen a late 70s Buick interior like this without wood grain. I like it.
I think this was my favorite car in the show. '73 Gran Sport Stage 1 4-speed in pearl blue with AC and white interior. It was perfefect too.
Concours field
Four Xs
I learned something very interesting this year. Here is a beautifully restored '70 GS Stage 1. But there's one little feature that makes this car incredibly rare. It has a 3-speed manual on the floor. When buying a GS brand new from the dealer you had to fill out your options sheet with check marks. Under the transmission section you only had two boxes to pick from. One was the three speed auto (TH400) and the other was the 4-speed manual. However, if you just left that section of the sheet blank it would default to a 3-speed on the floor like you see here. WTF GM! Apparently there were only 6 or so made, and this may be the only living example. How strange!
I get so excited to see a built hot air car.
That's a hell of a down pipe!
Can you tell that I'm a big fan of Leeroy Brown? lmao
Paul Marchi made an appearance! I wish I could have met him in person. I've only conversed with him on the 3800 facebook pages a billion times lol
I've never seen a late 70s Buick interior like this without wood grain. I like it.
Dream BBB build. This thing is incredible. Ever seen a stock block BBB with a giant turbo and MPI run 8s?
Back to the trailer. We ended up finding a cut up rocker and shaft with bolt heads welded on. That was the ticket for getting the #6 valve springs on. We missed turbo pro bracket qualifying though.
This got a lot of people chuckling. Ever seen a built up Sun Coupe? Those slider sun roofs were already pretty crude but once you get a 100mph winds under them they blow up like a balloon. Bungee cords should do the trick! ....nope. They helped but the roof was comically bulbous by the time it reached the traps.
Fiscus put the nose back on.
Clean square body burb with a Buick 400 installed. I kinda wanted this as a tow vehicle.
Back to the trailer. We ended up finding a cut up rocker and shaft with bolt heads welded on. That was the ticket for getting the #6 valve springs on. We missed turbo pro bracket qualifying though.
This got a lot of people chuckling. Ever seen a built up Sun Coupe? Those slider sun roofs were already pretty crude but once you get a 100mph winds under them they blow up like a balloon. Bungee cords should do the trick! ....nope. They helped but the roof was comically bulbous by the time it reached the traps.
Fiscus put the nose back on.
Clean square body burb with a Buick 400 installed. I kinda wanted this as a tow vehicle.