Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

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Bantum
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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Bantum » Sun May 02, 2021 5:02 pm

Damn, still haven't finish my resto yet - well done ... :)

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Silverbullet
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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Sun May 02, 2021 6:31 pm

Bantum wrote:
Sun May 02, 2021 5:02 pm
Damn, still haven't finish my resto yet - well done ... :)
Just been looking at your wagon thread, that is a long term project all right ;) Don't give up hope, the light at the end of the tunnel is bright :lol:

This weekend I fixed another few issues and got to the bottom of my alternator/charging issue - traced it back to having LEDs in the instrument cluster warning lights (causing low voltage out to the alternator lamp terminal) and also having the Lamp and Sense wires the wrong way around at the alternator. Took me a while to figure those two things out but now the alt is all sweet and charging perfectly. The other thing I fixed was two brand new heater hoses from the engine bay into the cabin, that was a bit fiddly but it's done now and I finally have heat that turns on and off :mrgreen: Can probably drive it to work now and not worry about the windscreen fogging up.

So after that I've driven it some more, the trip counter is up to 140 kilometres now, was 0 before it hit the road for the first time a couple of weeks ago. Have to say, it drives flawlessly and is very comfortable, sounds good (both exhaust and stereo ;) ) Just have to keep driving it now, oil and filter change at 200 ks, the tappets are still noisy so need to adjust them again. Oh and the proper wheels and tires are yet to come, local wheel shop is sloooooooooow. Might end up sending 4 rims to Queensland for mods, they might actually be quicker.

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Sat May 29, 2021 6:04 pm

Been a while since any updates on this car, there's been a few issues to address and I haven't had a weekend to myself in close to a month! Novel below...

Wheels/tyres - have been un-successful in finding any wheels with the right PCD and offset. The one D-hole steely I bought and sent to a local wheel place to see if it could be modified to the right offset drew a blank, I was counting on that to work but nope, back to square one. If I could go back in time and find the guy who thought it was a good idea to modify the disc brake rear hubs and front hubs to 4x114.3 I'd punch him in the back of the head :evil: And also myself for thinking it was a good idea to buy them.
I may be onto a lead with some Performance brand mini-lites/ ultralights whatever they're called. They are P5 offset from factory but can be machined to P25 which is close enough to the P35 that I wanted in a 15x6" rim. They also come blank and can be drilled to any stud pattern which is a winner. Hopefully with the right tyre selection I will get away without needing to add flares to the front. My dream wheel was a 15x5" with P25 offset, that would have been perfect but they don't exist evidently. Second hand wheels would have been fine but you try finding 5 of the same wheel second hand, it's just not a thing that happens. If the alloys are a no-go as well I will need to get steel wheels custom made from scratch...which nobody in Australia does.

Oil leak - There appeared a pretty major oil leak not long after I started driving the car. From the exhaust stud on the passenger side which I had to do a major thread repair on. This was because the last drongo to repair it drilled right through into the crank case with a 14mm drill bit :evil: With the exhaust stud not going right through into the crank case this left a little void that would fill with oil then leak down past the threads of the stud. I drowned everything in loctite when I did the thread repair hoping it would hold the oil...nope :cry:

So I decided to plug the void with "steel" epoxy putty from inside the crank case. Which I did today and had to remove the rocker arm/shaft assembly to remove a pushrod for access to the void. Hope this doesn't effect the head gasket seal. Also did the first oil and filter change today after 300 km's on the engine. Also adjusted the valve clearances again because they were hellishly noisy as well as replaced a U shaped fuel hose in the engine bay which kinked when the engine bay warmed up. While I was under there I noticed the front suspension geometry...it must have settled something major because the front wheels look stanced now :lol: The negative camber is crazy /---\ going to need to address that with some different strut top blocks I think.

Only got to fire the engine up and let it warm up to operating temp before it got dark, we'll see tomorrow if there are still oil patches on the ground! Sadly the valves are still as noisy as before, not sure how to address this. I know my cam shaft was ground and lifters machined to remove wear marks, would this affect the specs required when adjusting the clearances?

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by El_Freddo » Sat May 29, 2021 11:24 pm

Lifter specs should still be the same as before all the machine work etc.

I find my lifters very touchy when I adjust them. Not a fun job that’s for sure!

The oil through the exhaust stud doesn’t sound like fun. I hope the epoxy does the trick for you.

That PCD thing seems like a PITA. Can’t have the hubs reworked back to factory PCD? I’m sure that’s not an easy or cheap task though.

Cheers

Bennie
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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Sun May 30, 2021 6:13 pm

Having a bit of a search for opinions on valve clearances I came across something from Paul (formerly Subareck Paul) he suggests if they're still noisy then adjust the exhaust valve to .012" instead of the factory .014". Think I'll give this a go next weekend. Whatever I did to my Brumby way back when was spot on because that thing runs silent...maybe I should pull it apart to measure what they were :roll:

Went for a good long drive today, 60 or 70 kms all up, it was going so good I couldn't stop! :mrgreen: There was no oil spots over night and nothing on the end of the stud after todays drive so fingers crossed the putty did the trick.

Re-working the hubs, I considered it (I work in a machine shop I could even do it myself, it would be easy) but the old holes have been welded up and machined back, you can't even tell where they used to be. I'm hesitant of drilling the weld metal back out or missing the mark slightly, in any case I'm worried about affecting the strength of the hub. Hopefully the Performance superlites work out, I should hear back on Monday.

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Re: Hubs ...

Post by Bantum » Mon May 31, 2021 5:18 am

Yeah I would get a new set of hubs, don't even attempt to re-drill them ... :/

Go back to 4x140 PCD & get some wagon wheels ... ;)

Cheers, Bantum ...

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Re: Hubs ...

Post by Silverbullet » Mon May 31, 2021 7:40 pm

Bantum wrote:
Mon May 31, 2021 5:18 am
Yeah I would get a new set of hubs...
Easier said than done with rear discs :(

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Re: Hubs ...

Post by TOONGA » Wed Jun 02, 2021 10:26 am

Silverbullet wrote:
Mon May 31, 2021 7:40 pm
Bantum wrote:
Mon May 31, 2021 5:18 am
Yeah I would get a new set of hubs...
Easier said than done with rear discs :(
I got a set of hubs out of the USA it was a bit of a fluke finding them on USMB, but I'm sure if you got on one of the american brat pages (facebook) eventually you would find a set someone wanted to part with for less than a kidney ;)

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Wed Jun 02, 2021 10:08 pm

Looks like I'm going with Performance wheels Superltes 15x6" since they can be drilled to any bolt pattern, and machined to P25 offset which I will have to live with. Have sent a few emails out looking for somewhere that has them in stock, if not Performance has some more coming 6-8 weeks away :roll:
Really wanted to have the wheels and a spare sorted before the cars 40th birthday (August) but it's looking less and less likely :cry:

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by El_Freddo » Thu Jun 03, 2021 10:47 am

6-8 weeks lands right on with August! Birthday Present!!

Not all is lost, chin up, get that order in! They might even come sooner than later.

Cheers

Bennie
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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:42 pm

Too close for my liking Bennie :lol: Also have to order tyres and wait for them to come in...
Todays update is, looks like I found somewhere that has them in stock, new ETA - 2-3 weeks. That's more like it!!! Watch this space....I'll be so glad when this wheel debacle is over....

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Tue Jun 08, 2021 10:25 pm

Found an old photo today in the "archives" :roll: Scanned it in to post a "Then and now" kind of photo.
The beloved family wagon in its previous form, in its native habitat, most likely on the Yorke peninsula some time between 1985 and 1990 (before I was born :lol: )
Compare it to its current form, and I'm looking forward to re-creating this photo in the new improved version. I just wish Dad hadn't sold that roof rack, it was from ARB and cost as much as a new trailer back then! I'll be looking forever to find something similar now.

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Fri Jul 02, 2021 11:56 pm

Fantastic news today! 5 brand new Performance Superlites arrived! Delivered to work I didn't even notice the courier, when a colleague was heading my way with a sack truck with 5 boxes on it I almost couldn't believe my eyes. This has been a long, long time coming after many painful and frustrating months and hours spent on the computer searching, researching, virtually comparing wheels and tire combination. I had bought a single D hole steel wheel and sent it to be modified to the right offset, that was a dead end/impossible so back to square one. Took me a while to find out that these performance wheels can be drilled/machine to almost any stud pattern and offset, up to +25. I really wanted +35 but I think I can live with this, might need flares on the front guards, we will see. All this could have been avoided if my hubs were still 4x140 ironically, them being 4x114.3 has made life incredibly difficult. Long story, anyway...

Image

As I said, they're 4x114.3 with +25 offset, 15x6" rim. For comparison the wheels on the car right now are +50 offset, you can see how far inside the guards they are in the pic above. So these will be 25mm further out. Heading to the tire shop tomorrow first thing, thinking I'll try and get one tire fitted first and see how it looks....or should I just order all 5 and be done with it? Tempting to just pull the trigger and get it done.

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by El_Freddo » Sat Jul 03, 2021 2:16 pm

Awesome Sam! I bet you didn’t do much after the rims arrived!

Shame about the offset and stud pattern. If you could find the necessary rear hubs would you consider swapping back to 4x140 and a new set of rims? That’s the catch now isn’t it, the cost of these rims vs going back to stock PCD.

Camping and driveway pic look mint. I can’t wait to see your recreation of the old camping pic! It’ll be awesome. We have an old school green two post A tent you could borrow for the trip. Dad busted it out for our last trip, first time in over 20 years that it’s been used! Hilarious, and had I known that was their shelter for the trip I would’ve packed my tent for them to use.

Cheers

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Sun Jul 04, 2021 6:06 pm

It was hard to stop looking at the stack of boxes during the last hour of the day that's for sure :lol:
The thought of changing back to 4x140 did cross my mind but I think now I've got these rims I'll stick with them, they did cost a fair bit. Besides with 4x140 I'd be going to Sunraysia rims that have +14 offset from memory which would push them out another 10mm again, not too keen on that.

Thanks for the offer on the loan of the tent :lol: I haven't looked for ages but I think the A-frame one from that photo is no more. I remember camping in it though up until around 2005. It had been on countless family trips by then; blue mountains, Kosciusko, Yorke peninsula, limestone cost/twelve apostles...

Local tire shop couldn't help me with any of the tires I had on my list, they can't even get Nankang A/Ts into SA because Nankang won't ship them here (too low volume) and they can't send stock between states or some rubbish :roll: So I ordered a set of 205/70/15 Nankang FT-7 A/Ts from Tyroola website, will take them and the rims to the wheel shop when they arrive hopefully by the end of this week coming. By my reckoning the fronts will stick out about 20mm or so from the guards so I've got some 1"/25mm stick-on fender flare coming as well. And found some genuine NOS front mudflaps on ebay too :mrgreen:

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Fri Jul 09, 2021 11:10 pm

A fair bit has happened in the past week in the wheel department, end result being pic related :mrgreen:

Image

Not a bad turnaround from ordering the tires last weekend, delivered from Brissy to Adelaide on Thursday, dropped them off with the rims to the wheel shop to be fitted and balanced on Thursday, picked them up on the way home today. I couldn't stop myself from chucking the front two on soon as I got home. Was so chuffed with the result that I couldn't stop myself from then pulling the rear hubs off to swap the studs and putting the rear wheels on too :mrgreen: Took about 2 hours all up, didn't even feel the cold. Super keen to get it out in the sun for a distance view tomorrow and see how it drives. They have transformed the look of the car, it looks like a little beast now :twisted: And raised it up another 30mm besides...

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by El_Freddo » Sat Jul 10, 2021 12:07 am

Ah wow Sam, HUGE difference with those rims!

Now you need to pull that front camber in, then you might not need to add any sort of flare to cover the wheel (or just park next to a jacked up Ranger that has half its wheel outside the guards and you’ll be all good ;) ).

I’m looking forward to the outside pics in the sun!

Cheers

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Sat Jul 10, 2021 5:14 pm

Funny how photos accentuate things like camber, I couldn't even tell when I was looking at the car in person :roll: I had swapped the lift blocks around a few weeks ago because it used to have the opposite problem, like this /---\ now they are very slightly the other way like this \---/
I think I need to make some front strut lift blocks with no offset since I'm using L series control arms, the camber correction that comes with offsetting the block isn't really needed.

Took the car for a day out today up to the forest for a camp fire and jaffles with the family, so I chucked some rubber sheet on the front as makeshift mud flaps :lol: I've got some NOS genuine ones on order they just haven't arrived yet. A problem became apparent pretty quickly; the front tires scrub on the front of the front wheel arches in corners and when the front suspensions compresses. Definitely need to take to the front arches with an angle grinder to stop this happening, my adjustable radius rods are at max adjustment towards the rear.

Gearing - I didn't notice much of a difference in acceleration on the flat (it wasn't exactly fast to begin with) Revs are definitely lower at a given speed which I wanted. The big wheels were very noticeable when going up hills though, have to drop about 1 gear lower than I used to, engine was pinging away on the steep ones too so I need to reduce the spark advance in that area. Doesn't help when the people in front of me decide to do half the speed limit on a country road right when the road gets steep then speed off when they see the 80 speed limit sign :evil: I can't exactly speed off when I loose the momentum from having to brake for them.

The sun went in by the time I remembered to take pics but here are a few

Image

Image

Image

Here is where the rubbing happens, right at the front corner of the wheel arch
Image

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by El_Freddo » Sat Jul 10, 2021 9:21 pm

I’m gutted that you need to cut your wheel arch, only because of that beautiful paint!

I understand what you mean about the lift block and the L control arm mod not working together properly. Maybe make a lift block with half the camber adjustment that you have now?

Shame about the hearing. Time for a custom gearbox with a shorter ratio :twisted:

Cheers

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Re: Silverbullets' resto: Engine, gearbox, suspension

Post by Silverbullet » Sun Jul 11, 2021 11:29 am

El_Freddo wrote:
Sat Jul 10, 2021 9:21 pm
I’m gutted that you need to cut your wheel arch, only because of that beautiful paint!
It will be a carefully considered cut :mmm: I won't have to remove much, maybe 10mm from the very front of the arch. I'm just trying to think of how to minimize the amount of paint that will chip/flake off when I bend the lip back under. Maybe I'll have to paint a black stone-chip strip along the bottom of the guard under the bumper bar to hide it.

This gearbox definitely needs to go someday, the syncro on 3rd is shot and the whole thing makes lots of loud whining noises :roll:

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