Working after morons

[Bonnewagon]

Aaaaand it gets better. So I always wondered why the right front corner of the engine was very oily. Tightening the valve cover nuts only helped a little. The #3 spark plug was always getting oiled on and I suspected the gasket. So when I put the offending lifter back in and before I replaced the valley pan, I removed the spark plugs and cranked the engine to see if all was well. BUGGER!! The #3 intake valve push rod was geyser-ing oil everywhere! Then it hit me- unregulated oil pressure at that damn lifter. I took out the #1 lifter and took it apart. I compared it to the #3 and sure enough the #3 was missing the metering disc. It must have gotten away and fallen down inside the oil pan. It's been awhile since I took apart a lifter so I didn't notice it not being there. That explains the oily side. It was seeing the full 60lb oil pump pressure smashing against the top of the valve cover and dripping out the side. Lovely. Add a new lifter to the ever growing list.

 

[spidereyes455]

Mark, if you can't come up with a complete set of stock rocker nuts let me know I'm sure I have a few sets around here.

 

[Bonnewagon]

Thanks for the offer Jim. I may have to take you up on that. Even the decent aftermarket type like Melling or Sealed Power are unavailable. And I am pretty sure they are not as good as genuine Pontiac nuts. In other news I searched and found one lifter available around here. No one else stocked even one. The huge Auto Zoned Out in Levittown had it, but not a whole set of 16. Luckily I only needed the one. I sent the guy who's car I'm fixing to grab it on his way home. Then I found that the morons snipped off the fusible link that protected the ENTIRE CAR and just ran the whole car red wire right to the battery cable on the alternator. Bang head here >>>>>>[X]

 

[iains]

Wasn’t the custom to refer to these guys you call morons, to call them Bubba? Or Bubbas if in the plural. God help us.

 

[TURNA]

I have all the rocker nuts/pivets off that 301 I offered you if you want them

 

[Bonnewagon]

Thanks TURNA. I ordered a set of Clevite nuts on Fleabay. I also could not find 16 gauge fusible links anywhere. I finally bought a 20' roll at Clearway to fab my own. It as actually cheaper than buying two from a chain store, if they had them. PS: That Auto Zone in Levittown is open 24/7 if you are ever that desperate.

 

[Bonnewagon]

Another moron deal. The transmission was taking forever to up-shift. Knowing that they screwed with everything I suspected they messed with the trans somehow. Nope. I tested the vacuum modulator line at the carb with a Mighty-Vac and got a huge leak. Being a steel line I figured the modulator was blown. Nope. Modulator tested good. So out comes the entire steel line and what do I find but a hole in it. Way back at where it bends around to face the modulator there was a big gash. Looks like they may have been cutting an exhaust pipe or something and nicked the steel line. So I cut the bad end off and bent a new radius. Troubleshooting menu describes a bad modulator/leak to be exactly what we are seeing. Today I will test to see if that helps with the up-shift. Stay tuned.

 

[TURNA]

I have a good TH350 with a BOP bell that was on the back of that 301 sitting here

 

[Bonnewagon]

TURNA I would normally have that engine/trans in my stash already. But I am seeing my age (66) catching up quickly and my main objective is to get rid of all unwanted stuff. My parents left me an un-Godly pile to clean up after them and I don't want to do that to my kids. Craigslist been beddy beddy good to me. So that hole in the modulator line was the culprit all along. I took it out for a drive and she shifted perfectly. It looks like whoever used the sawzall to cut out an exhaust pipe or cat must have nailed the steel modulator line. I wonder how many years this poor car has been suffering from the morons work?

 

[Bonnewagon]

The Clevite brand rocker arm nuts came today. They look EXACTLY like the stock Pontiac nuts. Now I can remove and sh*t-can the cheap-ola Chinesium "adjustable" nuts the morons used. While waiting I installed a waterproof Marine grade Blue Sea battery shut off switch. I mounted it right next to the battery on the inner fender. Now I can shut down everything downstream of the battery with just a twist.