1970 Oldsmobile 442ish Cutlass

[Der Bugmeister]

I can see why guys loved the olds engines for performance uses.

Those Oldsmobile's are torque monsters. It will have no trouble melting those tires. 

Yep!  I should be looking at around 475 hp and 545 torque with this combination, but the dyno will tell us for sure!

[Der Bugmeister]

And that's that, I guess.  Not the prettiest welds but they'll do the job.  This area is tucked up behind the rear bumper and on the frame's rear cross member so not many people will ever see it.

[muddy]

And that's that, I guess.  Not the prettiest welds but they'll do the job.  This area is tucked up behind the rear bumper and on the frame's rear cross member so not many people will ever see it.

Looks like my sheet metal welding skills.... Not pretty but functional. Like you said it's not a area that is seen often. So no biggy.

Sent from my Twisted Mind Of The Mudman

[Der Bugmeister]

And that's that, I guess.  Not the prettiest welds but they'll do the job.  This area is tucked up behind the rear bumper and on the frame's rear cross member so not many people will ever see it.

Looks like my sheet metal welding skills.... Not pretty but functional. Like you said it's not a area that is seen often. So no biggy.

Sent from my Twisted Mind Of The Mudman

...and it looks like I get another chance to make it look better.  I have to cut it back out and fix the blinkety-blankety nut cage that let go as soon as I put a little bit of torque to it.  Thought it was good but apparently not.

[muddy]

And that's that, I guess.  Not the prettiest welds but they'll do the job.  This area is tucked up behind the rear bumper and on the frame's rear cross member so not many people will ever see it.

Looks like my sheet metal welding skills.... Not pretty but functional. Like you said it's not a area that is seen often. So no biggy.

Sent from my Twisted Mind Of The Mudman

...and it looks like I get another chance to make it look better.  I have to cut it back out and fix the blinkety-blankety nut cage that let go as soon as I put a little bit of torque to it.  Thought it was good but apparently not.

The idiot that thought those things were a good idea....

Sent from my Twisted Mind Of The Mudman

[Der Bugmeister]

You're not wrong, Muddy!  And how many other hairbrained failures is he responsible for too? LOL  One step forward, two steps back.

Before I installed it the first time, I ran a bolt through the nut and everything felt great.  The cage had been weld repaired at some point in the past and although it didn't look particularly sound, I figured it had been good enough before, should be good enough now.  Damned assumptions.  Turns out the bolt wasn't the right bolt although I thought it was...just a size smaller I guess.  When I found the right bolt, the fit was snug and applying a bit of pressure with the wrench was all it took to snap things off.

I didn't feel there was any other effective way to get in there and effect a reliable fix except to remove the freshly welded piece and do it properly.  This time I ran a tap through the nut threads and made sure everything was good in that area.  The existing cage was in rough condition, so I salvaged a nut cage from one of the scrap parts and tacked it into place.  The welds are still lacking in beauty but should make up for it in effectiveness.

Welded the panel back in place but of course the gaps are wider now.  Still need to grind and finish welding but I should be able to move forward now.  Until the next hurdle tries to trip me, at least.

[pep]

If by chance you do another repair, before marking the cut. Clean the metal, much easier & helps the weld to wet out.

And boost the heat, tacking is a great time to adjust that.

Good repair job well-thought-out.

Finally got back into the project.  My heads are currently being reworked by Bernard Mondello so the wait for them is almost over.  My hydroboost brake system is on it's way after a 7 month wait (they said 90-120 days when I ordered!).

The biggest thing is I finally tackled the metal replacement for the body mount on the left rear of the shell.  I don't have a ton of experience (let alone recent experience) doing this so I was putting it off.  Got home today and decided "today's the day", and it was.  You can see the body metal rotted where it was in contact with the body mount puck, and the cage for the missing caged nut is fully exposed.  This part isn't reproduced, but I had saved one from a parts car through some sheer dumb luck. 

It's tacked in place, just need to finish the welding and I'll be able to get the car on the rotisserie at last.  As Ray often says..."Onward!".

Oh, and as Ray has also being known to say, time for an adult beverage...

[Der Bugmeister]

Thanks for the kind words and advice, pep!  Hopefully I won't have to do any more like this, but I do have to install the bucket seat mounts later.

It's a basic welder with just two settings for heat.  These welds were done with it on low, but I'll try some test welds on high before I finish this up.

[pep]

 
Good thinking.....  "basic welder" in the right hands and some practice.........> It will weld

More heat is the ticket

Thanks for the kind words and advice, pep!  Hopefully I won't have to do any more like this, but I do have to install the bucket seat mounts later.

It's a basic welder with just two settings for heat.  These welds were done with it on low, but I'll try some test welds on high before I finish this up.

[Der Bugmeister]

Haven't touched the car since my last post.  Had a busy week as a vendor at a big country music festival and now I'm switching gears as the car show I run is only a week and a half away!  Making some time for it today so we'll see what I can accomplish.

Got the call I've been waiting for today, my heads are done and shipping this afternoon.  It's been a long wait but I think it will be well worth it to know they're much improved over the "out of the box" state.  The rest of the engine bit will go to my builder next week.

Happy Days!

[goodfellow]

Good news Clay! Besides, it's often good to walk away from a project for a few days to get some time to think clearly and plan your next steps.

[pep]

Haven't touched the car since my last post.  Had a busy week as a vendor at a big country music festival and now I'm switching gears as the car show I run is only a week and a half away!  Making some time for it today so we'll see what I can accomplish.

Got the call I've been waiting for today, my heads are done and shipping this afternoon.  It's been a long wait but I think it will be well worth it to know they're much improved over the "out of the box" state.  The rest of the engine bit will go to my builder next week.

Happy Days!

Heads are a big power maker..

[Der Bugmeister]

Good news Clay! Besides, it's often good to walk away from a project for a few days to get some time to think clearly and plan your next steps.

You're not wrong, Ray...although this time my way ahead was clear there was just no real time to get out there.  Sometimes I do find stepping away lets you return to a stalled task with fresh ideas and a successful approach for sure!

Heads are a big power maker..

I totally agree!  These ones will flow so much better now, and I don't have to worry about manufacturing defects causing problems.  Mine were the last pair he had on hand as he found too many were so far out of spec that he sent them back.

Got back out there and finished up the welding.  Bit of rust paint and I'm ready to get the rotisserie under there now :-)

[pep]

Good news Clay! Besides, it's often good to walk away from a project for a few days to get some time to think clearly and plan your next steps.

You're not wrong, Ray...although this time my way ahead was clear there was just no real time to get out there.  Sometimes I do find stepping away lets you return to a stalled task with fresh ideas and a successful approach for sure!

Heads are a big power maker..

I totally agree!  These ones will flow so much better now, and I don't have to worry about manufacturing defects causing problems.  Mine were the last pair he had on hand as he found too many were so far out of spec that he sent them back.

Got back out there and finished up the welding.  Bit of rust paint and I'm ready to get the rotisserie under there now :-)

Onward, rotisserie you say sharpe ......... that will make things eaiser.... thumbs up

[Der Bugmeister]

A lot easier!  It was taking forever laying on the creeper and working upside down.  Here we are all rotisseried up now and hoping the stripping/cleaning/painting goes quickly!