Ace-Garageguy

No irkage so far today...but give it time.

One of my shop computers died, the old WIN 7 machine...terminal hard-drive crash...but since I only use it to search/buy parts and stream music, there was no data lost. My computer wizards have a nice selection of refurbed WIN 11 machines for cheap...and I've been running their refurbs both at home and in the shops, for years.

I don't really care who the manufacturer is. I buy a kit primarily based on subject matter and accuracy of the major bits (so it looks like what it's supposed to be) and deal with whatever warts it has as they come up.

2005 Neon 2-liter head teardown. I made the valve spring compressor extension eons ago for something else. Not perfect for the Neon, but it works. '66 Chevelle. My custom EFI hard and soft lines and brackets for fuel regulator, throttle, and stand-alone TPI sensor for the trans controller are complete at this point. Because of the stupid design of the front crossmember on this high-dollar chassis (NOT Art Morrison), I had to machine custom 17 degree split spacers to mount the steering rack...after correcting wonky slotted mounting holes and awful bump-steer. How anybody who's s'posed to be a "car builder" could think it's OK to mount a steering rack on slotted holes in a crossmember...no matter how hard you tighten the bolts...is beyond my comprehension. With the steering rack in the final position and the engine on the revised mounts I had to heavily modify to move it 3/4 inch to the rear, I can now measure the CORRECT length for the splined steering shaft to replace what my predecessor put in the thing. I also had to install a firewall eyeball and machine a custom bushing for it to correct the impossible angle the last guy left. You can see that building custom headers to snake through here will be...fun. Custom DeLorean instrument panel nearing completion...on my model bench. The brushed aluminum bezel matches the finish on the body. Faces are screen printed on vinyl overlay on frosted styrene sheet. Compare this to the OEM DeLorean panel, below it. DeLorean custom relay/engine management board and custom harness progressing nicely. Started the car on Saturday. She runs fine...but the CIS cold-start system is inop, so getting that playing nice is the next mission, before anything else.

Went to the ACME meeting yesterday and got a winning raffle ticket, picked an MPC Sodbuster. Not something I probably would have bought, but on examining it, I found it has exactly the tires I need for another 4X4 build. It looks to be a nice kit too, so who knows. I have a friend who's really into 1:1 shortbed squarebodies, so I might de-4WD it and build it for him. Slid by Ollie's on the way home and snagged a couple copies of the most recent Revell '32 Ford roadster too, plus an AMT Sandkat that I've kinda wanted to do something with, but not badly enough to pay much. They had an AMT Kenworth mixer for cheap too, again a kit I've wanted but not enough to pay much for. And finally, a Monogram '32 Ford simply because I think it's the BEST proportioned '32 Ford roadster ever kitted by anyone, and I've wanted to build a conservative full-fendered roadster based on it for some time. A friend has a black fiberglass SBC-powered 1:1 that is as close to a flawless street roadster I've ever seen...that he drives a lot...which is the inspiration.

At this point I don't regret having bought anything either in tools or materials or stock. Even if I only use a tool once, it was worth whatever I paid to be able to do the job, and it'll be there if I ever need it again. I've cut way back on buying kits, as I have just about anything I could ever want, but occasionally I'll still add something that's new, that I missed the on last issue, or that's just too good a deal to pass up.

It's already 85F at 08:00, so it's going to be a hot one. I still have hours of paperwork to do...

Early to bed, early to rise...is OK if you're not covered in flies.

Everyday shoes should be comfortable.

Interesting you mentioned those. I found a pair of glasses while hiking that looked like they'd been there so long nobody would be coming back for them if I put them somewhere easy to see... So, I cleaned the lenses with some canteen water and looked through them. Useless far away, but SHAZAM!!! Up close I could practically see the individual bacteria on my skin. Brought 'em home, completely cleaned them up, hung them over the bench, and use them frequently when doing small detail work (when I actually build, which isn't very often these days).

During that period at AMT, most of the engines were configured to be easy to swap from kit to kit. Though I haven't done this exact swap, I'd say there's a 99% chance it's a piece of cake. Here's a real one, so it's possible without entirely reimagining the car...and it looks stock with the hood closed. https://tucsonclassics.com/inventory/1940-ford-deluxe-desoto-hemi-powered-convertible/

Road kill rarely features beef.

Else was not the name of Borden's cow.

Knuckles may not suffer from office work (unless there tend to be a lot of bare-fist personal interactions in the workplace), but spreading behinds and syndromatificated carpal tunnels are no laughing matter.

I bet they're the debil to balance...