Ace-Garageguy

Year after year, I strive to finish just ONE of many models I started years ago; so far, no luck.

One more thing...the break looks more like it's a steel crank, and it appears the failure occurred because the damper wasn't as tight a fit on the crank as it should have been, and/or the bolt wasn't properly torqued. The small fracture lines to the left of the key would usually indicate a progressive fatigue failure from repeated high-frequency, low amplitude impacts. As the engine rotates clockwise (when viewed from the front), that would be consistent with a somewhat loose balancer repeatedly striking the RH face of the key for a long time. If it's a steel crank, it might be worth saving, as used steel cranks are considerably more expensive than cast iron cranks, and welding steel way out there on the nose is not as much of a "black art" as welding cast iron. If it were MY steel crank, I'd definitely weld it, machine it round again, and mill a new key slot, as I have the tools and ability to do it in-house. But buying a used steel crank would probably be cheaper than paying someone to repair it correctly. Then there's the additional expense pf pulling the engine and tearing it down (if you can't do it yourself), as the crank HAS TO BE OUT to do a decent repair. Thing is though, steel cranks are kinda overkill for non-high-performance or severe-duty applications, so replacing it with a cast iron crank is probably the best eventual solution...EDIT: or finding a good takeout engine. Decent used SBC engines aren't as plentiful as they once were, but there are still some out there, particularly as LS swaps have become so common.

Pretty pretty pretty pretty...both of 'em. Very nice.

That's a good point, but lately lotsa folks have seemed to succumb to the RARE!!! rebleating-fever when listing hacked up messes on the 'bay, trying to get real money for trash that's only of ANY value for something like this.

Generally, damage like that simply can NOT be rigged with any degree of permanence. And amateur welding, or any attempt to weld the key in, will most likely cause more harm than good. EDIT: That crank is probably a form of cast iron, in which case pretty much forget welding it anyway unless the welder really knows his stuff. There are SEVERAL ways to weld it, or braze it, but finding somebody who can do it right will probably be difficult. If it's indeed locally weldable (meaning you can find a guy who knows the various acceptable procedures and fillers, and who has the skill), cast cranks are still so relatively cheap that it's just not cost-effective to repair it correctly, which would involve machining the nose after building it up, and possibly needing to heat-treat and/or straighten it as well. That said, if it was mine and I really really needed to avoid replacing the crank for as long as possible (or in an EOTWAWKI situation) I'd most likely try using Loctite 620 "High Temperature Stud and Bearing Mount" to "glue" the balancer to the crank snout. It's made for fitting cylindrical slip-fit things together and keeping them from rotating relative to each other (though not really stuff this bad...but it will substantially reduce the side load put on the keys). Thoroughly clean EVERYTHING with alcohol, including the retaining bolt and crank threads PRIOR to doing anything else, and keep the work clean. Then rebuild the broken area like you did before to reduce the potential for end-wobble; Then assemble the balancer to the crank with the Loctite 620 on the crank snout and inside the balancer bore. It's an anaerobic adhesive, which means it cures without air getting to it. EDIT: BE CERTAIN your Loctite 620 doesn't squeeze out too much from the backside as you push the balancer on to the crank. If it gets between front main cap and the bearing, it could conceivably lock the engine. A coating of Vaseline on the front face of the main cap around the bearing should be enough to prevent that happening. Finally, when you put the bolt in, use Loctite 271 on the threads to prevent the bolt from backing out, and be sure to torque it properly. WARNING: BOTH these Loctite products require HEAT to remove. A LOT of heat. I can't guarantee this will work, but it's the best shot you've got short of replacing the crank. And I would most definitely try it.

KIds are little goats.

VERY LATE DUMB GUY POST; MUST PAY CLOSER ATTENTION

About dang time I get another TV, as I'm so disappointed I missed (and had to look up) Honey Boo Boo.

So...ummm...kinda like the "offroad" Lambo then, right? Just another "personal enhancement" device.

Nice little car, kinda slow with the 2.4 L4. Stick an LS in it, you have a real treat to drive. https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/pontiac-solstice-v8-conversion/

Fantastic internet expert advice. I'm going out to cut all mine off right now.

The rear quarter design reminded me of the '60 Pininfarina-styled Ferrari California Spyder, and initially I thought this one might have been a job for Ford because of its "face". Image-searched "Ford Pininfarina showcars" or some such, got zip. Searched "GM Pininfarina showcars" or something similar, there it was towards the bottom of the first page.

Big smile-maker. Very nice work.

One of the best builds of the Futura kit I've ever seen. The Batmobile conversion is great too. Both very nice indeed.

All good advice. One trick I learned decades ago on real cars was to wear thin cotton gloves when checking a panel for waviness post-primer, when you think you're ready for paint. The thin cotton keeps the nerves close to the skin-surface from picking up much information, so it's easier to feel waves as your hand slides along the vehicle side. Try getting an early '60s Continental "straight enough for black". This doesn't have much relevance to model-car work unless you're working in very large scales, but thin cotton gloves are excellent at preventing fingerprints while handling/installing parts with sensitive finishes like pseudo-chrome or metalizers.

Confusing "mayonnaise" with "marinate" is actually a thing, but I've seen one creative web writer combine the two into the multi-purpose "marronaise".

Looks really useful. Thanks for the heads-up.

Either that or his ex after she looked at all the hookups on his phone...or a "curvy" girl sitting on the hood. I see a lot of that these days.

I've done multiple repairs similar to this. There are several ways. I prefer to avoid sacrificing another model to do something like this, if at all possible. The method I'd use to do this one involves "regularizing" the hole, then splicing in flat styrene stock that's thick enough in depth to entirely fill the gaps. The added stock would stand proud of the model surface both above the roof and under it. Then sculpt it to close-to-final shape. A little filler, a little sanding, a little primer, and she's new again. Another method involves making molds from a similar vehicle, then forming thin fiberglass replacement parts in-place, with the mold(s) attached to the model body. See below:

Probably the best thing about emerging AI is that it's most likely going to obsolete all the WFHers in a relatively short time. It is still questionable, however, whether it will ever be able to emulate their self-satisfied smugness. https://tech.co/news/remote-working-jobs-replaced-ai That said, anyone smart enough to work with AI to boost his own capabilities/productivity will be way ahead of the game.

Great old crazy car, cool project shaping up.

Strip-mining is apparently socially unacceptable now, as are apparently a few other things that have the word "strip" in them.

Is there an available "outback charging package", you know, a trailer with a fuel tank and a diesel generator? Again, asking for a friend.

Sorry to hear that. My experiences with Gorilla Glue products have been so inconsistent, I've quit buying them, period.

Probably not so hot for wowing the birds down at the local though...I'd guess.