TireSmoke.org

Everything is pretty much done. I had to spend some time tonight making a tool, though. It seems Edelbrock heads have the spark plugs holes in slightly different locations than my old heads. Also, the spark plugs sit recessed into their hole, which makes access with a wrench impossible, and access with a conventional spark plug socket is tough with the headers. #5 is the biggest problem. So, my neighbor Dave (blown-383 '97 SS Camaro) said he could cut my socket down. We cut it down, then had to use a 7/16 drill to ream out the rachet-drive hole so it would fit over the porcelin. It worked great -- on 7 of the 8 cylinders. It still wouldn't fit on #5. So we took the cut-off end of the spark plug socket (the waste) and found it to be short enough to fit on #5. So, we ground some flats on either side to get a 3/4" wrench over it. This worked like a charm.




Now the bad news: I was ready to start it tonight, but the fuel pump won't prime. The pump runs as it should, but it is not able to pull fuel out of the tank. Arghhh... It was 11pm by this point, so I called it quits for the night. I have a feeling I need to re-design my tank <--> fuel pump setup. Damn.

This is how the finished product looks for the most part. The wiring is a heck of a lot cleaner than the original setup.

http://www.tiresmoke.org/images-misc/406newheads1.jpg
http://www.tiresmoke.org/images-misc/406newheads2.jpg

-Dave

TireSmoker wrote: Now the bad news: I was ready to start it tonight, but the fuel pump won't prime. The pump runs as it should, but it is not able to pull fuel out of the tank. Arghhh... It was 11pm by this point, so I called it quits for the night. I have a feeling I need to re-design my tank <--> fuel pump setup. Damn.

-Dave

After a thorough inspection of the fuel system, I think I found what might be a small air leak.



After a careful re-design that included adding fuel hose A to fuel pump inlet B and adding hoseclamp C, I now have fuel pressure. Houston, all system check out ready to go.

But, it's late (after midnight) and if it starts, I wanna play with it. So, I'll wait till the morning. A TireSmoke.Org camera will be filming (digitizing?) the fireup.

-Dave

Yeeeehaaaw! Way to go, Dave! She purrs like a lion. Great work!

Sweet!!! A winter well spent. And you got 'er done before Memorial Day.
Now for some numbers.

Well, the good news is that I took the car for its first drive today.

The bad news.. I still have a fuel delivery problem. My original fuel pump quit pulling fuel from the tank for some unknown reason. No matter how much I ran it, it couldn't seem to pull a suction, after about 20-30 minutes of runtime. My neighbor Dave up the street (11 sec Camaro) had a spare fuel pump that was identical to mine. I put it in and it worked perfect. Until today. While pumping gas in at Sunoco, it died. No fuel pressure. WTF?? After a few minutes, it started again and I drove home.

Also, the sump in my gas tank leaks. Greaaat.

And my wideband oxygen sensor (Innovate LC-1) seemed to be giving flakey results, so I swapped the narrow-band back in and it seems to be working as expected. I wonder if I should put a second bung in so I can just leave both sensors in there. One in each header? They can't be utilized at the same time in Megasquirt, though.

work goes on..

-Dave

OK, Memorial Day was too soon, maybe before the 4th of July.
I like your dual sensor idea, put them on a switch.
One problem at a time. Don't weaken.

Fred32v wrote: One problem at a time. Don't weaken.

So I got the gas tank sealed up at the bad weld with some gas tank repair stuff. This is the second time I've used the stuff with success.

However, I sprung another leak last night -- this one, however, involved a bit more pain than the usual leak since it was *my blood*. I was making a cut with a utility knife and managed to put a pretty deep gash into the ring finger on my left hand. Five stitches later, the leak has been stopped.

The apron to my driveway was removed yesterday morning as part of our street re-paving and new curbs. My car is stranded, whether I like it or not, for 5-7 days. I'll try to get the fuel pump re-mounted in the mean time.

-Dave

Utility knife 1
Dave 0

I hate those nasty little events.

I lost a pinky finger nail, to a engine driven radiator fan. It was one of those nice shiny stainless 'flex fans'. Scared the you-know-what out of me. The impact of the fan hitting the finger, was worse than the actual nail removal......

The fuel pump has been relocated to the inside of the framerail, on the driver's side. I used a piece of flat bar-stock aluminum, drilled two holes, and bolted this to the frame using some existing holes. I had some pieces of radiator hose that I cut up to act as washers to raise the aluminum bar off of the frame and to help keep the pump quiet. I used a couple hose clamps to mount the fuel pump to this piece of aluminum. When I re-did the wiring, I added several extra feet to the existing fuel pump wires in anticipation of having to do this.

The only mistake I made was putting my original MSD pump in there. I thought maybe it was having trouble, but it just flat out doesn't work. It spins, it makes noise, but there's no pumping action. With this new location, I have to remove the gas tank to get at the pump. It's not a big deal -- as long as the tank is empty. I think I have about 3-5 gallons in there now, which makes it tough to muscle around by myself, manuevering around gas tank straps, getting the filler neck aligned and then holding it up with my shoulder while I get the first strap-bolt started, all while the weight is constantly shifting around. I didn't drain the tank because I only have a 2.5 gallon can and I had already spilled enough gas on myself from unconnecting the lines that I didn't want to spill anymore, at least not last night.

So the tank is sitting in the car via one strap right now. I'll pull it out, change the pump back to my neighbor's pump, put it back together and try again.

I'll have more pictures very soon.

-Dave

Use a decent size piece of wood and the floor jack to lift/hold the tank. You might need to stack a couple 2x4's to get the jack to lift high enough. Or spend $10 and get a 5 gallon can for the rest of the gas.

This is going to sound funny but it's not: Make sure you have a plan how to put out a fire quickly, especially if it is on you. My grandfather had an accident with gasoline and fire and my grandmother finally put him out with the hose - spent months in the hospital after that.

You have gas and electiricity in the same vicinity - it is a situation to be careful about.

MostMint wrote:
This is going to sound funny but it's not: Make sure you have a plan how to put out a fire quickly, especially if it is on you. My grandfather had an accident with gasoline and fire and my grandmother finally put him out with the hose - spent months in the hospital after that.

You have gas and electiricity in the same vicinity - it is a situation to be careful about.

Funny you mention, because when I was working out there the other night, I specifically stopped to look at my fire extinguishers, just to make sure they were there. They're old though. Can they be tested/inspected?

-Dave

Call your fire department for advisement on that. I believe they can inspect them.

I have an extinguisher in the main garage. I suppose I should get another for the detached garage.

I too, have fire extinguishers at home. Two in the garage, (one to eventually get mounted in the Nova) and one in the kitchen. It must have been all that safety training from TRW.....that, and when we went thru the adoption procedure, one requirement was a home inspection. The fire martial actually inspected the house. We had to get GFI outlets - AND an ABC rated extinguisher in the kitchen. Every time I get out the O2/Acetylene, I have one within reach.

On a fuel pump related note, does the pump have to be located below the fuel level? Are they self priming?

How's the street re-paving going?

now you know you have to christen the new pavement with 2 nice posi marks right?