tips & tricks

[67HEAVEN]

Good point, Keith, but some of my vehicles have an oil filter location that sits above suspension parts and makes a hell of a mess if I punch a hole.

My '89 K1500 4x4 for example.
:seeya:

 

[Keith Tedford]

We have an old S-10 with the filter sitting horizontally and buried. No matter what you do, the oil drips on everything on its way to the ground and it takes two drip trays to catch all the oil. It's usually dripping off of my elbow too before I'm done. You can put a small block Chevy in these old trucks so I don't know why they had to mess up the little 2.8 this way. Talk about complicating a simple thing but GM is a master at it. On the other hand, our '05 Jimmy has a remote oil filter up behind the front bumper and is super easy to do.

 

[buckhorn76]

need some soft jaws for your vise ? cut two pieces of angle iron [i use old bed frame ]. glue a piece of printing blanket [mentioned in an earlier post] to each one . put a piece of flexy fridge magnet on top of each jaw on the vise and sit the angle iron on.:seeya:

 

[buckhorn76]

When you're working on an engine and need to run it after disconnecting vacuum lines, plug the lines with golf tees.

amen to the golf tees 67. people use screws or bolts but don't realize that the threads dislodge tiny bits of rubber that can end up as debris in bad places.

 

[Riley P]

We have an old S-10 with the filter sitting horizontally and buried. No matter what you do, the oil drips on everything on its way to the ground and it takes two drip trays to catch all the oil. It's usually dripping off of my elbow too before I'm done. You can put a small block Chevy in these old trucks so I don't know why they had to mess up the little 2.8 this way. Talk about complicating a simple thing but GM is a master at it. On the other hand, our '05 Jimmy has a remote oil filter up behind the front bumper and is super easy to do.

The 2.5 in the little S-15 is the exact same way. Oil all over the place! Great tip with the bag!

 

[New C5er]

For cloudy, oxidized headlight lenses, use a Mr. Clean magic eraser pad instead of those expensive pads and cleaning compounds. As told to me by an auto glass installation shop. That's what I use now.

 

[Riley P]

I also heard that toothpaste will work and leave your car minty fresh!

 

[buckhorn76]

ground rules

to get a better ground when welding,locate a flat braided ground strap [ got mine at the boneyard ]. put this around your work piece,then attach the ground clamp. this has increased the surface area for grounding. :seeya:

 

[buckhorn76]

if you need a good, easy to use, siphon get a primer bulb for an outboard motor fuel hose and attach a couple of lengths of fuel line to it. the bulb has an arrow on it indicating direction of flow.

 

[67HEAVEN]

If you have a Chevy or GMC truck or SUV where the spare is located underneath at the back, how long since you've dropped the spare tire?

The cable mechanism that holds the tire in place is notorious for rusting, and when you're on the side of the road, some dark and stormy night.....it won't drop the tire for you.

Far better to check it now, before you need the spare. If you can get it down, be sure to spray some liquid lubricant inside the wind-up mechanism. Soak it real good and wind the cable up and down a few times to get things well soaked. Lube everything, including the secondary latch (if equipped).

If you can't get the tire down, it may be due to that faulty "secondary latch" design that GM came up with some years back. I can help you with that, if you need it. Just ask.

In any case, check the winder now, not when it's snowing and blowing and you really need it.
:seeya:

 

[Riley P]

My cable snapped releasing my spare tire some years ago going through an extremely rough parking lot! The spare now sits in the bed as I have not tackled installing a new cable.

 

[buckhorn76]

need a gasket scraper that won't harm the surfaces ? take an 8" piece of 1/2" copper pipe and pinch/flatten the end in your bench vise. finish/form it with a file.

 

[buckhorn76]

sometimes when working on fuel systems it becomes necesary to pinch off a rubber fuel line. what i use is a pair of needle nose vise grips with gas line slipped over the jaws.

 

[buckhorn76]

when working with neoprene fuel line and barb fittings i have always hated using gear clamps. what i prefer are the appropriate size good quality nylon cable ties. they are strong and can be pulled very snug with needle nose pliers. large ones can be used on C.V. joint boots if the metal clamp is too sad. :seeya:

 

[buckhorn76]

forgotten tools

no, not the ones you can't find or loaned to your buddy three years ago !! i mean the tools that get pushed to the back of the tool chest. once we become so accustomed to relying on air and power tools we tend to forget about our "back in the day stuff". one old school item i use quite often is my impact driver. for me it works great for removing screws, instead of the old hammer to the screwdriver routine. with your favourite penetrating oil [not wd40 ] and a few smacks it is surprising how a rusty old screw will break loose. it really aids in not rounding off nasty phillips head screws. :seeya:

 

[Keith Tedford]

Tip number one. NEVER loan tools out. I loaned scaffolding to a guy that I thought I could trust with my life. He had it for a long time which was fine. When I wanted it back, it was gone. He loaned it to his son who loaned it to someone else and it was mysteriously gone. How hard is it to track it down. If a person no longer has it, it was either given to someone else they know or it was stolen. There was no offer to pay for it, which really astounded me as I have known this guy since about 1966. A neighbour got to realize that I had a pretty good selection of tools and he pretty well wore a path to our door. Problem was, he never brought anything back and the only way to get it back was to go and get it. After those two, I decided that loaning out tools was not happening any more. It bothers me that people will use others like that and force you to make decisions that you would rather not have to make.

 

[buckhorn76]

correcto mundo keith !!! whether i like it or not i became the " go to " guy around here. people began helping themselves to my stuff to the point where my garage sports a big padlock.

 

[buckhorn76]

spark plugs

some cylinder heads call for RC12YC plugs. these are readily available at your local small engine repair shop. believe it or not this is the same plug used in many O.H.V. lawn tractor engines. your local shop will have good quality plugs unlike the chinese knock-offs you are liable to get from canadian tire etc. remember to use a little dab of anti-seize with aluminum heads. :seeya:

 

[buckhorn76]

ok this one is more of a mental health issue !!! know when to put the wrenches down and step away from the vehicle. it seems that a few of us are restoring older cars. sometimes situations arise that will frustrate the hell out of you or stump you or both. this is a good time to stop and walk away. it is amazing how after 1 or 2 days different ideas will come to you and a freshened outlook has you ready to dive in again !!! most of all enjoy your project, accept your limitations, and this hobby can feel so rewarding. :seeya:

 

[Riley P]

Sounds like you need a tool sign out program with a deposit! And I was just on my way over to help myself to a selection.....