karl-
so sorry to hear you're in charlotte! i hope you have a gps or a huge bag of breadcrumbs as the queen city can be really easy to get lost in.
actually a lot of fun to be had there and has changed a lot since my first visit back in '94. urban renewal has done wonders for the downtown area.
enjoy your stay in nc!

-james

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I'm starting to get the hang of getting around here. The business/family hosting my stay is all over the city, and I was here for a week last year for the Cup race...still, none of the roads go the same direction for long, and the city isn't laid out in a grid like I'm used to...

Portland is a grid city with east,west,north,south streets for the most part. Any address can be found by knowing the origin in downtown Portland, and then counting blocks and addresses by the number grid on the signs...so even if your in a curvy area or mountains, the grid still locates you relative to the origin of the four quadrants of the city.

Anyway, I like it here so far and am enjoying the hospitality of the people in general, and the family who owns the company in particular. Tonight they took me to my first NFL game and in the seat next to me was the nicest, most friendly, and beautiful 26 year old sweet heart named Shannon...life has improved greatly in the last week.

Still, I miss my Valiant and my GTO badly...although all the gas stations are out of fuel anyway in this media hyped profiteering scheme of a gas crunch.

Karl

_________________
64 GTO...10.80's@122 on street radials
Destroked 455, Qjet, stock ign, 2400 stall

64 Valiant
Old 225, 4spd, 2.92-8.75, 2bbl, headers
dual 2.25"

get back here and stop having so much fun!

Hi Guys...

Working my rearend off here, the new(new to them) screw machine that I installed is a giant piece of you know what. They paid to have it setup to make parts when it arrived. After we installed it, we noticed it was missing many parts, some that looked critical to me...

The company that sold it to them said they ran two hundred parts on the setup before shipping...yeah right!~!!!!

It breaks down every ten parts or so, flinging bearings and misc parts all over the shop. We have had to machine or weld stuff to keep it working each day, never getting more than about twenty parts before it breaks again. Some of the tools are wearing out or breaking on just the few parts we've made...whoever set it up doesn't know any more about tool grinding than the machine operators here at the company. What a mess! At least my tools keep working after I fix them...

Stewart Stevenson, the military contractor who buys fuel and hyd tanks from this company is extremely angry and looking for a different supplier, so my being succesful here is critical to the jobs of 50-70 people. Of course, they realize it is not my fault that the new machine is junk, or that the problems with the old machines are difficult and time consuming to solve, but still...I am feeling the stress!

They are very happy to have me here, as are the Stewart and Stevenson representatives I have met that are here to help try to solve the supply issues. Temco, the company that brought me here, has been supplying them for many years, and SS sponsored there funny car for a year or two, and are admirably trying to help the owner solve these problems...but they can only try so hard before another supplier will fill the void...

Good news is I made 700 legal tested fittings the last two days after finally solving the issues with the poor machine setup the machine operators had tried to make work...they are only machine operators and not machinists, so although they try hard, they just don't really know what they are doing and cause more trouble than they solve. So now the welding shop can get back to full capacity.

Enough of the boring crap about my life...keep an eye out for Bob Gilbertson Racing Top Fuel Funny Car at Indy this weekend. The owner of this company is the owner/driver of the FC. They have a new clutch design that in testing has given the best 60ft times of any FC in history. We'll see if they can make it work on race day.

My job this week is to have all 5 machines making good parts by the time I leave for SF on Thurs. 3 screw machines and 2 CNC lathes.

I am writing the program tonight and tomorrow to make the newly designed FC clutch parts in house on one of the CNC lathes.

Anyway, thats the update.

Karl

_________________
64 GTO...10.80's@122 on street radials
Destroked 455, Qjet, stock ign, 2400 stall

64 Valiant
Old 225, 4spd, 2.92-8.75, 2bbl, headers
dual 2.25"

OK, so now I've got a cold from the three little kids that are all sick in the house I'm staying. Bless the hearts of my hosts, but sometimes I just hate kids, especially when they are spewing germs all over...

So I will need to get right on finishing my suspension when I get home, else I might be working on my car out in the cold harsh reality of the Pacific Northwest cold wet winter. Since my garage is full of machines, and you've seen the pics of where I do my mechanic-ing, I don't get much done for the four months of winter in Portland...Although sometimes we get a string of a few good days.

So this brings me back to my thoughts on a boot to cover the rodend portion of the strut rod. I was looking at the urethane torsion bar grease covers, as well as thinking about the ball joint covers, and thought that a cover like those would be a good thing on the rod ends. If you plan on driving the car daily like I do, then such a thing would be good me thinks.

Thinking the new plastic injection molding machine would be a perfect way to have such a thing, I'm thinking a molded urethane or rubber boot with a wire ring in the base would lock on really well. If I include a machined groove around the base of the strut rod frame mount, then it would be locked into place easily and securely, yet easy to remove by prying with a screw driver.

I don't think it would need grease since the rod ends are sealed and teflon lined, but it sure would be nice to keep the road grit away from it...

It would also save having to plate the parts. Although I've been thinking about almuminum for the mount to speed machining and lower costs.

I've been communicating with my DVD business partner about filming the installation and creating animations describing the suspension travel and movements, as well as the alignment adjustments, how to do them yourself at home, make simple tools on your own, and the basics of how the alignment changes can be expected to affect your handling.

I am also thinking of including a spreadsheet software program to keep track of changes and make comments on the cars behaviour.

Of course, all this would be basic stuff to communicate the necessary skills for basic knowledge. I could not do a dissertation on DVD and keep costs down, nor am I a suspension expert with years of racing suspension tuning experience. But it would be more than usually comes with this kind of package...and certainly more than any other company is offering for a given price.

My ultimate hope woould be that my products would be the highest quality I know how to create, with quality control to keep my reputation in good standing, a pricing structure in line with all other available suspension packages, and enough extras like the DVD and spreadsheet program to give my product value added attractivness. And of course, thought out well enough that no one can do it better, simply match what I have done...and provide enough profit for me and my partner to make it worth doing, and cover the investment costs associated with small cnc production runs.

I don't mind spending extra r&d on creating the DVD content and such, because once it is done, it has two things going for it...you don't have to keep working on it, you do it only once, and second, it can be used as a sales tool by making part of the content sales related and then providing the DVD for a low cost by itself, with the price reduceed by equal amount at time of suspension package puchase.

This allows me to include video clips and sales related content to spice up the DVD over just a dry testimonial package or the crap DVD like came with my friends Demon carburetor that seemed produced by somebodies buddy, and had little technical content of use to help tune or adjust the carb for your application...in fact, I thought that video was a waste of valuable time in my life I could have been doing something else...except for I learned how bad other companies sales videos can be...

Oh well...back to writing G-code for the FC clutch parts.

What do you guys think of the rodend boot idea???

Sure wish I brought my digital camera so I could show you guys some of the interesting stuff I've been stressing over this week.

Karl aka Gearhead

Oops...I forgot to log-in since I'm on a strange computer in an even stranger land...

gearhead

_________________
64 GTO...10.80's@122 on street radials
Destroked 455, Qjet, stock ign, 2400 stall

64 Valiant
Old 225, 4spd, 2.92-8.75, 2bbl, headers
dual 2.25"

Rod-end boots make me smile.

Find a bottle of zinc lozenges and start suckin' 'em; it keeps the cold symptoms down to a manageable level.

_________________
一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Interesting thread. Today I saw a clean $1,000 BMW 325, has cracked head, otherwise it's good looking car. I was thinking along the lines of LS1 Chevy T56 swap, not that I would ever do that. I hate seeing an otherwise good BMW go to the crusher just because it costs so darned much to repair.

It's good to see the thoughts presented here on developing a great handling A-body. Keep at it.

going way off topic here, but I have a friend that has a '80ish 500 4 dr with a staraight six 250 CID chubby engine and ZF transmission. Kicks ass... is faster and snapier than it was with the original 3.0 litre bmw engine wich costed times 6 to repair than to fit in his odd combo.

_________________
Juan Ignacio Caino

Please use e-mail button istead of PM'ing. I do log in sometimes but I'll be answering quicker thru e-mail.

Karl,

For someone who knows very little about machinist work, what type of equipment might you recommend for a low buck hobbiest who wants to primarily learn make custom automotive parts?

From time to time I see well used equipment for sale locally, we're not a major industrial center, although sometimes local military bases auction equipment that's in excellent shape. Usually I'd have to wait for something to show up on Ebay that's not so far away.

I also have an interest in backyard foundry work, probably aluminum castings, although I'd like to try cast iron if I could source some coke. I've encounted a few especially gifted people who can improvise and create quality work often without the best tools for the task.

A lot of the tools I find are too giant for home use. The Grizzly and Enco tools from China are popular, I'd just as soon use older American equipment.

Tim

Depending on what you could afford:
Drill press
bench grinder
Lathe
milling machine, or miller/driller machine
belt sander, for deburing
vertical band saw, for rough cutting parts.
surface grinder. not used much, but for the right price, nice to have.

If it were me, this is the order I would buy.

Just remember, you will need tooling for the lathe, and milling machine.
Also measuring tools, ie, micrometers, dial indicators, etc.

_________________
Charrlie_S
65 Valiant 100 2dr post 170 turbo
66 Valiant Signet 225 nitrous
64 Valiant Signet
64 Valiant 4dr 170

I lurk around some machinist groups, but don't really know the significance of "knee mill" or "turret lathe", the advantages and so forth. Without experience using the tools I really don't know what is best. I would have also limited floor space, maybe 15'x15' . I'd likely collect nearly worn out tools, tight tolerances aren't necessary for most of the projects I can conceive. When I come across a lathe that looks good and doesn't make horrid sounds and the price is right(cheap), I'll get it, and work with it's limitations. I think the biggest limitation is what the human mind can conceive, you can compensate somewhat for worn out tools, a marginal tool is predictable in it's quirks. Reading about machinist work is like learning to fly from a book.

I'd like to see Gearhead post again!

Hi Everyone:

Sorry I disappeared for awhile, I worked my behind off right till moments before leaving to the airport to fly from Charlotte to SF a week and a half ago. Worked till 2:30am the night before I left to re-setup the screw machine in the shop and make another 625 parts of yet a different kind of fitting so that they wouldn't run out while I was gone. Then I showed up at 6 am and started setting up the machine to cut yet another smaller fitting they were about to run out of...and...try to repair another of the machines that had broke again...geeze!

When I left all the machines were working and making parts, and the test would be to see if the crew I trained could keep them working and and set up the machines for one more part yet to be brought to good inventory levels.

I flew to SF and spent the night with my older sister in Los Gatos CA where I was born, then flew to CanCun Mexico for a week in the sun with my younger sister and her family...and it was awesome.

Nothing like playing in the storm surge surf in warm torquoise(sp?) waters with lightning streaking all around us...my family is always the last ones in the water when the Mexican Feds close the beach. Met a fabulous and gorgeous Russian lawyer and immigrant to LA of eight years, with fantastic stories of her escape from Russia as her family was trying to be protected by the police from threats of the corporate criminals she was prosectuting at the highest levals of the Russian legal system...she is now single and likes me of all things...

Its not all great though, I'm now at my parents house back in SF where I am seeing my Mom for probably the last time before she passes. the cancer has ravaged her body but fortunately not her mind. I can hardly keep from crying half the time as my family is very close and yesterday we held a party so all her friends and family could see her one last time while she can still climb from her wheelchair and be with loved ones. She is the strongest and best person I have ever known and am so thankfull I was fortunate enough to have her as my mom.

I got good news today as I checked in back in NC. My crew kept the machines running, made a few more repairs on their own of small things that will help make it easier to keep good tolerance in the future, and have set up to make good parts on the one last low inventory item. The powers that be at the company are very happy with my performance and the new ability of the crew that had failed in the past, and are glad to have me coming back to continue to whip the shop into shape and create systems to keep these problems from occurring again...and to start working on parts for the Funny Car Team

I leave for NC again on Wed so might be able to post again on late Wed night or Thursday.

I sure appreciate the positive comments this thread has brought and the complements of my work. Thanks for the kind words, and sorry this thread has turned into the story of my hectic life without the ability to complete the cool suspension parts this thread is about. I can't wait for an opportunity to get back to Portland and finish what I started, especially now that my financial situation has greatly improved. But that said, I have to chase this terrific chance to become involved with a race team of multi million dollar financials and exciting prospects for someone with my skill set in machining, racing, and electronics. I met the crew chief the day I left and he can't wait to have me discuss his project ideas with him...

Tim:

I can't say much now because I have much to do in the few hours before I hit the road again...but don't concern yourself with turret lathes and automatic equipment, these machines are for repetative production only and thats why I own them.

My Enco lathe has proven to be of quite satisfactory performance even though there are many things I don't like about it that a nice Hardinge or other American lathe would solve. But that said, for the $750 plus a bunch of tooling I have zero complaints. And...as you said and is quite true, a good machinist can achieve high tolerance out of a pretty worn or clunky machine once he gets used to its quirks. And if you could see how beat up these giant screw machines I have been working with are...you would be amazed that I can get a high tolerance part off them every 18 seconds. My Hardinge is a jewel in comparison.

I have heard many good things from fellow hobbiests who own Grizzly lathes and mills. Often, with a little care you can adjust them and or polish sticky features and such to create a nice little home shop unit for a good price. However, the best way to get a good mill is to find a guy that is retired and wants out of his hobby so that you get tooling and measuring equipment at the same time, because as stated above, that gets expensive quick. I waited along time to get my mill, a very old American of good size, with much tooling and a life long collection of measuring equipment...but eyes open for deals at all times, and cash to spend at the moment the correct time is at hand...is the secret.

A saw is nice but sawsall will do. A tool grinder from harbor frieght cost me $160 and a few hours to clean up shoddy machining, but has paid for itself in custom tools and resharpening as needed. Drill press can work as low tolerance lathe or mill but can be dangerous do to lack of rigidity...especially if you don't know what your doing. I started with a Sherline mill and will never sell it even though many of my projects are to large for it...the Sherline web site and the books they sell are an excellent starting point.

A good full size drill press is highly recomended but look for one with a chuck that closes to "zero"...I did and have never regretted it. What I mean is that you can put super small wire size drills into the chuck without having to change the chuck. Most low cost presses have lousy chucks that will only hold down to a .093(3/32) drill or so. But mine was cheap but with a nice chuck...but I bought it 20 years ago so I don't have a recomend now.

I've got by without a belt sander but constantly wish I had one. I use die grinders or wire wheels for deburring...but mostly ingenuety(sp?) with the stuff at hand to create a means to an end. Lastly...I very much recomend a dremel with a flex shaft and heavy duty fiberglass cutoffs, small wire wheels, sanding drums and disks, and polishing wheels...I couldn't imagine my life without mine.

Thats all I can think of off hand given time constraints and situational resonsibilities at this moment. I will review ina few days in Charlotte, and try to add or clarify my thoughts...good luck.

Karl aka Gearhead

_________________
64 GTO...10.80's@122 on street radials
Destroked 455, Qjet, stock ign, 2400 stall

64 Valiant
Old 225, 4spd, 2.92-8.75, 2bbl, headers
dual 2.25"

Thanks for the update.

My thoughts & prayers for you & your mother.

I really appreciate the time & your expertise in helping some car guys keep their rides going!!

Lawrence

Thanks Lawrence, it is appreciated.

My Mom is 76 and has had a long and good life...she also knows she's raised a good family that cares for each other and is accepting know matter what, without the judgemental and controlling nature found in so many families...including my own if you look to grandparents and such...

So although this is the saddest time in my life, death is the one thing besides birth we all will share for certain...the time has come and our family has pulled together to deal with it. I find myself not minding her imminent passing, nearly as much as the empathy I feel for what she is going through as her body fails, and she realizes her time is up and she won't see her grandchild reach his teen years...or any of the other milestones she had hoped to see.

Anyway...this is the slant six forum...not the sad 40 something forum...

I am back in Charlotte and working my behind off again.

I wish I had my Valiant to cruise around in, but I did get a ride in the company owners hot rod Caddy. Its the one with the Corvette engine and has a 6 speed manual of all things. Sure is a nice car, and handles sweet...it automatically raises the tire pressure in the outside tire during a corner!!!! The owner, true to a guy with a TF funny car, and who had a 10 second Mopar in high school back in 73...is totally non-chalant about it, and just shrugs and says...eh...its OK.

Tim:

For your knowledge, a knee mill is the most common type and is based on the original Bridgeport design. It means that the bed of the table moves up into the head on a "knee". The head remains constant except for the quill, which typically has some movement like a drill press, and also can be rotated side to side for angle milling.

Here is a good website for learning basics about machines and the different varieties very quickly, without having to read a book.

http://www.jjjtrain.com/vms/lessons_milling_machines.html

After rereading my previous post, I can't really say to much more without going into a dissertation. I just kept my eyes open, and looked for a good deal. Used machines if found that way, can always be sold to another newbie should you find a better deal later. The main thing is to keep from talking about it forever, and to start "making chips" as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, most people love the idea of making stuff with thier own equipment to save time and money, but lack the attention to detail, and ware-with-all to stick with the repetative and time consuming nature of making things manually. You have to really get a thrill out of producing stuff this way to stick with the constant needs of the home machine shop.

Thats not to say you won't or don't...just keep in mind that it does take alot of work, alot of support tooling and knowledge, and alot of measuring tools to fill and provide for a working shop. Many times I've gotten two thirds thru a project, only to find I had been ignoring everything else in life while I focussed...then it took everything I had in me, to get back on the project and finish it...you guys have been following some of that situation here...although in this case with many external factors beyond just general life influence.

Not trying to scare you away...but even CNC machining takes a huge amount of knowledge and time consuming setup to make work. Often, you spend more time making a fixture to hold something in a mill for machining, than the part takes to create!!!!

That said, when I make a part, or espescially some kind of assembly that moves or was hard to create, such as for a steam engine or one of my robots...I can sit there all night fondling my work and marveling over what I created. Here is a picture of one of the intricate assemblies on a robot I made...it is now a finished and working robot for which I wrote all the software and interfaced the sensors...but the picture was taken just after about 85% of the work was finished on the sub assemblies...



As I finished each of the moving assemblies, I would just sit and fiddle with them and congratulate myself, patting myself on the back and stroking my ego...much better for my self esteem than being torn to shreds by an annoyed girlfriend or something...

Here is a closeup of the same parts...



I deliberately made this robot to be sort of rube goldberg with much mechanical movement visible during operation. You can't see it in the photo, but the cam on the bottom for tilting the IR vision Head has a miniature roller bearing I made and was very proud of...the point of my showing you this, besides the fact that its 7am and I'm bored because no one is awake and I don't have a machine shop in the garage of the home I'm staying, is that I have probably close to 200 hours or more into making this...and I didn't make a single machining error forcing me to redo anything...which is very common for most people...but rarely happens to me since I am a detail fanatic. Some of those hours were because I was experimenting with different methods of making the parts.

Still...my point is that I enjoyed 75% of the work I did, so much so that I regularly ended up working till 4am, to the detriment of work and life, both day to day and social life. The other 25% was grudgery of having to make pass after pass back and forth to create a particular feature, or having to reset the machine into a new configuration for a different operation (sometimes easy, sometimes not so easy but very time consuming and boring).

I built an operating replica mill steam engine from the 1880's for my dad that took about 150 hours to complete...but I still marvel at how smooth it runs and how it will tick over at 5 rpm or so by just blowing thru a rubber hose into the steam inlet.

Anyway...just some food for thought on your machine shop building venture. Like many tools, they can sit for quite awhile doing nothing, but when your in the mood, you can be extremely productive, and achieve tremendous satisfaction from what you build...be it a carb bracket, or trick suspension components, or silly toys...

Gearhead

_________________
64 GTO...10.80's@122 on street radials
Destroked 455, Qjet, stock ign, 2400 stall

64 Valiant
Old 225, 4spd, 2.92-8.75, 2bbl, headers
dual 2.25"