Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Arkansas

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Amskeptic
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Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Arkansas

Post by Amskeptic » Thu Aug 14, 2008 2:20 pm

Yep. Last night, I pulled into a gas station, wtf? Creaking and groaning at every movement of the steering wheel. Twittering over little road irregularities. What would you do? Me too.
But pulling off the shock absorbers did not eradicate the noise.
So I did what you probably would have done next, I removed the stabilizer bar. I'm thinking, "I'll have this car stripped down like those Toyota Supras you see on the Cross Bronx Expressway, and it will STILL be making this noise." Without stabilizer bar bushings to squeak and twitter, I thought I might have some peace and quiet, but no. Even just sitting there and turning the steering wheel inflamed the creaky groany squeaky sound. Went under the car to reattach the stabilizer bar and pushed the car up with my knees while placing my ears near . . . the !*@#^%$#*!%^$#* ball joints.

I sat in the glow of cold flourescent lights at the Shell and just pondered. We all are putting in a lot of labor and a lot of love and a lot of cash into cars that are well-deserving, and we keep getting blindsided by Crap made by people who Don't Care save that your credit card runs properly.

Next morning (this morning, in fact) I went to NAPA and bought four 6 x 1 mm zerk fittings. I drove behind the the closed Cap'n John's Seafood Eatery and jacked up the front of the bus. Took off the right front wheel. Ye god's, does anybody maintain this thing??
Image

Diamond tip punched the center of the ball joint caps:
Image

Fired up the DeWalt drill with a tiny bit and drilled through just until I felt the bit "slip down" through the cap but before I started drilling the ball joint itself. Then I stepped up to 1/8 and 13/64 bits and tapped with a 6x1 mm tap:
Image

But the tap bottoms out against the ball joint ball. So I have only 180* of half-hearted thread with which to start the fitting. After a painstaking decontamination stint with a magnet (thankfully the ball joint cap is steel so the magnet can pick up the shavings), I use a hammer on the new zerk fitting while turning my 7mm box wrench slowly and carefully to get one full rotation of fitting threads. Holds the grease OK as I pump maybe three or four shots of grease into the dry dry dry dry dry brand new ball joint. Here's the pretty new zerk fitting:
Image

And here is the finished project, no more squeak, and I lost only a half day of travel:
Image

Still pondering those who don't give a good goddamn about anything. How do you go to work as Mr./Mrs. Manufacturer and devote yourself to only making a lousy buck at any cost?
Colin
(called Walter at Bus-Boys for a rueful conversation about "GERMAN LEMFORDER BALL JOINTS! made in Brazil")
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

Lanval
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Post by Lanval » Thu Aug 14, 2008 2:39 pm

Seeing this makes me feel rather guilty about the nasty squeak that was making you grimace. Alright, alright, it's on the list.

Nice work though ~ very pretty.

Best,

Lanval

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Thu Aug 14, 2008 3:13 pm

Lanval wrote:Seeing this makes me feel rather guilty about the nasty squeak that was making you grimace. Alright, alright, it's on the list.
And you should feel guilty. Every squeak is the scream of rending rubber and metal begging for their lives.
But you are off the hook.
Yesterday I drove the very worst front-suspensioned bus in my career.
I was actually so nervous that I had to pull over before continuing with the test drive. Every joint in the front suspension and steering was completely loose and knocking, every tie rod joint, both drag link joints, the center pin, the ball joints, it was soooooo loose that the steering wheel had well over a foot and a half of play at the steering wheel rim.
The bus was a sweetheart though, like a dog missing two legs but wagging its tail and barking joyfully and farting noxious clouds of leaky valve cover on hot heat exchanger. I won't tell you whose bus it was.
Hey Barry Smith, how ya doon?
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Elwood
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Post by Elwood » Thu Aug 14, 2008 5:00 pm

Ha Ha that sounds like what you found in Elwood your first visit. Not to worrie any Colin newbies, it only gets worse before you realize he is a teacher and anal perfectionist. And most important is he is usually right. I have replaced most things and still have the same Sterring box that he tweeked before I put on over 6k miles to Arctic. It will be replaced someday???? I can,t imagine anyone but Colin going thru the motions he does, so very glad he now has a good camera, his vocabulary is way over my Idiots guide upbringing (some of the time) :flower: Safe travels !
'69 weekender ~ Elwood

barrysmith
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Post by barrysmith » Thu Aug 14, 2008 7:13 pm

Amskeptic wrote:
Lanval wrote:Seeing this makes me feel rather guilty about the nasty squeak that was making you grimace. Alright, alright, it's on the list.
And you should feel guilty. Every squeak is the scream of rending rubber and metal begging for their lives.
But you are off the hook.
Yesterday I drove the very worst front-suspensioned bus in my career.
I was actually so nervous that I had to pull over before continuing with the test drive. Every joint in the front suspension and steering was completely loose and knocking, every tie rod joint, both drag link joints, the center pin, the ball joints, it was soooooo loose that the steering wheel had well over a foot and a half of play at the steering wheel rim.
The bus was a sweetheart though, like a dog missing two legs but wagging its tail and barking joyfully and farting noxious clouds of leaky valve cover on hot heat exchanger. I won't tell you whose bus it was.
Hey Barry Smith, how ya doon?
great,you would have shit little rabbit turds if you had driven it before I put brakes on it :bom:

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dhoch14
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Post by dhoch14 » Fri Aug 15, 2008 8:51 am

coling, i heart your rants. keep up the good work.
:)
93 VW T4 2.4D Cali

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Fri Aug 15, 2008 11:00 am

barrysmith wrote: great,you would have shit little rabbit turds if you had driven it before I put brakes on it :bom:
A terrifying thought with that driveway of yours that dumps you into the chute that throws you onto the main road down the hill. But then again, once you know it is over, there is a certain bliss that overtakes you. . . and a functional steering wheel would only tease you with a hapless hope that you might save yourself as you hurtle down the hill.

You have a good car there, Barry, it is merely waiting for sunnier days, mechanically speaking. . . and floorboards :cherry:
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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