midget,
Uhhhh, might you be persuaded to post something to your thread?
I mean, you know, IF IT'S NOT TOO MUCH TROUBLE!!!!
Sickandcrankyboy
Well, it's been an embarrassing weekend in the Pommy Pigmy Playhouse . . . but in the interest of full disclosure and to be filed under the adage - "Some people learn from other people's mistakes - the rest of us are the other people . . ."
I'm back on the Frankensprite - I absolutely have to get this thing ready to go.
As you may recall . . .
After blowing out the ignition module and receiving a warranty replacement, and with Kate's help, I got the ignition properly dialed in tonight. Got it to idle, and after it warmed up a tad, I gave it a stiff stab of the throttle - and Mount Vesuvius erupts.
Blew the hose right off the fitting. I killed the ignition instantly - nothing's damaged but my ego - but now I need to tear the whole front end off again.
New hose, new fittings, and double checking flow through the filter . . .
Most oil filters flow with the center being the outlet. Check your lines to make sure the flow is in the proper direction, if not, it is a simple fix.
. . . and making a "simple fix", I was able to fire up the little turd.
Despite my clean-up, though, the header wraps remained soaked in oil - and of course, 6 months later, I had forgotten that little fact. We can discuss the merits of header wraps all day, but in a street car with close proximity headers and tight footwells, they're mandatory.
So the plumbing is done, the car fires right up, and within a minute, the entire garage is filled with oil smoke. I shut it down, and come back to it on Sunday.
I'm looking at the car, and in order to remove the header, I will need to drain the block, remove the radiator, disconnect the exhaust, pull the engine.
So I come up with what I think is a great plan to get the oil out of the webbing - saturate it with solvent.
Now I came up with this idea BEFORE I started using the solvent. Brake cleaner seemed my most logical choice.
There are two varieties, flammable and non-flammable. Okay, logic would dictate non-flammable - after all, I'm using it on exhaust, the price is the same - ON SALE AT BLAIN'S FARM AND FLEET FOR $1.99. $13.93 later, I'm heading home with 7 cans.
The other difference is the non-flammable product is chlorinated - the non-chlorinated product is flammable.
BUT -
When you're working in a garage with a kerosene space heater blowing, and vapors from chlorinated brake fluid are heated, things start to smell like a swimming pool.
I opened the door and cleared it out, and wound up with nothing more than a headache, but after reading a few message boards, it occurred to me that, despite my best intentions to not burn the garage to the foundation, I was NOT doing this the safe way.
Fortunately, the brake fluid removed quite a bit of the oil, and the last few evenings, I've spent a few 5 minute sittings in the garage with the engine on, the door open, and have slowly smoked off most of the remaining oil in the wrap.
I have a friend in Illinois who, from time to time, reminds me to "Stop Doing Stupid $#IT".
But sometimes, I have difficulty distinguish clever from stupid . . .