Australian Belly Tank

[Dr Goggles]

Geez mate, 2000ft doesn't sound like much of a pull. I live at 5400ft & hafta go to 7000 just to get outa here. I guess I've forgotten how flat it is down there & got used to how lumpy it is up here.

most likely bigger roads where you are...that's a single lane going up to Omeo.

Anyways , I'm going out this afternoon to pick up the diff parts that were marshalled at Sparky central in Phoenix for shipping out here to the Spirit of Sunshine complex via the kind hel[p of Norm Hardinge who took his 34 roadster to Speedweek. There've been mumblings between me and the Colonel about exactly how we're going to effect the change from the Borg Warner centre to the Ten bolt. We'll be keepin the Ford axle tubes and going to 28 spline axles, they're Ford but will by all accounts fit into the Torsen centre...so we'll be leaving the axles tubes in the rear superstructure and just changing the pumpkin, procedure yet to be determined.


Still just rounding up a few little bits and pieces for the motor build..............I'll be gittin back to ya soon..........

[Dr Goggles]

Picked up a new balancer yesterday for the motor, the Colonel figured the oil leak we had last year probably wasn't helped by the harmonic balancer having a groove worn into it by the timing cover seal......When I spoke to the guy I got it from on the phone I'd asked him , after telling him what the motor was for,what advantage I'd see buying a "racing" version...there was a pause and he said..
..." a bigger bill".
I also picked up the VSR set we needed to get from eBay nice and cheap......it's budget racing here guys.

Just got back this afternoon from Camperdown ( town of 2000 people)where we went so I could write a story on a hot rod and rockabilly festival. My sister lives there but was away so we had an empty house.The Reverend and his good lady have a farm just near there but we gave them the slip..Beautiful drive down there to what's called the Western District,volcanic plains and after the recent heavy drought breaking rain it was all incredibly green and lush.

Saw my favorite local rockabilly band the Straight Eights last night  in the Palais theater there must have been nearly a thousand people there it was ace. Spent the day checking out cars , the weather was perfect... lots of good stuff, lots of customs, lots of 50's Buicks and a fair few Caddies too. Of course it was thick with the usual A's 32's 4's and T's One guy who I met at the Chopped show I wrote about a few weeks back has a 32 with an LS2 said
"I've done 24 thousand mile in it since I got it on the road"....
"when was that?" ...
"...late last year"
When I saw him at the Chopped show he was racing the dirt drags , and he was giving it to it... good to see them getting used.

[Dr Goggles]

It's been a busy week here......Thursday night I went up to Kalkallo to Norm Hardinge's place to pick up the diff parts that came back in his container. Sadly I didn't have much time to spare when I got there...front and central was the 34 roadster that has been to Bonneville the last few years ( finally topping the 2 this year)......Behind it was the ruthlessly chopped 34 coupe with V12 and a valanced cowl that's in the build, just a tiny patina of surface rust on the hand fabbed bodywork and some big Hurst slicks on the rear.....despite the left of centre appointments there's more than just a hint of Pierson there.

This shot shows the 7.5 inch Torsen series 2 Centre courtesy of our man in Phoenix Az. Sparky has been a great help in all this. Actually it was his idea, his know-how and then he tipped in some of his money and time ....so , we're forever in his debt.



I also stopped by at Steve Angelovski's MACE Engineering .I'd bought , at his suggestion , some relatively cheap forged stainless roller tip roller rockers from the U.S made for an LS-1. Steve separated them and used Eco-tec style needle roller bearing and built a pedestal plate for them to mount to our Buick style V6 heads. Steve specializes in the Holden V6 and although there are several options for the later Ecotec there are no roller rockers that will bolt up to the Series 1. Steve was very helpful, cheaper than cheap and nice into the bargain.He and his dad have a garage operation making bolt on upgrade parts and sell it all through mail-order...it's strange the way the net has taken us full circle.....He's keen to be involved in the car and also picked up the knowledge for a reasonably priced conversion for which there was nothing available.....he also waved the possibility of a group buy ( 100 sets, cheap)for some forged pistons under my nose.....hmmmmmmm...

this is how the LS-1 rockers came....



here with the changed bearing.....



and here sitting on the pedestal plate...the heads are at the Colonel's otherwise I would have shot them "in situ".....

[Milwaukee Midget]

Mr. Angelovski seems to be a wizard - very crafty adaptation.

This year promises to be very interesting for the SOS . . . much is changing.

Putting together seemingly unrelated clues and jumping to a wild supposition, my guess is the Dr. is pondering aesthetics again.  You've been talking about a new steering set-up, which I suspect will call for some modifications to the nose area, and a new rear install.  Paint gets chipped - aw, shucks - "hey, mate, it's lookin' a little tired" - blah blah blah.  I remember you lobbying for new paint last year, and what better excuse?

[Dr Goggles]

Well , I had been pushing for a new look but I have to say it'd be a hard one to top the one we have now. As for "paint gets chipped" etc....none of you have seen the car close up.......... I can use a gun but to say I could have put more time into the prep and paint on the car would be a wild understatement....add to that getting the front kicked in this year when I went for a test flight at the seven mile somewhere around 190mph...the fact that the canopy could be described as " a prototype" at best....if this thing went to a body shop there wouldn't be anyone standing around scratching their head wondering what to do.... HOWEVER , that won't be happening anytime soon.......

The new rear end won't be going in before the 2011 meet , the change to rack and pinion steering won't be til after that is done and likely not til after the 181 inch motor is built.....the rack conversion will be cheap, and time consuming.....the motor build will be costly, and will take time....

So in answer to the question yeah, sure, just as soon as we've done all the other stuff.......2013 maybe

[Dr Goggles]

You know how it is when you get a new part.... I'm looking at the centre thinking I've been told they will but it's be nice to check whether the axles fit that centre... yeah, the 28 spline Ford ones that I broke the bank( $45) to buy.....

As I'm prising the centre out of the housing I notice that it seems to have a little rust on it..huh?.......then as it comes out I see what looks like a handful of salt in the housing...OMG! I gave it the taste test and sho-nuff ,Utah salt!!!...hahahaha as it has been man-handled at Bonneville it has taken a divot out of the lake which has then fallen down the axle tube.....I hosed everything and doused it in CRC, no damage.....I held it up and clunk, it slipped over the axle ....nice.

[Dr Goggles]

Just found this one....



and a good one of the Colonel



The Reverend pushing me off, photographer Simon Davidson  with camera...

[Milwaukee Midget]

Now that's a pic of a cocksure crew.

By the way, Doc, tradition dictates that you're to return that salt from whence it came.

[Stainless1]

That's a motley crew if I've ever seen one...  
Nice shirts, I've heard rumors that wearing one under your firesuit will make your car go faster....   always worked for me  
I agree the salt must be returned... or mixed with Australian salt on the lakebed for luck
 

[grumm441]

and a good one of the Colonel

Fixing his stuffup

That's a motley crew if I've ever seen one... 

Yep

Nice shirts, I've heard rumors that wearing one under your firesuit will make your car go faster....

Wearing one under your SCTA/BNI shirt makes your rental car go pretty fast when your last off the lake as well
G

[Lynchy]

Wearing one under your SCTA/BNI shirt makes your rental car go pretty fast when your last off the lake as well

Graham - we cracked 100mph at El Mirage in the mighty Grand Caravan, did you beat that?

Lynchy

[grumm441]

Wearing one under your SCTA/BNI shirt makes your rental car go pretty fast when your last off the lake as well

Graham - we cracked 100mph at El Mirage in the mighty Grand Caravan, did you beat that?

Lynchy

Yep
Gee those grand caravans go for a little motor
G

[grumm441]

Anyhow
Speaking of little motors
I got a bit of time to pull the "good motor" to bits today
Here's some pictures
I don't want to see any crying from Headbut and Googles
It seems we have had a bit of galling on the pistons and a bit of spinning of bearings
I'm kind of glad I didn't pull the short motor to bits before it two runs at 195
I may have recommended they took it easy
And the beer is a coopers home-brew, not coopers red. Can't drink coopers red. Yuk
G

[grumm441]

So I have just been across the road to speak to my neighbour who has a KE55 Toyota corolla with a turbo rotary in it
This wouldn't be a problem except that it wakes my girl when she is trying to sleep( I don't seem to sleep). It is so loud that when I am sitting in the back room of my house on the turbo timer, it is louder than my TV
He, the corolla guy, asked me  what I knew about cars.....
Yep
I used to own a corolla with a Buick motor. not quite as much fun as the datsun 510 with the 327. but fun just the same
A lot of fun. And a very old photo from back when I had hair
G

[wobblywalrus]

The undersides of the piston crowns.  Are they black or dark brown with a coating of burnt oxidized oil?