Builds Shipwreck (5 Viewers)

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Which swap meet was that? I took my wife to breakfast then weeded the back yard with my son. That was quite enough for me for one day. I got an email about a trail ride around 10 am, but it was too late to head out for a Sunday.

SuperBuickGuy said:
1) yes
2) already did
3) you're correct.
a) maybe
b) at this point they are coated so they won't rust (except where I welded the tabs to them)
4) nope

I got a swap meet in yesterday so I'm good :)
Click to expand...
 
about the vents....


this is what's under the windshield frame. I replumbed the system to create room for the electronics box in the dash.

speaking of other unseen changes... boxing the frame was absolutely the right idea. The difference between a stock '40 and mine is light years... no rattles, precise steering, no wallowing, no squeeks....
 
I don't know, I kinda like the rattles, imprecise steering, wallowing, and squeaks. It says "Old FJ40" to everyone within a mile or so. If they are hard of hearing then they can smell it coming. Plus if someone tried to steal it they would pull over within one block and abandon it for fear of their lives.

SuperBuickGuy said:
speaking of other unseen changes... boxing the frame was absolutely the right idea. The difference between a stock '40 and mine is light years... no rattles, precise steering, no wallowing, no squeeks....
Click to expand...
 
The odometer on mine broke at 75k ish... No idea how many times it rolled over. My new Odometer has about 5k miles on it. I'll use that one. :)
 
Good news, the speedometer works, the temp gauge works, the oil pressure gauge works. Unfortunately the oil pressure is low and the coolant temp is a bit higher than I want... it's also louder than I want.... that is an issue that I will solve in addition to the others.

As for the oil problem. I verified the gauge was working correctly with another gauge... so now it's time to start trying stuff like replacing the adapter - it has a bypass that could cause the issues. I also could have issues because it's running at about 220 degrees - which is fine since I used Evans waterless coolant, so I also am going to build a shroud to help the fan out... in any case, it's really close to being ready for its maiden run. If I don't solve the oil pressure problem, I'll simply increase the viscosity and perhaps throw a high-volume pump at it. At this point it's about 2 lbs into the worry point (8 psi at idle).... but I seriously doubt there's any major issue.... and I did re-use the filter adapter... so that could be it.

last night was exciting too, painting widgets


the bench is almost clear... glorious


hmmm, nice drive in the country, nice time to coat the undercarriage with purple oil


oh yes, and wheels too


both of them... annoying because I thought I'd solved this one


oil leaks are because I don't have a vent tube on the transfer case.... as it's as high up as I can get it, I have to get creative on how to run the tube.


gratuitous under carriage shot


I did get a nice drive in it - call it 10 miles - that was fun but I think I want more power (which isn't going to happen)
 
Oh I will mention, about the power deal. I'm getting arb air lockers, but I didn't want to buy them until I decided whether or not to 5:38 it or not. as it lopes along at 2000 rpm at 60 mph in 4th gear, the answer is yes. The other question is going to be transfer case gearing - which I may go with a 4:1 set up. Whether or not that means an Atlas case or not, I don't know... but that's all future along with bead locks.
 
Good luck with the temp issue.... for me, and I'm relatively confident it's resolved, it meant:

Big radiator (physically, not thicker core)
Flowkooler high volume (at low rpm) pump
No heat soaking the rad with coolers (up and out of the way)
16" electric fan set up as puller
Pull timing back (I'm right around 7-8* with the carb)

I also happen to have cut fenders and a 1" body lift, so tons of airflow through the bay.

What t-stat are you running? (I'm not sure I believe the 190 t-stat required hype...)
 
good points:
I'll add these so that someone trying to solve the same issue should get a blueprint between all the posts:

Radiator is new and is thicker (and aluminum, which helps)

flow, I don't believe is the issue - at this point there's a huge temp difference between the top of the radiator and the outlet on the top of the motor. which is more an air flow issue than creating more pressure at the top of the radiator. The radiator is cooling well enough,

Timing is set by the computer - it's set at zero degrees and the computer tells it how much.

I have cut fenders too, the exhaust is outside of the frame rails and the headers are wrapped (lowering temps in the engine compartment)

The temp isn't uncontrolled, it's simply higher than I want (this relates to the low-oil-pressure issue). It stays at 220* with a "high" of 228* after sitting and idling 15 minutes in traffic.

The t-stat ... 195* IIRC thermostats are just that, a way to bring the temp up faster, they don't control much of anything about the upper temps except in that they reduces flow thus helping the coolant work properly in the radiator (faster flow can actually increase temps because there must be time for heat-transfer to occur).

Solutions - in this order:
I think, at the moment the fan isn't doing anything and it needs to pull air past the motor. So adding a shroud is next.
I'll probably add an oil cooler - I've used them to great success with hard-blok filled motors to keep them at reasonable temps
If those are ineffective, then I'll add a pusher fan to the radiator - to be honest, I really doubt I'll need it.
 
SuperBuickGuy said:
The t-stat ... 195* IIRC thermostats are just that, a way to bring the temp up faster, they don't control much of anything about the upper temps except in that they reduces flow thus helping the coolant work properly in the radiator (faster flow can actually increase temps because there must be time for heat-transfer to occur).
Click to expand...

I'm not trying to argue, only debate here a little....

The idea of faster flow and cooling issues are sort of moot from what I've read, and the idea behind it may be accurate, but the thought process is backwards.

The purpose of the radiator is to reduce the temperature of the coolant, absolutely.

The more time coolant spends in the radiator to reduce it's temperature, is a direct correlation to the amount of time coolant in the block spends heating up.

The idea is that a higher flowing pump increases the recycling of the fluid in the engine, not increase/decrease the time coolant spends in the radiator.
 
I appreciate the input and the points you brought up were very good. Earlier today my dad and I were talking about his Corvette (1986) and its cold-start issue. He and the mechanic he took it to are vexed because nothing seems to fix it - they went completely through the fuel system... nada. I asked if they'd checked the coil as coils can wear out (increased resistance). It's one of those "everything is new but..." it was the coil. Wasn't an argument and most certainly was something both the mechanic and my dad thought "d'oh!" - sometimes it's the most seemingly simple of suggestions that got overlooked. Point is, two brains is better than one set - simple suggestions are, usually, the right answer and most easily overlooked.
Thank you
 
toyotaspeed90 said:
I'm not trying to argue, only debate here a little....

The idea of faster flow and cooling issues are sort of moot from what I've read, and the idea behind it may be accurate, but the thought process is backwards.

The purpose of the radiator is to reduce the temperature of the coolant, absolutely.

The more time coolant spends in the radiator to reduce it's temperature, is a direct correlation to the amount of time coolant in the block spends heating up.

The idea is that a higher flowing pump increases the recycling of the fluid in the engine, not increase/decrease the time coolant spends in the radiator.
Click to expand...

but with increased speed comes increased pressure - thus where there are restrictions they will be even worse if you increase the pressure (hot spots). still, it's a good thought as the radiator is clearly adequate for cooling.... the respective temps were 228 at the neck, 198 at the top of the radiator, 165 at the bottom. If I pull more air across the radiator with a shroud and across the motor that should drop the temps by a bunch. I'll quantify it after I've built it.
 
Now you are talking about issues I can completely relate to. The chase for cooler temps. My engine ran a perfect 180 when I had the carb. The carb was always on the rich side. Plus I was running 33" tires so a bit less effort to move the heavy beast. 36" tires and a leaner EFI caused immediate cooling issues, even at highway speed. I added a total fan shroud where it was only about 40% at best before. With the new shroud came frame flex interference. In the end I had to cut the fan blade tips for additional clearance and ended up with zero air flow through the radiator at idle. An electric fan with a complete radiator shroud seemed to fix it, however on some trips the temps sit in the 210 range regardless of the fan. Other trips the temps follow the fan set points, up and down, up and down as they should.

If you read all the temp issue posts it seems the best solution is a 4 row aluminum radiator and an electric fan. I think that is a bit simplistic myself, however maintaining a free flow of air through the radiator is the goal. There are many blockage adders such as a winch and additional fluid coolers as well as a blockage of air from leaving the engine compartment such as engine placement, accessories, etc. I personally feel there are as many solutions as there are rigs. No two are exactly the same.

If I continue to struggle with temps on my 40 up next is an oil cooler.
 
I've dealt with so many cooling issues with bottom-sucking C3 (they pull their cooling air from under then the air makes a 270* bend to the radiator that is set at the wrong angle.... to say it's the worst wouldn't be hyperbole). I knew there were problems with the '40s and cooling V8s, I don't agree with one opinion that where the engine sits front to back matters at all. Too often I see people put the motor in too low so that the fan is only pulling from the bottom 2/3 of the radiator (which is a source of cooling problems for Model As as well)... and it was a consideration on mine. At this moment, I still have air in the system (found that out tonight) so I need to get it bled and then make changes. I'm still building a shroud because that is the best way to pull air through the radiator - but part of the problem at this point could be simply air in the system.

I'm not going to break my arm patting myself on my back, but I'm very glad I've got Evans coolant in the system - it won't boil so it can get hot, but without air pockets it takes quite a bit more temp before issues (like melting wires) start happening (call it a 100* buffer, I can get to 300 degrees without negative effects)
 
We're going to cover a lot of ground tonight, so grab a beverage, get comfortable... and here we go

as I mentioned before, I have adjustment in the panhard bar, a change happened




next
there's a cooling system issue, but this doesn't solve it. It simply allows me to shut off the heater during the summer






and I noticed one problem - no coolant in that line. there should be

So I filled the system, and it was at least a quart low with no fluid in the reserve canister…. Hopefully this fixes it

Then worked on the center console



Why they didn’t have an outlet inside is odd, but it’s fixed now

And circle back to a question of how the defroster works… here it is



Then onto installing the bikini



Nice n tight top



Then onto starting the dash

this won’t be the final version, but it is for testing to see where I want it to be. Eventually it’ll have a shield in the middle, lights and maybe a touch of padding

Rocksliders/step

Maybe this?











My motorcycle is feeling lonely

 
The only aspect of engine location I can agree with - is if stuffed against the firewall it could limit airflow around and out the back. The idea that the best way to cool is a giant mechanical fan, I don't buy.

Also after some readig, I don't think thicker radiators are really the solution either - there seems to be just as many guys overheating with 2, 3, and 4 core aluminum radiators.

As I said - I found some really good info pertaining to the size of the tubes in the radiator, using cross flow design, and physical size (surface area) that is exactly what led me to the thick 2 core (much larger inner tubing) physically large cross flow unit I ended up with. The radiator itself was actually pretty cheap at under $200. The lower hose debacle.... that was some thing very different....

As far as the water pump goes - in racing I understand the notion of higher rpm = higher temps, but also increased speed of water pump (increased flow). The actual reason I wanted the Flowkooler is because it provides significantly more flow at lower rpm speed - which is usually the hardest cooling on a v8 fj40... slow wheeling.

I may contact you for a little more detail on the vents.... since I have a bit of electronic 'stuff' back there on mine as well and don't have room to use the stock pipes.


To srgould..... Lean runs hot... IF your system default to a rich behavior when the o2 fails - try a simple test of unplugging your o2 to force it to run rich and see how your temps do....
 
Let's see if I can convince you about mechanical fans.

What is better, a fan powered by a 350 hp motor, or one powered by a 1/3 hp motor? It's all about CFM. The more hp, the more potential cfm. Electric fans can work better at slow speed, but with clutch fans, you get far more CFM than you ever will with an electric fan. On top of this, you can get fans with more blades (like is on my '40) to move more air at idle. OEM uses them because it increases fuel economy in their EPA cert tests.... in real life, always go mechanical first, always use a clutch, then get an electric fan. Don't hook it up to a thermostat, rather hook it to a switch that you can control.

Cooling is all about surface area, the more area the better. Of course, if you pack the fins too close together then they become subject to being plugged by dust and bugs - which, of course, reduces available cooling surface area.

cooling is also about viscosity, the thicker the fluid, the more difficult it is to cool - not because it's holding heat but because the contact the fluid has with the cooling fins is reduced. With that said, the thicker the fluid the better it can transport heat from one point to another. When running an ice-box intercooler for turbos, we tend to use thicker fluids to transport the heat to gain some efficiency.

one of the things a lot of people don't remember about cooling is that rust insulates. If you don't change your fluid regularly, you get a build-up on the surface that insulates and reduces the ability of the heat to get to the fluid to be transported away. This is doubly true with the Orange coolant. Orange coolant keeps electrolysis from happening, but it MUST be changed at 100k miles and should be changed at 50k to keep it from building up.

Speed, the only way I've seen speed of water being an issue is when someone buys into that silly notion that reducing pulley diameter increases hp. On a dyno, it's easy to show "an increase" in real life... back in the day one of the ways to tell noob from sandbagger was whether or not they had small pulleys on their motor. A sign of noob was small pulleys - small pulleys could indicate the inability to properly tune a motor... when you're racing for cash, you look for things like that. Of course, if the motor sounded well-tuned... well, there's the game.
 
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