I wanted to do some welding today, but the weather is not cooperating. I'll see if I can't get further on this project to I can get all the hoses and radiator back into the engine compartment.
I decided to replace the timing belt. It has been replaced in the past few years, but since it was sitting in one place for so long and had a large pile of nuts jammed into it (courtesy of some squirrels, chipmunks and mice) I decided it was best to replace it. In order to replace it I have to pop off the tensioner, water pump pulley and possibly the crankshaft pulley. We'll see about that. The first thing I removed was the water pump pulley. I did this over a week ago. Yesterday I found some time to media blast it, prime it and topcoat it. You won't be able to see this pulley in my engine bay, but it will help it last another 30 years. Looks nice, right? I wanted to do some welding today, but the weather is not cooperating. I'll see if I can't get further on this project to I can get all the hoses and radiator back into the engine compartment.
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I have a large skill set. I went to art school and worked with metal, wood and glass. After graduating I went to work at companies that build custom waterfalls and stained glass installation and fabrication. Luckily, all of those jobs have allowed me flexibility when I run across problems.
The latest problem I have come across while dealing with my Fiat Spider are the door cards. Under the upholstery on the doors is an 1/8" piece of masonite ( a material easily acquired at your home store ). A few weeks ago I picked up some masonite along with a sheet of MDF to create a template. Two nights ago I stripped the vinyl, foam and hardware from the door card. Today I glued the warped door card to my piece of MDF by spraying it with adhesive and sandwiching it between two hollow core doors (*see notation below). Tonight I will remove the card and MDF from the rig and see if it adhered properly. If so, I will use my saw, drill and router template bit to create a perfect template for additional card creation. Who knows, maybe I'll start selling cards. After the template is made it is relatively easy to replicate the shape. PIcs to come. *Hollow core doors are amazing for the DIY individual. They can become a work space on saw horses, block dust when cutting, make cheap workbench tops, are a flat surface on grass to paint and even for squishing two boards together so they glue up well. If you find any at a yard sale or replace any in your house, be sure to have at least two laying around to help you out. Today I spent over two hours trying to figure out what nuts to put on the sender unit of the Fiat Spider gas tank. After going to two different stores and returning the same nuts twiceI figured out the size. At the second store, the clerk recommended I use a die to re-cut the threads which had been filled in by previous applications of rust preventative. After re-cutting the threads it was obvious that the sender was held in by 4M .70 metric nuts. Once I replaced the missing nuts I was able to pressure test the tank and find that there were no leaks. That was a very exciting discovery. Most of my simple projects on this car usually require some sort of extra effort. Like patching the radiator (which was done), scraping rubber off the floor in the passenger compartment or finding missing pieces. It took me less time to wire brush and prep the tank for rust reform than it did to find the proper nuts for the sender unit. Who knew! I used Rustoleum Rust Reformer which has gotten pretty good reviews online. We shall see. Ideally I would have media blasted this tank and then painting, but it was too large for my cabinet. I think this application of product should protect the tank for years to come. The previous owner had already sealed the inside of the tank. If it begins to leak eventually I will use a two part gas tank epoxy to fix it. For now, enjoy the pictures. After hanging out in the oil bath all night the passenger caliper piston came loose. I put the brake pad in, put a wood block against it and clamped it down. It took some power, but suddenly it started sliding inward. Which means it's free! Now I just have to wait for everyone to wake up and I'll hook up the compressor to it and give her a push out. I'm hoping I can rebuild it. Only time will tell. Later today I'm going to try and disassemble the rear calipers. They also have been bathing in the MMO.
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