Tell us a good southern engineering story

[jaguar]

Here's mine:
My shock blew out, and chewed up the teflon seal band around the piston head. Without it there is no rebound or compression control, just all spring. Well, I looked around for something to use and found the teflon/metal band for the fork slider (the upper one) is the same diameter and thickness. It was just about twice the width so I had to cut it through the middle lengthwise to match what I need. Oh, the o-ring that goes below the band was also destroyed so I just used silicone sealant under the metal/teflon band. Put it all together and it works! Not as good as it should but it will get me by until the new band and o-ring arrives.

OK, let's here your story of high tech garage engineering.

 

[skipro3]

I once needed a 90mm long 6 x .1 mm bolt to hold my clutch cover on. The longest I could find was a 80 mm. I got a length of all thread rod in 6 mm and with a couple of nuts binding to each other threaded on, made myself a bolt. Now I always keep an assortment of all thread rods around with several nuts threaded onto them to make myself temporary bolts.

 

[skipro3]

Here's another:
I was on an off road 4WD trip when my fuel pump quit. I ended up flushing and filling the windshield wiper fluid tank with gas and rerouting the hose from the windshield to the carborater and pushing the wash button on the dash to get back to civilization. It was a rough trip, but sure beat walking or leaving the rig out there in the woods.

 

[crazymike]

Here's another:
I was on an off road 4WD trip when my fuel pump quit. I ended up flushing and filling the windshield wiper fluid tank with gas and rerouting the hose from the windshield to the carborater and pushing the wash button on the dash to get back to civilization. It was a rough trip, but sure beat walking or leaving the rig out there in the woods.

lol, that's awsome

 

[shr]

That would be 6x1 mm, not 6x.1 mm ??????

 

[skipro3]

My typing, she not so good senio'r. 6 x 1.00

As far as my story on the makeshift fuel pump, that was not the first attempt to subsitute a bad pump. I once used a Corona beer bottle. By carefully removing the cap to that long neck bottle. I drained the beer and refilled the bottle with gas. Then I took an ice pick and poked a hole in the cap and placed it back on the bottle snuggly. Placed it into the top of the carburetor upside down and fired it up. One hole wasn't enough though. Experimentation proved that 3 holes worked great for the proper speed to make it out. I had to drive with the hood up with that bottle sticking out of the carb. Not too easy on a 4WD trail, I'll tell you what. But the clear Corona bottle made it easy to tell when I was getting low on gas so I wouldn't stall on a tough part of the trail.

 

[ScottS]

You should always carry an extra fuel pump- it it has happened to you twice you must be marked.

 

[Moteaux]

You should always carry an extra fuel pump- it it has happened to you twice you must be marked.

Or at least carry extra Corona. :) Or would that be Corona Extra? ;)

 

[skipro3]

Corona Lite. BTW the lime wedge in the bottle did not seem to affect engine performance, so don't waste extra money for the higher octane boost.
I'm out of the 4WD stuff as a "fun" activity. Bikes are much cheaper and easier to get out of the forest when they break.

 

[dirt bike dave]

On my '84 kdx, the woodruff key sheared, allowing the flywheel to spin on the end of the crankshaft. My buddy and I had just drove 2.5 hour to get to the riding area. We used tin snips to cut a small section from a thick washer, used that as a woodruff key, and rode about 60 miles of single track that day.

 

[Rhodester]

skipro, I thought I did pretty good when the gas line froze late at night on a '74 Torino 351(W) many years ago. It was about 25 below zero with no real tools on board. I drizzled gas between the 2 carburater barrels with a bottle to get us to a gas station that had gas line dryer/antifreeze. Kept dizzling until the gas line thawed enough to flow again. I honestly never would have thought of that windshield pump/tank trick or 2 bottles with lids to punch holes in. That would have kept me from freezing my rear end off! Good thinking.

 

[skipro3]

Yup, sitting in the shade along side the trail with a busted 4wd and a Corona, then inspiration hits ya.
'74 Torino or Gran Torino? My boss had one back then:

Engine was a 351-V4 Cobra Jet (Not a Cleveland)

Took it to Death Valley and had it up over 150 mph.

 

[crazymike]

I'm not sure how true this story is, but my dads not one for tall tales.

He said he was at the cottage one fall and they had just got hit with early snow. His MGB went off the road and down into the ditch at about 3am. Since nobody was around to help he would have to get it out himself. But MGBs don't come standard with winches :P

He claims to have taken a rope and wrapped it around the rear wheel then tied the other end to a tree at the top of the ditch. Then he put the car in gear and let the rope wind around the tire pulling himself out.

Worth a try for anyone with nothing to lose :p

 

[KevinHasNOMOney]

hole in used blasters crank case. looked like there was a crack in it, and sumone tried welding the aluminum with a standerd mig welder, and created a bigger hole. 200 dollars for a new case, and it wouldnt come for about 2 weeks. so we loaded that baby with JB weld, let it cure, then sealed it with caulk...ha

 

[YZ165]

A friend and I were out in the desert when one of his chain adjuster bolts snapped off. After contemplating the two-up, 15 mile, whooped out, sandy ride back to the truck, we jammed an apropriatley sized rock in there and took it easy. It fell out twice, but rocks are cheap and abundant in the desert! It worked! :aj: