Kilgore47

With the repaired linkage installed the clutch pedal returns to the full up position every time now. Good thing because I was starting to wear a spot on the top of my left shoe where I would hook my shoe under the pedal to pull it back up. I see some other linkage wear under there but it's not as bad as the one I fixed. Guess I'll save that for a future project.

So it sounds like what I found is normal and nothing to worry about. Kinda scared me when I first saw it. Found the same gray stuff at the bottom of the by pass oil filter.

Lead. Never would have thought of that. It was a thin layer at the bottom of the pan. I was wondering why more of it didn't stick to the magnet. I'm sure the PO used leaded fuel as long as it was available. That's what everyone did back then. And keithb7. Your guess is correct. That's exactly the oil I'm going to use. How did you know

One of the reasons for pulling the pan on the P15 today was to check the rear main seal. When I would raise the front of the car oil would run out of the back of the engine. With the pan off I could see a couple of places where the gasket did not seal in the corners close to the rear seal. If the rear seal was bad wouldn't the fly wheel be covered in oil? It is not. And the clutch is dry. These pictures were taken before I dropped the pan. Guess I'll put it back together with a new pan gasket and see what happens. Now that I know it's easy to drop the pan. If I have to take it off again it won't be so grubby. Everything will be clean. I can fix that - I think

I finally got brave enough to pull the oil pan on the 47 P15 today. It was actually easy. Except for the really grubby part. Stuff falling in my face. Probably going to toss that T shirt in the garbage. When I adjusted the valves there wasn't any sludge in there. So I didn't expect to find very much if any in the pan. I found a little more than a quarter inch of sludge in the bottom of the pan. The pick up screen was clean. The surprise part is that under the black sludge there was a gray sludge. This gray matter is dense and around the outside and in the corners. It has metal in it. I was able to pick up the metal with a magnet. The other surprise part is that I also found small wire brush parts in the gray sludge. The wire brush parts were probably left over from the rebuild in the mid 70's. The other very fine metal flake looking stuff may be from the break in 45 years ago. Metal in the pan is never a good thing. But the gray sludge appears to have been held in place all these years by the black sludge. I checked the rods and there is a little front to back movement but no up and down movement that I could feel. The PO told me they put a rebuilt engine in the car in 1974 when they pulled it out of a field. They also told me that it didn't have many miles on it. I guess it is what it is. I'm going to clean everything I can get to and put it back together with a magnet glued to the drain plug. Drain the oil in a couple of hundred miles and see in any more metal has collected on the magnet. I'm also going with a detergent oil when I put it back together. Not telling what viscosity I'll be using. That would get too many comments? More news latter

Roll around peg board. I like it. I would have to build one that is shorter to go with the sit down creeper. It could be long instead of tall. I use the "pile of tools on the floor" method when working under the car. And they always move themselves under the wheels of the creeper?. One time when I was trying to push past a tool on the floor it turned out to be my phone that had fallen out of my pocket. Had to get a new phone after that.

Got the clutch linkage fixed. Decided to re use the original pin also. I finished the items to look much better than shown but I forgot to take another picture before I re installed them. There are a couple more projects under the car before I can put it back on the ground and go for a test drive.

The clutch on the P15 didn't feel right. It had stopped returning to the full up position all the time. So I got under the car and started looking around. The clutch was about to fail because of linkage wear. That oval in the end on the rod that goes to the throw out bearing fork is supposed to be a round hole. The pin is not supposed to have a notch in it. I'm sure I can find a pin at the hardware store but I'll have to weld up the oval in the rod and then drill it back out.

We have had hundred degree plus days for over a month now. Electric and water bills are up there. Still cheaper than a bar tab. In the northern areas people store their cars in the winter. Too cold (and salt). Here in east Texas I don't drive my P15 in the summer - too hot. At 6 pm it's still a hundred degrees or more. A small chance for rain this week and that could bring the temp down to 99. In the evenings when I water there is a hummingbird that flies into the mist to get a drink. Tried to get a picture but the bird is too small and it doesn't show up in the picture. Only a month or so to go and then it should start cooling down.

Many of the bolts on these blocks goes through to the cooling jacket. So it could be for a bracket. Don't know what yours are for. It's always a good idea to add thread sealant to avoid future coolant leaks.

Couldn't get the link to work. I destroyed one while replacing the boots on the 47 P15. And now the new boots are cracking. I'll probably replace the drive shaft with one that has modern U joints the next time I have to fool with it.

Take the relay you have apart to see if you can fix it. May just be a corroded contact that can be cleaned. As stated above - check the ground first.

I roll off the creeper onto my knees. Then it's easy to get up. Easier. A friend has a power recliner. It has a battery back up. If the power goes out it automatically goes back down. Real slow it's only a 9 volt battery. The chair you have may include that feature and just needs the battery.

Using the new welder I built a sit down creeper. Started with 20 foot sticks of steel and ended up with this. Don't think I made a good choice on the rubber wheels so I'll probably change those out for steel wheels. I used the lay down creeper I have and pictures from the internet as a guide. This was a cut to suit, beat to fit and paint to match project. The end lifts I have only get the car about four feet off the ground so this will make it easier to do lube jobs and other work under the car. All in it cost about 75 dollars to build. The upholstery guy in our group gave me the material to cover it. I used hinges from a door I replaced for the pivot points. The back lays down so it can be used for a lay down creeper and then the seat raises for a head rest. There are ones similar to this for sale but I decided to try building one. It was a fun project.

Many years back I went to a dealer to test drive a new car. The salesman kept trying to get me to punch it to see how powerful it was. Told him no thanks but he kept bugging me. So I punched it. Well the throttle stuck open and there was a red light ahead with cars stopped at it. Shifted the trans to neutral and got the car stopped in plenty of time. Turns out the dealer would flip the floor mats over so they wouldn't get dirty on the test drives. That allowed the floor mat to slide up over the gas pedal and hold it open. I knew what to do because of the experience with the junkers I had when I was a teenager. Had to be ready for failures on those old cars. The young salesman was a basket case after we stopped. Bet he never tried to get anyone to punch it again after that.

Been practicing with the new welder. Getting better. I think I'm getting better at grinding than welding. Gona make a run today to pick up more grinding and cutting wheels. Building a creeper now. I'll add pictures when it's further along.

I had the exhaust replaced on the 47 P15 about a year ago at a local muffler shop. Under 300 dollars for a manifold back installation. This shop also works on old cars. Looks like it came from the factory.

Thanks for the video. That gave me a good idea. Start with a hand truck. And just add to it. This is what I have now. I had to modify it to fit this welder. As you can see it doesn't look stable.

The main problem with this cart is that it is narrow. The welder is almost 40 pounds and with the tank on board it wants to tip over. If the wheels were further apart it would probably work better. And yes the chains do not hold the tank well at all. I'll come up with a better strap for that. I'll try a wider stance for the cart before I build another one.

I finally got a good welder. A Miller Multimatic 215. MIG/TIG and stick capable. With automatic settings and a gas purge. It's the new inverter technology and time will tell if that was a good choice. Got it from a local guy that does the service and warranty work on these machines in this area. I didn't get the TIG gun - Not sure I need that. So far I'm happy with it but I don't have much welding experience to compare it to. The first thing I welded on was the cheap welding cart I got from HF. Probably going to start from scratch and build a good cart. Today I'm going to start welding together a sit down creeper. Got the metal to build it at a local shop for about 30 dollars. More news latter about that.

Cannuck - You may not need to replace the bearings. The axle bearings on the P15 were changed because they were dry and rusted. Fell apart when I pulled the axles. And that fixed the rumbling noise. Seals are a good idea and fairly easy to replace. On another note - Newer cars I have worked on didn't have an inner seal on the axle. The oil in the rear end lubricates the axle bearings. Has anyone left the inner seal out on one of these old cars and did it work? That could eliminate a lubrication point that is often overlooked.

One of the projects a couple of years back while trying to get the 47 P15 back on the road was a complete brake job. When the rear drums came off everything was covered in grease. The PO told me they had done a brake job and I could tell that the shoes looked new. They must not have replaced the seals. When I see stuff like that I always say to myself "I can fix that". And I did. After new seals, bearings, cylinders and shoes everything looked and worked like new. Well - A couple of days back with the car in the air for another project I noticed a drop of oil on the floor under the left rear wheel. So I pulled the drum off and everything is covered in grease. The new seal must have failed. Pulled the other side off and the same thing. Covered in grease. Turns out I did the same thing the PO did. Didn't check the vent and it was plugged. It's clear now and new parts are on order. I can fix that - I think

Sent you an email

The 47 P15 has several broken clips that hold the hub caps on. So I leave the caps off while driving and then I put them on when I get to a show. Take them back off when I leave. New clips have been collected and I'll install them one day.

That's funny about the boat. I once put a good metal chair at the curb with a free sign on it. Sat there for a couple of days. Then I put a 10 dollar price tag on it and within a few hours someone stole it.