Toys

Okay...
It's late in the day to be posting, I know.  My usual posts are first thing in the morning, but I slept in today!  I stayed up late last night.  I took advantage of not having class this week.  Pardon me, while I remind everyone that I'm a girl...Hubby was out playing poker, I had the house to myself, and I had ice cream for dinner while I watched Hell's Kitchen.  Picture perfect!

So, what to blog about...?

I actually planned to take some pictures of the car today and do a nice picture post.  Instead, I've been watching roller derby videos on YouTube, working out, and just enjoying my day off being lazy.

Instead, you get a lame post about my new toy.  Well, it's not really mine...it's my brother's.  When Dad passed away, of course the tools all went to the one son.  I'm fine with that.  He will definitely use them more over the span of the rest of our lives.

I had no idea they made electric versions of these!

I'm sure you all lost sleep when you heard about all the trouble I was having trying to get the tires off the Barracuda.  Well, Brother Dan brought Dad's old electric impact wrench to try.  He has left it with me in case I need it again.
I have to say that the best thing about this old car is how it has really brought me and my brother a little bit closer.  I can see that he is happy to be able to help me.
He said at one point that he thought it was great that I was taking this class.  I told him I was glad because now, if I had to call and ask about something, he could tell me over the phone and there was a better chance I'd actually know what he was talking about.  Then he remarked that it was just like when he would call Dad about something, 'just to make sure' that he was on the right track.  I could tell he would be happy if I called with a question.  I could tell that he is happy to be helping me.  I am happy knowing he can do the body work!!

Yep, It's only Sunday

This past Friday marked a year since our dad passed away.  Steph and I got together for brunch with our brother at one of the local IHOP restaurants.  It was Dad's favorite place to go on the rare occasion we got together outside of his house.  He always treated, and it was no different this time!  I had found a bucket of change when we went through his things, and I still had it with some of his stuff in my basement.  We changed it in at the bank to use towards our meal...$43!!  Thanks for the food, Dad!  Cheers to your painless year.

While we were all together, I took the opportunity to pick my brother's brain.  He offered to come out to my house with his acetylene torch and his electric impact wrench to see if we could figure a way to get the tires off.  Either my wrench or the air compressor I was using or the combination just wasn't powerful enough, because the lug nuts came off lickety-split with his impact wrench.  No need for heat, after all!

Junky old car: great place to raise your spider family.

Now the car is up on 4 jack stands.  It was quite a task, too.  We started with the rear driver's side.  As the car raised up, it started to twist and slide to the other side.  The front wheel started to toe-in!

Rear driver's side leaf springs.

The old leaf springs are practically flat! As the car lifted, the leafs just separated...zero suspension left here.  Luckily, it is one item Dad bought and still had in the trunk.  I'm all about not having to purchase those!!

So what's with the rusty suitcase on the ground?

Rusty old suitcase for the car's gasoline.

We dropped the gas tank out, while brother was here.  'There's probably still a little gas in there, we can drain it now, if you want.'  That bitch was FULL!!  Gas leaked all over him, me, the driveway...
We poured half of it into a 5 gallon bucket, and it's still nearly half full!!  It's almost as dark as French Onion Soup!  I have no where, really, to put all this old gas until either he comes back for it, or our town's next hazardous waste drop off day.  We'll see which comes first.

I am just glad to have the wheels off.  With 2 classes left, I can get the rims cleaned up and maybe even get new tires to mount and balance while I still have the equipment at my disposal!  Of course, my every day car, the Cavalier, is sucking down gas like no body's business and I'm not sure why!  Air filter? Spark plugs?  Hopefully not a gas leak!
If we get the mostly sunny weather we're supposed to have this week, maybe I will keep taking parts off the car!?
Just as a funny side note: the neighbors across the street look as if the girls are getting a lesson on how to change a tire...

Class #6: Tires from rims (not mine, though)

First thing's first...I love looking out the window at the 'Cuda after a rain storm, sans tarp, with no drops of rain on the inside of the windows!  At least it appears I did the seal replacement correctly!

Now, onto more frustrating matters....
Let's start with the most difficult problem: the wheels.  They seem to have become part of that car.  The 6 or so years it's been sitting out in the elements of the East Coast, on 4 flat tires, has put me in a bad place.
After several classes involving an impact wrench and the removal of tires, I thought I had this.

 I went out and got myself an impact wrench, a couple new jack stands, borrowed an air compressor from a friend, and I even got two of the most beautiful days we've seen out here since the summer.

All set up, ready to tear these wheels off!

Yet, even with all the stars aligning in my favor, I still could not get those damn lugs to budge!
I must be doing something wrong.  Now, to be fair to myself, I did try turning the lug nuts in the opposite direction, just to cover all my bases, but they would not move.
I got on facebook, like any normal person these days would do, to ask...BEG...for help.  I got lots of great advice, just nothing I hadn't tried already.  I had made an extra trip to AutoZone for some PB B'laster (the stuff we use all the time in class), and sprayed and waited.  Tried again.  Sprayed them again...waited overnight and got right back to it after work the next day.  NOTHING!
At this point, I had gotten a couple private messages from a friend of my Great Aunt out in Michigan.  She had shared my facebook plea for help.  This friend of hers said a car this age would probably have left-threaded bolts on the left side wheels.  So, now I was sure I had been tightening them the whole time.
Upon closer inspection, and now with cleaner bolts, due to all the stuff I had sprayed on them, I saw it.  The glaring proof that I have no idea what I'm doing!

The little 'L's should've been a tip-off, but I didn't notice them until I knew to look for them!

Unfortunately, even the other side gave me grief.  So, I didn't have my wheels to take to class.  I was hoping to use the equipment in class to get those tires free.  We did learn how to do that...and we used the tire balancer, too.  I'm not giving up.  As much as I want to.  That stupid car wants to live again...who am I to deny her that!?  If I can get the tires off, I still have two classes left, and I know how to use the machines now, so...it's still possible!

But class was not all tires, last night.  I also learned how to test and remove and replace a battery.  I'm not about to go out and buy a $500 hand-help computer to check my battery.  That is just info I have now...not really good for anything.  Although, now I'm confident that I can disconnect and reconnect a car battery without killing myself, so that's something.

Back to the beginning of class...

I, of course, because I am cursed with the need to be early for everything, was the first to class again.  I spoke with Dan about my dilemma and what I had done so far.  I told him I had tried everything except heat.  That I didn't have a torch, and that I was thinking of getting a nut splitter to just cut the damn things off.

He suggested I buy a cheap propane torch or ask a plumber friend to use his acetylene torch to heat the lug nuts.  Or, get a breaker bar (and possibly a longer pipe to add even more leverage) and try that before cutting the lug nuts.  

I think I have gotten to that point where I just want this part done.  I had discounted trying a breaker bar, simply because I figured that if an impact wrench couldn't get it done, how is my brute strength gonna do it.  It's all about leverage, I know.  I guess I should try to do things the right way, instead of resorting to destruction.

Other mildly annoying discoveries...there's no class next week, due to Spring Break or whatever.  That means I actually have 3 weeks until I'm done driving to Bourne.  That means my last class is now the day after my first roller derby practice.  That means I will be getting approximately 6 hours of sleep in a 60-65 hour stretch.  I may die.

Class #5: Let's try something else...

Before I start going on and on about what I did (or, rather, did not do) in class last night, I'd like to thank my friends for moving my car.  While I was out, Hubby hosted the weekly poker game.  Our kick ass friends came over a little early to push the beast from the front of the house, to the side of the house.  Now, I can get her up on jacks, take the wheels off, and bring them to class next week to clean the rims.  I may even bite the bullet and get new tires.  How much could I save just paying for tires and putting them on the rims myself!!?  Probably at least a little.

Finally where I wanted her!

Getting to the business at hand...

Last night's class

Class is turning into the on-going saga of the Saturn Vue.  I don't mind, really.  I get to learn some stuff without risking that 'one false move' on my own car!  

I've already had my bearings, back breaks, and oil changed recently.  Not long ago, I was also having some starting issues, so I have a fairly new starter and battery, as well.  As we know, I changed my front brakes in class last week.  So there's really nothing left to do on my car.  What I'm hoping to get out of class now is more of a 'car tour'.  I'd like to learn about the battery, the spark plugs, the belts and hoses.  Stuff that will come in handy when I open the hood of the Barracuda.  

But for now, we are also still trying to get this Saturn in order.  Maybe you remember the third class when we were attempting the passenger side bearing on the Saturn, and the back drum brakes on the F150.  Neither of those projects ended in success.  The truck drove home on iffy brakes...I drove the owner of the Saturn to where his mom could get him home, while his car stayed at school.

Last night, was a bit of a flashback.  Only this time, I was helping with the bearing and only catching bits of the U-joint replacement on the F150.  

So what's the big deal?  We had 3 hours to fix this, so why did it not get done again?

Well, I'll tell you...corrosion.

It was the issue with the first one, but this time we thought we were ready.  We were not.  Normally, to fix this bit, you take off the tire, the brake caliper/pads, and the rotor.  Then you take off the hub/bearing assembly.  Then, obviously, put it all back together in opposite order.  Done and done.

Well, if you can't get the hub assembly off...you have to try a series of other procedures until you find the one that works.

First, we used some spray lube to try to free the bolts.  Then we tried an air chisel, in hopes that the vibrations would break up the rust.  Unfortunately we were going to have to take the whole steering knuckle/hub off to put some pressure on them to 'un-fuse' them. 

Easier said than done, as we've come to learn is how it works with this particular vehicle.

We could not get the pin out of the bolt holding the ball joint on.  We had already removed the assembly from the tie rod and the axle, but no matter what angle we went from, that damn pin wouldn't budge!

here's another little side note/conversation:  

Me: Oh, so that's the tie rod, right?

Ricky: What's a tie rod?

(My dad would be so proud!)

At any rate, we finally resorted to using a tiny drill bit to loosen the pin from the ball joint, and eventually got the hub/knuckle combo free from the car.  

T-Minus 30 minutes till the end of class!

Over to a machine I can't remember the name of to apply some pressure to get these two parts unstuck.  I believe we were at 8000 pounds of pressure when Dan calls the other teacher to let him know this car will still be there in the morning.  'Let me just apply a little more...' 

BANG! the hub hits the ground!

At this point we have 20 minutes of class left.  I'm putting tools away in the hopes that Dan will let us try to get this shit put back together.  But he thinks there's not enough time.  So there it sat.  All sad, with it's entire driver's side wheel bearing bits piled up in the rear storage, waiting for someone to put it back together in the morning.  Ricky on the phone, calling for a ride.

In hindsight, I wish I'd spent more time watching the truck repair.  I have seen quite a lot of 'what can go wrong' in this class.  But, as everyone keeps reminding me, this is part of the learning process, too.  I can only hope that these things will help me to remain calm when bits start falling apart in my hands when I get to the Barracuda.

For Reference Purposes

(here's a generic, exploded view of the bearing assembly)

(source: http://www.kmperformance.com/techcenter/wheelbearing/frontwheelbearing.html)

Next week:  well, I think we're going to do what we were originally supposed to do this week...learn about batteries, belts, spark plugs, etc.  We'll see.  I'm also, again, hoping to start bringing in my rims/tires to get those ready!

Class #4: Halfway mark!

I'm gonna start by saying that I wish I had some way of getting photos during class.  There are times when my teacher is off helping with something else after he says, 'get that thing, do this and that, and I'll come check it out'.  But, one picture would certainly be of how dirty I get, and that is not good for cameras and I would most certainly ruin my phone!
So, you'll just have to use your imagination...and I will be testing my writing skills, for sure!

At any rate...

Class #4!

(I'll add a little excitement with centering and font sizes/colors, how about that!?)

At the end of last week's class, it was decided that I would get parts to fix my front brakes.  I searched online to get an idea of how much I would be spending on parts, and to make sure our local AutoZone would have what I needed.  Now, if you remember, I drive a 2000 Chevy Cavalier...probably not too hard to get parts for this little box on wheels, but I like to stress about every detail of my life.  Of course, they had the parts I needed.  The guy who helped me was very nice.  I asked if I could return the rotors if I ended up not needing them and he said, 'of course! why would you keep them if you don't need them?!'  Good point, I guess.

As we know from my last post ( you can read it here, if you missed it ), my trunk has some issues.  The new parts I had bought were in my leaky trunk...damp from the moisture!  I put them on the floor in the front, hoping they would dry, in case I needed to return the rotors.

Once again, I had major anxiety going to class.  That's just how I am, but I get over it once I'm doing what I'm there to do.

Game Time!

(Are the added flourishes getting annoying?)

The whole thing ended up being pretty uneventful!  I drove my car up, set up all the lift arms, and began to raise the beast.  'Wait, wait, wait!' I hear from the other side of the car...'something made a noise.'  I lower the car, I think everything's fine, but one of the other students thinks it's wrong.  The poor 70 year old teacher gets down on his knees to check...'no, it's fine'.  It's just so rusty and creaky.

Back up we go, and the fun begins.  I gather up all my tools, use the impact wrench to take off the tires, and then we begin to discuss.  I asked if I needed the new rotors, and Dan said, 'well, they'd be at the minimum width if you cleaned them, and you have new one's so you may as well put them on.'  I agreed...I had been smart enough to buy them...why would I not put them on!?

I'll make this story short...I know I tend to ramble on with unnecessary details...

With a little bit of struggle, I managed to remove the old pads from the passenger side.  This proved to be the easiest of the two sides.  As I was putting the new pads on, not quite getting it, Dan told another student to go grab a clamp or something to help push it into place.  Of course, I managed to use my own power to get it on, which resulted in another 'strong hands' comment from the boys.

All in all, I was pretty pleased with how smoothly the first side went.  So much so that I was not worried about working on the other side without much supervision.  Unfortunately, the other side proved to be a bit of a bitch, comparatively.

The driver's side...aargghhh!

I had issues getting the caliper off because the caliper bolts (not sure that's the right term?) were not moving correctly.  That is, they wouldn't come out far enough to clear the rotor.  So, after some force and the use of a hammer and some vice grips, we finally managed to remove and replace the old pads and rotor.
Here's a fun fact:  I hand tighten to approximately  35 foot pounds.
After everything was properly replaced and torqued, I took her for a test drive around the parking lot.  I had forgotten how nice it feels to have your car just stop...none of that jerky, seizure-type slowing down.

We also took a look under the hood.  Here's a question:  does anyone know where the oil filter in a 2000 Chevy Cavalier might be??  I have had my oil changed dozens of times, so I know there must be one...but none of us could find it!!  Not even the teacher!!  Oh, and let's check the tire pressure...sure, except that my awesome replacement door doesn't have the sticker to tell me the proper pressure.  And the owner's manual?  'See sticker on driver's side door for proper tire pressure.'  Thanks! That's helpful!

I didn't learn much else in class last night, since I spent a little over 2 hours doing the brakes, then about a half hour looking under the hood and stuff...and we pretty much ended 15 minutes early.  But that's okay.  I can now say that I, personally, have changed my front brake pads and rotors!  And I'm gonna be a girl right now and say that I am pretty damn proud of that!!

Shifting Gears

Today's post isn't about the Barracuda project.  Today's post is about my Chevy Cavalier.  The car I have had for 12 years.  For the past few years (I can't be sure of the exact time frame on this one), there has been a leak in the trunk.  Nothing major...nothing an old tee shirt couldn't soak up.
Well, last night, I had a passenger and we each had a bag of stuff to transport with us.  As I reached into the back seat to make room for our bags, I noticed that the back seat was soaked!  I immediately figured the leak in the trunk must actually be a leaky back window seal, and that I would have to have that replaced.
Today, I discovered a that it is a whole different story!

Yes, that is a puddle of water that my spare is sitting in!

As I felt around my trunk to try to figure out where the leak was, I lifted the cover to the spare tire.  I could see water...nearly an inch of water!!  I got out the shop-vac and got rid of that and proceeded to poke around and lift the felt trunk liner to see how bad it had gotten...and hopefully to find the water's entry point.

Looking 'out' of the trunk, near the driver's side tail light.

There was a rusty hole just behind the bumper, next to the driver's side tail light.  How the hell was I going to patch that up without taking the bumper off?  I started taking screws out and removing the trunk liner and decided that I could take care of it from the inside.  A friend of mine gave me an Auto Zone gift card for my birthday, so I will be using that for a patch kit.  But, I am not up for it today...I'm back to the old tee shirt method of stopping the leak for now.  I can't wait until my teacher takes a look at that in class tomorrow night!

Class #3: A hard time getting started

I didn't want to go to class this week.  There was no good reason for it, I just didn't want to go.  The weather had turned, again, and after last week's driving rains, I just didn't want to drive to Bourne in the cold rain again.  The day had started as freezing rain, and so from the very start of my day, I just wanted to get back home and snuggle back into bed.  I'm ready for Spring to truly arrive.
But then I began to think about class.  The plan was to work on a wheel bearing that would probably take all 3 hours of class.  I had just had my front driver's side bearing replaced (yes, I paid for someone else to do something I was about to learn to do myself)...I was getting nervous driving on it, and knew I could not wait one more week, and certainly not two.  But, nevertheless, I wanted to see the process.
When I got to class this week there was a stranger there...a guy who had previously taken the course, but was there to do his oil change.  Mr. Dryz asked if I'd like to help him, so I did.  If you'll remember from last week, I've unofficially been designated 'the brute' of the class (something I'm honestly not upset about).  As we lowered the car, Dan (Mr. Dryz) asked, 'who tightened the new filter?' and looked at me and smiled.  'Don't worry, I checked it!'

Apparently, we were not all going to crowd around the Saturn to do the wheel bearing.  Another student had brought parts to do his back drum brakes.  The evening took a humorous turn (because none of it had to do with my car) when the two guys working on the Saturn started banging on the rusty rotor to get it off the car.  And while they did that, I tried helping Josh get his drum off...which was also rusted to his car.  Everything was rusted together.  To make a 3 hour story of rusted car parts short, here's the ending to each story...

The Saturn:  after a lot of hammering and a brief encounter with the acetylene torch, the rotor came off.  With the rotor off, we discovered that there was some issue that we could not fix with the time we had left in class. I'm not entirely clear what that issue was, as I was helping to pry the drum off the truck, but the result was a car that was left on the lift when we all left class.  The day time students were going to take a crack at it, apparently.  I gave Ricky a ride into Hyannis...hoping he gets his car back sometime tomorrow.

The F150:  basically ended up needing a new drum because of the inside parts rusting together.  A part Josh did not have.  He decided to just put it back together, get a new drum, and finish the job at home.

So, after all of my struggling to drag myself to class this week...we accomplished nothing.  Although, we did get to re-thread some bolts and nuts.  And we did get to clean up the rotor on a cool lathe thing.  That was interesting.

Next week:  (hopefully) I get to do my front brakes!  That of course means some shopping this week/weekend.  I'm not going to make Josh's mistake.  I'm buying everything I MAY need.  If I end up not needing new rotors, then I return them.  But I don't want to get halfway through the job and discover I should have bought rotors.