Bone head move ll

[Gregor 4,846]

I have a ruptured disc in my back, so I can't really do any work right now. I thought I would take this down time opportunity and relate a Bone Head Move. This has got to be the BONIEST Bone Head Move I have seen in a looooonnnnggg time.

I mention in another post that my brother and I were working on the motor in his Toro Groundmaster. It is a Kawasaki FD620D. In short, we were changing the head gaskets. Him on the port side, me on the starboard side. I also mentioned that sometimes 2 people simply cannot work together. I love him like a brother, but never again. We just have different ways of doing things. So.....We got the heads back on, and installed the intake manifold. Carburetor linkage and fuel line all hooked up. Installed the spark plugs. This is where things go south, waaaay south. Hook up spark plug wires. Well, one of them anyway, David can't find his. Can't find the plug wire? It's connected to the coil, all one unit, which is located directly under the cylinder. Nope, it's not there, at least not all of it. Not the end for the spark plug. Where could it be?   (Are you sitting down?) There's only one place it can be. IN THE CYLINDER! He had pinched the plug wire between the block and the head. It was pinched in 2. As I said in another post, he is a, In a hurry, get it done type of guy. I tend to be a bit slower and more methodical. I was going to take a pic, but I knew that would make him mad. Next time you pull a head, ask yourself. Where is my spark plug wire?

[ebinmaine 67,605]

It's been said many times....

 

There are those who should just not be allowed to pick up a wrench....

[Handy Don 12,235]

1 minute ago, ebinmaine said:

It's been said many times....

 

There are those who should just not be allowed to pick up a wrench....

Sadly, most of them don't know who they are...

[ebinmaine 67,605]

10 minutes ago, Handy Don said:

Sadly, most of them don't know who they are...

Self-awareness is no more prevalent in the masses than common sense is.. common. 

[ranger 1,750]

This made me smile. It also reminded me of a car a late friend of mine bought from a local garage a good few years ago. The car had been left at the garage by the owner because he couldn’t get it to start. No compression. I don’t know the full details, but the owner told the garage to scrap it to pay for whatever time they had spent looking into the issue. The car was a “Riley 1800”, (affectionately known as a “Land Crab”). Front wheel drive, same twin carb engine as the MGB. The inlet manifold had two small copper pipes which were fitted to drain any excess fuel from manifold when engine switched off, (SU carbs). When we pulled the head we found, Someone, -  previous owner,? had changed the head gasket, presumably removing and reinstalling the head with the manifolds still fitted, and had somehow managed to “sandwich” the pipes between the head and block! Holding them apart, so no compression. The car cost my friend £40.00, (scrap value), the cost of a new head gasket and M.O.T test (at the same garage), and he used the car for the next couple of years!

 

Doug.

[kpinnc 12,088]

I can't say a word. When I was 19, I changed the water pump on my car. Of course it took longer than expected, and was almost dark when completed. When I cranked the car, shortly afterward there was a loud bang followed by oil all over the windshield.

 

I pinched one of the power steering lines in my rush to make the most of the last daylight. The fluid had to go somewhere.

 

...If we truly learned from our mistakes I would be a genius.

[ebinmaine 67,605]

1 hour ago, kpinnc said:

.If we truly learned from our mistakes I would be a genius

[953 nut 55,316]

Sound like we have a few new graduates here.

[Jeff-C175 7,202]

In my younger years a friend had a '67 Chevelle SS396.  He wanted it to go faster.  So he proceeded to pull the engine, tear it down, block went to machine shop for a rebore, align bore the cam bearings, valve job, cc the heads, etc.  He spent a LOT of money!

 

He gets it back and asks me to help re-assemble.  Everything went smoothly and when we put the fahr to it, it started right up and ran great...  and then we saw the trail of engine oil running down the driveway.  It's NEVER good on a brandy new 500 HP big block to dump all the engine oil.  I pretty much knew it wasn't going to last long at that point in time...

 

As it turns out, Ron had installed all of the welch plugs in the block...  except ONE.  At the rear of the block, the rear plug at the camshaft.

 

So we pulled the engine, installed the plug, put the engine back in, and this time all was good.  It ran REALLY strong for about a year after that.  But the cam wiped two of the lobes eventually.  I lost touch with Ron and can't recall what he did with the car, I guess he sold it.

 

One more story about that car...  he ran out of money during the build and couldn't afford new MOTOR MOUNTS!  Some of you may recall that the Chevelles of that time had a ROD linkage on the throttle.  If a motor mount separated, the engine would lift and pull the throttle WIDE OPEN!  Not a good thing on ANY car, let alone a 500 HP street rod.  It happened one night on the 'strip' in Asbury Park while I was driving!  Unintended acceleration of a car like that is SCARY!  I had the presence of mind to turn the key off and didn't have an 'incident', but it was fun while it lasted!  We drove back home VERY carefully!  Chevy had a TSB that instructed to install a steel cable through the motor mounts to prevent this issue and later redesigned their motor mounts with a 'hook' that wouldn't allow the engine to lift more than an inch or so.

 

So, that's just ONE of my 'bonehead' stories!  There are many more... if I could remember them I would post them.  Gimmee some time and they might come back to me.

 

[Gregor 4,846]

24 minutes ago, Jeff-C175 said:

If a motor mount separated, the engine would lift and pull the throttle WIDE OPEN!

I do remember that problem.

[Wheelhorse#1 1,667]

I think we all have done stupid things.I know I make my share of mistakes at times .

Just today I managed to almost mount one  AG tire backwards on the rim.Not realizing it till I had it halfway on the rim.Using pry bars it’s no easy task, at least I caught it before it got aired up…. what a dumb ass😜

[Jeff-C175 7,202]

10 minutes ago, Wheelhorse#1 said:

dumb ass

 

Twin sons of different mothers!

[Roger R 448]

Always good to see I am not alone in making crazy "Little" errors.  Around 60 years ago I helped my older brother rebuild a '51 flat head Ford V-8. (I was the gofer 10 year hold: "Hand me a 1/2" end wrench" etc.  The job took place in a poorly lit barn, during cold weather, and as we finished up by carefully torquing the heads according to the proper sequence, the last step was to replace the plug wires.  One was caught on something and would NOT budge.  Upon closer inspection with better lighting the wire in question disappeared under the head on the left bank, and reappeared on the opposite side of the head.  Only option:  Pull the just torqued head. As I recall the wire and insulation was flattened to a width of at least 1-1/2 or two inches and thin as foil.  Amazingly the crushed wire did not cross the nearby fire ring and the head gasket appeared to be alright.  (replacement not to be had in the middle of the night) We straightened out and twisted up the wire, replaced the head, checked compression, good to go and the old flat head ran for several years until it was traded in for something newer.      

[Jeff-C175 7,202]

10 minutes ago, Roger R said:

insulation was flattened

 

Who woulda thought of using spark plug wire as Plasti-Gauge? 

[Rfp55 33]

On the hard knocks diploma- Misfortune is missing the s and t but maybe intentional to look Rustic ~or unincumbered by education?