Thread: For Don Shilady

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34-40, yes I had a good chat with a Tech guy at Flaming River named Kevin. I can/may send the box back to them for inspection and possible repair. I think I will leave that go while my arm strengthens since I think part of the problem is that I have a 13" track racer steering wheel so I can enter the car more easily and the effort to manhandle the smaller wheel in parking maneuvers requires more effort than on a larger wheel with more leverage. Now for the Good outcome of what might have been a disaster. About a month ago I went to a nearby store with the right door ratteling and when I got to the store I closed it tight. Along the way the vibration was enough to partially break the steel tubing link between my gas tank and the fuel line! It turns out that the Bebops body just sits on the floor pan without a seal and gas ran forward and slopped off into the front fender well. I never saw the gas because it was on the passenger side so I did not see it until the next day. By that time heat under the running board apron due to a trans heat exchanger had severely blistered the paint on the base of the right front fender and the forward part of the running board. Well the good news is that I wanted to fix a mold mark at that spot that had not been smoothed before paint. Now I had a good reason to repaint that spot and smooth the mold mark which should have been taken care of originally. I realize now I had a close call with a possible fire so I am lucky in that but it did cost a pretty penny to repaint that part of the front fender. I was so shocked over how I almost had a fire that I did not take a picture of the big blisters in the paint but I do have a shot of the original annoying mold mark as well as the new repaired section. Discussion with several shop guys say the trans cooler under the running board alone should not spoil the paint and that it was that I let the gas puddle up over night on a hot spot and that blistered the original paint. Well anyway I am probably just talking to 34-40 and Roger anyway but I will document the pictures of the trans cooler and the before/after pictures since the folks on this Forum like pictures. Well the pictures are in the wrong order with the NEW RUBBER HOSE between the 13 gallon tank and the line that runs forward from the fuel filter to the engine along the right frame rail but I think you can see how the problem is now fixed as long as the rubber hose lasts and allows some vibration without leaking. Roger need not worry over that tank seat belt since the rumble seat area is now a "trunk" holding a tool bag, extra Prestone, extra engine oil and trans oil and the side curtains (in the summer) so there really is no room for anyone to sit anyhow. The Trooper who put the title plate on the fire wall said nary a word about that seat belt.

In edit mode it may be worth mentioning that the 1" square tubing skeleton of the Bebops roadster body has little rigidty when the door is open and apparently that flex was enough to stress the former steel tubing between the fuel tank and the fuel filter which is bolted to the quarter panel. Lesson: Keep the door latched and hope the rubber hose will flex with possible vibration. The front buggy spring is very firm but the rear coil-over shock suspension makes the ride reasonable and allows softer up and down motion of the rear of the body, hence the vibration when a door is open.

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder