More trouble shooting.

I found a loose wire in the handle bar kill switch and re soldered it. That didn't fix the problem. I kept the trickle charger on which kept the battery around 14 volts. I found another loose connection on the coil wires. Tightening did nothing. I unplugged the rectifier and the engine ran great. Still it wasn't right. I checked the battery many times and kept charging it. Then I checked it and got 14 volts. That's not right either. I held the meter on the battery and turned the switch on. The voltage dropped to 7 volts. I tried the kill switch and it dropped more. I turned the lights on and the battery dropped to zero. I pushed the riding mower over and put jumper cables on the batteries. End of problem. I need a new battery.

The motorcycle.

I got the bike started today. It started the best ever after a long lay off. Then it started acting up. I checked the battery and it was not being charged. After checking many possible areas I found the engine kill switch not working right. I haven't taken it apart yet but soon. I hope that cures the charging problem. I think there's a short in the switch someplace.

Possible fix.

I scoured ebay today and found several speedometer cables for the El Camino. I did a buy it now and will replace the original after paint. I have the original speedometer as I replaced it with the one that came with the new dash. Both act the same. I connected a drill motor to the spare and it worked very smooth. I have checked the original cable and couldn't find anything obviously wrong. Anyway a new one is on the way.

Replacement stuff.

I priced the parts needed to re build the crashed engine and they totaled more than half the price of a new engine. And that don't count the crankshaft. It may be slightly bent, I can't tell without special tooling. Fox has a trade in policy where you send them an engine and take your pick of any glow engine for half price. This way I have an almost new piston and cylinder and rod asm., crankshaft?, head and venturi as spares. I called the painter and cautioned him about one of the a/c hoses that runs inside the right fender. It's captured by the fender and the wheel well. If they removed the fender with the wheel well attached they may damage the hose. I also mentioned the seat and he will have it upholstered. So far so good.

At the painters.

I paid a visit to the car painter this morning. We discussed what I wanted and what color. It should come out pretty nice but very usable. He will install all the extra stuff I got, interior, chrome strips,etc. 2 or 3 weeks.

Back at the school yord.

I took the Pupster to the school on Shepard hill and got in one flight. The wind was strong and the ball diamond had been readied for the new season. The line between the infield and the outfield was cut neatly and left a 2 inch lip. When the engine stopped I set it down without delay and the plane hit the lip and flipped over. The landing gear got bent back a bit and had to be removed and straightened. After that I backed the hot rod out and washed it. It was very dusty from a winter under the overhang. I siphoned most of the gas out and put in 5 gallons of fresh gas. It was running smoother by the time I finished washing it.

Off to the painters

All went well on the drive to Groton to bring the El Camino to my son-in-laws garage so the body shop can drive over from New London to bring it to his shop. I can't figure that out as New London is closer for me than Groton. Anyway it's off to the painters. I went to the dog track this afternoon with the orange plane with a McCoy .35 on it. It ran very well, I'm pleased. I started the full pattern after days of telling myself my fleet will get a thinning before I get the new pattern down. And that I should practice over dirt and not asphalt. After flying the orange plane I took out the Progeny and got three takeoffs and two landings. During the clover leaf I lost the plane behind me and didn't recover. When I got home I field stripped the hardware and bagged the rest. The engine got bent and I had to scrap the block, main bearing, prop stud and new muffler. Now I got some rebuild parts for the other .40's. I started the hot rod and put that back in it's stall. I have to wash the dust off it some day.