Posted on 06/17/2012 4:51:13 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A great point, actually. I don't know how the American high-school system compares to ours up here in Canada. But here, it's very likely that students going on to university—including engineering school—never had the opportunity to take vocational classes. I originally started in mechanical engineering and worked for a couple summers as a draftsman. There were times on the job that I thought a course in welding or machine shop would have come in very handy.
Doesn’t look like the piece of junk that the instructor described. Some amateur bodywork down the right side, so-so respray in what looks not to be a facory color for that year, but reasonably complete, chrome and glass are good, only missing a fender skirt.
That body style was derived from the amazing 1960 Eldorado Brougham which was the last of the truly custom bodied Cadillacs, body built by Pininfarina in Italy and shipped to the US for final assembly, shared no sheetmetal whatsoever with the rest of the 60 line which still sported the massive fins and chrome, chrome, chrome. Pininfarina cleaned it up, much sharper lines, modest angular fins, squared off formal roofline in the rear.
That was picked up across the line in 61 with a downsiezed line, there was a recession on at the time. Most manufacturers began to go much cleaner and to shed the flamboyance of the late fifties, with the most dramatic departure being the famous “Kennedy” Lincolns against which cars such as this Cadillac competed.
If it isn’t murderously hot in the old warehouse this week, I plan to go try it again. Thank you for the ground advice. I will jump for joy if that is the case and feel like a dunce a few minutes later. I have forgotten so much since HS auto mech.
I’ve cleaned out a lot corrosion in wiring harness. The main connector was really covered. After half a can of WD40 over a few attempts, I got that cleaned up.
That restored a some power in engine compartment up to the coil which had been flat.
Here is something that probably isn’t related but it is engine electrical. The starter failed a few weeks back and I took it to one of the few rebuilders apparently left. He got it back to me. There was a screw that had worked loose and shorted on the housing. According to him the guts were like new.
Anyway, it works but after a few attempts to spin over which it does fine, it gets really hot. I don’t go more than 10-15 seconds on any spin with breaks. I have to watch my battery since I don’t have power at this building and don’t want to kill it.
If you want a laugh, here is a smugmug album of what I have done with it off and on.
http://tysonneil.smugmug.com/Other/1968-Project-Willys-CJ5/15578238_GGkBkh#!i=1167186781&k=6xWUk
As I work on it, I send some of my video up as stock footage to see if I can ever get anything back during this long haul.
Mechanically it is all there, it is the body that has simply had it.
There are only so many of the Willys era left and I would like to have one.
It isn't mentioned in his bibliographics because it undoubtedly came from his publications in Astounding Science Fiction and it was reprinted in A Treasury of Great Science Fiction volume II
Consider using Google to find & obtain these publications :)
You’re being facetious, right ?
Neat project. Not really my cup of tea, but I can sure appreciate the amount work.
Best of luck!
Thanks. Sooner or later I will get it somewhere. It isn’t eating anything and sits rent free in an in-law’s warehouse.
Here is an example of stock footage that I generate when feebly working on it. There are more. The smugmug stuff is scaled down 720p with a copyright key. Maybe one day it or one of it’s ilk will sell. There are only over 1000 clips in the gallery. It has been very slow not that it was a major money maker to begin with.
Dad had one. Great car.
Make sure your Willys still has a good ground strap to the frame
Yes. $52,000 a year is kind of insane for a Mr. Goodwrench class.
My mom had a white ‘61 Coupe DeVille.
Big (and fast.)
My dad had a 60 and a 62 Cadillac. I got to drive the 1960. I’ve always loved driving big cars and it was the best of them all
NOT what you want to see head on in your lane while driving a Prius.
**************************************************
You should be even more scared if you’re driving the Caddy ,, this is a 62 ,,, an “X” frame GM ... infamous for ripping in half in accidents and throwing front and rear passengers out on the road... too damn cheap to run frame rails down the outsides.
For my money I like the 1970-76 full size GM’s styling the best ... with the mid size 2 doors (1973-1977) a close second .
For those who don't know, the 57 had the "Electric Eye" for the Headlights, so as to change from High Beam, to Low Beam and the "Foot Operated Wonder Bar" {Located Under the Brake Pedal, not really a good location} to select radio stations on the Radio, if I remember correctly, so did my 1960 (21 Foot Long) have both of these options.
See here 1960 Caddy http://www.conceptcarz.com/view/photo/207781,12029/1960-Cadillac-DeVille_photo.aspx
We call(ed) it “Learn by Doing” a couple of hundred miles down the
coast from Stanford. It is the Cal Poly motto. Welcome to the world
of practical application.
This is a ONE CREDIT class. The typical Stanford student takes @15 credits per quarter, for 3 quarters a year. My memory is that the flat quarterly tuition allows up to 19 credits per quarter. Given the intensity of most of the classes and brevity of the quarters, that’s plenty. But ONE CREDIT is a blip in the course load:tuition calculation.
Some thoughts:
1. You might want to look for something called a resistor block- on some older models the ignition system ran through one on the firewall, and if they went to the bad, they would let it turn over but not run.
2. Check the ignition switch. Sometimes the barrel part (the one with the key) wears and causes a problem.
3. This is elementary but as you said it might be something simple. Make sure your number 1 cylinder is TDC (turn it with a wrench) and then check your rotor button to make sure it is pointing the correct way. (I don’t know which way that would be in yours- check a manual).
Good luck with your project- it looks like you have some work ahead of you!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.