bonehead move... humility is good

[sactoC10]

Just so you all know...

Several weeks ago after my HEI install, I was complaining about a noticeable power loss after making the swap. Had some good advice about checking the timing and vacuum advance. Yet it was something much simpler than any of that.

In my haste and excitement to get everything all back together and fired up, and some engine clean-up after the install (and also due to lack of driving it for the last few weeks) I neglect to notice that one of my vacuum line plugs had popped off! (OOPS)

Last weekend I was asking myself, "What is that darn hissing noise?" Sure enough, just had to put my finger over the "sucking" opening and instant power! Tell me I'm not the only to have ever done something so dumb.

[dubie]

it always seem to be the little things eh. My humility came when I had #5 and #7 plug wires backwards. Couldn't firgure out the rough running and back firing

[Dean23]

DOH...gotta hate when that happens

[Lemield]

Originally Posted by sactoC10

Tell me I'm not the only to have ever done something so dumb.

We have all done things like that. My personal favorite was my buddy who had a ford 4X4 truck and he was complaining of no power. He called me up and asked me to come over and check it out. When I arrived I found that he thought the problem was his distributor so he had bought a new Mallory distributor ($250.00). I said, OK...take me for a ride. We went for a ride and he showed me what the problem was. The engine was really revving high and the truck seemed to be wound tight at 40 MPH. That's when I looked down and noticed that the transfer case was in low range. I asked him why the transfer case was in low and he replied that it didn't matter since the front driveshaft was disconnected. I said..WHAT???? Anyhow, I explained to him that it did matter and that having the front driveshaft disconnected made no difference. He popped the truck into high range and voila, no more problem. He begged me not to tell his wife. I still have to chuckle when I think about it.

[Big Block]

I put a HEI in my 72 4x4 suburban drove it for a couple days, no problems! They one day in 4 lanes of rush hour traffic the engine died, No way it was going to start. Got it towed home and found the coil burned up. Put in new coil and back on the road again. Drove for a couple more days no problems. Drove to the store one evening and it failed to start. Had it towed home again. The coil burned up again. That when a freind asked me if it had the ground clip hook to the coil. I said what ground clip? Very expensive mistake!!! B.B.

[ckhd]

Originally Posted by dubie

it always seem to be the little things eh. My humility came when I had #5 and #7 plug wires backwards. Couldn't firgure out the rough running and back firing

I got my '68 cheap because the kid who was a "master mechanic" did that, and said that the engine was bad.

[68w/sbc406]

one of my friends was looking at a 81 GMC 1/2 ton 2wd P/U for 500 bucks. the lady said it had a 4.3L that was put in 7000 miles ago. i was confused, maybe they had done a V6 swap or something. we get there and it has a new crate motor and right on the valve covers it says 350, that was her STUPIDITY. it ran ruff but i told him to buy it, we would fix it. when we got it home i heard one of those darn hissing noises. the splitter that screws into the intake behind the carb for the vaccum lines was cracked at the bottom. so we got a new on and she ran fine. then i did a carb swap on it, the fuel line ruptured and this is what she looked like. thats my humility, good thing it wasnt my truck

[screamin_c102]

I bought a Ford Focus for my wife to drive...Nuff Said.

[krue]

I bought a Dodge Intrepid for my wife to drive......she insisted tho.

[screamin_c102]

Originally Posted by krue

I bought a Dodge Intrepid for my wife to drive......she insisted tho.

You win!

[chevyboy55]

My personal favorite bone headed stupid move. I am a truck driver, we had a cummins fuel pump rebuilt on one of our trucks, well I picked it up from the shop & it would not come back down to an idle, making gear shifting next to impossible. Well putting my mouth in gear long before my brain, I went back to the shop & asked them if this was the 1st pump they ever rebuilt, on & on digging the hole deeper. The shop foreman went over to the truck & looked under the throttle & picked out a little rock. Man did I feel stupid!

[franko72]

Originally Posted by Big Block

I put a HEI in my 72 4x4 suburban drove it for a couple days, no problems! They one day in 4 lanes of rush hour traffic the engine died, No way it was going to start. Got it towed home and found the coil burned up. Put in new coil and back on the road again. Drove for a couple more days no problems. Drove to the store one evening and it failed to start. Had it towed home again. The coil burned up again. That when a freind asked me if it had the ground clip hook to the coil. I said what ground clip? Very expensive mistake!!! B.B.

What do you mean Ground clip? I thought all that was needed was one new wire from the unused ign. on the fuse block.

[70 shorty]

Changed the cap a rotor on my 71 Cutlass years ago, and when I was done it wouldn't start for anything. After about 5 minutes of trying, I looked on the radiator support and said, HMMM, why are 2 rotors laying on top? DOH! Of course it fired right up after I actually installed it.

[Randy70C-10]

Originally Posted by dubie

it always seem to be the little things eh. My humility came when I had #5 and #7 plug wires backwards. Couldn't firgure out the rough running and back firing

Funny, I did the same thing. I've heard that's a common mistake though so don't feel too bad.

[rage'nrat638]

Originally Posted by franko72

What do you mean Ground clip? I thought all that was needed was one new wire from the unused ign. on the fuse block.

i think what hes talking about....is under the hei coil cover there's a black ground clip that uses two screws to hold into place....and the black center wire. from the three that come from the base to the cap,,are supposed to connect to this..
i have seen them missing as well......and might even...oooo..have had a few burned coils....DOHOOOOO....

[Spoof]

20 years ago wheel bearing burnt up, replaced wheel bearing, tightened washer nut as hard as I could, drove 100 yards, replaced wheel bearing again. Read manual.

[68w/sbc406]

hahaha

[pritch]

Originally Posted by screamin_c10

I bought a Ford Focus for my wife to drive...Nuff Said.

Man, my wife bought one of those POS's also. It spent more time in the shop than on the road. One time, the service guy screwed up (I think) and left four or five sheets of paper stapled together listing all the stupid little things that go wrong with them and how to fix them. We went down the list and checked off all the ones that had been done-and with still plenty of list left, she traded it in. My favorite was when the key wouldn't come out of the ign. If you shut it off with it in drive instead of park, no force on this earth will remove the key from the ign. switch. It took them a week to fix it. They had to take out everything from the firewall to the back seat just to get to it, and then order parts. Problem is, she traded it for a Suzuki. The little one that looks like a jeep liberty. It took off right where the foCUS left off, more time in the shop than on the road.

I'm just now working through my bone-head move. Last week I got my Panel back together and running, but no oil pressure. Well, very little. Not near enough for the motor to last long. I dug the old bearings out of the trash and miked them, and found them to be .010 over. No markings on them, so I figured they were standard and never checked things when I had it apart. So now I've spent a hundred bucks and three nights and I'm ready for it to go back in. Tommorow I should have oil pressure.

[72 Cheyenne K20]

Yeh, Iv'e had my share. The last one was this winter. Packed up the wife in the 70 3/4 ton 4x4 and went off to Kwik Trip for a late night cooffee run. Wew get there and shut off the ole girl. Before we go in, I'm messing with the transfer case shifter that I just fixed. We go inside and get coffee, come back out and start her up. I shift to reverse and no go. I shift to drive and no go. After 5 minutes of this and countless F this and F that's. I figure out that I may have put the transfer case into neutral. Sure enough, put it back in 2 high and off we went. Got to love those senior moments.

[72 CustomCamper]

That's not as bad as my neighbor. He did an oil change on his truck and as he was adding the last quart of oil he remembered he forgot to put the drain plug back in...

Chuck

[krue]

At least he remembered before he left the house with no oil in the engine.

[modifiedGMC]

Originally Posted by Lemield

We have all done things like that. My personal favorite was my buddy who had a ford 4X4 truck and he was complaining of no power. He called me up and asked me to come over and check it out. When I arrived I found that he thought the problem was his distributor so he had bought a new Mallory distributor ($250.00). I said, OK...take me for a ride. We went for a ride and he showed me what the problem was. The engine was really revving high and the truck seemed to be wound tight at 40 MPH. That's when I looked down and noticed that the transfer case was in low range. I asked him why the transfer case was in low and he replied that it didn't matter since the front driveshaft was disconnected. I said..WHAT???? Anyhow, I explained to him that it did matter and that having the front driveshaft disconnected made no difference. He popped the truck into high range and voila, no more problem. He begged me not to tell his wife. I still have to chuckle when I think about it.

It didn't matter it was a ford!!

[Huck]

How about plugging the intake manifold where the carb goes with an old sock. then placing a carb on top a few months later---then bolting the carb down and starting it!
Couldn't understand the loss of power till I remembered the sock. That is why when your wife washes socks she often only finds one!!! the truck ran better after a while. Never bothered to go look for the sock ~hehehehe

[XXL]

Originally Posted by sactoC10

Just so you all know...

At least your humility was basically free. Mine cost me just shy of $700 a few weeks ago with I did a roadside oil pressure relief valve install

[Piper71c10]

One of my best pal's is a body man, and we hesitate to let him work on his own rig. Got over there one day as he was trying to start his truck after installing a new carb.
No start. I looked under the hood and said "Mr. Bill, Where does the fuel line hook up?"

Mr. Bill stared at it for ten minutes until I pointed out that the fuel doesn't go into the vacum port. I'll never let him foget it.

Piper