It Has Become Self-Propelled 


Rolling stock. 

To celebrate the 5th of July, I slapped some new tires on the beast. Nothing fancy - some local 185/70/R14s from the local rubber franchise. I was a sweat inducing task, as I had only two jack stands, so the wheels were swapped out two at a time. I sprayed off the cocoons of unknown insect and arachnid life out from the suspension and brakes, and hosed off the old steel wheels as best I could.
It sits better with real tires on it. I couldn't resist the temptation to see if it moved - if the fuel flowed with substantial vigor to propel the Alfa. It did. I went around the block, but damn if the thing didn't idle nicely, and show some spark of life. Once I'm sure the fuel system is o.k., I'm going to have to look into the clutch.

I phoned the local Alfa shop today in search of the fuel pressure switch - the proprietor seemed confident that they had one on hand. I'll probably run down there sometime this week to check to make sure. He also cautioned on starting after it had been sitting, painting a dollar-signed image of valves crashing into pistons, extensive head work, motor rebuilds, et cetera. Maybe he was probing the depth of my wallet. I dunno. He did recommend Marvel Mystery Oil for general lifter/ring conditioning. His own home brew explosive "pickle juice" is apparently a mechanics only solution.
In the meantime, I have made contact with the folks on the AlfaBBS - who seem to have answered all my questions already (where to set the jack stands, tire recommendations, etc.) Maybe it will run by next Saturday. I'm just too tired right now to think on it.  

Posted: Tue - July 6, 2004 at 07:29 PM           |

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