Home » Public Forums » GMCnet » Looking for "direction"
| Looking for "direction" [message #336211] |
Mon, 20 August 2018 08:27  |
LNelson
Messages: 335
Registered: December 2008
Location: Springfield, MO
Karma: 0
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Just got back from a weekend trip, about 60 miles, from Springfield, MO to Stockton (Lake) State Park. As I approached my destination, I sensed that my coach was, well....to coin a phrase....."not right". It seemed to have power but also seemed like I was towing one of those sleds the tractor pull guys compete with. Like having a few thousand hours in a particular airplane, you sense these things thru your fingertips, your nose, your good ear, etc.
I was towing the Samurai which weighs nuthin (and I do not use the Brake Buddy for the Sammy)....
At the campground, I got my trusty laser thermometer. Then I "shot" my 6 wheels. I always shoot my brake drums, calipers, at gas stops but this time I did it at my destination. I did not shoot the Sammy wheels. I saw my "front" rears were running about 130 degrees and hotter then the "rear" rears. Fronts were about 120. Keep in mind I had done some braking to get into the park.
Didn't think too much about this until coming back yesterday. Once again, seemed like I had to have my foot to the floor much of the time going up minor grades. I came back home via a slightly different route. A few more curves, same amount of hills.After about 10 miles I pulled into a high school parking lot. There was a small gradient in the parking lot and I always like to see what happens if I just stop and put it into neutral....will she freely roll back...she did.
When I got home, I shot all 6 hubs and did not see anything scary. Then I shot the Sammy. 120-125 degrees on a vehicle whose brakes did not get any exercise during the whole trip where the ambient temp was about 78.
I am going to jack up one side of the coach to feel and hear the wheel bearings in action. Possibly I need some sort of medication for paranoia.
But my fingertips, good ear, and nose don't lie. (BTW, in this episode, no issue with smell).
Thoughts are appreciated.
Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336212 is a reply to message #336211] |
Mon, 20 August 2018 08:40  |
lqqkatjon
Messages: 2324
Registered: October 2010
Location: St. Cloud, MN
Karma: 5
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Senior Member |
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I think you are possibly looking the wrong direction. But that is my opinion. Those brake temps are not that out of wack.
with my personal experience recently and in past years:
1. take off air cleaner and check your secondaries. make sure they are free and working. a spring on side of carb was tight this summer and my secondaries were not opening right. This was most noticeable trying to accelerate off a stop, and when I hit a hill of any sort.
2. do the same with your distributor advance. quick and free to check to rule a stuck advance out.
3. years ago, my GMC struggled, but it would eventually get to speed and cruise fine. turned out the governor was bad in the transmission and it was stuck in 3rd gear. so drive and listen to shifts, make sure you are starting out in 1st and that it seems like it is shifting fine.
Jon Roche
75 palm beach
EBL EFI, manny headers, Micro Level, rebuilt most of coach now.
St. Cloud, MN
http://lqqkatjon.blogspot.com/
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336213 is a reply to message #336211] |
Mon, 20 August 2018 08:41 |
77Royale
Messages: 461
Registered: June 2014
Location: Mid Michigan
Karma: 6
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Senior Member |
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Id start by unhooking the Sammy and giving the coach a drive. Then shoot the temps on the coach wheels.
Take the Sammy out of the equation for the moment to better isolate issues from one vehicle to the other.
Also it would help if you knew what the "normal" temps on the coach hubs were prior to noticing the issue.
77 Royale, Rear Dry Bath. 403, 3.55 Final Drive, Lenzi goodies, Patterson carb and dizzy.
Mid Michigan
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336215 is a reply to message #336211] |
Mon, 20 August 2018 14:32 |
Bullitthead
Messages: 1411
Registered: November 2013
Karma: 5
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Senior Member |
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Definitely check the advance weights and look for a burned, broken, or disconnected vacuum hose while you're in there.
Terry Kelpien
ASE Master Technician
73 Glacier 260
Smithfield, Va.
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336216 is a reply to message #336211] |
Mon, 20 August 2018 19:22 |
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Matt Colie
Messages: 8547
Registered: March 2007
Location: S.E. Michigan
Karma: 7
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Senior Member |
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[quote title=LNelson wrote on Mon, 20 August 2018 09:27<BIG snip>
I am going to jack up one side of the coach to feel and hear the wheel bearings in action. Possibly I need some sort of medication for paranoia.
But my fingertips, good ear, and nose don't lie. (BTW, in this episode, no issue with smell).
Thoughts are appreciated.[/quote]
Larry,
Your thought about medication for paranoia has reminded me.
I was working on something with a younger friend to help. He watched me work the punch list and then double check things and part ways though, (I don't even remember what I was doing at the time or to what) he remarked,"You are kind of paranoid, aren't you?".
To this I looked up and corrected him, "I am old and paranoid, and the two go together."
Think about it.... Every surviving pilot always does the whole walk around inspection before taking command of that aircraft.
Never ever apologize for being cautious.
I hope you find the issue.
I just completed a complete refresh of an engine because it was a little bit down on power and tripled its lube oil consumption. This was a good thing to do as it turns out. I saved the engine. I will have pictures and a souvenir piston with me at Amana.
Matt
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336230 is a reply to message #336211] |
Tue, 21 August 2018 08:10 |
LNelson
Messages: 335
Registered: December 2008
Location: Springfield, MO
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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I did run the coach yesterday to fill up with gas for this upcoming weekend's trip. Seemed to run fine and after filling up took it onto the highway and experienced no issues. I am going to pull the air filter and check ops of the carb, and also the distributor, just in case. I have normal "rolling resistance" it seems, when I do my little experiments at shut down. My transmission is shifting fine. Have a tach, all good.
I always trust my "feel" in these situations. My problem might have been some sort of resistance within the drivetrain of the Samurai. Might pull the Wrangler this next trip. Going to the same place, only about 50 miles from home. The Wrangler weighs an extra 1,100#, might be a good test.
Matt, I was intrigued by your comment about "refreshing" an engine. Not sure how far you took the process, whether you pulled the engine or did an "inframe". Takes me back to the days of needing to do a "refresh" on my daily driver so I could make it to work on Monday. That meant pull the heads on Friday, take to machine shop to pick up Saturday, and put it together on Sunday. No piston work unless the new heads moved the problem elsewhere (like the rings). My GMC coach engine seems to run strong, does not use much oil, has about 108,000 miles. I have read all the travails of "new engine" installs and wonder if the engine I have might need to, someday.........be "refreshed". Sounds like you had to drop the pan and pull the pistons. Interested in if you did that with the engine installed.
As for instincts and paranoia, I was flying my Cessna 195 (330 HP Jacobs radial engine designed in the late 30's) back from Oshkosh about 5 years ago. Over Columbia MO something started to not feel right in my fingertips. A few minutes later, something did not smell right. I can look down on the left wheel pant and could see no oil, and no oil on my windshield (always a good sign). A few minutes after that, the sound was not right. With noise cancelling headsets these days, I swear you can hear the gears move, and the rocker arms do their thing. I was right over Eldon, MO which is near Lake of the Ozarks. There was nothing but forbidding topograpghy between my position and home, even though only about 70 miles. I landed at Eldon, met by police (air traffic control seems to always to this when you decide to land immediately). My right side of the plane had oil on it. My number 6 cylinder had a crack almost all the way around, near the base. How much longer would I have had before that thing let go?
Instincts are good.
Thanks for all of the suggestions.
Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336236 is a reply to message #336211] |
Tue, 21 August 2018 09:21 |
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Matt Colie
Messages: 8547
Registered: March 2007
Location: S.E. Michigan
Karma: 7
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Senior Member |
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Larry,
Yes, listening to that little voice can (and has in my case too) save your life. I often say that I have a guardian angel that does not mind working odd hours.
I pulled the frame out the front, and I will not recommend this to others but it served me well as there were other things on the punch list. There are some serious complications for this that may not be realized.
If you have a 455 and the lube oil consumption is still less than a quart per thousand miles, I suggest that you not worry and do you best to take very good care of it. From what I saw in this one that we put 70k on and it have been overhauled at about 95K odo (so now at about 170TT), if it had not broken a ring land, the wear-out mileage was a long ways off.
In my case, the story gets strange. Other than a date and mileage on a now illegible receipt, I had zero history on the engine. Even as well as it ran, that was an uncomfortable situation. Now, if I had been able to identify the pistons, I could have bought just one and rings and put the engine back in service. But, I really wanted to have a 100k capable engine under my feet.
I plan to have the piston with me at Amana.
Matt (has a lot of cleaning up to do still)
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
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| Re: Looking for "direction" [message #336247 is a reply to message #336230] |
Tue, 21 August 2018 14:35 |
Ken Burton
Messages: 10030
Registered: January 2004
Location: Hebron, Indiana
Karma: 10
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Senior Member |
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LNelson wrote on Tue, 21 August 2018 08:10 I landed at Eldon, met by police (air traffic control seems to always to this when you decide to land immediately).
Instincts are good.
Thanks for all of the suggestions.
Quite a few years ago a sheriff pulled up to me and a friend just outside of my hangar and demanded I leave immediately because an airplane was about to crash. I refused and asked him to leave my property.
The next thing I knew there were police cars from the city, county, state, and university running around all over the airport, including the taxiway and the active runway. I telephoned the airport manager. He and one airport vehicle had to go out and corral all of the police cars and get them off of the aircraft movement areas of the airport.
It turned out after almost an hour of waiting no crash occurred though several planes landed and took off, if the cops did not catch them first. The airport manager had to tell them to quit bothering the pilots (like me) and the moving aircraft. It tool almost 2 hours for them to get bored enough to leave.
It turns put that an IFR King-air based in the hangar across from me was inbound about 150 miles out when he reported to Center that one of his 2 alternators failed. He had no other problems and would continue his flight as planned. Well someone at Chicago Center notified the County Sheriff and the police agencies just escalated it from there.
Meantime Center handed the airplane off to South Bend Approach, who handles our area approaches, and did not tell them about the phone call.
South Bend handled the aircraft, he landed, parked his plane in his hangar, and went home. All of this before or during the time that the police were arriving. They never saw him.
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
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