Projects Haters Are Gonna Hate

So I woke at 3 this morning with night sweats and the worst heartburn ever from disturbing dreams about distributors. Since I couldn't sleep, I decided to try to trick the internet. I figured "can't find what I need for a Lincoln 337, maybe I can find some compatible stuff for a Ford F8 or some such". The internet would have none of my chicanery. So I've decided that I'm just going to have to suck it up and send my dizzy off to Bubba and have him put some Mallory guts in it or something. A friend of mine spends a lot of time up there in Gasoline Alley and says that Bubba is definitely the man for this sort of thing.

I just hope it can last the winter cause I can't really afford to have the car down right now. You see, most guys spend the winter working on their cars so they can cruise during the summer. But not me. I don't really drive anything else. I use the rod to get to work when its cold, and use my bike when its warm to save gas.

My wife thinks I'm an idiot. She thinks I should get rid of the toys and find something more sensible. " You need a car, not a conversation piece," she said last week when I told her that I needed a new battery and cables. I mean, every car needs a battery from time to time. It's not like it was broke down or anything. It just needed some maintenance. Every car needs maintenance...

So, yeah, like every car, my car needs a tune up. Plugs, wires, cap, rotor. Those points that don't exist.
And the kingpins have some play and could use replaced.
And The steering box leaks.
And a new idler arm would be good.
And wheel bearings.
And wheel cylinders.
And the fabric on the wiring is all kinda falling off.
And there's a brake light that only works sometimes.
And sometimes when I hit a bump, my headlights go out, but hey, that's only a problem at night.
The heat only works on low.
And the vent tubes are made out of duct tape.
The windows are held up by boards inside the doors cause the hydraulic window lifts ate it decades ago.
Oh, and no door panels so I can get the boards out when I need to put the windows down.
And all of the interior needs redone.
And the fuel tank leaks if you fill it all the way up cause it has an aftermarket tank that I messed up when I vented it.
Fuel gauge reads 1/8 when its dead empty so its best to fill up when its just below half. But not too full or it leaks.

So it needs some things. Sure. But every car needs things. And I look super cool driving it with my big black glasses and my slicked back hair. I need this car. It matches my outfit. I would look totally stupid behind the wheel of Corolla. There isn't enough flat black paint in the world to make that scenario work.
My wife wants me to get a new car. Well that's what I'm getting, baby. One piece at a time.


rob

 

dont give in. keep driving the balls off it

 

bubba cant help you. he only works on distributors cars are never dizzy drivers yes cars no

 

Hang tuff, brother.

 

You can buy points for it at Autozone or NAPA. Now bushings and advance mechanisms may be a little harder to find.

All cars need maintenance I get it. Your missus just thinks that you should be driving a modern car because she doesn't understand. You can do one of two things, cut her the break that you think she should cut for you, or walk. I have done both in my time and both have been the right thing to do at the time.

Bubba is going to want to go Petronix if you build a conversion out of it, that is his go to ignition. I have an old Mallory converted by Bubba as we speak. he does a good job and while I am mostly a Mallory man his ignition is top notch and I won't have a problem with the Petronix at all.

I do understand driving and riding old stuff. I have a Shovel that I ride year around. Not to save gas (although the 40 MPG is nice) I ride because I like to. I don't currently own a car but even if I did when I wanted to ride I would and when I wanted to drive I would.

Now this is going to make you think I am a "hater" (I despise that word it is so new millennium) but I am going to say it anyway. Don't make excuses for what you do, just fuckin' do it and let the chips fall where they may.

 

I had the same problem- too much spicy food before bedtime.

 

Well for me its Oxy, I am still trying to get over this surgery, well that and am medicating while I have an excuse.

 

I hear ya man. I have lost more sleep lying awake at night trying to figure out this old car stuff. I mean, I don't really mind it because I LIKE thinking about it, but damn, some days it's hard to stay awake at work.

Yep, I agree with Benno and Larry. Change the title of your thread. My Momma taught me when I was young not to use the word "hate" lightly. It's a powerful word that should be used carefully and appropriately. It has it's place but should not be diluted by casual usage, IMHO. I certainly wouldn't use it on my wife...maybe my ex-wife...no, on second thought, not even her. I save it for folks like Hitler, Stalin, jihadis. etc.

These days, it is used by millennials to intimidate into silence anyone who has a differing opinion. Doesn't really work with me though.

 

I think your wife is right, you need a new car.

I was with you right up to the dark glasses and slicked back hair. Then you mentioned an "outfit".

That was it. I got this extremely cheesy picture in my head of some greaser like punk look out of the 50s and thought WTF.

Your wife is right, you need a new car and a makeover too

 

Ditto on the title. "Haters are gonna hate" is Hipster, not traditional.

I have four rides. The '37 is my daily driver and the other three don't run at all. It's a daily adventure that keeps me on my toes.

Headed to work early on Monday, about five-thirty. Got about three-quarters of a mile and determined it would not be long before Deerslayer left me stranded in the middle of the highway. Limped back to the shop with the engine stumbling even worse than Sunday. Noticed that the tach needle was jumping when engine speed was constant. The tach connects to the negative coil terminal. At this point, I swapped in a new coil. No joy. Okay. I pulled a remanufactured stovebolt distributor out of the BillyBob roadtrip supplies and installed it after putting the vacuum advance gadget from the old dizzy on it. Positioned it by eyeball and after some pain in getting the oil pump slot aligned, It slipped in and the engine started right up. I made it to work by seven-thirty but I have some aftermath work to attend to tonite, including dwell and timing adjustments.

 

Oxy.. DANGEROUS stuff.. I will PM you my address and keep them in a safe place for you...

 

Work on 1 thing at a time and maybe get a slightly new back-up beater just in case.

I had an OT 2002 import (wife approved...) in 2009 & 2010 I had more stuff break on that car, think I put $1800 into it in a 3-month span at one point. This was at the 110k mile mark.

 

Oh they are safely kept in my head ( at least some of them ), but my wife took my plug wires. I guess I'll have to make up a new set.

So does that make her a hater?

 

are these the points you can't find? or is it something else?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/251801312206?

 

You need a pick up truck, seems obvious! (and keep the car)

 

Here's something you haven't heard yet, GET TO WORK. You drive an unsafe car that wasn't prepared for the challenges of winter, sketchy brakes, sometimes-brake-lights, engine with hard to get tune-up parts, little support. Don't moan about an oddball engine that you know little about, this is what you want, this "haters gonna hate" is bs, you are lazy dude! I don't envy or hate someone that is more concerned about 'the look' and '(your)my image'.

Lest you think I'm a 'pretender to the throne', dd/only vehicle 18 years, '49 1/2 ton Chevy. 100% priority from the get-go was getting it to stop safely, 100% re-do of the brake system. 100% rewire. Got her to run well and then faster and more efficiently. Good luck!

PS, Are you a FOP man, or a Dapper Dan man (hair products)? I don't care, I just thought it was a funny reference to 'Oh Brother Where Art Thou' movie...

Here's some help with that flat black paint....http://s104.photobucket.com/user/49Cosmo/media/Saturday AM Paint Shake_zps3ref7gms.mp4.html

PS, just looked at the pictures of your car, it is really beautiful.


Cosmo in the '49, 24/7/365

 

I can't believe you can't find the points. Take them out and look at pictures of points on the NAPA website. When you see something close, write the part number down. Go to the store and match them up.

 

You put the lime in the coconut..

 

Rethink the whole "hater" thing, if I hear that one more time at work, I will start hating somthing!

 

So....in another post you claim that your Lincoln was in good shape, and "ran like a champ" when you got it. So what have you done to it, except paint it flat black and run it into the ground? 3 days and 5 posts on the HAMB, and you are whining because the wife wants you to give up the poseur routine? We tend to fix up our cars around here. Just sayin'.

 

I spend about as much *per year* on my old car as your wife spends *per month* on her car payments

Its not a toy when it pays its way

 

Lots of places sell the pertronix ignitor kit for your distributor, if you don't feel like messing with points. Kanter has all your front end parts in one convenient kit (I've used them and like their kits). Idler arms and such weren't in stock at parts stores by me, but several said pieces were available. Part of driving an old car is finding parts and maintaining it. If something isn't working like it should, you can't just blow it off until later, have some pride and fix your shit. You don't want to hear this, but if you have been blowing off basic maintenance and just living with lights that don't work and a sketchy driving car, your wife might be right. She knows you better than we do and she doesn't think you are going to keep that car running reliably. No shame in it, don't get all offended. Some guys have a car they tinker with slowly in their free time, and cruise around on weekends in. That might be you. I'm hoping that last paragraph about looking cool and matching your outfit was sarcasm, so I'll keep my thoughts on that attitude to myself.

 

since i do not know your responsibilities in life, or your financial means, i can not side with you or your wife.
do you live the big boy life, with a family, mortgage and a job that relies on you and you need? then your wife is right and a solid, safer, back up car is a good idea. or do you have the luxury of no responsibilities, a job [or you] that doesn't care wether you are there or not, then just pose away, living the dream.
or are all your ducks in a row, everything is taken care of, and this is a fun thing- go for it.
priorities and good decisions are everything for a good life.

 

Naw, who could ever hate you? Maybe she does know you better than we do though...

 

I recall the days when my every-day point-A to point-B later model car was a real POS.. this is back in the days with kids in diapers and the wife not working. Man were we broke at times. But the safety of the car was always a priority especially if the kids rode in it.

 

Ah well, even if driving an old car is part of your "ensemble", at least it beats a tie and a Taurus. I guess in some way they are all part of our ensemble, even if it's just the garb you crawled out it in to drive to the store, or the clean Isky Cams T-shirt you wore to Foster Freeze last Saturday.

Put the lime in the coconut and call me in the mornin'
Woooooo

 

Well said.
Basic reliable transportation is your first line of defense against the world. You can't allow yourself to be one car breakdown from losing your job. If you can't afford to properly fix this car, then you have to get another one. It's called growing up.

 

I don't understand what haters are supposed to hate in this thread. Your original post is just a summary of your current condition and position... Having a broke-ass car and not being able to sleep at night about it is, well, pretty common. We've all been there. By the sounds of it, your girlfriend is a keeper. She probably rode in that car, realized it wasn't at all safe, and THAT's why she wants you to get a Corolla. Fix your shit, and you'll love it that much more.

 

I said decent shape because it handled the road trip home from Ohio. The last two cars I bought had to be dragged out a field and hauled home. So low rust and running is "decent" in my world.

I checked the pertonix application guide. They make something for every car you can think of except the 49 Cosmo. The ones listed all over for the 337 are for 50-51.

I just bought these. I've have been wearing out my keyboard, using every different search term I could think of trying to find these. Thanks a bunch for pointing them out.

Some of you have said that hate is a strong word. My wife truly does hate my cars. She didn't used to. 15 years ago, when I first got the Torino up and running after rescuing from a field, she hopped in the passenger seat to go for its maiden spin and seat spring ripped the ass out of her favorite pair of jeans. Now, she says that this has nothing to do with her change of heart about old cars. But I find that hard to believe since they both happened on the same day. She was driving a 65 Impala at the time that she suddenly started not liking so much. And that car was her baby. She had traded her 2 year old grand am for it. I had never been so in love with a woman as the day she took me to see that Chevy and told me she had to have it.

Didn't mean to sound like a whiner. I was really freaking tired this morning.

Times got tight right after I bought that car. Almost sold it once even. Things have been looking up a little lately so I've been trying to buy at least one thing it needs a week. I even stopped wasting money on lunch so I can spend it on my car. That may not sound like much, but financially speaking, I get food, gas for my ride, and smokes. The rest goes to keep the wolves from the door. So giving up food for my car is kind of a big deal to me.

Thanks to all you guys who offered advice and support. Having a resource of guys who know stuff and are willing to share their knowledge makes it that much easier to spend my days off under the hood installing that one thing I managed to afford this week.
And a special thanks to the founding fathers for the freedom of speech. It makes the humorless a-holes who chose to mock my glasses and haircut easier to spot. How's the wifi up there on your high horse? Dudes, really, if any of you ever consider a sense of humor transplant, I will gladly offer you some of mine. I'm AB negative.

rob

 

Here is some advice from the experienced:
Get rid of the wife, she just don't get it.