It looks kinda funny without the headlights. I ordered the parts I needed to re-fit the headlights back in place. While I was waiting I figured I would tend to the grill. It is in good structural shape but the old chrome and black paint looked well worn. So I brought it into the shop to give it a face lift.
The grill was mostly silver (chrome) with black accents, I felt it needed to be updated and reversed the paint scheme to mostly black with silver accents. I know, not too imaginative but it turned out so good.
Here is the grill before I painted it. . .
And after!!!
Ok, they look the same, but trust me the new grill looks so much better and honestly, there is more black and the silver paint has metal flake in it. It's done.
So on to the maiden voyage, it was nothing special just a half hour drive to my friends house but the intention was to shake out the drive train and make sure everything is working.
I still have not timed the engine but it seems to be running good. I asked a friend to follow me in case of any problems and to give me a ride back to my car. I walked around the vehicle to lock down any loose panels I may have overlooked and to make sure there was nothing hanging or any tools left behind. There was this unmistakable smell of gas lingering around the back but I didn't think anything of it. I had smelled it in the past few days but it was probably from the vent. It has been warm.
I made it back to the drivers side and slid behind the wheel, pushed the key in the ignition and cranked her over. She started with roar and I kept the idle up with my foot until the engine warmed up which only took a few minutes. I dropped it into drive, the RV gently nudged forward to let me know it was in gear and I gave it a little gas. Slowly it moved forward, I was on my way.
I had to give it a little more gas to get it up the drive to the road, a little more than I thought should have been necessary but that was the engine being out of tune. The smell of gas was curiously strong but I continued to the upper parking area where my friend was waiting.
I stopped the RV and hopped out, it was idling really well and sounded great. I walked over to the chase vehicle and told him which way I was going. Hopping back into the drivers seat I could still smell the strong odor of gas, now I was getting a little concerned but not enough to check it.
I set off down the road with my road side assistance behind me. At one light I made a hard right and I saw in the mirror a trail of liquid behind me, but it stopped when I straitened out. Now the smell f gas was overpowering.
My cell phone rang, it was my buddy behind me. He said that some liquid had leaked out the back and that all he could smell was gas. He thought it came out the exhaust. After being asked how my engine was running I replied that it was running fine, albeit a little sluggish. So I told him that I was going to continue.
About a mile down the road the smell of gas was just unbelievable so I called my friend and told him I was going to stop at the truck stop to look at whats going on.
I pulled into the station and made sure I was away from the pumps, just in case. I left it running and popped the hood thinking I was going to see gas all over the engine. But it was dry as a bleached bone in the desert. I looked under the rig and didn't see any wet spots on the ground or on the undercarriage.
I stuck my finger in the exhaust tailpipe and quickly withdrew it noting that it was running and very hot. But my finger was dry aside from a little black soot and a developing blister. I visually checked the tank connections and found nothing.
Oh well. I decided to continue. I climbed in and exited the truck stop. The chase truck called me and said more liquid exited but it was nowhere as much as before and this time he noted that it was coming out from behind the exhaust, about where the dump valve for the waste storage tank is. Well that mystery was solved, apparently there was still some liquid in the tank and the dump valve is damaged some some exited.
But that didn't explain the smell of gas, which was getting stronger.
I made it to the highway and gently pushed her up to fifty five, where I would hold it and assess the sounds. Everything was going well except for that damn smell of gas which at this point was making me a little ill. The doghouse was not properly latched and it lifted up. I stopped it from flying off with my knee and held it until I got to the next rest area. I pulled into the truck parking area and got out, telling my friend what I was up to.
Off we continued. We were about fifteen minutes into our thirty minute trip, all was well.
I gave her a little more gas to get up to sixty five, a more civilized speed for the highway. Once the speed-o read sixty five the engine popped though the carb a couple of times so I backed her down to sixty where it hummed right along. That was a timing issue, and the smell of gas may be a symptom of the ill timed valve train. But I never smelled that much gas and not have a major leak. Like a wide open garden hose type of leak.
We made it to the exit and turned off the highway, and at the end of the off ramp came to a smooth stop, with the engine idling happily. All the while I was nearly passing out from smell. We made it to the stop and I backed it into the driveway. I half expected the undercarriage to be on fire but there was nothing. I shut her down and the engine came to a stop without a complaint.
For the next couple of hours I cleaned the inside and looked around for the cause of the smell. I made my way to the generator and removed the hatch. It was quite wet with what looked like fuel. The generator is plumbed into the main gas tank. The last time I worked on the generator I closed the fuel shutoff. And it was still closed, but there was a second shut off at the fuel filter which was still open. I had removed the air cleaner so I could work on the carburetor and never replaced it. Maybe this is where the fuel was leaking out? The generator was wet but the smell of gas was not strong or maybe my nose was so overwhelmed that I could not smell it.
I finished cleaning and set out with my timing light to sync the valve train. I found the timing mark on the harmonic balancer and painted it with my white paint pen. Since I removed the air conditioning compressor I was now able to see the timing mark on the engine well enough to set it.
I started the engine and pulled the trigger on the strobe light, but I didn't see the mark. I loosened the distributor and turned it a few degrees. I still couldn't see the mark. I knew it was there so I was a little more aggressive and turned the distributor, slowly, a lot. The engine was running well so I looked for the timing mark again.
This time I could just see the mark come into view but I was still a few degrees off so I turned the distributor to where I thought it should be and checked it again. Bingo. Maybe. I don't know what the setting is yet so I left it at ten degrees before top dead center. That will be close enough until I get the right number.
It seemed to run very well and I could not smell the gas any more. But I really didn't smell it before until I was moving. So it will have to wait until next weekend.
I decided this was a successful trip.
During this week I will be servicing the generator.
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