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  1. Lou C

    why is there oil in my bellows but pressure test holds 15psi overnight

    Smell what you found there. Because if you have a grease-able gimble bearing sometimes the grease will separate out in a runny discharge. If it doesn't smell like gear oil it could just be that.
  2. Lou C

    Pushing Run-Flat tires to the limit

    With 10 speed auto transmissions that 55 mph speed limit is more of a money grab than ever. Remember when that crap started in 1974? We had 3 speed automatics! And some Chevrolets had 2! Power glide…
  3. Lou C

    Power steering fluid in bilge?

    Agreed on all these possible leak sources. When you can start it up and cycle the steering back and forth, you'll be able to tell better. Hopefully it's not the power steering actuator. I did that job on my 1988 OMC Cobra and it's not a fun job. Volvo and OMC use these cotter pins to retain the...
  4. Lou C

    Pushing Run-Flat tires to the limit

    That's a good question.... if your vehicle has a spare and you buy new tires do you replace the spare? I bet most don't Here's a story, we had a set of GY Duratracs on my son's Wrangler, after about 4 years the spare (never used) had extensive dry rot from being in the sun, never had that on any...
  5. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    Even with only local driving, safety, esp with a single axle trailer. Yeah I know most people don't even think twice about any of this, they don't know that the trailer is overloaded, the brakes don't work, etc. Boating is stressful enough without having trailer problems to add to it. Funny...
  6. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    I think that's common, the rubber is starting to oxidize and dry out and becomes stiffer, so you lose grip. Especially noticeable in wet conditions. Same thing with the bellows on an I/O boat, the rubber starts to get dry and stiff and then you start seeing the small cracks forming in the folds.
  7. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    Agreed, 10 years is really the reasonable max time to use tires for, even if they look great outside, who knows what the inside looks like. I have a set of General Grabber AT2s on my oldest Jeep that are turning 10 years old, they probably have like 20K miles at most on them, they look like new...
  8. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    very few the ramp is 3/4 of a mile from my house, the farthest I will tow it is to the 'glass shop who does work for me once in a while, he's down in Lindenhurst LI so round trip it's like 22 miles or something like that. I know, I can just stick with the bias ply Kenda Loadstar K550s I have...
  9. Lou C

    Alternator and fuel pump on Volvo Penta 3.0 GLP-D

    Agree with starting with making sure all the wiring is clean, not corroded at terminals,etc. If you have wing nuts retaining your battery cable terminals, get rid of them, they loosen and cause these problems, use locking nuts instead. Don't forget the large cannon plug, these can get loose and...
  10. Lou C

    4 cylinder pushrod cover replacement?

    flat ring spanner = box end wrench lol in US speak. that pic I posted is for Chevrolet & Ford V8s where there was more stuff in the way of the bolt, on that inline 4 cyl your regular box end wrench should work...it all depends on what other "stuff" is in the way. I looked at some pix of 3.0s on...
  11. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    On tows even in my local neighborhood, I carry: a scissors jack adapted to use an impact gun, there is a special adapter you can get that works great if you have a long extension for your impact gun a De Walt 1/2" drive impact with a fresh battery sockets that fit both the Jeep and trailer...
  12. Lou C

    4 cylinder pushrod cover replacement?

    Here's what I am talking about. I bought one just like it in, oh, 1974 or so for our small block Chevy but also had a Ford 302 V8 that it worked on. The coupling between the 2 ends fits into a 3/8ths drive ratchet. Very handy! The 90* bend side is Ford, the other is Chevy.
  13. Lou C

    4 cylinder pushrod cover replacement?

    It's probably your classic Chevy/Ford distributor wrench, one side is 1/2" the other is 9/16ths. Can't recall which is which right now lol.
  14. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    I also go by the company’s rep. Kenda Tire has been in business since 1962, based in Taiwan. I had good luck with those so will probably stick with them. They are one of the few that makes a 15” trailer tire that has a deep off road tread more resistant to punctures, good for some of the lousy...
  15. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    To do that (LT) you need to go up to 16” rims….
  16. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    Funny thing. Back in the old days of the 1970s we all drive big American cars with belted bias tires. Now they didn’t handle well ans only lasted like 25,000 miles. But never had a tread separation which was the bane of early American made radials. Remember the Firestone 500 and Wilderness AT...
  17. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    Some 16” tires max out at 3400 lbs each! Expensive though. Always thought big RVs look silly with those little 15” Rims and 225/75-15 tires! Vehicles have used that size since the late 90s! Time for trailer companies to quit nickel and dimming people on safety!
  18. Lou C

    early spring maintenance

    I believe they are NPT threads so use some gas resistant sealer and get it good & snug. Same for the pick up tube
  19. Lou C

    Trailer tires.

    Sounds like you got your money's worth though. A bias tire won't do that because there are no added belts to come loose but sure you can get a blow out when the tire overheats. The other thing is this, most people have no idea how much their towed load weighs, unless you actually weigh it. So...
  20. Lou C

    early spring maintenance

    because behind every nut, bolt, fitting, etc, lurks Murphy! Just replaced the original 28 year old sway bar links on my old '98 Jeep, thank goodness I had a tie rod end puller! No more clunks from the front end finally. Next is the steering stabilizer, these also use a tapered stud, so the only...
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