[AMC-List] back from the salty desert

[Tom Jennings <tomj@xxxxxxx>]

(Long post; photos below.)

What a week! Got back Monday night from the Burning Man
festival. A whole week of camping with 40,000 other idiots on
a corrosive dry salt lake. A day or two of dust storms, many
photogenic dust devils, one complete whiteout storm with 60 -
70 mph winds (our PVC quonset hut survived).

Poor Rambler (63 Classic wagon, '70 232, M35 air-cooled trans,
torque-tube rear) made it OK, but I really pushed my luck; the
trans is in dire need of a rebuild [I knew this ahead of time],
it was weight-wise overloaded (600 lbs?) with gear: bedding,
clothes, food for two for a week; a 16 x 24 PVC quonset hut,
two bikes, tools and spares, and for the last 150 miles, 30
gallons of water. From sealevel up to 7000 feet (sans water
weight), the dry lake is at 4000.

Very nice slow drive up US395, the east side of the Sierra
Nevadas, a spectacular drive, if you ever get to make it;
about 450 mi. from LA to Reno I think. All quite beautful,
once you get to the town of Mojave (home of Space Ship 1).

For the last year, the trans has been slow to go into D1 after
sitting (fluid level fine). Of course, on the very first pull
onto I5, it refused to shift into 3rd. Had to bring it to
50mph, then throttle up. Thenceforce it shifted OK 2-3, but
slowly. Not Good. It did that a few times throughout the trip,
usually early in the day.

I really babied it; a dead M35 hundreds of miles from home
would be most un-fun. After 18 years driving this configuration
of parts I know every noise and can tell you what each component
is doing and at what stress-level and temperature; my brainstem
logic kept the trannie cool.



I tell you one of the worst inventions ever is air conditioning.
Yes, the Rambler has it, 2nd year now. But it has allowed
us to grossly overpopulate the desert (think: Phoenix. Sorry
phoenixites, no offense meant, it's a lovely town, but I think
it and other desert cities would be better off populated with
you actual desert denizens instead of LA A/C refugees) -- and
it encourages driving with the windows rolled up, the real crime.

Car A/C has turned "vacationers" into impatient, rude, dimwit
SUV consumers-of-fuel-and-landscape. I couldn't tell you how
many jerks flew by me in dark-windowed SUVs at 75+ past the
awe-inspiring sights, with LCD TVs in back glowing blue. Idiots,
why don't they just stay home?




Anyhoo, I had one road "failure", the wiring to the alternator.
I long ago converted to a three-wire GM-style. Bought one of
those replacement connectors for the sense and idiot-light
wires. The blue butt splice I used (probably 10 - 15 years ago)
corroded, resistance went up, and the alternator voltage was
hopping 15 - 17 volts, sometimes 17-18 volts. I heard the A/C
fan speeding up, and looked at the dash voltmeter!

A diagnostic tug on the wire momentarily flattened it out to
14.5V indicated.  Pulled out the connector, poked it cleaner
with a pocket knife, cut the bad splice out, recrimped (from
the toolbox) a new butt splice, problem solved.

I have the old corroded butt splice in my pocket. I plan on
sawing it open this weekend to see exactly how it failed. Failure
analysis is the key to reliability!

(I will buy a new connector, and SOLDER-splice the leads, no more
crimp splices under the hood! It also points out just how good
a job the factory did on their cheap-ugly-but-reliable wiring.)

The factory AM radio died over the summer; high alt voltage is
almost certainly the reason. Now I have to find a replacement
antique transistor (2N176). Battery looks OK, no water loss,
probably fine, as the voltage was spiking high, enough to kill
a transistor (and hurt a lamp) but not a big massy battery.


Anyways, it made it home without event, 17 hours of driving
instead of 12; 2.5 hours to get from Black Rock City to the
highway, and the other half avoiding inbound LA holiday traffic.
I was reminded why I never drive on holidays!

On our way out the door, still clean. No room in the car
for the spare tire; trunk occupied by huge propane tank,
so on the hood it goes.

http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00662.jpg on our way out

600 mi from home on the playa, camp set up, from Michael's tower
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00691 1st day setup, from tower

a pretty little dust devil
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00709 pretty little dust devil

start of dust storm
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00714 start of storm

pippa's pedal honda 600
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00736.jpg pippa's pedal honda 600

playa lifts into sky; soon total whiteout, 60 mph
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00741.jpg whiteout storm pre-arrival

home made steam car, including engine
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00750.jpg home made steam car

the rambler ensconced in camp
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00755.jpg rambler
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00761.jpg rambler dust

 >>> shudder <<< this is a flayed nash skin,
attached to a Ford Ranger pickup. Really.
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00767.jpg ranger

another steam machine, an old, restored Case thresher. It
drove around a lot. The train whistle was dangerously loud!

http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00775.jpg case

another stationary rambler shot
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00804.jpg camp

return trip, Bridgeport CA, view S. over Mono Lake.
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00815.jpg snow
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00822.jpg view

at home, drivers seat looking back
http://wps.com/BM/2006/images/dsc00827.jpg junk


I didn't see another AMC product at the event; in fact except
for an occasional big truck, and the steam Case thresher, I did
not see any vehicles older than mine. I doubt I saw more than
20% of the place though, and with 40K people, there likely
was 20K vehicles, not including the mutated ones.



I think I can state with some authority, the little air-cooled
BW M35 is a very strong and reliable transmission. Mine's 40+
years old; rebuilt well in 1989 or 1990; has had 8 or so fluid
changes/tuneups since then; and I keep the throttle rod adjusted
annually. It's in a car a bit too large for it, with an engine
bigger (1970 232) than what the factory installed with it
(195.6ci). I take care of it like aircraft, but I use the HELL
out of this car, and certainly did this last trip.

This winter I will find a rebuilder I trust (might even take
it to San Francisco if B&E Transmissions is stilll good) and
spend the $800 or more it will cost. 


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