Forgot to mention it in my earlier post...

Something to be Very aware of...Pontiac and Chevrolet lifters are dimensionally the same...Height and Diameter...The difference between the two is the height of the oiling band/hole...On Pontiac specific lifters the oiling band/ hole is higher up on the lifter body from the bottom of the lifter....On Chevy lifters the oiling band/hole is lower (closer to bottom of the lifter body)...And alot of after market suppliers send the dimensionally same Chevrolet lifters...Which is normally Not an issue...

But with certain Pontiac specific Small Base Circle cam grinds...The oil band/oiling hole on the Chevy lifters will drop down below the bottom of the lifter bores on Pontiac engine blocks...Causing oil pressure/ lifter pump up issues...It is something to Pay Close Attention too...When installing your new lifters...

TLBT

Hope everything goes well with your epidermis issue...

Edited October 3, 20232 yr by TWO LANE BLACK TOP

Thanks TwoLane - that is excellent information and may explain the amount of apparent lifter issues I keep reading about. I also regularly see the sentence "Pontiacs aren't Chevys," and what you just shared sounds pertinent.

FYI I ordered Johnson Hylift lifters from Butler. Scott from Butler recommended them as the best lifters for Pontiacs, so I went with his recommendation.

Johnson & Johnson Hylift are separate companies (I didn't know) and since Johnson don't make hydraulics, I went with the other. Johnson seem to have an excellent reputation - anecdotally there are issues with all brands of lifters so I suppose it's luck of the draw- a sign of our modern 'squeeze every last dollar out of the consumer by selling cheaply manufactured products under an established quality banner' time.

I had a look at your link - there are some great photos in there. It's also refreshing to know that Kiwis are passionate about their old cars. The world in general has now realised that cars, trucks & bikes (& tractors!) are as much a part of our artistic landscape as are antiques, paintings, old buildings, etc. They represent an era that we'll never revisit. But...the world is also moving in a sinister direction where the minority nutbags get to have their say and inexplicably, people pay attention to them. Did you know that in the UK, they want to go all electric by 2030 - I think it's now been pushed out to 2035. They also want anywhere inside the M25 perimeter to be ICE free. There's nothing wrong with clean air in urban areas (or anywhere) and there are so many people in London that it will make a difference, but it's the speed of change that is concerning. I never thought I'd see such a thing as an American EV pickup in my lifetime, but they are on sale now.

Anyway, planes run on avgas, bulk carriers run on fuel oil, trucks & heavy machinery run on diesel and you can be assured that won't change for a long time. It'll be ten bucks a litre for petrol, but at least it'll be available.

And of course, unless you're magically generating electricity for free, you're just shifting tailpipe emissions to power station emissions, but we all know that.

23 minutes ago, TWO LANE BLACK TOP said:

Hope everything goes well with your epidermis issue...

Thanks mate - I get sliced up tomorrow and will be hobbling about feeling tender for at least a few days.

All the best for tomorrow mate 

does that mean a couple of weeks off work ? 

No - I'm due back next Tuesday. I seem to heal quite quickly, so fingers crossed. I've just come home from 3 weeks on and I feel doughy. I can only hope I remain doughy whilst on the slab!

This is an announcement for the benefit of all FP members:

Get a skin check either every 6 or 12 months. Men (myself included) are notorious for avoiding medical procedures. A spot detected early is a simple procedure. If it's the nasty kind of cancer that has tentacles, you're in for complex involved surgery along with the requisite amount of post op pain. Just go and get checked.

I just got home from my surgery. He only had to take ONE out - turns out the rest can be treated with a topical medicine that I might be able to pick up tomorrow, with the exception of one on the side of my foot. He warned me it's a difficult location (skin is too tight down there to pull back together to close the wound and apparently a skin graft in that location will die due to the endless activity your feet endure.) I have been warned of a slow, painful recovery of at least 4 weeks for that one. That's a job for next year - his decision, not mine. Anyway, it was painless and not unpleasant. Believe me when I say this: get checked!!!

Another obvious benefit is that beer o'clock can be as early as you like. Why have a Tequila Sunrise when you can have tequila AT sunrise. Cheers!

How the hell do you get a melanoma on your foot ? Mine never see day light !  

As I said before, a melanoma can grow anywhere - even internally. I used to work with someone and I found out that he died from one - he had no idea he even had one. Yeah - it's a bugger of a spot on the side of my foot. Oh well, it's gotta be done.

I keep looking at the car and am trying to summon the enthusiasm to start dismantling the top of the engine. Still waiting for inspiration...

Good luck buddy. 

Thanks Wrong (Right) Way! Just got word that a car was stolen a coupla nights ago just down the road and someone at the local tavern was threatened with a knife.  Great. This is the sort of area where this shit simply doesn't happen. I have taken all the precautions I can at short notice and let me say if they enter this property uninvited, they'd better be bulletproof. Another sleepless night comin' up, armed to the teeth, eyes red with coffee OD...All the cars are either modern enough to have factory immobilisers or I have disconnected the battery with a removeable isolator. These idiots are only opportunistic dickheads, not professionals. The pros wouldn't touch my motley collection of crap anyway. Here we go, into the breech..

Yeah bud, that hits close to home. I've got cameras up with motion detectors and still worry about people stealing parts. Can't steal the GP yet it's still in pieces. But I justa found out a couple weeks ago that the guy across the street was arrested with 2 stolen Harley Davidson motorcycles in his living room and a bunch of other stolen Harley parts in an enclosed pull behind trailer. The guy was out the next day. Very concerning since my bike sits in the driveway up by the garage door. No room in garage right now because of GP parts. It's a damn shame what this world gotten to.

Thieves are the lowest of the low...Should be dealt with in a Very Harsh and Unpleasant manor... The first time...

 

Agreed

3 hours ago, TWO LANE BLACK TOP said:

Thieves are the lowest of the low...Should be dealt with in a Very Harsh and Unpleasant manor... The first time...

 

Completely agree !

we had the same sort of thing as fitzy  here 2 weeks ago … I now lock everything ! 

I did NOT expect such similar comments: it seems theft is on the rise. JustA, you say he was out the next day??? How does that happen? And as you know I've been to Kiwi's place and I would never have thought any sort of crime would happen out there. A sad indictment of our modern times. Up to about 6 months ago, we never locked our doors - a decision I reversed because I knew we were relying on good luck. It'd be refreshing to see a government official stand up and announce a tough stance on crime, but everyone's too terrified of losing votes and/or popularity by being branded a Nazi, a racist, a homophobe, blah blah blah. Our local 'correctional facility' is like a resort, where the crims can relax and eat properly and sleep in a nice bed until they are ready to be released to cause more havoc. Chain gangs, cleaning up graffiti, picking up litter or just breaking rocks. THAT'S how you scare 'em off.

I'd love to say something Pontiac related but I got nothing. Once my wound heals a bit more I will throw myself into the engine dismantle. I found a secondhand Edelbrock dual plane intake to suit my car. I might talk to the seller today. Rocky Rotella says that any performance gains are minimal (I've fitted one to a previous ride and the difference was immense) since I keep the rpm pretty low but it's a nice piece of bling. That reminds me of a question: someone posted some time ago of a small coolant leak where the intake meets the water pump. Mine has the same issue. I'm damned if I can remember what the fix is. Any ideas? I do recall that my original intake had suffered some internal corrosion over the years but I deemed it serviceable after cleaning it up as best I could. The evidence of a leak is a tiny puddle sitting on the valley pan, just below the top radiator hose.

There Has been a rash of theft around my locality recently too...Have been making sure I keep everything locked up...But if they persist...

The coolant leak is more the likely coming from the intake manifold where the front timing cover slips into it... below the thermostat housing...Probably a bad 0 ring...

43 minutes ago, Fitzy said:

I did NOT expect such similar comments: it seems theft is on the rise. JustA, you say he was out the next day??? How does that happen? And as you know I've been to Kiwi's place and I would never have thought any sort of crime would happen out there. A sad indictment of our modern times. Up to about 6 months ago, we never locked our doors - a decision I reversed because I knew we were relying on good luck. It'd be refreshing to see a government official stand up and announce a tough stance on crime, but everyone's too terrified of losing votes and/or popularity by being branded a Nazi, a racist, a homophobe, blah blah blah. Our local 'correctional facility' is like a resort, where the crims can relax and eat properly and sleep in a nice bed until they are ready to be released to cause more havoc. Chain gangs, cleaning up graffiti, picking up litter or just breaking rocks. THAT'S how you scare 'em off

8 minutes ago, TWO LANE BLACK TOP said:

There Has been a rash of theft around my locality recently too...Have been making sure I keep everything locked up...But if they persist...

The coolant leak is more the likely coming from the intake manifold where the front timing cover slips into it... below the thermostat housing...Probably a bad 0 ring...

I'd love to say something Pontiac related but I got nothing. Once my wound heals a bit more I will throw myself into the engine dismantle. I found a secondhand Edelbrock dual plane intake to suit my car. I might talk to the seller today. Rocky Rotella says that any performance gains are minimal (I've fitted one to a previous ride and the difference was immense) since I keep the rpm pretty low but it's a nice piece of bling. That reminds me of a question: someone posted some time ago of a small coolant leak where the intake meets the water pump. Mine has the same issue. I'm damned if I can remember what the fix is. Any ideas? I do recall that my original intake had suffered some internal corrosion over the years but I deemed it serviceable after cleaning it up as best I could. The evidence of a leak is a tiny puddle sitting on the valley pan, just below the top radiator hose.

 

Edited October 6, 20232 yr by TWO LANE BLACK TOP

Mate are you watching Bathurst tomorrow ?

I am currently watching the top ten shootout 

Oh, I might tune in at some point. I have been to Bathurst to see the race twice and it was a lot of fun. To be honest, I enjoy the technical side of racing where they show what failed mechanically or when they have cameras in weird locations, like somewhere under the car and you can watch the brake discs glow red in a jiffy. As for the actual racing, not really my thing. Only about 10 years ago I would set myself up on the couch, snacks & drinks at hand and settle in for the day, but that was then. In fact, now that you have broached the subject, I will have a look tomorrow. I can't do much at the moment.

I love brake cam !!! Seeing those hunks of metal glow so bright that you would expect them to melt !!

I like when things go wrong .. wheels fall off… kangaroo on the track ! 
or better still … when the rain comes in over the mountain !! 
i have a few mates coming to watch it in the new room on the 98 inch so it should be a bit of fun ! 
aways a  longgggg day !

7 hours ago, 64 kiwi boni said:

I like when things go wrong .. wheels fall off… kangaroo on the track ! 

WTF  a kangaroo on the track?

16 hours ago, TWO LANE BLACK TOP said:

There Has been a rash of theft around my locality recently too...Have been making sure I keep everything locked up...But if they persist...

A man after my own heart, I knew I liked you Two Lane! 

1 hour ago, Wrongway said:

WTF  a kangaroo on the track?

A man after my own heart, I knew I liked you Two Lane! 

Oh yes mate ! Bathurst has all the thrills and spills ! 

12 hours ago, Fitzy said:

Oh, I might tune in at some point. I have been to Bathurst to see the race twice and it was a lot of fun. To be honest, I enjoy the technical side of racing where they show what failed mechanically or when they have cameras in weird locations, like somewhere under the car and you can watch the brake discs glow red in a jiffy. As for the actual racing, not really my thing. Only about 10 years ago I would set myself up on the couch, snacks & drinks at hand and settle in for the day, but that was then. In fact, now that you have broached the subject, I will have a look tomorrow. I can't do much at the moment.

Have no idea where my post went wishing you luck on your surgery.  Pull your coil wire and sit the wire on top of the coil hole.  great anti theft.  Another good one is push your E brake down, mark a spot for a hole, drill and drop even a small key padlock so they can't release the brake.