[TR] A flood of flukes

[TERRY SMITH]

To all who responded defending Pertronix, just a note to confess I wasn't taking aim at the product, but rather that I cannot be trusted to treat it right, maybe leaving the key on accidentally or because I'm doing extended troubleshooting using the solenoid starter button under the hood.   The electronic ignition worked fine for me for 7 or eight years otherwise.  Still, replacing points and condensor at the start of every season seems an effortless task compared to packing wheel bearings and changing oil.


On another note, calling around to a radiator shop, the recommendation is to solder, not braze, the drain plug housing back into the radiator.  Since it seemed not much difference than soldering all the plumbing copper pipes I've done around the house, I just went into the garage and put the plug back in.  Used a butane torch, not propane nor acetylene.  Will test with water when it cools a mite.  Saves me a two hour trip to and from Concord to have it done, except they tell me they can't get to it for two weeks anyway.  Hmmm...does that make this a semi-fluke or perhaps an anti-fluke????


Beautiful day here in New Hampshire,

Terry Smith, '59 TR3A


> On June 25, 2019 at 5:03 PM TERRY SMITH <terryrs at comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> 
>     My wife had an old college roommate over for lunch on Sunday, so better part of valor I made myself scarce with a 4 and a half hour aimless drive in the TR3.  I should say four hours and twenty-eight minutes, because exactly two minutes from home the car lost all power.  No coughing, stumbling, fluttering.  Just total power one minute, complete shutdown the next. 
> 
> 
>     Towed it home with the loader, got it in the garage and went to work testing.  No spark out of the plugs.  Good spark out of the coil.  Swapped the Pertronix unit out for points, engine started and car ran fine.  I think I'm done with electronic ignitions.  I very likely killed the thing leaving the key on or somesuch idiocy to which I am prone.  Fluke number one. 
> 
> 
>     Next I ran it up to temperature at high idle so I could check the mixture one last time, I noticed it was overheating.  There are no knocks, rattles or grindings going on.  Oil pressure is steady and good.  Tested this twice, so I've either got a water pump or thermostat problem.  Fluke number two. 
> 
> 
>     Happen to have a new spare water pump already so I thought to replace both the thermostat and pump while the coolant was already drained.   I got under the car to unscrew the plug from the radiator to let the water out.  Got the plug out, then noticed that not only the plug came out, but the threaded housing came out with it.  Apparently it's like a plug within a plug, one threaded, the other weakly soldered it in.  This is one of the new radiators from one of the Big 3. Fluke number three. 
> 
> 
>     Gadfrey. 
> 
> 
>     Spent today pulling the valence and the radiator.  I'll take it to some radiator place to have the plug housing brazed in instead of soldered.  At least getting at the water pump is going to be easier. 
> 
> 
>     Terry Smith, '59 TR3A  TS 58667
> 
>     New Hampshire
> 
> 
> 


 

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