Patrick Tipton

Sounds like good progress. I get grief for finding TDC this way, but it always works. Pull the #1 sparkplug, put your finger over the hole and crank the engine over. Release the crank when you feel the pressure start to build. By the time the engine stops spinning, you will be close enough to TDC to install the distributor. You will be close enough to get it to fire...then start adjusting the timing until the engine starts....once its warm, you can further refine the timing until she is running smoothly.

Started the engine rebuild last week. My machine shop left two broken manifold studs for me to remove...what are friends for? Anyway, it took us a couple of hours to get them freed up, but we ultimately succeeded using lots of heat on the broken stud and the infamous "EZ Out"...which never are. We spent a good bit of time today cleaning the block, oil galleys and the crankshaft before starting assembly. Tappets and camshaft are in, the crankshaft is in as well and turning nicely. I purchased this engine disassembled from another Weasel owner. It is a correct 1943 dated engine that had spun a bearing. I received it in pieces. Everything was in a big box...and when I consolidated it to save space...any semblance of organization went bye bye. I have spent a fair amount of time digging through the bucket of parts to get everything identified so we can assemble it correctly. Nothing too difficult, but it all takes time! Case in point, the crankshaft was missing all of the flywheel bolts. Fortunately, I picked up a stuck Weasel engine for parts and was able to get 3 flywheel bolts from that, find another two in a crank that I had removed from a broken block once upon a time and then find one in my "parts" bin. At this point, I think I have everything identified other than sorting bolts for the pan/front engine plate and a few miscellaneous brackets. Oh the joy of these projects! Will start working on the pistons tomorrow...they are mostly cleaned up but still need a little attention before we get them installed. I managed to take a video but no good pictures. Pics tomorrow!

Indeed, sounds like you are going to save a lot of headaches by just pulling the engine at this point and doing a very thorough inspection. The "rear main" on the original Champion 6 is a labyrinth seal - always amazes me that they work. There is an aluminum half circle (not sure off hand of the proper nomenclature - might call it a baffle) that fits into the oil pan that has a seal on it as well. Then the oil pan itself has a multipart cork seal.

I am not sure that is even fair😂

This is a little hard to unpack without getting to touch and hear the engine. Let's start from the top. 1. One to two minutes of cranking an engine consumes a lot of energy. Most of the time, we crank for maybe 5 or 6 seconds and an engine starts. 10 seconds is a long time and starts getting starters hot. I could see the battery discharging pretty rapidly if you have cranked on it for close to 2 minutes. 2. When you assemble an engine, you start by installing the crank with lots of assembly lube, then you torque on one crank bearing at a time. You turn the crank after tightening each cap to ensure that nothing is binding. With the crankshaft torqued down, it will turn smoothly by hand but there is a little resistance (I would say mostly lubrication related surface tension because once it starts moving, it moves easily). You then install the pistons and do the same thing, one at a time. By the time you get all 6 pistons installed, it takes a lot of force to turn the new engine over - you need an extension bar or the like - lots of friction from rings, overcoming valve spring pressures, etc. Importantly, though, there is nothing binding and everything will feel smooth. Even with a brand new starter and battery, a fresh engine turns over more slowly than feels comfortable. There is a ton of friction at this point. Once you get the engine running, it frees up quickly ....the rings wear in, and everything sort of settles down to where most of the force you feel when you crank the engine over is compression. But this happens after the engine has run a bit - the old "break in period" - and why lots of manufacturers have suggested break in methods to ensure that the engine will perform at peak. The Weasel manuals have a suggested break in procedure.... Since this engine has never run, compression checks and the like are not going to mean much. If the engine can be turned over without any obvious hard spots (with the plugs out) or noises, then I would focus on getting it running. Get a helper if you can to watch the oil pressure. Once the engine fires up, don't run it for more than 20-30 seconds if the oil pressure hasn't come up. Even without special priming....you should see that oil pressure pop pretty quickly or something else is wrong. Finally, the Weasel starter wiring is slightly goofy - so you may be losing a little starter umph if the wiring isn't perfect. Since the engine turns over though, I would not be too concerned yet. Also, adjusting the timing with the engine in the machine sucks...but can be done. Make sure you have spark, find TDC #1, make sure your firing order is correct and then crank with a little choke. If you are not getting a pop, start moving the distributor in one direction first, then the other - a little bit at a try...maybe up to 1/4 turn either direction. if you are even close to TDC/timing, the engine should start. Try to keep it running without racing it too high, watch your oil pressure and get it warm. Once it warms up, it should settle down and you can start tweaking the timing and the carb to get it to idle nicely, then start working on getting it to run well across the power range. Not sure if you are a member at www.portrayal.tv, but we have started lots of rebuilt engines and struggled with these issues. We are working on reassembling my T24 engine right now, plus doing a quick and dirty "overhaul" on another Weasel engine. You will find the videos helpful. You can use code PPC and get a free month. Hope that helps.

I have a buddy with an excellent T15.... I will see him this weekend and ask if he knows what belongs where. Congrats again on that machine....amazing time capsule. Fantastic to see it running!

T15Rsmall.mp4 T15Rsmall.mp4

Nice project! Congratulations and welcome aboard! When you get ready, start a "build" thread in this forum. You will get lots of support.

Congrats! Not sure why the video isn't working....I see it is a .mov.....??? I was able to download the video...cool! I tried to upload and can't get it to play on this thread either....let me reach out to tech support.

Back on the T24 restoration. Rebuilding the final drive and installing was my latest project. My brake drums were pretty ugly and wanted to see if they were salvageable. I don't have a metal lathe large enough to turn them, but was able to do it with my wood lathe. I ended up making a wooden interference fit collet and tapping the drums on. As there is a bronze bushing in the drum, I didn't want to damage the bushing so this seemed a fairly safe way to do it. With the drum chucked and running reasonable true, I took an angle grinder with a 60 grit sanding disc and sanded off the grooves. I then went through a few more grits up to about 120 grit and polished them up. I think they will work just great now.

Sounds like the clutch is not fully engaged or it is sticking. For the clutch engagement, the first stop is trying to tighten the pedal if there is adjustment room. You will need a helper, but you can pull the inspection plate and watch the clutch plate when someone depresses the clutch in neutral. It should stop. If adjusting the clutch does not work, then the clutch may be sticking. This is typically caused by a leaking rear main seal, although worn pilot bearings can cause this as well. You can spray the clutch down with brake clean. That will usually free everything up temporarily. Not a great solution, but it will sometimes get you by until you feel up to pulling the engine and replacing the rear main.

Sorry - not a fun outcome, but so be it. Onward! I had a pretty rough time getting mine off....used quite a bit of heat and penetrant and a slide hammer to get it off. Keep us posted. Patrick

Looks like Weasel parts! Woo Hoo!

Just to give you a little comfort(?) that all you are fighting with is a woodruff key and 80 years of being in the same spot! I am rebuilding a Weasel engine right now...this fiber gear was already broken off - so no concern about ruining something....still a bear to remove it.

Just checked the Original SNL G179 parts manual...indeed, the copper washers are there! Not terrible to install at this point, so will get them ordered. Thanks for keeping me on my toes John!

Many thanks John. No smashed fingers = WIN! 1. The felt seals in this final drive were in pretty good shape and I went ahead and reused them. Hoping that was not a mistake. Even with older seals, the machined fit of the outer tube/trumpet is very tight. We greased the surface and then used a couple of longer bolts to seat them. We used 2 drift pins as alignment pins. Worked OK. 2. Thanks for the reminder! I did not install the copper gaskets - there were none on this machine when we disassembled. I need to double check the manual for the early machines and make sure they belong....and then order some! 3. I had removed a final drive (or two) from derelict hulls so we had extra shims to mix and match. I spit balled it on the first side (roughly half the space - then we had to fuss a little, but they worked out pretty well to take up the little extra space that was there. 4. The breather canister is super ugly🤣 It needs love (and I may have a better one on a salvage final drive). I may look for a better one!

Big day today as we finished up the final drive, adjusted the brake bands and installed it and the trumpets back into the hull. Once upon a time, I installed the rear cover portion of the final drive and trumpets into a hull by myself. Not fun but doable because there isn't that much weight. Then I installed the main unit and bolted everything tight. It worked, wasn't fun, but I got the job done. Today, there were three of us working so we built the entire drive and used a chain hoist to install the complete unit. We still fought it a little, but all in all, it went in pretty easily. Best tip is to get some 3/8 rod - say 3 of them, and insert them from the outside of the hull into three of the bolt holes on the final drive flange. You can then slide the "trumpet" over the "locating pins" you just installed and get it started. Be sure to grease the machined surface of the trumpets (and install your gasket and any needed spacers on the inside of the hull). You are going to need to get bolts on either side of the trumpet and work it flush into the hull. We do one side, then shim and fit the other side. P.S. If you ever have an urge to do a T24/M29 in its original white matte paint scheme, resist it! I look at this damn thing and it gets dirty.

You are welcome - glad you enjoyed them Don! As for the 1/2 holes, you are going to be better off making a patch of some sort. Doesn't have to be perfect, but just cut some 18 gauge and weld it up. Tin snips are pretty tough going with 18 gauge...you can purchase a cheap hole saw though....and make yourself some patches pretty quickly. Enjoy!

That was fun wasn't it!🤣 We got the final drive installed this afternoon. Going to start rebuilding the engine next week. I have a take out Weasel engine in my test stand that has a stuck valve....going to try and get that engine running first and see what I have...then will start reassembling my T24 engine.

All progress is good. You may know about this tool already..... but you can make beautiful little safety wire ties with these handy dandy pliers. They used to be relatively expensive (think I paid $80 a good while ago for a nice pair), but Horror Freight has a $10 pair.....makes it fun to safety wire stuff!

Appreciate it John @OZM29C! I am excited to test this out on the M29 and see if I can get true fingertip steering....it is a wonder when it actually works. A friend has a very low time "survivor" Weasel and it steers incredibly easily, even on grass.....That is the goal my friend. I am sure it is a combination of linkages, good pads, clean drums, correct oil, proper adjustment and on and on. One other thing....the actually differential assembly was shimmed, although the manual doesn't say anything other than return the shims to the original positions. With new bearings, there was zero backlash on the ring gear so I shimmed it to get about 2 thousandths.... my "generic" tolerance for a differential. I also put a little preload on the bearings themselves, not much, but it all seems to be running well and the tooth pattern looks good, so we should be in good shape.

Got the brake drums cleaned up today. I ended up doing the work on my wood lathe....turned a chuck and just used a compression fit. The drum was not running perfectly true, but these are low rpm devices, so I think we are close enough. I used my angle grinder with 60 grit sanding discs, then went up to 100 and then a 3M pad to polish. I did run a file across it before polishing to check flatness and progress...worked just fine. I could probably polish it a little more, but I think we are in good shape. I am going to be pulling the final drive on the M29 next week to replace the brake linings and am going to repeat this process...will report back on results! I will also post some assembly pictures soon. There is definitely a camming action with the brake bands when you set it up correctly - I am expecting fingertip steering with this one, but we shall see.

After spending the last year and a half on a 1943 Willys MB, I am back on the T24. Excited! The engine is back from the machine shop, all of the parts have been received so we just need to reassemble it. That project should start next week. In the meantime, I needed to put new brake pads on the final drive bands. Not a bad project. I ended up with a little aircraft "c" clamp style brake riveter. Worked like a charm. I used a little countersink bit, clamped the pads in place with a bunch of small c clamps and then started riveting. The squeezer type riveters are probably a lot faster, but they are a little harder to keep aligned as you squeeze. Definitely excited to see how much of a difference these new bands make. I am going to replace the bands on the M29 as well. I also need to clean up the drums a little. I am planning on chucking them on my wood lathe and then using an angle grinder to get rid of the grooves. I will try and get pictures.

Greetings Jeff. I have found that the only reliable way to tension the T24/M29 tracks is with the jack. You don't really need anything else on those machines. I have had some success with pry bars and chains and blocks of wood etc...but it is not a fun experience. The jack makes it all predictable. So, I will take a look at the T15 manual, but are the jacks the same? If they are, I believe Dave Yamulla has a limited number of jacks for sale..... Excited to see this machine running! Patrick

Good news is that timing gear failure just means the engine stops...no biggie if you choose to wait. But it does require pulling the motor out of the Weasel...which isn't that big of a deal, but it is a deal! Look forward to video of it running....with oil pressure!