<VV> clutch pilot bushing removal tool

[Tony Underwood]

At 09:20 PM 12/11/2009, Dennis Pleau wrote:
>Four slices of bread $0.20.  This tool $25.00.  I would need to remove 125
>pilot bushings before I broke even.  Actually I don't use bread anymore, I
>have a 5/8 coarse tap which works great.  I got the tap with a bunch of
>tools I bought at an estate sale, so I can't say what I paid for it.  I
>bought a coffee can of taps, drill bits, easyouts (a misnomer) , etc... for
>something like $10.00.



A while back I took out a pilot bushing with a tap, bushing was 
rather worn, hence the replacement with new... and afterwards while 
piddling around with it a bit I noticed that the tap had knurled the 
bronze slightly and that a "reaming" with another input shaft to 
smooth things out  made the bushing a snug fit again.

...I didn't put it back in an engine...

But the bushing is still on a shelf in the basement.   ;)

Odd thing about that particular engine:   It came out of a mortified 
dune buggy that hadn't run since 1971, sat in a buddy's lot behind 
his shop for over two decades covered in honeysuckle and had two 
different bumblebee nests embedded in its rotting fiberglass 
body.   Buggy got rescued, was a mess, driveline was about all that 
was worth saving.   The engine was partly pulled down and checked and 
it looked great inside, just put it back together as-is.   Was gonna 
put it behind a 4-sp and stick it in a black '65 Monza at Bill 
Burleson's place that had no engine but a PG transaxle (plan was to 
swap the PG to a 4-sp) but instead things changed at the last minute 
and it kept the PG .    To make room for the converter pilot, the new 
pilot bushing got popped back out via the bread trick since nobody 
could find Bill's tap again at the time.   Kept that bushing too... 
in the top tray of my tool box.

After the engine went in (never started) and the owner lost interest 
then storage for the car, the black Monza ended up among the fleet 
here, as a part of a package deal... no interior, most of the trim 
removed etc.   But... it had an engine.   Then Rick Stansbury bent up 
his green #5 car.

Took the engine back out and made Rick a smoking deal on the black 
Monza body, sans doors and front deck lid (which I still have here, 
Rick was gonna use the lightened stuff off his bent #5 racer), to 
become his replacement race car... and work started on it.   He spent 
several weekends (with a little help from me) cutting and welding and 
fitting...  then Rick died.    I was told his wife liquidated most of 
the Vair stuff...   I understand the black car was sold off as 
scrap.   ~~~   >:-o

The engine ended up getting its pilot bushing put back in AGAIN (not 
the knurled one but the breaded one) and it went into the formerly 
green/now maroonish'bronze '62 convertible that had been without an 
engine for a couple decades itself.   This engine was finally started 
for the first time in 35 years and ran great, and is a strong runner 
for a 110.   It's going with us tomorrow to the chapter meeting in 
spite of the cold... needs to be run a bit, been sitting for a month 
anna half since winter arrived.


...so how's my annoying stories string going?





tony..