240 General: New (to me) 1980 Volvo 244

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Not recently Alan. No real reason to do one to be honest although i see your line of thought on it.
Given the vast improvement in power and torque since tweaking the mixture back to where it should be, i'm pretty confident i've found the problem but obviously time will tell.

You are probably right Dave, perhaps it isn't that likely a cause. From a 2 stroke background it is one of the first checks one would do, often just to monitor the health of a motor. When we ran a Yamaha 702 jet-ski I probably checked the compression once per month, but then it only took 5 minutes. With a 2 stroke it gives a good indication of how healthy both the top end and bottom end are.

On 4 stroke bikes I find it handy as well - again it tends to be easy to apply - my bikes are all singles and twins and the plugs are generally easy to get at.

As you will remember with the RB, a compression test (plus the little gas sniffer) was instrumental in diagnosing the current malady.

I hope your latest tweak has fixed the problem and you get back to that very impressive 27 MPG Dave :-)

Stay safe.

Alan

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

I don't know what releasing oil you're using Alan but invest in some acetone (aka nail varnish remover) and some Carlube ATF-U and make a 50/50 mix. Keep it sealed between uses to prevent the acetone evaporating and shake well before each use as they have a tendency to separate.

Brush, spray, squirt or otherwise get it onto the threads of the fasteners and let it soak. You'll be amazed how easily things come apart, especially after a few days soaking and a couple of repeated appliactions in between whiles.

Besides the fact it's earned the nickname of WMP - Weapon of Mass Penetration, it has proved its worth many times with countless fasteners including severely overheated and corroded turbo mounting nuts/bolts that hadn't been touched in their 20 year life, various exhaust studs/nuts other than that and even an accidental proof of its derusting capability when i sprayed some on a pantograph assembly i made as part of something else and needed to repurpose part of it. I'd sprayed the bolts i need to remove and the rest of the mechanism got splashed with overspray. That was 2-3 years ago and despite leaving the thing in the open (as it had been for some time before) it's still possible to see where it was splashed with WMP - although the rust is creeping back after this amount of time, it's much less severe on those spots than elsewhere.

When removing the studs, use the "back and forth" method to minimise the chances of shering and/or seizing. Once you start removing the stud, there's likely to be a point when the thread starts going tight. Give the thread some lube (either WMP or your old release oil) and retighten the studs, then undo it again to the same point where it begins to get stiff again. Then literally turn the fastener back and forth in a total of about 1 turn (half a turn each way) a few times until it shifts. You may have to do this a few times during removal of a stud/bolt/nut but it's quicker, easier and less stressful than having to remove a broken fastener!

It's a time-honoured method that has rarely failed me and was a tip given to me more years ago than i can remember. Don't be tempted to keep winding a thread when it's almost out and goes stiff, chances are it will shear then. Use this method and there's every chance you'll get it out intact!

Good luck with the head job, looking forwards to loads of pics and a good write up and as always, if you run into problems, just ask!

I gave the pulley bolts and all the stud nuts a good dousing with WMP yaesterday Dave, and will repeat that today. What i may do tomorrow is just see if I can crack all the bolts/nuts I'm concerned about (I think 16 of them). If I can move them all a little I'll be confident about getting everything apart without a hitch - and I don't need to use the RB in the meantime. If I then give them another soak in WMP things should be okay when I do the work next week.

... as you might guess, I'm looking for things to ad at the mo :-)

Stay safe,

Alan

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Othen

You are probably right Dave, perhaps it isn't that likely a cause. From a 2 stroke background it is one of the first checks one would do, often just to monitor the health of a motor. When we ran a Yamaha 702 jet-ski I probably checked the compression once per month, but then it only took 5 minutes. With a 2 stroke it gives a good indication of how healthy both the top end and bottom end are.

On 4 stroke bikes I find it handy as well - again it tends to be easy to apply - my bikes are all singles and twins and the plugs are generally easy to get at.

As you will remember with the RB, a compression test (plus the little gas sniffer) was instrumental in diagnosing the current malady.

I hope your latest tweak has fixed the problem and you get back to that very impressive 27 MPG Dave :-)

Stay safe.

Alan

I hope it has as well Alan, although the plugs are all easy to get at on mine, the fact there are 6 of them means a bit more time (and bending over!) before i get near to doing the compression test.

Originally Posted by Othen

I gave the pulley bolts and all the stud nuts a good dousing with WMP yaesterday Dave, and will repeat that today. What i may do tomorrow is just see if I can crack all the bolts/nuts I'm concerned about (I think 16 of them). If I can move them all a little I'll be confident about getting everything apart without a hitch - and I don't need to use the RB in the meantime. If I then give them another soak in WMP things should be okay when I do the work next week.

... as you might guess, I'm looking for things to ad at the mo :-)

Stay safe,

Alan

Looking for things to do isn't a bad thing as long as those are productive things you're doing. Don't forget to shake the WMP before each use, makes a world of difference, especially when it's in an aerosol can as mine is.

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Looking for things to do isn't a bad thing as long as those are productive things you're doing.

... I'm itching to get out on one of my bikes Dave; I started all of them yesterday - just to keep them ticking over - and it is very frustrating not being able to take one out for a ride.

It is heading towards 20C today - perfect biking weather - I should be heading towards Hunstanton for an ice cream with a few biker mates.

Ho hum.

Stay safe.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Othen

... I'm itching to get out on one of my bikes Dave; I started all of them yesterday - just to keep them ticking over - and it is very frustrating not being able to take one out for a ride.

It is heading towards 20C today - perfect biking weather - I should be heading towards Hunstanton for an ice cream with a few biker mates.

Ho hum.

Stay safe.

Sounds like essential food shopping to me Alan!

[Stephen Edwin]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Sounds like essential food shopping to me Alan!

.... plus one to that.

After all. If professor lockdown can entertain his married blond. Surely Othen can have an ice cream.


But. A touch of class demands it be a Rossi ice cream. At Sarfend.





.

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Sounds like essential food shopping to me Alan!

Ha, ha Dave!

'Yes officer, I know I don't have anywhere to put the essential food shopping on this bike, that is why I could only buy an ice cream when I got to Hunstanton :-)'

Stay safe.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Othen

Ha, ha Dave!

'Yes officer, I know I don't have anywhere to put the essential food shopping on this bike, that is why I could only buy an ice cream when I got to Hunstanton :-)'

Stay safe.

It's a statement of fact so can't be argued with - i like it!

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

It's a statement of fact so can't be argued with - i like it!

Ha, ha :-)

I suspect the Norfolk Constabulary might see it differently resulting in a £50 fine!

Dan and I are playing it safe and eating (very nice) ice cream in the garden. It is a glorious day here in Corby.

Stay safe,

Alan

[Laird Scooby]

You're right Alan, shame you don't know the little back roads that would almost certainly avoid any main roads (except maybe crossing one or two) but it could still prove to be an expensive ice cream!