>EDDIE.MIT.EDU!mit-eddie!tcgould.TN.CORNELL.EDU!garnett (Roger Garnett)
>Even easier, at least for open end wrenches, is to get an extra wrench of
>one size smaller and grind it a bit bigger. Having the "right" tool is
> -an acetyline torch is good for those custom bent wrenches to
Can't deny that the thought of making my own occurred to me but I still
would have had to buy an 13mm wrench. As long as I was buying anyway,
what the hell, figured I might just as well get the correct size to
begin with. On the other hand, a 13mm wrench only cost about $2 whereas
the Whitworth cost about $7.
What effect (if any) does grinding and heating with a torch have on the
hardness of a drop forged wrench? This just may come up again. BTW, a
full set of Whitworth open end wrenches cost about $50.
>bending the other end, resulted in a wonderful crankshaft for the siczsors
>jack in my 'B. (About the only type of jack for LBC's which is functional,
>relativly safe, and doesn't take up much space in the boot.
Once about a time, I owned an Austin Healey 3000. For nearly 3 years,
the only time I ever used the jack was for normal maintenance like
changing brake pads, packing wheel bearing, et cetera. One night
(actually it was well into morning by then), in the middle of winter, I
noticed that the right rear tire was flat just as I was getting ready to
jump in and drive home. I was surprised to learn that the cute
little screw-jack that came with the car only fit under the frame (the
only reasonable jacking point) when the tires were inflated. Naturally
I had parked as far off the street as possible, in a mucky snow bank
that had been left by a snow plow a couple of days before. I really
enjoyed rolling around in the mud, looking for a place to put jack so
that I could lift the car up. Fortunately, a friend came to my rescue
by lending me his jack. By jacking a bit here with one jack and a bit
there with the other (mostly under body work that seemed stiff enough to
partially support the weight of the car) I was finally able to get one
of the jacks under something strong enough to lift the car high enough
to change the tire. The next day, I threw the old jack in the corner of
the garage and went to Sears where I bought a scissors jack (which I
kept when the car was sold).
I've never talked to another Healey owner who had this experience. Did
the previous owner of my car switch jacks? Am I the only one to ever
have a flat tire on a Healey?
Roland
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