Hi guys,
I have been attempting to help resolve a vibration problem in a mate's FC Holden Sedan - one of Kevin Woollard's great resto projects, "Miss Mullum"
I am so impressed with the work done on this car by Kevin, it's like a 12 months old car now with hardly a mark on it. It's current owner is taking very good care of her.

One issue he has had though is a vibration at 100+Km/hr. All signs point to a tailshaft issue with that drumming harmonic sound appearing around 100, the kind you hear then feel in the seat of your pants 

The tailshaft had been balanced a few years back which seemed to help a bit. We tried by replacing the tailshaft with another re-balanced shaft with new unis however the vibration was still there. Might have been a little worse but hard to tell as the more you focus on it the worse it seems??

Checked other possibilities like engine mounts (still in great shape and no real movement), rear suspension mountings and rubbers (all looked good with no movement when leverage applied), even the gearbox extension housing bush clearance didn't seem too bad (about 10-15 thou movement at the yoke).

Our next move is to get the original balanced shaft re-balanced again requesting a 100% balance.  And no, the cardboard inner tube is not loose....

So any ideas, thoughts  or past experiences would be welcome. It's not like the car is undrivable, just frustrating that such a beautiful car has a little blemish.

Again Kevin, Miss Mullum is a beautiful car and a credit to your work!

Regards,
Trevor_B

Hi Ken,
I bought a Bullet Pro Elite JL35A 4T clear floor hoist back in 2016:
https://interequip.com.au/product/bulletpro-elite-jl35a-m-2-post-clear-floor-hoist-4-ton/

Cost me $2700 picked up from Tullamarine VIC - they used to keep stock in NSW as well when I bought it. Looks like they still sell on Ebay but at a much higher price now: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/122561672250?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=28

I installed it myself with the help of a mate. Has probably done 100+ lifts since then without any issues. Mine is 240V and plugs into a normal power point.

Agree that you will need to check the slab for thickness and strength. Mine went into a new shed so I thickened the slab to 200mm locally for the posts. Maybe you could do local cutouts and put in a 1m2 section each side to 200mm thick?

Trevor_B

Hi Al,
While you are considering the correct finish to use, here is something else to think about...

If your guards have been worked a lot, say to remove rust and/or dints, the metal can be thinner than factory which can cause starring in the paintwork from stones being thrown up by the tyres. I have seen this on a car that had been resprayed on months beforehand.

I guess this would be less of an issue if you never travel on gravel roads but still a remote chance on sealed roads too.

I decided to use dynamat type material directly above the tyre just in case...

Just a thought.
Cheers,
Trevor_B

Hi Ken,
I recently installed one - what are your constraints? as that will more likely determine the type you use.

If you have around 4m head clearance then you can use a 4t clear floor unit, that is the tops of the posts are tied together with a small beam and the hydraulic lines go across inside this beam. At this height you can fit a 4WD on it. This is what I have and it is great  Some have the option to lower this by around 250mm if you have less head clearance. 

If you are struggling for height the the 2 post with a drive over hump is the next option. The posts are usually around 2.8m high and will give around 1800mm lift. The frustration of this type is you always have to drive over the hump.

There is another one similar to the hump type where the hydraulic power pack is portable and you run the lines across when you want to use the hoist. A fellow Club member just installed one of these as he has a low clearance problem and didn't like the hump option.

If you want more info please message me or email me (details on member profile).

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Try this crowd:
Speedex - they recondition bonnet hinges http://speedex.com.au/index.php?route=product/category&path=62_177
Cheers,
Trevor_B

Maybe the Broken Hill Skate Park might be an starting point??
https://www.ridemypark.com/spot/broken-hill-skatepark/

Hi John,
If you want a direct replacement for the GMH Oil then use Penrite Transoil 90: https://www.penriteoil.com.au/products/transoil-sae-90 It is a straight SAE90 Mineral Oil.

It is important not to use multi grade or friction modified oils in grey gearboxes as they can impact the function of the syncromesh engagement.

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Hi Harv,
There is still interest from the VIC Club if you are considering another run, just let me know costs and I will check for those prepared to put down a deposit. My guess we would be looking at 10-15??

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Harv,
Those two "shiny" ones....I think they are the slightly tapered retaining pins for the idler gear shaft?? You can see grooves down the side of them to help retain in place (I have my own OCD issues apparently)
Trevor_B

Hi guys,
By now all entrants will be well aware that we have cancelled the 18th FE FC Nationals. We have communicated this by all possible means including direct emails, SMS's, Nats Webpage, Facebook and this Forum.

It is very disappointing outcome after 4 years of planning and anticipation, especially as we got down to the last few weeks. We certainly appreciate the feedback provided by the Entrants and in some cases their generosity in donating their entry and merchandise fees towards the costs in preparing for the Nats.

We were also fortunate to have the support of some great sponsors such as the RACV and Rare Spares - they have continued to support us financially even though the Nats are cancelled.

So, by now almost all entrants should have been fully refunded. If you have not received your refund by Easter please email us and we will follow up.

As to the future of the 18th Nats?? Well, we don't really know at this stage. It depends on so much, especially how we, as a society, continue to impacted by Covid-19. The current approaches of social isolation seem to be working but ultimately it looks like that until the world has a vaccine against this virus, we may still all be at risk.

As soon as the 18th Nationals Committee can give a clear decision on the 18th Nats we will do this by a direct email & SMS to the entrants followed by an update on our Webpage & a Facebook announcement.

Meanwhile, please be safe and stay healthy. We also need to look after our family and friends even if we can't physically interact, a phone call or facetime  to maintain contact is essential for all of us to maintain our sanity. We are all fortunate to include our FE & FC Holden friends as part of our family.

On behalf of the 18th FE FC Holden Nationals Committee,
Trevor Black

[26 Feb 2020 - Only 44 days to go to the Nats!]

26 Feb 2020 - Only 44 days to go to the Nats!
All entrants should now have received their Entrant number and Entrant sheet by email.Please check your details carefully and advise any changes.
Also, we need to hear back from you on your chosen group for our Winton track day - are you just going for the display laps or the up to 100km/hr group or maybe ->100km/hr group  We will have some serious racing as Eddie Dobbs in his racing FE will go head to head with Bill Wedd in his big red FC to see who has the quickest FE or FC over 3 races. We might be able to organise some sort of 1/8mile drags on the front straight too....Lots of other things planned for our 4 day event.
If you have not yet booked your accommodation you may be interested to know that the Advance Motel in Wangaratta (Nats HQ) now has several rooms available – you can contact them on (03) 5721 9100

Hi guys,
A final reminder that the entries to the 18th FE FC Holden Nationals in Wangaratta at Easter 2020 are about to close.

You need to have submitted your entry by 31st January - the link to the entry form will be removed on 1 Feb 

For further details check out the website:http://fefcholden.org.au/nats2020/ or for urgent inquires please call mobile: zero four eight two 434 two eight seven between 10am and 7pm. You can also contact us by email at nats2020@fefcholden.org.au

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Hi Joezan,
The rules of the FE FC Nationals requires you to be a member of an affiliated car club or an invited Club.

For the 2020 Nats in Wangaratta these Clubs are:
•   FE-FC Holden Car Club of NSW inc.,
•   FE-FC Holden Car Club of SA inc.,
•   FE-FC Holden Car Club of Vic inc.,
•   FE-HR Holden Owners Club of ACT inc.,
•   FE-FC Holden Car Club of Queensland inc.,
•   FE-FC Holden Car Club of Western Australia inc.,
•   Classic Holden Club of Tasmania;
•   The Early Holden Car Club of Wangaratta (Vic)
•   Holdens of Age (Vic)
•   Southern Sydney Early Holden Car Club (NSW)
•   Lions Pride (Vic)

If you want to come along then you will need to join one of these Clubs.
For more details on entry requirements please check out the Nats 2020 website: http://fefcholden.org.au/nats2020/ - there is more info on the Entrants page including the full Constitution and Rules for the Nationals.

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Hi guys,
As most of you will know the Victorian Club celebrated the FC's 60th Anniversary on the 6th May with a photo shoot at the Dandenong GMH site followed by a run to the Trafalgar Holden Museum. At the museum we marked the occasion with a cake, various speeches including one by Richard Ferlazzo – the Design Director at Holden and of course suitable memorabilia to mark the occasion.

Fletch from Classic Restos was invited to record the event and he has just posted the episode on the Shannons Club site here:
https://www.shannons.com.au/club/video/60th-anniversary-of-the-fc-holden-classic-restos-series-37/

What a great way to acknowledge our cars. The episode also airs on several overseas networks.

Hope you enjoy,

Trevor_B

Dave,
When/if you replace the oil in the gearbox I recommend you use Penrite T90 which is a single grade non modified oil best suited to the grey box and the closest I could find to the original SAE30 straight mineral oil.

If you use multigrade oils or friction modified oils it can impact the way the syncro's work due to the change in friction between the syncro ring and it's mating brass surface. You can end up difficulties in changing gears.....

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Hi John,
Make sure they follow the instructions on opening up the back coolant ports in the block and head. They need to match the enlargements to the gasket not just bore out to the larger diameter as I found mine were not concentric.

I am also aware of someone who did not do the opening up of the ports and the revised gasket had less of an improvment.

For me it made a very noticeable difference with a temp gauge that now runs at 75-80 degrees (in 25 degree ambient conditions) so definitely a noticeable decrease in temp at the rear cylinders.

Cheers,
Trevor_B

Still available - check eBay @ $390

Cheers,
Trevor_B

yes, over Easter as usual, 10-13th April 2020

Recommend you book accommodation ASAP and include Monday night as the Winton Raceway event on Monday will be one you don't want too miss with at least 2 FE & FC's going head to head under full race conditions. Talk of even another 2 may be ready for as well by then

Note that you must be a member of the affiliated FE FC Clubs of Australia (or an invited Club) to enter.

Trevor_B

Hi Angelmac, you have a pm.

Rare Spares have been looking at reproducing this badge but have been having difficulties in getting it right - particularly the subtle curve in the badge.

If someone was to provide a NOS badge there is a chance we can get Rare Spares to continue with their development work in making the badge.

If you have one and are prepared to loan it to Rare Spares on the basis that it will be returned as supplied please contact the VIC Club or leave a post here.

Cheers,
Trevor_B