Craig,

For a moment I thought the king-pin front suspension was from an EH, and somebody drilled the holes in the outrigger to suit a grey motor.  But no.  The lower control arms are definitely FC.

The GM-H engineers moved the engine and transmission forward about four inches for the HD.  On the plus side, the firewall had no indent and the transmission tunnel became much smaller than in the EH.  On the minus side, worse weight distribution and more understeer.

Your HR front suspension has had the "early" crossmember outrigger fitted, but as the car it was fitted to had a grey motor, there was no need to move the red motor engine mounts.

My two cents' worth: don't strip it down to save space.  Parts will get lost.  Attach a wheel rim to one side and park it in a corner, standing on its side.

Rob

Craig,

You've done well with that lot.  On FC front suspensions, the lower control arm shafts can get loose in the crossmember.*  You can only tell when the front springs have been removed.

Sooo - if it turns out that "Found Object's" front suspension has loose lower control arm shafts, I'll give you a call.

*How do I know?  Bitter experience.  On my grey FC, it took a lot of work with a welder and a file to fix the holes in the crossmember.  There are more than a few Holdens with the lower control arm shafts welded in place.  That makes replacement even more frustrating.**

**How do I know?  Experience, again.  This time an HD Premier I restored.

Rob

Craig,

All stock FC lower levers.  Couldn't make it out too well, but I hope the lower shift lever isn't too worn where the "fingers" of the selector lever bear on it.  I'd suggest an EK-HR lower selector lever.

Advanced Gearshift Upgrade: EK-HR lower shift lever, but you also need the special cup washer that goes with it.  *But* you'd have to raid an EK-HR gearshift tube for the collar (brazed on) and swap it over to the FC gearshift tube.  The collar would have to be jigged into place so it's square and correctly positioned.

As you can tell, I'm exploring these options for "Found Object" (if'n'when I get back to it . . . )

Rob

PS - I have a few spare FE-FC brake drums.  There might even be a serviceable pair among them.

Craig,

You got very lucky with the steering box.

The attachment of the lower gearshift lever to the gearshift tube is a known weak point in FE-FCs.  Yours has definitely been repaired.  Normally, you'd remove the bolt attaching the lower lever, remove the lower lever, then slide the tube out of the column.

If the lower shifter lever mates up correctly with the gearshift tube and the bolt holds it firmly in place, then there's no need to remove the gearshift tube from the column.  Clean the sliding surfaces and lubricate well, then you should be good to go.

One other recommendation is to use an EK-HR lower selector lever, complete with nylon "half-moon" trunnions.  It'll give you much improved gearshift action.  (This is the one which screws onto a stud protruding from the column jacket.)

Post a photo of the lower levers so I can identify them . . .

Rob

Craig,

The upper bearing surface on the steering shaft (aka wormshaft) will probably be pitted from lubrication failure, as will the bearing race pressed into the steering box housing.  If you're unlucky, the same will be true of the lower wormshaft bearing and race (pressed into the big adjuster nut).  This is not a game-stopper.  Apparently there's a guy in Smithfield who can regrind the bearing surfaces.  One of the NSW club members has recently had his steering box reconditioned by him.

To remove the bearing race from the adjuster nut, lay a nice big fillet of weld on the inside of the race.  As the weld cools, it'll shrink the race, which will then drop out.

If you're super unlucky, the threaded part of the wormshaft (where the recirculating balls run) and the ball nut will be pitted too.  This means game over.

The sector shaft tends to wear right close to the sector, and the sector shaft bushes also wear out.  Rare Spares may have replacement sector shaft bushes.  Otherwise Statewide Bearings in Smithfield has the right size bronze bushes, but they will require line-reaming after installation.

Another trick on reassembly is to turn the ball nut upside-down.  This makes the teeth mesh on an unworn part of the ball nut.

Pull the sector shaft out, remove the adjuster nut, slide the steering shaft and ball-nut out as an assembly, and post lots of close-up photos.

Rob

Craig,

Easiest is to fit FB-EK front brake backing plates and shoes.  EJ-EH drums suit FB-EK front brakes without modification.

Rob

Craig,

I have the links and pins, and am pretty certain I have the anchor bolts and spacers.  Do you need one side or two sides?

Rob

Craig,

What front brake components do you need?

Rob

And while I'm on a roll here -

Warren and Brown of king-pin reamer, valve seat refacing equipment and Scope soldering iron fame also made a camshaft timing gear extraction and replacement kit, so you can do the work in-situ.  I saw one of these in WA at a collector of anything grey-motor related.  In brief:

Drill a hole, concentric and axially true, down the camshaft hub and tap it 3/8" Whit x 1" deep.
Screw extractor drift onto camshaft hub and, using it as a guide, drill three holes into the steel hub of the camshaft gear.  Tap them to the size of the supplied bolts.
By the use of threaded rod and other sorcery, pull timing gear off camshaft.
Installation of the new gear only requires the use of threaded rod, a nut and a socket.

Rob

Craig,

There are many methods of timing gear replacement.  Here is one from Cowell, SA, featuring the panelbeater and his friend, the John Deere mechanic.

Sooo - coming back from a WA trip in 2006, my father and I decided to drive down and up the Eyre Peninsula.  As we left Port Lincoln, the engine made a low-pitched half-engine-speed thud, reminiscent of a shot big-end.  We pulled over to investigate.  Other people also pulled over.  In half an hour, we had the name and phone number of the Port Lincoln car club president and a helpful lead to the panelbeater at Cowell, who was an old Holden nut.  The RAA guy turned up unbidden, attached a tow rope to his HiAce and towed us up to the North Shields caravan park.  He knew the proprietor, who rented us a cabin and let us use a concrete pad for an on-site van for repairs.  This was a Friday afternoon.

I set to work, dropped the sump and ruled out loose big-ends.  But turning the engine over by hand, I noticed it tended to bind, with slightly less than two turns of free movement.  I pulled the timing case off, and in the bottom of the timing case was a gear tooth.  Valve train out, fuel pump off, camshaft out.  The timing gear was missing two teeth - but the engine still ran.

Pause for an excellent dinner at the North Shields pub a short walk up the beach from the caravan park.

Options at this stage were:

Buy replacement timing gear from Rares at Adelaide and have it freighted to North Shields: three to five working days.
Fly to Adelaide, buy timing gear, fly back.  If flights permit.
Contact the panelbeater at Cowell.

Saturday morning, we made contact with the panelbeater.  He said he had a second-hand timing gear in good condition in a box of parts "somewhere", but if that failed, we could rat a grey motor for a camshaft plus gear.

Now the problem was how to get to Cowell (~60 km away).  Our "neighbour", a long-term resident of the caravan park, offered to drive us up there, as long as his dog, an enormous but very well-natured animal, could come too.  Who were we to argue?  We met the panelbeater and pulled the camshaft out of a very neglected-looking EJ Premier parts car.  Then he found the timing gear.  Better to use my camshaft as I don't have to swap camshafts back after I get home.

How to replace the timing gear?  He's a panelbeater and doesn't have a press in his shop.  Not to worry.  His mate at the John Deere dealership does have a press.  A phone call, a few minutes' wait and we walked down to John Deere with a camshaft and a gear.  The press work was done in a few minutes.

Now, you mentioned block of wood and feeler gauges.  The John Deere mechanic said to me, "Move the thrust washer around as I press the gear on and tell me when I'm getting close."  I couldn't even start to voice the word "now" when the thrust washer jammed solid.  "Too slow," he said, "but never mind.  I'll take the shaft out of the press, you hold it upright by the gear."  He placed a drift on the camshaft hub and delivered a well-calibrated "whang" onto the drift with a hammer.  The result was "free sliding fit with minimal end-play" in engineering-speak.

The John Deere mechanic refused payment for his services.  On a Saturday.  The panelbeater refused payment for engine parts.  He also lent us a 1/4" drive Sidchrome socket set for the thrust washer screws.  I asked him if he was concerned we were going to make off with his socket set and he said, "No, I know you'll come back.  Plus I get to see your FX too."

On the Saturday afternoon I had the engine reassembled and did a victory lap of the North Shields caravan park, to the applause of the locals.

All in all, a great success.  A major engine problem on a Friday afternoon at Port Lincoln, fixed in a day.

Rob

Vern,

Nope.

FX-FC have 1-1/16" diameter rear wheel cylinders; FB-EK have 1" diameter rear wheel cylinders.  The change in SAE flare and brake pipe sizes is so you can't easily interchange the rear wheel cylinders.  Fronts remain unchanged at 1-3/16" diameter.

But then I came unstuck with replacement front brake hoses for my FC.  The brake place sold me the ones with the smaller (female) flare and I sheared off the brake pipe after overtightening it, attempting to stop a leak.  Went back to the brake place with the hoses and broken pipe.  They were most apologetic, made me a new brake pipe and some little flared copper washers, and all was good.

But you could, if you wanted, change the brake pipes and union on the rear axle over to (I think) 3/16" diameter brake pipe and fit FB/EK rear wheel cylinders to improve brake bias.

Rob

Jim,

Yes, you can use the original steering linkages.  But it sounds to me like you need to check the front-to-back slope of the engine and transmission first.  (I'm assuming your engine and transmission are both stock here . . . )

Take your air cleaner off and put a spirit level on top of the carburettor.  Ideally it'll be level.  Sloping down to the front is bad.

The rear extension housing should have about equal clearance to the no.1 body crossmember at the top and the gearbox crossmember at the bottom, about two fingers' worth if I remember right.  If the rear extension housing is too close to the body at the transmission tunnel, you'll need to put a spacer between the front engine mount plate and the engine mount (and longer bolts too).

Aged or perished rear engine mounts will make the motor and gearbox sit down too low at the rear.

You "just" need to move the engine and transmission upwards and backwards to clear the HR drag link.

Rob

Craig,

I just read your post in "Parts Wanted".  Cam follower with a piece missing from the side . . .
So your engine had a stuck valve at some point.

You'd be surprised how many grey motors have cam followers with pieces missing from the sides.  Doesn't affect how the engine runs at all.

Check pushrod carefully to ensure it's not bent; or that it has been straightened successfully.

Rob

Craig,

A.t.m. I only have the later cam followers.  But the service note says you're OK to use them in the earlier engines if you use a late follower with a short pushrod.

If you have no luck finding an earlier follower I'm happy to send you a late follower plus short pushrod.

Rob

Craig,

This is a train-of-thought post, so bear with me -

FB oil pump, so the relief valve spring is retained by a split pin, and probably washer.  The spring seats inside the relief valve plunger.  Plunger looks like a miniature cam follower.  There are a couple of ways of going at it:

1: Tap a thread into the plunger (if the steel's not too hard) then get a length of threaded rod, a washer and a nut.  Thread the rod into the plunger, put the washer over the rod so it bears up against the pump housing, screw the nut down onto the washer and keep turning the nut until the plunger is extracted.

2: Use lots of heat on the pump housing at the relief valve bore.  But I can't remember if there's space to get a drift into the relief valve passage so you can start to drive the plunger out.

Red motor relief valve plungers are the same outside diameter as those in late grey motors.  You can use a red motor relief valve spring, but may need to pack spacers behind to give the right pressure regulation.

Plan B:  I have many grey oil pumps . . .

Rob

Craig,

I've never seen the steel rings before.   In factory springs at the closed-coil end, the spring wire changes in profile from round to rectangular, which tapers.  The part number is stamped into the rectangular-profile section.  I can't see the closed-coil ends clearly in the photo, but you may have original-equipment front springs.

In aftermarket springs (thinks Lovells or Selbys) the spring wire at the closed-coil end is round in profile.

OK.  It could be that your springs are wound from larger-diameter wire and they don't seat properly into the crossmember tower.  Maybe not.  It could be that the steel rings are a home-made "country pack" which gives an extra 1/2 ride height.  Beats me.

I have a loose pair of FE-FC ute/van/wagon front springs.  Please hold.

---------------------------------------/---------------------------------

7410727.  7-1/4 active turns of 0.540" diameter spring wire.
FE-FC sedan front springs are 7408860 and both mine have a coil broken off the bottom end.  Shop manual says 0.530" diameter spring wire.

Master parts catalog says -

FB, EK, EJ, EH wagon/ute/van and all HD king-pin front springs are 7419138. 0.560" diameter wire.
FB, EJ, EH sedan front springs are 7412465.  0.560" diameter wire.
EK sedan front springs are 7419137.  0.560" diameter wire.  Don't know why EK sedan front springs are "sui generis".

Rob

Good that you got the springs out.  I'd be mortally afraid of shattering an angle grinder disc given how little space there is between the spring eyes and the body.

Take a good look at the spring leaves in the six-leaf pack.  The original leaves taper down to a couple of millimetres thick at the ends; and the ends of the leaves are curved.  Aftermarket spring leaves generally don't taper in thickness toward the ends, and the ends are usually chamfered.  And I wouldn't be surprised if aftermarket spring leaves are 50 mm wide instead of 2" (= 50.8 mm).  You'd hardly tell the difference in width.

The rear spring centre bolt is 5/16" UNF originally, but M8 is an almost exact equivalent in diameter.

Rob

Yes.  It happens often.

There's a kind of sway bar rubber that has a big lip on each side, making it more difficult for the rubber to slide out sideways.

Or, you could (shudder) modify your brackets by welding flanges onto the sides for better retention of the rubber.

Rob

Front bolts for the rear springs?

They're very difficult to remove.  If no joy with WD-40, then use heat.  Go in hard with a MAP gas torch on the bracket where bolt head goes through.  You'll need two people and two sledgehammers: one holding a hammer onto the inner bracket to act as a dolly and the second on the bolt.  Unscrew the nut flush with the end of the bolt so you don't moosh the thread.  With perseverance the bolt will let go.  If it doesn't let go, use more heat on the inner bracket.  Even up to cherry red.

(If you're not a good shot with the hammer, you may ding the sill.  That's the price you've got to pay.)

Rob

Factory-made FE-FC windlace is an unequal figure 8 in cross-section, as if the material was looped over a cord and then stitched together in the "waist" of the 8.  When I re-did my FC's interior, I rolled the flat section of the windlace over onto itself and hand-stitched it.

When came time to install it, I got a thin piece of hardwood of the right thickness, forced it into the slot at the top where the A-pillar meets the dash, then tapped it all the way down to expand the gap.  Then I could run the windlace in, with lots of talcum powder to help it on its way.

Not a job I'm looking forward to repeating on "Found Object", I must say.

Rob