A GDYNETS
PUBLICATION Car Collector
© 2009, G. DAVID
YAROS. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED.
Chronicles
Volume II, Issue 1 Car Collector Chronicles
Exploring:
• Car collecting today
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
• Classic rides
Last month we presented the
• Reports from the field saga of converting a 2-car garage
into a 3-stall car barn. This
• Oldsmobile month, we shall discuss fitting
out the newly constructed 3-
stall car barn. In the process,
we shall touch on some tools
and equipment critical to enjoy-
ment of car collecting. You are
solicited to offer your insights
into absolute “must haves” for
the car collector’s garage.
After insulating the entire
garage, and epoxy painting the
floor, the work of making it car
collector friendly began in ear-
nest. The first task was to in-
IN THIS ISSUE:
stall floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall
pegboard. I opted for the heav-
ier 1/4” variety, as I know it will
see a lot of usage over the com-
Tools of the Trade 1
ing years.
Every garage worthy of the
name requires a workbench of
GDYNets 1 some sort. Mine spans the back
On the Web wall of the garage for 16’, and
then goes around the corner
Classic Car Pics 5 CONTINUED ON P. 2.
GDYNets on the Web
Coming Next 5
Issue
WHERE YOU WILL FIND
GDYNets (me) on the WWW:
HAPPY NEW Dave’s Den -
YEAR! http://GDYNets.WEBNG.com
Saved 62 -
http://www.freewebs.com/
jeandaveyaros
Car Collector Chronicles -
http://issuu.com/d.yaros
EMAIL:
OldsD88@gmail.com
®
January 2009
and runs another 18’. It is con-
structed entirely out of 2” x 4”
stock, and securely bolted to
the floor.
Inset in one section of the
bench is a 20 gal. parts washer.
Anyone working on cars will
give this item quite a workout.
While a parts washer is not a
necessity, it is an inexpensive,
and handy, convenience.
In terms of necessities, no
working garage worth its salt
can function without some type
of compressed air delivery sys-
tem. In my case, this turned out
to be a Porter-Cable™ 7 hp, 60
gal., stationary unit. I was able
to find it online for around
$450. A word of caution here, must as the unit will indeed take a
it is not the price of the com- walk right into your car!) and hook-
pressor that will get you, it is ing up the electrical.
the shipping charge. Mine, for-
You will need a means of connect-
tunately, came with free shipping.
ing lines to the compressor. In the
Installing a stationary com- pic above you will note the beginning
pressor involves far more than of my piping system, above the door.
merely bolting it to the floor (A
DAVE’S DEN is a website Police Lt. George Yaros.
devoted to a myriad of inter-
ests. Foremost is extensive SAVED 62 is a website de-
voted to my 1962 Oldsmobile
information on the “Steel City”
Dynamic 88 convertible. The
of Gary, Indiana. There are also
offerings covering the making of site also has a lot of information
steel and U.S. Steel-Gary on Oldsmobiles and its founder,
Works, the U.S. Marine Corps, Ransom Eli Olds.
the M14 assault rifle, of course CAR COLLECTOR
Oldsmobile, and the tragic story CHRONICLES; you are read-
of the murder of Gary, Indiana ing it. It is a work in progress.
Car Collector Chronicles Page 2

TOOLS OF THE TRADE—Continued

Here, bigger is better. I used 3/4” black pipe, normally found in natu-
ral gas delivery systems. The key is to have hookups where they are
useful. This avoids the hassle of having to route/drag hose all over
the garage. My system has 4 drops, total. There is one on each side
wall, as well as one on the back wall. Additionally, I have a 50’ hose
reel in the center of the back wall. The bottom line here is to assure
that no area of the garage is inaccessible when it comes to an air
hose.

Once you have an air compressor, you need air tools. Right? The
tools I use the most are a tire inflator, a blowgun, an impact wrench
and a cut-off tool. Serviceable impact wrenches may be had for a
song from retailers these days. There is absolutely no need to buy
the biggest and best, but do not scrimp and buy the cheapest one of-
fered, either. The money you save on buying a mid-priced impact
wrench is far better spent on decent sets of impact sockets. Yes, I
said sets. Do not use regular sockets. The impact wrench will de-
“A multi-meter
stroy them! Do get both normal depth and deep well socket sets. You
will prove will need them, trust me.
indispensable in
Another critical tool is some form of Volt-Ohm-Amp meter. These
ferreting out may be acquired at little expense, just about anywhere. A constant
source of frustration for any collector car owner is the vehicle electrical
electrical
system. If you have not had problems yet, you shall. When you do, a
problems.” multi-meter will prove indispensable in ferreting out problems: Do I
have continuity in a circuit? Do I have a necessary ground? A V-O-A
multi-meter will answer these pesky questions for you.

For maintaining the performance of your ride, two more tools are
critical. They are a timing light and a tach/dwell meter. If you want to
do a proper tune-up, these tools are needed to get the job done. The
use of these tools is made a whole lot easier if you also have a remote
starter switch. With it, you are able to jog the engine into the position
you need it to be; such as TDC, or on the high lobe of the distributor
cam.

Everyone who works on cars knows the importance of being able to

get that car off the ground. Some means of jacking/lifting is essential.
At the very least, a decent 1 1/2T floor jack, accompanied by sturdy
and stable jack stands should be in every car collector garage. When
it comes to floor jacks, look for two important specs: minimum clear-
ance required and lifting height. With respect to the first, the less
clearance required the better. As for the latter, the higher the jack lifts
Car Collector Chronicles Page 3

TOOLS OF THE TRADE – Continued from p. 2

the vehicle off the ground, the better. However, the key with respect
to any jacking/lifting system is safety. Failing to pay attention here,
could make for a very bad day, to say the least!

Some folks may be lucky enough to not have to concern themselves

over floor jacks and jack stands. I have to admit, I am one. I am for-
tunate enough to have a lift.

When my 3-stall car barn was constructed I looked into the feasibil-
ity of incorporating a pit. Old timers will recall those. They may still be
viewed at quick lube facilities. I found that building code require-
ments, in terms of electrical, ventilation and drainage simply make in-
stallation of a pit financially impracticable in this day and age.

When I had my garage “reconstructed,” I did specify the installation

of scissor trusses in what was to become the lift bay. Without the up- “If I was going
top space they provided, it would not have been possible to raise a to get
car high enough to get underneath it and comfortably work.
underneath
In looking for a suitable lift, I was overwhelmed with the multiplicity my car, I
of offerings/prices. I found one may acquire a lift with an outlay rang-
wanted to be
ing anywhere from $1,300.00 to $9,000.00. Additionally, one may find
lifts manufactured in China, India, Mexico and who knows where else? damn sure the
car was going
Here again, the maxim of “you get what you pay for” rules. My fore-
most criteria was safety. If I was going to get underneath my car, I to stay up in
wanted to be damn sure the car was going to stay up in the air. To
the air.”
that end, although old fashioned it may be, I decided to place my trust
in an American product. This decision eliminated a lot of the contend-
ers for my dollars.

I finally settled on a Mohawk™ A-7, 2-post asymmetrical, 7,000 lb.

lift. What clinched it for me was the warranty Mohawk provides. It is 5
yrs. parts, lifetime cylinders. Most lift manufacturers extend a 1 or 2
year warranty. If you are lucky, it may be 3 years. I rationalized that if
Mohawk was willing to stand behind their product for 5 years, it might
be safe for me to put my car on one and then stand underneath it!

Now, let me state up front, Mohawk lifts are not the cheapest lifts
available in the market. I was able to save buku bucks by buying
mine used. The lift in my garage came from a technical institute that
closed its doors after only a year in operation. I had to drive to a
neighboring state to inspect it prior to purchase. When I did so, I re-
Car Collector Chronicles Page 4;;

Tools of the Trade – Continued from p. 3

corded the serial number of the lift. I then contacted Mohawk. They willingly told me
when the lift was manufactured. As I result, I learned the seller was being on the up-and
up with me. That helped to put my mind at ease.

My initial plan was to install the lift myself. I began researching the how-to of attaching
it to the floor. Little did I know that Wej-it® bolts comprise a science of their own. What
convinced me to forego installing the lift myself was a couple of simple laws of physics.
1) Each column weighed in at a mere 1,000 lbs., and 2) I am not as young as I used to
be. That combination convinced me to leave it to the professionals. I was more than
glad I did, after watching two guys spend 45 minutes manhandling the first column off
the flat bed truck and into the garage, with a boom crane!

Of course, owning a lift also means there are more essential tools one just has to
have. Ah, it never ends, does it? An oil drain pan, bucket or other handy container that
just happens to be laying around, would no longer suffice for oil changes. For an expen-
diture in the neighborhood of 50 bucks I purchased an 8 gal. telescoping oil drain pan,
mounted on wheels. I suspect you may have seen similar devices at gas stations, back
in the day when gas stations in fact did oil changes.

There is one last piece of essential equipment I want

to mention. Now that you have the means to put your
ride in tip-top shape, you also want it to look good. To
that end I purchased a Porter-Cable™ Random Orbital
Buffer (Model 7424). As the photo shows, mine came
from Coastal Tool. It has variable speeds, and different
pads for applying/removing different chemicals. Like
the lift, I found the price range of these to be all over
the map. Therefore, I strongly advise shopping around
for the best possible deal.

I have to admit, I was absolutely amazed with the appearance of my car finish after us-
ing the buffer. My car is black. As you are probably aware, this is one of the toughest
colors to get looking good. I am here to tell you, it did entail an admittedly lengthy 6-step
process. And, prior to this I had never clayed a car in my life. Heck, we used to think we
were hot stuff when we waxed a car using the Blue Coral™ 2-step process! However,
when I was done, one could literally use any panel on the car to shave. And, these re-
sults were obtainable by an amateur.

Ok, I have had my say. Now it is your turn! I invite and encourage submission of your
comments, opinions and contributions. Everything sent shall indeed be reviewed by me.
Submissions should be sent to: OldsD88@gmail.com

_______________________________________
-- RESTORE 'EM, AND DRIVE 'EM!
Car Collector Chronicles Page 5;

Jean and Dave at a local car show with their 1985 Buick Riviera (1 of 400) and
1962 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 (1 of 12,212)

Jean’s 1963 Corvair Monza 1960 Oldsmobile 3-on-the-Tree

(Dave’s high school ride)

COMING NEXT ISSUE:

• More Tools of the Trade
• The ‘85 Rivi
• Collector Car Pics