The August 2009 Newsletter - Text Version
Updated 28-Jul-2009 ==== Copyright (c) 2009 Corvairs of New Mexico
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUGUST 2009 / VOLUME 35 / NUMBER 8 / ISSUE #407
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EDITOR: Jim Pittman
NEXT MEETING: Wednesday 5 August 2009 at 7:00 PM
Highland Senior Center at 131 Monroe NE
THIS MONTH:
Dues Due Membership Committee
Classic Buick Centurion at Charlie Mann's Potluck & Car Tour
July Meeting Minutes Chuck Vertrees
Birthdays and Anniversaries Sunshine Committee
July Board Meeting Minutes Chuck Vertrees
Stick to Vairs President Mike Stickler
The State Fair Car Show is Coming! Robert Gold
Tri-State "How To" Booklet Brenda Stickler
It Was Forty years Ago Today Jim Pittman
Where Were You 40 Years Ago This Week? Richard Finch
For Sale or Wanted Everyone
Can You Identify This Member? Heula Pittman
Calendar of Coming Events Board of Directors
Steering Box Rebuild Bill Reider
The Domzalskis' 2009 Visit Heula Pittman
Charlie Mann's Car Tour Heula Pittman
Seven, 14, 21, 28, 35 Years Ago Club Historian
COVER: Corvairs and Colorful Shirts Combine at a Congenial Board Meeting
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PRESIDENT: Mike Stickler 856-6993 sticorsa @ hotmail.com
VICE-PRES: Pat Hall 620-5574 patandvickiehall @ q.com
SECRETARY: Charles Vertrees 299-0744 vertrees @ swcp.com
TREASURER: Robert Gold 268-6878 beisbol30 @ msn.com
PROPERTIES: Ruth Boydston 821-1506 sg730 @ comcast.net
CAR COUNCIL: Art Gold 620-7434 rollerart @ gmail.com
MEMBERSHIP: David Huntoon 281-9616 corvair66 @ aol.com
EMERITUS: Sylvan Zuercher 299-7577 flat6 @ hubwest.com
EMERITUS: Wendell Walker 892-8471 defarge505 @ aol.com
NEWSLETTER: Jim Pittman 275-2195 jimp @ unm.edu
DUES: CNM: 12 months $25.00 or 26 months $ 50.00
CORSA: 12 months $38.00 or 26 months $ 76.00
BOTH: 12 months $63.00 or 26 months $126.00
NOTE: CORSA DUES GO UP AUGUST 1st 2009! See your CORSA Communique.
CORSA's home page: http://www.corvair.org
Steve Gongora's page: http://www.corvair.org/chapters/chapter871
CNM's newsletters: http://www.unm.edu/~jimp
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DUES DUE DATES FOR AUGUST 2009:
== DUE LAST MONTH = INACTIVE 25-AUG-2009:
2009.07 Jerry Goffe 1977.05 jgoffe20 @ comcast.net
2009.07 Geoffrey Johnson 2002.03 geoffj @ unm.edu
== DUE THIS MONTH = INACTIVE 25-SEP-2009:
2009.08 Marci & Gary Calabrese 2008.08 @
2009.08 Russ McDuffie 2008.08 russ.mcd @ msn.com
2009.08 Bob Philips 2007.07 rp96rp @ aol.com
== DUE NEXT MONTH = INACTIVE 25-OCT-2009:
2009.09 Kay & Tarmo Sutt 1976.07 tarmo @ juno.com
== DUE OCTOBER = INACTIVE 25-NOV-2009:
2009.10 Debra & Jon Anderson 1992.10 jbanderson65 @ hotmail.com
2009.10 Mary Lou & Mark Martinek 1990.08 mjmartinek @ juno.com
== DUE NOVEMBER = INACTIVE 25-DEC-2009:
2009.11 Linda & Dick Cochran 2006.09 @
2009.11 Pam & Charlie Mann 2008.11 @
== DUE DECEMBER = INACTIVE 25-JAN-2010:
2009.12 Kathy & Larry Blair 1985.11 blairylar @ hotmail.com
2009.12 Diane & Robert Galli 2007.10 rdgalli @ tcsn.net
2009.12 David Huntoon 1994.11 corvair66 @ aol.com
2009.12 Walter Huntoon 1992.11 waltdoe44 @ aol.com
2009.12 Roger Pape 2002.12 @
== MEMBERSHIP EXPIRED = INACTIVE AS OF 25-JUL-2009:
2008.04 Florence & Bill Hector 2006.04 @
2008.10 Guadalupe & Jim Arellanes 2006.10 @
2008.10 Mary & Art Hurley 2007.10 @
2008.11 Nancy & Bernard Urbassik 2004.08 @
2009.02 Carl Johnson 1974.04 @
2009.03 Sally Williams 2003.09 stripepike @ mac.com
If your membership is due or has expired, please send your Dues to:
Robert Gold,
CNM Treasurer,
1301 Valencia NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
Past due memberships will become inactive after a one-month grace period.
The Club will mail in your National Dues when you renew,
provided that you send us the renewal form from your CORSA Communique!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JULY MEETING NOTES
Chuck Vertrees
President Mike Stickler called the meeting to order at 19:07 on 7/1/09 at
Highland Senior Center. There were 22 members present. It was good to see Sylvan
Zuercher back in attendance as he recovers from his illness.
Treasurer Robert Gold was unable to attend the meeting because it was his
birthday and his family was taking him, unrepentant baseball fan that he is, to
an Isotopes game. We think we can excuse his absence this time, particularly
since he e-mailed the treasury figures. He reported that we had $3,258.79 in the
checking account and $1,142.40 in the GMAC account for a total worth of
$4,401.19.
Dave Huntoon introduced a guest, Chad Hunter, who is a prospective member. He is
looking for a turbo. Also, Dave was in contact with a lady who has a Corvair van
of some kind and is looking for help with it, and is possibly interested in
joining the club. She was not aware there was an organization such as Corvairs
of New Mexico.
The Car Council had their meeting and renewed all the past officers except for
the vice-president. Most of the meeting was about their newly redesigned web
site and the August picnic. Visit their web site to find out about all the
automobile activities going on in this area.
Members were reminded about the dinner meeting with Mark and Elizabeth Domzalski
at Sadie's on Friday July 10th. Mark and Elizabeth, stationed back east in
Washington, D.C. will be back in town for several days and this is a slightly
late birthday party for Mark.
Ruth Boydston was given a chance to remind people that she is the property
manager and that she has for sale, license plates, club jacket patches, club
lapel pins and several other items.
Upcoming activities include the car show on the Plaza in Santa Fe, early on
Saturday the 4th of July. We believe the famous pancake breakfast is still
featured. And, Charlie Mann's pot luck and car viewing on Saturday July 18th.
In August we will have a TUNA at Pat and Vickie Hall's place in Los Lunas.
Probably it will be on Saturday the 15th, and there will be either a breakfast
before the TUNA or a lunch after the TUNA. As for the TUNA itself, maybe we will
be able to demonstrate replacing old, leaky O-rings with new Viton O-rings. The
details will be discussed at the next board meeting.
In September will be the State Fair Car Show. Robert Gold has this set up
already with plenty for awards. It will be on Sunday the 27th. Meet at 7:00 AM.
Pat Hall said that he and Vickie went to a car show in Edgewood on Father's Day
that they found out about on the Car Council web page. It was sponsored by a
church. There were lots of nice cars, and he and Vickie had the only Corvair.
The church was giving out free hot dogs and gave away 2200! Pat said this was
simply one of the best car shows he had ever been to. We think it's an annual
event, and CNM should try to enter it in our calendar for next year.
It was announced that the State Police would be sponsoring a "Cannon Ball Run"
across New Mexico. This would be for cars made from 1960 through 1969 only. The
registration will continue from August through October and the run will be in
December. We will need to find out more about this. There was speculation that
members of the State Police had obtained and restored "police cars" from the
1960s and performance was the first priority in restoration. Perhaps they intend
to see how fast their new "old" police cars can go?
It was a pretty short meeting and was adjourned at 20:30. Many members then went
to the "66 Diner" for dessert and stories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Special HAPPY BIRTHDAY wishes to six CNMers:
Geoff Johnson August 4
Joel Nash August 8
Steve Johnson August 10
Lee Reider August 11
Pam Mann August 15
Ryan McDuffie August 18
Special HAPPY ANNIVERSARY wishes to two CNM couples:
Marilyn & Richard Foster August 5
Sylvia & Ray Trujillo August 7
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JULY BOARD MEETING
Chuck Vertrees
On 7/15/09 we all came into Ray Trujillo's shop from the fierce, broiling July
sun and the meeting was called to order at 17:05 or 5:05 PM. Present were Robert
Gold, Mike Stickler, Pat & Vickie Hall, Jim & Heula Pittman, David Huntoon, Rita
Gongora, Ray Trujillo, Chuck & Julia Vertrees, and Vickie Hall's sister, Sharon
Knee, who is visiting from Tennessee.
A letter from Charles Dye ("Phoenix Charlie Dye") was passed around and
discussed. In the letter he told about how he had been cheated via bounced
checks by another Corvair parts dealer in Arizona. You can be sure this will be
mentioned at the regular August meeting.
Robert Gold reported that CNM had $3,258.79 in the checking account and
$1,142.40 in the GMAC account for a total of $4,401.19 and he reported also that
he is still working on getting the signatures on the GMAC account figured out.
Another form was filled out for him to send to them. Maybe someday the correct
names will be attached to the account to replace those of Domzalski and Walker.
Dave Huntoon said that he is working on a couple of possible new members.
Someone asked about a previous member, John Myers, who was at the June meeting
and who we thought was going to rejoin the chapter. The question was, did he?
The treasurer has not received a check for his dues. We will follow up on this.
Pat Hall went to the Car Council meeting, but neither Art Gold nor Cary Hubbard
attended. Pat said they reelected the same officers as last year except for the
Vice-President, who was a new officer. Most of the discussion was on the
upcoming swap meet. There was some discussion of the All Clubs Picnic in August.
It is scheduled for Sunday August 9th at Villanueva State Park. This is possibly
the last time for this location. We don't know why it would be the last time,
since most people seem to like it. The picnic is the day after our August Old
Route 66 cleanup.
Heula Pittman asked Pat if it was time to start thinking about another
collection of recycle scrap. Pat said that the prices for scrap are starting to
go up again and we could bring it up at the meeting to see how many might have
some. Heula also said that she would contact Emma Rogers and Lee Reider to see
what charity we should collect for at our Christmas dinner.
On the subject of the Christmas dinner, Rita said that she had been checking
with possible places. There is a nice place in Scottsdale Village. Rita asked
whether we wanted to go with a full sit-down dinner which would cost $20 to $25
dollars a head. This can run into quite a lot for those with families or those
with restricted income. Rita suggested that instead of a dinner, we could have
"heavy hors d'oeuvres" -- Jim asked what that was. Answer: small sandwiches and
similar items. No one knows how to spell it, though, and it must be looked up
each time the term is used. Anyway, those who were at Wendell Walker's birthday
party know what we are talking about. With "heavy hors d'oeuvres" there would be
more chance for everyone to mingle around instead of just sitting at a table
waiting for the meal. The price would also be less. The idea seemed good to
board members and so Rita was commissioned to check on prices.
Upcoming events start with the get-together at Charlie Mann's this coming
Saturday. August 15th will be a TUNA and breakfast at the Halls' place in Los
Lunas. Breakfast will be at 09:00 at a place to be announced. This will be
followed by a TUNA on repairing steering boxes on the Corvair. This will be
discussed prior to the TUNA at the August meeting.
Robert Gold mentioned the State Fair car show which will be on September 27th.
We really need to get a good turnout. He has lots of ribbons. In order to get a
good turnout I suggested that those, such as I, who do not have a Corvair now or
do not have one ready to show could volunteer to drive a car for those who have
more than one car to show. Robert immediately grabbed me. Possibly there are
some others who could help with driving.
Pat said that he had enjoyed the two "rally" runs that I had set up in the past
and thought that we should have another, or perhaps an economy run. I agreed to
plan one, probably in October. In October we have to work around the balloon
fiesta and we are not certain of the dates for that yet. (Vickie mentioned after
the meeting that the gathering Russ McDuffie told us about in the North Valley
will be on October 17th.)
It is time to start looking into nominations for officers for the October
election. Robert Gold has volunteered to continue as treasurer. I will continue
as secretary unless someone would like to run against me. Mike said he would
contact Sylvan Zuercher to see if he would like to act, as in the past, as the
chair of a nominating committee to contact possible officer material and try to
get them to run. He has been very successful with this in the past.
The meeting was adjourned at 18:11 and we went outside to find the fierce,
broiling sunny July skies had been replaced with merely hot, cloudy July skies.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STICK TO VAIRS
Mike Stickler
That was a very enjoyable gathering at Charlie's and Pam's house last month.
Everyone brought great dishes to compliment Charlie's grilled Gourmet hot dogs.
Talk about garage envy -- having enough shop space to park over thirty full size
cars is just amazing!! And thank goodness for all of those shade trees to make
the Mann-sponsored July cookout such a paradise.
July is the month I personally enjoy the least. It's all that blasted heat that
has to be endured. Of course my job has me out in the elements during the work
week. Corvair engines suffer from too much heat, too. HEAT IS THE ENEMY!!
To help control head temperatures on my Greenbrier, I'm going to apply some heat
barrier coating to the piston tops and combustion chambers of the engine I'm
building. The procedure calls for super cleaning and sand blasting the surfaces.
Next I will apply the coating, then the parts will get baked in the oven for an
hour. (I'll just give Brenda some bucks during this stage and suggest she head
to the shopping mall. Meanwhile, I will apply a heavy blast of air freshener in
the kitchen. She will be none the wiser!) I'll let you know if this systems
works, and then I can do a future tech article on this product.
Here's to the cooler August upon us!!!
Happy Corvairing!!! -- Mike
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE STATE FAIR CAR SHOW IS COMING!
Robert Gold
Greetings fellow CNMers. I just wanted to remind you that the 12th annual
State Fair Car Show is going to happen next month. Yes, it's almost been a year
since our most successful Fair Car Show since I became show chairman.
The one million ribbons have been ordered and all that we need to do is wait for
the magic day to arrive. So circle Sunday, September 27 on your calendars. I'll
give you more details about the show in next month's newsletter.
==================================================
Robert L. Gold, PE
1301 Valencia NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
email: beisbol30 @ msn.com phone: 505-268-6878
==================================================
"Remember, if you come to a fork in the road, take it." Yogi Berra
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TRI-STATE "HOW TO" BOOKLET
Brenda Stickler
Yes, I have received some nice input on How to Run a successful Tri-State. I
need to hear from all of you who headed a function in Taos, so we can start with
current memories and improve as we add previous successes to this packet.
Once all the comments on the Taos Tri-State are collected from our Taos leaders,
then these notes will be reviewed by members who have been very active in
Tri-States of the past. This booklet will serve as a guideline for future
Tri-State Committee heads for our club.
Well, I am kind of in a "holding pattern" waiting for your input. I would love
to be handing this initial package over by mid-Fall. Please, help me reach this
goal. My direct e-mail address is Tounce66 @ msn.com
Hope to hear from your soon!!! -- Brenda
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
IT WAS FORTY YEARS AGO TODAY
Jim Pittman
July 16, 2009 -- I just heard on CBS news today something I had completely
forgotten about. Forty years ago today Apollo 11 lifted off, headed for a moon
landing. I had forgotten, because many years ago I lost just about all my
enthusiasm for the space program and I almost never think about it any more,
except occasionally in terms of how incredibly dangerous it is, and how
incredibly expensive it is.
Think about it -- if every Corvair in the country had been perfectly tuned and
carefully driven for the last forty years, all of our saved fuel would
contribute no more than an extra billow in the huge clouds of exhaust vapor from
the rockets lifting one shuttle on one takeoff. I used to look at the fire and
smoke from shuttle takeoffs and wonder about the EPA miles per gallon rating of
a shuttle... city? highway? orbit? can't be very good. Well, the dead-stick
landing phase would get a pretty high EPA rating.
Anyway, forty years ago I still had a high level of enthusiasm for the Space
Program, the name mentally capitalized and written in bold. But it was not total
enthusiasm. I'm sure I knew about the Apollo 11 lift-off, but when the landing
was due it was a Sunday. We had a rally to go to. We went to the rally.
I was spending the summer of 1969 in Xenia, Ohio. Every weekday I attended
classes at the University of Dayton, and most weekends my friend Jack and I
could be found competing in sports car rallies. There were plenty of rallies
available in southwestern Ohio in those days. Sometimes we'd take my 1966
Corvair (Jack navigated), sometimes we'd take his 1965 Mustang (with me
navigating), and sometimes we'd each find another navigator so we'd take both
cars. I wish I could tell you that the Corvair always won, but no, Jack was both
a great driver and an excellent navigator and more often than not the Mustang
took first place.
That Sunday our rally was put on by the Miami Valley Touring Club of Dayton. It
was routine: scenic back roads and fairly elementary navigation, but we were
there to win, so we paid attention to the rally instructions and we gave no
thought to the moon landing. After the rally was done, though, we turned on the
radio and the news coverage of the landing was in progress! So, we heard from
NASA-Houston the words "Tranquility base here -- the Eagle has landed" live on
the radio that afternoon.
That night I stayed up to watch on TV as the astronauts stepped onto the surface
of the moon. I was as amazed as anyone else to see it covered live by a
television camera! None of my science fiction reading had prepared me for that.
In science fiction the intrepid space men were far out in the void all alone,
but we had instant coverage from NASA-Houston and CBS-Walter Cronkite. So I
heard Neil Armstrong say, live, "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap
for mankind." I was as thrilled as anyone else that night.
I finished my 1969 summer in Dayton, going to classes, going to several more
rallies. I came back to New Mexico, enrolled in graduate school, did a few years
of research, got hooked on computers, got a job at the university computing
center. My interest in the space program waned. I'd occasionally learn that
something had happened that I had no idea was in progress. When I did think
about the space program it was usually to marvel at its cost, its incredible
dangers and what I saw as trivial benefits. When the shuttle broke up on
re-entry in February 2003 my first thought was, how amazing they haven't lost
one long before now.
Long ago I gave up expecting to see any of those science fiction stories come
true in my lifetime. I'm not going on a colonizing trip to another solar system
with the Star Trek crew. I'm not going to talk to a Vulcan or an Andromedan
alien. I won't be moving to Mars. I feel our government has been on the wrong
track with the space shuttle and the international space station, pouring
billions of dollars into a dead-end, almost useless project, while neglecting
real scientific projects using unmanned space probes, such as those amazing Mars
rovers and the Saturn orbiters, making detailed photos of Titan.
But wait -- what about the Hubble Telescope? The images from the Hubble are
probably better known to more people than anything else in the space program.
And it took the shuttle, with its huge cargo bay and built-in crane, to take the
Hubble into orbit and go back to repair and update it no fewer than five times.
Just the Hubble may justify all the expense of the shuttle program!
What do you think about the space program? Do you remember what happened to
Apollo 13? I must have known about it at the time, but I had forgotten. Then the
1995 movie APOLLO 13 came out. I was astonished by the Apollo 13 story, well
presented by director Ron Howard with great performances by Tom Hanks, Kevin
Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinese and Ed Harris. If you have the slightest
interest in the space program and haven't seen this movie, do so immediately.
And think about the incredible achievements the people of this country were able
to do back in the dark ages of forty years ago.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WHERE WERE YOU 40 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK?
(July 20-26, 1969) by Richard Finch
I have a very good way of remembering the events of the week of July 20, 1969,
because I was racing in a National SCCA Race at Sears Point Raceway at Sonoma,
California that week-end. "Sears Point" is now named "Infenion Raceway" but it
is still mostly the same as it was forty years ago.
I was racing my 1966 Corvair Yenko Stinger S/N YS-003 that week-end and I was
racing it in class D Production. I finished the race in 5th place I believe,
against four of the top national D production TR4-A race cars and against four
top Datsun 2000 roadsters. There were about five other D Production cars of
other makes in that race, for at least 12 cars in class.
I had just purchased the Yenko Stinger from Gus Shaffer in West Virginia and
that was my first race with the car on the West Coast. I later raced it at
Riverside Raceway and ran it in several West Coast autocross events. Gus had
purchased it new from Don Yenko and raced it in three National SCCA races, then
parked it for a year in his heated garage in West Virginia. I had just sold my
house in Alamogordo, NM, and while sorting out my garage there, I came across an
ad in "Competition Press" that advertised the car for sale. I immediately called
the number in the ad and asked the man who answered the phone if the car was
still for sale.
Because of the time zone difference from New Mexico and West Virginia, Gus was
in bed asleep when I called at 9:00 pm New Mexico time. It took him a couple of
minutes to wake up enough to tell me that the car was still in his garage and
was still for sale. I was moving to Santa Maria, California to work at
Vandenberg AFB on a contract to support the Manned Orbital Lab. I told Gus that
I needed to deliver my furniture and shop equipment to a house that I still
owned in Santa Maria, and that I would immediately turn around and drive to West
Virginia to pick up the YS-003 Yenko Stinger. We agreed on a sale price of about
$2,500. I agreed to mail Gus a $500 deposit check while I was on the road to
California the next day.
The SCCA National Race at Sears Point Raceway went well and I would have
finished much further up in the final standings, but I had a spin-out on the
second lap of the race and it took me several laps to recover from that spin. By
July 1969, the Goodyear Eagle Blue Streak racing tires that came on the Yenko,
had hardened and no longer had their original grip. On the second lap, I was
overtaking the top four TR-4A race cars. I was on the straight between turns two
and three when the TR-4A cars were just in front of me and I had the chance to
pass all four of them at the same time. Then I came up on turn three and could
have made the turn except the hard tires on the Yenko acted like I was on grease
and the rear of the car came around, and I will always remember how the four
corner course workers just scattered as I backed up the hill toward them in a
cloud of dust! I remember how disappointed I was then when the corner workers
just stood and looked at each other rather than pushing me back on to the track!
I had to hit the starter and drive back onto the track myself!
After the race was over, I was pulling back into the pits and I saw that
everyone in the pits was looking at the sky. I got out of the Yenko and asked
one of my pit crew what everyone was looking at, to which he replied ,that the
radio had just reported that the Apollo 11 Astronauts had just landed on the
moon and were preparing to exit the Lunar Module!
About two hours later, on my way back home from the race, I stopped in Marin
County California, at a great roadside restaurant to eat dinner. I parked my
1965 Corvair 4-door tow car and the Yenko Stinger race car in the parking lot
and went in to get a meal, but the restaurant was totally empty of customers or
waiters. I could hear a TV back in the kitchen, so I went to see where all the
help was and I found about 30 people there, including the five or six wait
people, watching the TV as the Apollo 11 Astronauts were just getting out of the
Lunar Module! Of course that event took at least an hour, and I did get home at
least a couple of hours later than I expected that most memorable night.
To me the most memorable thing about the date was the fact that I had driven
from Santa Maria to Sonoma in a Corvair and had run a pretty good SCCA National
Race in a Corvair race car. I will always remember the week-end the Astronauts
landed on the moon for the first time, because I have a very good way of
remembering that event.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
================================================================================
NOTE: Newsletter Advertisements are FREE to CNM members & $5.00 to non-members.
================================================================================
FOR SALE: 1964 Rampside Deluxe 4-spd. First of only 94 known, 4R124S100130.
Eagle Alloys 17x8 with 245/45/17. Grant steering wheel, Spyder dash.
Bucket seats. Chrome bumpers. Good glass. Smooth running 180 engine
w/2 new carbs, internal alternator, fuel pump, plugs. Rust areas.
Cruised I-10 from Jacksonville to Santa Monica, 2400 miles in 72 hours,
24 mpg without incident. $5,000 before e-bay. Photos available.
Jack Pinard, corvairjack @ yahoo.com Phone: 805 340-6533.
FOR SALE: 1964 Greenbrier - project vehicle - asking $300.00
1965 Greenbrier - project vehicle - asking $300.00
Contact: Betty James at 505-508-2313
Vehicles may be seen at 8817 Shoshone Rd. NE Albuquerque NM
Alternate Contact: Merle or Norma at 505-299-7107
FOR SALE: Accel HEI w/Vac/Adv Distributor
SBC, ACC # 59107 $200.00
Coil ACC # 140003 $200.00 for small block Chevy V-8
Call H. C. "Lube" Lubert cell 505-400-3680
FOR SALE: 1960 Corvair Coupe. Red in color. Runs good. looks good.
$4000
1964 Corvair Convert. Silver. Runs good. Fair interior, very good top.
New tires. $4000
1965 Corvair Corsa Coupe. 140-HP. Black. Runs good, but needs TLC.
$3500
Rebuilt bolted flywheels $200 with exchange
Rebuilt differentials starting at $250 with exchange
Rebuilt late rear axles - 1965 $100 with exchange
Rebuilt late rear axles - 1966-1969 $100 with exchange
Rebuilt carburetors, various years & prices $ 50 and up! (with exchange)
Lots of other parts available for cars and vans.
Pat Hall - Los Lunas, NM 505-620-5574 (cell) or patandvickiehall @ q.com
================================================================================
NOTE: Please let me know if any of these ads are obsolete and should be removed!
================================================================================
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CAN YOU IDENTIFY THIS MEMBER?
Heula Pittman
Here is the eighth entry in our series "Can You Identify This Member?" for you
to guess. As was the case in previous months, this photo was made long before
the person featured ever gave a second's thought to Corvairs.
If everyone will give me a photograph from an "earlier life" then this contest
could go on for quite a while! For example, if I were to get thirteen photos in
all, we could end the contest and award the prize at our 36th anniversary
celebration in 2010. If I get more than thirteen photos then we could have a
second cycle of prizes.
So, give me your photos and keep your list up to date. You can e-mail digital
photos to ( jimp @ unm.edu ) or you can give me your photographs at a meeting, I
will scan them and I will return them to you. Remember, this is a contest, so no
fair sharing guesses with others! -- Thanks, Heula
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
============================================================================
C O R V A I R S o f N E W M E X I C O C O M I N G E V E N T S
============================================================================
| August 2009 | September 2009 | October 2009 |
| Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa |
| 1 | 1 2 3 4 5 | 1 2 3 |
| 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 | 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 | 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 |
| 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 | 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 | 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 |
| 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 | 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 | 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 |
| 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 | 27 28 29 30 | 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 |
| 30 31 | | |
============================================================================
Wed 5 Aug 7:00 PM Meeting: Highland Senior Center, 131 Monroe NE
Wed 5 Aug 8:30 PM (time approx.) after our meeting, we go to the 66 Diner
at 1405 Central NE (between University Blvd and I-25)
Sat 8 Aug 8:00 AM Our third "Old Route 66" cleanup of the year
Sat 8 Aug 9:30 AM CNM Breakfast - to be arranged - suggestions?
Sat 8 Aug 6:00 PM Los Lunas "66 Cruise" starting at Bosque Farms
Sun 9 Aug 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM -- All Clubs Picnic - Villanueva State Park
Sun 9 Aug 9:30 AM Assemble at the Smith's at Tramway & Central SE
Sun 9 Aug 10:00 AM Leave PROMPTLY from the Smith's for Villanueva State Park
Notify Joyce at (oldcarnut1932 @ earthlink.net) or 884-7912 if you plan to go
Sat 15 Aug 9:00 AM Breakfast at Sopa's in Bosque Farms.....
Sat 15 Aug 10:00 AM ... followed by a TUNA session at Pat & Vickie Hall's
on rebuilding a Corvair steering box
Wed 19 Aug 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Business Printing Service - 4316 Silver SE
Fri 21 Aug 9:00 PM Newsletter Deadline - Jim Pittman
Wed 2 Sep 7:00 PM Meeting: Highland Senior Center, 131 Monroe NE
Wed 2 Sep 8:30 PM (time approx.) after our meeting, we go to the 66 Diner
at 1405 Central NE (between University Blvd and I-25)
Sat 5 Sep 9:30 AM CNM Breakfast - to be arranged - suggestions?
Sat 12 Sep 6:00 PM Los Lunas "66 Cruise" starting at Bosque Farms
Sat 12 Sep early! EAA Fly-In (and old car display) Moriarty Airport
Sun 13 Sep early! EAA Fly-In (and old car display) Moriarty Airport
Mon 14 Sep ....... Ultra Van meet in Santa Fe -- more information later
Wed 16 Sep 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Business Printing Service - 4316 Silver SE
Sun 27 Sep 7:00 AM Get ready for the State Fair Car Show
Fri 25 Sep 9:00 PM Newsletter Deadline - Jim Pittman
Fri-Sat-Sun 25-26-27 Sep NMCCC 31st Annual Swap Meet in Los Lunas
Wed 7 Oct 7:00 PM Meeting: Highland Senior Center, 131 Monroe NE
Wed 7 Oct 8:30 PM (time approx.) after our meeting, we go to the 66 Diner
at 1405 Central NE (between University Blvd and I-25)
Sat 10 Oct 9:00 AM Our fourth "Old Route 66" cleanup of the year
Sat 10 Oct 9:30 AM CNM Breakfast - to be arranged - suggestions?
Sat 10 Oct 6:00 PM Los Lunas "66 Cruise" starting at Bosque Farms
Sat 17 Oct 8:00 AM Car Show at a Park on Rio Grande Blvd near Los Ranchos
Support Hydrocephalus Association. Contact Russ McDuffie
Wed 21 Oct 5:00 PM Board Meeting: Business Printing Service - 4316 Silver SE
Sat xx Oct ....... Economy Run or Sports Car Rally? -- Watch This Space
Fri 23 Oct 9:00 PM Newsletter Deadline - Jim Pittman
Fri-Sat-Sun 23-24-25 Oct Great Western Fan Belt Toss - Palm Springs, California
=============================================================================
See the New Mexico Council of Car Clubs Web Site for more "NMCCC" activities:
http://www.nmcarcouncil.org
=============================================================================
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEERING BOX REBUILD
Bill Reider
If you would like to rebuild the steering box on your Corvair, read this and
come to the next meeting and to the TUNA at Pat Hall's on August 15 at 10:00am.
We will discuss this more at the meeting and give a demo at the TUNA later this
month.
While there are many similarities among the Corvair boxes, there are a few
differences. The 1960 box has the most differences. For example, it has an
aluminum case, and it
has fewer balls that run around the worm gear. The only other difference is in
the worm gear shaft in the box itself. This was the first design and was used
through late February of 1960. In the later 1960-1963 box the shaft in the box
came out of the box about 1" and can be interchanged with the first 1960 early
box.
In 1964 and 1965, they had a one-piece shaft that went all the way to the
steering wheel. The 1964 and 1965 shafts were of different lengths so they can't
be interchanged.
The 1966 shaft went to the firewall with its shaft and then was connected with a
U-joint.
In 1967 through 1969 they went back to a short stub again with a U-joint
connected to the stub.
In 1965 they had the first style, telescopic column as well, then in late
1965-1966 they added one without quick steering and one with quick steering.
They had the same for 1967-1969 one without quick steering and one with quick
steering.
That brings it up to nine, all with different worm shafts.
Specifically, the '64 box (and early '65 without telescopic wheel) use a cast
iron case with a one-piece shaft from the wheel to the box. Lengths between the
early and late are of course different.
The '64 box has a smaller diameter shaft at the steering wheel, so if one were
to put a '64 box into a '60-63 car, you'd need a '64 steering wheel and the
plastic bearing shim at the upper column bearing. Conversely, a '60-63 box would
fit a '64 car if you discarded the upper shim and used a '60-63 steering wheel.
Early '65 Corvairs with telescopic steering column used a steering box with a
one piece, two bolt coupler (just like the '60-63 coupler) about 15" out of the
box. It looks similar to the late '65-66 style box, but the shaft is shorter by
about 3/4".
In late '65, a 2-piece coupler (similar to the one that had been used for years
on regular Chevrolet models) was introduced for all Corvairs. The telescopic
columns were modified to accept the new coupler, so a different steering box was
not required when this option was ordered.
At the same time, a quick ratio box became available. Its appearance is
identical to the regular box.
Since the steering column required a lower bearing with the late '65-'66 style
box, a different steering column is used on these cars than on the early '65.
An early '65 telescopic column must have the early '65 telescopic gearbox to
work and the later telescopic column must have the later style box to work! You
can put the whole works into a different style car, but you'll have to re-drill
holes at the floor to secure it.
The '67-69 box used the late '65-66 style coupler, but it is located only 2" out
of the box. Both regular and quick ratios were available.
The '67-69 style box and column will fit the '65-66 cars without cutting the
frame by simply installing 2 float washers between the box and frame on each of
the 2 rear most bolts. This cocks the box a bit, giving just enough clearance.
The coupler takes care of the slight misalignment.
The complete pedal hanger (parking brake lever anchor - brake master cylinder
reinforcement) piece under the dash is removable and interchangeable between the
'65-'66 and '67-'69. This is really the collapsible feature and will be anchored
well enough to work.
As to the repair of the box itself, the pitman shaft seal #5673120 is
discontinued; but it is available as C/R 8627. The steering shaft seal is C/R
6130. The lower pitman shaft bushing is offered at Clark's # C703. Clark's also
has the upper end bushing # C1640B for the pitman shaft.
If you were going to rebuild your steering box and figure that you might need a
few parts, you would be able to use any box except the 1960 as long as you
didn't need the steering shaft. If you do, you will have to get the box in the
group that you are rebuilding. I personally like the 1967 and later arrangement
because it is a collapsible column, and it has a built-in emergency flasher.
However, if you should decide to install a 1967 or later column in a 1965 or
1966 see instructions above for 67-69 boxes.
Before you start, you will need a few special tools, two seals and a little
silicon or gasket paper to make a gasket for the cover assembly, as well as
about a pound of chassis grease. You'll need a pitman arm remover. If you are
very careful sometimes you can use a gear puller. A gear puller has a tendency
to pull off. You would probably be better off going to your friendly parts store
and renting a pitman arm puller.
You'll also need a 1-1/2 open end wrench or socket and an inch-pound torque
wrench, one that measures zero-to-100 inch-lb. No higher than this as you are
going to be measuring at the low end of the scale.
While you are at the parts store you should get two seals. The seal for the
steering gear shaft is GM part number 5696537 and the seal for the pitman arm
shaft is GM 5673120. Your friendly parts house should be able to cross this
number to the seals that they stock. I would also have on hand a shop manual,
either a 1961 or a 1965 as they have the specs for adjusting the box after you
have reassembled it.
The box comes off easily, you have 3 bolts holding it to the frame rail.
Depending on the model you can disconnect it at the shaft, or pull the steering
wheel and pull the whole steering shaft. The next part is easy if you do it
before you take the bolts out. Remove the locking nut that holds the worm
bearing adjuster in place; you can do this with a drift and hammer. After you
have the box on the bench you will want to take the side cover off and then the
worm bearing adjuster; that's the piece with the 1-1/2 nut on the end. The ball
nut block will then unscrew and come out.
Inspect this and the pitman shaft closely for wear. These are the two pieces
that come together to take up the slack in the steering box.
By the way, GM discontinued both of these parts, so you may need another box to
get some good pieces. You can use any box except the 1960 for these, but if you
have a choice get the one from your year.
Other things that wear are the worm shaft, the worm shaft bearings and races,
the ball bearings themselves, and occasionally the bushings. If you are going to
buy a used box from your local salvage yard, be sure that the adjusting screw is
setting up about a 1/4 inch or more. If you don't, you'll find that the pitman
shaft and block are worn and you won't be any better off that you were before.
Now let's clean up and reassemble everything. If you follow the shop manual you
should be in good shape. The only tricky part in putting the box back together
is the ball bearing that goes in the ball nut block. If you follow the
instructions in the shop manual you should have no trouble. Do not forget while
you're reassembling to put grease in the ball nut block holes before you put the
ball bearing in. Then pack the box before you put the ball nut block and shaft
back in the box and install the worm shaft bearing.
The ball nut block should be centered on the shaft before you install the pitman
arm shaft. You'll have to put a gasket or a little silicon on the side cover,
because you install the pitman arm shaft and side cover as a unit. After it's
all back together and back in the car you can make the final adjustment. Before
you put the pitman arm back adjust the steering box according to specs. (You'll
find them on page 4-2 in the 1961 manual or page 9-2 in the 1965 manual.)
See you at the August meeting.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE DOMZALSKIS' 2009 VISIT
Heula Pittman
Friday, July 10th, 32 of us gathered at Sadie's Restaurant on Fourth Street for
a good New Mexican meal and a visit with Elizabeth and Mark. Since Mark was
scheduled to go to Los Alamos for a few days, he and Elizabeth set a time to
visit with fellow CNMers at Sadie's restaurant so that they could get their
overdue "fix" of New Mexico green chile.
The Domzalskis have been living and working in the Washington, DC area and have
perhaps another 1-1/2 years to go before they can move back to their house in
Placitas. We look forward to having them back home, once again active in CNM. We
all love and miss them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CHARLIE MANN'S CAR TOUR
Heula Pittman
Pam and Charlie Mann graciously opened their lovely home in the North Valley to
us Saturday morning, July 18th. They suggested a pot luck lunch and an
opportunity to view their collection of old cars. Twenty-five of us gathered
under their wonderful shade trees and visited as a cool breeze helped keep the
summer temperatures tolerable.
Charlie answered questions from all those interested in his eclectic collection
of old cars and trucks. We admired a black Chrysler Le Baron next to a bright
red 1959 Pontiac Bonneville convertible, two 1962 four-door Continentals, a
Mercury Monterey and several 1950s Buicks. There was a late 1940s Packard
Clipper. A 1974 MG-B sports car looked brand new. The star of the show was a
1974 Buick Centurion convertible with 11,000 miles.
Several of us were amazed at the one-of-a-kind cars built back in the 1950s in
Bernalillo, New Mexico by Leopold Garcia. One was named "Bubbles" and was an
open roadster. The other, intended to be produced for sale, was simply called
"CityCar" and had a wide, two-seat front with a tapering, one-wheel rear. Power
was by fork lift engine. The car never made it to production so the prototype is
the only existing example. Charlie said he rescued both cars from a field where
they had been neglected for many years.
Pam made us all feel welcome, keeping us supplied with nice cool iced sun tea.
Their grandson, Keirin also kept us entertained. He's quite a talker and seems
to never meet a stranger. I especially enjoyed visiting with this sweet, smart
young man who is three and a half (his words) years old!
Later we all stuffed ourselves, as usual, on a tasty meal together. The Mann
extended family grilled hot dogs and supplied all the trimmings, including green
chile. The rest of us brought assorted side dishes. There was no reason for
anyone to go away hungry as there was enough food to feed - well - an army!
Thanks to Pam, Charlie and children for treating us to a great time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SEVEN YEARS AGO ---- Jim Pittman
Seven Years Ago - August 2002 - Volume 28 - Number 8 - Issue 323
The cover featured CNM board members: Jim, Larry, Anne Mae, Robert, Steve,
Sylvan, Chuck and Wendell. Also, Rita and Heula were visiting at the start of a
"caravan" to Santa Fe on July 4th. Ollie reported on a clean-up session on Old
Route 66 where the day started rainy but soon cleared up. At our July meeting we
had guests Sy and Margo Feldman. Wendell reported $5057 in the bank. John Wiker
told us about Car Council doings. Will the Albuquerque Museum lose the car show
to Los Lunas again next year? Money was the issue. We planned to attend the
picnic at the Elks Club refuge. There were several stories of adventures at the
Flagstaff CORSA convention.
President Robert Gold had a great column, touching on everything from the
Convention trip to the upcoming Neon Cruise. Anne Mae told about the latest
doings of the Corvair Ladies and Rita previewed our Christmas plans. Richard
Finch told in detail why his Ultra Van had a problem getting up the "mountain"
to Ruth's cabin and how it was now fixed. Richard also told how he saw Jim's
yellow 1966 Corvair for the first time since 1969 when he and Jim rebuilt the
engine. Heula reported on the Fourth of July holiday in Santa Fe -- we had
several photos.
Jim contributed his world-famous story (it was later published in the CORSA
Communique) about Saint Peter and the world's best Corvair, a story with quite a
twist at the end.
Fourteen Years Ago - August 1995 - Volume 21 - Number 8 - Issue 239
Our cover featured another Mark Morgan fantasy, a "rare Lister-Monza" race car.
Steve Gongora took notes and Sylvan Zuercher ran our meeting because our
officers were out of town. Finances: $328 in the convention account; $392 in
checking and $111 in savings. Funds were too depleted to buy the "Corvairs Are
Gonna Rise Again" belt buckles. Bill Reider reported on the Car Council: two CNM
members were officers, the picnic was coming up and the swap meet was set for
September. Bill also passed out new Clark's catalogs. Dennis Pleau reported on
convention progress. The Santa Fe Fourth of July on the Plaza car show featured
74 cars and some 8,000 people were served a pancake breakfast.
Our CNM Library Van was moved to Placitas for storage. Clayborne Souza suggested
an August campout at Villanueva State Campground south of Las Vegas. Matthew
Conrad from the city government talked to us about zoning and suggested how
owners of several older cars could avoid running afoul of the law. Inoperable
cars must be out of sight in a completely enclosed building! You can't have
junkers into the back yard.
Larry Blair called for reports from the Dallas convention and previewed some
upcoming tech talks. He said we needed to schedule a couple of photo rallies in
preparation for our convention activities.
Finally, we reprinted an article from ARIZONA HIGHWAYS in which a woman driving
alone through the desert had a breakdown in her 1967 Corvair. With some common
sense and perseverance she was able to get the car and herself back to
civilization unscathed.
Twenty-one Years Ago - August 1988 - Volume 14 - Number 8 - Issue 155
The cover showed a Ferrari and the caption, "Why Compromise?" and said that for
$45,000 less you could own a no-compromise Corvair. We had $602 in the bank. In
August there was a car show in Cuba, a Car Council picnic and a CNM trip to
Quarai, Gran Quivera and Abo. September brought the Car Council's annual swap
meet and an econo-run to Las Vegas. We planned to go to Clines Corners to meet
the "Dare-Vair" driven by Lew Kuykendall when he came through New Mexico. LeRoy
ran an auction that put $77 into the treasury. New members: Jeff Newman, Kathy
Craig, Philip Wye, Paul & Bruce Stark, Jerry & Margie Morris. Francis Boydston
wrote an article about taking a trip to Nebraska in June. It was partly a tech
tip because he told about removing the engine shrouding to let the engine run
cooler. The air-conditioned 1967 sedan kept him and Ruth cool in 100-degree
weather and got 24.5 MPG at 65 MPH.
Twenty-eight Years Ago - August 1981 - Vol. 7 - Number 8 - Issue 71
We planned to go to Moriarty to participate in their Fourth of July parade.
LeRoy organized a caravan of Corvairs to go to Denver to the 1981 CORSA
convention. Bob Philips talked to us about paint and body work. Mark Morgan was
editing a newsletter for a Corvair club in Ventura County, CA. Tech tips
discussed too-tight fan belts, adjusting belt guides, tools needed for body
work, fixing squeaks and rattles, and organized parts disassembly.
Thirty-five Years Ago - August 1974 - Neither my records nor my memory give any
hint of what happened at our fifth meeting, held in July 1974.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
=END=