Jesse Open

Not too late Dave. The questions are now multiple choice and drawn from a known pool of questions. You can get the study guide and practice tests on line .
Plenty of folks do it in just a few weeks of part time practice testing.
Back when I took the tests they were a blend of multiple choice with a few essay questions. Aside from the Novice class, you had to take the test at an FCC field office, ours was in Detroit. A local ham gave me the Novice test , along with the 5 word per minute mandatory code exam. Then came the long wait for the license to show up in the mail!
Later on, upgraded to General with a new written test and the 13 WPM code test. It wasn't till after I got married before getting the Advanced and Extra class with the then 20 WPM code requirement.

The radios today are a bargain, they work well and are fun to use. Something to do during the winter anyhow! Check out the ARRL website for study guides, you can do it in no time! Your location is loaded with ham radio operators. A simple wire antenna and you could be working stations all over the world.

Amazing how many hams you will meet on the air that also fly RC. Often get into chats on the air that are similar to what we do here.
Our club has 100 members and at least 8 of them are ham radio operators.

Hobbsy

My Feedback: (102)

Len said he'd give me a radio if I wanted to do it, I took my 2nd class test in Washington, DC and the first class test in Buffalo, NY. I drove from western Pa. to Buffalo in a 1962 Ford Falcon Station Wagon with a Daganham four speed on the floor. I drove all the way in a near zero degree blizzard.

Jesse Open

Dave,

By all means, just do it. Won't take long at all. I am sure Len knows where you can take the test. We can talk on 40 meters just about any time.
I had a buddy with a 1962 Falcon 6 cylinder . It also had the rather rare English built Dagenham 4 speed. That was actually a pretty cool little car.
Very simple and basic, just how I like them! Wasn't that the 170 six?

Hobbsy

My Feedback: (102)

Yes sir, it was the early four main bearing six, a little noisy, the later seven main bearing 170 was much quieter and had 105 hp, four more than the earlier engine. I would take the test near Richmond. Dagenham builds the current Ford F 150 3.0 litre Diesel engine. It has 440 foot pounds of torque, that's 20 more than the early 7.3 litre.

PS, the 150 Diesel makes it's torque at 1,750 rpm.

What is Compacted-Graphite Iron?

Jesse Open

Not sure exactly what the make up is but when done right (there have been problems) it is pretty darn strong. Stronger than the typical grey iron and it does machine nicely from what they say around here. (Never had the pleasure to run any for myself yet). Doesn't show up much in the concept car operations where I work.

Hobbsy

My Feedback: (102)

I did a little digging, the Compacted Graphite Iron is lighter and stronger than gray iron and is used in engine blocks, turbo housings and exhaust manifolds. Many engine manufacturers are using it in engines where there is high stress between the cylinders and across the block due to turbo charging and the accompanying high pressures. It seems to be a German invention.

acdii

The Ford 2.7 is CGI, and seems to be holding up quite well. Looks like the new Diesel is the same.

Jesse Open

That sounds about right. I only recall from talking a bit about the stuff years ago. The fellows in Powertrain had mentioned the material as an up and coming thing. Early on IIRC the process had some issues with uniformity. I am certain that problem is licked by now. IIRC correctly back then it was about exhaust manifolds ???

Making clean diesels requires some very high cylinder pressures. Making them light weight at the same time is even more demanding.

Charley

My Feedback: (2)

I came by a '62 Falcon Ranchero that had a worn out 4 cylinder engine. I stuffed a 260 V8 with an overdrive tranny in there. Instant hot rod, although I just wanted more power for the NM & CO mountains. Later on swapped the 260 out for a 302. Funny thing was that the V8 truck got as good gas mileage on the highway as it did with the 4 cylinder. Funny how things work out.

CR

Charley

My Feedback: (2)

By all means study up and take the tests. You can get excellent study guides from ARRL; that's what I used. For a guy with a first class license it'll be a snap. While I've been a tech since 1956 I became a ham in 2011 because I wanted to be legal for the video link associated with FPV models.

As far as finding a test location goes, most good-sized ham clubs have Volunteer Examiners (VE) among their membership. They'll usually schedule a couple of test sessions a year. Ask your buddy if he knows who the VEs are.

Join us,

CR

modeltronics

My Feedback: (27)

Years ago there used to be a net on 40 meters so hams could talk about modeling. Does anyone know if that net is still around?

73s
Pete

Hobbsy

My Feedback: (102)

I never knew of a Falcon that had a four cylinder engine, a 144 cubic inch six was the smallest engine at 85 hp. With it's stock 3.50 gears it ran fairly well. The 260 should have been an easy bolt in since the Sprint had a 260. The 260 powered ones came with 3.25 rear gears. I often toyed with the idea of installing a 255 in a Falcon just because it was a novel size, it was a torquey engine because of it's 3" (same as 302) stroke. Hot rodders hated it because of it's small bore which dictated small valves, you got what you got.


Engine144 cu in (2.4 l) Mileage Maker I6
170 cu in (2.8 l) Mileage Maker I6
260 cu in (4.3 l) V8
Transmission2-speed automatic
3-speed manual
4-speed manual

I got my FCC license in March of 1964.

acdii

shoot, that was before I was born, but not by much, only 7 months.

Hobbsy

My Feedback: (102)

My first car, a 1960 Ford Falcon, same color as the one above. Three speed stick, I promptly installed a floor shifter by ? Hurst, I think.

acdii

My first car was a 1973 Chevy Chevelle. It was a two tone, baby crap yellow and rust. The downside was all the rust, and lack of floor boards and trunk. The upside is it kept my 1000 watt Linear tube power amplifier cool for my CB radio. I used to shoot skip to some guy who called himself young fart in Australia. One day some guys were messing around, grabbing the 102" steel whip on the car while I was in it, being total arses, so I asked politely to please stop. they didn't, alrighty then, so I reached back, the amp was by the rear seat, and flip from standby to inline, keyed the mike when one of the idjiots grabbed the antenna and blew a whistle. He ran home crying to momma. It literally knocked him on his arse. Warned ya! This is back in the early 80's when CB was the thing, and no licenses were needed, but running more than 4 watts was highly frowned upon. One day while driving to work in the Kennedy, I was on channel 19, and heard this tremendous garbled bleedover from channel 2. Back then black guys tended to use over modulated mikes and would talk trash all the time. You could not make out a word they were saying, it was all noise. Well I just happened to notice the RWS meter started spiking, so I slid down to two, and when it pegged I looked around, and sure enough found the loud mouth, had the mike to his face in a car next to me, just going on and on and on, could not make out a word. I reached back, flipped the switch, my dash lights dimmed, I keyed the mike and said BOO. Filled his car with smoke I did. LOL I was mean back then, but man was it nice to hear silence on 40 channels after that.

I slid back to 19 and said, your welcome, and got a few toots from a couple trucks that saw the smoke.


Looked like this one, but with a lot of rust.

Rudolph Hart

Charley i hate them ford ranch wagons.We did'nt get many in kiwi or aussie but i could see them instantly when they got rolled in to the panel shop.The timber veneer/vinyl that was glued to the sides had to be removed before you started the repair.This left acres of glue to be removed with a rag and lots of thinners.Did you notice that while dave's 62 falcon has some nice lines it's almost the same green as jesse's old v7 motogootsie friends resto,the one jesse got electrocuted to the bejeezuz on by a stray sparkplug?

ps with all you ham radio guys here does that mean the rest of us are not hamsters/vegetarians

Hobbsy

My Feedback: (102)

I want this for my next car: 412 cu. In. twin turbo V-12, 653 hp, 726 foot pounds torque, 5,300 pounds weight 0 to 60 in 5.1 seconds, Near total silence inside.

Charley

My Feedback: (2)

First I've heard of it. I check in on the 7290 Traffic net now and then. Haven't been on HF for a while though.
73,
CR

Charley

My Feedback: (2)

Doggone it that's what I get for working from memory. 144 cu in sticks in my mind so it must have been the smallest six. If the 260 was a bolt in I didn't know it. I bought a partly wrecked Fairlane wagon to get the engine & tranny. Got the front motor mount kit from JC Whitney. Had a friend who had a machine shop fab the rear strap support from a light gauge template that I made. Had to put coil-over shocks in the front to support the extra weight. Hurst floor shift through a hole in the tunnel. It wasn't good conversion for road car. The V8 generated so much heat that the floor pan got hot as h--l, transferred the heat to the cab. I sold the Ranchero to a hot rod guy who really tricked it up. Hmm, wonder where that thing wound up......

CR

acdii

Ran into an issue with a 91 I got from a friend. It has been run quite a bit by him, but today was the first time I tried to run it and I don't know if timing is off or what, but when I hit it with the starter it fights against it, then will run. While trying to adjust the HSN, it backfired and threw the prop.

Thoughts?

Also what would be a proper spinner to use so I can use both nuts on it, only have the washer and inner nut on it, no more threads for the lock nut.

Jesse Open

the Wasp

My Feedback: (1)

hey Dave, you better buy it if you want one, cause the story I read, is that RR is going to stop making cars, I hope I didn't bust your bubble, BTW, 726 pounds of torque with only 412c.i.d is really something

Jim

Rudolph Hart

Nein nein nein colonel hogan/jimbo....sgt schultz/that's good old davo to you,has just thrown you a curve ball.Since the early seventies i've had the pleasure of painting many many rolls royces,even burnt the electronics out in a puff of smoke once playing with the electric drivers seat adjustment while it was parked in the spraybooth,boredom plays a role sometimes.I'll bet his shed is to small for a large rolls royce and if they really do paint one green nowadays it was a special order which is good for dave,i reckon his neighbours would fire bottle rockets at his new car in that colour,it's bad enough waking up with a hangover let alone looking at that.While your at it google rolls royce colours for a description of how they paint them at the factory.Back in the seventies and eighties we repainted a lot of range rover vogues because every panel was a different colour from new and we two toned them.Butternut yellow was the worst colour back then can't remember if that was on an e type jag or a roller,it was one of the two.

ps dave is it true that keleo exhausts are now being made by ch ignitions?

Jesse Open

Charley

My Feedback: (2)

If it kicks back against the starter, try back flipping it against compression. My .80 starts easily that way.

CR