Heavy Metal

[3175375]

Some heavy metal being handled by water. Rail bridge that crosses the Big Sioux River in Dakota Dunes (just north of Sioux City) collapsed last night.
We just got through I-29 yesterday before it was closed.
Be safe!

 

[amazinblue82]

The Vega went into production just before I started jr. high school. It was a crappy car as we know. But I just learned that, 50 years later, GM shipped from factory like this.

Allegedly, they could ship 30 Vegas per rail car, vs 18. Allegedly also, it was said to have reduced shipping costs by 40%. However, they shipped them "ready to drive" -- so with all fluids plus gas -- which created other kinds of issues as you would imagine.

Apparently, this shipping method did NOT catch on at GM or anywhere else for small car shipping back in the day. Car was so troubled any saving GM got from rail, it went back out the door dressed like warranty claims.

source: https://www.motortrend.com/features/chevrolet-vega-vert-a-pac/

 

[Snotty]

It was a crappy car as we know.

It was? The engine was crap, but there was nothing wrong with the bodies and interior. If you drop a V8 into one of those you have a screamer!

 

[3175375]

It was? The engine was crap, but there was nothing wrong with the bodies and interior. If you drop a V8 into one of those you have a screamer!

A guy in high school dropped a 350 in one and cracked The windshield power braking it.

 

[amazinblue82]

It was? The engine was crap, but there was nothing wrong with the bodies and interior. If you drop a V8 into one of those you have a screamer!

I was in junior high school and have no "first hand" knowledge of the car. I do know the alleged issues as an enthusiast and later as an executive (25 years later) recalling the corporate lessons learned from it.

Anyway, I dont debate what folks would do to make a rocket ship out of Vegas (Baldwin Motion ads above, for example).

I am purely speaking as the OEM "builder" of the the thing. Beyond engine, we had rust, axle, and a few other issues that ordinary, everyday customers had to deal with.

To me, professionally at least, it was a "lemon". Anecdotally, customers who had them (I never owned one) just hated them.

Excerpt:

"Right about this time, the severity of the Vega's problems was becoming apparent. Chevrolet recalled half a million Vegas in 1972. Rear axle shafts could separate from the housing, causing the wheels to literally fall off.

Faulty brackets on the single-barrel carb jammed the throttle open. The optional two-barrel engine could backfire violently enough to split the muffler, blowing hot exhaust on the fuel tank and causing it to expand, rupture, and ignite.

An undiscovered defect in the new rust-proofing system left the underside of the front fenders unprotected. GM had rejected plastic fender liners to save money, and Vegas suffered from rapid corrosion—primarily of the fenders, but rocker panels, lower doors and front suspension parts could also be affected.

One dealer toldAutomotive News that he was touching up rust spots on brand-new Vegas.

The Vega's best-remembered problem, however, was its infamous melting engine.

The engine didn't actually melt, but if it got too hot the cylinders would distort, wearing the coating on the walls and forcing coolant past the head gaskets. The former problem increased oil consumption (exacerbated by faulty valve stem seals) and the latter increased the frequency of the overheating issue. If a Vega owner didn't keep the coolant topped off, the Vega could, and often would, destroy its own engine.

Chevrolet extended the engine warranty and retrofitted an overflow bottle and low-coolant warning light, but not before many owners got replacement engines to go with their replacement fenders."

source: 20 minutes of reading here has pretty good (accurate to my knowlege) info on the car. https://www.motortrend.com/vehicle-...rrible-cars-that-shouldnt-have-been-terrible/

 

[3175375]

View attachment 668235

I was in junior high school and have no "first hand" knowledge of the car. I do know the alleged issues as an enthusiast and later as an executive 25 years later recalling the corporate lessons learned from it.

Anyway, I dont debate what folks would do to make a rocket ship out of it. I am purely speaking as the "builder" of the the thing. beyond engine, we had rust, axles.

To me, professionally at least, it was a "lemon". Anecdotally, folks who had them (I never owned one) hated them.

Excerpt:

"Right about this time, the severity of the Vega's problems was becoming apparent. Chevrolet recalled half a million Vegas in 1972. Rear axle shafts could separate from the housing, causing the wheels to literally fall off.

Faulty brackets on the single-barrel carb jammed the throttle open. The optional two-barrel engine could backfire violently enough to split the muffler, blowing hot exhaust on the fuel tank and causing it to expand, rupture, and ignite.

An undiscovered defect in the new rust-proofing system left the underside of the front fenders unprotected. GM had rejected plastic fender liners to save money, and Vegas suffered from rapid corrosion—primarily of the fenders, but rocker panels, lower doors and front suspension parts could also be affected.

One dealer toldAutomotive News that he was touching up rust spots on brand-new Vegas.

The Vega's best-remembered problem, however, was its infamous melting engine.

The engine didn't actually melt, but if it got too hot the cylinders would distort, wearing the coating on the walls and forcing coolant past the head gaskets. The former problem increased oil consumption (exacerbated by faulty valve stem seals) and the latter increased the frequency of the overheating issue. If a Vega owner didn't keep the coolant topped off, the Vega could, and often would, destroy its own engine.

Chevrolet extended the engine warranty and retrofitted an overflow bottle and low-coolant warning light, but not before many owners got replacement engines to go with their replacement fenders."

source: 20 minutes of reading here has pretty good (accurate to my knowlege) info on the car. https://www.motortrend.com/vehicle-...rrible-cars-that-shouldnt-have-been-terrible/

And then Chevrolet made the Chevette…

 

[amazinblue82]

And then Chevrolet made the Chevette…

both "warmup acts" for the dreaded "X" cars. Ugh..

(aint dissin' GM .. every automaker worldwide, that ever existed, has had things they coulda executed better ... anybody heard of the Edsel? )

source: https://www.motortrend.com/features...tion-oldsmobile-buick-pontiac-photos-history/

 

[3175375]

both "warmup acts" for the dreaded "X" cars. Ugh..

(aint dissin' GM .. every automaker worldwide, that ever existed, has had things they coulda executed better ... anybody heard of the Edsel? )
View attachment 668239
source: https://www.motortrend.com/features...tion-oldsmobile-buick-pontiac-photos-history/

I remember a coworker who drug his Citation into a dealership to get $1000 off ordering a new S-10. Best decision he made ever!

 

[3175375]

This was for demonstration purposes only don’t let it fool you into thinking this is a real refueling of an SR 71 it’s not.

As told by Paul F Crickmore in his book Lockheed Blackbird: Beyond the Secret Missions (Revised Edition), in 1970 General P. K. Carlton, commander of the 15th Air Force, became interested in extending SR-71 missions to fully encompass the concept of ‘global reach’.

He asked his Director of Reconnaissance, Lt Col Don Walbrecht, to conceive a post-SIOP coverage of the Soviet landmass by SR-71s assisted by advanced tankers that were not yet programmed into SAC’S inventory. He said, ‘Recce’, you know that Habu: well I want a plan to help sell the Air Staff on the idea of big new tankers.’ In the next few days, Don and his fellow 15th AF reconnaissance officers drew up a plan whereby the existing SIOP was covered with lots of tankers and all of the SR-71s. After Don briefed the ‘Boss’ the first time, P. K. said, ‘Back to the drawing boards, Recce; you’re not thinking big.’ A few days later, a new plan was briefed, showing that a dozen pre-positioned KC-747s and a dozen Beale-based Habus could cover all probable targets less than five hours after the initial ICBM lay-down. ‘That’s more like it!’ he said. ‘That’ll help advocate the use of the Jumbos.’ Soon after, newly-promoted Col Walbrecht found himself assigned to SAC Headquarters, where he was ‘advocating new tankers and re-engined KC-135s’ as the division chief of advanced strategic aircraft systems.
The result was the KC 10.

Throughout the 1970s, General Carlton used the 747/SR-71 recce concept, and the success of that test flight, to help promote SAC’S Advanced Cargo Transport Aircraft (ACTA), which eventually bore fruit in the 1980s with the purchase of 60 KC-10s. For SR-71 pilots, the KC-10 made the air-refuelling task much easier, raising the base refuelling block up to 33,000ft and the speed to Mach 0.88.

Today the world’s only KC-747 tanker is flown by the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF).

The story Behind this Photo of a Boeing 747 Refuelling an SR-71 Blackbird Mach 3 Spy Plane - The Aviation Geek Club

 

[3175375]

Most naval history buffs can tell you that the USS Nautilus (SSN-571) was the world's first operational nuclear-powered submarine, while USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier - yet many may wrongly assume that the carrier was also the first United State Navy surface warship to be powered by nuclear energy. In fact, it was the USS Long Beach (CGN-9), a warship that was originally intended to be no larger than a frigate but during the design stage was rapidly increased to the dimensions of a heavy cruiser, which has the distinction of being the first nuclear-powered surface vessel. As an experimental platform, Long Beach was the only ship of her class. She was also the last cruiser built for the U.S. Navy as a cruiser design as all subsequent cruiser classes were essentially built on scaled-up destroyer hulls or converted from existing cruisers. The increase in size was to accommodate various missile systems, while a helicopter pad was installed at the stern of the ship - however, she only carried helicopters during operations off Vietnam. During her service, Long Beach had the highest bridge structure of any warship smaller than an aircraft carrier. The ship's high box-like superstructure housed the SCANFAR radar system, which comprised of AN/SPS-32 and AN/SPS-33 phased array radars. - Peter Suciu

The hull may still be in Washington State:

USS Long Beach (CGN-9) - Wikipedia