Shout When I Feel Like Screaming

It was 5:00 when Matt finally got all of her fuel lines replaced, buttoned her up and hosed off all of the old oil that had leaked all over her engine compartment. It was much later than I wanted it to be, but I was still anxious to get on the road and out of Tucson. So we loaded up and set out on Interstate 10 East.

We had gone about 15 miles when I noticed her oil pressure dropping - here we go again. I got out and checked her oil level, which hadn't dropped much, though I did notice her valve covers were leaking a bit. The guys at Road King, in Los Angeles had used silicone to seal them because the gaskets were, of course, a special order item.

Jerry at W.W.Williams had given me his cell phone number and asked me to keep in touch to let him know how she was doing, so once I pulled to the side of the road I called him. He asked what oil I was using in her. I told him it was 15W-40, what James Sarr, the mechanic in Fresno had told me to use.

He said that would be fine in any other engine... but a 2 stroke Detroit Diesel requires a single viscosity, 40 weight.

He said it would be alright for short term, but that if I wanted to get her all the way back to Houston I'd better change her oil.

It was late. It was dark. I was tired. I soooo wanted to leave Tucson. But I decided to take her back to W.W.Williams and have them replace her valve cover gaskets and air breather tube, change her oil, and take care of anything else that needed to be done. 

Leigh and I had planned a New Year's Eve party with our friends. It would be the last time we got to see them all before we left Houston for the nomadic life. At this rate we weren't going to make it back to Houston in time. So, we decided to leave Lucille with W.W.Williams, fly back to Houston, see our friends, and fly back when they have finished all of the work.

(Shout out to my good friend, Bear - look closely at the picture.)

#busrepair