I'll reach out to the guy to confirm.
Here's what I know and some things that I infer:
He does have an engine hoist. He moved to a place without a garage, and evidently he's liquidating stuff. If it doesn't go away before the previous landlord says "get your E36 M3 out" then it goes to a scrap yard. I haven't emailed him for a while, so I don't know what the status is today, but it was sitting in the car on the mounts. It was my understanding that I (or someone) could show up, he would use the hoist to pull the engine and drop it in the vehicle. I think an old tire and a ratchet strap would work. No winch needed.
A caddy 500 weighs about 30 lbs more than a small block chevy, so you can assume 650 ish for the engine with accessories and 150 for the TH400
In reply to dj06482 (Forum Supporter) :
Ok... he still has it. He said he would pull the engine, but needs to know when. Can we actually make this happen? I'll PM you as well.
Hi Curtis, I just replied to your PM, let me know if you received my message OK. I shared contact info you can pass along to the seller, and feel free to give me a call to coordinate, as well.
I don't want to jump the gun here, but this deal is still alive.
dj06482 has been contacted by the dude.
I can't help but salivate a little.
I know you all probably don't have any Cad 500 performance parts around, but this guy wants 'em all.
In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :
I sent all of my old school performance parts over to Europe about 17 years ago. Sorry.
I'm in Canaan NY Tuesday very briefly if DJ is able to snag it and get it to me I can bring it back to Scranton on the same trip?
Hi Chandler,
The seller has been pretty vague about timing so far, the tentative plan is to meet around 3-4 PM on Tuesday. It sounds like he needs help putting together the engine hoist, so my take is that it's going to be a while before everything is loaded in my trailer.
I won't be surprised if there are delays on his end, he's pushed things back a few weeks already. He said to me that the house was inspected last week and he has until the 17th to have everything out, so hopefully that motivates him to get moving on it!
Will keep you posted.
Thanks,
Dan
love that this is happening. I'll gladly take the edelbrock carb for a finder's fee, Curtis.
In reply to Patrick :
Done. I'd rather have a Qjet anyway.
Coordinated with the seller today, we're shooting for Friday now.
Seller confirmed that tomorrow is the day! He mentioned we'll have to put the 6 ton hoist together, as well. I have a feeling this is going to be an adventure!
In reply to dj06482 (Forum Supporter) :
I'm expecting a YouTube link tomorrow evening.
I owe you more than high fives. Come up with something better :)
Also, anyone perchance making the CT-PA drive anytime soon? I won't have a problem finding a time to get up there, but just thought I could save the environment if someone was already making the trip. Compensation in whatever currency you desire.
dj, I'm thinking I might be able to make it as early as Monday depending on how much work I get done at the theater tomorrow and Saturday. We have a show heading out to tour on Apr 19th and I have a couple hurdles to jump before I feel warm and fuzzy taking a day off.
Patiently waiting for updates.
I took 4 pictures today. I've never pulled or transported an engine larger than the one on my pressure washer, so I decided to go big and pull a Caddy 500!
I tried to prepare with as much stuff as an could:
This is the '31 Chevy pickup that greeted me when I arrived:
We were working pretty hard, so I didn't take any pictures while the real work was going on. We initially missed the bolts going through the motor mounts, and had to remove the shifter, etc from the transmission. The weight and the broken pavement made things more interesting, but we got it out. Thankfully, we used a 6 ton engine hoist (it was massive)! And we did use a come-a-long as a poor man's engine leveler.
I almost forgot, the rear brakes on the truck were locked up (rusty drums) so we had to rig up a come-a-long and a chain to drag the front of the truck forward a few feet for better access. Luckily, there was a tree across the road in the perfect spot, so that was our anchor point. To move the truck back into the garage so the door would close, we jacked up the rear and used wheel dollies under the rear wheels to move it back. And we did use a come-a-long as a poor man's engine leveler.
Glen (the seller) and Pat (his friend) were awesome!
And home safely:
Oh my gosh. Squeeeeee
I owe you so much. Hardcore. Big time.
Curtis is on the road today, I checked out the engine in more detail today. Fascinating what you find resting on the top of a motor, my favorite is the self-tapping screws. And yes, that's a 10mm socket!
It was great getting to meet Curtis today, he's headed home!
I'm HOME!
Guys... DJ is an amazing man. Even if he just went and picked up an engine for me, it would be astounding. Instead, he:
- modified his trailer to make the move safer on his end
- offered me food and drink
- offered me a bathroom
- introduced me to his wife, kid, in-laws, and dogs
- helped me load
- offered extra tie downs if I needed
- politely but firmly refused compensation
- had the foresight to also score motor mounts, extra hardware, etc when he was scavenging the engine.
Everyone I've met here from the forum has been a stellar human, but if I were Santa Claus, DJ would have a lifetime express pass to the "nice" list. A HUGE thank you do DJ.
Then to make the day even sweeter, the seller reached out to say he had some headers, so he met me at a diner on my way home... WITH CERAMIC COATED CADILLAC HEADERS.
I decided to take the scenic route home. I got to about Poughkeepsie and told my GPS to take the most direct route. I ended up going through Delaware Water Gap, Bushkill, and some of the finest scenery PA has to offer.
The only downside to the trip (although I made it home just fine) is that I'm not sure you're supposed to be able to see the rollers in the wheel bearings of a trailer. About 5 miles from home I thought I saw the trailer tire "flutter". When I got home, I found this. Still, an A+ day, and $20 worth of bearings and some grease under my fingernails was a brilliant trade-off for the joy of the day.
In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :
Damn. I wish I had known that you were going to be in the area today. I could have filled some of that free space on the trailer with some more free stuff: an engine hoist, an engine stand and a Jun Air compressor that I was hoping to pass along to the theater. I had been keeping an eye on this thread for an indication of when you were making the trip.
Crap. Sorry Woody. I had been texting DJ so I didn't mention it here.
Hmmm... how to get free stuff here. I'll think on it.
Dang, you got lucky!
That trailer wheel was about to go visit Elvis!
Curtis - Glad you were able to make it home safely, thankfully that wheel bearing hung on just long enough!
Woody - Sorry for the miss on coordinating the trip with you stuff. We'll have to activate the GRM Express to get the remaining items out to Curtis!
I'm glad this all turned out well, there were a few points where the seller went quiet and I wasn't sure it was all going to happen in time (seller lost his storage space as of today). It was great to meet Curtis in person after reading all his posts for the last 15+ years! I finally got off my butt and installed the D-rings on my utility trailer that I've owned for 12 years, learned to use ratchet straps properly, and helped pull my first engine. It was a great experience, and I can't wait to see that 500 motor in action!
