If you have not had a chance to check out the Project: K.I.T.T. channel on YouTube you really should. It's a great way to stay updated, leave comments, or even ask questions about the Project. It will even notify you of new blog posts and videos.
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Celebrating 600 Subscribers On YouTube
Sunday, June 10, 2018
Gummi Pflege Stift?
One of the things most people really don't think about with owning a classic 80s car is just how you deal with parts you cannot replace. That's the case with the weather seals for the doors on KARR. This is not a part that is being made or reproduced for the Fiero, so you are left with only two options. You can replace them with another 30+ year old set of used weather seals, which more than likely are either in the same condition or worse than the ones you are replacing. Your other option is to make do with the ones you have and find ways to care for them and to some degree, restore them.
That's what I was doing Friday: cleaning, protecting and rejuvenating the door seals. I started by cleaning them with just water and a microfiber cloth. This is just to remove the dirt and dust.
Tuesday, June 5, 2018
KITT's Electronic Overlays Unboxing
I purchased two sets of 3rd/4th season electronic overlays for KITT's dash from Billy Gunter of Knight Designs in December. I was going to do an unboxing video, but thought the overlays might show up more detailed in pictures. One of these sets will be used in KITT, and the other set is being sent to Alessandro Zagni of ZA Electronica. Alessandro is going to use these overlays when he designs his upcoming 3rd/4th season electronics.
Billy had access to a set of screen-used overlays from Knight Rider and reverse engineered these to match exactly. They are made out of aluminum with a textured finish.
Monday, June 4, 2018
Celebrating 700 Followers On Facebook
If you have not had a chance to check out the Project: K.I.T.T. page on Facebook you really should. It's a great way to stay updated, leave comments, or even ask questions about the Project. It will even notify you of new blog posts and videos.
Saturday, June 2, 2018
Grounded
We had such great plans for today, but the weather had other ideas. It is so incredibly windy we cannot open the garage door. Therefore, rolling KITT outside is out of the question. We had planned to clean the garage floor and needed to be able to move KITT outside to do that. Since we could not, we tackled a couple of items from our What's Next list instead.
After installing the digital gauges in KARR, I noticed the temperature gauge and fuel gauge were erratic in their readings. This could be one or more of three things: 1) the gauges are bad; 2) there is a grounding issue; or 3) the sending units are bad. I know the temperature sending unit is not bad because I just replaced it. I am going to operate on the assumption that the fuel sending unit is also not bad as it was working prior to installing the digital gauges. Therefore, I am left with either a grounding issue or the gauges are bad.
To get started, I needed to remove the back cover of the gauge cluster to get at the wiring.
After installing the digital gauges in KARR, I noticed the temperature gauge and fuel gauge were erratic in their readings. This could be one or more of three things: 1) the gauges are bad; 2) there is a grounding issue; or 3) the sending units are bad. I know the temperature sending unit is not bad because I just replaced it. I am going to operate on the assumption that the fuel sending unit is also not bad as it was working prior to installing the digital gauges. Therefore, I am left with either a grounding issue or the gauges are bad.
To get started, I needed to remove the back cover of the gauge cluster to get at the wiring.
It's The Final Countdown
Well technically it's the second countdown, but more on that later...
One year ago today I purchased a 3rd/4th season countdown from Billy Gunter of Knight Designs. Billy's countdowns are machined out of aluminum, with a custom printed circuit board (PCB) and electronics. If you are not familiar with what a countdown is, it was the POWER, FUEL ON, MIN RPM, IGNITORS indicators that would light up and "count down" anytime KITT was started up. You can see this in the clip below.
One year ago today I purchased a 3rd/4th season countdown from Billy Gunter of Knight Designs. Billy's countdowns are machined out of aluminum, with a custom printed circuit board (PCB) and electronics. If you are not familiar with what a countdown is, it was the POWER, FUEL ON, MIN RPM, IGNITORS indicators that would light up and "count down" anytime KITT was started up. You can see this in the clip below.
Friday, June 1, 2018
KARR's Second Car Show
Celebrating 600 Followers On Facebook
If you have not had a chance to check out the Project: K.I.T.T. page on Facebook you really should. It's a great way to stay updated, leave comments, or even ask questions about the Project. It will even notify you of new blog posts and videos.
Celebrating 500 Subscribers On YouTube
If you have not had a chance to check out the Project: K.I.T.T. channel on YouTube you really should. It's a great way to stay updated, leave comments, or even ask questions about the Project. It will even notify you of new blog posts and videos.
All Settled In
5,467 pictures downloaded, sorted and uploaded; 504 posts copied, checked for code and reformatted; and 49 hours of time spent by Sara and I working diligently; but we're here and all moved in!
When I started this blog it was meant as more of a reference journal for me, and I never imagined that it would grow as large as it has with readers across the globe. It fills me with a sense of gratification that my experience and trials with this Project are interesting and even helpful to others. Sara and I are looking forward to getting back to steady work on KITT and being able to document it on the new blog.
As we started the process of transferring the blog, I wondered if there was anything I would learn from reading back through from the beginning. I discovered three things I either didn't remember, found the hindsight perspective helpful, or just needed to hear my younger self repeatedly stating.
1) I purchased all black polyurethane bushings for KITT and not the red ones I thought I had. The black are impregnated with graphite to add a lubrication property and help eliminate squeaks. I purchased the red control arm bushings for KARR and have been dealing with a squeaky headache ever since, so I was really dreading having to deal with that on KITT too. The black should prove much quieter. I did manage to get KARR's squeaky bushings under control by adding grease Zerks to the control arms. This allowed me to add more of the special Formula 5 Prelube to the bushings.
2) Mistakes happen and they can be very costly. That cost is not always just money. It can kill enthusiasm, zap motivation, break hearts, make you feel like you are taking two steps back and only one forward, and it can require healing. The important thing is that we don't let mistakes beat us, that we learn from them, don't repeat them, and most importantly, move on.
3) My wife is awesome! I truly am blessed to be able to spend my life with my best friend. Then there is the assistance with this Project... she has been invaluable! A source of strength, encouragement, ingenuity, organization, and she has easily shouldered half the workload. How many wives would even be willing to be out working in the garage let alone tearing apart a 35-year-old car for a frame up restoration? It goes without saying that I would not be as far as I am in the Project without her. Thanks Sara!
Moving the blog was a lot of hard work, but ended up being really fun. It provided a really good look back at the last six years and just how far we have come. I know that lately things have been really quiet, but that is about to change. I am once again highly motivated to get KITT finished, and together with Sara, I know we can get back that awesome pace we had when we started this Project.
We decided that it would be beneficial to create a to do list of sorts for the Project. This will keep us on track and also provide our readers with an insight as to what's next. In fact that's what we'll call it. So look for the "What's Next" tab at the top of the Project: K.I.T.T. blog.
When I started this blog it was meant as more of a reference journal for me, and I never imagined that it would grow as large as it has with readers across the globe. It fills me with a sense of gratification that my experience and trials with this Project are interesting and even helpful to others. Sara and I are looking forward to getting back to steady work on KITT and being able to document it on the new blog.
As we started the process of transferring the blog, I wondered if there was anything I would learn from reading back through from the beginning. I discovered three things I either didn't remember, found the hindsight perspective helpful, or just needed to hear my younger self repeatedly stating.
1) I purchased all black polyurethane bushings for KITT and not the red ones I thought I had. The black are impregnated with graphite to add a lubrication property and help eliminate squeaks. I purchased the red control arm bushings for KARR and have been dealing with a squeaky headache ever since, so I was really dreading having to deal with that on KITT too. The black should prove much quieter. I did manage to get KARR's squeaky bushings under control by adding grease Zerks to the control arms. This allowed me to add more of the special Formula 5 Prelube to the bushings.
2) Mistakes happen and they can be very costly. That cost is not always just money. It can kill enthusiasm, zap motivation, break hearts, make you feel like you are taking two steps back and only one forward, and it can require healing. The important thing is that we don't let mistakes beat us, that we learn from them, don't repeat them, and most importantly, move on.
3) My wife is awesome! I truly am blessed to be able to spend my life with my best friend. Then there is the assistance with this Project... she has been invaluable! A source of strength, encouragement, ingenuity, organization, and she has easily shouldered half the workload. How many wives would even be willing to be out working in the garage let alone tearing apart a 35-year-old car for a frame up restoration? It goes without saying that I would not be as far as I am in the Project without her. Thanks Sara!
Moving the blog was a lot of hard work, but ended up being really fun. It provided a really good look back at the last six years and just how far we have come. I know that lately things have been really quiet, but that is about to change. I am once again highly motivated to get KITT finished, and together with Sara, I know we can get back that awesome pace we had when we started this Project.
We decided that it would be beneficial to create a to do list of sorts for the Project. This will keep us on track and also provide our readers with an insight as to what's next. In fact that's what we'll call it. So look for the "What's Next" tab at the top of the Project: K.I.T.T. blog.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)