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Posted by Paul Cook in Kempner, TX [71.53.89.64] on Thursday, December 30, 2010 at 14:05:30 :
In Reply to: Almost ashame to paint it... posted by chrisnj [68.39.48.179] on Wednesday, December 29, 2010 at 20:07:07 :
I earned my college tuition at various summer jobs. The Summer of 1957, I worked at the International Harvester truck plant Springfield, Ohio. I was studying mechanical engineering and my schooling as a draftsman qualified me to be a quality control inspector. I inspected various models of bell housings, (clutch housings, flywheel housings, etc - choose your favorite name) on a production line that started with the raw casting and machined the engine and transmission faces, and drilled and tapped all the other holes for mounting shift hardware.
I was responsible for moving along the production line and checking each step to be sure the mounting faces were parallel, and all holes were drilled to the correct size. Grinding and milling heads had to be adjusted. Drills and taps wore and had to be replaced. And some drills and taps broke off in the middle of an operation.
The next to last step was a solvent wash that removed all the materials left by the machining. The final step was my inspection of each piece to be sure each step had been completed. Once I determined that all holes had been drilled and tapped and there were no broken drill bits or taps left in them, I made my inspection mark on each piece.
Different manufacturers had their own way of doing business. Some painted driveline parts. Some did not. Even if this bell housing was painted prior to being mated to the engine and transmission, it is unlikely that the inspector’s marks would be visible since that inspection would have taken place before the component was painted.
I visited the main assembly line and saw that “my” bell housings were installed unpainted. The Springfield plant built pick ups on up to a school bus chassis. If you find a 1957 “cornbinder” with an unpainted bell housing that has a faded yellow letter “C” on the top, that is one of mine.
And I still have a pay slip from International.
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