FUTURE CLUB EVENTS & MEETINGS - rmtbirds.comrmtbirds.com/wp-content/uploads/feb17Newsletter.pdf · Email Addresses: [email protected] Membership: [email protected]

FEB 2017 VOL. 37 ISSUE NO. 7

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VTCI2016

FUTURE CLUB EVENTS & MEETINGSMost events are on a Saturday. Different days and changes are in bold print .

02/04 Saturday 9am-11am February Board Meeting, Lookin Good Restaurant02/4-5 TriState Tri-State Swap,National Western Complex. 303-428-6046 or 02/11 Saturday 12 noon Lunch at Fujiyama Hibachi. Restaurant, Highlands Ranch, CO03/04 Saturday 9am-11am March Board Meeting, Lookin Good Restaurant03/TBD Speciality Auto Auction, Loveleand, Co03/18 Saturday 11am-3pm Game afternoon at Hope UMC, Greenwood Village, CO03/25 Saturday 9am-2pm March Mystery Cruise, Lookin Good Restaurant04/01 Saturday 9am-noon April Board Meeting, Lookin Good Restaurant04/22 Saturday 9am-2pm Tour A Precious Child Charity, Lookin Good Restaurant04/29 Saturday 9am-2pm April Mystery Cruise, Lookin Good Restaurant05/06 Saturday 9am-noon May Board Meeting, Lookin Good Restaurant05/20 Saturday 6am-4pm May Mystery Cruise to Abbey Run Car Show in Canon City, CO05/27 Saturday 7am-2pm Front Range Airport Car Show, Watkins, CO06/03 Saturday 9am-noon June Board Meeting, Lookin Good Restaurant06/04 SUNDAY 10am-3pm TUCC Car Show, Denver, CO06/10 Saturday 10am-5pm Havana Cruise, Aurora, CO07/20-22Th-Sat 8am-6pm Mecum Auto Auction, Denver Convention Center09/13-17/2017 VTCI International Convention, Atlanta, GA

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MEMBERSHIP REPORT

Officers July 2016 – June 2017President Don Reinke II 303-589-2232 Vice President Jim Merritt 303-683-3117Secretary Sheri Muehlbauer 720-841-4163 Treasurer Tom Dassler 303-422-9032 Directors July 2015 - June 2016Membership Pat Potter 303-470-6714 Newsletter Barb Hendricks 303-770-5799Director Dave Stambaugh 303-730-9078 Country Store Laurie Sarno 720-244-4921Director Bob Kimball 303-986-1241 CCCC Rep Wayne Shmitka 303-690-1159 Director Ed Ryan 720 287-2988 WebMaster Jim Merritt 303-683-3117Director Ernie Tangye 303-238-0381Greetings Sandee Stambaugh 303-730-9078 Associate WebMaster - Bill Clay 303-627-2946 Photo Historian Barb Hendricks 303-770-5799 VTCI SW Regional Director...Jim Merritt 303-683-3117

Email Addresses: [email protected] Membership: [email protected] Website: www.rmtbirds.com (for event pictures, to go the Event Gallery page and click on the ‘Flicker’ link)

President’s Message

Happy Valentine’s Day!

No new members to report this month, so I want to thank our Board members for their service and dedication to the club.

Did any of your information change? New cell phone number? New address? New email address? Did you add or sell a car from your flock? We’d like to know. You can notify any Board member, or send an email to [email protected].

Please wear your name tag at all club events. If you don't have a name tag, or, if you want to switch from a pin closure to a magnetic closure, or, if you just want the updated name tag style, please call me and I'll order one for you.

There is an $11.00 charge for each name tag.

Have fun at the Crock Pot Crazy Dinner!

Pat Potter RMTC Membership Director

As of this writing the RMTC has not had any club events!

The first club event for 2017 is the Crazy Crock-off scheduled for January 28th. I will recap this event in next month’s president’s message. Soon it will be time to bring the T-Birds out of hibernation and get them ready for another busy year. The February event is on the 11th at the Fujiyama Hibachi for lunch. There will be no meeting or door prizes only time for club members to enjoy one another’s company and some great cuisine. Be sure to call Laurie Sarno at 720-244-4921 by Feb. 2nd. More details in this newsletter (see page 3).

The March event is a game day at the Hope Methodist Church (same place we had the Crazy Crock-Off in January). Bring your favorite Board Game or just show up and play one of ours. This should provide another great time for club members to get together regardless of the weather. March 25th is also the beginning of the Mystery Cruises to who knows where? We have eight mystery cruises planned for this year.

The RMTC Officers and Board of Directors are working hard to plan the upcoming events and ac-tivities for 2017. I hope to see you at an upcoming event soon.

Cruising season is almost here!!Don Reinke II RMTC President

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Join with Thunderbird friends in a Hibachi dinners whereHibachi chefs will entertain and cook fresh food, right before your eyes. Hibachi dinners include

Japanese onion soup, salad, vegetables, noodles and steamed rice along with your entree

Fujiyama Hibachi1100 Sergeant Jon Stiles Dr #106

Highlands Ranch, CO 80129February 11, 2017 12 noon

Sit together at Hibachi grills, 10 seats to a grill Order from the menu with separate checks

(lunch around $13.95 + 20% gratuity added on)Contact Laurie Sarno by FEB 2 if you plan to attend

in order to provide the restaurant an accurate count720-244-4921 or [email protected]

NO MEMBER MEETING OR DOOR PRIZES

Tri-State Swap Meet Feb. 4th and 5th, 2017

National Western Complex. 303-428-6046

www.Tristateswapmeet.com

The Tri-State Swap Meet is the region's largest, indoor automotive swap meet featuring thousands of automo-tive related products, bumper to bumper and everything

in between as well as tools, decals, memorabilia and more.

Saturday 8am - 5pm Sunday 8am - 2pm

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Games Galore GalaHope United Methodist Church

5101 S Dayton St, Greenwood Village, CO

MARCH 18, 2017 11-3Spend an afternoon with TBird Buddies

playing various board games.

Please bring a snack or dessert to share.Drinks provided.

RSVP to Barb Herbel Hendricks 303-770-5799 or [email protected] Meeting but no door prizes

2016 Mystery cruise dates have been set!!!!

Only one problem....no Mystery Cruise Planners for April, September & October!

So if you havea cruise destination idea, contact Don

Reinke II 303-589-2232,

First 2017 cruise is

March 25, 2017

THE ROUTE 66 MOTOR TOUROct 1-15, 2017

Fourth annual event Joliet IL to Santa Monica CA

• A wonderful tour of Route 66 in 14 days with many fun places and points of interest to see along the way driving around 200 miles a day Some a little longer... Some shorter.

• Cars can join/end anywhere along the route• Each morning a driver’s meeting to go over the day’activities

with an itinerary of the day, places recommended to stop, and meeting place that evening for the next overnight stop and 2 hr. Cruise-in and time of the cruise-in.

Pat and Jerry Potter hope to join this tour in Albuquerque NM More info: route66motortour.com

MECUM AUTO AUCTIONJULY 20, 21, 22, 1917

Worker sign up to begin mid-MarchTHE RMTC MAJOR FUND RAISER!!

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MORE TECH TIME: BRAKES submitted by Nick PepeBrake booster faults: The following are faulty brake booster symptoms: 1. Very hard pedal. You have to push like Hercules to stop. 2. Difference in idle or a rough idle while brake pedal is depressed. 3. Brakes apply themselves. 4. Over sensitive pedal. Car brakes aggressively and you just barely touched the brake pedal. 5. Brake pedal does not return. The above, except #5, are always the brake booster. The most common are #1 and #2 and they usually go hand in hand. #4 is the next most common. A lot of cars have problem #4 and the owner is unaware of it. I find #4 mostly in the 65-66 brake boosters.

If you are loosing brake fluid but see no leaks the fluid must be going somewhere so check the brake booster to see if it filled up with brake fluid. It is very common for this to happen. It’s sometimes easy to detect if this is occurring; If your loosing brake fluid and you don’t see a leak and don’t know where it’s going it is probably leaking into the booster from the back of the master cylinder. Look under the master cyl-inder where it is attached to the booster. Do you see a trail of brake fluid going down the booster? Surprise! It is easy to disconnect the brake master cylinder from the brake booster and pull it away enough to see if it is leaking from the back and if there is fluid in the booster. You do not have to disconnect the brake lines from the master cylinder to separate the master cylinder from the booster. You will be able to move it away from the brake booster enough to see inside without any other disassembly. The presence of any fluid at all on the back of the master cylinder means that it's leaking, even if you cannot see fluid in the booster.

Master cylinder faults: The following are faulty master cylinder symptoms: 1. You’re at stop light with your foot on the pedal, the pedal slowly creeps to the floor and the car starts to move forward running over the innocent pedestrians. Then you have to pump the brakes to bring the pedal back up and hold the car still. 2. If you separate the master cylinder from the brake booster and you see brake fluid leaking out the back.Always replace the master cylinder in these cases.

Brake fluid Brake fluid type 3 is the standard brake fluid used in all Thunderbirds from the factory. It is a very corrosive chemical that has a very short life and soaks up water like a sponge. Everyone should have their brake fluid type 3 flushed about every 2 years. This will increase the life of the hydraulic parts of the brake system. No ones car is immune to this. A chemist once told me to imagine a pool full of basket balls. The basket balls are the brake fluid molecules. Now imagine you throw in a bunch of tennis balls which are water molecules. The volume doesn’t change but now you have a pool full of brake fluid and wa-ter. Water saturated brake fluid will corrode and rust your master cylinder, metal brake lines and wheel cylinders. Water saturated brake fluid also has a much lower boiling point so for you folks who own a 1965 or new Thunderbird with disc brakes, you have probably experienced this problem: Your brakes will completely fail with no warning at all, no brakes at all, then just as fast as they failed they will be OK again. This is because your brake fluid in the calipers has started to boil (because of heat) and now you have vapor in the brake system. Once the boiling stops the vapor disappears and your brakes return. The brake fluid started to boil because of the water in the fluid. Have your brake system flushed with new fluid every two years. Type 5 brake fluid is silicone brake fluid. Silicone brake fluid does not corrode and you can have it in your system for years and years and the system will not rust or corrode. In my 1960 Dodge, I have silicone brake fluid and the brake hydraulic system lasted for over 20 years. Recently I rebuilt the system and there was minimal corrosion, but the parts were old and I felt the need to replace flex hoses and components and have a fresh new system. The only thing I have noticed with silicone brake fluid is that I get a slightly mushy pedal. I have corrected this from time to time with bleeding and adjusting but I think the silicone probably causes that. I don't mean to say that your going to have a massively mushy pedal, I mean to say that I can feel a difference between the two. This may vary between cars. I think the biggest problem using silicone is that we forget there is silicone in there, or someone servicing the car doesn't know there's silicone in there, and puts Dot 3 regular brake fluid in it which contaminates the system. In this case, you must purge and bleed the system completely of all fluid and replace it. I mark the master cylinder to tag it so I don't forget.

Proportioning valve: Most Thunderbirds with disc brakes, 1965 and newer, use a proportioning valve. This valve can go bad or get plugged up and fail. A brake proportioning valve reduces the hydraulic (fluid) pressure to the rear drum brakes when high pressure is re-quired at the front disc breaks. A piston, spring and valve are used to balance, or proportion, braking pressure so the rear wheels do not lock up prematurely during baking. Usually when a proportioning valve fails the rear brakes will not operate. One good indication of this is when your rear brakes seem to never wear out. You can have your proportioning valve rebuilt by some Thunderbird dealers, or you can incorporate a modern adjustable proportioning valve. Do not eliminate the valve, it is a necessary and integral part of your braking system.

Flexible brake hoses: I had a customer once who blew a front flexible brake hose. He was driving a 1962 sports roadster and lost his brakes because of the blown flex hose. He went through an intersection on a red light and broadsided a small foreign car. He was not hurt but the four people in the repurposed beer cans were hospitalized. The front of his 1962 Sports Roadster was totaled but the damage was repairable at considerable cost. Moral of this story, change your flexible brake hoses when you do your next brake job if they have not been changed in the past 10 years. They are the weakest link in the brake system and they are relatively inexpensive. This will be a good time to purge the system with new brake fluid.

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Here is the information on the last charity supported in 2016 by RMTC:

La Puente Home IncPO Box 1235

Alamosa, CO 81101 719-589-5909

LaPuenteHomeisa501c3non-profitorganizationinColorado’sSanLuisValleyprovid-ingemergencyshelter,foodassistance,transitionalhousing,self-sufficiencyservices,homelessprevention,communityoutreachservices,andjobtrainingforthehomelessandothercommunitymembersincrisis.LaPuenteHomeendeavorstomeetimmediateneedsandtoempowerpeopletoliveindependently,withdignity. EachyearLaPuenteservesover40,000mealstoshelteredfamilies,singleguests,andmembersofthecommunity.Breakfast,lunchanddinnerareserved365daysayear. TheAdelanteprogramisaself-sufficiencyandtransitionallivingprogramforhomelessfami-liesintheSanLuisValley.Thistwoyearintensiveprogramsupportsfamiliesastheytransitionoutofhomelessnessandprovidestoolstomovebeyondit.Adelanteguideshomelessfamiliesandtheirchildreningainingtheskills,experienceandsupportthatwillimprovetheirqualityoflife. TheFoodBankNetworkoftheSanLuisValleyismadeupof14differentFoodBanks.TheFoodBankNetworkpridesitselfonhelpingeachindividualcommunitythroughoutthevalleymakegoodnutritionalchoiceswhichinturnimprovesthehealthofthepopulation.

Bleeding a Brake System; I have found that the best way to bleed a Thunderbird brake system is with a pressure bleeder attached to the master cylinder. A pressure bleeder forces the fluid out through the bleeders on the wheel cylinders and calipers under pressure taking any air bubbles with it. 20-30 lbs on the bleeder is adequate. On 58-60 Thunderbirds I have found that using very low pressure with the bleeder works best, maybe around 10 lbs max. Pumping the pedal with your foot while someone opens the bleeders aerates the fluid causing it to foam up. If you are going to pedal bleed a system, do not pump the brakes, just keep constant pressure on the pedal when someone opens the bleeder. Once the pedal goes down, they close the bleeder and you let up on the pedal. Then push down again and repeat the process. Don't pump them. After bleeding the brake system, if the pedal is still low, you can have a few problems; either you didn't bleed it correctly or the ad-justment is incorrect. The later is usually the case. Make sure that the brakes are adjusted properly first. Also, when adjusting the rear brakes, loosen the emergency brake adjustment first, then adjust the brakes, then readjust the emergency brake.

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It seems that snowy, wintery weather has arrived. I do not like theshoveling involved with that, but do it anyway. With wintery weather, RMTC eventsslow down but don’t disappear totally.Join the group for a fabulous hibachi dinnermid month. Then plan on snacks andgames on an afternoon in March. RMTC received thank yous fromeach of the charities we supported in 2016. See you at events!

Bits from Barb

February 4, 20179am-noon

Lookin Good RestuarantSheridan, CO

Breakfast at 8am

If you would like to call or email these folks, Pat Potter or this editor can provide that info for you. Just call or email us at the club email addresses!

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RMTC GOOD WISHES TO:• Jo Ellen Harris with open heart surgery• Pat Potter with knee replacement on 1/25• Brad Schall on successful cataract surgery• Wayne Shmitka continuing chemo treatments• Don Reinke II continued health improvement

RMTC has a new email address:

[email protected]

Some other swap meets car shows from Colorado Events fromhttp://www.oldride.com/events/colorado.html

Cars & Coffee at Vehicle Vault Second Saturday of the month 9am-2p Vehicle Vault 18301 Lincoln Meadows Parkway, Parker, CO 80134

The Littleton Cruise January 9, 2016 - December 10, 2016 Harold Schultes 303 795 2639 Littleton

Buenos Tiempos 3rd Annual Car Show May 7, 2017 - May 7, 2017 Heather 3034666386 Broomfield

Old tyne car show June 10, 2017 - June 10, 2017 jerry story Georgetown

34th Annual Colorado Concours d'Elegance June 11, 2017 - June 11, 2017 Terri Armstrong 303-691-9339 Littleton

Annual SUMMERFEST Car Show June 24, 2017 - June 24, 2017 Michelle 3032909922 Greenwood Village

Gunnison Car Show - 30th Annual! August 18, 2017 - August 20, 2017 Mike C Gunnison

Community picnic and Car Show August 19, 2017 - August 19, 2017 Pati Sawyer Boex 303-753-2160 Denver

Chrome and Brews Car Show August 26, 2017 - August 26, 2017 Tom Sheldon 970-254-2135 Grand Junction

Chrome and Brews Car Show August 26, 2017 - August 26, 2017 Tom Sheldon 970-254-2135 Grand Junction

Telluride Festival of Cars and Colors September 21, 2017 - September 24, 2017 Christine Gamage 970-519-3015 Telluride

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Vintage Thunderbird Club International, Inc. Officers

VTCI President J. Rodney Wake Kansas [email protected] Vice President Ed Elzinga Michigan [email protected] Secretary Jack Wake Kansas [email protected] Treasurer Randy Mattson Minnesota [email protected] Regional Director Jim Merritt Colorado [email protected] Webpage Director Terri McNeill Washington [email protected] Director Paul Prokop Louisiana [email protected] Dan Likar Illinois [email protected] Director Alan Tast Nebraska [email protected] Director Terri McNeill Washington [email protected] Store Manager Laura Wahrmund Texas [email protected] Relations Coordinator Bob Young Iowa [email protected]

Check your latest edition of the VTCI THUNDERBIRD SCOOP magazine (you receive as part of your membership in VTCI from RMTC) for more information on VTCI events.

FOR THE SECOND YEAR, ALL RMTCMEMBERS IN GOOD STANDING AS OF

OCTOBER 1, 2016 WILL RECEIVE A PAIDYEAR MEMBERSHIP TO VTCI.ENJOY READING THE SCOOP

AND FOLLOWING ALL THE VTCI EVENTS

BEEPBEEPfromtheVEEP,JimM.VTCI had a very good 2016. There were 2 regionals and the International. The regionals were held in Norman, OK and

Chattanooga, TN. The International was held in Kansas City, MO. The 2017 convention schedule is very light. We have only the International scheduled in Atlanta, GA. The International was changed from what was previously reported. It is now going to be held at the

Wyndham Hotel, 6345 Powers Ferry Road NW, Atlanta, GA 30339.September 13-17, 2017

The location is at I-285 (Perimeter) and Northside Drive. just one exit east of I-75. The room rate is listed in the latest Scoop as being $136.10. The actual room rate is $115.00 plus all of the taxes of$21.10. So the room is $136.10 when the room cost and the taxes are combined.

There are no regional events scheduled for 2017. No one would commit. There was talk about the regional but I think everyone just ran out of time.

FUN FACT: RMTC has 142 memberships. Of those, 140 are also members of VTCI (98% participation!)

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Non-member ads are available for $5.00 per month or $20.00 a month with Black and White pictures. Ads will be shown for 3 months then will be deleted unless editor is notified. To post, write details of item with contact information, and check for full

amount to “RMTC”. Then mail to RMTC PO Box 620284 Littleton, CO 80162-0284.Questions? Call either Jim Merritt at 303-683-3117 or Barb at 303-770-5799. You can also send an email to:

[email protected]

T-BIRD PARTS FOR SALE: Over the years, I have accumulated many parts for 58 – 97 T-Birds. My hoard includes hub caps, emblems, scripts and many misc types of interior and exterior trim. Call Don Reinke II at 303-589-2232.

FOR SALE: Merle Knauber’s 1994 Thunderbird LX. White with grey interior. 56,000 miles. 4.6 OHC V8, automatic. Well taken care of (of course because it belonged to Merle), no door dings or dents on any kind, with just a few chips in the hood. New battery and good tires. Asking $5,000, however this price is open to negotiation. If interested, call Merle’s daughter Carolyn at 720-477-4030. (Merle would love to see this car stay in the club.)

02/17

FOR SALE: 1958 All Original Thunderbird, Beautiful, Car runs great, asking $15,000 OBO. More info contact: [email protected] or 720-840-8027

03/17

FOR SALE by owner.: 1956 Ford T-bird convertible hardtop. Original 312 V8 & 3 speed manual transmission. Car has 72,000 original miles & runs strong. This beauty has been freshly painted pearl white & sports the original red & white interior. Own a piece of American automotive history with this beautiful car. This car is currently located in Denver, Colorado. Contact Richard Montoya at 303-250-2181 if you have any questions.

04/17

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RMTC COUNTRY STORE

06/17

12/17

NEW INVENTORY IS HERE!!

Owner Specific Antennae Flags

Christmas Tree Ornaments

Earrings

Bracelets

Pendants

BUSINESS ADS

Contact Laurie Sarno (720-244-4921) [email protected] for more info

01/18

03/17

4/17

$12 $15 $23

Coming in JanuaryMens & Ladies T Shirts

Ball CapsBlankets

Satin or Fleece Jackets

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06/17

TheclassifiedandbusinesscardadsfoundintheThunderworddonotconstituteanendorsementbytheRMTC.Theyareprovidedasaserviceforourmembers.

Convertible tops, electrical, engine, suspension, brakes…

you name it! Can also work on other models of the

same year!

1955 thru mid 1970’s Thunderbird Repair

A u to R ep ai r by N ic k 1 -719-362 -6786

$45.00 per hour

AutoRepairbyNick 1-719-362-6786$65.00perhour

10/17

01/17Doyouknowsomeonewhocouldbenefitfromanadinthe

THUNDERWORD?Businesscardadsare$50.00peryearforeachad.Largerads:¼page$77.00peryear,1/3page$131.00peryear,½page

$152.00peryear,fullpage$302.00peryear.For more information contact

[email protected]

05/17

FIRST CLASS MAIL

Rocky Mountain Thunderbird Club, Inc.P. O. Box 620284Littleton CO 80162-0284