Frisbee Mania!

Cool Frisbee commercial. Enjoy!

Engine Work...

I recently started working on my big old car, a 1965 Oldsmobile Starfire convertible. As this car gets poor gas mileage, it is not my main vehicle. It is a second car, and is only driven in nice weather. Despite generally running well, the car has burned some oil ever since I got it last summer. And being semi obsessive, I wanted to see what could be done to fix this. While I did not want to do a full engine rebuild, I was open to doing a "little bit of engine work." Wasn't there a saying about the road to hell being paved with good intentions? More on that later.

Several guys I spoke to said to start with a compression test, so I bought myself a new compression meter and tested the big Olds 425 Rocket V8. Turns out 7 of 8 cylinders had 150 PSI compression, which is good. The other cylinder was showing zero compression, which is bad. That would explain the oil burning. I spoke to engine guys about the compression readings, and most said it sounded like it needed a "valve job".

Most engine shops said about $ 1500 for a valve job, if everything goes well and you don't need too many extra parts. I spoke to my local garage and told him to get started, and he said he would call back once he had removed the cylinder heads. The next day, he called back and said that two of the cylinders needed rings as well, and that they would have to remove the block. Ok I said, the repair bill moving up as we spoke...

A day or two later, garage dude called me back and said, "why don't you come down and take a look at this. It's really easier if I show it to you in person". Uh-oh. That did not sound too good.


I steeled my courage and dutily walked over to his shop, and he showed me the now de-constructed engine, in its many pieces. Looking at your car with the engine removed and taken apart, is a bit like seeing one of your best friends with his head removed and body parts scattered about the room. It is a deeply traumatic event.

He told me that two of the pistons were quite damaged, and the rings needed to be redone, cylinders honed... By the time you are finished with it, it is close to a full engine rebuild. He recommended changing all the pistons vs. just the 2 damaged ones. After all, this engine is over 40 years old. I had him give me a price on the piston set and said that I would look into finding some parts online. Ultimately I was able to find a guy in New Jersey, who specializes in engine rebuilding kits for old V8s, and had a very complete kit of parts at a very good price. Much cheaper than we could get in Canada. I told my garage guy what I had found and said that we pretty much had to order the parts through the New Jersey company as the savings were substantial. Ok then. Parts were ordered. We have been awaiting the parts now for just over 1 week.

Over the weekend, I went over to the garage and degreased the engine block as I want to get it super clean and then paint the block, so that it not only runs better but actually looks nice too. I also took the exhaust manifold home, wire brushed it, painted it with high temp engine paint. It looked really nice, and I noticed that the directions tell you to put the piece into a 600 degree non-household oven. They don't want you cooking the paint in your house because of the fumes. Hmmm, where was I going to find a suitable non household oven? Maybe my bbq would work. The more I thought about this, the more I found this to be a fantastic idea. So, the exhaust manifold paint got baked for 1 hour at 550 degrees in my bbq! I figured this was quite ingenious, and wondered if many other people have cured newly repainted engine parts in a bbq?



So here we are nearly two weeks after we started. The car is still in the shop, still in pieces. We are still awaiting parts from NJ which are expected in tomorrow. Hopefully the car is back on the road by the weekend, which would be nice. I have been experiencing "big red car withdrawal" for nearly two weeks now.

The moral of the story: "there is no such thing as a little bit of engine work". Once you get that puppy taken apart, you have no idea what you might find. As the boy scouts said, Be Prepared. Prepared for a big bill!

Neil Young Linc-Volt Electric Car

Neil Young Linc-Volt electric car. Very cool.

A Day at the Beach

Jack and family head to Jericho beach in Vancouver for a day of sun and sailing.

Latest Playlist

Playlist from July 16 Show:

Artist, Album, Track

ennio morricone, best of, good bad ugly
marlena shaw, verve remixed 4, california soul
nina simone, remixed & reimagined, aint got no i got life
ella fitzgerald, verve remixed 4, i get a kick out of you
doors rmx thievery corp, versions, strange days
johnny osbourne, truths and rights, children are crying
johnny osbourne, truths and rights, can't buy love
wayne mcghie, jamaica to toronto, fire
patrick hernandez, disco nights, born to be alive
dubmatix, renegade rocker, peace and love
herb alpert, rewhipped, whipped cream
jazzamor, euro groove, nuit magique
twilight circus dub sound, essential collection, rolling thunder
mouss et hakim, euro groove, mina
young holt unlimited, best of, soulful strut
Ray Charles , Anthology, I Dont Need No Doctor
monkees, best of, kicks
John Buzon Trio, Bachelor Pad Royale, Caravan
mariachi los camperos de nati cano, amor dolor..., flor de azalea
kiss, best of, i was made for loving you
donna summer, best of disco vol 2, i feel love
king khan & shrines, supreme genius of, outta harms way
eddie , pernambuco comp, pode me chamar
sergio mendes, encanta, somewhere in the hills
Dubmatix, Renegade Rocker, Happy dub
dubmatix, renegade rocker, burning fire dub
vanduras, big waves, la planche
ramblin ambassadors, vista cruiser, lonesome rambler
deadcats, cathouse blues, munsters theme
flight of the conchords, same title, fou du fafa

World Famous Pontani Sisters

The World Famous Pontani Sisters. Genius stuff!

Vintage Strippers & Zombies

Genius video with vintage strippers and zombies.
Craaazy.

The Jack Velvet Story

Satirical bio of Jack Velvet by roving reporter Jackie Sinclair of the VBC.

A Ride in the Country

A nice ride in the country in Jack's Urban Roadster. Fathers Day 2008 with Eddy Velvet Sr, Miss Pinky & her Dad, and Luna the Wonder Puppy.

Havana 3 AM - Reach the Rock

Havana 3 AM was a great band that made one or two albums in the early 90s.
I often play a track called "Hey Amigo" on my show.
Great stuff. Too bad they did not do more together.

Jack Velvet's Aquatic Revue !!

My sister, Pavelka Velvet watched my recent Sip n Dip video and told me I reminded her of Esther Williams. I had no idea who this was. So I did a YouTube search and found the following video showing Esther Williams and Ricardo Montalban in Neptune's Daughter.

Consequently, I am now thinking of producing a fabulous new show, Jack Velvet's Aquatic Revue. More to come on that shortly.

A New BBQ is Bought

Your Tired and Weary - My old BBQ



















The New Model

For several years now, I have been lusting after a new BBQ. But being the cheap bastard that I am, I kept waiting to see a good sized bbq, in stainless, with side burner, for under $ 400.00. I have waited for many years, but I finally found it. For $ 299.99 at the Superstore, I have purchased a superb new stainless bbq with side burner and onboard storage.

My previous bbq has been serving me well since about 2001, but I must confess, as time has marched on, I have been feeling more and more sorry about the old Fiesta Regency 2000. Compared to todays much more fabulous stainless steel models, it looked so puny and out of date, and so lacking in stainless steel. Can you imagine me, Jack Velvet having to go through life without a stainless steel bbq? I can't. Eventually, I decided the old beast was bringing me down, and it was time to stop the insanity.


* Some Assembly Required!

Though I have many fond memories attached to the old machine, I was really looking forward to finally upgrading to the new. All this said, the old one is still a good bbq and probably needs a new home. I will be taking entries to find a deserving home for the old beast.

And now for the new bbq. 57,000 BTU, 3 main burners, side burner, and onboard storage for major bbq tools such as tank, brush, salt and pepper shaker on a stick, pellet gun, slingshot, etc... Mmmm, you can practically smell the meat cooking now.



The box weighed about 140 pounds. Miss Pinky had to help me get it out of the trunk of the car, lest I get a hernia or otherwise harm myself. There were a lot of parts, and the instructions were a bit complicated, but eventually, along with my tools, I prevailed and a new bbq was born. It was glorious. I burned it in for 15 minutes to get any chemical residues out of the thing, let it air out, and then later on in the day, made some inaugural burgers on the fine new machine. A veritable Fiesta of Fossil Fuels! The burgers were excellent. Eddy Velvet Sr. enjoyed them very much. With a full 57,000 BTUs of heat, I can practically feel the global warming now!

Which brings us to disposition of my former bbq. What to do with the old beast? I was thinking that in the grand scheme of things, I am lucky to be able to purchase a fabulous new bbq. But what about those poor lost souls struggling without a bbq to call their own? I am therefore launching a grand new philanthropic endeavour, the Jack Velvet BBQs for Bachelors Project (JVBBQBP). The Jack Velvet BBQs for Bachelors Project is dedicated to donating used bbqs to deserving inner city bachelors who can't otherwise afford to get a decent bbq. This project promises to bring much meat mirth to many men, who would otherwise be shivering in the dark, without any means of properly browning burgers, steaks or other red meat. If you have recently purchased a new bbq, please consider donating your old model to the JVBBQBP to help some poor deserving bachelor in the inner city to get a working bbq. This along with the Jack Velvet Home for Unwed Fathers in Las Vegas Nevada, which sends deserving inner city bachelors to Las Vegas for a weekend of wine women and song, will form the centrepiece of Jack Velvet's philanthropic efforts for 2008.
Please help us make a difference for these forgotten souls.