A few questions

[Tony Martie <tony@domain.elided>]

As I tear into some repairs and maintenance on my 78 Spider I am coming 
across some questions I hope some of you might be able to help with.

What size is that enormous nut on the crank pulley?  It's bigger than 
my largest socket (1 1/4") and I can't really see it to measure.
And now to really display my ignorance: Is this the best place to 
rotate the engine slightly (to get it in the proper position before 
pulling the Spica pump)?

On my new thermostat housing there is a built in rubber o-ring.  Should 
I leave it at that and see if it seals or is there any gasket sealer 
that might help seal it?  The surface it mounts to is a little dinged 
up and I have a feeling this may prevent a good seal.

I assume that big aluminum spacer behind the factory fan blades should 
come off somehow but so far I have had no luck.  I hesitate to resort 
to the BFH mentality since my goals here run more towards fixing 
problems than causing new ones.   The plastic fan is off, am I missing 
some other fastener besides the five bolts?  I want to remove the 
spacer so I have enough room to install an electric puller fan to 
replace the original belt driven one.

Trying hard to not be a checkbook mechanic as I try to fix:
Spica oil leak, motor mount destroyed by long term Spica oil leak, 
replace belts, hoses and filters, install electric fan, new thermostat 
and probably some other stuff I haven't found yet.

Also trying to decide if I should go ahead and replace the water pump 
while the front of the engine is accessible.  How long can they be 
expected to last?  I have had this car for about 8 years and have never 
had to replace it, however I have probably only put maybe 30,000 miles 
on it.

Oh, one more:  What is a recommended gasket sealer for things like 
water pumps?  Or would anybody recommend any of the liquid gasket type 
products in place of the normal fiber gaskets?


Any advice would be greatly appreciated,

Tony Martie
78 Spider
http://tmpd.net
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