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Into the frying pan

My Dad passed April of last year. A small inheritance came after but it really bugged me to just spend it paying off the car, or some bills. I wanted something more than a receipt to remind me of him. At the same time, I always wanted an old truck. Seemed to me that I am at an age where it probably is the last vehicle I'll ever buy. That seemed fitting so with the OK of the Misses, I set off looking for something. I'm a renter. Have almost no room to work on something and not that much experie

TrampSteer

TrampSteer

Perspectives on Fire

If I recall correctly the discovery of fire was one of the most helpful discoveries in the education of man, the invention of the wheel the second. There is a gigantic difference between fire and the wheel. Fire is a natural action to be discovered the wheel was invented. According to reports from the early explorers, the grasses in the North American Plains were knee and waist deep before they were plowed under. With that much matter and nothing to eat it all, after a winter's covering of sno

pflaming

pflaming

Have you met Paul?

Paul joined the forum in 2006. He had bought his bluish gray truck for 250 bucks. He was planning on giving it to a friend, but was told he should keep it and restore it himself. He had always wanted to do something like that and retirement had given him the room to do it. To learn what he could and enjoy it along the way. Paul is a good natured fellow and carries a huge smile where ever he goes. Through the years on this forum he has ask 4 million questions about the complicated and the simple

48Dodger

48Dodger

Fire Sale

My paternal grandfather was a farmer/pastor in the early 1900's. My grandmother was known for her life of prayer. One summer afternoon they had a major hail and wind storm. This was in Western Nebraska. The next morning at the breakfast table, Grandma noted, "Well Henry, we've got a lot of praying to do", to which Grandpa said, "No, we've got a lot of work to do!" When I was in high school we put up hay on a large meadow. Some neighbors hayed the meadow next to us. In the morning we could not m

pflaming

pflaming

The Driving Force Behind a Patina Surface

Definition: a surface appearance of something grown beautiful, especially with age or use, which adds value to an antique or collectible and should not be cleaned. Patina: a surface appearance of something grown beautiful, expecially with age or use, which adds value to an antique, collectible or scarce and should not be cleaned, in some cases, and preserved in other cases. I grew up in a farm/ranch environment on the edge of the Southern Nebraska Sand hills. Our neighbors to the east and so

pflaming

pflaming

Teach them while their young!

While testing a starter on a 56 flat head, I explained and demonstrated how electricity works to my nine year old grandson. First I explained to him that a power outlet in a house is connected to a large network of lines which go back to some electrical power generating source, such as a water turbine. The I showed him how one can move power from an outlet via a battery charger to a battery. I showed him how the charger did nothing until we plugged it into the outlet and then how the positive a

pflaming

pflaming

How I found hard to find parts

It has been said that it takes a lot of money to restore a vehicle. There is a lot of truth in that statement, but it is not the final truth. I have found that patience is money! The most obvious item I needed was the '52 grille. That grill has eleven (11) pieces to it. The park light mounts are water traps so they rust out fast and thus are hard to find. A good rear bumper is another allusive item. Few trucks were sold with bumpers so there are not many available and most of those that are are

pflaming

pflaming

Taco Man

I bought a '56 Plymouth engine in Fresno, a 90 mile round trip. WIth the 3:73 differential, that 800# engine did not slow down the old truck one iota on the return ride home it ran very smooth at 65 mph. Stopped for a taco at a roadside 'kitchen'. One of the best taco's I've eaten. The owner/cook liked the truck. Found out he was born in 1952 so same age as the truck, neat. Another one of the priceless intangibles of driving an old vehicle.

pflaming

pflaming

Man Cave

I showed our Comcast serviceman my car project. When he walked into my shop, which had become quite cluttered because I have three projects going, his first remark was "Wow,what a man cave!" When I told my wife I showed him my shop, she said to him, 'I never go out there, he cleans it periodically but it's usually cluttered again". The serviceman, a young man of mid 20's said, "a man cave is not cluttered as long as one can walk through it". Now that is a smart young man. I'm currently working

pflaming

pflaming

How this all started

Aristotle's instructions for a complete exposition starts by stating that background information is prerequisite to a full understanding or a full explanation of said topic. So a brief bit of history is in order. Some eight years ago, a friend and I were returning from scoping out a couple of lakes for potential fishing holes. On the return, via a different route we saw this truck sitting on the side of the road. We turned around out of curiosity to check it out. It had sat in that spot for 17

pflaming

pflaming

Sequoia National Park

This was my first test run with my truck. I took my grand daughter along. She loved every minute of the ride. The park is about 50 minutes from our house. Our house is about 500 ft above sea level; Sequoia National Park is just above 6,000'. I figured if the truck could pull that hill it was good to go and it did. At the park a visitor and his son, from Germany, came to my truck. They were all excited to see it. The son said he had seen pictures but never a real one and to see one out of a muse

pflaming

pflaming

Virgin Run

My 1948 Plymouth convertible was finished just enough today for a test drive. We checked the fluids and temporarily wired the radiator into place so it wouldn't hit the fan then hit the road. Drove about 5 miles. The engine runs strong! The tranny shifts smooth! Success!

Duskylady

Duskylady

Plymouth put on the back burner, temporarily

Well my convertible is sitting on the side lines for a bit. A new addition has been added to our driveway. ITS A GIRL! 1960 Ford Thunderbird. When my husband was young the carcass of a car arrived at his family home. Over the next few years he played in it with his older sister, kid stuff. Later his Dad started rebuilding the car and he was part of it. The car was finished after a few years and the family drove it. When my husband was 16 the car was sold, for unknown reasons to him at the tim

Duskylady

Duskylady

Clutch, I don't need no stinkin clutch!

As an owner of a B1 truck with an original 4 speed crash box (aka non syncro tranny with compound low) one story you hear is you can shift without using the clutch. Having learned to double clutch to avoid the "grind them till you find them" syndrome of shifting I have to say I was always intrigued by the myth of clutchless shifting. For our owners who always lived in the world of fully synchronized transmissions, double clutching is the technique used to shift a transmissions with "straight cut

P15-D24

P15-D24

Speed and Fear

I like to race. The 1950 Dodge Pilot-House Truck I built for myself allows me to do that. I took a stock frame, gave it a 1985 Dodge Diplomat front-end, a 1997 Ford T-bird IRS, a 408 stroker with a 850 dbbl pumper with mechanical secondaries, a 904 tranny, and a rollcage. It's a fast old truck.When I dust it off and check the equipment...I sometimes wonder why I do it. Why does anyone like to race? And I'm not talking about those who make a living at it, or those who make money off of others. I'

48Dodger

48Dodger

If it started anywhere, it started like this.

I have often said women love big dumb animals. You know, like horses, and see men pretty much the same way. In the begining, for me, trucks were like that. A tool a guy needed to move the real vehicles in this world, muscle cars. And I mean real muscle....1/4 mile muscle....straight liners and roundy rounds...cars you didn't drive on the street, but cars that tested your ability to deal with fear and become one with the machine. In 2001, I came across a 1948 Dodge truck sitting on the side of th

48Dodger

48Dodger

Am I a Writer...a Thinker....or Artist

I've never written a blog before, but I do have the ability to share what's on my mind to those who will listen. So I guess this is the same thing, only different. To be a blogger, I can see a need to be somewhat entertaining as well as informative. In other words, make sense and don't turn it into a dang lecture about what I think is right or wrong. Yet, to do that, it might be helpful to have an artist's "eye" to create something people can enjoy, without feeling patronized. Lord knows I'm not

48Dodger

48Dodger

Yes I'm A Girl..... Interior Post

This is my attempt on a run down of the work done so far on the interior. 1. The seats were reupholstered from a maroon-color vinyl to a black/grey leather-like vinyl. The back seat was out of a 1980 something blazer. Perfect fit and with new fabric looks perfect! Also notice the maroon carpet trim. I used VHT black plastic/vinyl spray paint. Saved the expense of resewing the trim :-D 2. If I would have been on top of my game I would have taken before pictures of the gauges. They were Dakota d

Duskylady

Duskylady

First Car Project...... Yes I Am A Girl :-P

First off, I wish I would have started this when we started on the car (how many folks have said that?!! hahaha). I am a young lady with some experience with cars. Never have I redone an older car. When my father-in-law said he wanted to give us a 1948 Plymouth Convertible that he redid in the 1980's we jumped on it. Luckily my husband is an extremely knowledgeable hobby mechanic and we have a garage full of professional tools. The car was not in perfect shape when we got it, but not rough eithe

Duskylady

Duskylady

Do Some Book Learnin And Make Your Project A Little Easier...

We actually have it pretty easy when it comes to getting our projects back on the road. Even though we are working on 60 year old technology original factory documentation is readily available. Original and reproduction shop manuals, parts books, factory technical training material are available from many parts suppliers. Think about how difficult it would be if you didn't have any reference information and everything was passed by word of mouth (or the internet)! So what should you have in you

P15-D24

P15-D24

Introduction To My B1 Project...

Going to start a new blog regarding my B1 project instead of posting to the WIP page on the "About" section. Just a lot faster and easier than editing html web pages! A little history, I purchased the truck, a B1C, in early 1999 from the son of the original buyer. The truck had spent it's entire life working on a farm in the Dunbar, Nebraska area. It even came with a copy of the January, 1949 Certificate of Title! I had the truck shipped out to California and the seller had been honest about th

P15-D24

P15-D24

Give Your Electrical System A Quick Check Up, Watch Your Ammeter!

One of the quickest ways to get a quick health check on your electrical system is watch your ammeter! It will tell you all kinds of valuable information if you know how to read it! Most modern cars now use a voltmeter to provide limited information about your electrical system. Or even worse just a warning light to let you know your alternator has failed. Because voltmeters are now the norm the skill of interpreting the information the ammeter provides is becoming a lost art. Let’s walk through

P15-D24

P15-D24

Old Technology Doesn't Always Mean Obsolete Technology!

Many site visitors appear to arrive with the pre-conceived opinion that some technologies because they are old, are outdated, obsolete and functionally replaced by newer technology. Case in point are two common forum topics, oil bath air cleaners and bypass oil filters. Both these technologies have been around for many decades and in fact perform better than the "newer" technologies of full flow spin-on oil filters and paper air filters. Let take a closer look at both. 
 I ride and wrench on di

P15-D24

P15-D24

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