knuckleharley

Steve,probably the best money for you to spend at this point is for a Motors Manual that covers 1946 cars. It gives exploded photos that identified all the components commonly taken apart to be repaired,and tells you how to repair,install,and adjust them if they need adjusting. Here is a selection on ebay tonight. http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.X1946+Motors+Manual.TRS0&_nkw=1946+Motors+Manual&_sacat=0

What about the ethanol gas that just sits in the gas tanks for week,or even months at a time as the car sits in storage for the winter?

`As you said yourself,it attracts moisture. Moisture creates rust.

Safety is always the number one concern. Check the brake hoses for cracks and splits. If it were me,I would replace the master cylinder and all 4 wheel cylinders at the minimum. Better yet is to also replace the hoses and brake lines. Pull the gas tank and drain it. Look closely at the gas coming out to see if it looks like it has rust or debris in it. If possible,have it dipped and coated inside to keep it from rusting with the ethanol gas. Replace ALL the rubber in the gas line and any plastic fuel filters with modern ones that are rated for use with ethanol. Check the radiator hoses and belts for cracks. Check the tires carefully for cracks from dry rot. If questionable,replace them,too. That should cover the biggest concerns.

"I need to go ahead and pull the valve covers in the next few days, get them cleaned up and painted, (already have the new gaskets),." Valve covers???? Do you have a OHV engine in your P-15,or are you referring to the side covers for valve adjustments? If that is what it is,I think I'd be tempted to just leave them as they are unless they are already leaking,or you have a stuck valves or the valves need adjusting. If it ain't broke,don't try to fix it.

Thanks for the tip,but I am going to spend a ton of money putting this thing back together as close to factory original with paint and upholstery and the original drivetrain,so I guess I will just have to bite the bullet and pay big bucks for a repop radiator. If I don't,it will be like a poke in the eye with a stick every time I raise the hood. This and my 31 Plymouth coupe are cars that are going to remain original. The 51 will have modern radial tires,2 carbs,split exhaust with glasspacks,and 50 taillights,but nothing that can't easily and cheaply be changed back to original. The 31 is getting nothing changed.

Well,the good news is that even if one might be hard to find,there would be no one else interested in buying it,so you could get it at a good price. I know Mopar used the 230 Dodge right up through the 1959 model years,and auto trans were really popular in the late 50's. There are bound to be a few laying around in junkyards that could be bought reasonably.

The gauge in my 51 wants to hover between warm and hot (dashes,not numbers) when driving it in the summer. Since I don't have numbers to look at and am unsure about the reliability of the original temp gauge,I bought one of those digital temperature "guns" from Amazon for $14. It shoots a laser beam at any object you point it at,and gives you a digital read out that is pretty damn accurate. You can even use it to check to see if any one cylinder is running hot. For 14 bucks I figured it was worth buying to keep a check on my radiator temps,rear end temps,tire temps,bearing temps,etc,etc,etc. http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Lasergrip-1080-Non-contact-Thermometer/dp/B00DMI632G

I'm sure you are safe with the new radiator,even if it were the original design. I'm not so sure about a 7 psi cap on an original radiator that has been heating and cooling for 65 years,though. Since a new Repo radiator for my 51 is $590,I am hoping I can get by for one more summer using my 4 psi cap and checking the water after every drive. It's going in my shop late this summer for a tear down for new floors,patch panels,paint,glass,and wiring anyhow,so I won't be needing a new radiator for it for a while once it goes in by shop. Until then I plan on driving it locally every day it isn't raining.

Wearing compression stockings is a must,also. They help increase the circulation.

The bum knees and a bum back is why I bought a car lift. Most of the time I can't work on anything unless it is at the "right" height. I can now work overhead a little,thanks to the cortisone shots in both shoulders so I could dress myself,though. A now deceased USA SF MSG named Bill Edge that I greatly admired used to say "Getting old ain't for sissies" all the time,and he was sure right about that.

I have found and bought pretty much everything I need to convert my 51 Ford coupe over to a 51 Ford Fordomatic transmission. 51 was the first year the FOM was offered,and even though FoMoCo bragged in their advertising about how the FOM was available with the flat 6 engine like mine,I can find nobody that has ever seen one,and even the Ford museum at Dearborn isn't sure any were actually sold. Ford even quit offering it as an option for the 6 in mid-year. Looks like I am going to have to take a flat 6 bellhousing and cut it and a FOM V-8 bellhousing and weld them together to make one to use,but I have already bought both. I am 69 and also have diabetes. The VA has been trying to amputate my left leg for several years now,but I keep seeing private doctors to get the infections healed to keep that from happening. If I live long enough I know I will lose that argument,and want to be ready when that day comes. I am wondering if any of the 1959 and earlier Mopar auto trans can be adapted to the 251 flat 6 he has,and what would be involved. Anyone know? Would Don even be interested if it is possible?

My thoughts are there may be a tiny bit of moisture mixed in with the oil,the amount dependent on the temperatures and humidity level where the engine is stored. My main thought is "30 wt non-detergent oil doesn't cost that much,so drain it out,put a new filter in the cannister,and re-fill it with 30 wt non-detergent." One cheap place to buy 30 wt non-detergent is Ace Hardware. Buy a case while you are at it,and store the extra in your trunk. Or you can buy it in 30 or 40 wt for summer use by the case from Amazon.com. 40 wt non-detergent can be hard to find in local stores. Before trying to start it I would pull all the plugs,spray some WD-30 or light machine oil in each cylinder to lube the upper cylinders and rings, and turn it over with the starter for 10 seconds or so at a time, with a cool-off period,until it shows oil pressure on the gauge. THEN I would start it. It costs very little to be safe,and can cost a bunch if you make a mistake.

Me,too. It has to be serious or he would never sell his car. This sucks beyond all belief. Don,I sincerely hope you get better and can keep your car and enjoy driving it.

With luck like that you are set for life.

Since you need to use a cap around the 4lb pressure rating area,can you tell us the parts number and make for the cap you use?

What do you mean by "won't run right"? What is it doing? Is the engine cold or hot when it does this?

I'm not familiar with that casting number,but a 218 is a 218. Do NOT get rid of your original engine until the swap is complete,though. Even though the 218's were all the same engine,different applications required different exhaust manifolds,maybe different oil pans and pumps,and maybe a few other things. All of which will transfer from your original engine to this one. For all I know everything is identical,but it is better to be safe than to be sorry.

If you don't have a simple 6 AND 12 volt test light,buy one at your local auto parts store. Probably cost around 10 bucks. Ground it using the clamp and then touch the probe to where the wire coming from your coil goes to the distributor. If the light doesn't shine,use the probe on the coil post where that wire came from and see if you have any fire/light there. If not,of if it blinks or is dull,start cleaning contacts everywhere you see them,and then go back and try again. Once you get the probe to light at the distributor base,see if you can get it to light when you touch the points with it. If the car has been sitting long,you may have to clean (file) and regap the points and lube the distributor shaft with a little electric grease to prevent wear. If you still don't have any fire,replace your condenser. I used to know how to check condensers with no test equipment,but can't remember right at the moment. BTW,you do have the positive post on the battery going to ground,right?

That looks like a regular male/female pipe thread fitting to me. Take it to a hardware store and get someone that works there to help you match it up. As for the fuel pump block off plate,they are very easy to make. Just use an old gasket to scribe a line on a piece of flat steel plate. Drill holes where the holes are outlined,cut along the scribed lines and,and you are in business. An alternate way to do that if you don't have a scribe is to just use spray paint to spray over the gasket and surrounding area,and when you take the gasket off there will be a perfect pattern outlined there for you to cut. Drill the holes before you cut the plate out,though. It's easier to clamp it down for drilling before you cut it to size. Make sure you are wearing eye protection any time you are grinding,cutting,or drilling.

Sure looks good.

Why would the stock diff be unsuitable? Are you going to pump the 318 up to 400+ HP and add traction bars and wide slicks to the rear to hook up solid leaving the line? If you are just going to drive the car and have fun with it,the original diff is just fine,and MY suggestion would be to adopt the mindset that states "If it ain't broke,don't fix it" at this stage. There is going to be no shortage of other things to spend your money on before you get the car back on the road. If you decide later you want front and rear disc brakes,you can always install a Explorer or similar rear end later. And yes,lots of people are still driving these things all over the place with the stock drum brakes on them. My only suggestion at this point is that you look for a non-power brake dual outlet master cylinder to replace the original single outlet master cylinder for safety purposes,and replace ALL the brake lines,both steel and rubber while you are at it. Use the new brake lines that are a copper/nickel alloy that can be bent by hand without kinking and never have to worry about rust inside or outside of the brake lines. While you are at it,use the same type of brake line,but larger,for the fuel line and not have to worry about it rusting from the inside due to ethanol,and replace all the rubber gas lines and plastic fuel filters with ones rated for use with ethanol.

Yup! I first discovered this at the same time I discovered a old elementary school friend of my fathers that I had known all my life as a self-employed commercial fisherman and never even suspected he had been 50 miles from home was drafted into the army during WW-2 and became a tanker. Not only became a tanker,but won a DSC along with a battlefield promotion to 1st Lt during the invasion of Africa,and fought with Patton right up to the day the war ended. That's when the trouble began for him. Like many loner commercial fisherman,he was of the a literal mindset,and when drafted "for the duration of the war" that meant as far as he was concerned the war was over and he was free to go back home. When he was told he had to wait until his number came up,he just said "screw it",and bought his own ticket home. The DSC and the SS he earned later earned him a honorable discharge with no time served. He never mentioned a word of this until after I got out of the army on disability after VN,and then he broke out all the photos and started telling me stories. I was so ignorant of WW-2 technology that I was shocked when he was talking about how Sherman tanks were bombs on tracks just waiting to be hit by a 88mm. When I asked him why,he told me it was the gas and fumes in them. I was shocked. I had been assuming all along they were diesels. That's when he told me his tank had 2 V-8 flathead Caddy engines in them. He never married or had a family,so I'm guessing all those great photos he took from Africa to Berlin were just tossed in the trash when he died.

5 engines,all that work and development,and it only makes 445 hp and a little over 1,000 ft lbs of torque. They could have gotten more power than that from just 2 engines if they had wanted.

I can <deleted by moderator buy/sell should be by classifieds or by personal message (PM)>