uglysteve

Hey junkers any idea if the spline count on your 41 pitman arm is the same as the one that would be on my 48?

I just revisited this thread because I'm FINALLY getting back to working on my Plymouth again. It would be cool to see how Hubler13f had to modify that pitman arm! I did manage to find a stock steering box/column for sale as well as a NOS pitman arm so I honestly may try those out first to see if the box is any tighter than mine now. Anythings better than what I have now haha. I got a list of stuff to fix in the mean time too. Hoping to have it back on the road in the next few months.

Oh wow I never knew that! That's pretty cool.

When you do get to road test that let us know! I'll probably get started on this swap after the holidays. Would be cool to know if one box works out better than the other.

I thought the Dodge's had the fade away type front fenders that went into the doors?

Yeah definitely gonna go this route. I tried looking online and in the shop manual and can't find the shaft size and spline count for my stock box. I'll just have to do it the hard way and crawl under there haha. I bet it's the same. What cars did that GM 525 box come in?

Yeah see that's exactly how I was thinking the vega box would work. With an adapter plate either welded or bolted on. Seems way easier. Cool that gives me a better idea of how to do it! I don't see why there'd be any issues with since you were able to keep the stock pitman arm and everything.

I've seen a lot of cavalier rack swaps on P15s but has anyone done anything different? Like a Vega box? The cavalier swap seems like a lot of work and every one i read about every one is using different pieces from different cars and they lose some of the turning radius. It seems like a lot of work for what it is, especially since I don't really want power steering. I feel like a vega box would require a lot less fabrication and parts.

I've been driving my 48 plymouth with pretty loose steering for a while now. The other day I noticed that I now have some play in the column. The shaft inside the column that the wheel attaches to. I can wiggle the steering wheel up and down, not much, maybe 1/16th or 1/8th inch. Just enough to notice it isn't right. I have the shop manual but all it says is that "there should not be any up and down movement of the steering wheel at the steering column jacket." It does not make it clear how to fix that issue. In the exploded view it looks like that shaft goes all the way from the steering wheel down through the worm gear, is that right? I'm wondering what I should look for to take that movement out of the steering wheel. If anyone's had this issue before. Thanks!

Does anyone know if the steering box from a 49 dodge is the same as the one in my 48 Plymouth?

OK good to know. I am planning to put a 9" rear under it as well. So no worries about the E brake. Yeah I'm just trying to do it cheap so I can still afford to keep working on my 48. Like a fun little side project. I suppose if i found a 50s mopar auto for cheap/free that might be a good idea. I saw that too. I think I could make all those pieces but I have emailed them about it. That's still a less expensive option than the $800 adapter for the stock motor. Thanks for the help so far guys I appreciate it.

I'm looking at swapping a TH350 into my 52 Dodge Meadowbrook. I have a couple options, I was considering keeping the flathead six and getting an adapter for the TH350. Or, I have a 283 SBC from a 57 bel air I can put in as well. I know what everyone says "dont put an SBC in a mopar blah blah blah" but the thing is kind of a "rat rod" I guess. It was a 4 door that some guys in my club built a long time ago. They made it into a 2 door roadster (no top). It's cool and I got it dirt cheap, so I'm not concerned about keeping it original or all mopar or anything. Just trying to use what I've got in the garage to make it easier on me. The only reason I'm going automatic is I have a bad knee and I've tried driving it around with the 3 on the tree and it's just not worth it for me to be so sore after cruising around town. I'd like to comfortably go longer distances. So, I have a few questions. I've read that putting an auto trans behind the 6 will be horribly slow. And the adapter and flywheel kit for that swap is 800 bucks. So cost and HP have me leaning towards the SBC. I'm wondering if anyone can give advice on either SBC and trans swap, or if anyone has put a automatic behind the flathead 6 and what fabrication is involved with that. I have no idea how the 6 mounts to the frame or anything. It looks like the only mounts are by the bellhousing. Is that right? Thanks!

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Ok cool, so looks like my best bet is to try adjusting it first and then look into Bernbaums. Where would be a good place to look for the shop manual? Or can someone maybe scan the pages with the adjustment process and send that to me? I never bought one just because I have a whole different drive train and brake system and everything so I didn't see the point. I did just replace my tie rod ends and everything maybe a month ago so I know all that stuff is nice and tight. The steering feels smooth, I have maybe 3 inches of play in the wheel. Thanks for the help guys!

I've got a 48 plymouth and my steering has quite a bit of play. I want to get steering nice and tight again and I'm wondering if there is a rebuild kit available or where to send it to be rebuilt. I remember seeing an article in a magazine, maybe rod & custom last year about a shop in southern IL that rebuilds them. I even got a quote from them and have since lost the contact info and can't find the magazine. Can anyone help? I don't really want to do the cavalier rack swap. Thanks!!

I do appreciate all the help so far everyone. If I'm being an idiot about moving the master cylinder please let me know. I don't want to die or anything.

Well, I don't have any of the old clutch assembly anymore. From what I know of the car, the entire drivetrain was modified sometime in the 70s or 80s. It's got a '75 Buick 231, 3 speed automatic, and ford 9" rear in it. Over the winter I chopped the top, fabricated a lot of aesthetic stuff...new drip rails, hood peak, smoothed out the entire rear end, made bumper guard tail lights, etc. i bought the car with the intention of making a nice driveable custom. So...since I started on it I've grown pretty comfortable with welders and torches and metal fabrication and stuff. I've found some universal swing pedal assemblies online. I was looking at one from speedway specifically. I'm ok with drilling holes to mount the stuff on my firewall and fabricating some bracing or modifying things a bit. I'm not afraid of that stuff. I'm just afraid of not being able to stop haha. I'm guessing all I'll have to do is mount the swing pedal assy and master cylinder, make a piece that braces the swing pedal assy to the dash, plumb brake lines and a proportioning valve and that's it? Easier said than done probably, but is there anything I'm forgetting?

Thanks don, I just read that whole thread. Kind of put me off of the ECI kit. Seems like the "kit" isn't really a kit at all. For the price and lack of customer service I'm not sure I want to deal with those guys. I'm still leaning towards just moving it to the firewall. Seems like as long as I get the right bore size and make sure it's a disc/drum master it'll work the same. That's the second thread I've read mentioning the pedal free play adjustments so I'll make sure to keep that in mind.

Found that thread thanks DJ. Just finished reading the whole thing. Very helpful. I was considering getting a dual chamber MC and moving it to the firewall for easier access. I think I'm just going to keep manual brakes. I'm so used to driving it with manual brakes by now it's not too big of a deal. I'll check out those hoses James. I spoke with another member about doing the explorer swap and he just got the explorer brake hoses as well, so when I ordered the calipers and rotors I bought those too.

Hey guys. I'm getting ready to do exploder front disc swap on my 48 p15. I tried doing a search and found that I could keep the original MC, but it seems like all of you running front discs with the original MC have the original rear too. I've got a 9" rear with drums. Not sure what it's out of, it was on there when I bought the car. Assuming something 70s since that's what the motor is. Will that make a big difference? Also about the residual valves, I'm assuming I'll need a 2lb valve for the front and 10lb for the rear? Like I said, I tried searching and got a lot of links to posts that don't exist anymore, so hoping someone can help me out. Thanks!

Hi everyone! I have a 48 p15 coupe that I'm thinking about swapping a 350 chevy into (i know, i know...) with a 4 or 5 speed. It's currently got a 231 buick v6 in it and the motor runs great but its pretty slow. I can get a good running 350 for free from a friend, so i'm thinking about doing it. I tried doing a search but couldn't find anything. has anyone on the board done this swap? I'm assuming I'd have to move the firewall back because that v6 barely fits in there as it is. Just wondering if there are issues with steering linkage clearance and things like that. Thanks for any help!