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New guy from Richmond, VA with a 1950 dodge coronet.


BiffTirkle

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hey all,

im Russell,

i just came into possession of a 1950 dodge coronet. this car has a flathead 6, with a gyromatic tranny, and a carter carb. the interior is pretty much 90% restored. the exterior is in great condition, the previous owner had been working on restoring the car completely. so any body issues were taken care of. it needs a good paint job, and some minor electrical and carb work.

im new to a car of this year, im sure i'll have plenty of questions to ask. im glad to be a member of this forum, i was referred here by a few people from the HAMB.

anyone have any experience with engine swaps in this car? any advice on the car, quirks i should know about?

i do know this is a 6v pos ground system.

thanks, and its great to be here!

post-7010-13585355337929_thumb.jpg

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Hi Russell. Looks like you got a pretty good ol Dodge.

Not real fast, but decent cars in their original 6 cyl, 6 volt form.

By engine swap, I presume you may mean installing a V8??

The Dodge may be much like the Plymouths, in that several

kinds of engines will generally fit in, but may have to be moved

slightly off center if you retain the original steering gear.

Some of the others here are more knowledgeable about such

things than I......but just tossing that thought out for now.

Hang around and join the fun and good information.:)

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biff, good luck with the car. my first car was a50 dodge meadowbrook, fluid drive. it was a hand me down from my grandfather, to my mother, to my brother, and then me. the car ran great, but it blew first and reverse in the tranny and i junked it for $5. it had the famous $19.95 earl schieb paint job.big back seat that i remember taking advantage of. slow as hell with fluid drive, but the gyromatics are better. capt den

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Mainly, you can simply find another Dodge engine which will drop right in.

Might want to overhaul it first.

The Plymouth engine has less holes in the end of the crankshaft, needed

to attach the fluid drive. It is the same length: 23 inches and would fit

space-wise.

The DeSoto and Chrysler sixes are two inches longer and won't fit

without some modifications to certain items under the hood.

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thanks everyone, i appreciate the warm welcome. the car is in great shape, the interior was restored already. there's just a few things left to do inside the car, its in amazing shape. i think the most expensive thing i'll do to the car would be a paint job!

and, as far as the engine goes. im happy to stick with whats in there. im just making a backup plan if something crazy fails.

a rebuild kit for that engine is pretty expensive. something i dont want to do is invest too much money in this car. it doesnt have any sentimental value aside from that of a fun project. maybe someday when my kids are old enough to work on it with me, that might change. but as for now, i dont want to get crazy with spending money on it.

the good thing is ive got great contacts with painters, bartering is a wonderful thing!

right now the most expensive things im looking at is paint, distributor, battery, carb.

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Does the engine run? If so, I would change the oil, and the water, and take it down a hilly road for about 50 miles with a friend following. I would watch the temp and the oil pressure. If both hold, I would steam clean it and drive it! Had a '50 Plymouth in the late 50's. Drove it to CA, attended college for two semesters and drove it back. Starting point was Ogallala NE. Didn't even tune it up! Don't underestimate what you have.

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That might pre date the interstate intersection development so it would be on old HYW 30. Got me thinking it was on the west edge of town, hmmm. During the cattle drive days, Ogallala was the RR pickup point for cattle out of Texas! It was not Dodge City but it wasn't tame either. :) Kingsley Dam (2 1/2 miles accross the top) is about 15 miles north.

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Man, you know your Ogallala. On the north side of US30 as you come into town. I recall it as a real spectacular dump. For years afterwards my wife would not even go into Ogallala. She may still be mad at me about that,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

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Neil, you might have gotten a 'time share' room!!!!:D:D:D. Ogallala was dry into the 70's. Only hard liquor was at the 'key clubs'.

East of Ogallala 20 miles is Paxton, "Ole's Game Lounge". In the 40's and 50's Ole Herstead was a big game hunter (made his money serving drinks to people who drove out from Ogallala). His bar/lounge is still a big game 'icon' in Paxton, complete with a large elephant head and all the rest. It's a steak house today. Google Ole's Big Game. . . I'm sure it's there.

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the engine does not currently run, but it was running just a couple of years ago. it is not siezed, it turns over just fine. i have not checked compression, i am focusing on electrical and carb. as i am sure those are the only two issues.

here's a question, i have a stromberg carb in the trunk, the carb on the engine leaks like a sieve, and needs to be rebuilt. im sure the stromberg needs to be rebuild also, thought it looks clean and smells clean. it was probably rebuilt already (a lot of the car was restored before i got it, all the chrome off, and carefully wrapped and stored in the car)should i put the stromberg on the engine, or rebuild the carter?

i got this car frome a good friend who got it from a guy who was seriously restoring it. my friend had it for less than a year. the previous guy had it for 10 years and it was a daily driver until he started restoring it. i am only the 4th or 5th owner.

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