Jump to content

Little things I wish I had Known


Recommended Posts

THe thread "Suggestions. . ." has been a good one. Here's another that might also be helpful, especially to the beginner. Little things I wish I had known. For example:

(1) for faster air excape from the engine, make the inside of the exhaust manifold as smooth as possible.

(2) The newer gas eats up old fuel pumps,

(3) The pigtail of the dash heat gauge is PERMANENT! Don't cut it off!!!!

(4) Tail lights will NOT work if the truck bed is NOT grounded to the frame.

(5) Don't dent the coil, it will short out the inside.

(6) Mopars have left and right threaded lug bolts, the left ones have "L" on them the right one is plain (no R).

(7) Electrical current flow in a Pilot-house:

(a) Battery to Starter #1 cable;

(B) Starter to Amp guage, #10 wire

© the amp gauge disperses the electrical flow: (1) to the ignition; (2) to accessories;(3) to the light switches: head and panel - this flow goes to the front and the back. Now here's what caught me:

(d) the frame is the return "wire". EVERYTHING is grounded: (a) to the cab, to the bed, to the frame. The cab and the bed must be grounded to the frame because they do are insulated from the frame, the cab because it sits on rubber pads; the bed because of the wood (The bed may be grounded).

(f) finally there is a braided ground from the frame or engine block back to the battery thus completing the circle. This braid carries the entire flow back to the battery.

Edited by pflaming
Electrical flow
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • the speedometer cable slips into the gear inside the transmission and should not be forced loose with a pair of pliers or the gear gets cracked and those gears are hard to replace
  • them original battery cables, even though they look okie dokie, could have enough corrosion on each strand inside the insulation to bog the starter motor down enough to leave you stuck at a roadside diner in the summer for four hours until everything cools off enough that the internal resistance drops enough for the starter motor to engage properly
  • if you're gonna replace the rotting wire harness with one made from parts at the hardware store, not only match the colors to the circuit, but pay attention to the wire size because too small of a wire will not a properly functioning circuit make
  • washing your flathead may seem like a great idea, until ya realize that the starter motor is not sealed, and all that crud ends up inside the starter, which requires the starter to be pulled, disassembled, and cleaned so that it will work again
  • practice making tubing flares on scrap pieces before trying to make one on the coiled section coming off of the master cylinder
  • do all of your research before purchasing parts so that you'll know the motor in your truck is not original and that you'll have to order engine parts for a different model year than how the truck is titled
  • even though bias ply tires were what came with the truck when new, they are a real pain to drive with in today's traffic do not handle as well as the radial tires that everyone else is driving on in today's traffic, especially in wet weather
  • when taking the truck to get a state inspection, be sure the inspector knows:

                    *that the truck has a foot starter pedal before he nearly twists the key off in the ignition switch

                    *where reverse & first are on the transmission before he nearly backs into a nearly new Cadillac

                    *that the truck does not have power brakes before attempting to make a new doorway in an old service station :rolleyes:

Edited by JBNeal
repaired corrupted formatting
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1) How significant broken lugs studs are on a 3/4 ton. Especially if there are 3 broken on a rear hub! :(

2) How truly hit and miss the parts supply is...........some items you would expect to be a bugger are fairly easy....and then some small rather mundane but necessary items are practically non-existent.

3) Apparently being a Mopar owner involves some masochistic tendencies.

4) How fun removing a rotted out water distribution tube truly is.

5) Invest heavily in companies that make penetrating oil.

6th) and most important

Never.......never allow Hank to post off topic photo's or otherwise change the subject of a thread :D

Jeff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Paul this is a very good thread and I apologize in advance and understand how very annoying it is when people like Tim and Jeff turned the last thread into a baseball story thread)

DSC_0162.jpg

Hank :D

P.S. Please no comment/questions about this picture.

Edited by HanksB3B
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Something important that i've realized over the years, when you think a job will only take a couple hours expect it to take two to three times longer. Although sometimes you do get lucky... not to often though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There is no problem too mundane and simple that can't be enlarged and made more time consuming, expensive and important by finding something else to fix "as long as you're in there".

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6th) and most important

Never.......never allow Hank to post off topic photo's or otherwise change the subject of a thread :D

Jeff

This is a very very important rule......thou it may never ever be stopped....he just has to many pictures.....:D

48D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

learned this last weekend:

check the throttle linkage: make sure the tab is on the correct side of the other tab so the throttle can actually move! THEN make sure to install a return spring on the linkage since the carb seems to "rest" w/o the return spring at FULL BORE OPEN! Took 3 guys 3 restarts to figure that one out (the return spring).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

Terms of Use