Dartgame Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 After 6 weeks of cleaning/painting detailing the engine/the engine bay, front suspension and associated engine bolt ons, along with rebuilding the carb, the distributor, new plug wires, fuel pump, gas tank, oil & filter, plugs, radiator & hoses - etc etc. We spent about 20-25 minutes trying to start the 52 ply yesterday while twisting the dizzy one way or another and using ether. With a monstrous cloud of oily smoke enough to have simulated a destroyer laying down a smokescreen, she started. I was surprised the fire department did not show up there was so much smoke. We held her steady at about 2500 rpm for 10 minutes, still shooting out clouds of smoke, then she started to clear out. Temp came up to 180 & steady, oil pressure is 40 at idle, electric choke works, fuel guage, ammeter all work right, & she is darn near running perfectly. Previous owner said it had been 2 years since she last ran. I doubt it. Probably more like 5-10 years. Anyway, we shot a fair amount of sea foam down the carb to help clean out more crap in the combustion chamber, with even more crap shooting out the exhaust, and she's running like a champ, no weird noises, except for the valve train ticking which is out of adjustment. I chose not to adjust it until we got it running, I figured loose was better than too tight for an initial start up. Cold clearances are about 18 to 20 thousandths. For now it runs fine, I'll get to the valves after we redo the wiring harness. Insulation is crispy.... HOORAY ! Now for my question - I have a dial back timing light that operates off of 12 volts and an impulse from #1 plug wire. Will this work on a 6 volt battery ? Or should I just use a 12 volt source for the power and use the impulse from the #1 plug wire ? I think the later - sound right ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouthy Adams Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 on 6V the intensity of the flashing light may not be what you need to properly view the strobe and set the timing...and without a schematic of the internals of the timing control to view the control voltage and possible IC regulator circuit....I would suggest a 12 volt battery just to rule out possibilities it could make a difference...could well be the IC would function on 6 as most are 5V but again..would be a guess....do use the 12 volt...check it out...then compare against the 6 volt power supply and measure the results...you may be pleasantly surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conroe Powdercoating Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 awesome! feels good eh'? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg g Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 power the light with a battery charger or a 12v jump pac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Haymond Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 I use a modern digital "12 volt" timing light on my 12 volt car and my 6 volt car. I can power it with a 6 volt battery or a 12 volt battery, the light doesn't seem to care. Why don't you just try your light on your 6 volt system and see how it does? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfy Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 Awesome! congrats. That is a big milestone there. Love that first drive. Nervous and excited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerseyHarold Posted July 28, 2015 Report Share Posted July 28, 2015 Good to hear another '52 is up and running. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dartgame Posted July 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2015 Thanks guys. Shes not driveable yet. Needs brakes and the rewire. Ill be doing the disc brake and tandem master cyl upgrade. As to the timing light I'll use a 12 volt power source. I have to say I am really impressed with how easy she starts up now. I was running her again today for a short while. Very good feeling to get this milestone passed. I'll comment periodically as we get more done. I figure you might be interested in the disc conversion and tandem upgrade. We'll be using an aftermarket wiring harness to do that part as well. Car is pretty simple so wiring should not be too difficult. Maybe the dash switches and gauges will be the most challenging. My brother and I will do the rewire first, as he is visiting from out of town for about 9-10days next week, and his strength lies in electronics. It may be a while before I do the brake as I have a minor surgery later in August that will slow progress for about 6 weeks. Oh well TMI maybe, thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted July 30, 2015 Report Share Posted July 30, 2015 Congrats; good to see a successful resurrection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tones52 Posted August 2, 2015 Report Share Posted August 2, 2015 Congrats Dartgame and hope to see photos of your '52 as well. I've used a 12 volt timing light on my '52 Cranbrook with the nose of the car pointed towards the back of the garage because of the light of the strobe is less than when used with a 12 system, but still enough to see the timing marks. To help though I did paint a fine line in red at the TDC mark and thin blue lines at each end of the +/- timing marks on the pully. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pflaming Posted August 3, 2015 Report Share Posted August 3, 2015 Oh how sweet it is! Congrats, love the flatties! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Haymond Posted August 4, 2015 Report Share Posted August 4, 2015 I am glad to see your baby starts up now. "To help though I did paint a fine line in red at the TDC mark and thin blue lines at each end of the +/- timing marks on the pully." Doing this from under the car is far easier than bending over the fender and fighting the fan blades and fan belt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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