Jump to content

New guy here....


Satyr

Recommended Posts

Evening everyone, new guy here, been watching and reading here for a while, but didn't think I should join until I got another vintage mopar again. Well that day came a few weeks ago! I now have a 65 year old mistress that is gonna start taking my money... I now have in my driveway a 1952 Dodge business coupe, she runs and drives, but needs quarters and rockers. The floors and trunk are in great shape. And this is something that scares me a little, but I want to do as much work to her as possible.... I need to rebuild the front suspension, I have been reading about other members rebuilding theirs, it does not look too easy, but I think if I take my time I can do it. Any tips would be GREATLY APPRECIATED. I am looking forward to getting to know the members on here and trading stories...

new52.jpg

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice looking coupe.......as far as the front suspension goes its not difficult, get a workshop manual and read the front end chapter, depending on whats needed most of it can be done yourself...........for the kingpins its best to find a shop that is familiar with kingpins, like a truck shop and take the stub axle, spindle and new kingpin & bushes set to them and get them to press out the old bushes, press new ones in and ream to size and either get them to assemble or do it your self........as far as the upper/lower inner & outer pins and bushes go ideally its best to use a couple of special tools BUT the workshop manual has the specs and I've done a few over the yrs using just normal spanners, sockets, a vice and measuring as you go.........another thing worth checking is the steering box  2 pieces of the rubber isolator that goes between the box & chassis and outside of the chassis, these degrade with exposure to oil and soften allowing the steering box to move slightly affecting the steering, these isolators are still around and can be replaced without removing the steering box, just undo the 3 steering box bolts and gently lever the box away from the chassis, remove the old rubber & install the new..at least that's how it went on my 1941 Plymouth.......but as mentioned I'd get a manual and read it and off you go............btw welcome to the best mopar forum, these guys know their stuff.......regards from Oz.......Andy Douglas     

Edited by Andydodge
Link to comment
Share on other sites

greg g, the coupe seems to wander a bit when driving down the road, seems like I am always having to  turn the steering wheel just a little to keep going straight, nothing too serious, just seems to wander a bit. Andydodge, thank you for the tips, and I think I will start with the 2 rubber isolators first. I will keep y'all posted as I start into the front end. And thank you everyone for welcoming me to the fourm!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome.  My coupe was the first time that I did metalwork.  And I had to do a lot of it.   Not as hard as I expected.  Watch some youtube videos, take your time and don't settle for close enough. Doesn't take that much more to shape the pieces correctly and saves in body work later.  If it helps you here's a link to my thread.  I show how I did the metal work on it.    

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome @Satyr  when I got my 1950 P20, it wandered some. I tightened the steering gear and it helped lots. 

IMG_9771.JPG.467032df1a1ca24badb94002a948b918.JPG

Follow the steering down to that box. Remove that center cap nut and then the star shaped lock washer. Use a straight screwdriver to change how the gears mesh together. Don't over tighten or it causes them to wear out sooner and it can also make it hard to turn. 

Adjust looser to get the star lock washer to align and then reattach the cap nut. 

The plug to the left of center is for grease. Seems to me I have some corn planter grease in mine. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good tip above.  Andy's tip on therubber isolating pad between the steering box and frame is spot on.  They typically get mushy with age and allow slack so the box moves away from the linkage before moving the links.  If your car has the "Y" shaped center link check the bushings where it mounts to the cross member.  And if you don't have a lot of experience driving on bias ply tires instead of radials, wander was their middle name.  Proper toe in settings can improve down the road feeling also.  King pins and other suspension parts usually give long service 100k + miles if properly greased. So invest in a good geasegun and find the 22 or so zerk fittings, make sure they are all lubed properly.  That can have a positive effect on over all driving feel.  So check the easily replaceable stuff before contemplating a full tear down. You might find a couple of easy fixes will address the subject without getting in over your head or wallet.

Edited by greg g
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, medium_jon said:

Welcome @Satyr  when I got my 1950 P20, it wandered some. I tightened the steering gear and it helped lots. 

IMG_9771.JPG.467032df1a1ca24badb94002a948b918.JPG

Follow the steering down to that box. Remove that center cap nut and then the star shaped lock washer. Use a straight screwdriver to change how the gears mesh together. Don't over tighten or it causes them to wear out sooner and it can also make it hard to turn. 

Adjust looser to get the star lock washer to align and then reattach the cap nut. 

The plug to the left of center is for grease. Seems to me I have some corn planter grease in mine. 

Hi Jon, I noticed the plug that you have grease in says " Heavy Gear Oil ". I think the oil does a better job of lubricating gears. Did you go to the grease because of a leak with gear oil? I have seen grease in gear boxes get cast to the side over time causing the gears to run dry, thereby accelerating wear.

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Mike36: When I opened it, it already had the grease versus the heavy gear oil. I did some research which said that yes, those tend to leak the oil, and that 'corn head grease' (or something like that was a better choice), so that that is what I added. 

I wish I knew more about my car's history. I bought it in February of 2017 from a person that bought it from an estate. My previous owner hadn't done much besides complete the exterior trim work and changed the steering tie rods. Supposedly the estate owner had done the body restoration. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to the forum.   Nice looking car!  Time to bust a few knuckles!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to the Forum.  Don't know what year they started, but Dodges do not have the rubber insulator between the steering gear box and frame, they have that vibration dampening in the steering linkage.  So if you don't see it, don't panic.  Unknown if Dodge may have gone back to that setup later, but 46-48 don't have it.  Otherwise, the tips noted in the thread are right on.  If your steering box doesn't leak, I'd recommend sticking with the heavy gear oil, vs. grease, though.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dan.......thanks for the info re the Dodges & no isolators, I wasn't aware, Oz mopars are Plymouth based so that is why I seen more on our cars.........good to learn something new each day......lol......the heavy gear oil is really the best thing but the problem is that the pitman shaft oil seal is usually R/S so the oil doesn't last in there too long and that's why grease is used but the movement of the roller and worm pushes the grease out of the way and being grease it doesn't want to return to were its needed........lol.........Penrite Oil Co. makes "Steering Box Lube" its a grease that is just pourable at ambient temperatures and is recommended for steering boxes & steering racks, I used it in the 41 Plymouth I had and it plus the new isolators made a big difference.............andyd  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Andyd - roger that on the steering box gear lube.  Mine had grease initially, which, due to the mechanics you mention, I believe contributed to the condition it was in.  Although the box had grease in it, the gears themselves were relatively dry.  I rebuilt it several years ago, to include the new sector shaft seal so it doesn't leak, and I probably won't put enough miles on it to wear it out now.  But that Penrite steering box lube does sound intriguing. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Evening everyone, sorry it took me so long to respond but life got in the way. I am a local truck driver that runs out of the rail yards and we are putting in 14 hour days, on top of that I work a part time job 20 hours a week. Anyway I wanted to thank everyone for the tips and hints, this weekend I will be changing out the rubber isolators between the steering box and frame. And hitting all of the zerk fittings with grease. Again, thank y'all for the help. I will report back Sunday evening how the ride goes and if the isolators and grease helped. Casper50, your blog on the tear down and rebuild of your coupe was nothing short of fantastic! You have lit a fire in me to take on and do as much to my coupe as possible, if you don't mind I may have a question or two from time to time. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here is the specs on grease....00 is what i like

NLGI Grease Info.PNG

  • Like 1
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