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Got the wagon done and have been putting some miles on it. The wagon is a fun old ride and gets more attention than my 50.

Nice! Bought my Plaza for 80$ in 1970. No surf racks requied

I've been round and round on this topic, not that I think Plymouth brakes are bad or inadequate. They work when in good repair. I don't believe in scrapping what the car came with just to be modern. In my years of experience I know that disc brakes CAN be better but seldom are. I have gone to the trouble of swapping the Plymouth 10 inch drum brakes for Chrysler Windsor 12 inch brakes. This is something I've seen several old timers do and I find it appealing as the car is still all MoPar and period correct. The idea being that I want a car that a dealer mechanic of the time would have built for himself using the best of the MoPar parts bins. An article in the Cascade Pacific Plymouth Club April 2024 news letter caught my eye headlined, "Consider brake booster instead of disk conversion?" by Robin Will. "A young man just across the aisle from us at Portland Swap Meet told me something I didn't know and its worth passing on. He was selling add-on brake booster units. He said that drum brakes themselves are not usually problematic in old cars; the problem was more often with the pressure that could be delivered to them with original equipment hydraulics. Getting a booster on the system can bring old brakes up to current standards without the expense of a disc brake conversion for folks who love to drive their cars every day." What was not mentioned in the article that I know from my experience is that bigger brakes do not lower the pedal pressure required to stop a car. In fact disc brakes don't stop any better than drums because to reach their full potential they require a brake booster. I know I'll get some heat on that statement but I have examples of cars that evolved over time and had drum brakes one year, front disc brakes another year and finally disc brakes with a booster later on. The boosted brakes certainly were better, while the front disc only brakes weren't noticeably better. Bigger drum brakes will have better heat rejection capability and thus less fade. Great for mountain driving or towing or racing but not a dramatic improvement every day. To reach their full potential they need to be boosted as well. Back to what would a period dealer mechanic have on his car? Well Chrysler used a "Remote" Brake Booster on some models. The brakes were all the same except they added this remote booster. The first time I saw such a thing was on a 1968 Volvo P1800 which had one for each brake circuit. I can tell you that car had brakes that worked very nicely indeed. Finding a vintage Chrysler remote brake booster might be an expensive challenge ( not saying it would be impossible but... ) However the aftermarket has substitutes remarkably CHEAP. When you google "Remote Brake Booster" they pop up all over the page for as low as $65 from Walmart of all places! They are imported of course for that price ( China perhaps ) Units that swap out the original master cylinder for an integrated booster/master cylinder are like $500 to $1,100 and I can't imagine they provide as much bang for the buck ( Perhaps "Bang" is not the right word to use when talking about brakes. lol ) If you dive deeper into the suggested usage for these devices they seem to work for similar weight cars like a Plymouth. Since they are small they will fit in the same place as the old Chrysler booster on the left frame rail behind the master cylinder. So there's an idea for discussion.

Yes

VINTAGEPIC: saw this Dodge on the FB

Try polerizing the generator first . It is easy and fast and costs nothing .

Update on the carb weep situation. Over the weekend I bought the sealer I mentioned earlier and applied it to both sides of the gaskets as well as a thin coat on the gasket surfaces. The instructions say to wait until the solvent flashes off before you assemble the components, so that's what I did. It was a little tricky applying the sealer on the carb itself because you don't want to plug up any air passages or leave any big blobs. But I was careful not to do either of those. Slapped it all back together, bolted it to the engine and fired it up. So far it seems ok. I've run it a few times up to and at operating temperature, and I don't see any puddling where I saw it before. I'm hesitant to say it's all fixed, but I'm happy with the overall results with the sealer. Once I get a chance to drive it, I'll hopefully have a better idea whether it's fixed or not. But for now, I'll call it a win.

Have someone step on the clutch (you need the clutch pedal working) while trying to install. This will release the clutch and allow the disc to move and align to the shaft and should seat the trans.

I have improved my valve set when using the cold method. Yet I prefer the hot method. A gauntlet glove on one hand/forearm is helpful to prevent burns. I shut off the hot engine. Make my adjustments. Then run it and test. I like the positive feedback when a running engine pulls the feeler gauge in, just right. Then I know its right and brings a smile. The wheel and inner fender window removal is great. After a good hot valve set, I come out from the car with a black sheen. Looking like I’ve been in an underground coal mine. Good times. I do enjoy a good hot flathead valve set. It’s rewarding and takes me back to 1950. Romanticizing a valve set…What have I become? Lol.

Okay, all it needed was a longer magnet with a DIY self-straightening WD-40 spray can rod. It was at the very far end of the cylinder 😱😅

Not sure I posted a picture since fully assembling my repainted truck.