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Showing content with the highest reputation on 08/01/2018 in all areas

  1. OK, so personally I think a Fulton visor on one of these cars is as cool as. But a decent one on Ebay is around $600, and by the time I get that to the UK, pay shipping, import duty, taxes etc I'm up at around $850-900 and that's before I paint the thing! However, a 1998 Honda Civic hatchback has a rather useful sheet metal tailgate spoiler... So I bought two of them from a scrap yard, removed the plastic parts and the pressed steel liner (only held in with mastic and a couple of spot welds) and cut them to shape. Here's my lad showing that an electrician has no concept of what tools to use to deburr sheet metal after cutting it with a grinder (yes, that's the edge of a chisel): On the other hand, he did prove that he can weld very thin sheet metal with my cheap gasless MIG welder... Et voila! One homemade $60 visor!
    9 points
  2. Hmmm, the seats are from a 1966 Mk II Daimler V8, some foam and a lot of homemade angle iron support framing. The visor is two Honda spoilers and a cupboard stay, the vacuum wipers are augmented with a pair of Audi A3 vacuum reservoirs, a one way valve and some aquarium tubing...
    4 points
  3. I love this sort of ingenuity! I suppose next you'll be telling us about how your glovebox is a microwave? ?
    3 points
  4. kinda funny, the man would not be in need of this stuff if he had but just DODGE'd that oncoming car...
    2 points
  5. If you don't want people to respond to your posts,don't write them.
    2 points
  6. Guys, I know the feelling(s) - car breakdowns far from home, old, achy body that does not want to contort to the necessary repair configurations, etc. Some day, I'll sell the car and all the stuff that goes with it, or my heirs will. In the meantime, I can fuss with things, and make the occasional car show. Some days I 'm ready to get rid of the car, but at a car show, people tell me how unique and beautiful it is, and thank me for showing it . Here's my car at the recent Rolling Sculpture Car Show in Ann Arbor. Friday traffic on the highways, Friday upper class lunch-hour traffic in town, hour-long staging area lineup, and final spot in the sun - hot, 90-degree sun. My wife and I couldn't walk much, so we were kinda stuck. Left early. Not again. September brings the Orphan Car Show in Ypsilanti - sparse Sunday traffic, verdant meadow beside a river, the beginnings of Autumn weather, lots of DeSoto companionship, club area with canopies, hang-out seating, potluck lunch , club meeting, etc. Good. (Sun umbrella - the struts from the luggage rack secure the top of the umbrella post. Suitable for hard ground situations. Umbrella can be placed in various locations to suit the site. The struts were clunky wood posts in fat conduit, which had to travel on the roof rack. I am re-making the struts from thinner conduit, which can be carried in the car, something to work on, part of my To-Do list that keeps up an interest in the car.
    2 points
  7. This subject came up in another thread but it got me to thinking this deserves its own thread. Over the years we have lost several forum members. Three come to my mind but I am sure there are others. Feel free to add the names of any you recall. Norms Coupe aka driveway Norm tops the list. Norm and I did a lot of bantering over the years but he was a very good friend and I sure miss his postings. Norman Baker is another. He really enjoyed his P-15. John Burke. John built his flathead powered hot rod from the ground up.
    1 point
  8. I will give you someLucas having problems, so many complaints could not come off as unfitting to some degree. I have never messed with the Jags...but could imagine they could be an electrical nightmare based on the Jensen Interceptors I own. Their wiring so far has been ok but then I will admit I have not tore much into one of them but the manner in which the harness is routed and all the hidden inline fuses, if you do not have the service book you would be forever trying to find a burnt fuse. I mainly have messed with the smaller cars like Triumphs, MG, Austin and Sunbeam Tigers...these are very simple cars.
    1 point
  9. well, other than the faulty grounds strung across the wooden dash and the cheaply made toggle switches, Lucas really has never given me much cause for concern. I still have 15 English cars on the place...with stock wiring for the most part. Have seen very little need to upgrade these. Of course 4 of these cars came stock with American V8's with a number of Americanized components..zoom zoom
    1 point
  10. I'm closing this thread because it is going no where.
    1 point
  11. Ah, the pivoting seat back. The outer pivot is a shouldered bolt. There is a nut, with lock washer, on the inner face of the frame (visible with the seat cushion removed). Remove the nut and washer. The bolt has a large rounded head with a phillips cross-slot. The inner pivot is fixed to the seat back and fits into a hole in a projection of the frame between the two seat backs. Unscrew the outer pivot bolt, (Save the washer that fits under the enlarged head. ) and the inner pivot will fall out of the center pivot hole as the seatback becomes a handful to handle . Reinstalling the seat back is tricky. The axis of the pivot bolt is not horizontal, but in line with the inner pivot hole . Work the projecting pin of the seat back into the center hole, line up the shouldered bolt, and screw it in. (Did you remember the washer that fits under the enlarged head?) Put the lock washer and nut on the end of the pivot bolt.
    1 point
  12. The '48-'52 trucks have a fuel tank similar to the W-series tank that Tanks, Inc. offers a replacement for, but this replacement requires a bracket to be fabricated because the older style tank is shorter in length. The '53 trucks have a 1-year-only tank design as the frame cross-members were redesigned to eliminate the rear bracket. Also, I believe the springs are supposed to be mounted closer to the rear axle.
    1 point
  13. Ten bucks on Ebay? Looks like it should slot right in...
    1 point
  14. Sorry to read of someone giving up on one of their passions. I'm not too hung up on cars. I have a bunch and like them all but there's only a couple of them I wouldn't let go. Motorcycles are a different story. I have a bunch of those, too; and no intention of selling any. I'm building a Harley sidecar rig at the moment in anticipation of the day I'm not comfortable on two wheels.
    1 point
  15. Hmm, well the glovebox was a misshapen piece of cardboard held together with alumin(i)um strip and pop rivets, so that got junked, but I'm afraid I don't drink coffee. I think I could modify a sandwich toaster to fit, though...
    1 point
  16. I don't know about harmfull microwaves but I'd like to see a kurege coffee maker
    1 point
  17. I removed the back cushions from my seats some time ago. The DeSoto Suburban has coupe-style seats, with folding backs, but the fixed baacks should be similar. Each cushion is held in place with two bolts at the bottom, so it must slide into a restraint at the top. Photos:
    1 point
  18. Why doesn't it want to go above 40 mph? Are there engine problems, or does it just sound busy? My car has the semi-automatic transmission. It upshifts somwhere between 20 and 40 mph, depanding on my foot on the gas, and then I expect another upshift, which never comes. But it will rev up to 60 or even 70 mph. It just sounds busy, but I get used to it.
    1 point
  19. That's the kind of thinking that brought us hot rods. If you can't afford to buy it,make something else work/
    1 point
  20. I agree. I even sometimes misspell words in order to stop it from doing that, or try to find a different word to express the same idea.
    1 point
  21. Before I had my seat reupholstered, I took the bottom frame off of the springs and replaced the cardboard with 3/16" Masonite. It makes a big difference.
    1 point
  22. Yep.. Cadaver embalming fluid... for the deceased.
    1 point
  23. It's embalming fluid ! There are some listed on eBay and google.
    1 point
  24. Yes, Howard Cunningham drove a DeSoto Suburban. Last I heard, it's still around. The top was painted with a dull finish, for cinematic purposes, and there were fluorescent lights inside, for inside shots.
    1 point
  25. Look in the yellow pages and ask the counter guys at your local NAPA store about restorers/antique car club members in your area. I'd be surprised if you can't find one willing to do the brake work and other minor work like that,or who would even be willing to teach you how or work on them with you. You don't need the car at 6 AM every morning to drive to work,so who cares if it takes you a weekend to do a 3 hour job? This is a hobby,not a contest.
    1 point
  26. Linus6948: So was Mikes reply that he would not make good onthe parts. Since he is a forum member i woud have thought that he would have been more accomadating becasue if the parts are as bad as you say he should have asked for the pictures of them and if his other guards were better as he states then he should have reshipped a new set to you. Sorry for the bad experience but the bad taste makes everyone else Leary to deal with hom. Most quality vendors will fix the issue. As you know I sell automotive catalog, One of our forum member purchase a lot of them from me and the other day he wrote to me stating that for some unknown reason some of the files got corrupted. I resent him the files that went bad and he paid me for my postage. When someone purcashes from you, and your item goes bad them you have to make good. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com
    1 point
  27. I'm not rich by any means, but as I get older and less "bendy" I did find a really great general mechanic that I pay to come out and fix what needs fixing from time to time. I still work on the car of course, but I find it money well spent to get a professional involved from time to time....simply because I don't feel like messing with it. I don't feel like its subtracted from my enjoyment of the car one bit.......Hope you hang in there with your car! (PS my brand new Buick left me beside the road the other day in 111F heat. If my Dodge leaves me she at least has a good excuse being 68 years old and I respect that)
    1 point
  28. Don's friend drives his D24 all across the continent with success. I wonder what his maintenance program is? I'm committed to drive my truck to Indianapolis on Route 66 and give it to my daughter. When I do, I will know where every forum member is on that route.
    1 point
  29. Knuckleharley, if I must brag about my 1947 DeSoto Custom Suburban, I must also brag about the interior - chrome and woodgrain dash, woodgrain window moldings. and the Bakelite woodgrain door and inner fender panels. At the car shows, I prop the doors open and the interior draws them like flies to sh... honey!
    1 point
  30. I am 75 and and had toyed with selling my P15 coupe, but then I drive it or take to a car show and find the enjoyment is still there. I don't go as far as I use to or as often. I went to a car show last Sunday and the met a lot of old friends and made some new ones, and that is a big part of what the old car hobby is about for me.
    1 point
  31. On the other hand, we have one that runs: "Why do the Americans have their beer so cold? So you can tell the difference between beer and piss..." But I did also see a gravestone that read, "RIP J Lucas - father of the intermittent wiper."
    1 point
  32. Got my alternator and fan mounted - another step closer!
    1 point
  33. Loving my Truck. Just need to try and get a bit more speed out of her. Getting about 40 mph. 360 Flathead 4 speed. Don't believe you can buy ring and pinions for these anymore can ya. Maybe a 5 speed transplant is in need, would take care of the no syncro tranny also. Anyways sorry for rambling I just wanted to share my truck with the group. Have a great weekend! Scott
    1 point
  34. Just wanted to say to all of you from past to present that have proudly served our country. Thank You. I can speak for my family and say, we will always be in debt to you and will always have your back.
    1 point
  35. Recent trip to Kettleman City, 60 miles one way.
    1 point
  36. New member - - just saved a 1953 1.5 ton from oblivion. Was a tar truck in Shelbyville, Tennessee from new to the 1980s when it was sold off as surplus. The tires and wheels still have tar over-spray on them. Tar tank disappeared and a commercial flatbed has been added.
    1 point
  37. Hello all this is my new toy. Well actually it's been in the family my whole life I rode in this truck as a child. Was recently given this truck by my uncle already this forum has been a help in the last couple days. I was able to fire up the 218 after a 25 year sit very excited to make this truck my own
    1 point
  38. Out of curiosity, I pulled the empty fuel tank out to compare it to spare '52 & '53 fuel tanks. The '52 tank is a bit mashed on the bottom, so I couldn't do an effective side-by-side comparison. I eyeballed the '48 & '51 fuel tanks that are installed, and they look similar to the '52. the '53 tank is a different shape than the '48-'52, and its fuel line port is atop the tank rather than at the lower front. The '53 frames have a different cross-member to accommodate the tank, so putting a '53 tank in a '48-'52 is not a direct swap. The '53 spare tank has an aftermarket sending unit installed that will probably be converted to a plug. the original fuel line on my '49 matched that of my '48, but had been bent to attach to the short line I've shown pictured coming off the '49 tank. I had not handled this tank since '04, so my memory was a little fuzzy as all of my Polaroids of my work have been lost. Looking at the tank for the first time in years from above, I was stumped: this tank is similar but not the same as the '48-'52. I thought maybe the tank had been damaged and a '53 draw tube had been grafted to the tank top to repair it some years ago, but the entire top of the tank is a different shape than the '48-'52. Not only is there a factory installed boss for the draw tube, but there is a factory indentation in the top surface to strengthen this area. Also, there is a sloped section at the filler neck that reduces the cab seal contact area. whatever the differences are, the fuel tank fits and works, so I'll just clean it out, check the sending unit, replace that O-ring, and re-install. The Gas Tank Re-Nu treatment seems to be holding up well, as the fuel that was in there back in '08 didn't leak out but boiled out through the gas cap vent.
    1 point
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