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9-14: Sorry for the long wait between posts everyone. I actually HAVE been driving and doing things with the Meadowbrook, but have been failing to post them. Here's some pics from the Steamboat Days show. I sat next to a Vietnam veteran who had a 38 Chevy. We talked for quite some time before he ended up walking around with his two brothers. Pic 1: my daughter hanging out on the bumper. Don't worry the tailpipe was long cooled by this point! Pic 2: 1938 motorbike...German?? All I know is I loved it ? Pic 3: '60 Desoto. Worthy of a posted pic

Let me explain... It was at his place 20 miles away last week.. It's now in my backyard.. I own it now... The Only way it will EVER see a salvageyard Now is from the working side... under its own power hauling a load in . Long enough to unload.. And right back home again.

A nice weather here today and since it is after Labor Day almost all the tourists have left town. That made it a good day to move the dashcam to the old car and take a drive around the town. https://video.fitchfamily.org/videos/watch/b7185a0a-e150-40e5-97c8-d89e92866036

They're pretty crazy.

I spotted it at the Morris, Illinois Cruise Night. I didn't see the owner so all I have are photos. If it shows up again at the October Cruise Night I will try to find the owner and get some background info.

Austin America that is.....not a Mopar still just as fun. Test cradle I now have fabricated and rigged....fabricated the cold air and filter set up today allowing me to finalized the common air box for the twin H4 carbs and got it matching paint to engine. Been a process but been fun for the most part.......upper rad hose still not been put on nor the oil line connected to the console. But we getting ever so close.....

with Indiana being fairly flatland....the 3:55 would be a good choice.....the 3:27 would like be needed a bit of clutch feathering. Your driving habits will also be part of this...if you rather heavy on the foot on takeoff....you may want to keep what you have....terrain of operation and driving habit only you can rightly decide what is best.....as for the year Explorer...sorry others will pop in for that maybe as I still work with Mopar retrofits...and don't ask which Mopar as these are a bit beyond stock retros.

Agree with the others: That “ping sound” was probably the sound of the plug hitting something as it left the engine compartment. Improperly installed. For what it is worth that happened to me once when I was accelerating on a downhill freeway on ramp before the engine warmed up enough to have the thermostat open. With the closed thermostat and the high RPM on the water pump apparently there was enough pressure in the block (on a nominally unpressurized cooling system) to pop the improperly installed plug.

I don't see any remnants of a plug at all, just the machined step it sets on when installed. As the earlier poster stated,probably not expanded correctly when originally installed.

That's what the engine block core plug hole recess should look like with out the plug installed. Improper installation.. The plug was not expanded enough...

I fully agree!

Please do not let her go to salvage!!!

I'll typically find the lost item when I decide to put the replacement item away "where I'll remember where it is". That's where I find the lost/misplaced item. ?

Not as good as Brent's video, but might be somethin' there to help out. 48D

"Put a load of bricks in it and park the left side in a pothole.....then measure....I bet its more dramatic. Like I say, its probably not as important now as back then....but its still a frame willing to flex under the right situation. 48D August 7, 2018 by 48Dodger" I still stand by my statement from a few years back......

Last time I was in LaCrosse I was in high school. Fond memories of the area.

Or, in a pinch , I’ve used bolts that fit the block cut the head end to the right length and thread to fit the nut.

Take your chance with out the springs. I wouldn't. The manufacturer's spend thousands of hours on R&D.....road track testing.

That truck has no business going anywhere near a crusher. If you can't get a title from the guy,apply for a title based on unpaid storage fees.

A buddy is selling his house & was going to send this to the crusher.. Haven't actually payed for it yet.. But.. It's in My backyard Now so. ? Supposed to be a 49' 1ton stakeside..But It's got a military trailer box sitting on it that's to wide to fit between the duals.

"What's up?" "Not much, just hangin' out on the pad." ?

There is indeed something appealing about the simple dash and compact gauges design. Ya just don’t see many dashes looking so unique. New vehicles are so dull by comparison.

All of these parts are made by Steele Rubber. Everyone just re-sells his parts. I purchase from them. Also, if you replace the steering isolaters ask them to make them up using the "NASCAR" blend as it has a higher durometer value. The stock blend does not hold up. James

Lol, No kiddin, I would have thought in Texas the door handle on the passenger side would have been missing altogether so she couldn’t get away ? ”bow chicka wow wow” ?

I’m impressed you’re getting that sucker back into service mine was so bad I threw away the entire chassis!

My dad always told me that if you cannot find where you put it, it is the same as not having it......and yes, if the item is available and inexpensive...just buy one and be done....and yes...it does seem to appear shortly thereafter.

My opinion, it’s your choice. If it were me I’d use the best “plastic” ones you have until you find a perfect metal set, then swap them. Myself, I like the metal ones. Apparently, even if your friends drive your truck, they probably won’t even notice ?

Lol, your B3/4 membership is about to be revoked. You have driven two of my trucks and didn’t notice? out of seven truck I’ve had, I only had one truck that did not have not the “plastic” (And I pulled them to put on George ?)

I have the additional problem that I sometimes take the tools (or whatever) that i think is here in the house up to my (rented) shop, and then I look in both places, but never know where I used it last. (I've stopped "accusing" family members of taking stuff - too often when it DOES finally show up again, I realize that it was "yours truly" who left it there.) We also still have stuff stored in two different places in Brazil, in two different states, actually. AND, I've also lost stuff in my parents' house back in Oklahoma where I grew up, but the house has now been sold, so unless it got mixed in with my brother's stuff, it's gone forever. But what really gets me is when I set something down, and just a few minutes later cannot find it for the life of me. Once I was looking all over for my glasses, then realized that if I could still see, they must be on my face, which they were.....

Think I found my binding spot today! 2 of the 3 seals arrived and are installed in the main housing. While doing a dry fit with partial seals installed I found this part binding. Suspect a spot of old grease/dirt in there. The darn part I didn't want take apart now, needs tore down for cleaning and inspection. I did end up getting an O-ring (kinda fits) from Napa for the bottom part, and ordering gasket maker to cut another grease seal prior to installation. Still have some concerns with the pitting on the worm gear, but definitely less now what I've verified the binding is coming from. The corn grease arrived too, once I get this bugger marked and tore down, we'll go from there. Thanks. Eric

You sure about that?? i read the parts manual different (part #23-14-19) Love ya man! ?

My latest picture, a few little changes.

Yesterday I went on a drive with my wife to a neighboring town. About 60 miles each way. We took our '38 Royal. Hi-way speeds the whole way. The overdrive was fantastic. We cruised between 55-60 mph. Ambient air about 80F or so. Nice day. Car seemed to run fine. I am not quite happy with the carb still. I need to take it off and deep soak and clean of all the passages. It's actually pretty good, but I am getting picky. On the way home the engine stumbled. Then quickly died. In my opinion it was not behaving like it ran out of fuel. It was like the ignition system just gave up. I coasted to the edge of the road. Glancing for a good pull-out. None were within my reach. I straddled the white line on the 4 lane hi-way. Cement barrier on the edge of the shoulder. On a hill. On a turn. Cars coming up from behind at about 60-65 mph. I was in a precarious and dangerous spot. The left side, 14" or so of my car was in the way of traffic. I quickly gave the starter a shot, turned but no fire. I opened the hood, removed the air cleaner and looked down the carb. I cycled the throttle to watch for fuel by way of the accelerator pump. All good. We had fuel. Next I ran to the driver's side. I dug into the distributor cap. Checked all connections and points. All looked good. I used a multi-tool plier that I keep in the glove box. With key on, I pried the points open and closed. We had spark. Hmm. Scratching my head. Got back in the car. I fired it up and it easily started. I proceeded to drive 10 mins to the next gas station. My fuel gauge works fine. I had about ½ tank. At the gas station I threw in about another 5 gallons for good measure. Doubled checked everything in the fuel and ignition system. Fired it up. Then drove 20 mins home without any issues. When I got home, I checked the dwell, distributor timing, fuel pump, set carb idle and A/F mixture screw for good measure. No issues found. The car starts very well, quickly and idles nicely. Weird. I don't believe I had vapor lock going on. It was not that hot out. Plus I had great airflow at 55 mph. Maybe there is a gremlin in there to be found. Maybe a little flake of something, scale, rust, briefly blocked the fuel flow somewhere? Odd. I shall stay close to town for a while here and see if it acts up again. AAA card is in my back pocket. These odd occurrences only seem to happen when my wife is with me. She's a good sport and laughs it off. So far every time, I get us home under the car's own power. This time I cannot say with confidence that due to my experience, I was able to fix the car and get us home. This week I will find and buy at least one bright orange hazard triangle. The ones with reflective tape. So I can put one out on the road behind me, in the event of a breakdown in a bad spot. To warn upcoming, fast moving traffic. All it takes is a distracted driver not paying attention and I could have been...

I had a coil start going bad on me, at first it would only act up after a long drive. Once it cooled down a bit it'd fire up and run. Eventually, it died long enough for me to figure out it was the coil. A new one fixed it. The real problem in sorting it out was that the coil would get hot, fail, then cool off and work. Initially the cool down time needed was very small, basically time enough for me to poke about under the hood then it'd work when I tried the key.

It ain't a Mopar,but it is a old truck. My all-original 1939 IHC pu,which used to be a semi-daily driver and my choice for trash runs to the dump. Finally got tired of pouring oil into it and had the head milled to stop the leaks. It was so warped oil was running down the sides of the engine. Took .125 off to get it flat enough to seal,and it had an amazing amount of power on the drive home. Until the top tank on the radiator basically blew off,that is. Cheapest estimate I could get on a new radiator was a grand,and that was with me mailing my radiator to them so they would have a pattern. Hate like hell to do it because I wanted to keep it all original (even have the original 2 piece radio!),but I am going to eventually end up just finding something that fits behind the grille shell,and running that. Bought it on impulse from a guy in NK that I went to buy a 1937 Dodge 2 ton truck from to get body parts. Saw the IHC parked in his yard and asked him if it was for sale,how well it ran,and did he have a title to it,and how much he wanted for it. He said "yes" to it all and gave me what I considered to be a good price,so he got it started and drove it up on my trailer. I ended up removing the front axle and fenders from the Dodge,sliding into the bed of my 3/4 ton diesel GMC,and then cutting the chassis off short enough to put the tailgate up. Drove it all over locally for about 2 years before the raditor blew. Tech tip for all of you. Do NOT buy an antique IHC pu unless you are in love with it. Parts are insanely high,and rare. I never drive anything on the road before doing a complete brake job,and using IHC parts numbers the cheapest wheel cylinders I would find were 75 bucks each from an IHC specialist,and who knows how many years they had been sitting on a shelf? So I pulled a front and rear drum,took the numbers off the wheel cylinders,and did a search on Amazon using the parts numbers. Come to find out the old IHC used the same wheel cylinders as 53-55 Corvettes,and I managed to buy 4 new wheel cylinders from ebay for $4.95 each,plus shipping. Forgot where I found the new Master Cylinder,but it was cheap,too. BTW,yes,the windshield DOES crank out. That seems to fascinate the hell out of people under 60 years old.

truck picture B-1-B-108: the smartypants locals thought it'd be fun to put Halloween decorations up during the hottest month of the year

Cosmoline is your friend, lol.

@maokthat sounds right up my alley. If the 4.11 doesn't pan out I'll consider the 4.30. Would be a fantastic low RPM cruiser in town. Where 98% of my driving is done. I have OD for the hi-way on the rare occasion that I go on it. I'm not overly interested in going over 50 mph in a stock car from the 1930's. Sure my Chrysler will certainly go faster, it's just the sudden stop that I think about.

I love the 4.11 or 4.3 diff in my 37 mc Dodge tourer, I drive it like an automatic transmission, very little gear changing around town. Even pull away from standing still in 2nd gear. I can almost come to a stop and it will still pull away It's perfect for my art deco tour, never drive it on the highway.

Yes you can change crank and rods to make your 218 a 230. One other thing you have to change is the flywheel as the rear flange on the 230 crank is thicker than that of the 218. If you don't change flywheels your starter will not engage properly. The other option is to have your 218 flywheel machined to compensate for the extra flange thickness or machine the starter mounting face on your bellhousing. Likely the easiest thing to do would be to just find a 230 and swap it in place of your 218. Should be a direct bolt in swap and nobody would ever know the difference unless they checked the number stamped on the front drivers side of the block just below the head. Heck if you check the number you may find that the engine currently in your car is not the original anyway. Many of the flatheads were swapped out over the years as the old original got tired. I went from a 218 in my 48 Plymouth coupe 95HP stock to a 57 model 230 which was 135HP stock and there was a very distinct seat of the pants increase in power and drivability. As Andy said above an Overdrive or rear gear swap will also help greatly to cruise at highway speeds. I installed a 53 Borg Warner R10 Overdrive in the 48 and it would cruise at 75mph all day long. However, it was a column shift so with your floor shift 37 you might want to look into the T5 swap from an S-10 pickup. The old flatheads can be very reliable engines when built correctly and treated right. They also draw some attention at shows when parked among the sea of small block chevys. Here is the 230 I built for my 48 which I sold a few years back. I now have a 37 Plymouth coupe with a 360/727.

Put a load of bricks in it and park the left side in a pothole.....then measure....I bet its more dramatic. Like I say, its probably not as important now as back then....but its still a frame willing to flex under the right situation. 48D