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Continuing 2024 adventures. After this last winter's work, aside from still running a bit rough before it warms up, the ole Dodge is in finer shape than it has been since we first got it back on the road way back when. We went to a friends' place in Hammond for an afternoon social yesterday. He's a sculptor, not necessarily "famous" but his bronze bust of Joshua Chamberlain is in the U.S. Capital building, and Maine commissioned his work for the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial and the Maine State Peace Officers' Memorial at the State capital in Augusta. They have his works scattered about their property - hence the bronze moose in the background, there are two, one on each side of the driveway. Their property is a photographer's paradise, but not necessarily for automotive themes.

I went and did it again. I FINALLY started to realize that maybe I should "thin the herd" - and I was actually doing it. I sold a couple of old cars and my motorcycle and I was trying to convince myself that I felt good about it. I was actually starting to believe that - BUT THEN IT HAPPENED - AGAIN!!!!! I was innocently browsing Facebook Marketplace (mistake #1) and for some reason I opened an ad for an antique car which I had ZERO interest in - NONE But as I was scrolling through the pictures in the ad (mistake #2) I noticed a car in the background of 2 of the pictures. Of course, I HAD to message the person running the ad asking if he'd be interested in selling the car in the background (mistake #3) I got a reply in a few minutes saying "Yes, he'd sell it, and when would I like to come see it. I immediately replied that the next morning would be a good time to go look at the car (mistake #4) The next morning I go look at the car (mistake #5) and now as they say - "The rest is history" It's a 1949 Chrysler Woody - 1 of 850 made. Picture after a little cleaning

If my starter ever needs replaced I will have my son do it. He needs the character, lol.

took a few minutes after mowing the lawn today to drive a couple of the cars....

Passing along some research info. I looked at various bolts to replace the oe cylinder head bolts, all seem to use a smaller hex head. I wanted some with the stock size head 11/16, necked down like the original style. I've found an option for the cylinder head bolts that have 11/16 hex size. Original application was for an olds 350 v8. Dorman part number 675-060, sold in sets of ten per package - about $20 at Summit. Slightly longer than original, but work perfect even with a .070 milled head. Only a minor mod needed for the three bolts that go into the intake ports, grind to shorten them or use a hardened washer. Hope this is useful to others.

A legendary attribute of early Rolls-Royce Motorcars was the ability to balance a coin on the radiator whilst the engine was purring quietly. While there is neither a R-R or 5-shilling coin in this video, here is friend Jerry's 1950 Plymouth with a Canadian Loonie riding the fresh air vent, radiator and cylinder head!

I am honored to have my 52 Cranbrook featured in the June 15th edition of Old Cars Weekly.

As I noted earlier in this thread, I generally plan to have the ol' Dodge out in May. Roads are usually clear of salt and the weather is cooperative. For the past several years, the first sojourn has been to take the missus out for the Mothers Day breakfast at the Houlton Lodge of Elks, and this year, after always thinking "gee, that would make a nice picture", I actually finally took a picture. This Lodge building was already 40 years old when our car was new, oldest original Elks Lodge in the State of Maine.

I had a gf once that I referred to as Wide Load...she was 5', 120# soaking wet...she knocked over a wobbly end table with her caboose one day not long after we met, she had a very small apartment that had way too much stuff in it...she would be simultaneously irate and amused whenever I would refer to her as such an obstacle to traffic and pedestrians alike...she eventually ran off with a millionaire, then reappeared after a few years to apologize over a steak lunch...good times A few months later, I met a gal that had an 18yr old Toyota that was falling apart, a Matrix she bought new that her daughter named Car-E before she was in grade school. That Toyota had flaking paint, rotting plastic, smelled like feet presumably from a leaky windshield gasket, a wobbly driver seat, and a dash digital clock that I swear on several occasions counted backwards, as if a warning that it's time was nearly up. CEL and rough running had her asking me to give it an exam, I replaced the O2 sensors and warned her that with 190k on the odometer, that she had gotten her money's worth. I eventually persuaded her to invest in a new Subaru CrossTrek, as used car prices were so high that a new car payment was cheaper than a used car payment. This Subaru was almost the same size and color with very similar interior layout, but had gizmos like bluetoof connectivity and a backup camera that she had never used before. She wanted to name the car but couldn't come up with anything that would stick. I would gripe when I drove it that it's lane departure warning was assisted with a steering wheel that seemed to have a mind of its own, which was very annoying on some of the twisty roads near her place; it was like that car kept trying to go into the ditch randomly. I told her several times to look up in her owner's manual to find the setting to disable that, cuz it would freak her out on the occasions when she worked late at night. Eventually, her new TX plates showed up, starting with SPZ...she thought it was short for SPITZ, some cute doggie, but I said it was SPAZ, your car's name is SPAZ...it totally fit as the car seemed to beep and steer itself unexpectedly. She did not want to name her car SPAZ, but one evening I was driving her to dinner and while she was telling me some story about her day's annoyance, I drifted across the white line, the car beeped at me and she annoyingly blurted out SHUTUP SPAZ and started laughing cuz she knew I did that on purpose on that straight as an arrow stretch of highway...so the name stuck

just wanted to say thank you for the previous posts about steering gear box adjustment. the cap unscrewed easily and the star washer lifted right off. it is even marked this side up. we adjusted it to just a nibble of free play. it made a huge improvement. we filled the steering box with really good quality grease. thank you again for all the posts that help us all fix our cars and trucks.

If you have an original pump I’d rebuild it. We’ve all had problems with the pin walking out on the new pumps. Since I’m a machinist I plan on making a new pin for mine. I’ll have a shoulder on one end and I’ll drill the other end for a cotter pin.

Rebuilding gets ya new rubber on the original style pumps that do not fall apart like the new pumps. https://p15-d24.com/links/

hopefully any time I see Stick and Mud associated with house building, it will be the last names of the contractors. 👷‍♂️

My love of old cars started with the Model T. I have a 27 Roadster and a few others. The Model T driving experience is not one I’d offer to just anyone however! I sold a 27 tudor to a guy and gave him the whole driving lesson. A week later I got an email describing how he pressed down on the low pedal thinking it was the brake, drove into another car then took his foot off the pedal. I am glad he didn’t send me a photo. My philosophy of old cars is we are stewards of them for the time we have with them. They can certainly out live us if we are careful with them or we can destroy them in a split second. When you consider the history of the world since your 26 was made it is remarkable that it is still here, let alone the human race. When someone goes on about how they want to put their Plymouth body on an S10 chassis, I cringe. That ole Plymouth could live on for decades and still be a nice car. Once someone “modernizes” it, it has taken a big step to the scrap yard. Consider the car magazines of the 1950s. Where are all those “Customized” cars that graced the magazine covers now? Survivor cars got that way because of the stewardship of a chain of owners. In some cases it was just benign neglect that contributed. Cherish your old car and it may out live you!

In my mad mind there is only one way to operate an Overdrive, that is as the factory intended. The thing is called Automatic Overdrive for a reason. It works so well without drama when installed properly I just don't understand why anyone would jury rig one, except ignorance of how to wire one properly. I've never stopped looking for easier cheaper cleaner ways to do it right. Throttle switches are way over priced from suppliers who think they have you over a barrel. At $125 I think that is obscene. I found a seller on eBay who had hundreds of military surplus bus door switches that do exactly the same thing as the reproductions and even looks the same for $6.50 ( I bought 10 for gifts to friends ) The reproductions are really floor switches for Ford products anyway. The MoPar switch is smaller and fits on the carburetor. Those can be had from the Studebaker guys for around $35 but you need to make a simple bracket and rig a lever on the carburetor throttle ( or find an Overdrive ready carburetor ). My latest and greatest find is a small switch with a pull cable from a Nash/AMC for $21. I really like this one as it is so clean and simple. Since you connect it to the lever that comes from the foot pedal its action is really smooth and effortless. You can change carburetors and manifolds without re-engineering how you trigger the switch. Then there's the relay, another obscenely priced item at $125. If you have changed to 12 volts one of the little Bosch style cube relays will work nicely for about $2.50. I like my 6 volt cars and found the same thing made in Germany for 6 volt for $18, but I am told the 12 volt version will work with 6 volts if you get the high amp version. The last thing is how to wire it. If you have a shop manual there's a description which also has the color the wires should be in there. Seems to me the only valid reason for not having a shop manual is illiteracy ( trust me I am not joking on this. Literacy is still a major problem especially in auto repair ) I have found that sometimes the Plymouth manual is short on an explanation and photos so I have all the MoPar manuals for the era of my Plymouth. But then I love shop manuals. I am the person your Mom told you about who reads technical manuals for entertainment. lol Anyway that's my two cents. If it works as intended you are not dependent on "Driver technique" and you can let anyone drive your car ( but why would you let anyone drive your car? )

I think you are right @p15-1948 the larger ratchet head won’t fit down around the curvature of the cast starter nose come. There is a bright side to all the cussing and fighting with said starter bolt. It builds character, confidence and experience in us. Also removing the starter was a lot easier than replacing the engine rear crank seal and oil pan gasket. You’ll learn why and more details on that in my next upcoming You Tube video. Coming soon.

Lost is the Polaroid that captured the softball sized ball of goo that I removed from the oilpan of the '49 that had been parked in The Panhandle/w.OK region for 20yrs...ended up patching a driveway pothole with that gritty gunk.

well, maybe always carry the wife so she can push start the truck.....other than that man you do what you have to do....😄

I assume that you are in Australia...........why?.............your use of the Oz only term "Kew" in reference to the 25" Chrysler/DeSoto sourced engine which was referred to as a "Kew" engine due to its being ordered thru the British Mopar company in KEW England.........the engines AFAIK were supplied from the Canadian Mopar company as they all used 25" engines exclusively from the late 30's. Using the "kew" term in any dealings with the Yanks & Cannuks is generally not recommended as they probably will have no idea what a Kew engine is.........they are basically the same as their 250cube/25" engines. When I was building an ex Sydney airport tug 230 cube 23" engine I had a 1/2 race cam ground by Waggotts in Lismore but I understand they are no longer in business..........I'd be contacting any of the cam grinders listed in magazines like Oz Street Machine, Restored Cars magazine, engine rebuilders and the like...........I know this doesn't help but here a pic of the Waggott ground cam and the 23" finned head I got from Earl Edgerton...I intended to run twin carbs & a split header system in the 1941 Plymouth which I stupidly sold as well as selling the engine & all parts.................sometimes I do stupid things........lol.....the guys that bought Earl Edgertons finned head busines might still be on here......also try Vintage Power wagons and George Ashe in the USA BUT don't say its a "KEW".......just tell them its a 25"/250 engine.............lol..........regards from Sunny South Grafton.....Andy Douglas

I think you're over thinking it. The road draft tube is to get rid of crank case gases. The later engines had a pcv in place of the road draft. It's the perfect place for such a device.

Congrats! It's good to see that our P-23's are finally getting the recognition they deserve.

When reassembling the gas tank straps, I recommend using anti-seize grease on the threaded end of the straps. It will make future work much easier!

we have to Keep him humble guys Although I have showed this before, I like the custom job he did for me as well Keep up the “ok” work Keven 😂

Keven did a awesome job, got them back a few weeks ago but life threw the family and I some unexpected challenges...but here in all their glory is the cluster he reworked and sent back...looks great! now to finish the rest of the truck. super professional looking.

Often, it's not the snchros themselves. It is the spring and ball and detent that locate the shift rod and keep it there! It isn't that bad rebuilding these transmissions. I found most the parts I need on Ebay and I've collected a few other sources that I'm happy to pass on.

If ambient temps are very hot outside, a different thermostat won’t make it run any cooler if the cooling system cannot remove enough heat. You could run no-thermostat, a 140, a 160 or a 190 rated one. Won’t matter much. They’ll all be wide open trying to allow as much coolant to flow as possible. If you like you can run without any thermostat and see what results you get. Just to learn. I always recommend you run with a thermostat in a healthy cooling system. It allows your engine to heat up faster. Reduces carbon build up and oil sludge. Runs at proper efficiency sooner. When it’s 100+ outside, once your thermostat opens its probably not closing again. “Engine was repaired”. Meaning what? What was done and who did it. I’ve seen people “rebuild” a flathead Mopar and not remove the pounds of scale and sediment in the block. When new rad, waterpump, hoses etc was installed, did you drive around for a while with the rad cap off? Let the coolant get hot and burp? Get all the air out of the system? I can drive my flathead and see 180 all day. Then park it and within minutes watch the temp gauge rise to over 200. It’s totally normal for a fully warmed up engine to do this. Especially noticeable on a hot summer day.

I looked in my Autostat Temp gage catalog here are screen prints of their thermostats. you should be using the 75-fht or the 95-fht model. refer to the second and third screen shot. The 3rd page show what each thermostat looks like. I think you might have an incorrect stat in your car according to the picture you posted versus what this major supplier of thermostats produced from early 1930 - 1950. I would go by his information. Just some FYI for you. This is why i stress the collection of older catalogs to support your hobby of older cars. Hope this solved your heating issue. Rich hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

First of all, it is ok for the temp to climb up when you idle at the stop light or shut the car off. Second of all, it is damn hot in Florida right know 😅 so running a bit on the high side is to be expected. Third - are you sure that you are actually overheating? Did you measure the engine/coolant temp with the thermometer, or are you just going by the dash? And lastly - what kind of thermostat did you use? I had the wrong type installed in my car by the PO. When the thermostat was opening, it was actually closing the radiator loop.

Moved the free engine for the ‘51 farm truck out of the shop to scrape, steel brush, degrease and pressure wash it. I think I removed enough crap to fill a 2 lb coffee can. I also removed the 5 freeze plugs - wow. The crud totally covered the 2 lower plugs - rust, calcium carbonate, and Stop Leak. On top of that, during the replacement of one of the lower plugs (photo attached) the mechanic knocked the old plug in the water jacket and left it. That one was a challenge to de-crud and get the ancient plug out. I dug a lot of crap out by hammering a screwdriver into it. Then I used the pressure washer. Took over an hour to finally get clear water with no chunks.

Had time to pull the head today. Black soot, not greasy. Thinking it was run very rich before it went to the boneyard. One stuck valve, freed it up with PB Blaster. Cyl walls could use a dingle-ball hone. Slight ridge at top of cyinder. Pistons are stamped “060” when read from the valve side. Need to pull oil pan and see what the lower end looks like.

Sounds like you lock nut isn't locking like it should be. This let's the lash open up.

Our car on the set of Das Boot Season 2. Filmed in Liverpool England 2019

I like it! I'm following your lead, but with blue. I had the dash powder-coated since it would get the most abuse, and based my color choice on what Rustoleum had in their color selection "library" that I could spray all the other interior parts, like steering column, garnish moldings, etc. I may clear them for additional protection, but the nice thing is that if you get scratches, you can easily touch them up.

You can make a pressure bleeder from a small garden sprayer with a bit of creativity and shade tree engineering. I have the motive pressure bleeder but it may be over your budget. Getting a spare leg to pump the pedal while you open bleeders is the lowest cost option.....unless it comes with residual expenses.... 😄

A picture of the Southern Lights from the farm tonight. About 7.30pm, late autumn. Not usually visible at our latitude but quite magnificent tonight. Next pic shows the daytime vista from a similar place on the farm. Not sure why it is so strong tonight but I think the Northern Lights are putting on a show for you guys up north. Haven't seen this before in my 65 years...

The cause of the backfire. The guy who came over gave a convincing explanation of how the carb could be the cause and it def needed a rebuild. In any event, the carbs back in, I've put in new plugs, cap/rotor and she's starting right up and running smooth with no issues so far.

Bump. With my recovery from my '68 going on 20' broken ankle actually going well, I was able to get out yesterday and put on some miles. This is at the local BP station where the DuKane ABATE chapter held their Motorcycle Awareness Day shindig. It's pretty much a bunch of old bikers holding up signs telling drivers to put their phones down...and cops writing tickets for the same.

I'm going to agree with this, I have a 1951 engine the crank is stamped 10/10 .... the bearings have no markings though.

Check out my fuel pump thread from last year. Fuel Pump Upgrade Rebuilt stock pump with ethanol resistant rubber was $35 + shipping. he still had a bunch of them as of a few months ago. I bought 2.

I traded a 2010 Road King Classic. Yes everything works, but I am wanting it to be almost a daily driver.

Depending on hos handy you are just about any 1bbl carb can be fitted up. But in general, the Carter is a good carb.

It's clear that the authors of that article know doodlysquat. Chrysler was building Hemis for the war effort, long before Duntov made his setup. I present to you the Chrysler IV-2220 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler_IV-2220

ROAD TRIP: You've been on quite the tour of northern TX in search of Dodge trucks... !

A beautiful example of a Special Deluxe! You notice the only reason the coin fell over was the torque of the engine when it was revved up.

VINTAGEPIC: saw this Dodge on the FB

Following up on what I ended up doing with my A/C system as outlined in post 1. Took my old compressor off and dumped the oil. It was clean and looked good. No failure in compressor. The original compressor on my car was a vane type. Prone to shorter life than a radial piston type. I ordered a brand new radial piston compressor off Rock Auto. It was prefilled with PAG oil. The proper amount they claimed. I installed the new compressor and re-installed hoses. I got way down under the dash and replaced 2 cabin fresh air intake filters. I booked an appointment at the A/C shop. Told them that I recently installed a new compressor and last year a new condenser and receiver dryer. I asked them to remove the new compressor and drain it. Install the correct about of oil. Replace o-ring seals. Pressure up system and test for leaks. They found none. They Sucked the system down for a while and refilled it with refrdigerant. Installed a new Compressor drive belt. They told me it blows ice cubes out the dash now. I agree. System works very well. I saved a ton by buying my own new condenser, dryer and compressor,then installing them myself. They had no issue with me doing that myself. Good guys to deal with. I'll be recommending them. Happy to say I'll be cool this coming summer!

Some history on the oilite bearing developed by Chrysler and Carl Breer the designer of the airflow: Below id the correct way to install a pilot bushing in our old MoPar's. There isa a special tool used to install and to burnish the bearing. Note that it aso states not to ream the bearing. I have this tool and several of my Mopar friends have use the tool. You can sometimes fined this tool on Ebay. Another great engineering product from the Chrylser Motor Division and everyone thinks GM/FORD are the best, Think again you FURD and Chebby owners. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

Really nice truck! I dunno, I think a good soaking with PB Blaster will free her up!

As Paul Harvey would comment, and now the rest of the story....."90% of all ford pickups are still on the road today", the other 10% made it back home.

Sounds like desoto1939 doesn’t understand hotrodding… Cars to normal folks are simply transportation. Hotrods are an extension of the owner. It’s a canvas to express yourself on. Simple or wild and everywhere in between. Dual carbs, dual pipes, lumpy cam, finned head, staggered rubber, chrome reverses, baby moons, spider caps, cheaters, pie crusts, lake pipes, steep gears, primer paint, candy paint, flames or hand laid pin stripes, and more. Nobody does these things with concern for the environment, comfort or good fuel economy!!! Hotrodders get it, everyone else looks at us like we are crazy! We do it because it’s what we love. Everybody knows when building a hotrod, don’t save the receipts and never tell your wife how much you spent!