keithb7

Not a bad suggestion Ken, but 2nd gear has been tried as well. To no improvement. Higher RPMS, and no better cooling was offered. I don't lug my engine. All the factors add up it seems: Long steep hill up to 11% grade 80F-105F summer weather New re-cored 2-row rad Clean rad fins Clean, good condition stock 4 blade fan No airflow obstructions 4 blade belt driven fan 7 psi rad cap 50/50 glycol & water Sparkling clean brass water distribution Tube Block removed, hot tanked. Like new inside. Engine rebuilt New Water pump New Hoses New Belt New Thermostat Various ignition timing trials, no improvement No engine lugging It's just dang hot and the engine is working hard. My current cooling system cannot expel BTUs as fast as the engine makes them, under my summer conditions. On a hot summer day, if I want to drive my car after 9am and before mid-night, something in the cooling system has to be improved. Wetter water is an options but it still gets hot. Just won't boil over. A larger diameter fan pulley would likely help. A new 3 core rad and an electric fan would help. A full shroud would surely help. I am not against trying these, but a 6V electric fan I am skeptical about. 12V would do much better, yet I am not convinced I want to convert my 6V stock system. A 6V alternator could likely drive a 6V fan easily. Yet as @Sniper mentions, nobody seems to readily share 6V fan air flow specs. They just want to sell you a fan! It's all over in about another month. The summer heat gone. Then I'll be begging for a reduction in airflow and and hotter thermostat.

I discovered something today. New to me so I thought I’d share. My ‘38 Plymouth had a 15” diameter fan. I noticed a spare fan in my parts pile. 17” diameter. Then I measured my ‘38 Chrysler fan. It’s 18”. I did not stop to ponder various mopar fan diameters. I just installed the 17” in my Plymouth. I performed a simple before and after airflow test. A piece of paper on the front side of the rad. Engine at idle. The 17 is definitely pulling more air. Especially out at the further edges of the rad. Its about 95F here now. Went for a big hill climb test. No better. She cannot keep cool in these ambient temps while climbing slow up the steep winding road.

If you do some research you'll see the same Gemmer made steering gear boxes were used also in old Ford cars. The Ford aftermarket is huge compared to old Mopars. I studied the Ford parts and found precisely the same parts were used in my old Plymouth gear box. I bought them out of California. Warning, stay away from "The Early Ford Store". The owner with a great reputation passed away and incompetence has taken over. I cannot seem to recall exactly which business I bought the parts from. Initially I did reach out to Argentina. They did respond with good service. However I did source good quality replacement parts in the USA. All parts but 1 were an exact fit. The cover gasket needed a little cut with a hole punch. 1 bolt hole elongated slightly to fit. No leaks and like new steering again!

Great to see you figuring this out. We've all been there and have fond memories of completing similar tasks. I suppose the memories are embellished for many of us as the end reward was so satisfying. That's a nice new looking engine hoist. Aside from the color, the design and parts look identical to mine. Not there to see your job, but wondering...Could you just hoist the engine up high. Choke-up any lifting chains. Lower your truck's tail gate and back right under the slung engine? Lower your engine onto some staged wood blocks. Then ratchet strap it down to the 4 corner tie-downs in your truck box? Might be easier than trying to push/pull the hoist with engine on it up the sloped ramp. A cheap ratchet come-a-long would earns it's keep here if you are alone.

Just confirming that you are not planning to tap any ⅛ pipe threads in the main oil pressure gallery. Its too late for that in my opinion. You do those threads before the block gets hot tanked. You cannot afford to risk metal, dirt and rust entry into the oil gallery. That would be very bad.

Its been so hot in this mountainous area, I’ve been driving my Mopars very little. We have been seeing 100F for the past week. The big hill home packs a punch to the cooling systems on both of my cars. This morning I got up before the sun to hit the roads and grab a coffee. Nice and cool, about 72F. I’ve missed enjoying them. I wish I could say say the cars have benefited by maximizing my time in the garage. Not so. The garage hits 100 each day as well. Small projects have me leaking worse than an old radiator. Next week we are expecting a cooling period. Very quiet out here this morning. Nice. Very nice.

When I have to go the store to buy brass fittings or plugs I always buy extra and store them in my storage containers. Inverted flare, pipe, 90 deg, straight etc. Lots of them in our old Mopars.

Hook up oil pressure gauge. Remove coil wire at distributor so engine cannot start. Crank over engine and watch oil pressure gauge. You should build pressure while cranking. Do not start engine unless you have oil pressure. No pressure? Remove and prime oil pump and repeat process.

@Happy 46Rafter a decent, thorough engine rebuild up here in Canada, I ended up at about $5,300 Canadian. Doing all the labor myself except machining. All New pistons & rings new cam & all tappets new timing gears and chain All new valves new mains, rod and cam bearings piston pins & bushings, c-clips all new seals and gaskets Rebuilt generator bored cylinders over crank mains .010 under. Rods .001 polish valve grind & lap Head milled & new head bolts block & head hot tanked & crack checked Con-rods tested & re-used new oil pump speedi-sleeve front crank seal area Parts were ordered and in-hand by March 2020 I think it was. (the pandemic period is a bit blurred). I’m sure parts prices are up considerably since then. The above price included about $400 in extortion fees. (the border crossing mafia collectors)

I have used fel-pro head gaskets. Several times. In my 53 Chrysler, 38 Plymouth and 38 Chrysler. I have no complaints. They work well. I do like to coat them with Permatex copper spray.

If you own and plan to maintain the old Mopar I recommend you consider acquiring a Mity-Vac evacuation pump system. Works awesome for: Cleaning out oil filter housing Priming fuel lines. Bleeding brakes evacuating master cylinder Sucking oil out of diff housing fill plug. So you don’t disturb gasket. Sucking out tranny oil cleanly if wanted. And many more uses! Love mine and use it on all cars. Not just old mopars. A great investment.

As a spare engine, you’ve got a lot to work with there. Plenty of good spare parts. Carb, manifolds, generator, distributor, starter and lots more. I’ve salvaged many a part from my spare engine. Spare parts really save you a lot of time and money. Just recently I needed a cylinder head. I had one. Imagine the potential freight costs on that hunk of metal.

This is the story of a very dedicated flathead-era Mopar enthusiast. Bryan, nobody can you aren't motivated. Over here I am trying to decide if it's worth my time to drive 3 hours each way in an air conditioned modern truck, to pick up a Mopar engine for under $100. Then go for a leisurely swim in the very warm Osoyoos lake while I am there. Stop at a few fruit stands. Grab an ice creme cone. Maybe have the meatloaf & mashed potatoes dinner at the "Home Restaurant" on the trip back home. You're making me feel a little guilty over here. Maybe as a reward for your hard work, I'll buy an extra ice creme cone for you, and eat it on your behalf. To help keep you motived here's the lake where the engine is .?

I find the old style skimny bias tires at low 20’s psi tend to fight me on the twisties. I up’d the pressure to 30 psi. She does follow the road seams like a trout up a stream. But I am ok with that. I push her pretty hard up a twisty road home. So 30 psi it is for me.

Yes, although synthetic has higher qualities under extreme heat or cold, it may come with other unexpected qualities. I have experienced additional oil leaks and more oil entry into the cylinders (burning oil) when using synthetic oil in other older vehicles. I see no reason to run it in a flathead engine. I run a thicker detergent oil for the dog days of summer. The typical flathead engine is a far cry from high performance and extremely tight tolerances. Non-synthetic oil will be just fine if oil changes are done at regular planned intervals when using a vintage car for typical driving. If I were going to the Arctic in January, or the equator area in June towing a trailer, I'd certainly consider running synthetic oil under those conditions.

I had no success with the grease idea. I even cut a groove in a perfect sized bolt, to hold an o-ring. To seal in more grease when I pounded it with a hammer. No go. I bought at $20 puller. It fit in there with the bell housing still in place. Easy peasy with the $20 tool.

Thanks for joining in @Desert Rat. That's a great car. That is the first time I have seen a photo of a coupe's back seat. Mine does not have a back seat. My spare tire is back there. Also a storage shelf.

I just researched this. The 251 25” head combustion chamber holds 100 ml of oil. The 218 (Canadian) 25” head holds 85 ml of oil. 15% smaller. The 218 head is going on the 251 engine this week! 15% more compression? Not quite. 15% more heat to disperse? Likely. FYI the waterpump comes off to check water distribution tube.

New head gasket. New Thermostat housing gasket. Little water neck 90 gasket. Drain and save coolant for reuse. Break a head bolt. Damage mechanical temperature gauge bulb upon removal. Ether is now gone. DOA. Next, you end up getting in there and testing valve seat seal-ability. New Intake manifold gaskets. New Exhaust manifold gaskets. New Carb mounting gaskets. Then the valve lap ensues. Followed by a complete carb disassembly and ultrasonic soak. Full new carb kit and reassembly. But hey, that’s just what happens to me when I try to upgrade to the cooler looking “Spitfire Head”.

Well another $2k in this engine will get you started. ?

Are you planning to closely inspect the newly acquired engine, then decide if you’ll make it a runner? Or are you considering a complete rebuild?

Figure out if you have taper wear. You likely do. How much taper? Take good measurements then come up with a plan upon review. The quick easy solution is not just popping-in 0.002 bearings on the crank as it sits now.

If you used plasti-gauge, a long enough strip should give you a good visual on any tapered wear.

Mic the crank is the way to go. For some of us rookies, I find that taking 6 or so readings with a mic on the crank, remove and re-set the mic each time. Write down your 6 measurements. Add them all up and divide by 6 should get you a good average. A difference .002 to .004 can be easy to get a bad reading. If I recall main bearing is 2.5", rod bearing 2 ⅛". What was your oil pressure?

It is amazing the driver overlooked the fact he was riding the brakes to hold the car back from a sticking throttle. Maybe there was pressure to get the scheduled video production done? The host and film crew were there and ready. It was go time. Pride and pressure combined maybe. Who knows. A very unfortunate outcome. Hindsight here is painful. In advance of the drive they talked about the brakes. They discussed sitting on the shoulder belts instead of wearing them. The car damage is easy to deal with compared to the personal injury. New front teeth. Probably pins drilled in the driver’s elbow too. Massive servings of humble pie served.