55 Fargo

Hey Paul, you ever do a "burn out" with your truck. Kinda like the body finish, it kinda grows on you after a spell...

You know Jeff, I gotta concur. These trucks ride pretty decent when the springs and suspension and all of there parts are in good well maintained condition. My 55 108 wb, is lighter, but still rides very nicely on a smooth surface, maybe going over railway tracks and down rutted gravel roads she is a bit of a beast. I do not agree that the frame and/or front clip must be changed to be safe and comfortable. I would agree those changes are superior, but the stock set-up is not in itself inferior. I fully believe the weak spots are the following, #1 the brakes, #2 the differential gearing, #3 the transmissions, not that the latter 2 items are weak, they are just designed for slower moving work......PS it ain't never going to ride, handle or power like my 2015 hemi Ram truck, and why would I want it too.....

I find these trucks steer and handle nicely if all is tight and in good form. As mentioned, there are a few vendors who can supply you with a very straight forward front disc brake conversion, and it won't bankrupt you, Rustyhope, ECI, and Scarebird are a few. Which engine do you have?, the 218 or 230, how do you find the performance change with dual carbs and exhaust, did you change the cam profile and shave the head too? I love these old trucks, and it's a nice change from my Ram 1500 with a 395 hp Hemi with 6 spd trans, that truck is crazy fast, at least for me....

Well you could always sell this truck, and build another more suitable to your needs. That way you can cruise at higher speeds to those car shows. Yup we in the capital region have 800000 people and the drivers to deal with, yours is about 50000, but the Trans Canada highway is busy, I find this very light duty compared the bigger cities in Canada and the US.... I have no idea what I am going to do with mine in the future, but for the time being it will stay flathead.....

Well have driven hwy 59 north of Winnipeg to Grand Beach, and the Perimeter around Winnipeg, at 55-60 mph not much issue.The trouble with those smaller 2 lane highways is they are 100 kph posted, and some are downright busy, they should be twinned but the province is behind times, example Hwy 8 to Gimli, extremely busy at times. Your area of Manitoba is lightly populated and with the exception of The #1 Hwy, you must experience relatively light traffic most of the time. I totally agree that these trucks were not meant to drive 70+ mph, with the stock set-up....PS we are lucky in this area as traffic moves slower and is no where near as heavy as some other areas of this country and the USA.

Hey all, after reading the thread on engine swap/upgrading. Some of the comments has sparked some question to the continued practical use of the "Chrysler Flathead" engine in today's modern high speed traffic world. There are some on here who believe these engines might not be the best choice, and that some type of V8 is the best way to go, whether that be a SBC or strictly a Mopar only power plant. Building and hopping up a flattie engine, can be a bit costly, and the HP increases are modest, but the "Kool" factor is still there. I did start a Mopar flathead high performance thread a while back, and it was quite a lively thread, these engines can certainly be built, but the expense and return, might not be attractive to some. I did buy a 318 LA engine this spring, it may or may not go into my 55 Fargo, time will tell, if not it will go into something else maybe my Son's fox body Mustang.....LOL I personally cannot see why these engines, if in good tune, in a car or truck that has good suspension/steering and brakes, cannot be driven at fairly decent highway speeds, without going bankrupt in the process. I do not resign to the notion, that Dakota frames or having IFS is a must, or without these, you cannot get along in today's traffic. I did speak to another Mopar guy a while back, he all but said the old trucks with stock drivetrains and suspension were of no use for modern use, and going modern everything but the body, was what is needed to drive anywhere in a decent time and in comfort. I enjoy the feel and drive in my old truck, it could be better, and more power would be nice, I do not need a 300 HP plus V8 , but 175-200 hp would be a nice increase in power. Anyway, share your thought and opinions on this topic, lets get it all out in the open, "Pro and Con".....

I always liked your "Yeller" truck Reg, did not realize it had a big block 251 in it. I also find my 251 with 3.23 rear gears still does not allow the use of granny 1st gear, except for maybe stump pulling. I have no troubles getting this truck up to 65 plus mph either/ How fast are you cruising with yours? There are a few on here that are convinced these trucks and flatheads in general are only good for 50 mph. The old solid axle front end, can be not bad if all is in good condition , king pins, tie rod ends, steering gear etc. I have a 318 LA engine, but have no immediate plan to swap her into the Fargo, might put it onto sons 1991 Fox Body Mustang......LOL and put a 283 SBC and powerglide into my truck, another..................LOL

I use Canola oil, sometimes Crisco......

Yup, that would be "liveable", hey look on the bright side, less driving in summer, more in winter, when we can't this far north from October to April.....

yup, the facts of life in a high temperature, high humidity area. Combined with a high engine load/speed, underhood temps, voila, bubbling hot gasoline. How is your heatriser flap, is it free, and in the correct position allowing hot exhaust gas to flow freely out. I have made a heat shield under my carb, this helps too, will post pics later. Would you believe your problem has been my problem way up here in Canada, when it's 85-95 out with a humidex reading off the map. Some have had good luck with an auxiliary electric fuel pump, to be used for hot starts, and after the car has sit for long periods of time. I hope your new battery helps to resolve this for you, hey carry a squirt bottle of water and spray the fuel pump when it gets good and hot, might help. The truth is the fuel percolates in the carb too, and cause issues when the engine restarts until things clear a bit.....

16" -21" at idle for a stock engine, or a mild cam performance change, should yield a steady reading of 16"-21". radical high perf cam profiles will result ina lower somewhat unsteady vacuum reading at idle...... I would think Mr Edgy shall be able to confirm what's to be expected vaccum and idle readings after this stock cam has been altered....

This is true, but on a custom application, getting 1 of these modules to stay cool, with a good heat sink, and the use of thermal paste may be a solution. I have no idea, as I have not tried this conversion idea, but it does appear, that OEM locations and subsequent replacements can and will fail when heated up... http://www.howardsupply.com/ford-merkur-xr4ti/ford-merkur-tfi-module-problems.htm I guess we both know how to do a quick Google search Plymmy

I find it strange no one has tried the conversion employing a Ford TFI module, at least to see if it works well or not. That conversion of course must be 12 volt neg grnd, but it appears so simple, and possibly reliable. it uses the OEM dizzy, the points merely act as a triggering device not a switching device, with on spark jumping, the module takes car of all that, the points should theoretically never wear out. I will try this conversion, and report findings on this forum....

Hey Morgoon, yes the C series trucks are different from the frames up, the boxes will fit though. The C series front frames are curved different, and the cabs mount lower too. So your 52 cab will have to be played with to sit on this frame. The C series front frames, are a lot easier for a V8 transplant, as they were designed to have V8s from the factory, the steering boxes do not interfere with a V8 like the B series, the master cylinder is under the floor, and not in the way either.

Here is another electronic ignition conversion, using a Ford module and the OEM points. This you need to be 12 V negative earth though..... http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/points-to-electronic-ignition-cheap-easy.417099/

go to the "Potholder" in Long Beach, great breakfast, might be on Broadway........

yup, that'll woyk......

Yup, they work well, yes it can be mounted in the fan path, but they still get hot, just the nature of the beast.... PS in cold weather, it ain't gonna be a problem having this resistor heat up, adds to the warmth in the vehicle.....

Beautiful piece of work Tim. Should work very well too...

What is the measurement from the bottom front of your rear fender to bottom rear of your front fender, that should give you a clear indication of the similarity or differences. Have you done any research on Google, or in the Pilothouse Knowledge website? maybe there are answers there, as it seems nobody on here has a B series 108 wb truck they can take a measurement from.....good luck will post any info i find

only 2 ways to make this work correctly. 1) use a 7 wire signal stat, this will allow the brake lights and signal lights to work as a team, this would also allow you to have the trunk mounted stop lamp to come on when you hit the brakes. This will allow you to use the brake lights and signal lights at the same timer correctly and safely. 2), you need some homemade relay circuits for each of the tail light assemblies, again this allows signals and brakes to be used correctly at the same time. You need the schematic and elctronic know how to make these. Or as Shel mentioned, you add 2 auxiliary tail lights for stop lamps and use the oem tail lights for lights and signals......good luck

The C series 108 inch WB trucks, appear to have running boards that are 60 inches in length. I am not sure how long the B series boards are..

will post this tonight when I get home from work, as it appears not too many else appear to have the C series models....

They might interchange, the C series running boards could be shorter to accommodate the bigger rectangular C series fenders.

Hmmm , you know I have never even had my truck over 2600 rpm or so, no where near 3200-3500, that must be a screamin demon..