Bbdakota

Who's to say the second machine shop is right? These things don't have to be perfect, they will run way out of spec. I'm just thinking if the first machine shop thought it was good enough, it could be. The second machine shop could be making things sound worse so they can make some money off of the deal

A properly operating Vacuum advance will result in less heat being generated by the engine under light load cruising. I used a vacuum advance from a later model Chrysler and cut the arm off, made a new arm for the flat head distributor and tacked it to the newer vacuum advance. I used vice grips as a heat sink. I only done this because I couldn't find a replacement vacuum advance in time for a event I wanted to attend but it worked fine. I did check how far the vacuum advance advanced the timing and was happy with the results. Sorry, no pictures.

I've seen a couple painted. I've heard painting aluminum reduces its ability to dissipate heat but I'm willing to bet it's not even measurable unless one puts 2mm thickness of paint on one. I bet a rattle can paint job wouldn't effect heat dispassion enough to matter. One would need to scuff up the aluminum tanks to give the paint something to bite onto.

On a couple cars I've had now where a direct replacement aluminum radiator was not available, I'd buy an aluminum radiator by the size and inlet/outlet placement then add brackets or modify as needed. Most might not have a high frequency TIG setup but you might have friends who do. I also don't care that it's aluminum vs original buy I understand why some would want to keep the original look. On my 48 dodge d24, I made the system pressurized and added a moonshine jug as a overflow tank effectively raising the boiling point as an extra measure of caution.

Jee! You've got a 58 Plymouth convertible! With bumper wings! WOW! What a car!

Nothing beats live music and old cars! Sounds like somebody put on an awesome event! Congrats on the people's choice!

I could be wrong but I'm betting you will st least the rear abs sensors and the frequency will need to match what the factory sensors and tone ring are looking for. The computers communicate with each other on a CAN bus and use these wheel speed sensors for everything like traction control, stability control, when and how aggressive to shift the transmission, electronic speedometer, etc. I'm fighting a few issues now with shifting on my car I'm building but I'm using a NAG1/5.7 hemi.

Glad you made it back! There's a few spare parts (not many) I carry with me in my trunk. Cap, rotor, points and belts along with enough tools to change them. Mainly because I know I can't get the ignition parts at most local parts stores. To condense space, I put the rotor and points inside the cap box. While ordering your parts, might think about ordering a spare set.

Here's a pic if the tone ring on my NAG1

I'm very interested in watching this thread..... cause I've thought if swapping the 3.6 and 8 speed myself. One thing I've run into with Chrysler products is the wheel speed sensors are monitored by the computers and on the NAG1, are used for shifting. I'm not sure about the 8 speed but I'd lay money on the fact you'll need to provide rear speed signals for the computer to allow proper shifts of the transmission. Something to keep in mind..... you may be able to put a tone ring on the driveshaft and mount the wheel speed sensors to read the tone ring.

I put a under dash vintage air in my 56 dodge. I'm happy with it. It would be better if the car was insulated better, especially the fire wall and if the weather strip sealed better but it keeps it comfortable in the car

This is exactly how I justify the money I spend on old cars! It's not a waste if I'm learning and get enjoyment from what I'm doing! Great job on the engine! Always a smile you can't hide when one fires for the first time after you've "brought it back from the dead"

I studied electronic technology on a 8088 processor.