harmony

I'm going to assume that you're assembly is the came as my C38 ('48 Chrysler) If so, yes, there is a nut and it's a square nut and it sort of stays in place, so you just hold your finger against it until the bolt threads start. After that it's fixed in place and it will stay there without turning. I'm guessing that you want your car to be as authentic as possible. Because you're really not going to have a need for this gadget there in California. You're fortunate to have an NOS one though. I got my replacement spring from AB and someone in China, decided to assemble the bimetal pieces together backwards. It was wound the right way but it worked in reverse. It took a few head scratches to figure that one out for sure.

Today, I used the die grinder to oversize the opening, until the copper/brass adapter portion slid in. Then the next issue arose. The thick rubber seal was about almost 1/8" too thick. So rather than trying to cut it down, which might have caused leaking issues if I didn't get a perfectly cut, I decided to bend the two protruding tabs on the adapter, down as far as I could. In the pictures below you can see the difference from when it came out of the box and how much I had to bend the tabs in order to make it all fit snugly. I had it so that adapter was just a little bit proud of the housing. That way once it was assembled and the bolts tightened, the thick rubber seal would compress slightly. Then the next challenge was assembling it. I was fighting gravity. Not only that but the housing has to be slid in so as to connect with the small short bypass hose coming off water pump assembly. I thought maybe if I used Permatex gasket maker on all the parts and both sides of the base gasket, that it would stay in place until I got the housing in place. Not a chance, and everything fell to the floor. So round two,,,,, I got all the parts in place again, rubber spacer, thermostat, copper/brass adapter, and the base gasket, by holding the thermostat housing upside down. Then I used a steel rule to hold everything in place by pressing on the bottom of the thermostat. Then I flipped the housing 180 degrees, and slid it into the bypass hose, while still keeping upwards pressure on all the parts with the steel rule. Once I got the bolts started in the holes and threaded in almost all the way, I slid out the steel rule, and I can only assume that at that point nothing shifted out of place. Wow! what a job that was. Not for someone that doesn't like challenges.

Did it fit right out of the box?

Holy Shomoly!!!

I've bought what I'm thinking is an upgrade of the original thermostat. It's a NAPA #155. I went this route because I've read that guys that have bought the tall original style aftermarket ones don't open when they are supposed to. What the #155 does is it allows you to use a conventional thermostat. It comes with a thick rubber gasket that goes on the top of the thermostat and seats tight against the smaller opening inside the thermostat housing. After that rubber washer is in place the thermostat goes next, then there is a copper/brass, spacer that goes on the other end of the thermostat. That spacer should slip up inside the thermostat housing and sit in the provided lip. It's followed by the base washer and I'm sure it would be fun to get it all in place without it all falling out. Well I just got one and the copper/brass spacer is too big in diameter. By a fare amount. Somewhere between 1/16" and 1/8". It wasn't expensive and it comes with a 180 F thermostat, I won't be returning it. But there is no real way of modifying the spacer so my only choice is for me to get out the die grinder and make the inside diameter of the housing bigger until it slips in. I'll have to be very accurate because as you will see in one of the following pictures the lip is quite small. Even though the recess in the housing would have allowed for a much bigger lip, which I've shown in one of the pictures with the adapter slid over to one side. Now I know people have said to just buy a new housing and turn the one I have into a door stop. But keep in mind this project is to just see if this engine will run and if it has decent compression. Who's to say that the opening in a new housing is any different than the one I have anyways. If it passes the running & compression test, I'll probably try to get the fluid drive operational while it's on the run engine stand. Assuming the generator, regulator, and trans relay are operational. But first things first. I'm wondering if anyone has bought this NAPA 155 thermostat kit? In the last picture I flipped the spacer upside down, just to illustrate that the lip could have been a bit larger.

True enough, however after owning a '46 Windsor parts car, that I stripped down to every nut and bolt, as well as reconditioning and rebuilding that Static '47 Royal from the frame up, and owning Harmony, my '48 Windsor for a number of years, I have noticed quite a few variations between them. Minor things you wouldn't notice until you dug deep into them.

Which is why I called my car Harmony. That and the fact that when I drive her, I'm in total Harmony with her. I was made for this car. As for the polishing, I have a plastic orange crate on wheels with a padded seat and a back on it. I use Autosol and an electric tooth brush. But I have to take several back breaks during the process. Or perhaps they are boredom breaks. ?

I love that kind of publication. Too bad there wasn't one for my car.

What is that book that you have there?

When we got the car, it was in many pieces, and multiple cardboard boxes full of stuff, and that was one of the items that didn't show up. So I decided to go without it and nobody has ever mentioned it,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, until now!! ?

I was rebuilding/reconditioning a '47 Chrysler a few years ago. This car was turned into a static car. Meaning it was never going to be driven. It was a project initiated by an Extended Care unit of a local Hospital. Specifically to add a smile to the patients that had memory issues. They get to sit in in and bring back memories. Our car club took on the project and we got most of the things done that I couldn't do at material costs only. As for the cost of the bumpers, because of the long sides on the bumper the local chrome shops couldn't take on the job because even though length wise they would fit in the tank, they were just too wide. So that would mean they would have to go to a larger chrome shop on the mainland in an extra large tank. The price for that was $2000. Plus the ferry fees both ways adding another $300. So I decided to make some changes that nobody really notices unless it's pointed out to them, by looking in behind the bumperette where you can see the split in the bumper. I cut the bumpers right where the bumperettes are. Then welded on some brackets and studs, making them a bolt together bumper. That way the local chrome shop could do the job since they were now much more condensed. Probably not everybody's cup of tea. But it worked fine for the purpose of the car, and saved a huge amount of money. The chrome shop donated the labour costs, so their bill was minimal. since they didn't charge us for the chemical use either. The bumper brackets are positioned so that the end pieces are supported, so once it was all bolted together it was just as sturdy and strong as if it was one piece.

I've read a couple things that make common sense to me in this thread so far. 9 foot box made a good point for those that believe the clearance setting is critical. With that in mind a guy should have a feeler gauge for each tappet, if accuracy is that important. Then throw each of them in a drawer marked shim stock material after one single use. The other interesting thing I read was " It's better to hear them than to smell them" I believe that the process is subject to an individuals interpretation of "snugness" If a guy usually drives his car as a grocery getter as well as going back and forth across town from home to his shop most of the time, but then once or twice a month during summer months he goes on a 2 hour highway cruise with his buddies, is he really going to pull the wheel and inner fender and replace the side plate gaskets each time, just so he can get the tappets set just right? According to his interpretation of "snugness" of course, which is probably different than the next guy anyways. I set mine cold, allowing 2th. on each one. I hear a particular sound when the engine is cold, and another particular and slightly different sound when the engine is warm. I might be off by one half of a th. on one of them maybe, but I don't stay awake thinking about it or find myself scrambling for the various tools that I'll need to pull that wheel and inner fender off again to correct my error.

Has anyone here ever tried the process of drilling holes in the drums themselves? I couldn't find the article in the download section here by C H Topping that greg g was referring to, but I did find it on line. Looks like they drill about 38 holes, using 2 rows with staggered holes. Perhaps 2 1/2" between holes. Looks like maybe 1/4" holes. http://www.chtopping.com/CustomRod4/

I did check the fluid level when I bought it a few years ago, no sign of leakage since then. But out of curiosity, I can't remember (refer to brain clutter reference above) do I check it when it's cold or warmed up?

Sometimes my brain gets a little like my shop at the end of the day. It's a little cluttered and it takes forever to find something. Even though I know it's there someplace. Such is the case in trying to remember what style my Fluid Drive is. I have a 1948 Chrysler Windsor. It is a 4 speed. I think it's referred to as a semi-automatic. But maybe that's a generic term. I believe it's an M-5 since it's a combination of electrics and hydraulics. I'm thinking the M-6 came out in 1949. Please correct me if I'm wrong, and right now, I can't remember the difference between the M-5 and the M-6. I'm curious if there is a published list of all the Chrysler Fluid Drives going back to 1939 or was it 1940? I'd love to see a spreadsheet style of particular type of Fluid Drives and years and what particular car it was installed on. I think they were used up to 1953-1954 in the Plymouth. Is that correct? But my real question is, should I get a bolt and put it in my glove box? Or will that trick only work on specific styles of the Fluid Drive. As many of you know, even though my column shift lever has an H pattern, pulling towards you and down, does nothing. All 4 forward gears are away from you. First and second-up, third and forth-down. The other part of the equation is the electrics on my Fluid Drive. If the bolt trick worked, would any of the wiring have to be disconnected or rewired? As a footnote my Fluid Drive works flawlessly thankfully. But the bolt in the glove box would make for a great conversation piece.

What size is the bolt and what threads and how long? I'm assuming that once the holes are lined up the bolt actually threads in, right?

The thermostat is going to look like this (see illustration) in the 251 engine for 1946-1948 Chrysler, according to my parts catalog. At least that's what I'm lead to believe. I don't really want to take the one out of my '48 Windsor, just to check to see if it matches the '46. The shape and size of the housing looks to be the same for my '46 251 and my '48 251. With the exception of the redneck add on. The thermostat is huge compared to the more modern style.

I actually do have an account with Rockauto, but the other thing I'm looking for is the odd ball thermostat, plus the round gasket that goes on the top of it. I can easily make the bottom gasket, but the top gasket might be a little tricky to make, since I don't have an old one as a sample. It's difficult to know how critical the id. measurement on that one is. The od. can be assessed by the step down in the casting where it sits. I'm pretty sure I don't have a holepunch that big so I'd have to cut it freehand. Rockauto don't show a listing for the thermostat & round top gasket. O'Rielly's show a picture of a thermostat, but it's the conventional size and shaped one, so I'd probably have to call them to be sure it is the correct thermostat. But thanks for reminding me about Rockauto. I might have to get stuff shipped from Rockauto and AB. The savings of the regulator from Rockauto, will at least cover my extra shipping expenses of two suppliers. I also want an oil pan gasket set, and probably a spare flasher, and maybe a spare horn relay, etc. etc.

Their "fine print" says they only ship to US. from the .com site. But maybe individual stores might ship here if I phone them.

Thanks, good to know

Good to know stuff. The next time I see that tube coming off the bottom part of the oil bath air cleaning, I'll now know what it's all about.

Thanks for the links. I didn't see anything relevant at Minaker's. Pre Sixties had one for my make and year, but it's only a 2 terminal regulator and I need the 3 terminal type. But thanks anyways.

I'm wanting to buy a voltage regulator for my '48 Chrysler Windsor. AB wants $135 US. O'Reilly wants $77 US. AB is on the other side of the continent. O'Reilly is just across the pond from me. I'm wondering if any Canadians have bought from them. Some companies south of the border won't ship to Canada so you have to have a US broker, which I have access to, but it's another additional expense and a bit of leg work. Some companies only use PayPal for international sales. Does anybody know what O'Reilly's policy is for us Canadians?

Do you think that will indicate if the engine was marine, industrial, automotive, etc?

Opps, yes I forgot to mention that the Town and Country had them too.