Loren

The way I did it was to connect the OUT side to where the wipers originally connected on the manifold. Then the suction side to the wipers. This way the engine's vacuum contributes to the cause. You can confirm the inlet/outlets by starting the engine without any connections except the fuel.

Here's my take on a PCV setup. I used all common GM parts simply because they are available CHEAP. In these photos you will see the Road Draft Tube from my 49 P17. Not all Plymouths have the same parts. I have seen a single piece tube with a bolt holding it in place. This one has a filter and is in two pieces. What I like about is you can "put it back to stock" really quickly ( if that matters ). On mine the outlet pipe was spot welded in 4 places and there was a gap around it. I brazed the outlet pipe in to seal it. The GM grommet just pushes in and the rolled edge of the road draft tube holds in. When you push in the PCV valve it is locked in place very well. There is a groove inside the grommet that would lock the PCV valve in place but I suspect you'd never get it apart again once in the Road Draft Tube. NAPA P/N 630-1038 Grommet P/N 2-9220 PCV valve. The manifold photo shows the plug I spoke of earlier. The plug on the top surface of the runner to cylinders 5 & 6 is the vacuum connection for the wipers. Ideally you'd want to use the bigger connection for the PCV. There are alternatives of course. If you don't want to be boring holes in your nice manifold you can get a vacuum connection plate on eBay for a South Wind heater. They are made for just about every kind of one and two barrel carburetor. I have seen ones for your Stromberg WW for around $8.

In your photo ( at the top ) of the manifold, just under the choke inlet there's a boss. On my 49 ( single barrel ) manifold. that boss is drilled and tapped ( plugged however ) for the vacuum connection to the PCV. I don't know why they didn't drill and tap the later manifold but that is where it goes. I have the same manifold and it is not drilled either. Upon further inspection of my parts I found that somebody had milled the intake manifold at the ports by about an 1/8th of an inch! If I milled that much off the exhaust manifold it would not be good. The web between the adjacent ports would disappear. So I am going to spray weld the intake to build it back up. Since I am doing that I will skin the exhaust at the ports and the heat riser area, then spray weld them as well. Once the welding is done I can bolt them together and machine the port surface at the same time. Here's the photo of the "Emission Control Filter" from NAPA. This one is the most common GM type. It's hell getting old! they used to have them on a rack where you could pick through them. Now since carburetors are for antiques they put them in back on the shelves and you have to know what you want because the counter kids weren't born yet!

I am working on a Power-Pack manifold and Bendix-Stromberg WW carburetor as we speak. I found an Air Cleaner on eBay for a 1957 Plymouth V8 which uses a dry paper filter and fits the Stromberg. So because you asked I will go to NAPA and get that piece. ( photo to follow ) When I got my 52 Suburban it had two die cast hose fittings screwed to the top of the oil bath filter. It was a California car and I am guessing had been retro fitted with their version of PCV. Of course there was never any provision made for spare parts so if one thing is missing from a retro-fit kit it became non-functional. On an Oil bath the air passage creates a 180 degree corner the air has to go around. Centrifugal force causes dirt to land on the surface of the oil and become trapped. Most of the body of an oil bath filter is made up of a silencing chamber. The more posh Special Deluxe cars got the big filter and the cheapy Deluxe got the little filter. Since I've owned both I can tell you it is real noticeable. Carl Kiekhaefer in his NASCAR racing program carefully dyno tested his Chrysler engines looking for advantages, within the rules of course. The first phone call to Chrysler had to of been about oil bath air filters. At the top end they really robbed the engine of air flow and he would have noticed that right away. If you are going to use an oil bath I'd look over the diagrams in the download section. I have several 2 carb manifolds and considered using them with the Deluxe style oil bath air cleaners modified to use dry filters. That would allow the use of the side filter described above. They may be more efficient that way but they will be louder. I am hoping the 57 filter ( which has the silencing chamber ) will be silent.

The one on the far right with the hose connection should be plumbed to the air cleaner. Usually to the side of a dry filter housing. Most auto parts stores have a plastic part that goes in the inside with a piece of foam ( or other filter material ) that has a clip on the outside. The idea being it is not on the vacuum side of the paper filter. I made the mistake of piping a breather to my transmission ONCE, on the vacuum side and almost sucked all the lube out. The tip off was the cloud of oil smoke following the car at WOT. If you use a filter type filler cap, then the system is not considered "Closed". There has to be a vent ( into the crankcase ) as the engine at idle can build up a whole lot of vacuum and suck in the engine oil. With the filter I described above you have a "Closed" system as the engine vacuum sucks in the crankcase vapors ( when there is vacuum, like idle ) and the carburetor sucks them in under WOT conditions. Either way the blowby gets burnt. The point of the "Road Draft Tube" was to create a low pressure in the crankcase by the air passing under the car. The oil filler cap served to allow air to enter the crankcase to prevent oil being sucked out the road draft tube. Seems like such a no brainer that they should have been using PCV all along! But again I believe it was the General that discouraged automotive innovation in the post war era.

When they make the cores for the inside of the coolant area, they use wire to hold the cores together so they don't suffer "Core Shift." Some times they don't get all of the wire out. Some times they don't get all the sand out either! A friend got a real good deal on a new Edsel because it would only run on 7 cylinders. The factory hadn't gotten the sand out of one of the intake runners. Fast forward a few decades and another friend who worked at a Mercedes dealer said one of their cars had a blocked off runner in its intake manifold. So this is an on going issue with manufacturers. Here's a photo of a piece of cast iron I took out of a Chrysler Industrial 265 cylinder head.

I have heard of folks drilling out the lead plugs and I believe Mike’s Carburetor has the replacements. However, I really like my ultrasonic cleaner. It does a surprisingly good job of removing crud. If I were doing a rebuild I would see whats available then proceed. There’s no reason you can’t bring one up to like new standards.

This mornings update: I called Bob's Classic Auto Glass. (541) 925-3260 For the two windshields in clear $130. For less than a tank of gas they will ship them UPS and I don't have to spend a day driving to get them when they are done. When you think about the cost of the gasket I have to change anyway, the glass is CHEAP! They sell the gaskets from Steele as well. For perspective I had to replace the windshield in my MB GLK 250: $525 wholesale! That was two years ago and it already has two rock chips in it right in the driver's line of sight. Everyday I find more things to like about the KT Keller Plymouths! ( 1949-52 ) My next major improvement is a seat bottom from a Special Deluxe. The P17 version lacks the number of springs I'd like to have and I feel like I am sitting on the floor.

You know if it were a special deluxe I think I would get the tint. But a P17 Deluxe is not a car that came that way and the fact that it has no chrome kind of chinches it. I had thought about getting the windshield chrome and the gasket that goes with it but decided against it. New they were the cheapest MoPar you could buy. Used they were considered "Transportation Cars" and found on the back row of used car lots. I don't want to stray too far from that reality. However, tint at the top was really cool in the day and only found on really nice cars. I would do it without hesitation on a Special Deluxe!

My windshield gasket leaked badly so I got a new one and now I am in the middle of changing it. Surprise...while my 52's windshield tipped out the front the 49 goes in from the inside. Now that I have it out and cleaned up I am not liking the discoloration from the rubber on the edges ( kind of a brown ) and water marks in the lower corners. There are no cracks or chips that I can see but 74 years of aging can be seen. A.B. wants $168 for a clear one ( I can't tell if that is one piece or the whole windshield ) and they want 4 weeks to supply it. That cost is reasonable but the delivery time is too much. Has anyone got any experience with their windshield? Should I wait or find a shop to cut one locally?

California enacted a PCV mandate years ago ( again decades ago ). My Dad had a 55 Ford Courier Sedan Delivery with lots of miles on it. When they hooked up the now sealed crankcase and started the engine, it had enough blowby that pressure built up and pushed oil out the rear main seal. I know for a fact that old 272 cid V8 was tired beyond any reasonable service but it started and that's all he cared about. So will they help with oil leaks? It depends. lol On a new engine it will keep the oil clean and that means longer life, on an old worn out engine maybe not. PCV valves have evolved a little. Most are just controlled vacuum leaks and some have a "one way" valve to prevent an intake backfire from doing any damage. That's what rattles when you shake them. Carburetor cars should have the one way valve, fuel injected cars can get away with just an orifice. Pep Boys used to sell a gizmo that plugged into the oil fill pipe that had a 3/4 inch flex pipe you pointed at the intake of your air cleaner. It didn't put vacuum on the crankcase but it did redirect the blowby to where it could be burnt. There's no reason you couldn't fabricate your own PCV system using standard stuff you can get from one of the auto parts stores. Just know you will need to give the idle mixture and speed a tweak afterwards. On a couple of engines I've seen two kinds of "Road Draft Tubes" One is just a bent tube with a hole for the mounting bolt. The other has a round end that goes into the block with a filter in it. I know I've seen that same round filter type with a fitting for the pipe to the PCV. Anyway if I made up one that's the part I'd start with. Put a generic PCV "anti-back fire one way valve" in it with a rubber grommet and a tube to the intake manifold. I like that filter idea a lot.

A PCV system is a must ( even on race cars ). The products of combustion are many but most notable is water vapor. When it mixes with Hydrochloric Acid ( another product of combustion ) it forms sludge. Modern motor oil has additives to control the acid but the water is left up to the engine. Putting the crankcase under a small vacuum pulls the water out thus preventing the formation of sludge. When you remove the oil pan of an old engine you might find a grey sludge at the very bottom under the black sludge. This is lead from the fuel and blowby past the pistons. You won't be seeing that much anymore so check it out. The government finally required car makers to install PCV systems in 1965. As you can see Chrysler was way ahead of the game. I can speculate as to why they didn't start putting them on all their cars in 1948 and the reason could be the General. Watch the movie "Tucker" and you will understand. If the General didn't invent it nobody else could use it, for as was said "What's good for General Motors is good for the U.S.A." And they certainly thought the opposite was true, "What is bad for General Motors has to be bad for the U.S.A." When you look at the Chrysler system it was not primitive in any way. There are some variations but they all work pretty much the same way even 85 years later.

That looks super! I got a call from my upholstery guy the other day. Its been months but I am okay with that because my Suburban has no engine right now. Anyway he's done with the seats. He asked me why I was having them done for a car with no engine? Truth is I couldn't bear to look at it with a rat's nest where the driver sits. The door cards being crappy I can live with for a while. I am thinking of making them out of plastic and then covering them with upholstery material.

A previous owner of my car had done a clutch job and the throwout bearing was louder than it should have been, so when I put the overdrive transmission in I changed it with a new one from AB. The new one was every bit as loud! I found a new old stock T.O. Bearing with the sleeve on eBay and I am certain it will be silent. So I think your instincts are correct the Chinese bearings A.B. Sells are not original quality and they make noise. Might last forever but that’s only to annoy you till you change with a U.S. made bearing. Just my humble opinion.

I have used every ring compressor known to man and I have to say I’ve hated them all. That is until I bought a Total Performance tapered and slotted Ring made by a piston ring company. It’s a hard anodized aluminum ring with a slot in it, then its made adjustable with a hose clamp. I could not find a solid one in the size I needed so I found this one which covered all the possible sizes for this one type of engine. Pricey at $65 at Summit Racing but….that darn thing works! It came with no instructions which kind of bothered me. Knowing the skirt is larger than the ring lands I adjusted there. Lubed up the bore, the compressor and the piston and everything goes together with nearly thumb pressure ( but use the handle of small hammer or mallet ). Almost effortless ( by comparison )and extremely controllable. The pistons I was installing were 3 ring pistons and so they are pretty easy. On a 4 ring piston I think I’d spend the money again with even greater satisfaction! Only issue with these is you can’t use them on a VW or Porsche, you’re stuck with the band and ratchet plier type. Which is a great reason never to work on one of those again. lol

The line on the manifold goes to the exhaust side of the pump. A metal line works best. The suction side goes to the wiper motor. This way if the engine has more vacuum than the pump it will suck through the pump. Such as going down hill with the throttle closed.

I stopped by our local lumber yard and snapped a photo of the place you can find the couplers. Hillman Couplers.heic

Leaving hand brake on is a rite of passage for old Plymouth owners. When on a foggy late night my car suddenly stopped on its own and refused to move, I was worried. When tendrils of smoke appeared between me and the dashboard my imagination took off. I opened the car door and looked up and there was only a street light ( no alien space craft ) so looked under the car and there was this bright orange glow! Now I was thinking OMG! “Its the subterranean Martians! And you know they are the worst kind!” Looking further under the car there was the brake band emitting the bright orange light I saw reflecting on road. Looking all around me I was alone on the road and thinking “I am telling no one about this. This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever done!” Hey I was only 20 and I’ve had a lot of practice doing stupid things since then. When I installed the overdrive in my P17 ( 111 inch wheelbase ) I did not want to change the hand brake cable which of course was 7 inches too short. True Value hardware stores and Tractor Supply use the same hardware supplier ( and my “Old timer’s” is kicking and I can’t remember the name ) Anyway if you go to where the metal is to get the rod you need you will only find course thread couplers there. However if you go to where the hardware & bolts are they will have fine thread couplers in the drawers. They are very sneaky! In our little town ( population 2,200 ) the hardware store is True Value and they don’t have much but our Lumber yard gets their hardware from the same outfit and they had them. The coupler was priced at twice the money as the course threaded one but they had it! For a first class job I bought a jam nut to lock the coupler to the cable then screwed the extension in till it bottomed on the cable to lock it. You could use two but I thought that would be redundant.

12 pack and a Sawzall. When I was a little kid we had a 49 Mercury two door club coupe. It was blue and looked exactly like the James Dean Merc that went over the cliff into the sea. My Mom was pulling out of a driveway just in time for a speeding drunk in a new 54 Ford to T-bone her. The impact “printed” the front end of the Ford so deeply into the side of the Merc that you could tell what kind of a car hit it. Much like the print of a bird on a window. My Dad decided he wanted the wreck and got it back from the insurance company. Since the damage was on the driver’s side he didn’t have to look at in front of the house, only the neighbors did. With the driver’s door wired shut, you got into the car in a “peeking order” driver first. I think the fact that the accident was so bad and the car was still driving, people thought it had just happened and my Dad was fleeing the scene. He did drive rather fast all the time. After a while I think that began to bother him. He came up with this wild idea of sawing off the roof to make it a pickup. He never said it but so modified everyone knew it was a recycled wreck. That never would have happened if he hadn’t had a friend in the boat business who had an air powered reciprocating saw ( this was before Milwaukee invented the Sawzall ). Now sawing off the roof at the rear ( now gone ) seat opened new possibilities for mischief! He would seek out those folks who were careless in their parking and literally slip the Mercury between two cars taking up three spaces. Then he’d exit the car by climbing over the seat out the back. Yes he was that kind of a guy. In driving, today we would say, he had no filter, he spoke his mind with action. Just like most people now days who own pickups, he never once carried anything in the back. I think he liked that car. How do I know? The one and only time I ever saw him change oil in a car was that Mercury. Happily I figured it out as a child that you are not responsible for the behavior of your parents. 12 pack indeed.

A caution for all, do not forget to put the cotter pins back in! I would add that you shouldn't reuse them either. When you lose a wheel it is always in the middle of an intersection and its mighty hard to find a jack that fits under a car without a wheel. Don't ask me how I know this!

If you have the right tool the drums are easy to get off. I bought one of those cheap Chinese hub pullers because it looked like an old American one. Could not get the drums off. Then a friend gave me an old one he had used. The main difference was heft. This thing is heavy! I set myself up for a tough afternoon of beating on this thing. BAMM! It came apart just like in the movies! There is a thing I've been thinking of. The Model A guys are now getting 12x2 inch Bendix type backing plates ( and Lincoln Drums ) reproduced in China to replace the stock mechanical brakes. The whole setup is like Lincoln Zephyr brakes only with the self energizing Bendix system. Some may know it's really easy to add the self adjusting feature as well. What attracted me to this is the possibility of drilling them to fit the Plymouth steering knuckles without having to change them to Chrysler pieces. Next up would be to find a brake drum to substitute for the Chrysler drums that you could rivet to the Plymouth hubs. The supplier to the parts houses is in California and I figured I could take a Plymouth steering knuckle to them and see how they fit. In this way you could get all the advantages folks see in the Bendix system with off the shelf parts and retain drum brakes. The rear brakes can be had with cable parking brakes if desired. It kind of checks all the boxes. My only complaint is the cost maybe higher than finding used Chrysler brakes. Lastly if you want to know what the gear ratio is in your rear axle here is a photo of a cleaned up housing. You will find it stamped on the flat under the fill plug. They didn't always stamp them the same way or with the same size stamps but if you will look you will find.

How about just changing the differential carrier? It’s a lot less work and your car is still stock. You can get a 3.53 ratio easily from one of the Mopar V8s up to 1956. Somebody said they were too hard to find. It took me all of 5 minutes to find 4 in the same wrecking yard. While I was looking I found a rare positive ground 6 volt Delta Mark Ten CDI, so it wasn’t a bad afternoon! My local Craigslist had an advert for a pile of the up to 56 rear ends for free, come and get them!

I had an old hub a PO had cut the rivets out and put studs in. When I got a new set of 6 inch wide steel wheels I used the hub as a drill jig to drill the hole for the alinement stud. Turned out super! If I were doing it again that’s the way I’d do it. For the rivet heads, you only have to “spot” it where they live. Of course you don’t have to remove all the rivets and the drum. You only need one then index the hub to the next rivet.

In keeping with this thread I uploaded to the Download section of this site Barney Navarro's October 1952 Hop Up magazine article "The truth about cams" parts 1 and 2. It includes some great period advertisements that some of us might remember from our Dad's car magazines ( as none of us are that old, right? )

Truth About Cams by Barney Navarro View File An October 1952 article from Hop Up magazine by Barney Navarro with guidance from Ed Winfield. Mr Navarro was a well known hot rodder at the time and a manufacturer of speed equipment. His equipment is now being reproduced by H & H Flatheads. One of his projects was a "Stock Block" AMC 6 cylinder which qualified for the Indy 500! I asked him about it and he replied, "That engine was highly dependent on turbocharging." You could read a great deal from his comment. Submitter Loren Submitted 01/16/2023 Category Reference Information