Tony_Urwin

Pep Boys sells them in the nice plastic packages along with a drill bit for $5 or $6. Maybe the other chain stores, too? It's a pretty good idea to buy a set, though, if you are going to work on old cars. I used mine today to clean the rusty threads on my cylinder head.

I'd like to replace the 5 1/4" single wide pulley with a 5 1/4" dual narrow. I'm open to suggestions. I won a 5 1/4" narrow water pump pulley on eBay (a single), but it is a different depth than the stocker. Hasn't arrived yet. Maybe I'll weld a wide and narrow together, who knows. Charlie Akers is working on a similar issue, and maybe he will solve it before I do. I painted the seat frame and re-uphostered the seat cushion a few days ago. I'm not going to replace the seat for a day or two since I am in the process of wiring an amplifier under the seat. So the truck is not going anywher right now. I'll take the truck out for a few short drives after I replace the seat, but right now I am still running the 6 1/2" dual narrow water pump pulley and electric fan combo that was on the truck when it overheated.

Finished installing all new hoses and fired up the truck this afternoon. Let it come up to temp and then re-torqued the head bolts with the engine running. I was surprised at how much they loosened up. Most of the bolts took about a half turn to bring them back to spec. I had sandblasted the head before I took it to the machine shop. Over the weekend, I re-painted the head with silver POR-15 engine paint. I had bought several cans when I painted the engine on my DeSoto. That engine came out a nice shade of silver. Maybe the paint got too cold over the winter, but the head turned out a lovely shade of light green. Oh well.... The bigger problem is the 2 bolts that mount the bracket for the oil filter canister. Problem is, I can't find 'em. A 5/16" coarse thread bolt isn't big enough to catch the threads and a 3/8" bolt is too big. Anyone have any idea what size bolts I should use?

How many (and which type) bulbs depends on your truck. The previous owner had wired my park lights with Signal-Stat sockets for dual filament bulbs. Yours may have single filament bulbs, most do. two bulbs for the speedo, two for the instrument cluster...Just take your old bulbs down to the auto parts store and buy 12V equivalents. The 12V bulbs are a lot easier to find than 6V these days. headlights are sealed beam.

The starter spins faster @ 12V, and may wear out faster, I don't know. I haven't been 12V for long enough to tell. Some of the other guys may have a comment there. If you want to swith to a 12V solenoid, George Asche (or more likely, his son) will refurbish your starter and rewire it for 12V. There must be 12V starters and solenoids available since they made these engines up into the 1960's... I installed a Painless Performance wiring harness in my '48 Dodge truck, not because it was necessary, but because I had frayed wiring everywhere. The Painless kit (with free shipping) cost me $275 on eBay. There are cheaper wiring kits available, or you can even make your own. The Painless kit installation took about a six pack, and it really was painless. The wires are labeled every 6 inches or so ........left front park light.....left front park light.....left front park light..... so even a knucklehead like me can do it.

Vintage Power Wagons sells one, but you can save a bunch by putting it together yourself. Check out the kit on their website, and source the parts yourself.

Too much. I'm at work right now, so I don't have the invoice, but I ordered a new head gasket (the kind with copper on both surfaces), 18 head bolts, 3 studs, and 6 nuts. Cost with shipping was about $105.00. Probably would have been much cheaper to use Chevy bolts like you did. I was at work when I ordered them, and thought I could save some time by ordering everything at once. Wrong.... It took 9 days before the parts arrived. Another reason I'm not too crazy about Vintage Power Wagons right now: I explained that I wanted studs to mount a 1/2" plate on the head, and 6 nuts so that I could remove the A/C bracket without loosening the cylinder head. Still, when the studs arrived, they were only long enough to use one nut. Previously, I ordered reproduction taillights and taillight brackets from them. When they arrived, the taillights wuld not fit the brackets. I called, and they told me that the repro lights were not standard and wouldn't fit any standard brackets. Seems like they could have mentioned that when I ordered the combination. They seem nice enough on the phone. Maybe I've just been unlucky with them.

I'm looking for another water pump pulley for my B1C. Anyone have an extra that they are willing to part with?

The head bolts that I ordered from Vintage Power Wagons came with sealant on the first 3/4" of the threads.

I can't be much help there- My Hollanders is 1946-56 edition. Sometimes it show earlier years, like the entry that shows '37-52 Plymouths rear spring interchange. The book shows '41-52 Chrysler 6 cyl rear spring interchange except Crown Imp. Same springs as the 37-52 Plymouth, 38-52 Dodge 6, 39-52 DeSoto 6. here's what the listing says: 1 3/4" Wide 24 13/16 x 28 13/16 x (RB1) 1 9/32 x 7/8 I couldn't tell you what all those dimensions mean. RB1 is the Incased Rubber Bushing (looks like 1 9/32, but the print is too small and blurry for my old eyes)

It does seem strange but my Hollander's (I mis-typed hollister's before) does show interchangeability for those years. Maybe it just means that they interchange, not that they are the same.

My Hollister's says that '37-'52 Plymouth rear springs are all the same.

I don't know what happened to my draft card. I drew 315 in the draft lottery, thank God. What's this got to do with post-war Mopars? My draft card was Muscle-car vintage.

As I mentioned in an earlier thread, I blew a head gasket when I was trying out A/C brackets and pulleys. A new gasket, new head bolts, and 3 studs (to secure the A/C compressor bracket) are on the way. Yesterday I watched the machinist clean up the head. After he milled .010 off, there was still some mild pitting between the cylinders, so I had him take off another .005. Perfectly clean now. Makes me a little nervous to take off so much though. This engine was rebuilt in 2000, and the head was probably cleaned up back then, as well. Any re-assembly tips from the skilled mechanics out there? Should I use anti-sieze on the bolts? Do any bolts need thread sealant? Gasket spray?

My '52 DeSoto has the oval holes.

I'm pretty sure that it would fit your head. They don't come cheap. You could always visit your local plumbing shop and make your own. They are NPT thread. I think Norm did his that way.

I found the oval ones at a tire dealer that serviced a lot of fleet trucks.

http://autopia.org/forum/index.php Quite a bit of info here, Bob.

Good luck, James. When I replaced the steering gear in my '48 Dodge truck, I couldn't remove the steering gear through the front suspension unless I first removed the pitman arm. I had to remove the floor pan (they come out in the trucks), and take the steering gear out the driver's door.

I'll bet more than one owner tossed the little elbow on top of the water pump, thinking it was part of the pump. Here's a pic of the heater valve in my '48 Dodge truck. Operated with a cable like the one in the other photo. One side is closed with a pipe plug. Probably these are the type used on the cars with two heaters.

Water pump speed is the problem for sure. It overheated while I was driving at highway speed. I filled the radiator after the headbolts were all installed, but before I ran the engine. I'm sure you're right about the level dropping a little. Today I sandblasted the head (saves $10 at the machine shop). They will mill the surface for $30. I ordered the head gasket, 18 new head bolts, also 3 studs, and 6 nuts to mount the A/C bracket. Total $100 at Vintage Power Wagons. I'll be more careful with the assembly this time.

No testing done on this engine ever. It ran like a top when I got it, and started right up every time. The PO's receipts showed a $2700 complete rebuild in 2000. Of course, he also had a receipt for a kingpin replacement, and that kingpin is so tight that it will have to be done again.

Norm, I will replace the gasket, and have the machine shop mill a bit off the head for insurance. A little extra compression can't hurt, right?

My parts book calls it a bolt, but you are right, it is a special kind of smooth pin with a grease fitting on the end. Be sure that you orient the new pin correctly when you install it. It has a groove in the bottom that is indexed to the retaining bolt that clamps it into the bracket.

For what it's worth, my 48 B1C has an engine code that begins with T142, and the 15" wheels have a bolt pattern of 5 x 5.