Tooljunkie

Hello, need to pick the collective brain. as i am in the process of going through the front end of my 49 fargo i took notice of the long tie rod end, it has a pretty good arc to it. Im wondering if this is the way it should be or should it be straight? this truck Appears to have had a rough life on the farm where it came from and this may be something i need to correct. thanks in advance for you help.

Wait! Same u-joint? i thought the u-joints were hard to find. At least through all my searches i havent found a current useable number.

Jeez, i just had a cherokee In the shop yesterday for some brake work. Never thought of measuring it. im sticking with the 9-1/4 rear. 8.25 is plenty strong, cant do much with 500 hp unless you add weight to back end. 7-1/4” peg leg is a grenade with the pin pulled.

Kind of irrelevant but not really. when i did a big block swap in a 59 regent,i used a full size truck as a donor for the swap. e-brake was now in the rear axle,some universal cables got that working. Moved the perches to fit the car springs. I cut whatever i needed off old frame to get the mounts. same for transmission. I built what was needed. the trick is centering, rear diff is offset, engine needed to be offset in engine bay to match driveline angles. Its not much, but will prevent driveline vibration. be prepared to remove/install engine several times, i think for me it was 4 times. at that time i retrofitted power steering And floor shift for transmission. all parts were modified to fit the car. its do-able,welding is a must. it took me a total of 5 weeks start to finish,and the end result was worth it. the 218 in my fargo will stay put as long as it keeps breathing, but if a con rod plays peek-a-boo i wouldnt think twice about a 318/904 swap. was the original plan, but the seized engine did come back to life, and runs suprisingly nice.

I have to first admit i didnt read the whole thread,its pretty long and i need to get ready for work soon. i skipped to the end only to find you are still working on the car. Awesome! i would enjoy helping/teaching a young person that is taking interest in the old iron. All the younguns around here wanna roll coal. And dump tens of thousands into a current model vehicle and have nothing special at the end of it. i can truly respect the work you are doing,and my hat’s off to your parents for supporting and raising a determined young man. I did have a friend’s nephew hang out off and on for a couple years, and we had a good time. we talked about everything, family, work and friends and the importance of all of them. he now has full time work in the construction industry,and secured year round work mainly due to his work ethics. I can see from this project you will do well in the future,pat yourself on the back, you deserve it!

If the mods find find this objectionable, feel free to delete. I would like to bring forward the contact info of a supplier i found for chassis parts available in canada (winnipeg). i had a good conversation with him today, located king pin set, brake hoses ,wheel seals,wheel cylinders and dust caps for my 49 Fargo. he has been in business for many years and is very knowledgeable. Mid Canada Suspension. Norm. 1-204-475-3399 the only reason im posting is to help others in search of hard to find parts. some are nos, some used and and some repops, with reasonable prices.

Some nice country there. My buddy’s daughter got a deer early in the season when they werent so timid, i think she got 100 yards from her truck When one trotted out. Was only a few minutes of hunting. last few days have been cold and windy,makes hunting miserable.

Some great info, as i was looking at the shocks while pressing out my king pins yesterday. They need to be renewed too.

I used a deep socket, stacked a couple nuts inside to fill the deep void in the socket. The nut on the column was loosened only a couple threads. wire up through nuts to prevent damage. A little lift on wheel and a couple raps on socket with a hammer and wheel popped right off.

Emery leaves abrasives embedded in the contacts, a tungsten file is whats recommended.

Point file. They used to be available in every parts store. hastings was one vendor i recall.

One reason is there is a bolt In kit to do the s10 swap. early s-10 frames left a lot to be desired in weld quality, had a 4wd that broke a front diff housing. What happened was control arm brackets were pulling away from frame. personally if i was doing a swap, my preference would be a dakota chassis,to keep it all mopar do like how this is going though.

This is what i was referring to.

I like the patina, but i agree. That buggy needs to look like new. i feel the same about my cushman lobsters. They need to be restored.

Eastwood makes a scotchbrite flapwheel. That should do it. any reason you cant leave paint?

And a gasket of course... i was going to mention my housing is a flat piece and a pipe. Im thinking a mid 70’s stat housing might fit as well.

Same here, just dropped in a 318 thermostat and same gasket for 318 works too. Will have to wait until summer to see if slant 6 rad is up to the task.

Iphone user? Tremec app assists with the angles you need.

Glad you got it running

I just put a new gates Pump on my 49 fargo. Pulley rubbed housing i made a spacer to go behind pulley and all is good now. Why it rubbed im not sure. I was more concerned with solving the problem at hand.

Thanks, that gave me some more insight on my problem. seeing as i worked late in shop today, customer is happy and i can bring Fargo in for an extra day. so i will work on cab mounts,transmission mounts and engine mount

I agree, i use a universal long life, good for 5 years. A flush really isnt necessary,drain and fill with fresh will replenish the corrosion inhibitors and water pump lubricant. flushing would be necessary if coolant is causing sediment to start forming. just had a 15 year old truck in for that very reason, plugged the heater core. That stuff is nasty. chrysler now has 10 year coolant. Purple and expensive. Its fiat engineering.

No stop lights in my neck of the woods.

I have in my ball joint press kit,have to be careful not to distort yoke.

Yup whack on welded part of driveshaft an it should force the cup out of pinion yoke. Sometimes a big vise grip to pull cup out the rest of the way.